Rise of "Islam" in the world

[53fd]

The rise of "Islam", or should I say Salafi (inspired) ideology/pan-Arab Islamism, is proving to be a huge challenge internationally. Nigeria, a country I have lived in for 4 years, is now becoming a hot-bed for the Boko Haram "Islamists", inspired by pan-Arab Islamism, with links to the AQIM (Al-Qaeda of the Maghrib). I have visited Kano in Northern Nigeria myself, I know people from there, & there is definite foreign funding for the Madrassahs there that breed extremism.

Not only is this ideology a disgrace to Islam & Muslims, but also facilitates foreign powers with great geopolitical ambitions to advance their objectives in the region. Pan-Arab (inspired) Islamism is on the rise not only in the Middle East, but also in Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Chechnya etc), as well as other parts of the world; even affecting nations in the Asia Pacific (China, Myanmar, Indonesia, Philippines etc). Nations, that were once relatively secular, are seeing the rise of these "Islamists", who threaten to disturb the "balance of societies" all over the world. Some people think of this as an Islamic revival, although all the societies these "Islamists" administer are the most backward, uneducated, impoverished, intolerant ones.

There is also a rise of a troubling ideology in the Muslim world, with its followers wishing to install 'the caliphate' over their respective countries. There is no clear definition on what this caliphate will be, although it is inspired by pan-Islamism as well. This ideology is threatening to radicalize people that were not radicalized previously. The Muslim world needs to reform itself if it wants a real revival.

At the end of the day, while some people might view these things as the "revival of Islam", it is abundantly clear that these "Islamists" are a bane to Muslims & Islam all around the world, & are in bed with powers with huge geopolitical ambitions.

 

[PteX]

I think this is quite the analysis.
Islamists do ruin the name of Islam and Muslims worldwide, Salafi ideology is spreading and it is devastating to inter-religious tolerance.

 

[Splurgenxs]

i think there is some weight to this thory...Islam was relatively full of culture and vibrance ,up until recently..

Even places like mongolia and Africa are feeling the massive influx of negativity this radical islam is bringing into there normal daily lives.

it is efficiently bringing an end to all islam in the civilized world and gradually moving all liberals out of it .

 

[BelligerentPacifist]

While I'm very tolerant of their 'intolerance' as you put it, but I do see a much bigger problem - Islam wasn't born with the birth of Mr. MbaW as some of these people I imagine like to think, and discard the entire Islamic experience and the scholarship that it engendered over those centuries. Another problem is simple-mindedness. Most of the people trying to effect change are simply not sophisticated enough, educationally and mentally otherwise, to do the job.

However, my current thoughts are that they might be Providence's plan to polarize camps and neutralize centuries of laxity so the human project could advance through warfare. If that's true, we're in for a tough ride!

 

[agentny17]

I think this is quite the analysis.
Islamists do ruin the name of Islam and Muslims worldwide, Salafi ideology is spreading and it is devastating to inter-religious tolerance.

I can't believe i just agreed with you.

 

[BelligerentPacifist]

... deviant mullahs....

mullas!
....................

 

[Omar1984]

Glad to hear this. Muslims must also try to get involved in the government of these western countries so they can benefit Muslim countries.

Look at the Jewish lobby in U.S., they are making Americans make so much sacrifices for Israel's interests.

 

[SyrianChristianPatriot]

Heart of Salafism is in Saudi Arabia, where most of it comes from.

 

[agentny17]

Good luck to other Muslim countries! Will never happen to our country. Here we take pride in slaying deviant mullahs. And preemptive arrests of Hizb-ut-Tahrir men is so awesome!

---------- Post added at 03:01 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:59 PM ----------



Cmon, just because he's a Jew?

But he's yet to prove Ashkenzais are not genetically Europeans.

No, some Jews are cool. Israelis not so much, lol. jk. I am sure some are nice. Well, he can't prove it, because they are

 

[Maira La]

(deleted... nvm semi-troll material)

 

[Kompromat]

I think this is quite the analysis.
Islamists do ruin the name of Islam and Muslims worldwide, Salafi ideology is spreading and it is devastating to inter-religious tolerance.

Salafis , Zionists and Evangelicals.

 

[KS]

i think there is some weight to this thory...Islam was relatively full of culture and vibrance ,up until recently..

You need to look up history.

 

[PteX]

Salafis , Zionists and Evangelicals.

The likes of you as well, whatever you are.

 

[Armstrong]

I think you're viewing this far too myopically.

And besides Pan-Arabism and Pan-Islamism are too different ideologies which often conflict with each other simply because one is based on Arab Nationalism whilst the other on what its proponents call the Islamic concept of Nationalism. You have to understand that Gamal Abdel Nasser's Pan-Arabism got suckered punched by Egyption Nationalism and Pan-Islamism - so its more or less a thing of the past.

As far as Pan-Islamism is concerned - I believe in the one proposed by Iqbal in which he argues that we, the Muslims, should find unity in a common value/belief system because we have, despite our obvious differences, more in common with each other because of a shared outlook on life than with any other community out there, and that, consequently, we should strengthen ourselves by strengthening our respective nation-states but we must also stick with each other and bury the hatchet when it comes to our differences in religious interpretation and our past exploits or abuses against one another.

I believe such a Pan-Islamism is perfectly achievable in a strong Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC) - a common currency, free-trade, some unified Welfare Organizations, greater people-to-people interaction and defense pacts should do for now; though perhaps, posterity will take it to the next level by truly owning up to the problems of each other as 'our problems' and devising appropriate responses to them - a central National Health Service for all OIC member states furnished by our collective zakats, donations and contributions by member states could be nice.

And I get your point about the rise of a certain brand of Islam; however labeling it anything but Extremism would be highly irresponsible of us because I've personally known a lot of liberal and progressive Salafis out there.

We have to understand that places like Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan - all those war ravaged lands - are hot beds for any kind of extremist indoctrination - the Ultraconservative Communist or the Ultra-right Christian fundamentalist regimes were created in very similar circumstances. Additionally there are many religious extremists (forget the liberals ones) who are already present in our societies and we, the Muslims, are to blame for that. In Pakistan for example, we've got bearded baboons trying to espouse the greatness of an interpretation of Islam which, at least to me, seems perverse and severely lacking academically. In Iran they've got the same guys following a different denomination. And these people seem to command popular support which is terribly worrying.

However, the other side of the coin depicts a more promising picture : Many Pakistanis and other citizens of the Islamic States out there are being increasingly exposed to Western ideas and in some case - Western indoctrination. What this does is it, in my opinion, divides the youth into 3 - the ones who go onto become the capri wearing bearded baboons, the ones who get washed away with whatever the West is espousing without looking at our own past and hence very keenly adopt all that the West has to offer without independently thinking as much as they should have and the last ones who actually think for themselves, read and ask with genuine inquisitiveness. Currently the first group is probably the largest here in our under-developed countries because of obvious reasons relating to governance and the second and the third group are more prevalent amongst the educated class (not necessarily the Elite) here and abroad. Thankfully as our levels of education are steadily increasing so are the last two groups. Moreover, most of us who've had the exposure of the outside world are realizing the differences between what these self-styled religious scholars are saying, what really propelled the West to the forefront and what do the facts and truly scholarly work about religion say. All in all a long way to go before we can produce scholars who would rival people like Ghazali, Avicenna, Averroes, Rumi etc. and a well versed populace like that of some of the best times from our past, but I'm still glad that we're inching forward.

Forgive me, Mr.Bilal, If I'm being far too presumptuous but I understand that you're a Secularist and a Shite. Well I'm an Islamist and someone who loosely follows the Sunni side of things but because we both can agree to disagree with respect is encouraging and by virtue of our respective ages we represent the future - so the World in general and the Muslim world in particular should be alright. People like us weren't in a multitude 20 odd years back and if this forum and my city is anything to go by, because of the increasing levels of education and some public ownership for governance (long marches and the sort) things are getting better, even if we're just inching forward. Coupled with this is the immense amout of genuine scholarly work, amongst Islamophobia and Revisionism written by Muslims, coming out of some of the truly liberal and pluralistic societies out there. So bhai a change in the status quo is inevitable and Inshallah by the time you and I are fertilizing some plot of land somewhere, the bigots would have numerically regressed even further.

 

[Kompromat]

The likes of you as well, whatever you are.

Truth hurts.