Jihad in Islamic History: Doctrines and Practice - Rilegato

Bonner, Michael

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 0691125740 ISBN 13: 9780691125749

Casa editrice: Princeton Univ Pr, 2006

Riassunto

What is jihad? Does it mean violence, as many non-Muslims assume? Or does it mean peace, as some Muslims insist? Because jihad is closely associated with the early spread of Islam, today's debate about the origin and meaning of jihad is nothing less than a struggle over Islam itself. In Jihad in Islamic History, Michael Bonner provides the first study in English that focuses on the early history of jihad, shedding much-needed light on the most recent controversies over jihad.

To some, jihad is the essence of radical Islamist ideology, a synonym for terrorism, and even proof of Islam's innate violence. To others, jihad means a peaceful, individual, and internal spiritual striving. Bonner, however, shows that those who argue that jihad means only violence or only peace are both wrong. Jihad is a complex set of doctrines and practices that have changed over time and continue to evolve today. TheQuran's messages about fighting and jihad are inseparable from its requirements of generosity and care for the poor. Jihad has often been a constructive and creative force, the key to building new Islamic societies and states. Jihad has regulated relations between Muslims and non-Muslims, in peace as well as in war. And while today's "jihadists" are in some ways following the "classical" jihad tradition, they have in other ways completely broken with it.

Written for general readers who want to understand jihad and its controversies,Jihad in Islamic History will also interest specialists because of its original arguments.

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Recensione:

"...short, incisive, and highly readable book."--Ahmed Rashid, New York Review of Books

"Viewing what has become an increasingly crowded field, [Bonner] points out that the word jihad has acquired different resonances for a wide variety of actors, from the Islamist radicals for whom it forms the heart of a militant ideology to mystical quietists who regard the 'greater jihad' as the struggle against the 'lower self' of baser human impulses."--Malise Ruthven, New York Review of Books

"Bonner's Jihad in Islamic History is a first-class work that should be highly useful as an introduction to the basic issues and history of the subject, and despite its conciseness contains information interesting even for the more specialized scholar."--David Cook, Middle East Journal

"Bonner . . . provides a cogent yet detailed historical survey of the concept and practice of jihad in Muslim societies. His book is a much-needed counter to the poorly researched or downright biased and alarmist cluster of publications that were quickly written and released after September 11, 2001. . . . The book is easily accessible to the nonspecialist, and is ideal for use in an upper-level undergraduate topics course in Middle Eastern and Islamic history or Islamic religious thought. Bonner's work is also a useful primer for specialists which does not sacrifice quality for brevity."--Christopher Anzalone, Religious Studies Review

"Michael Bonner brings to the subject a sober, forensic approach grounded in sound historiography and a firm grasp of primary sources. . . . The author is to be commended for having provided an accessible, broad historical survey of the mercurial term 'jihad' and its deployment over time. Both the specialist and the nonspecialist will benefit from this study. This slim book is not exhaustive in its approach, nor does it claim to be. But it asks all the right questions and broadly indicates the directions in which future scholarship on jihad as both an institution and a multivalent concept may fruitfully venture."--Asma Afsaruddin, Speculum

"[T]his is a very interesting and useful little book both from the perspective of history and the emergence of Islamic thought and culture. It also includes a useful bibliography and index. The author should be congratulated for his thoughtful and stimulating contribution to the contemporary discourse on the Islamic concept of Jihad, warfare and peace."--Muhammad Khan, Muslim News

"At a time in history when there is a crucial struggle for the soul of the Islamic world, Bonner has provided a road map for scholars and students alike attempting to make sense of the myriad of competing claims. This is a welcome addition to the literature on jihad indeed."--Lewis Brownstein, Ph.D., Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa

"Bonner has been very successful in preparing an introduction to the doctrine and practises of jihad in early Islamic history that can initiate students to the first period Islamic history and early interpretations of jihad. Moreover, there is also a useful commented bibliography at the end of each chapter."--Michelangelo Guida, Turkish Journal of Islamic Studies

Contenuti:

List of Maps xi
Symbols and Accent Marks xiii
Preface xv

CHAPTER ONE: Introduction 1
What Is Jihad? 1
Just War and Holy War 4
Warfare and Jihad 6
Fields of Debate 10
Historiography and Origins 14
Readings 18

CHAPTER TWO: The Quran and Arabia 20
Combat in the Quran 21
Gift and Reciprocity 27
Fighting and Recompense 30
"The Beggar and the Warrior" 32
Readings 34

CHAPTER THREE: Muhammad and His Community 36
Sira and Maghazi: Sacred History 37
Hadith: The Norm 45
Themes of Jihad in the Hadith 49
Fighting with One's Money 51
Readings 54

CHAPTER FOUR: The Great Conquests 56
The Course of Conquest 58
Explanations 60
Approaches to the Islamic Sources 64
Approaches to the Non-Islamic Sources 67
Readings 71

CHAPTER FIVE: Martyrdom 72
Martyrdom before Islam 73
Martyrdom in Quran and Tradition 74
Contexts of Martyrdom in Islam 76
Martyrs and Neomartyrs 79
Readings 82

CHAPTER SIX: Encounter with the Other 84
Conquest Society and Fiscal Regime 84
Treatment of Non-Muslims 87
Abode of Islam, Abode of War 92
Convivencia 93
Readings 95

CHAPTER SEVEN: Embattled Scholars 97
Syria and the Byzantine Frontier 98
Arabia 102
Iraq: The Synthesis of al-Shafi"i 106
North Africa 108
Spain 111
Central Asia 112
The Embattled Scholars: Conclusions 114
Readings 116

CHAPTER EIGHT: Empires, Armies, and Frontiers 118
The Umayyad Caliphate: Imperial Jihad 119
Revolution and Jihad 124
The "Abbasid Caliphate and Its Military Crisis 127
Frontier Societies: Against Byzantium 131
Frontier Societies: Spain and North Africa 134
Ribat 136
The Crusades 137
Ottoman Origins 144
Corsairs in the Mediterranean 149
The Western Sudan 151
Empires, Armies, and Frontiers: Conclusions 153
Readings 155

CHAPTER NINE: Colonial Empire, Modern State, New Jihad 157
Resistance and Reform 157
Fundamentalism and Islamism 161
Readings 165

CHAPTER TEN: Conclusions 167
Bibliography 175
Index 191

Su questa edizione

• Editore: Princeton Univ Pr
• Data di pubblicazione: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0691125740
• ISBN 13: 9780691125749
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero di pagine: 197