Keeler’s “Rethinking Islam and the West” analyses the Western world view, until relatively recently unquestioned, that of ever continuing human progress.
He directly relates this present Age of Crises to adherence to this myth and the loss of balance in modern life; “the balance between the material and the spiritual, and between ourselves and the environment in which we live.”
Although the West grew up under the shadow of the Islamic world, it became the conqueror and subjugator of all other cultures and civilisations, the Islamic world included.
During the Enlightenment in the West, a revolutionary new narrative developed to replace the Christian narrative of salvation. This was the narrative of human progress.
“This new narrative saw the Christian millenium as a dark age of ignorance and superstition. It became known as the Medieval or Middle Ages, a period between the illumination of the ancients and the light of the modern world.”
While the Industrial Revolution is portrayed as a great leap forwards for humanity, Keeler points to another reality.
“The impoverishment which took place during the 19th Century, with its plantations, mines and sweatshops, was the creation of the Europeans, and it was out of this destruction of living cultures and civilisations that the Industrial Revolution was born and the modern world came into being.”
This “progress” also brought us global warming, the atom bomb, devastation caused by chemicals, a tottering financial system, antibiotic resistance, the terrorist perversion of Islam and the world refugee crisis emerging from the War on Terror in the Middle East.
“In looking for a new story, a narrative which can make more sense of our past and the situation in which we now find ourselves, a criterion needs to be found in place of that of progress, and I believe this to be the criterion of balance.”
This is “…represented by the Arabic term mizan, which can be translated as balance, justice, measure, harmony or indeed, weighing scales.”
The primacy of mizan is presented in the 55th chapter or sura of the Quran, Al-Rahman:7-9.
It is the incapacity to understand the concept of ‘dynamic equilibrium,’ which is defined as ‘a state of balance between continuing processes,’ that had led the modern to regard pre-modern, traditional cultures and civilisations as static and stagnant.
Each traditional civilisation contains a sacred centre which is unchanging and it is this sacred centre that contains its life-force. When it is compromised, the civilisation runs down.”
“Islamic civilisation has an incredibly powerful sacred centre. … the Revelation of the Quran and the life of the Prophet, and emanating from these, the Five Pillars of Islam.”
In Islam, “ …human vicegerency involves a duty towards God, to the creation, and to fellow human beings.”
The West has lost this sacred centre.
The 1648 Peace of Westphalia which ended the Thirty Years war between Catholic and Protestant recognised the sovereign nation state.
“With the collapse of Christendom, the primary unifying identity was subsumed into the newly-formed sovereign nation state. What had been a Christian identity became a kind of quasi-sacred national identity.”
“Over the last five hundred years, the West has gone on a journey that began with absolute sovereignty being vested in God, then with it passing into the monarchy and the sovereign nation state, then being vested in the people through democracy, and finally ending up with the sovereignty of the individual.”
This is not the dominant world culture but it dominates Western thinking at present.
Keeler concludes; “Essentially, the situations have been reversed; whereas in the narrative of progress, the Western arc was one of ascension and the Islamic arc one of stagnation and decline, in the new narrative Islam maintained the balance while the West broke it, descending ever more rapidly into the realm of materiality.”
Rethinking Islam and the West. A New Narrative for the Age of Crises. Ahmed Paul Keeler Equilibria Press Cambridge UK 2019.
Help me understand, Islam is the perfect religion and Shariah is the perfect law. Why are the below countries and societies the most corrupt in the world? Gabon, Niger, Algeria, Cote d Ivoire, Egypt, Mali, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Djibouti, Iran, Kazakhstan, Nepal, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Nigeria, Guinea, Mauritania, Bangladesh, Tajikistan, Comoros, Turkmenistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Sudan, Yemen, Syria, Somalia. (The History of Islam Vol 3, S.E. Al-Djazairi p190) They all have one majority in common and it’s Islam. It looks like Islam can’t function without corruption.
Perhaps if you are actually interested, Ahmed Keeler’s “Rethinking Islamand the west” is worth reading.
One factor you might consider is, apart from being Muslim majority, what else do they have in common?
I will order the book. That’s a hard question to answer, I noticed some countries have been meddled with by the US. Most of the African countries gained their independence in the 50s and 60s.
An indication of what may be involved
https://www.phillytrib.com/commentary/coard-king-leopold-twice-the-monster-hitler-was/article_597c993b-5e60-549f-b873-76f85815c0cf.html
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is not on the list. Yes your right history has produced very nasty men, even from Arabia. Though it doesn’t explain the corruption. I’m sure all these men have agency. It is a choice to be corrupt or not. So back to my main question, why are these majority Muslim countries the corrupt in the modern world? Islam is the pure religion is it not?
The Muslim populated countries are not adopting Islamic laws and principles and for some, they may do it cosmetically. None is doing it holistically because opulent leader living among their hungry subjects is un-Islamic, to begin with. Who is to say that Western countries are corruption-free and can we blame Christianity for it? The scars of colonisation and the ongoing plunder of resources by the powerful continue to support corruption, particularly in the Third World. Corruption because of hunger (Third world problem) and corruption because of greed (First world temptation)is just part of the hydra-headed monster. No religion encourages corruption either of the body or the soul.
If you read the above reply, I didn’t write the book a fellow Muslim did. I’m only asking why?
Perhaps Ahmed Keeler’s book will answer your question. That is why I recommended it.
Perhaps Ahmed Keeler’s book will answer your question. That is why I recommended it.
Have received the book, what concerns me is, Chapter 6 p127 and 128 is completely false. The Prophet lead many war battles, Badar, Uhud, Raji, Well of Ma’unah, Khaybar and Hunayn to name a few. Qur’an, 2:256 is Medinan, Qur’an, 5:48 is Medinan. Qur’an Surah 9 Meccan and Abrogates the earlier Medinan Surahs, but are confirmed to be authentic. There have been many books written by Islamic scholars devoted to explaining which Qur’anic verses abrogated earlier ones. Some say both Surahs can be used at the same time, others say they can’t. There is more to life than materialism and greed for money, I do understand his points on that. I don’t blame the West for corruption, corruption is found in the heart of man, what ever creed you follow. There is one country in the middle of the Middle East and they are very prosperous. My view is keep moving forward and not be dragged back by history, new or old.
2019 Global Gender Gap Index: 10 Worst countries for gender equality. United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia. Qatar. Malaysia. India. Iran. Egypt. Jordan. Iraq. Indonesia. The common link between them all is International Islam. Why is International Islam against women? Are you going to blame the West for this?
Suggest you read Ahmed Keeler’s book. What might also increase your understanding is a read of Who Speaks for Islam. https://www.gallup.com/press/176483/speaks-islam.aspx
The issue has never been with the average Australian Muslim. The problem is with who leads Islam and teachers Islam. Islam is a political and religious belief system, bound by doctrines. Imam’s and teachers are responsible for the direction. It’s the lack of honesty especially in Australia within the leadership structure. Ask your local Imam, why are there Muslim men with more than one wife in Australia? Who are the Sons of Pigs and Apes? Should Australia become an Islamic Republic? Why can’t Islam be reformed? What’s wrong with Australia’s legal system? Who does the average Australian Muslim side with in this country the Kafir or the Imam?
Well said Chris. It is a funny world. Same arguments are presented in the Islamic Countries against the minority other Religions. There is no right wrong answer with Islam. Islam…was always challenged even in its most Prime days when it was rapidly expanding and growing and so was other Religions ever since their revelation or creation. Success is in the Message, not in the people. When we are focused on peoples actions to justify if a belief system is right or wrong, it will always be wrong does not matter which Religion we will look into historically…violence is everywhere. Regarding the question Who does the average Australian Muslim side with in this country the Kafir or the Imam? Depends are you asking in 2020 or when the locals were being cleared to colonise Australia. Every Religion, country has its violent history which cannot be changed. Africa…the blacks were tortured? India their treasures were being removed by the British! US…the Red Indians were being wiped out in the Millions…dont get me wrong, this is not critcism against you or your views…this is an example of where we go wrong…when we corrupt the message of the religion with the views of the peoples actions….Islam believes in True Christanity that does not mean every Christian is correct…believes in True Judaism does not mean every Rabi is right…and by believing in Islam it does not mean every Muslim is correct either. As a Muslim I believe in the Quran, its message, its revelation, its wisdom…but to believe in all Muslims….that is a choice for everyone.