Sayyid Qutb expression and development on Islam free essay sample

Sayyid Qutb has been one of the most notarized writers of Islamic fundamentalism this century. He has inspired many of the radical Islamic movements of the 1970s and 80s in the Middle East and Northern Africa, and his ideas of an Islamic society have been used again and again. Qutb has also influenced numerous generations of Egyptian and Arab intellectuals who seek to understand Islam as an ideology first and foremost, and as an ideology that leads to changes in the social order. Qutb wrote most of his influential political works in the 50s and 60s, while he was frustrated with Third World state of Egypt, and Qutb sought to reinvent Egypt within the context of Islam. He considered Islam ? political Islam especially ? to be the only alternative to the nills of contemporary Muslim societies. i(1) Although QutbIs writings incorporate many topics, including educational reform, philosophy and more, his most notable writings were those about Jahiliyyah, and his fear that Egypt was falling into the grips of a Western spirituality. Qutb felt that Islam was in danger of spiritual imperialism from the West and he sought first and foremost to preserve it. Qutb believed wholeheartedly in the supreme nature of Islam, and he felt that he needed to use radical political tactics to achieve his ends. He used his power and influence with the Muslim Brotherhood to promote his agenda. I argue that Qutb was above all a realistic political theorist (rather than a theologian or a philosopher), who would stop at nothing to see his vision realized. Qutb felt, first and foremost, that the Islamic way of life was the only way of life, and that the problems of modern Egypt stemmed from secular practices: nIslam is a complete social system which is different in its nature and conception of life and its means of application from any Western or applied system in the world of today. Surely, Islam has not participated in creating the existing problems in todayIs societies. These problems have arisen as a result of the erroneous nature of the applied systems in the modern world, and as a result of removing Islam from the context of life. i (2) Qutb espoused Islam as a comprehensive political and social system that insures social justice for the masses. He believed that it would cure all social ills because it stands against corruption, oppression, and luxury. Undoubtedly, Qutb believed that Islam prescribed the basic principles of social justice. Furthermore, Qutb espoused the idea that religion is not merely an nopiate of the massesi but is also potentially a force of liberation. In other words, Qutb believed that religion is not simply a philosophy or metaphysic, but it is also a concrete social force. This is where his political ideology is seen most strongly. Qutb felt that the detriment of Western religion was that it had separated church and state and did not endorse a far-reaching comprehensive view, and he feared that this trend was beginning to prevail in modern Egypt. Qutb therefore spent much time tracing the historical development of both Judaism and Christianity and showing that nthe hideous schizophreniai ? the separation of religion from politics ? had been the byproduct of Western history. Qutb argued that Islam is a universal ideology and philosophy of life that accepts no separation between politics and religion: nThis hideous schizophrenia took place under lamentable circumstances, leaving its destructive traces in Europe, and from there to the whole world wherever Western views, institutions, and ways of life have conquered other human societies. i (3) Clearly, Qutb saw the infiltration of Western ideals, or Jahiliyyah, as a threat. An Umma, to him, cannot exist if there is oppression. Qutb believed that Islam stands against all the passive manifestations in the world, and, as Rabi argues, believed that Islam is a revolutionary spirit, and that once it touches the heart it causes a total change in feelings, conceptions, and perceptions. Qutb furthermore tried to resist the prevailing world notion that there were only two camps of thought (capitalism and communism) and instead wanted Muslims (especially Egyptians) to see Islam as another equally viable comprehensive world-view. Because of these fears, Qutb began strategizing about how to realize his vision. He understood that above all, he had to use realistic and pragmatic tactics to realize his ideal. Qutb felt that the only practical solution was to find a nnew mentality whose task will not simply be to evaluate the existing state of things, but rather to produce a new state. i(4) He further espoused that his nforemost objective [was] to bring about a revolution in the practical system of society. The Jahiliyyah order has to be exterminated root and branch. i (5) Again, itIs clear that his idealism became channeled into realist policies. These ideals led him to ally himself with the Muslim Brotherhood. In Dirasat Islamiyyah, a collection of articles written between 1951 and 1953, QutbIs ideological commitment to the Brotherhood appears most clearly. The Muslim Brotherhood, at the time, had a great the political and intellectual influence, and this is probably the main reason why Qutb joined. However, the Muslim BrotherhoodIs ideology also mimicked his ideology. Al-Banna himself summarized the meaning of Islam in similar terms to that of Qutb ? as a comprehensive faith that regulates matters for all mankind in every era. Furthermore, the proclaimed goal of the Muslim Brotherhood (as established by al-Banna in 1928) was to stand against the corruption of the King and the foreign British intervention in the political and economic affairs of Egypt. The Muslim Brotherhood grew directly out of the challenge modern secularism posed to Islamic values. Al-Banna himself felt that the weakness of Islamic society could be cured only if it returned to the sources of its strength, the Quran and the Sunnah. As Obert argues, the Brotherhood sought to implement revival rather than engage in intellectual speculation. In this sense it was fundamentalist. The organization was to be the vehicle for establishing an Islamic moral society and a truly Muslim government. These goals were clearly part of QutbIs idealized vision of an Islamic state. What was most important to Qutb, though, was that the Muslim Brotherhood was an organization that would engage in an active struggle (or jihad) against the Jahiliyyah. As Lee argues, Qutb felt strongly that a true believer in Islam embraces the opportunity to overcome personal ambitions and instead participate in jihad, maybe even to die. Islam was after all for Qutb a confrontation with the obstacles of life to achieve the Islamic goals. He wrote that nthose who perceive themselves to be Muslims but who donIt struggle against the different kinds of oppression, and who donIt defend the rights of the oppressed and who donIt cry out in the face of the dictators are either wrong or hypocrites or ignorant of the rules of Islam. i (6) In the beginning, Rabi argues, Qutb did not offer violence as an alternative to the status quo. Although he felt strongly that the Egyptians were taken advantage of, violence was not something he endorsed. He was a thinker by nature, but was slowly pushed by the Brotherhood into forceful tactics. Later he began to concede that although violence was often necessary to overthrow institutional obstacles. Rabi argues that in the final phase of his life, he preaches that the struggling ranks of the believers should isolate themselves from society at large and fight against every manifestation of Jahiliyyah. By the end of his life, Qutb advocated that Jahiliyyah had to be demolished at all costs. Rabi argues that Qutb felt that this could only be done through establishing new economic and political ties. He condemned modern Muslims for being so influenced by Western ideals. He began to criticize the whole of Muslim society for falling prey to Jahiliyyah. Rabi emphatically argues that nQutbIs pattern of thought, mainly in his last phase, represents a turning point in the doctrine of the modern Islamic revivalist movements. The masses cease to play a crucial role in his ideology. i (7) By this point, Qutb was jailed and had no political power left. His only power was to write, and he completed several books his last years in prison. Although Qutb did have many philosophical ideas on the nature of Islam ? its merits and strengths ? he was most concerned with combating Western influences in the politics of Egypt. Most of his life was dedicated to his struggle against Jahiliyyah, and his association with the Muslim Brotherhood was one such way to realize his vision. Ultimately, he is remembered for his passionate rhetoric that condemns Western influences and his struggle (jihad) to fight it.