Messianic Ideas and Movements in Sunni Islam

by Yohanan Friedmann

Overview

Expectation of a redeemer is a widespread phenomenon across many civilizations. Classical Islamic traditions maintain that the mahdi will transform our world by making Islam the sole religion, and that he will do so in collaboration with Jesus, who will return as a Muslim and play a major role in this apocalyptic endeavour.

While the messianic idea has been most often discussed in relation to Shi‘i Islam, it is highly important in the Sunni branch as well. In this groundbreaking work, Yohanan Friedmann explores its roots in Sunni Islam, and studies four major mahdi claimants – Ibn Tumart, Sayyid Muhammad Jawnpuri, Muhammad Ahmad and Mirza Ghulam Ahmad – who made a considerable impact in the regions where they emerged. Focusing on their religious thought, and relating it to classical Muslim ideas on the apocalypse, he examines their movements and considers their achievements, failures and legacies – including the ways in which they prefigured some radical Islamic groups of modern times.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780861543120
Publisher:	Oneworld Publications
Publication date:	06/16/2022
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	368
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Yohanan Friedmann is Max Schloessinger Professor Emeritus of Islamic Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Professor at Shalem College, Jerusalem. In 2003 he received the Landau Prize in the Humanities, and in 2016 he was awarded both the Israel Prize for Near Eastern Studies and the Rothschild Prize in the Humanities. His publications include Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindi and Tolerance and Coercion in Islam.

Table of Contents

Preface xi

Chapter 1 Mahdi, Jesus and Dajjal: The Apocalyptic Drama in Sunni Religious Thought 1

i "Portents of the Hour" (ashrat al-sa'a) l

ii Jesus and the mahdi - a disputed identification 7

iii The dajjal, Jesus and the destruction of Judaism and Christianity 10

iv The descent of Jesus in Qur'anic exegesis 17

v Jesus and the mahdi in historical times 22

vi The mahdi 25

vii The mahdi in Muslim creeds 27

viii Mahdis in history 34

ix Contemporary trends 39

x Summing up 45

Chapter 2 Ibn Tumart, The Mahdi of the Almohads (Ah-Muwahhidun) 47

i Biography and hagiography 47

ii Ibn Tumart's manifestation as the mahdi and his denunciation 56

iii Organization and discipline 64

iv The belief system of Ibn Tumart 66

v The polemics of Ibn Tumart and his jihad 76

vi Non-Muslims in Ibn Tumart's thought 81

vii The reception of Ibn Tumart 82

Excursus: The Face Covering of the Almoravids 88

Chapter 3 The Mahdawi Movement in India 91

i Hagiography and history 91

ii The nature of Jawnpuri's religious claim 99

iii Sayyid Muhammad Jawnpuri and the Prophet 103

iv Religious exclusivity and hijra 111

v Extreme asceticism 120

vi Mahdawi jihad 128

vii Religious knowledge versus mystical ecstasy 131

viii The Mahdawiyya: general considerations 137

Chapter 4 Muhammad Ahmad, The Sudanese Mahdi 139

i Biography 139

ii Muhammad Ahmad's religious thought 146

iii Asceticism and hijra 157

iv Religious exclusivity and jihad 164

v Muhammad Ahmad, his associates and General Gordon 172

vi Legal pronouncements and social issues 175

vii Ritual in Muhammad Ahmad's movement 184

viii Qur'an and hadith in Muhammad Ahmad's works 188

ix Muhammad Ahmad and the religious establishment 192

x Ambitions beyond the Sudan 201

xi Some general characteristics of Muhammad Ahmad's thought 204

Chapter 5 The Mahdi Controversy in Modern Muslim India 206

i A brief introduction 206

ii The "bloody" mahdi 207

iii The "peaceful" mahdi 214

iv Indian Muslim opponents of the Ahmadiyya 232

v The mahdi demystified 237

vi Modern critique and debunking 241

vii Mawdudi's "potential" mahdis and their failures 247

viii Mawdudi's traditional Jesus, modern mahdi and modern dajjal 262

ix The diversity of messianic thought among Indian Muslims 269

Chapter 6 Concluding Observations 271

i Eschatological versus non-eschatological mahdis 271

ii Motivation and "appintment" 274

iii Sources of inspiration 276

iv Exclusivity 278

v Hijra 279

vi Jihad 280

vii Mahdis and prophets 282

viii Achievements 283

ix Sunni and Shi'i mahdi 285

Bibliography 289

Index 323

Index of Qur'anic Verses 345

Index of Prophetic Traditions (ahadith) 350

Editorial Reviews

‘A significant and thoughtful book on the phenomenon of “mahdism,” a subject that in the Sunni tradition has been traditionally understudied. And, yet, as Friedmann points out, such movements have had a significant impact in Islamic history.’

Journal of South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies

‘This excellent book brings into focus the stories, systems of thought and movements created by four mahdis active in different times and places, from medieval al-Andalus to modern India. Friedmann draws upon his in-depth knowledge of the classical Islamic sources to magisterially reveal the inspiration and the interpretative capacities of these leaders, and in so doing he challenges the idea that mahdism is a phenomenon related to Shi‘i rather than to Sunni Islam. He adroitly uses these four central characters to show how the expectation of a redeemer translates into political movements, with mostly tragic consequences.’

Mercedes García-Arenal

‘Friedmann’s study provides important historical depth... Friedmann reminds us of the potency of the messianic idea.’

The Critic Fitzroy Morrissey

‘For more than five decades, Yohanan Friedmann has patiently and meticulously studied a crucial aspect of Islamic history: the role of prophetic figures in mediating between God and humankind, and the social and political implications of that role. Through his past monographs to this work, he has examined thoroughly, with impressive erudition and subtle reflections, the subject from the earliest days of Islam to the present. He thus reveals – with not only the rigour of a philologist and a historian, but with clarity and great pedagogical skill – one of the most important dimensions of Muslim religiosity in all its diversity and complexity.’

Mohammad Ali Amir-Moezzi

‘A wealth of information... This book does far more than fill a gap in scholarship on messianism in Sunni Islam. It offers a far-reaching analysis of mahdis in dialogue with the historic tradition that inspired and shaped them, and provides insights into the patterns of messianic thinking that continues to infuse militant Muslim movements today. It makes a major contribution to our understanding of messianism in Islam, of the study of messianism more broadly, and of the power of religious ideas to change the world.’

Journal of the American Oriental Society

‘Building on his earlier rich forays into Islamic apocalypticism, Friedmann offers a clear and succinct account of Sunni mahdism in history. Deftly choosing his case studies and progressing effortlessly from early Islamic to medieval and modern times, he corrects a significant imbalance in previous scholarship on the figure of the mahdi: the tendency to privilege Shi‘i conceptions. An excellent launchpad for anyone wishing to make the acquaintance of the Sunni mahdi.’

Christian Lange

Praise for Tolerance and Coercion in Islam:

‘A tour de force’ Middle East Quarterly

‘An extremely valuable book’ Muslim World Book Review

From the Publisher