Islamic Political Thought

An Introduction

Gerhard Bowering

• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Year: 2015
• Print ISBN:
  9780691164823
• eBook ISBN:
  9781400866427
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Political History & Theory

A concise and authoritative introduction to Islamic political ideas

In sixteen concise chapters on key topics, this book provides a rich, authoritative, and up-to-date introduction to Islamic political thought from the birth of Islam to today, presenting essential background and context for understanding contemporary politics in the Islamic world and beyond. Selected from the acclaimed Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought, and focusing on the origins, development, and contemporary importance of Islamic political ideas and related subjects, each chapter offers a sophisticated yet accessible introduction to its topic. Written by leading specialists and incorporating the latest scholarship, the alphabetically arranged chapters cover the topics of authority, the caliphate, fundamentalism, government, jihad, knowledge, minorities, modernity, Muhammad, pluralism and tolerance, the Qur'an, revival and reform, shari?a (sacred law), traditional political thought, 'ulama' (religious scholars), and women. Read separately or together, these chapters provide an indispensable resource for students, journalists, policymakers, and anyone else seeking an informed perspective on the complex intersection of Islam and politics.

The contributors are Gerhard Bowering, Ayesha S. Chaudhry, Patricia Crone, Roxanne Euben, Yohanan Friedmann, Paul L. Heck, Roy Jackson, Wadad Kadi, John Kelsay, Gudrun Krämer, Ebrahim Moosa, Armando Salvatore, Aram A. Shahin, Emad El-Din Shahin, Devin J. Stewart, SherAli Tareen, and Muhammad Qasim Zaman.

A new afterword discusses the essays in relation to contemporary political developments.

Index

Abbasid caliphate, 2, 5, 7–9, 37–38; administrative system of, 5, 7, 80; authority of, 26–28, 228; Baghdad as capital of, 8, 28, 29, 91; demise of, 38; fragmentation of, 10; Hanafi legal school of, 9–10, 223; jihad and, 90–94; judicial system of, 79; legal scholars (‘ulama’, fuqahā) of, 5, 7–9; mechanism of succession in, 44; model of government of, 75; philosophers (falāsifa) of, 5; repression of non-Muslims under, 133; role of caliph in, 44–45; secular political titles in, 243; sovereign titles in, 40; Sufism of, 10–11; theologians (mutakallimūn) of, 5

‘Abd al-‘Aziz, 98

‘Abd al-‘Aziz al-Sa‘ud, 17

‘Abd al-Hamid, 45–46

‘Abd al-Haqq Dihlawi, 15

‘Abd al-Karim, Khalil, 216

‘Abdallah b. ‘Abbas, 69

‘Abdallah b. Abi Sarh, 187

‘Abdallah b. Ibad, 222

‘Abdallah b. Jahsh, 40

‘Abdallah b. Mas‘ud, 188

‘Abd al-Majid II, 38–39

‘Abd al-Malik b. Marwan, 4, 38–40, 42; Court of the Redress of Grievances of, 79; Dome of the Rock of, 159; expansion of Islamic governance under, 90

‘Abd al-Muttalib, 155

‘Abd al-Rahman, 18

‘Abd al-Rahman, ‘A’isha, 268

‘Abd al-Rahman, ‘Umar, 59–60

‘Abd al-Raziq, ‘Ali, 46, 74, 82; on government, 81; on reform, 216; on shari‘a, 233

‘Abduh, Muhammad, 16, 19, 34, 55; on political authority, 69; on shari‘a, 232–33; on shūrā as principle of governance, 72; social reforms of, 147, 212, 216

Abdülhamid I, 228

Abou El Fadl, Khaled, 254, 270

Abraham, 153, 158–59, 163, 185, 197

Abu ‘Abdallah al-Qurtubi, 72

Abu al-Hasan al-‘Amiri, 116

Abu al-Hasan ‘Ali al-Mawardi. See al-Mawardi, Abu al-Hasan

Abu ‘Amir, 165

Abu Bakr, 26,...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Introduction
• Authority
• Caliphate
• Fundamentalism
• Government
• Jihad
• Knowledge
• Minorities
• Modernity
• Muhammad
• Pluralism and Tolerance
• Qur’an
• Revival and Reform
• Shari‘a
• Traditional Political Thought
• ‘Ulama’
• Women
• Contributors
• Index