Islam in Southeast Asia: Political, Social and Strategic Challenges for the 21st Century

1. ISLAMIC THOUGHT: THEORY, CONCEPTS AND DOCTRINES IN THE CONTEXT OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN ISLAM

3 Islamic Thought in Southeast Asian Islam 3 1 ISLAMIC THOUGHT: THEORY, CONCEPTS AND DOCTRINES IN THE CONTEXT OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN ISLAM Azyumardi Azra INTRODUCTION There is little doubt that Islamic thought is very complex. The complexity of Islamic thought is even greater in philosophical, dogmatic, theoretical, and conceptual aspects especially if one puts it in the context of recent international developments such as the 11 September 2001 terrorist attack in the United States. The complexity is also great in the context of Southeast Asian Islam which, in addition to having a great deal of affinities with Middle Eastern Islam, possesses a number of distinctive characteristics due to its different historical, social, cultural and political realities. There has been a lot of discussion whether Islam is one or many and, by extension, also if Islamic thought is monolithic or pluralistic. There are many among Muslims who maintain that Islam is only one; they refuse the perception that Islam is many. Responding to this matter, I would argue that at the level of the Qur’an — the original and primary source of Islam — Islam is one. There is no disagreement among Muslims that the Qur’an is God’s revelation sent down to the Prophet Muhammad. But, Muslims from the time of postProphet Muhammad have been in disagreement about the Prophetic tradition 3 01 Islam Pt I_Ch 1 4/2/05, 10:38 AM 3 4 4 Azyumardi Azra (hadith, the second source of Islam), a portion of which is considered false and fabricated by Muslim religious scholars (ulama). However, it is important to make it clear that the Qur’an and valid hadith need interpretation (ijtihad) from the ulama in order to formulate workable and implementable doctrines. The formulation of the ulama especially in the field of aqidah (beliefs) and fiqh (detailed interpretation of general principles of shari‘a contained in the Qur’an) are generally very detailed. Influenced by certain sociological, cultural, historical and political factors, differing if not conflicting interpretation of certain verses of the Qur’an and hadith among Muslim ulama have been existing not long after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. As a result, at the sociological level, there are many “Islams” or, to put it in a more precise way, there are many expressions of Islam throughout Islamic history. SUNNISM AND SHI‘ISM It is important to point out that much of the differences among Muslims had its origins not in the religious discourse, but in the political disputes and conflicts between the followers of Uthman ibn Affan, the third caliph, and of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth caliph of the four rightly-guided caliphs (al-khulafa’ al-rashidun). The conflicts, involving civil wars (al-fitan al-kubra), among Muslims, resulted not only in the continued political struggles in the subsequent periods of Islamic history, but also in the rise of a great number of theological schools (kalam). The first small splinter group was the Kharijites (seceders) who seceded from the ummah (Muslim nation) because they believed that other Muslims who had been involved in the conflicts were sinners and, therefore, had become infidels (kafir). Taking a literal interpretation of Islam, the Kharijites maintained that all differences and conflicts among Muslims should be resolved (tahkim) according to the Qur’an. Citing a verse in the Qur’an, they insisted that Muslims who did not resolve their conflicts using the law of God, had become infidels (kafirs). Based on this belief, the Kharijites launched subversive and violent activities against rulers in the region (which includes the present-day Middle East). Violent and radical Muslim groups in the Middle East today are reminiscent of the Kharijites and they are in fact referred to as “neo-Kharijite” groups. The second group, which is much larger, are the followers of Ali ibn Abi Talib, who had been persecuted by Mu‘awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, the most prominent and a shrewd leader of the Uthman ibn Affan group. Claiming the caliphate for himself at the expense of Ali, Mu‘awiyah’s son, Yazid, killed 01 Islam Pt I_Ch 1 4/2/05, 10:38 AM 4 5 Islamic Thought in Southeast Asian Islam 5 Husayn, Ali’s son, in the battle of Karbela, Iraq. Since then the followers of Ali have been known as the Shi‘ite, which simply means the “party of Ali”, and later developed distinct religio-political doctrines. The growth of doctrine had...