Fazlur Rahman

In this paper I will examine the reformist thought of Fazlur Rahman (1919–1988). The first section will contain a systematic reconstruction of Rahman’s reformist method, while the second attempts a systematic review of the major inconsistencies in Rahman’s thought processes. My key observation is that Rahman tacitly employs a normative source other than the Qurʾān, i.e. the pre-reflexive system of values shared by contemporary societies, but without accounting for this. To obfuscate this fact, Rahman legitimizes his reformist thought by means of a simple reference to the “present situation” (thesis I) and constructs a viciously circular method (thesis II), which is only able to suggest reasonable solutions to those exegetical questions for which the undefined “present situation” already provides distinct and established answers (thesis III). Thus Rahman’s normatively underdetermined method is not only deficient due to its arbitrary character, it also provides a legitimatory source for his violent opponents. Furthermore, I will review the unsatisfactory state of the secondary literature which overlooks or conceals Rahman’s problematic aspects, instead uncritically advocating superficial reform. Rather than methodically unregulated reformist discourse, I will argue for a strict distinction between the experiential or aesthetic dimension of religion and the normative questions which should be entirely delegated to the domain of the secular philosophy of human rights.

Since the arrival of revealed religions and their encounter with Greek philosophy, the issue of the relationship between reason and revelation has been one of the most important problems in the history of thought. One important aspect of this issue is that it determines and guides the relationship that philosophers have with religious writings, which rest upon faith in divine revelation. Knowing that they are products of a miraculous contact with God, how should one approach them? Can they be read, understood, and evaluated like any other writing? Is a philosophic approach to revealed texts possible? More importantly, are revealed texts compatible with the spirit of philosophy? Do revealed texts approve or disapprove of the pursuit of knowledge through natural human reason?

In the present article, Fazlur Rahman’s understanding of the sunnah/hadīth will be discussed in comparison with Schacht’s ideas. The purpose of the article is to establish whether the similarities between these two scholars is to an extent which points to an influence. Besides the similarities, the differences between them will be noted with special emphases on the possible reasons for them, and their effect on the dating of the traditions.

Hâlihazırdaki makalede, Fazlur Rahman’ın sünnet/hadis anlayışı, Joseph Schacht’ın sünnet/hadis anlayışıyla karşılaştırmalı olarak incelenmektedir. İki ilim adamının hadis literatürü ile ilgili görüşlerinin yaşayan sünnet kavramı etrafında dönmesi, ikisi arasında karşılaştırmalara neden olmaktadır. Makalede Fazlur Rahman ve Schacht’ın konumlarını daha iyi anlamaya yardımcı olacağı umulan somut örnekler vermek amaçlanmıştır. Ayrıca çalışmada benzerliklerin yanı sıra aralarındaki farklılıklara da işaret edilerek, bu farklılıkların muhtemel nedenleri ve pratikte hadisleri değerlendirmelerine ne ölçüde yansıdığı gösterilmeye çalışılmıştır.

تعتبر هذه الأطروحة التي يقدمها يوسف سنغاري من أهم الدراسات التي تناولت فكر فضل الرحمن فحاولت أن تتقصى إضافاته وطرافته. وهي دراسة تندرج ضمن مسار فكري نشط يرنو إلى تجديد قراءة التراث ومراجعة ما علق به من مسلمات لمساءلتها وخلخلة الواهن منها.. ولقد حاول يوسف سنغاري أن يقلب أهم القضايا الكبرى التي شغلت فضل الرحمن وكانت موجهة لتفكيره عبر مؤلفاته المتعددة، فأبرز النظرة التاريخانية التي رافقت مسيرته الفكرية

La presente tesi è dedicata alla questione della proibizione dell'interesse nell'Islam. Il lavoro è diviso in tre capitoli. Nel primo vengono analizzate le fonti del diritto musulmano, da cui vengono derivate le diverse definizioni di ribā. In particolare ci si sofferma sulle quattro sūre in cui si ritiene che la ribā venga proibita, nonché sui più importanti ḥadīṯ. Nel secondo vengono descritte le conseguenze che questa proibizione ha avuto sull'economia contemporanea. Viene illustrato il funzionamento di alcuni contratti interest-free, e delineati i tratti fondamentali dello sviluppo dell'industria finanziaria islamica. Nel terzo vengono presentate le obiezioni alla proibizione dell'interesse, nonché le critiche che sottolineano le incoerenze dell'Islamic Banking and Finance (IBF).

When we look at the history of Islamic law, it is possible to say that the fiqh method has developed in a process from the beginning. In this process, it can be mentioned that many scholars, especially mujtahids, who we call sect imams, have contributed to the structure of the science of fiqh. For example, Imam Abū Ḥanīfa (d. 150/767) recoursed to istiḥsān, Imām Mālik (d. 179/795), accepted the relegious actions of people in Madinah as ruling and Imam Shāfiʿī (d. 204/820) put forward a method in his work "ar-Risāla", with the formation he obtained by combining the fiqh of both Ahl al-Ra’y and Ahl al-Hadith. These are the prominent contributions that constitute the structure of the science of fiqh. In addition to these contributions, scholars such as Ghazāli (d. 505/1111), Ibn Taymiyya (d. 622/1225), his student Ibn Qayyim (d. 751/1350) and Shātibi (d. 790/1388), especially during and after the institutionalization of sects, put forward some renewal efforts for the mentioned science in order to bring dynamism to the fiqh method. In the modern period, it is seen that the efforts to renew the fiqh method are much clearer and more widespread than in the classical period. In this period, it is possible to evaluate the efforts to renew the fiqh method in two stages. The first of these stages is the stage of calling to renew the fiqh method, and the second is the practical stage of renewing the fiqh method. In the second stage, two basic approaches can be mentioned, namely "fiqh and procedural approach" and "intellectual and philosophical approach", which also contain different theses, depending on the religious, political, social and philosophical tendencies of the scholars. In this study, we will try to present the views of the intellectual and philosophical approach on renewing the fiqh method, which has different tendencies in itself, in the example of Fadhlurrahmān (1919-1988), Hasan al-Turābī (1932-2016) and Muhammad Mujtahid Shebustarī (b. 1936-d…).

Profesor islamskih studija i filozofije na istaknutim univerzitetima u Engleskoj i Americi Fazlurahman došao je na čelo Centralnog instituta za islamska istraživanja u Karačiju nekoliko godina nakon što je država Pakistan međunarodno priznata. Na zahtev predsednika svoje domovine, aktivno se posvećuje definisanju religijskih strategija delovanja nove države, koje će biti utemeljene na saznajnim principima islama i istovremeno usklađene s promenljivim potrebama modernog sveta. Sve do kraja života, najduže kao profesor Univerziteta u Čikagu, Fazlurahman je neumorno objašnjavao da muslimani neće imati koristi od moderniteta sve dok ne budu utemeljili ispravan model razumevanja suštine religije u današnjem vremenu. On smatra da u tradicionalnim islamskim saznanjima ne možemo pronaći adekvatne odgovore na složene izazove savremenog života i zato predlaže nove osnovne smernice tumačenja Kurana i islama. Fazlurahman prvenstveno ističe da je značajno uočiti razliku između nepromenljivih načela islama i istorijskog islama. Prema njegovom mišljenju, sva društvena učenja Kurana u formi islamskih propisa ustanovljena su u istorijskom kontekstu potreba prve zajednice muslimana, što znači da ti propisi danas više nisu kredibilni. Fazlurahmanov model praktično bi se razvijao ovako: u prvom koraku vraćamo se u istoriju i analiziramo istorijske kontekste kuranskih učenja s ciljem da u njima prepoznamo i odvojimo opšta načela Kurana. U drugom koraku, dobijena opšta načela usklađujemo s okolnostima savremenog doba uz pomoć modernih društvenih, političkih i ekonomskih nauka i tako konačno formulišemo nove društvene propise islama. Međutim, koristeći metodu analize sadržaja Fazlurahmanovih izrazito uticajnih dela, uočićemo ozbiljne metodološke slabosti u njegovom ekstremno reformističkom pristupu. Njegovo poznavanje markantne teološke baštine muslimana očigledno nije bilo dovoljno dobro, a on se nije trudio ni da iscrpe sve mogućnosti bogatih instrumenata tradicionalne islamske metodologije jurisprudencije. Zaključak će glasiti da se Fazlurahmanovom platformom rekonstrukcije religijskog mišljenja utire put dominaciji sekularizovanog islama, iako je Fazlurahman upravo od toga najviše zazirao.

Ključne reči: reformizam, modernizam, islam, Kuran, otkrovenje, šerijat, idžtihad, jurisprudencija, istorija, tradicija

Artikel ini berusaha untuk memaparkan pemikiran Fazlur Rahman sebagai seorang tokoh pemikiran Islam kontemporer. Karena itu, sifat dari tulisan ini lebih bersifat informatif. Akan tetapi, tulisan ini juga bermaksud sebisa mungkin untuk memberikan penuturan yang koheren, sehingga sedikit banyak tulisan ini juga bersifat interpretatif dan deskriptif. Beberapa ide dan pemikiran dari Fazlur Rahman yang dihadirkan adalah mengenai teologi, filsafat, dan tasawuf, serta neomodernisme. Alasan pembatasan ini adalah disebabkan pemikiran Fazlur Rahman begitu komprehensif meliputi segala persoalan dan permasalahan yang bermunculan di kalangan umat muslim pada masanya. Tulisan ini merupakan penelitian kualitatif dengan desain penelitian analisis konten, sehingga tulisan ini juga merupakan jenis penelitian kepustakaan (library research) dengan sumber-sumber primer adalah buku-buku karangan Fazlur Rahman sendiri, serta buku-buku lain yang menuliskan tentang Fazlur Rahman sebagai sumber-sumber sekunder dan pelengkap. Secara sistematis, pembahasan mengenai pemikiran Fazlur Rahman merujuk pada penjelasan Kuntowijoyo tentang kategori sejarah intelektual yang memiliki tugas membahas latar sosio-historis tokoh, pemikiran yang berpengaruh dan pengaruh pemikiran. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa ketertinggalan dunia Islam terjadi karena rigiditas dan finalisasi tesis dalam pemikiran Islam, teologi, filsafat, dan tasawuf. Oleh karena itu, diperlukan suatu metodologi yang dapat memberikan sistem teologi, filsafat dan tasawuf yang sesuai dengan situasi zaman dan kondisi masyarakat. Dengan demikian, rekonstruksi pemikiran Islam dan metodologi neomodernisme merupakan keniscayaan yang tidak dapat terelakkan lagi.

The main purpose of this article is to accentuate and elucidate the notion that the Qur'an is a histoncal address. Bearing this main purpose in mind, I will try to show various histoncal elemenis in the Qur'an. However, I should say in advance that this study will make no reference to the arguments of those who attempt to ascribe an intellectual lineage to the issue of the historicity of the Qur'an which began crystallizing and becoming a chronic problem as result of the debates taken place in the near past prompted by the translation of the Iate Pakisiani thinker Fazlur Rahman's works into Turkish. Neither shall we give any information about the Christian connotations of such terms as historicity, historism and historicism nor shall we focus on the representatives of the histoncal approach in the West. The knowledge, view and assessments will be couched in Islamic terminology as far as possible.

The science of Kalâm, expressed as Uṣûlü'd-dîn in Islamic thought, is a constructional science. This means that the science of Kalâm has a dynamic structure in social life as well as a theoretical beginning. Kalâm has played an important role in the implementation of the idea of tawhid and the justice-based life that will accompany it by taking into account the historical and geographical heritage of Muslim communities on how to understand the hopes of religion. It is known that the political and social events that took place in Muslim society also took place in the history of Islamic thought as a theological sect in the later historical process. Muslims, part of a geography that has historically been the source of ancient cultures and thoughts, tried to protect the basic hopes of the religion they belonged to while also responding to the accusations of members of different faiths against Islam. Like other Islamic sciences, the science of Kalâm was formed later as a discipline. Depending on the method followed in understanding religious thought, theological sects were formed. Two basic approaches are dominant in the historical process and the general practice of the Muslim society. There is a rational trend that tends to use ta'wil to understand the verse based on nass and those qualified as Ahl-i hadith that do not accept ta'wil except for narration. The supporters of this method will later be described as Mu'tazila. There are dozens of theological sects shaped around these two basic ideas. This historical use of kalâm is rife with contradictions. They take a serious attitude towards those who use the kalâm method of the Ahl-i hadith. Although this is the case, the science of Kalâm as a discipline has played a very fundamental role in the Muslim society from the very beginning to the present. Unfortunately, the constructive function of the Science of Kalâm historically has not been continuous. As in other Islamic sciences, the Science of Kalâm became after a certain time a form of repetition or interpretation of what was written in the past, with commentaries and annotations instead of original copyright works. This naturally caused the Muslim community to imitate the past in every aspect of life and thus not be able to build a future. Muslim scholars have tried to address this over time and across geographies. A part of this early effort was the necessity of reinterpreting Islamic sciences. In the modern period (19th-20th century), a search for innovation has been made in all Islamic sciences. The main purpose of these efforts was the re-evaluation of Islamic sciences in accordance with the conditions of the age. One of those who was a part of this important and meaningful struggle is Fazlur Rahman (d.1988). He criticizes the science of Kalâm as well as other Islamic sciences and make suggestions to make Kalâm gain a dynamic structure. While Fazlur Rahman's criticism of Kalâm is included, the early period criticism of Kalâm will also be briefly mentioned in order to provide a better understanding of the subject. A comparison will be made between the thoughts of those who criticized Kalâm in the early period and those of Fazlur Rahman in the modern period. While there is an opposition to Kalâm in the form of the rejection of the science of Kalâm as a discipline, especially in the thought of Ahl al-Hadith, the science of Kalâm was considered as a constructional science in Fazlur Rahman. In addition to arguing that the Science of Kalâm should be reorganized as a discipline in terms of the method and content, Fazlur Rahman emphasizes the necessity of considering the past as an experience that must be understood according to the conditions of the day. For Fazlur Rahman, one of the reasons made Muslim thought inert is because the discipline of Kalâm does not consider present social life. In the 20th century, with modernism, theological debates gained a new dimension, and developments in all areas of social life gave birth to a brand new culture very different from the past. As a result of this, new value judgments have been formed to revisit and criticize the culture and values of the past.

Denis Gril, « SANGARÉ Youssouf T., Repenser le Coran et la tradition islamique. Une introduction à la pensée de Fazlur Rahman, Paris, Albouraq 2017, 154 p. », Revue des mondes musulmans et de la Méditerranée [En ligne], Lectures inédites, mis en ligne le 18 octobre 2017, consulté le 14 juin 2019.

In the present article, Fazlur Rahman’s understanding of the sunnah/hadīth will be discussed in comparison with Schacht’s views on the same subject. That the views of Schacht and Fazlurrahman on Hadīth literature revolve around the term “living tradition/sunnah leads the comparison between the two and the idea of influence. It is intended to give examples which will hopefully help for better understanding of their positions. Besides the similarities, the differences between them will be noted with special emphasis on the possible reasons for them, and their effect on the dating of the traditions. Citation: Fatma Kızıl, “Fazlur Rahman’s Understanding of the Sunnah/hadīth -A Comparison with Joseph Schacht’s Views on the Subject”, Hadis Tetkikleri Dergisi (HTD), VI/II, 2008, pp. 31-45

This article juxtaposes two of the most influential Qur'anic exegetes emerging in the post-independence period in Egypt and Pakistan respectively, Sayyid Quṭb (1906-1966) and Fazlur Rahman (1916-1988). As the two represent disparate trends in postcolonial Qur'anic hermeneutics, this article explores the significance of their contending perspectives on the nature of Muslim polity, conflicting attitudes toward non-Muslims, and disparate agendas for rousing social, political, and religious reform.

*Note that this article has a mistake on Rahman's name on p. 5. - the correct last name is simply Rahman.  (This is material from my undergraduate thesis, but still could be helpful to those with interest in modern hermeneutics.)

Kepemimpinan merupakan suatu entitas yang penting bagi peradaban manusia. Adanya suatu komunitas yang eksis, memerlukan suatu bentuk kepemimpinan yang akan mengarahkan komunitas tersebut kepada tujuan dan visi serta misi yang hendak dicapai. Politik, sebagai suatu panglima yang mengarahkan komunitas merupakan manifestasi konkret dari adanya kepemimpinan. Islam sebagai agama yang menjadikan teks al-Qur'an dan Hadis beserta ilmu turunannya sebagai pedoman, tentunya memiliki konsepsi ideal yang digambarkan dalam teksteks tersebut mengenai kepemimpinan. Kepemimpinan dalam Islam telah diatur dengan pakem pada teks itu, namun dinamika sejarah dan dialektika ilmu pengetahuan telah menggeser beberapa pakem sesuai dengan konteks masa kini. Tulisan ini hendak mengeksplorasi konsepkonsep ideal kepemimpinan dalam teks tersebut, secara spesifik hadis nabi dan membaca setiap aspek perubahan dalam konteks-konteks tersebut dengan menggunakan kaca mata teori double movement. Tulisan ini merupakan penelitian kualitatif dengan tehnik pengambilan data berupa library research. Dari penelusuran yang telah dilakukan, ada dua konsep kepemimpinan dalam hadis yang dirasa tidak relevan di era kontemporer, konsep tersebut adalah kepemimpinan harus dari kalangan laki-laki dan kepemimpinan harus dari Quraisy.

In recent years, the idea of "justice" alongside many other great ideas has undergone shifts in meaning due to a philosophical programme that was set in motion centuries earlier and has by now consolidated its influence in the Muslim world. In the second half of the 20th century, an influential Muslim thinker, Fazlur Rahman (1911-1988), was one of the major figures that contributed to the ongoing debate on the understanding and realisation of justice in the modern world from the Islamic perspective. By applying the conceptual analysis, this article shall examine how Fazlur Rahman understood, employed, and deployed the idea of "justice" in various contexts. This article shall also examine its sources and practical implications, as well as situate his position vis-à-vis that of other scholars in the Islamic tradition.

For full article please visit
http://tafhim.ikim.gov.my/index.php/tafhim/article/view/106

Cet ouvrage voudrait être une introduction rigoureuse à la pensée de " l'une des figures les plus importantes de l'islam contemporain ", (Abdou Filali-Ansary) le pakistanais Fazlur Rahman (m.1988). Le présent ouvrage vise à combler un vide dans l'espace francophone où le nombre des études consacrées à la pensée et l'oeuvre de Fazlur Rahman est réduit, alors même que, de nos jours, les publications en anglais, en turc, en arabe, en urdu et en malais se multiplient à ce sujet. 

Cette présentation a pour but de dresser un panorama des thèmes centraux d'une oeuvre prônant une réforme de l'approche du verbe coranique. C'est ainsi que l'auteur nous livre son approche du Coran entre historicité et universalité, mais encore les questions épineuses de l'apostasie ou de la polygamie. Enfin, se trouvent dressées les raisons de l'échec des mouvements réformistes. Un livre riche s'inscrivant dans la suite du fondateur du Pakistan Muhammad Iqbal, lui aussi trop peu connu en France.

Fazlur Rahman'ın ismi daha çok İslâm ve çağdaşlık, İslâmi yenilenme gibi konularla anılsa da onun akademik kimliğinin temelini İslam Felsefesine dair çalışmalar oluşturmaktadır. Fazlur Rahman'ın doktora teziyle başladığı bu alana yönelik çalışmaları hayatının sonuna kadar devam etmiştir. Bu kitap, onun İslam Felsefesi konusunda yazdığı makalelerin bir araya getirilip tercüme edilmesiyle oluşturulmuştur.

Invité de l’émission « Religions du monde » de RFI, dimanche 03 juin 2018. Emission animée par Geneviève Delrue.

Présentation sur le site de RFI :

Grand invité : le Dr Youssouf Sangaré pour son livre Repenser le Coran et la traduction islamique : une introduction à la pensée de Fazlur Rahman (Albouraq).

L’islamologue d’origine malienne Youssouf Sangaré, enseignant chercheur et cofondateur de la revue académique « Les cahiers de l’islam » nous ouvre à la pensée du grand réformateur pakistanais Fazlur Rahman (1919-1988) qui balaie la théorie traditionnelle selon laquelle le Prophète est un médium passif de la Révélation divine. Pour celui qui, accusé de blasphème, dut s’exiler en 1968 aux États-Unis « Le Coran est entièrement la parole de Dieu et en même temps la parole du Prophète ».

Se revendiquant d’E. Betti dans le débat qu’il eut avec H.-G. Gadamer, Fazlur Rahman défend la possibilité de connaître avec certitude le sens objectif du Coran, qu’il dissocie du sens littéral. Ce sens objectif, qui correspond à l’intention divine, est pour ce réformiste indo-pakistanais en accord avec les valeurs universelles de la modernité. Or plusieurs intellectuels, dont le sud-africain Farid Esack, reprennent l’argument gadamérien de l’historicité de toute interprétation pour critiquer l’idée qu’une lecture puisse être objective. Ainsi, classique ou moderne, aucune interprétation ne serait dénuée de préjugés, et prétendre le contraire reviendrait à enfermer le Coran dans l’historicité du lecteur. Même si Rahman relativise son propos en rappelant la difficulté de la recherche de l’objectivité, le problème que pose son modernisme est qu’il risque de céder à l’illusion d’un islam véritable, authentique, qui arrêterait alors le mouvement de réinterprétation du texte.

Main Points:
1. This essay argues that there has been resistance to criticism and diverse opinions in the traditional Muslim scholarly behaviour which has thwarted a full-fledged movement of reform in Islam.
2. In order to enrich our tradition in the modern world, Muslim traditional scholars should also benefit from modern knowledge.

In the mid-1960s, over half a century ago, Marshall Hodgson entreated scholars of Islam and world history to avoid the pitfall of prejudgment. His clarion cry still needs to be heard, and repeated, its mandate pursued, today. Several scholars took up the challenge in a volume titled Rethinking Islamic Studies: From Orientalism to Cosmopolitanism, edited by Richard Martin and Carl Ernst. My essay is an afterword weaving together their several perspectives and case specific interventions, each echoing Hodgson's timely caution as well as his enduring example.

Dibesarkan dalam lingkungan mazhab Hanafi yang kuat, sejak kecil diajarkan pendidikan tradisional mengenai kajian-kajian keislaman, dengan tetap membuka mata atas tantangan modernitas yang harus dihadapi umat Islam modern. Menempuh pendidikan tinggi dengan banyak mempelajari filsafat, bahasa Arab, teologi, hadis, dan tafsir hingga secara intens mempelajari pendekatan sains sosial Barat modern. Akhirnya tumbuh menjadi sosok yang merupakan kombinasi antara pemikiran konservatif dari Timur (Islam) dengan pemikiran modern ala Barat.