In the aftermath of September 11, the plaintive question heard on
so many American lips was: 'Why do they hate us?' Most Western
Christians know very little at all about Islam, and still less
about the relationship between Muslims and Christians over the
centuries, apart from a few vaguely remembered facts about the
Crusades. M J Akbar's book, subtitled 'Jihad and the conflict
between Islam and Christianity', should go a long way towards
redressing this lack of understanding. Informative, analytical and
elegantly written, it starts with the migration of the Prophet from
Mecca to Medina and ends with the inevitable chapter on the Age of
Osama. In the words of the author, an Indian Muslim who is proud of
both his nationality and religion, it swings through time, memory,
faith, victory, defeat, history and geography. Akbar is at pains to
point out that peace is the avowed aim of Islam, a word itself that
means surrender, although in specific circumstances, the blood of
the faithful might be demanded in holy war, as a defence of their
faith. Christianity and Islam, two monotheistic religions, have so
much in common, yet their relationship, it seems, has always been
defined in blood, from the struggles between the Ottoman and Papal
empires to the current conflict in Afghanistan, and tainted by
unedifying episodes such as the publication of the original Satanic
Verses, and the brutalities of the Crusades and Spanish
Inquisition. The book's geographical brief is as extensive as its
timeline, taking in the history of Islam in Granada, Uzbekistan and
sub-Saharan Africa, as well as in the Middle East and the Indian
subcontinent. The author takes a timely look at British and Soviet
attempts to subjugate Afghanistan, and explains the differences
between Shia and Sunni Muslims as clearly as he writes of the days
of Gandhi and Jinnah in pre-partition India. It is hard to speak
too highly of this authoritative and eye-opening book, which should
surely be required reading for anyone still asking the question:
'Why do they hate us?' (Kirkus UK)
The Shade of Swords is the first cohesive history of Jihad, written by one of India's leading journalists and writers. In this new paperback edition, updated to show how and why Saddam Hussein repositioned himself as a Jihadi against America, M.J. Akbar explains the struggle between Islam and Christianity. Placing recent events in a historical context, he tackles the tricky question of what now for Jihad following the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime.
With British and American troops in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and once again in Iraq, the potential for Jihadi recruitment is ever increasing. Explaining how Jihad thrives on complex and shifting notions of persecution, victory and sacrifice, and illustrating how Muslims themselves have historically tried both to direct and control the phenomenon of Jihad, Akbar shows how Jihad pervades the mind and soul of Islam, revealing its strength and significance.
To know the future, one needs to understand the past. M.J. Akbar's The Shade of Swords holds the key.
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