A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER

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TAWHID: VIEWS OF ISMAIL Al FARUQI AS

COMPARED TO SA YYID QUTB AND ABUL A'LA AL MA WDUDI: AN ANALYSIS

BY

MOHAMED YOOSUF SEYED SHAFEE

A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER

OF ISLAMIC REVEALED KNOWLEDGE AND HERITAGE

KULLIYYAH OF ISLAMIC REVEALED KNOWLEDGE AND HUMAN SCIENCES

INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA

MARCH 1998

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Abstract

Tawhid, as a concept is not new, yet it is not fully comprehended by many Muslims.

Therefore, the purpose of this work is to analyse and explain the meaning of tawhid and its implications. This study has mainly focused on textual analysis of the writings of Ismail Al Faruqi, and compares it with those of Sayyid Qutb, and Abul A'la Al Mawdudi.

The study has also benefited from the works of reputed scholars who have contributed to the explication of the concept of tawhid. The study found that the concept of tawhid of Ismail Al Faruqi is clearer and broader than those found in the writings of Sayyid Qutb and Abul A'la Al Mawdudi. This is specially in the fields of Economics, Politics, Ethics, Axiology, Sociology, Metaphysics and Aesthetics. It is also shown that Al Faruqi's creative application in the field of tawhid helps in solving the current problems of the Muslims and in removing the suspicions of non-Muslims on tawhid and on Islam as a way oflife.

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Approval Page

I certify that I have supervised and read this study and that in my opinion it confirms to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage (Usul al Din and Comparative Religion).

· · · ~

Dr. Jamal Ahamed Bashi · Supervisor

Date: d).

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I certify that I have read this study and that in my opinion it confirms to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage (Usul al Din and Comparative Religion).

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Examiner

Date:

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This thesis was submitted to the Department of Usul al Din and Comparative Religion and is accepted as a partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage (Usul al Din and Comparative Religion).

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Dr. Wan Sabri Wan Yusof

Head, Department ofUsul al Din and Comparative Religion.

Date: , - /

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This thesis was submitted to the Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences and is accepted as a partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage (Usul al Din and Comparative Religion).

Dr. Jamal Barzinji

Acting Dean, Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences.

Date:

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Declaration

I hereby declare that the thesis is the result of my own investigation, except where otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by footnotes giving explicit references and a bibliography is appended.

Name: Mohamed Yoosuf Seyed Shafee

Date: ....

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To my beloved Parents Mohamed Yoosuf and Rabia Yoosuf

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Acknowledgements

It is a privilege to express my sincere thanks to those who have contributed towards the completion of this work. I am indebted to my supervisor Dr. Jamal Ahamed Basihr Badi for his guidance and supervision during the process of writing the thesis. I take this opportunity to thank Prof. Dr. Abdul Khaliq Kazi for his comments after reading the thesis. I would also like to thank Prof. Dr. Jamal Barzinji, Prof. Dr. Abdul Rashid Moten, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Louay Safi, and Asst. Prof. Dr.

Ibrahim M. Zein for their contributions, advice and encouragement in my work.

My heartfelt thanks are due to staff of the Libraries of the International Islamic University Malaysia, the International Institute of Islamic Thought Malaysia and University Malaya for the help and facilities they have provided me in collecting relevant references from inside the country and abroad. I would also like to acknowledge the sponsorship from the International Islamic University Malaysia.

Without this financial support, it would have been very difficult for this work to be undertaken.

Last but not least, my deep appreciation goes to my parents and family, especially my beloved wife M.I.F.Mareena, for their infinite support and encouragement.

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Chapter Three: Al Faruqi's Concept of Tawhid

Introduction ... 26

Tawhid A General View ... 30

Methodological Dimension ... 32

The "Contentual" Dimension ... 35

Conclusion ... -: .... 75

Chapter Four : Sayyid Qutb's Concept of Tawhid

Introduction ... 77

Concept of Tawhid ... 79

History of Tawhid . . . .. . . . 87

Conclusion ... 92

Chapter Five : Al Mawdudi's Concept of Tawhid

Introduction ... 9 3 - The Meaning ofTawhid ... .... 95

Foundation of Tawhid ... 106

Conclusion ... 108

Chapter Six: Conclusion ... :··· ... ...

110

Bibliography ... ..

.117

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Overview

Chapter One Introduction

Al tawhid is a basic requirement for Muslims and their lives. Everything in Islam

depends on the concept of tawhid. It is the measure of the life of Muslim ummah spiritually, economically, politically, socially, culturally and morally. Since the time immemorial, tawhid has been playing a significant role throughout history. All the Prophets of Allah were sent to preach the concept of tawhid in the world. The last Prophet Muhammad (SAAS) not only called the people to the path of tawhid, but he established a tawhidic society in Medina before his death.

Statement of the Problem

After the Prophet Mohammed's (SAAS) death, the Muslim community was led by four Caliphs known as Khilafah ar Rashidah. During their peroid, they preached and practised tawhid and ensured the application of Shari 'ah in every aspect of the Muslim ummah.

Subsequently, tawhid lost its centrality in the life of the Muslims. The rulers who succeeded the Khilafah ar Rashidah did not fully implement the Shari 'ah. There was a big gap between the rulers and the religious scholars which was not seen in early Islam and during the Prophet's life. Furthermore, many political groups developed and they

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started to fight each other. Shiites, Mu'tazilites, Khawarijites and others promoted their own ideas and views among the Muslims and caused them to be divided into many groups destroying the unity of the Muslim ummah.

In view of the above, the contemporary Muslim ummah is facing great difficulties in understanding Islam on its own terms. Generally speaking, ignoran~e, secularism and modernism have influenced the contemporary Muslim ummah to forget their real role in the path of Islam. Muslims fail to think that Islam is the complete code of life, which has guidance in each and every field of human life. They also fail to understand that man is responsible for all of his actions before Allah. In this respect, there is no difference between traditional Muslims and modern Muslims. They have no alternative, except to obey the Divine Revelation and to think clearly about Islam under the tawhidic paradigm.

However, in past decades there have been reformations and there has been a renaissance among the Muslim ummah. Muslims have started to realize their vital roles and responsibilities towards the nations of the world. The modern Muslim scholars continually -talk about the prominent roles of the Muslims towards Muslims and non- Muslims in their books and speeches. Modern Islamic movements, Institutions and Associations have been encouraging Muslims through their books, media, and other ways, like training camps, and seminars etc., to follow the path of Islam in all aspects of life. At the same time the contemporary Muslim scholars like the late Abul A'la Al Mawdudi, Sayyid Qutb, Ismail Raji Al Faruqi, and others, emphasise the same ideas of the "Reawakening of Muslims" in their numerous works. All these attempts imply a central role for tawhid in the life of Muslims clearly. It is very important to analyze and

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understand the concept of tawhid. This could be done effectively by refering to Muslim scholars like Ismail Al Faruqi, Sayyid Qutb and Abul A'la Al Mawdudi. The purpose of this study is to understand the concept of tawhid as formulated by Ismail al Faruqi and to compare with those given by Sayyid Qutb and Abul A'la al Mawdudi. It analyses the different views and explanations of tawhid for the implementation of Islamic life in the contemporary world based on the views of modem Muslim Thinkers. _

Review of Related Literature

The concept of tawhid has generated considerable attention in recent years by many Muslim scholars, such as Muhammad Abduh, Yusuf al Qardawi, Muhammad Qutb, and Murtaza Mutahhari. Most of them differentiate between Islamic thought and Western thought based on the application of tawhid in the daily life of Muslims. They all stress the vital role of "Revelation" as Divine Source of knowledge and guidance to Muslims. On the other hand, they criticize the secular education and its concept of life totally as it has been made up by human beings.

According to Muhammad Abduh, tawhid must play a vital role in all the fields of the life of Muslims but he lamented that the Muslims hardly realise it. He highlighted the major reason for the misunderstanding of the concept of tawhid, in the later period of the Islamic history, was due to the unnecessary arguments and interference of the different ethnic groups in Islam. ¹

1Muhammad Abduh, Risalat al Tawhid (Beirut: Maktaba Mohammad Ali, 1965), 144-145.

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Yusuf al Qardawi argues that tawhid must play a vital role in the total life of Muslim ummah socially, culturally, morally, and spiritually, to protect the ummah from the modern challenges of the contemporary world. ²

According to Muhammad Qutb, some Muslims try to change their minds from the concept of tawhid based on their faith on the modern scientific and technological facilities. To clear this kind of misunderstanding he stresses that e"\lery Muslim should understand the concept of tawhid clearly as a perfect way of Islamic life. Then only the Muslim ummah will become strong enough to face the challenges in the contemporary world because tawhid is the best solution to solve all the problems, as the Muslims do not have other means of solutions. ³

A.D. Ajiola described that the concept of tawhid as the way to serve Allah as revealed by His last Prophet. Therefore tawhid is nothing but total faith and obedience to Allah and His last Prophet in the daily life of Muslims. He also explained the concept of tawhid as a revolutionary one and a tremendously forceful doctrine and as the very

starting point of Islam. He also said that the great difference, which occurs between the believers of Allah and others, is not the result of mere utterance of a few words of tawhid.

But the real force lies in the conscious acceptance of this doctrine and its stipulations and complete adherence to it in practical life. This can occur only if a person grasps the full

2Yusuf al Qardawi, Al Iman wa al Hayah (Cairo: Maktaba Wahabah, 1966),8.

3Muhamad Qutb, La ilaha illa Allah Aqeedah wa Shari'ah wa Minhaj al Hayah (Cairo: Darul Shurooq, 1993), 8-11.

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meaning of the tawhid realises its significance, reposes true belief in it and accepts and follows it in letter and spirit. He further added that tawhid means that in the whole of the universe; there is absolutely no being worthy to be worshipped other than Allah, that only to Him heads should bow in submission and adoration, that He is the only Being possessing all powers, that all are in need of His favours, and that all are obliged to solicit His help. He is concealed from our senses, and our intellect fails to perceive what He is.⁴

Dr. Adnan Ali defines the concept of tawfzid as the first thing to the human beings in the world. Also it is the most important thing in the universe because every thing in the universe is measured based on the concept of tawhid. He also adds that without tawhid a man is useless to the community. Today many people do not understand the worth of the concept of tawhid. It is not merely a conviction of the truth of a given proposition but it is essentially the acceptance of a proposition as basis for action.⁵

According to Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab tawhid has two major parts:

The first is the Muslim must have strong faith in Allah by his knowledge and reason and he must solely accept Allah's mighty power as a Creator, Provider, and Sustainer of the world. The second thing is to worship Allah whole heartedly with total obedience in all aspects of a Muslim's life.⁶

Murtaza Mutahhari agrees with Imam Muhammad bin Abdul W ahhab and further

4Ajijola, The Essence of Faith in Islam (Riyad: Islamic Research & Propagation, 1984), 15-19.

5 Adnan Ali, Al Tawhid wa Wagiu'na al Mu'asir (Riyad: Darul Nahawi, 1993), 53.

6Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab, Al Fatawa wa al Rasail wa al Ajwibah (Beirut: Darul Jiel, 1987),5-6.

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adds that tawhid can be considered as the foundation for the life of Muslims in all aspects of their life. He also stresses that the concept of tawhid should not be considered as a theory but rather it must be introduced as a perfect way of life and example of the Muslims' life. According to him the concept of tawhid should be introduced as a practical example to make mankind perfect physically, mentally, and spiritually based on the tawhidic paradigm. ⁷

According to Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi, the concept of tawhid remained in Mecca during the period of Prophet Muhammad (SAAS), and solved all the problems of humanity and it did not compromise with untruth, but it showed its uniqueness by itself.⁸

Hasan Hanif said that tawhid is a concept of faith which has both ideology and practice. If any one asks whether tawhid is a concept or practice, the answer is that it has both parts of ideology and practice. He also added that based on the concept tawhid only the world and its movements could be built up to offer the better life for the entire humanity.⁹

Mustafa Mahmood say? that the word of tawhid means that there is no god but Allah, He is the Provider, Sustainer, and Creator. He is alone and nothing can be associated with Him. He is the First; He is the End and He is the Eternal. ¹⁰

7 Murtaza Mutabhari, Allah fi Hayat al Insan (Tehran: Thawrah Islamiyyah, 1985),43-44.

8Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi, Islam and the World (Kuwait: International Islamic Federation of Student Organization, 1977). 50.

9 Hasan Hanif, Al Tawhid min al Aqeedah ila al Thawrah (Beirut: Markaz al Taqafi,1988), 62.

10Mustafa Mahmood, Al Islam ma Huwa (Cairo: Darul Ma'rif, 1991), 52.

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According to Muhammad Abul Quasem tawhid is the most fundamental ingredient of Islamic faith. The Qur'an bears constant witness to the absolute oneness of Allah; indeed its major aim is to call mankind to this unity. This most basic element finds its essential expression in the hundred and twelfth sura of the Qur'an which runs thus:

"Proclaim: He is Allah, the Single; God, Self existing and Besought of all. He does not beget, nor is He begotten; and there is none like Him. ¹¹

In the same way, Abubakr Abu Hasan agrees with Muhammad Abul Quasem and further says that tawhid is the concept of belief which is compulsorily to be accepted by every man and woman in the world for their better life to call and act towards the path of Allah.¹²

On the other hand, the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), International Islamic Universities of Malaysia and Pakistan and some other Institutions are playing a prominent role through their publications and academic contributions in the field oflslamization of Knowledge to lead the Muslim ummah in the path oflslam based on the iawhidic paradigm in facing all the challenges in the modem world.

Apart from this, there were some conferences and seminars and symposmms, which were conducted from time to time by IIIT about the intellectual issues of Al Faruqi, and his contributions to the modem Muslim ummah, based on tawhidic paradigm.

11Muhammad Abul Quasem, Salvation of the Soul and Islamic Devotions (Selangor: National University of Malaysia, 1981), 31.

12 Abu Bakr Abu Hasan, Al I'tigad (Beirut: Darul Kitab Al Arabi, 1984), 14.

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The present research primarily focuses on the concept of tawhid of Al Faruqi and compares it with two other scholars, Sayyid Qutb and Al Mawdudi.

Scope of the Study

As the topic suggests, this study will be confined to the discussion of the ideas and interpretations of the concept of tawhid by some selected scholars in the Muslim world like Muhammad Abduhu, Yusuf al Qardawi, Muhamad Qutb, Muhamad bin Abdul W ahab and Murtaza Mutahhari. The Qur' an includes some other terminologies which have some bearings on the concept of tawhid. These terminologies will be analysed as well. This study will also concentrate on the concept of tawhid as a world view and as a methodology in Islamic civilization while highlighting its importance in all aspects of life; culturally, spiritually, socially, and morally.

Methodology

This study mainly concentrates on the concept of tawhid as explained by Al Faruqi and compares it with those of Sayyid Qutb and Al Mawdudi. The study is based upon the textual analysis of the publications of Al-Faruqi, Sayyid Qutb and Al-Mawdudi, as primary sources and the studies on their thought by other researchers as secondary sources. Historical analysis is also used to contextualize the ideas of the three thinkers.

Plans of Study

This study is divided into six chapters.

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The introductory chapter presents the statement of the problem, rationale, objectives of the study, review ofrelated literature, scope of the study, methodology, and plans of the study.

The second chapter provides a brief sketch of the life

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Al Faruqi. The environment in which he was brought up and its political, cultural and intellectual influence on his thoughts has been analysed. His wife's influence and her contribution to the works of Al Faruqi are also discussed in this chapter.

The third chapter deals with Al Faruqi's concept of tawhid. The importance of tawhzd, and its influence and impact on the life of human beings and the role of Man as Allah's khalVa, are discussed.

The fourth chapter deals with Sayyid Qutb's concept of tawhid and how the Jahiliyyah ooncept destroys the concept of tawhid and creates disorder in the Muslims' life.

The fifth chapter deals with Al Mawdudi's concept of iawhid. The Quranic terms used to explain the concept of tawhid in Islam and how it includes the whole human life are discussed.

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The final chapter concludes by comparing the views of three scholars on tawhid, summarizes the findings and suggests the way forward.

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Chapter Two

Dr. Ismail Al Faruqi : A Brief Sketch of His Life and Thought

Introduction

This chapter deals with the life background of Ismail Al Faruqi and his contribution in the academic field. It also discusses his wife's influence and her contribution to the works of Al Faruqi.

Al Faruqi's Family Background

Al Faruqi, a renowned Islamic scholar had a happy life during his childhood. He was born on Jan.I, 1921, AC, in Jaffa, Palestine. His family was famous, rich and well lmown in Palestine. ¹His father 'Abu al Huda al Faruqi, was a judge in Palestine and a religious, kind, charitable and generous person, well versed in Islamic scholarship.

During the 1948 Jewish occupation of Palestine, Al Faruqi's family went to Beirut, Lebanon, leaving all their properties behind. He left Palestine as an angry youth whose heart had bled over the destruction of his homeland. Later he settled in the United States and married Loise Lamya al Faruqi, an American born scholar. He had two sons and three daughters.²

111yas Ba Yunus, "Al - Faruqi and Beyond: Future Direction in Islamization of Knowledge,"

American Journal oflslarnic Social Sciences 5, no.l ( 1988) : 13.

2Irfan, "United States Prof and Mrs Isma'il Faruqi first degree premeditated murders," Impact International 16, no.11 (1986): 5.

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Al Faruqi's History of Education

Al Faruqi received his early education at home from his father, as well as in the local Mosque in his city. In 1926, he attended the French Dominican College for his primary and secondary education. In 1936, he left for Beirut and entered the College of Arts and Science of the American University of Beirut, in which he got his first degree in philosophy in 1941. After graduation, he returned to his homeland in order to get a position in the government administration of his country.³

In 1948, he was given admission in Indiana University's Graduate School of Arts and Science. In 1949 he obtained his M.A. in philosophy and applied for admission to Harvard University in the Department of Philosophy for his Ph.D. program. He passed the required examination of that university and also he got his M.A. degree in the same Department, but he preferred to return to Indiana University, where he submitted his thesis to the Department of Philosophy and received his Ph.D. in 1952.

During his academic career he faced some :financial difficulties. In order to support himself he translated works from Arabic into English. He also engaged in construction works and built quality houses. His sense of beauty attracted many American buyers. However he was very much interested in the field of academic studies.

He spent a lot of his time studying under leading Muslim scholars in their respective fields of specialization. In the beginning of 1953 he was in Syria with his wife. After

3Isma'il R.al Faruqi, Orristian Ethics , with a foreword by Stanley B. Frost (Montreal: Mc Gill University Press, 1967), v-vi.

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that, During 1954-195 8 he was in Egypt where he studied Islamic traditions and sciences at Al Azhar University, the oldest university in the Muslim world. At the same time he urged his wife Dr. Lamya al Faruqi to learn Arabic in the same University.⁴

Al Faruqi's Intellectual Life and Thoughts

In 1963, Al Faruqi started to work on Christianity and Judaism as a research associate in the school of Divinity at the invitation of Mc Gill University's Institute of Islamic Studies. During his stay at this university he participated in many academic programs, such as seminars, debates, etc. The Dean of the Graduate Studies and Research recognized him as a "man of two worlds, West and East." He was exposed to Christianity during his stay in the school of Divinity and this prompted him to write his famous book Christian Ethics. In this work Al Faruqi wanted to recapture the power and glory of Islam. He appeared more as a religious warrior out to defend the citadel ofislam than a detached scholar who would seek to reach mutual understanding. Nevertheless, this understanding was also his concern, as seen in numerous conferences on religious dialogue in which he was a participant. Moreover, his writings in this domain were not only polemical and challenging to Western scholars but they were also of scholarly substance-especially A Historical Atlas of the Religions of the World, which remains a standard reference work in the field.

4Amir A Haleem and IbrahimAbusharif, "A Glance at the Life of Ismail Raji al Faruqi," 21.

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Concept of Arabism

In the beginning of his life, Al Faruqi was occupied with the concept of Arabism.

According to him, Arabism means not Arab nationalism, but it is " ... universal, beyond any colour, race, or geographical boundaries. "⁵He was against nationalism. He believed that the nationalists had reduced the term of Arabism into Western limited boundaries, and caused Arabs to be divided among themselves. Arabism includes Arabs and non- Arabs, it is more the concept of ummah; the community of believers. The civilization that spread in the Middle Ages was not an Islamic civilization, but an Arab civilization.

It was not Islam that spread its teachings outside of the Arabian Peninsula, but Arabism that was mastered and guided by Islam in every aspect of life.

It can be observed that this idea of Al Faruqi was due to the outcome of the events which he had gone through; as a Palestinian scholar whose land and properties had been robbed and destroyed by the Zionists, and who was forced to leave his country where he was born and to stay in the U.S., and because of the support of the West to Israel, and anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim policies. All these perhaps made him accept the concept of Arabism.

5Muhammad Shafiq, Growth oflslamic Thought in North America (Maryland: Amana Publications,1994), 9.

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A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER

TAWHID: VIEWS OF ISMAIL Al FARUQI AS

INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA

Approval Page

Declaration

Acknowledgements

Table of Contents

Chapter Three: Al Faruqi's Concept of Tawhid

Bibliography ... ..

Statement of the Problem

Review of Related Literature

Scope of the Study

Chapter Two

Introduction

Al Faruqi's History of Education

Al Faruqi's Intellectual Life and Thoughts