Islam in Southeast Asia: Negotiating Modernity, edited by Norshahril Saat, Fellow, ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, Singapore, covers recent trends affecting Islam in the Malay world.
"Perceptions of Southeast Asian Islam are increasingly contested. On the one hand, much of the international community continues to laud the region’s Muslims as among the most 'moderate' and 'inclusive' in the world.
"On the other hand, stories about creeping Wahhabism and escalating jihadist threats abound in media reporting, often accompanied by commentary that the nature of Southeast Asian Islam is becoming more radical, less tolerant and more 'Arabised'.
"In this volume, a range of Muslim scholars and activists from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore reflect upon developments in their communities and seek to bring greater nuance to our understanding of these complex religio-cultural and political changes.
"This book opens up authentic regional perspectives on Islam’s contemporary role," said Associate Professor Greg Fealy, Department of Political and Social Change, Australian National University.
The State, Ulama and Islam in Malaysia and Indonesia by Saat, was also launched recently. Published by the Amsterdam University Press/ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, the book examines the extent to which official ulamas in contemporary Indonesia and Malaysia capitalised on their co-optation to ‘capture’ the states. An ulama is a group of Muslim scholars who are recognised for their specialised knowledge of Islamic sacred law and theology.
In response to the Islamic resurgence of the 1970s and beyond, the Suharto (1966–1998) and Mahathir (1981–2003) governments undertook massive Islamisation programmes in Indonesia and Malaysia respectively. This included co-opting influential religious scholars into state-sponsored institutions.
In 1975, Suharto formed the Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI); while in the 1980s, Mahathir upgraded the Malaysian National Fatwa Council (JKFMKI), JAKIM (Department of Islamic Development Malaysia) and IKIM (Malaysian Institute for Islamic Understanding). The ‘official’ ulamas, defined by the book as the religious scholars who participated in these institutions, were expected to support the states’ ideologies in exchange for reward and recognition. The author discusses societal actors’ ability to influence laws, policies, and the distribution of resources in their favour.
Hamka and Islam: Cosmopolitan Reform in the Malay World by Khairudin Aljunied, Associate Professor in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, NUS, is published by the Cornell Southeast Asia Program/ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.
Pancasila and the Challenge of Political Islam: Past and Present compares and contrasts Islamism against Pancasila, or cultural pluralism. Islam is an important symbol in post-Suharto Indonesia, and has been used as an effective tool to undermine political rivals. Political figures or parties feel they cannot afford to be seen to be against the religion or be considered unfriendly to it.
"Islam in the Malay world of Southeast Asia or Islam Nusantara, as it has come to be known, had for a long time been seen as representing the more spiritual and Sufi dimension of Islam, thereby striking a balance between the exoteric and the esoteric. This image of 'the smiling face of Islam' has been disturbed during the last decades with increasing calls for the implementation of shari’ah, conceived of in a narrow manner, intolerant discourse against non-Muslim communities, and hate speech against minority Muslims such as the Shi’ites. There has also been what some have referred to as the Salafisation* of Sunni Muslims in the region.
"The chapters of this volume are written by scholars and activists from the region who are very perceptive of such trends in Malay world Islam and promise to improve our understanding of developments that are sometimes difficult to grapple with," said Professor Syed Farid Alatas, Department of Sociology, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, National University of Singapore (NUS). Saat is also Adjunct Lecturer with the Department of Malay Studies, NUS.
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| Source: ISEAS. Cover, Islam in Southeast Asia. |
"On the other hand, stories about creeping Wahhabism and escalating jihadist threats abound in media reporting, often accompanied by commentary that the nature of Southeast Asian Islam is becoming more radical, less tolerant and more 'Arabised'.
"In this volume, a range of Muslim scholars and activists from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore reflect upon developments in their communities and seek to bring greater nuance to our understanding of these complex religio-cultural and political changes.
"This book opens up authentic regional perspectives on Islam’s contemporary role," said Associate Professor Greg Fealy, Department of Political and Social Change, Australian National University.
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In response to the Islamic resurgence of the 1970s and beyond, the Suharto (1966–1998) and Mahathir (1981–2003) governments undertook massive Islamisation programmes in Indonesia and Malaysia respectively. This included co-opting influential religious scholars into state-sponsored institutions.
In 1975, Suharto formed the Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI); while in the 1980s, Mahathir upgraded the Malaysian National Fatwa Council (JKFMKI), JAKIM (Department of Islamic Development Malaysia) and IKIM (Malaysian Institute for Islamic Understanding). The ‘official’ ulamas, defined by the book as the religious scholars who participated in these institutions, were expected to support the states’ ideologies in exchange for reward and recognition. The author discusses societal actors’ ability to influence laws, policies, and the distribution of resources in their favour.
Hamka and Islam: Cosmopolitan Reform in the Malay World by Khairudin Aljunied, Associate Professor in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, NUS, is published by the Cornell Southeast Asia Program/ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.
Hamka or author Haji Abdul Malik bin Abdul Karim Amrullah is one of the most influential of Muslim reformers who have been
campaigning for a total transformation of the ways in which Islam is
imagined in the Malay world.
In Hamka and Islam, Aljunied employs the term
“cosmopolitan reform” to describe Hamka’s attempt to harmonise the many
streams of Islamic and Western thought while posing solutions to the
various challenges facing Muslims. Among the major themes that Aljunied
explores are reason and revelation, moderation and extremism, social
justice, the state of women in society, and Sufism in the modern age, as
well as the importance of history in reforming the minds of modern
Muslims.
Pancasila and the Challenge of Political Islam: Past and Present compares and contrasts Islamism against Pancasila, or cultural pluralism. Islam is an important symbol in post-Suharto Indonesia, and has been used as an effective tool to undermine political rivals. Political figures or parties feel they cannot afford to be seen to be against the religion or be considered unfriendly to it.
Leo Suryadinata, who is Visiting Senior Fellow at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, argues that the
future of Pancasila depends on whether the Indonesian government and
other pluralist forces are able to control the Islamists and provide
political stability and economic development in the country.
Details:
Buy Hamka and Islam: Cosmopolitan Reform in the Malay World (139 pages)
Softcover, ISBN: 978-981-4818-84-1, S$29.90
The ISEAS edition is for distribution in Southeast Asia.
Buy Islam in Southeast Asia: Negotiating Modernity (252 pages)
Softcover, ISBN: 978-981-4786-99-7, S$35.90
Chapters of the book are available as PDF downloads from S$7.
Buy Pancasila and the Challenge of Political Islam: Past and Present (20 pages)
Softcover, ISBN: 978-981-4818-67-4, S$9
Buy The State, Ulama and Islam in Malaysia and Indonesia (254 pages)
Softcover, ISBN: 978-981-4818-83-4, S$35.90
The ISEAS edition is for distribution in Southeast Asia.
*Salafists advocate a return to the traditions of the first three generations of Muslims. There is a range of beliefs and practices among Salafists. Some are non-political, some are political, and a minority believe in violence and terrorism as a means to an end.
Buy Hamka and Islam: Cosmopolitan Reform in the Malay World (139 pages)
Softcover, ISBN: 978-981-4818-84-1, S$29.90
The ISEAS edition is for distribution in Southeast Asia.
Buy Islam in Southeast Asia: Negotiating Modernity (252 pages)
Softcover, ISBN: 978-981-4786-99-7, S$35.90
Chapters of the book are available as PDF downloads from S$7.
Buy Pancasila and the Challenge of Political Islam: Past and Present (20 pages)
Softcover, ISBN: 978-981-4818-67-4, S$9
Buy The State, Ulama and Islam in Malaysia and Indonesia (254 pages)
Softcover, ISBN: 978-981-4818-83-4, S$35.90
The ISEAS edition is for distribution in Southeast Asia.
*Salafists advocate a return to the traditions of the first three generations of Muslims. There is a range of beliefs and practices among Salafists. Some are non-political, some are political, and a minority believe in violence and terrorism as a means to an end.