BTS : Crafting a modernist reply to conservatism
Yap Yok Foo
29 July 2002
Crafting a modernist reply to conservatism
A look at the cosmopolitan world of the Andalus could help
By Karim Raslan
THE tussle that Malaysia is currently experiencing between the forces
of conservatism on the one hand and modernism on the other is by no
means new to the Islamic world. Countless Muslim societies have had to
live through this struggle over the centuries, beginning with the
Khawarij in the 7th century.
Almost inevitably, factions vying for power have often chosen to
express their intentions by using - some would say even abusing - the
faith. Certainly, it's true that in Malaysia both sides of the debate
hold themselves out as being truly Islamic. Indeed, both are, in their
own way, separate and tangible interpretations of Islam. The
conservatives seek to recreate the pristine world of the Prophet
Mohammad while the modernists endeavour to balance the demands of the
faith with the external realities of an economic and political order
that now seems heavily weighted against the Muslim world.
The recent attempt by the theocratic opposition party, PAS, to
introduce the Hudud law in Trengganu serves to up the ante in this
contest. However, the challenge posed by the conservatives requires a
series of deft, well-considered responses: Politics alone will not
suffice and authoritarianism will backfire completely. Instead,
modernist Muslims will have to adopt a range of initiatives.
Firstly, they must recognise that this split is deep, enduring and
unavoidable. Of course, this fact is a terrible blow to those
(predominantly modernists) who believe implicitly in Malay 'unity'.
This outdated view ignores the many political, social and economic
factors that have made the Malay community so diverse. Still, once
this split is acknowledged, the modernists must try to learn more
about the conservatives: their genesis and the socio-economic factors
that have shaped their dramatic growth in numbers. In this, no stone
must be left unturned. The research must be copious and exacting.
Secondly, the religious education system must be overhauled. We cannot
allow the madrasahs to continue being a redoubt of conservatism. The
minds of the younger generation must be won over. By way of
comparison, in Indonesia the pesantren system has churned out hundreds
of thousands of religious scholars for whom moderation and tolerance
are a given. Why haven't we looked to Java for comparative models?
Talk about it
Thirdly, the modernists must learn more about the intellectual
arguments that have shaped Islamic discourse. Extolling progress and
development in itself no longer wins votes. Moreover, Muslims can no
longer depend on a handful of religious scholars to direct the course
of Islamic scholarship. Islam contains the values and principles that
can guide our lives and they must become more conversant with these
arguments. They cannot relinquish the authority over their lives to a
handful of men for whom science, technology and economics are
nugatory. In this respect, conferences such as the recent Kuala Lumpur
International Forum on Islam (Kalif) provide a vital opportunity for
scholars and practitioners to exchange views and promote ideas within
the ummah: Debate is an imperative.
The fourth initiative is the most challenging. How do you build a
vision and/or interpretation of the Holy Koran that is compelling and
majestic? How do you inspire the ummah to feel passionate about and
committed to the modernist agenda? What model should the modernists
adopt?
We've all seen how extremists have been able to galvanise the masses
to violence and intolerance. However, how do you inspire men and women
to reach for excellence in a manner that is moderate, progressive,
plural and tolerant?
I stumbled across part of the answer to this question when I was in
New York for the World Economic Forum's 'Davos on the Hudson' earlier
this year. During the meeting, I spent some time with the Crown Prince
of Bahrain. And since he was an intelligent and thoughtful young man
(not something one can take for granted with hereditary rulers), we
discussed the idea of reform and renewal in the Islamic world.
In a presentation I had made earlier, I had been very critical of the
Arab world: lambasting the Middle Eastern nations for their
incompetence, corruption and backwardness. The Arabs, I argued, were
giving the Muslim world a bad name. I could tell that the Crown Prince
was perturbed by my comments. He decided to address what he thought
were my misconceptions. In doing so, he told me about Bahrain's
attempts to democratise and modernise. Unsurprisingly, he was
fascinated by developments in South-east Asia.
Later, as we talked in his hotel suite over coffee, I noticed he
paused for a while before saying: 'You know, this reminds me of the
Andalus.' His words have continued to haunt me - 'the Andalus': the
idea was tantalising and resonant.
Here was a society occupying the Iberian Peninsular and located at the
very margins of the Islamic world. Nonetheless, the Andalus was rich,
confident, multi-racial and cosmopolitan: in certain critical ways not
unlike modern-day Malaysia.
Under the Umayyad dynasty (755-976 AD), cities such as Cordoba,
Granada and Seville were to provide an unparalleled setting for
scholarship, culture and commerce. During the reign of al-Hakam II,
Cordoba's library was said to contain well over 400,000 folios. The
cosmopolitan ethos encouraged new and exciting styles of literature,
in particular a form of romance poetry known as muwashshah that
combined both the lyricism of colloquial Spanish with the classicism
of Arabic.
Centuries later, in the 1300s under the African-born Nasrid dynasty,
Granada achieved a second flowering as the poet-administrator Ibn
al-Khatib and Ibn Khaldun, the author of the ground-breaking
Muqaddima, rose to prominence. Of course, the most celebrated
masterpiece of that period was the highly acclaimed architectural gem
- Granada's exquisite Alhambra palace.
Ever-present threats
That's not to say that the enlightened and cultured ethos went
unchallenged. Narrow-minded Maliki jurists and clerics were an
ever-present threat to Andalus' prosperity and tolerance. Under the
African-born Almoravids (1091-1145), standards of scholarship were to
decline, though this was to be reversed by the Almohads who presided
over a period of remarkable scientific and philosophical ferment
including the celebrated thinker Ibn Rushd (better known in the West
as Averroes) and Ibn Tufayl of Guadix.
The Andalus remains a powerful image in the Islamic world: a society
that flourished and prospered for many centuries. It is also a
cautionary tale: in-fighting and intrigue permitted the Castilian
Christians to advance on Granada, leading to the collapse of the
once-great society. At the same time, narrow-minded clerics and
bigoted religious scholars seized public discourse, arguing at great
length over issues of purity and piety. The spirit of enlightenment
and excellence was quashed as whole communities turned away from the
search for knowledge. Can you think of another model?
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