Islam and the West

Islam and the West

How do you see Islam offering an alternative to modernity as defined by the West? Is this alternative oppositional to or complementary with the West or both? Why or why not? Focus on specific examples.

Globalization is a phenomenon that has touched all spheres of human life. Made pervasive with the aid of technology, globalization has come to define the manner in which we lead our lives. Be it social, physical or emotional aspects, all of these are now considered in a broad perspective. But in this realm of the world being rendered a global village, the fact remains that globalization is seen as a Western phenomenon where the entire world, specially the East is seen as a passive object that was awaiting for the Western led tide of modernism take over its primitive traditions and ways of life. (Hobson)[footnoteRef:1] [1: Hobson, John M. "Eastern Agents of Globalisation: Oriental Globalisation In The Rise Of Western Capitalism ." Hobson, John M. Everyday Politics of the World Economy. Cambridge University Press, 2009. 141-159 .]

The author, John Hobson, in his book, called" Eastern Agents of Globalization: Oriental Globalization in the Rise of Western Capitalism" terms this approach taken by the Western world as Eurocentricism. Eurocentricism is a derivative of the term ethnocentrism and implies that due to the progress of the Western World, and its dominance in world affairs, the thought that Western ideals are the best and that every other culture is derived from theirs. According to Hobson (Hobson):

"In the conventional Eurocentric historiography, the year 1492 traditionally represents the moment when the Europeans came of age and then launched the 'Voyages of Discovery'. And their significance derives from the assumption that they served to project outwards the Western capitalist system as the Europeans 'battered down the walls' of the so-called inward-looking, backward Eastern regions thereby transforming them into outward-looking capitalist economies." (Hobson 196)

As the main proponent of the way the modern state has turned out to be, the Western world has had a dominant role to play and has influenced the world in a way so as to conform to its ideology of capitalism and of civil liberties. The fact that modernism has been defined primarily in terms of Western values is a given in the current circumstances and contemporary scholars are now looking for means to reverse this 'marginalization' of eastern philosophies given the way that events in the current world climate have panned out. (Acharya)[footnoteRef:2] [2: Acharya, Amitav. "Dialogue and Discovery: In Search of International Relations Theories Beyond the West ." Millennium: Journal of International Studies 39.3 (2011): 619-637.]

The recent spate of events and conflicts as well as the anguish shown by many groups has led to indications that may be things are not as bright as they are made out to be. The financial crisis has led many to question whether western ideologies really are the panacea that they are made out to be, or in their ignorance of other major religions, have become a curse. This has been evident in the Occupy Wall Street Protest, where common people are demanding a change in the system. (Gabbatt and Devereux)[footnoteRef:3] [3: Gabbatt, Adam and Ryan Devereux. "Wall Street protesters to occupy foreclosed homes." The Guardian 6 December 2011.]

The current system of democracy in the West has been used in a form of a 'cookie-cutter approach' as stated by leading economist Joseph Stiglitz who has said that the Washington -- based institutions such as the IMF, and the World Bank, backed primarily by Western powers, has spread the trade liberalization approach to many countries, sometimes at a disadvantage to the debt-taking country. The arguments posed by the economist state that IMF and World Bank policies are led by the powers that are also the main funding countries. Weaker countries who want to take loans to avoid defaults are given loans on conditions that make structural reforms compulsory, and this compulsory clause has been used by the IMF on behalf of world powers to spread capitalism and liberalization philosophies all over the world. (Stiglitz)[footnoteRef:4] [4: Stiglitz, Joseph. Challenging the Washington Consensus Lindsey Schoenfelder. 7 May 2002.]

In such a situation where the world peoples are increasingly voicing their concerns with the current world order and with the manner in which modernity and progress are being linked to westernization unquestioningly is what is driving this paper to explore alternate ideologies to see if they can better the situation in the world today.

Islamic values

As far as Islam is concerned, the religion has been in force since more than 14 centuries. The ideologies of Islam are based on Quranic Law or the Sharia' and takes in examples from how the Prophet lived and dealt with matters as well (Sunnah). The law also focuses on Ijmah or consensus as a way to decide how best to go forward in situations where people find it difficult to gauge whether an action is in accordance with Islam from the Sharia and the Sunnah.

The fundamental Islamic values that are part of Muslim's lives in the public sphere include the compulsion of Zakat, a wealth tax aimed at fair distribution of income among the population. Moreover, Islam forbids taking interest with a view under which people in need are not wrongfully manipulated and are able to pay back the principle sum.

These values have led the Islamic ideology progress where a Muslim nation state should ideally be more similar to communism where there is equitable distribution of wealth and concern for weaker players. (Thompson)[footnoteRef:5] [5: Thompson, Michael J.Theoria. "Islam, Rights, and Ethical Life: The Problem of Political Modernity in the Islamic World." A Journal of Social & Political Theory 57.123 (2010): 99-125.]

According to (Hobson):

"Indeed there are many points in the Qur'an that suggest a clear link between rational capitalist behavior and Islam (Rodinson 1974; Hodgson 1974; Hobson 2004: Chapter 2). And while we usually consider the Sharia (the Islamic sacred law) as the root of despotism and economic backwardness, it was in fact created as a means to prevent the abuse of the rulers' or caliphs' power and moreover, it set out clear provisions for contract law. Not surprisingly there was an entirely rational reason why the Islamic merchants were strong supporters of the Sharia." (Hobson)

The author therefore indicates that Islam has been based on the ideology of progress for the entire nation and all those considered poor as well. In fact as far as contract law enforcement is concerned, Islam has traditionally proposed very strict punishment -- a sign that is seen to signal economic backwardness to the western world.To see how Islam is an alternate to modernist theory and how it could have fared better, is a case to be seen in light of the arguments posed by various scholars on the subject.

Islam as an alternative to modernity

Recent attention to Islam and other eastern ideologies has come about due to the liberalism defying its roots in theological disciplines. Scholars have indicated that liberalism is actually contradicting its roots in that Western ideologies have also been derived from the Church, which had a very important role to play in ruling lands and influencing politics.

According to Mustapha Pasha, the world has become fractured as the notion of the modern secular state vehemently denies the derivation of modern ethics, values and morality in the public sphere. These values are seen as inherent in modern states and are taken for granted as pillars that hold the world together. According to (Pasha): [footnoteRef:6] [6: Pasha, Mustapha Kamal. "Fractured Worlds: Islam, Identity, and International Relations." Global Society 17.2 (2003).]

"Upon scrutiny, liberalism continues to vigorously deny its own theological underpinnings, unwilling to acknowledge explicit linkage between notions of subjective morality, salvation, or work ethic, on the one hand, and political economy, on the other. Resting on the fiction of well-demarcated public and private zones, particularly in the more puritanical variants of the liberal order, sovereign individuality is simultaneously unleashed and restrained. The formal place for religion, then, becomes the private sphere, while its real effects can be easily disbursed throughout the social body to the point of opaqueness." (Pasha)

What the author says here is that the modern world is strictly categorized into public and private lived and that religion, while it remains a strong defining factor in individual lives and is yet considered a taboo to discuss in collective individual lives better known as the public domain.

This is a contradictory position to be in, as a society is a collection of people and where people in private practice religion, they are mum about their beliefs in public, which indicates a conflict of sorts. (Pasha)

It also indicates that while Western thought talks of liberalism and modernity as well as an inclusive climate where people are regarded without any concern to their religion, western thought too has led to a situation where economic discrimination rather than religious discrimination exists. Moreover with liberalism at its core, Western ideology has come to be an ethnocentric approach which is not at all inclusive and in fact has excluded all alternate opinions that it aims to consider as a part of its fundamental aspect. The author also argues that as religion has been banished from the political spheres, its presence in other cultures becomes a yardstick through which these secular cultures consider them progressive. (Pasha) That is to say those Western cultures consider secularism as a fundamental for the existence of any state, and those which have religion as their ideology are considered old and hypocritical. This is because the state and the church were the same in medieval West. However as the advanced through time and became intellectually enlightened the role of the church was marginalized. Western scholars being Eurocentric hence consider that as their region progresses other cultures too will progress, therefore those states which have religion as the underlying political ideology, in their opinion are in the dark ages.

Another perspective as detailed by Hutchings (Hutchings)[footnoteRef:7] indicates that the move towards other ideologies typified as 'non- West' is in itself ethnocentric at best and then comes to identify how the Western world views all other ideas that originate in different parts of the world, clubbing then together in a kind of an out-group category. [7: Hutchings, Kimberly. "Dialogue between Whom? The Role of the West/Non-West Distinction in Promoting Global Dialogue in IR." Millennium - Journal of International Studies (2011).]

He further goes on to indicate that:

"Firstly, whatever the differences between them, 'non-Western' experiences and perspectives remain defined in a negative relation to 'West'; and, secondly, the idea of 'non-Western' IR preserves a link between truth and cultural/geographical location.

Rather than opening up the conversation, these differences delimit potential dialogue in ways that may reinforce or reverse the predominant binary hierarchy, but which do not fundamentally provincialise it. To the extent that 'non-West' necessarily carries a negative reference to Western thought, it always threatens to reinvent the binary oppositions that its use was intended to overturn. And as soon as 'non-West' is identified with a 'what' or a 'where', then dialogue becomes constructed in terms of a governing difference or sameness." (Hutchings)

Therefore, the author goes on to indicate that due to the negative nuances associated with alternate ideas as external influences, there has been a conflict scenario which prevents people belonging to various ideologies to come together.

The author goes on to indicate that in order to change the scenario and in order to bring about a fundamental change in the way that things are done in the international arena, there needs to be dialogue on the basis of which different parties can learn from each other and in the process be able to deliver a new way of conducting international relations and activities that are best able to address the changing needs of the world today. (Hutchings)

Another important point that a scholar, in relation to the importance of change indicates is that a culture which is most adaptable to the changing environment is the one that wins in the end, and is more successful than the one that is rigid and doesn't change. (Amineh) according to the author of "The Challenges of Modernity: The Case of Political Islam"[footnoteRef:8], she indicates that the need for Islam as a basis for political ideology came about as a need for the culture to preserve itself in the face of the weakening of the Islamic empire and the rise of Europe as a world power and as an increasingly popular movement. (Amineh 196) Europe was characterized by wars and revolutions that led to the rise of the bourgeois, as free markets and capitalism came to the forefront as economic and political ideologies that allowed the people to deviate from the ranks that they were born into to be able to make a living for their own. This popular drive heralded a change in the way that people thought and made the notion of capitalism popular. [8: Amineh, Mehdi Parvizi. "The Challenges of Modernity: The Case of Political Islam." Perspectives on Global Development & Technology 6.1-3 (2007): 215-228.]

It was in the face of such challenges that Islam as a political ideology came to the forefront. The author follows up her theory with the resulting environment where Europe was colonizing countries and in its wake left a trail where the colony country populations could either change or could remain in their shells. She says that (Amineh):

"In general since the colonial period, developing countries have been confronted with a dilemma: they could either spurn their own culture and start a "catch-up" program to become equal in wealth and power with the West, or adhere to their own culture and religious traditions while remaining materially weak" (Amineh 220)

According to another set of authors (Abbas, Amin and Ahmad),[footnoteRef:9] looking at how the Islamic world has responded to modernity, he suggests that the response from the Islamic world has ranged from an extreme of total acceptance to that of complete and absolute blondness and oblivion to western ideology. For complete acceptance he gives the example of the Ottoman Empire and as backed by another scholar, (Djedi)[footnoteRef:10] it is suggested that as the Ottoman Empire was under European jurisdiction and was as weak as it was, it blindly and completely accepted western ideologies, which in turn was not acceptable to a vast Muslim majority and to Muslim clerks and this simmering dissent has come to proportions as can be seen today that have culminated in international terrorist groups. (Djedi) [9: Abbas, Rana Zamin, Dr. Muhammad Amin and Dr. Zulfqar Ahmad. "Muslim Response to Modernity and a new strategy of peace in the world." Interdisciplinary Journal Of Contemporary Research In Business 2.9 (2011).] [10: Djedi, Youcef. "Max Weber, Islam and Modernity." Max Weber Studies, 11.1 (2011): 35-67.]

While it is true that the Islamic world was divided in its response to the western ideologies as proposed and propelled in the manner by the Europeans, the fact that there was a shift in dynamics was a fact that even the Muslim clerics at that time couldn't deny.

Yet another perspective is that of S.N. Eisenstadt, as mentioned in (Amir Arjomand). [footnoteRef:11]Eisenstadt initiated the idea of societies that had changed over time to their conventional form, from being a traditional religion. In that the change in Islamic ideology as a political ideology in the Middle East and North Africa, where the centers of Islamic power were, and where they were more financially autonomous. As compared to this area, the area of sub-Saharan Africa and south East Asia, which were the main areas that were colonized Islam was not an ideology but a religion. [11: Amir Arjomand, Said. "Axial civilizations, multiple modernities, and Islam ." Journal of Classical Sociology 11.3 (2011): 327-335.]

Oppositional or Complementary

As far as the view on Islam as being a complementary or an oppositional element is concerned as far as western rhetoric goes, Mustapha Kamal Pasha is of the opinion that Islam is not going to offer anything different from Western thought in the sense that there will be a consolidation of power in some people's hands and the state of affairs will be the same. However to convert to Islamic ideology will be a tedious process and the switch might not be worth the effort if it plagues the world with similar problems as capitalism and liberalism have. (Pasha 120) This goes to imply that while Islam might be a complementary system relative to western modernism, there is too much similarity for the change to be worth it to this alternate system in order to make international relations better. On the other hand, (Tickner)[footnoteRef:12] J. Ann indicates that world leaders more specifically western thought leaders should indulge in composite dialogue that can enable them to understand ideologies other than their own, and hopefully make the world a less conflict-prone and a more just place to be. She indicates that (Tickner): [12: Tickner, J. Ann. "Dealing with Difference: Problems and Possibilities for Dialogue in International Relations." Millennium - Journal of International Studies (2011).]