Muslim Practices Research Articles

The politics of male circumcision in the late Ottoman Empire

In modern Turkey, male circumcision is so inextricably linked with Muslim identity that one may assume it a practice universally performed by them for centuries. However, a significant number of Muslims in the late Ottoman Empire were uncircumcised. This article argues that circumcision became a universal Muslim practice through the infrastructure and bodily surveillance of the Ottoman central state and modern physicians who considered circumcision a requirement for public health, rather than solely as a key religious practice. Through circumcision, the late Ottoman state not only aimed to crystallize the Islamic character of its Muslim population but also to secure its political loyalty through the link of religious and political identity. The growing state infrastructure, specifically modern education and conscription enabled the central state to interfere with the bodies of its population in a way previously impossible. This process, however, should not be understood as a mere state imposition on the society. Local populations usually welcomed the state-led circumcision campaign as it relieved them of a financial burden. Thus, circumcision became ingrained in Muslim life as a result of the Ottoman modernization in which state and local interests, traditional and modern elite interests, and religious symbolism and secular strategies overlapped.

Disciplinarisation des comportements musulmans dans l'espace public. Pratiques musulmanes et entreprises d'étiquetage à Rennes, Bristol, Nantes et Glasgow

L'etude de la gouvernance du fait musulman par quatre municipalites francaises et britanniques revele des convergences de part et d'autre de la Manche, malgre des modeles nationaux souvent renvoyes dos a dos. Qu'il s'agisse de la mobilisation d'une partie du secteur associatif laique a Rennes et a Nantes ou de la recentralisation de la gestion du programme de lutte de la radicalisation Prevent par le gouvernement britannique, les deux phenomenes aboutissent a une disciplinarisation des comportements musulmans dans l'espace public. Dans les quatre cas d'etude, et en depit de resistances d'amplitudes variables, certain.e.s acteurs et actrices de terrain, professionnel.le.s ou benevoles, sont invite.e.s par les autorites municipales ou gouvernementales a envisager l'orthodoxie et l'orthopraxie musulmanes comme des comportements deviants vis-a-vis des normes seculieres et parfois meme comme des signes de radicalisation qui menacent l'ordre public et qui meritent donc un traitement d'exception.

Understanding (in)tolerance of Muslim minority practices: a latent profile analysis

ABSTRACT Research has examined tolerance of Muslim minority practices and anti-Muslim sentiments. We go beyond the existing research by applying latent profile analyses (LPA) on majority member’s evaluations of a range of Muslim practices and their feelings toward Muslims. We found five different subgroups of individuals among a sample of Dutch majority members (N = 831): a group that is positive towards Muslims and their practices (‘positive’), a group that is negative towards Muslims and their practices (‘negative’), a group that rejects all Muslim practices but reports positive feelings towards Muslims (‘intolerant’), a group that rejects only some practices and also has positive feelings towards Muslims (‘partly intolerant’), and a group that is not positive towards Muslims but accepts one practice (‘partly tolerant’). Furthermore, we show that these subgroups differ on key psychological variables (authoritarianism, status quo conservatism, and unconditional respect), and in their feelings towards other minority groups and (in)tolerance of other non-Muslim practices. We conclude that majority members can combine feelings toward Muslims and (in)tolerance of Muslim practices in different ways, and that the LPA approach makes an important contribution to the literature by providing a more nuanced understanding of how the public views Muslim minorities.

In an Ottoman Holy Land: The Hajj and the Road from Damascus, 1500–1800

In an Ottoman Holy Land: The Hajj and the Road from Damascus, 1500–1800

Relationship Between Religiosity and Depression Level of Pakistani Elderly Population: Mediational Role of Afterlife Belief

On the basis of evolutionary threat assessment theory, the present study was designed to examine the relationship between religiosity and depression through the mediation of afterlife beliefs among Pakistani Muslim elderly population. Old adults in the age range of 60 to 85 years (N = 515; mean age = 65.2 years, SD = 6.46), including 304 men and 211 women, were recruited purposively from Punjab, Pakistan. Education level of the participants was primary to post-graduation. Religiosity, depression, and afterlife beliefs of the elderly participants were measured through Short Muslim Practice and Belief Scale, DASS, and Afterlife Belief Scale for Muslims, respectively. Structural equation modeling was carried out. Results revealed that fully mediated negative relationship exists between religiosity and depression via positive afterlife belief. Furthermore, extinction-based afterlife belief partially mediates the relationship between religiosity and depression. Results of the study validate the postulates of ETAS theory.

Regional Features of Some Traditions and Customs in Modern Islam

Introduction. The relevance of the issues raised is due to the contradictory nature of the evolution of religious and pseudo-religious rites of Muslims, as well as the ambiguous attitude towards them from the Muslim Ummah of the region. The objective of the study is to explore the regional features of some religious and ethnic cult practices of Muslims residing in the Republic of Mordovia. Materials and Methods. The study considered such materials as the data of the sociological survey “Muslim Traditions and Rites of the Tatars in a Region” employing the method of semi-formalized interviews (47 people), which assessed the level and the intensity of religiosity. The content and specificity of the rites, religious and ethnic rituals were analyzed. The canonicity of the rituals was assessed. Results. Various religious traditions and rites having regional specifics and observed by Muslims in the Republic of Mordovia have been analyzed. These include: a Dua prayer performed over water, the rite of ‘iskyat’, cult of Wali, the rite of ‘bashkoda’ preceding a marriage, and a memorial rite for deceased. An analysis of the religious ritual practices of Muslims in the Republic of Mordovia has made it possible to ascertain the presence of elements of cultural diffusion in some religious practices. Discussion and Conclusion. Despite certain disagreement regarding the performance of a number of religious rites within the regional Muslim Ummah, most of the considered forms of religious life in the minds of people are inseparable from the Muslim tradition and are perceived as part of the original Muslim culture. The materials of the article will be useful for the authorities to improve the regional ethno-confessional policy.

The Materiality of Sound, Mediation, and Practices of Listening: Observations from Historic and Contemporary Muslim Practices

In his book on the etiquette of listening, the eleventh-century scholar Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī develops a scenario which includes the context, the performer, and the listener who all contribute to turn listening into a transformative experience by which the soul of the listener is moved, his or her inner qualities are revealed, and his or her transactions with the Divine are set in motion. This paper explores in what way these elaborations are relevant for contemporary performers of religious chanting in Arab Sunni communities in the Eastern Levant. It understands chanting in Muslim religious practice as “sensational forms” (Birgit Meyer) that serve religious mediation. These sensational forms are both authorised and contested, and al-Ghazālī’s ideas constitute an eminent reference for many practitioners. The paper captures al-Ghazālī’s elaborations in two aspects: first, his conditioned licence of listening to music and singing as a way to engage with the Divine and earn religious merits. Second, an understanding of music’s materiality that is not necessarily bound to sonic properties but becomes evident in the effect music has on listeners. Taking the concept of sorrow (ḥuzn) as an example, I show how al-Ghazālī’s understanding of mediating sorrow, rooted in the appropriation of ancient Greek music philosophy, has given way to a broader understanding of how to convey and evoke sorrow among contemporary performers.

‘A crooked, passion-laden mirror’: ‘Jews’ and ‘Muslims’ as a European question beyond religio-secularism

ABSTRACT In this article, Jansen attempts to demonstrate that addressing the religious practices of Jews and Muslims from the perspective of a religio-secular framework in today’s European context underestimates the complexity of semiotic relations between Muslims, Jews and other Europeans. She discusses this complexity in terms of ‘intercultural semiotics’ between the three groups. In particular, she focuses on what she calls ‘mirroring relations’, drawing on an expression from Yirmiyahu Yovel about a ‘crooked, passion-laden mirror’ characterizing the ways in which modern Europeans imagined their Jewish neighbours in early twentieth-century Europe. In order to further explain this, Jansen analyses a passage from Marcel Proust’s novel In Search of Lost Time, which concerns a group of people in late nineteenth-century France, following the Dreyfus Affair, who are perceived by the narrator as Jewish. Thereafter, drawing on Gil Hochberg’s notion of the ‘re-membering’ of the Semite, Jansen analyses semiotic mirroring in the work Projet Deburkanisation (2017) by the Belgian author Rachida Lamrabet, which she reads as a contemporary meta-reflection, involving Muslims, on the mirroring relations between Jews and other Europeans first discussed via her reading of Proust.

Strengthening the Indigenousization of Islam by Gus Dur in the Middle of the Formalization of Religion

The focus of this article is to examine the process of Gus Dur's indigenousization of Islam as a response to the increasing phenomenon of religious formalization. This topic is considered important because it is an effort to keep local culture and traditions down to earth. Apart from that, the indigenousization of Islam is also a contra-naration against the conservative understanding of Islam which states that indigenous Islamic rituals are regarded as bid’ah, shirk or khurafat that must be rejected. This was raised because according to muslim fundamentalists, the religious practices of indigenous Muslims are opposite of the practices of salaf as-salih which conform Islam totality or kaffah and authentic Islam. In addition, the indigenousization of Islam emerged as a response to the phenomenon of the formalization of religion which leads to the commodification of religion by making religion as a sale value. This writing employes socio-descriptive method which has come to conclusions as follows. First, the indigenousization of Islam which was initiated by Gus Dur was the result of Gus Dur's long struggle with praxis in nature. Second, Arabization with its’ formalization of religion has injured the diversity of the nation of the archipelago and opened up opportunities for the rise of ideological and political interests. Third, the common thread or root of the problem between conservative Islamic groups with their attitudes of formalizing religion and the indigenousization of Islam lies in the differences in understanding the values of Islamic normativity and culture.

De-colonizing public spaces in Malaysia: dating in Kuala Lumpur

This article discusses places and practices of young heterosexual Malaysian Muslims dating in non-private urban spaces. It is based on research conducted in Kuala Lumpur in two consecutive summers 2016 and 2017. Malaysian law (Khalwat law) does not allow for two unrelated people (where at least one of them is Muslim) of opposite sexes to be within ‘suspicious proximity’ of one another in public. This law significantly influences behaviors and activities in urban spaces in KL. In addition to the legal framework, the beliefs of Malaysian Muslims significantly influence the way they perceive space and how they behave in the city. The article discusses the empirical theme, beginning with the participants’ narratives of their engagement with the dominant sexual and gender order in non-private spaces of KL. Utilizing questionnaires, interviews and observations, this article draws upon a qualitative research project and questions the analytical usefulness of the notion of public space (as a Western construct) in the context of an Islamic, post-colonial, tropical, global city.

Possession and exorcism in the Muslim migrant context

This paper is based on fieldwork carried out among Muslim migrants in Moscow. The research focuses on practices of ritual healing and expelling djinn in an urban post-secular environment and in the context of migration. Concerning the procedure of exorcism, both self-reflection and introspection of all the participants of the treatment are of interest to me – the mullah, his patients, their relatives and even critics of these Muslim practices. In this study, it is not my intention to delve too deeply into the analysis of what possession is or determine its causes, but rather to look at specific situations from my fieldwork through the lens of morality, authority and precarity, in order to attempt to present the experience of possession and my informants’ struggle against it in all its richness and complexity.

Evolving Conceptions of Human Rights as a Bourdieusian Distinction Strategy: A Critical Perspective on Policies Targeting Muslim Populations

This article examines post-9/11 efforts by Western governments to instill respect for human rights among the world’s Muslim populations. The article argues that Western discourses on human rights are best conceptualized as a hegemonic Bourdieusian distinction strategy. In a dynamic strategy of this type, new human rights norms are continually produced and subverted by liberal elites in the West. Because these norms are constantly evolving, Muslim social practices can never “catch up” to them. This produces a perpetual distinction between a progressive liberal Occident and a backwards illiberal Orient, justifying the perpetual hegemony of the former over the latter. In developing its analysis, the article gives special attention to right-wing nationalist movements in Europe and the USA and US foreign policy in the Middle East. These developments are situated in relationship to liberal imperialism in the Colonial era, the Global War on Terrorism, and recent concerns over immigration.

Accepting Muslim minority practices: A case of discriminatory or normative intolerance?

West European societies have seen strong debates about the acceptance of Muslim minority practices. In the current research we sought to better understand intolerance by examining whether people use a double standard in which the same practices are tolerated of Christians but not of Muslims (discriminatory intolerance), or rather reject the practices independently of the religious minority group because these are considered to contradict society's normative ways of life (normative intolerance). The results of two survey‐embedded experiments among native Dutch were most in agreement with an interpretation in terms of normative intolerance rather than discriminatory intolerance. This suggests that the rejection of Muslim practices has less to do with Muslims per se but rather with the perceived normative deviance of the practices, independently of the religious minority group. These findings broaden the research on anti‐Muslim sentiments and thereby the debate on the place of Islam within Western liberal societies.

滞日ムスリムの生活・アイデンティティ・宗教実践 : 日本に帰化したムスリムを事例として

滞日ムスリムの生活・アイデンティティ・宗教実践 : 日本に帰化したムスリムを事例として

Wasiat Rasulullah Kepada Ali bin Abi Thalib Dalam Naskah Washiyyatu al-Mustafa (Edisi Teks dan Terjemahan)

This study discusses Waṣiyyah al-Muṣṭafa (WM) manuscript which contains the Prophet's will for Ali bin Abi Thalib. This manuscript is a single manuscript which written by Ahmad Thabibuddin using Sundanese. This manuscript obtained from people collection in Cianjur, West Java. The condition of the manuscript when it was found was quite good even though there were some damage such as torn, folded, and corrupt. This research used philology method, as for edition method of this research is standard edition. The purposes of this research is to produce text edition which is pure of written errors. So, it can be enjoyed by readers generally. In addition, this study aims to reveal the will of the Prophet to Ali bin Abi Thalib to become a daily lesson and practice of Muslims. Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that this text consists opening section, contents section which includes 15 part, and closing section. Written errors only occurred in substitution and omission cases, the most cases occurred is substitution cases with percentage of 81.8%, while omission is only 18.1%, this shows the writing errors that occurred are mechanical and the author is not aware moreover intended to change it. The results showed that the Messenger of Allah willed about various aspects of life, both the scope of individuals such as honesty or social scope such as way in friends relationship. In addition, this will guides the relationship between humans and humans with their Lord.

The Teaching Of Religious Moderation In The Arba’in Hadith Of Mahfuzh al-Tarmasi and The Arba'in Hadith Of Hasyim Ash'ari

In the first of 20th century, there were two local hadith books written by two archipelago scholars whose teacher and student status, namely the al-Minhah al-Khairiyah fî Arba’îna Hadîtsan min Ahâdîtsi Khair al-Bariyyah by Mahfuzh al-Tarmasi (d. 1919/1920 AD) and the Arba’ûna Hadîtsan Tata’allaqu bi Mabâdi’u Jam’iyyatu Nahdlatu al-Ulamâ’ by Hasyim Ash'ari (d. 1947 AD). Both of books have a different theme structure from the Arba'in tradition books written by their teachers in the Middle East. For this reason, this paper focuses on how the writing context and the intelectual discourse are contained in the text. The two books of Arba’in hadith were written in order to counter wahabism that at that time attacked the religious thoughts and practices of the archipelago Muslims with the accusations of takfirism. The morality in these books is more directed to moderate the attitudes towards anyone, even against the enemy. As like Ritchey, yellow book or turats is an effective medium for moderating religious attitudes in Islam

Queer religious geographies? Qu(e)erying Indonesian Muslim selves

Emerging from two periods of fieldwork in Java, Indonesia, this article draws on participant observation and in-depth, semi-structured interviews to address the co-production of queer Muslim spaces and subjectivities through the everyday practices of queer Muslims. What do queer religious geographies mean in this context? Approximations to this question are offered through an exploration of the lived realities of queer Indonesian Muslims who move between their queerness and religion engaging in commute and integration processes. By studying the domestic sphere, religious spaces and participation in LGBTIQ-rights NGOs, I reflect on the possibility to conceptualize agency from within certain degrees of submission to norms.

A STEP TOO FAR? THE JOURNEY FROM “BIOLOGICAL” TO “SOCIETAL” FILIATION IN THE CHILD'S RIGHT TO NAME AND IDENTITY IN ISLAMIC AND INTERNATIONAL LAW

AbstractThis socio-legal narrative investigates the journey from “biological” to “societal” filiation undertaken by Islamic and international law regimes in their endeavors to ensure a child's right to name and identity. Combining a discussion of filiation—a status-assigning process—with adoption and kafāla (fostering) as status-transferring mechanisms, it highlights a nuanced hierarchy relating to these processes within Muslim communities and Muslim state practices. It questions whether evolving conceptions of a child's rights to name and identity represent a paradigm shift from “no status” if born out of wedlock toward “full status” offered through national and international law and Muslim state and community practices. The article challenges the dominant (formal, legal) position within the Islamic legal traditions that nasab (filiation) is obtainable through marriage alone. Highlighting inherent plurality within the Islamic legal traditions, it demonstrates how Muslim state practice and actual practices of Muslim communities on the subject are neither uniform nor necessarily in accordance with stated doctrinal positions of the juristic schools to which they subscribe. Simultaneously, the paper challenges some exaggerated gaps between “Islamic” and “Western” conceptions of children's rights, arguing that child-centric resources in Islamic law tend to be suppressed by a “universalist” Western human-rights discourse. Tracing common threads through discourses within both legal traditions aimed at ensuring children a name and identity, it demonstrates that the rights values in the United Nations Convention on Rights of the Child resonate with preexisting values within the Islamic legal traditions.

Tinjauan Historis Kurikulum Pesantren Sirajul Huda Kabupaten Karo

Abstra ct Islamic education is an education based on the value of Islamic teachings contained in the Qur'an and the hadith as well as the thinking of scholars in the history practice of Muslims. The process of Islamic education continues to grow thanks to traders and preachers all over Indonesia including North Sumatra. The history of Islamic education in the Karo Land begins with the Islam of the family of Sulaiman Tarigan. Sulaiman Tarigan's awareness of Islamic education motivated him to prepare a successor cadre for the Islamic development struggle. The work of preparing the cadres was established by establishing the Three Beringin School in 1925. The study expanded rapidly until the school moved to Kuala Baru and started the establishment of Sirajul Huda boarding school in 1994. In addition they learn to read and write the Koran and Malay. Keywords : History, Islamic Education, Karo Land

TOĞUŞLU Erkan (dir.), Everyday life practices of Muslims in Europe.

Erkan Toguslu est chercheur a l’Universite de KU Leuven en Belgique. Diplome de l’EHESS, il est specialise sur les migrations, les musulmans en Europe et la religion dans l’espace public. C’est precisement l’articulation de ces trois centres d’interet qui constituent l’objet de recherche de l’ouvrage qu’il dirige. Les different-e-s contributrice/eur-s de l’ouvrage se sont penche-e-s sur des pratiques qui peuvent sembler banales a premiere vue: habitudes alimentaires, rapport a l’art, aux loi...