Volume I of this new Routledge collection focuses on theories of education. The gathered materials explore and analyse the impact of the classical Islamic period in history and the developments in education which have emanated from it. Volume II focuses on education in Eastern Europe and Muslim Asia, capturing the essential issues in each of the countries studied, and how they vary across a vast region. The impact of culture and modernization on traditional societies, as well as the ways in which westernized modes of education are introduced, and the aspirations of youth are in turn determined. Volume III looks at education in the Middle East and Muslim Africa. Islam has its origins in the Middle East, and today many of the challenges Muslims face in relation to Islam and education are concentrated in this region. Volume IV explores the education of Muslims in North America and Europe, and of minorities in advanced liberal secular democracies. Islam and Education is fully indexed and includes a comprehensive introduction newly written by the editor.

Islam has had a significant impact on world history, not only as a major religion that has directed the personal beliefs and actions of individuals, but also as the basis of a distinct system of government that has developed its own institutions, practices and philosophies. This new Routledge Major Work collection is concerned with the development of political thought in Islam. By political thought is meant, broadly, the study and interpretation of Islamic political culture, ideas, beliefs, and institutions; the contribution of key political theorists and authorities to the understanding or practice of governance; what people and groups believed about political authority and institutions and their political convictions; and how politics in the Islamic world has related to and interacted with other disciplines, such as religion, law, ethics, and philosophy. Although contemporary issues in Islamic political thought are very much in the public focus at the moment, this set also focuses on the history and development of Islamic political theories and thought, from their inception until the twentieth century. Political thought in the Muslim world is connected to its history and by understanding the past, those who study contemporary political thought will have a better grounding to understand current and future developments. Moreover, understanding how Islamic political thought developed also helps shed light on the political thought of other civilizations, such as Western political thought. Political thought in Islam did not develop in isolation -- it responded to and interacted with the political institutions and theories of other civilizations throughout history.

The history of the Islamic movement in Jordan displays glaring contrasts with its counterparts like Egypt, Iran, and Syria. In a marked departure from the frequent and bloody confrontations that have characterized Islamic opposition in these countries, the Jordanian Muslim Brothers have been nonviolent and often defended the state vis-à-vis the challenges of radical ideologies. This book explains the state-religion relationship in Jordan in terms of ideology, politics, class formation, and the relationship between the dominant classes and the Muslim Brothers.

In June 2010 IE Business School, with King Abdulaziz University, gathered in Madrid some of the world's foremost scholars, academics and practitioners of Islamic Economics and Finance. These highlights of the symposium and original articles specifically address the post-crisis application of this growing and relevant economic philosophy in Europe.

The debate over the underlying causes of the clash between Hindus and Muslims which continues to polarize India is the central concern of this volume. Syed Nesar Ahmad challenges popular viewpoints regarding the Hindu-Muslim conflict by asserting that, although instrinsic differences between the two cultures do exist and this schism has been somewhat fueled by the cultural conditions in colonial India, the emergence and growth of the conflict is primarily the result of social and economic forces, both global and regional, that has caused the initial differences to intensify into cultural rift. Ahmad presents a thorough account of Indian history during the 19th and 20th centuries, analyzing how the relationship between Hindus and Muslims has been shaped by each significant political and social development. Evidence of both selectivism and assimilation between Hindus and Muslims, a concept not previously accepted, is apparent throughout the history, and the issue of the origins of the identity of the Muslim consciousness which now exerts such influence in the region is explained in terms of the interaction of religious, social, cultural, and global factors. By viewing India's struggle for its post-colonial identity from this comprehensive historical perspective, this work illuminates some of the fundamental causes of similar conflicts throughout the former colonial world.

Mawlana Mawdudi was one of the most influential and important Islamic thinkers of the modern world, whose brand of political Islam has won widespread acceptance in South and South East Asia as well as the Middle East. He was not only an Islamic scholar, but also a journalist and political activist who founded the Jama?at-i-Islami, which has subsequently influenced the development of many Islamic movements and parties throughout the Muslim world.

This book is the first to critically engage and assess his career and legacy within the wider context of political Islam. It includes coverage of his early life and influences, and examines his considerable influence in the contemporary Islamic world. The issues that were a concern for Mawdudi and continue to have resonance for our world today include such questions as the role of women in Islam, the possibilities for democracy in an Islamic state, the importance of jihad, and the moral and religious responsibility of the individual. Whilst focus is on Mawdudi's life and writings, this is placed within the wider context of topical, often contentious, Islamic thought. ?

Providing an up-to-date and detailed critical study of Mawlana Mawdudi and many issues surrounding political Islam both in his time and today, this book will be an important text for scholars of Islamic Studies, Political Science and Philosophy.

In recent decades, the number of Muslims in the West has increased rapidly, and interesting transformations of Islam have taken place to some extent with repercussions in Islamic or predominantly Muslim countries in Asia and Africa. This new four-volume Major Work collection from Routledge helps to make sense of the burgeoning scholarship in this area.

Volume I ( Regions and History ) includes studies on the historical development of Islam, as well as key work on the current situation in various regions and countries. Volume II focuses on religion and culture, while Volume III ( Social and Economic Issues ) assembles vital materials on topics such as gender, family structures, class, poverty, and health. The final volume in the collection ( Politics and Law ) gathers the best work on, among other things, Muslim involvement in political life; Muslim presence in the public sphere; the media coverage of Islam; and issues of integration and so-called Islamophobia . Legal issues covered include laws on freedom of religion, minority rights, separate legislation, and debates about veils and halal slaughter.

With a full index, together with comprehensive introductions newly written by the editors, which place the collected material in its historical and intellectual context, Islam in the West is an essential new addition to Routledge 's Critical Concepts in Islamic Studies series.

Islam developed over the course of its history one of the world's most innovative and interesting scientific and medical traditions. In this context, the term Islam should not simply be understood as referring to the religion of the prophet Muhammad, but rather to a civilization which was once surprisingly open to foreign influences, and eager to engage with the proverbial Other. Yet Islam is often perceived as being opposed to (Western) science and methodology. Islamic Medical and Scientific Tradition presents a selection of works that illustrate the intellectual curiosity and theoretical vigour with which Arabs and non-Arabs living in the medieval Muslim world pursued scientific endeavours. The focus is firmly on scholarship published within the last twenty years, during which period the discipline has enjoyed a new bloom. Starting with the theoretical framework of the sciences in Islamic philosophy and theology, this new collection from Routledge elucidates the position of mathematics, physics, and medicine within the hierarchy of the sciences. Another topic discussed is Ancient (or Greek) versus traditional (or Muslim) sciences; and Islamic theological views on the pure pursuit of knowledge. The life sciences of Biology, Medicine, and Veterinary Medicine are examined, as are those of the physical sciences: Physics and Astronomy. The occult 'sciences' of Astrology, Alchemy, and Geomancy are also discussed. Close attention is paid to the mathematical sciences of Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry, Optics (including the introduction of zero, the invention of algebra, the squaring of the circle, conics, and the nature of vision). The practical sciences, Agriculture, Engineering, and Horticulture, are also examined in detail. Fully indexed, and with a comprehensive introduction newly written by the editor, that places the collected material in its historical and intellectual context, this is an essential work destined to be valued by scholars, students, and researchers as a vital one-stop reference resource.

An important new study that assesses comparatively the future of Islamic fundamentalism in three key countries: Egypt, Algeria, and Saudi Arabia. Islamism has witnessed an upsurge and new-found zealotry and stridency in the post-Gulf War period, but its real fortunes have fallen far short of expectations, according to Mahmud Faksh. Indeed, as outlined in this work, it is now being stymied on many fronts. The book focuses on the limits of Islamic fundamentalism as a system of thought, as well as a force for changing the established order. And it shows that the threat of an Islamic avalanche--despite assorted high-profile, militant activities--is overstated, unrealistic, and lacking in credibility.

Rigid notions of masculinity are causing crisis in the global Islamic community. These are articulated from the Qur'an, its commentary, historical precedents and societal, religious and familial obligations. Some Muslims who don't agree with narrow constructs of manliness feel forced to consider themselves secular and therefore outside the religious community. In order to evaluate whether there really is only one valid, ideal Islamic masculinity, The Crisis of Islamic Masculinities explores key figures of the Qur'an and Indian-Pakistani Islamic history, and exposes the precariousness of tight constraints on Islamic manhood. By examining Qur'anic arguments and the strict social responsibilities advocated along with narrow Islamic masculinities, Amanullah De Sondy shows that God and women (to whom Muslim men relate but are different from) often act as foils for the construction of masculinity. He argues the constrainers of masculinity have used God and women to think with and to dominate through and that rigid gender roles are the product of a misguided enterprise: the highly personal relationship between humans and God does not lend itself to the organization of society, because that relationship cannot be typified and replicated. Discussions and debates surrounding Islamic masculinities are quickly finding their place in the study of Islam and Muslims, and The Crisis of Islamic Masculinities makes a vital contribution to this emerging field.

Given the intense political scrutiny of Islam and Muslims, which often centres on gendered concerns, The Routledge Handbook of Islam and Gender is an outstanding reference source to key topics, problems, and debates in this exciting subject. Comprising over 30 chapters by a team of international contributors the Handbook is divided into seven parts: Foundational texts in historical and contemporary contexts Sex, sexuality, and gender difference Gendered piety and authority Political and religious displacements Negotiating law, ethics, and normativity Vulnerability, care, and violence in Muslim families Representation, commodification, and popular culture These sections examine key debates and problems, including: feminist and queer approaches to the Qur'an, hadith, Islamic law, and ethics, Sufism, devotional practice, pilgrimage, charity, female religious authority, global politics of feminism, material and consumer culture, masculinity, fertility and the family, sexuality, sexual rights, domestic violence, marriage practices, and gendered representations of Muslims in film and media. The Routledge Handbook of Islam and Gender is essential reading for students and researchers in religious studies, Islamic studies, and gender studies. The Handbook will also be very useful for those in related fields, such as cultural studies, area studies, sociology, anthropology, and history.

Ratified by the Parliament of the World's Religions in 1993 and expanded in 2018, "Towards a Global Ethic (An Initial Declaration)," or the Global Ethic, expresses the minimal set of principles shared by people-religious or not. Though it is a secular document, the Global Ethic emerged after months of collaborative, interreligious dialogue dedicated to identifying a common ethical framework. This volume tests and contests the claim that the Global Ethic's ethical directives can be found in the world's religious, spiritual, and cultural traditions. The book features essays by scholars of religion who grapple with the practical implications of the Global Ethic's directives when applied to issues like women's rights, displaced peoples, income and wealth inequality, India's caste system, and more. The scholars explore their respective religious traditions' ethical response to one or more of these issues and compares them to the ethical response elaborated by the Global Ethic. The traditions included are Hinduism, Engaged Buddhism, Shi'i Islam, Sunni Islam, Confucianism, Protestantism, Catholicism, Judaism, Indigenous African Religions, and Human Rights. To highlight the complexities within traditions, most essays are followed by a brief response by an expert in the same tradition. Multi-Religious Perspectives on a Global Ethic is of special interest to advanced students and scholars whose work focuses on the religious traditions listed above, on comparative religion, religious ethics, comparative ethics, and common morality.

This volume explores and calls into question certain commonly held assumptions about writing and technological advancement in the Islamic tradition. In particular, it challenges the idea that mechanical print naturally and inevitably displaces handwritten texts as well as the notion that the so-called transition from manuscript to print is unidirectional. Indeed, rather than distinct technologies that emerge in a progressive series (one naturally following the other), they frequently co-exist in complex and complementary relationships - relationships we are only now starting to recognize and explore. The book brings together essays by internationally recognized scholars from an array of disciplines (including philology, linguistics, religious studies, history, anthropology, and typography) whose work focuses on the written word - channeled through various media - as a social and cultural phenomenon within the Islamic tradition. These essays promote systematic approaches to the study of Islamic writing cultures writ large, in an effort to further our understanding of the social, cultural and intellectual relationships between manuscripts, printed texts and the people who use and create them.

A spiritual memoir by the author of "God Is a Verb."

"This book is a treasure map, but not like any you have seen before. Most people believe that the object of a treasure hunt is to find a chest of gold. The mystical approach, however, is that the search itself is the treasure . Here is an invitation to begin an exploration of the treasure fields of your own mind the most exciting and rewarding adventure you will ever take." from the Introduction

Here is an insider s look at a spectrum of mystical traditions by someone who is remarkably fluent in the language of each. Three Gates to Meditation Practicechronicles more than fifteen years in the spiritual journey of "post-denominational" Rabbi David A. Cooper and his wife Shoshana years that led the Coopers everywhere from a secluded mountain hut in New Mexico to the Sinai desert, from chanting Sufi dhikr and meditation with Buddhist masters to studying Kabbalah and esoteric Judaism in the Old City of Jerusalem.

The Coopers story is an intimate account of what intensive spiritual practice is like, with an ultimate message that is supremely inspiring: The spiritual path is completely within our reach, whoever we are, whatever we do, as long as we are willing to try.

Among the considerable oeuvre of Muhammad al-Shahrastani (1086-1153), the prominent Persian theologian and heresiographer, the Majlis-i maktub ('The Transcribed Sermon') is his only known work in Persian. First delivered as a sermon in Khwarazm in Central Asia, this treatise invokes the theme of creation and command, providing an esoteric cosmological narrative where faith, revelation, prophecy and the spiritual authority of the Household of the Prophet are interwoven. The Majlis-i maktub further discusses themes such as the evolution of religious law (shari'at) and its culmination in the qiyamat (resurrection), the relation between free will and predestination, the interplay between the exoteric and esoteric aspects of faith, and the role and function of the Shi?i Imams in the cosmological narrative. This treatise is arguably the most dense expression of al-Shahrastani's thought, and it demonstrably indicates the Ismaili inclination of this Muslim scholar who has usually been regarded as a Shafi'i-Ash'ari. Daryoush Mohammad Poor's comparative study of this treatise and the corpus of Nizari Ismaili literature from the Alamut period (1090-1256) reveals the massive impact of al-Shahrastani's thought on every aspect of the doctrines of Nizari Ismailis.

This book reflects on major themes present at the interface between religion and human security in Africa. It probes the extent to which religion is both a threat to and a resource for human security in Africa by examining specific issues occurring across the continent. A team of contributors from across Africa provide valuable reflections on the conceptualisation and applicability of the concept of human security in the context of religion in Africa. Chapters highlight how themes such as knowledge systems, youth, education, race, development, sacred texts, the media, sexual diversity, health and others have implications for individual and group security. In order to bring these themes into perspective, chapters in the first section reflect on the conceptual, historical and contextual factors at play. The chapters that follow demonstrate the theories put forward by means of case studies from countries such as Zimbabwe, Kenya, Botswana and Ghana that look at African religion, Islam and Christianity. This is a detailed and informative volume that provides new insights into the discourse on religion and human security. As such, it will be of significant use to any scholar of Religion and Violence, Religion in Africa and Religious Studies, as well as African and Security Studies more generally.

The Prophetic traditions of Islam, which are commonly referred to as the hadiths (literally: reports ), preserve the sum and substance of the utterances, deeds, directives, and descriptive anecdotes connected with the life of the Prophet Muhammad and his Companions. Together with the Qur an, the hadiths provide the religion of Islam with its principal scriptural sources.

The collection features an accessible and informative introduction which presents an outline of the significance of the hadiths within the religious tradition while also reviewing classical scholarship devoted to the literature of the traditions; moreover, the introduction decisively sets into context the academic debates and arguments which are fleshed out in the articles selected. It also charts developments in the academic study of hadiths, summing up the current state of the field and features a detailed bibliography listing primary classical sources germane to the field of Prophetic traditions together with recent research monographs and articles devoted to the subject.

This Major Work provides an authoritative collection of the seminal research articles produced by western academic scholarship on the subject of the hadith over the past century, including recent papers on the subject. In bringing together the finest examples of scholarship devoted to the hadith and the classical literature that surrounds it, these volumes provide an indispensable reference resource for academics, research institutions, governmental organizations, and those with a general interest in Arabic and Islamic Studies, Religious Studies, Arabic Cultural Studies, and Middle East History.

This book brings a transnational perspective to the study of immigrant integration in contemporary Western European societies, with a specific focus on transnational Turkish Islam and Turkish integration in Great Britain. It raises significant questions regarding national citizenship models, and offers original insights into the ways in which they can be extended and renewed to cover the cross-border reality. At the theoretical level, Dikici argues that the idea of multiculturalism can be extended to cover immigrant transnationalism without jeopardising its core principles such as equality and recognition of difference, and promises such as a shared national identity and unity in diversity. At the empirical level, the book illustrates that not all transnational Muslim organisations are the same (i.e. militant), and nor do they all hinder Muslim integration, rather they are diverse, with some deliberately contributing to the integration of Muslims into non-Muslim majority societies. The work will be of interest to scholars and students of contemporary integration and citizenship studies, multiculturalism studies, Muslim integration in Western societies, transnationalism and transnational Islam, Civil Society and Diaspora Studies.

This book describes what Shiism means to those who actually practice it and serves as both an excellent introduction to the subject and an original work of scholarship.

For believers in a resurrection of the body, there arises the question of what happens after death but before the Last Day: the intermediate state. For most Muslims, the intermediate state is the barzakh. It is a fantastical and frightening time in the grave. The present study will examine where the belief in the barzakh comes from through a study of the Qur'an.

The Islamic community in Southeast Asia is widely regarded as one of the most moderate and tolerant in the Muslim world. While most of the region's Muslims are Sunni and fairly orthodox, the Islamic faith as practised in the region has historically been a syncretic blend of Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and folk religions. The syncretic roots of Southeast Asian Islam also underscores the pluralistic nature of Islam in the region today, where Muslims have generally lived peacefully in religiously mixed communities, even in areas where they constituted a large majority.

Alongside these pluralistic trends in Southeast Asian Islam are some alternative streams of social-political activism that threaten its traditionally inclusivist character. While most Southeast Asian Muslims are known for their moderation, there has historically been a very small but vocal minority who have been drawn to the more puritanical or extremist variants of the faith. In addition, there is a gradual but clearly discernible trend of conservatism among the general Muslim population, particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia, which has given rise to exclusivist attitudes towards non-Muslims.

The material gathered in Volume I of this new Routledge collection focuses on the historical, cultural, sociological, theological, and intellectual aspects of Islam in Southeast Asia. Volume II, meanwhile, assesses trends in Muslim politics in Southeast Asia, investigating the success and failure of political Islam in the Muslim-majority cases of Indonesia and Malaysia, as well as the Muslim-minority contexts of Thailand, Philippines, and Singapore.

Volume III identifies and analyses the primary actors and agents that are involved in the formation and development of a burgeoning pan-regional parallel civil society network bringing together religiously inspired Islamist NGOs, civil society actors and agencies, the media, professionals? associations, and political parties; the work collected here charts out a virtual map of the new Islamist activist geography of Southeast Asia. Finally, Volume IV examines the nexus between Islam, politics, and terrorism in the aftermath of the Bali bombings of 2002. It also interrogates the interaction between mainstream political Islam and more extremist fringes of the Islamic communities across the region, as well as domestic and international factors driving radicalism.

Fully indexed and with an introduction newly written by the editors that comprehensively places the collected material in its historical and intellectual context, this new Routledge Major Work is an essential research and teaching resource.

The birth of Islam in the 7th century and its subsequent outward expansion from the Arab world has been one of the most influential occurrences in world history. During its first few decades, the new faith inspired conquests from Spain to northern India. In this illuminating study, the author tracks the rise of Islam from it 7th century beginnings with the life of the Prophet Muhammad to the collapse of the Islamic empire in the early 10th century. He demonstrates how a sophisticated, new religion and society emerged to become one of the world's most vital and sustained cultures. The opening chapter provides an outline of the history of early Islamic society over a period of roughly three centuries, from the early 7th to the early 10th centuries, concentrating on pre-Islamic Arab countries and the life of the Prophet. Subsequent chapters treat Arab-Islamic conquests; the early Islamic empire; and society and religion, particularly in the early Abbasid period (750-925 C.E.). The spread of urbanization throughout the early Islamic world is highlighted. Fifteen brief biographies of key figures such as Qur'an commentators, empire-building caliphs, scholars, and military leaders help to add a personal human element to the data, and 15 translated primary documents ranging from key Qur'annic passages to contemporary accounts of military campaigns bring the history to life. A glossary of terms, a timeline, and selected bibliography aid student research. The work is fully indexed.

Sociologist Jeffrey Guhin spent a year and a half embedded in four high schools in the New York City area - two of them Sunni Muslim and two Evangelical Christian. At first pass, these communities do not seem to have much in common. But under closer inspection Guhin finds several common threads: each school community holds to a conservative approach to gender and sexuality, a hostility towards the theory of evolution, and a deep suspicion of secularism. All possess a double-sided image of America, on the one hand as a place where their children can excel and prosper, and on the other hand as a land of temptations that could lead their children astray. He shows how these school communities use boundaries of politics, gender, and sexuality to distinguish themselves from the secular world, both in school and online. Guhin develops his study of boundaries in the book's first half to show how the school communities teach their children who they are not; the book's second half shows how the communities use "external authorities" to teach their children who they are. These "external authorities" - such as Science, Scripture, and Prayer - are experienced by community members as real powers with the ability to issue commands and coerce action. By offloading agency to these external authorities, leaders in these schools are able to maintain a commitment to religious freedom while simultaneously reproducing their moral commitments in their students. Drawing on extensive classroom observation, community participation, and 143 formal interviews with students, teachers, and staff, this book makes an original contribution to sociology, religious studies, and education.