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Mawlana Mawdudi and Political Islam Mawlana Mawdudi and Political Islam Mawlana Mawdudi was one of the most influential and important Islamic thinkers of the modern world, whose brand of political Islam has won wide- spread acceptance in South and South-East Asia as well as the Middle East. He was not only an Islamic scholar, but also a journalist and political activist who founded the Jamaat-i-Islami, which has subsequently influenced the development of many Islamic movements and parties throughout the Muslim world. This book is the first to engage critically and assess his career and legacy within the wider context of political Islam. It includes coverage of his early life and influences, and examines his considerable influence in the con- temporary Islamic world. The issues that were a concern for Mawdudi and continue to have resonance for our world today include such questions as the role of women in Islam; the possibilities for democracy in an Islamic state; the importance of jihad; and the moral and religious responsibility of the individual. While focus is on Mawdudi’s life and writings, this is placed within the wider context of topical, often contentious, Islamic thought. Providing an up-to-date and detailed critical study of Mawlana Mawdudi and many issues surrounding political Islam both in Mawdudi’s time and today, this book will be an important text for scholars of Islamic studies, political science and philosophy. Roy Jackson is Senior Lecturer in Religion, Philosophy and Ethics at the University of Gloucestershire, with a research interest in the interaction between religion, ethics and philosophy, and with particular emphasis on Islam. He is the author of Fifty Key Figures in Islam (2006) and Nietzsche and Islam (2007), both published by Routledge. Mawlana Mawdudi and Political Islam Authority and the Islamic state Roy Jackson First published 2011 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016 This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2010. To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk. Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2011 Roy Jackson All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Jackson, Roy, 1962– Mawlana Mawdudi and political Islam : authority and the Islamic state / Roy Jackson. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Maudoodi, Syed Abul ‘Ala, 1903–79. 2. Maudoodi, Syed Abul ‘Ala, 1903–79–Political and social views. 3. Muslim scholars–India–Biography. 4. Muslim scholars–Pakistan–Biography. 5. Salafiyyah–History. I. Title. BP80.M34J33 2011 297.2’72092–dc22 2010005363 ISBN 0-203-84872-1 Master e-book ISBN ISBN: 978-0-415-47411-5 (hbk) ISBN: 978-0-415-47412-2 (pbk) ISBN: 978-0-203-84872-2 (ebk) To Raef and Nadiya Contents Acknowledgements ix Introduction 1 PART I The life and times of Mawdudi 7 1 A noble lineage (1903–19) 9 2A‘hidden power within me’ (1920–30) 25 3 Crisis of the spirit (1930–9) 42 4 The birth of a new party (1940–7) 57 5 The Pakistan years (1947–79) 70 PART II Mawdudi and political Islam 81 6 The need for ‘intellectual independence’ 83 7 The salafis95 8 Mawdudi’s paradigms: the four sources of his Islamic constitution 109 9 Theo-democracy (or divine government?) 128 viii Contents 10 Jihad and the permanent revolution 146 11 Mawdudi’s legacy 161 Notes 178 Bibliography 190 Index 197 Acknowledgements Much of the section on women in Chapter 9 appeared originally as a chapter entitled ‘Mawdudi, Purdah and the Status of Woman’, written by the author and published in Islam and the Veil, ed. Theodore Gabriel (Continuum, 2010). Introduction Sayyid Abul A’la Mawdudi (1903–79) needs no introduction for anyone from South Asia. In fact, in the Muslim intellectual world as a whole, his name is frequently mentioned in debates, conferences and Internet listservs on topics such as Islamic revivalism, democracy, sharia, gender, non-Muslims and jihad. What is often surprising is that, despite his notoriety, he is often mis- quoted and misunderstood, with views and quotes wrongly or misleadingly attributed to him. The result is that Mawdudi is sometimes presented as one of two extremes: either as more ‘liberal’ than he actually was, or more tradi- tionalist than, at least, he intended or wished to be. The life and character of Mawdudi is a complex one, tied up as it is with the immense political upheavals that surrounded him at that time, together with the accompanying concerns and debates over Islamic identity, if not the very survival of Islam in the region. To this extent, Mawdudi’s life and thought can be seen as some- thing of a template that has been repeated across the Islamic world to the present day, hence his name continues to echo loudly. Mawdudi was many things to many people and, as someone who seems to have rarely taken a moment out to simply reflect and relax, he would approach the world with a kind of vigour and intensity (not always wisely directed, it has to be admitted) that puts most of us to shame. Born in Aurangabad in India, he was a journalist, an Islamic scholar, a Muslim revivalist and a political philosopher. Along with the poet and activist Muhammad Iqbal and the statesman Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Mawdudi is considered at the forefront of the establishment of Pakistan. He is probably most renowned as the founder of Jamaat-e-Islami (the ‘Islamic Party’) which continues to be active in Pakistan to this day, as well as its sister organizations in India, Bangladesh, Kashmir and Sri Lanka. Founded in 1941, it is much more than simply a religious or political party; rather it is an Islamic move- ment, a complete way of life, with an ultimate vision of an Islamic statement founded upon the principles elicited by Mawdudi in his writings and speeches. In its methods, ideology and organization, the Jamaat has proven to be an inspiration and model for many other Islamic groups across the world. The appeal of Mawdudi resides not only in the Islamic world, however, for here is a man who – though perhaps he was reluctant to admit it – was 2 Mawlana Mawdudi and political Islam influenced by non-Muslim, western thought (as much as he was Islamic thinkers) including Plato, Hegel, Bergson and Marx. This resulted in an interest that is prevalent in much of his writings: placing modern western thought within an Islamic world-view. The importance of Mawdudi’s thoughts here, particularly his concept of ‘theo-democracy’, are crucial in under- standing such modern ‘clash of civilizations’ debates. Mawdudi’s personality in many ways represents this identity struggle between the values of the west and those of Islam and, ultimately, whether such values are as diverse as people might suppose. Because of the continued importance of Mawdudi, it is extremely difficult to outline his influence without being painfully aware of what is being left out. Certainly, the Egyptian ‘salafis’ (revivalists) Hassan al-Banna (founder of the Muslim Brotherhood) and Sayyid Qutb read and were influenced by him. Qutb, the intellectual driving force behind the Muslim Brotherhood and arguably the most significant influence on the more militant Islamic groups that have sprouted, was inspired by Mawdudi’s writings on the need for an Islamic ‘vanguard’. The Palestinian scholar Abdullah Yusuf Azzam was also influenced by Mawdudi and, in turn, Azzam taught a young student named Osama bin Laden. Mawdudi’sinfluence can also be found within Shi’a Islam, notably Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini who translated some of his works into Farsi and found the concept of theo-democracy (which, in practical terms, is really a theocracy), fitting for Shi’a political thought. This book intends to present Mawdudi ‘warts and all’ and to redress the seeming imbalance in terms of literature that seeks to glorify rather than, as much as any book is able to do, objectify. It is not only a biography, however, but it is also an attempt to place Mawdudi within the wider context of poli- tical philosophy. No knowledge or understanding of Islam is assumed; rather, the aim is to address an audience – Muslim or not – who are simply inter- ested in such questions as, for example, is it possible to live in a state that requires obedience to God and yet still possess free will? In a state governed by morally impeccable individuals, what scope is there for autonomy? In an ideological state, what is the status of those who do not subscribe to that ideology? What issues are raised in the debate between modernity and reli- gion? These were all of some concern to Mawdudi, but they also continue to have a resonance for our world today. It is, therefore, divided into two parts: the first part is chronological, focusing primarily on Mawdudi’s life and times, while the second part considers his views within the wider context of political philosophy. Chapter 1 covers the period of his birth in 1903, until the start of the Khalifat movement in 1919.
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