Al albania sayyid qutb biography

QUTB, SAYYID . Sayyid Qutb (1906–1966), among the greatest influential Islamist thinkers of justness twentieth century, was born bargain October 9, 1906, in illustriousness village of Musha (Upper Egypt). His father was a partisan of Mustafa Kamil's al-Hizb al-Watani (Nationalist Party).

Studying at excellence village kuttab (religious school) instruct government school, he reportedly memorized the Qurʾān by the graph of 10. In 1921 subside left Musha for Cairo connection stay with his uncle, dinky journalist; migration offered an get away from the limited socioeconomic opportunities of rural village life. Getting decided to become a dominie, Qutb attended preparatory schools move Cairo, then formally enrolled superimpose Dar al-ʿUlum (established to domesticate instructors for government schools) curb 1929 to 1930, completing tiara modern-style, largely Western-shaped education load the shadow of British situation of Egypt.

After graduating outing 1933, he taught in regional towns and was later busy by the Ministry of Tutelage as inspector of primary schools, and he continued thus till his resignation in 1951 reviewer 1952 due to disagreement partner government policies. In 1948 high-mindedness ministry sent him to honesty United States to investigate illuminating methods.

He enrolled at colleges of education in New Royalty and Colorado and traveled overseas, returning to Cairo through Assemblage. In 1951 or 1952 stylishness joined the Society of blue blood the gentry Muslim Brothers (Ikhwān al Muslimūn) and was appointed director tip off its Section for Propagation show consideration for the Call and Publication.

Thither is a perception that Qutb enjoyed a close relationship surrender the Free Officers who overthrew the monarchy in 1952 (including ʿAbd al-Nasir), serving as contact between them and the Brothers. Thus, he is believed explicate have been the only civil to attend the Revolutionary Ability Council's meetings. Although the Camaraderie was at first optimistic fluke Egypt's future after the establish, tensions with the new government mounted as its aim take a breather steer the country towards worldly republicanism became clear.

In 1954 ʿAbd al-Nasir banned the Fellowship following a failed assassination sweat on his life, in which Brothers were implicated. Qutb was arrested along with other Kinship leaders, some of whom were later executed) and sentenced tear 1955 to fifteen years arduous labor for subversive activity realize the state.

His poor volatile led to his transfer succeed to the prison hospital, from site he was able to inscribe and publish. His release compel 1964, ostensibly on grounds asset ill health (possibly thanks run into intervention by Iraqi president ʿAbd al-Salam ʿArif), proved to tweak short-lived. In 1965, having grasp closely associated with reconstituted Affinity circles, he was re-arrested take up again other Brotherhood members and sympathizers.

His trial by special martial tribunal focused on the implications of his work Milestones (the thesis of which was following refuted by the mainstream Brotherhood) as the basis of magnanimity state's case against him. Expedition ended with the charge be required of attempting forcible overthrow of blue blood the gentry government.

Sentenced to death, Qutb was executed on August 29, 1966.

Qutb's career as a litt‚rateur spanned an earlier, secular-oriented step and a later Islamist subject, itself encompassing two phases. Use up his student days, he was involved in literary circles jacket Cairo as a second-rank metrist, literary critic, and essayist. Smartness also engaged in the social politics of the day, conducive articles to the Egyptian shove.

Welcoming the modernizing impulse refuse receptive to the postwar separatist current, Qutb nevertheless seems pass up the outset to have resisted the Western values upheld soak the liberal-oriented establishment and warmth intellectual voices. This position haply reflected his traditional background; pass for the 1930s progressed, it wind up common ground with the thriving trend of dissident voices cynical with the liberals' view commemorate Egypt, emphasizing instead the ferocious Muslim dimensions of Egyptian indigenous and national identity.

The Forties saw Qutb gravitate from well-ordered position of cultural nationalism permission one deeply engaged with dignity Qurʾān as a potential design for change, in the circumstances of a postwar opposition pursuit a viable ideological alternative tell apart the liberal parliamentary monarchical path.

From around 1948, Qutb amazingly appears to have turned running off a cultural understanding of illustriousness role of Islam in group of people to one that saw case it a system that could respond to the political advocate economic needs of his structure. His early works in say publicly first phase of this overtly Islamist vein had a modernist outlook compatible with the Brotherhood's reformist discourse, with its characteristically apologetic argumentation.

The first much substantial work, al-ʿAdala al-Ijtimaʿiyya fi al-Islam (Social justice in Islam), appeared in 1949; this was followed by Maʿrakat al-Islam waʾl-Raʿsmaliyya (The struggle between Islam stake capitalism, 1951) and al-Salam al-ʿAlami waʾl-Islam (Islam and world imperturbability, 1951).

However, Qutb's most low work is a multivolume Qurʾanic exegesis entitled Fi Zilal al-Qurʾān (In the shade of character Qurʾān), written and repeatedly revised during his incarceration. Extracts use this were published in 1964 as Maʿalim fi al-Tariq (Milestones, 1978), summarizing his theory about God's sovereignty and the lines of jihad in a non-Islamic society.

This marked a replacement in his Islamist writing. Besides published in the early Decennium and belonging to this on top Islamist phase were al-Islam wa Mushkilat al-Hadara (Islam and authority problem of civilization) and Khasaʾis al-Tasawwur al-Islami (The characteristics consume Islamic theory).

Muqawwimat al-Tasawwur al-Islami (Fundamentals of Islamic theory) developed posthumously.

His second Islamist phase esteem responsible for Qutb's main bookworm and political legacy, consisting scam the inauguration of a new-found Islamic discourse and radical activism. This discourse introduced interrelated concepts and propositions intended to bring back Islam on firm foundations.

They have since become an fundamental part of the vocabulary celebrate most radical Islamist groups beam, as such, represent more mystify a merely theoretical innovation. Qutb's scheme stressed the twin concepts of jahiliyya (paganism) and hakimiyya (sovereignty) on the one helping hand, and on the other hailed for the adoption of jihad as the ultimate means engage in delivering political power to precise new generation of Islamist in france maquis.

The term jahiliyya (developed overrun writings of the Indian Abu al-Aʿla al-Mawdudi) functioned as natty shorthand descriptive for the report condition of all societies, Islamic and non-Muslim. Qutb declared turn this way all human societies had entered a new cycle of nonbelief by excluding "true religion" take the stones out of their daily life and business.

This state of affairs called for the restitution of Islam trade in the only legitimate system gutless of guiding humanity in hubbub its endeavors. To enable specified a restitution it was compel to reassert God's sovereignty chimpanzee the linchpin of a unshakable structure erected to lead humanity to material prosperity, moral morality, and salvation.

God's sovereignty was thus put forward to headland the exclusion of all systems of thought and government classify derived from divine injunctions bodied in the Qurʾān. Moreover, decency affirmation of God's sovereignty lacks the creation of a "vanguard" of dedicated revolutionaries able hearten conduct a tightly coordinated syllabus of ideological inculcation and factional activity.

Hence, Islam is both a doctrine and a schematic. The doctrine takes priority existing thus constitutes the essence decompose Islam (particularly God's attributes love unicity, lordship, divinity, and close authority) that must first designate firmly embraced by members realize the vanguard prior to tight implementation. The method is loftiness most efficient means of causing the second stage, of shop a new Islamic order.

Qutb warned that the struggle withstand restore Islam is long arena arduous and involves adherence know about a strict code by straight cohort of professional revolutionaries. That code entails total dissociation free yourself of non-Islamic societies and the product of alternative forms of organizing, leadership, and loyalty.

Separation doubtlessly leads to the division selected society into two irreconcilable warmongering camps: this confrontation, spanning dogmatic, cultural, financial, and political comedian, finds its culmination in briary struggle, or the highest reading of jihad. Jihad may fashion be conducted through various forms, peaceful and violent, but treason ultimate aim is to disband the enemy so that Islamism will be allowed to become larger freely, by removing the snag of idolatrous tyrannies.

Translated into some languages, Qutb's writings are ferment by Muslims and Islamists faultless many hues, Sunnī and Shīʿī, across the Muslim world: Fi Zilal al-Qurʾān is considered problem be among the most parts read modern Islamic works operate the twentieth century.

The unmistakable justification for direct (including violent) action aimed at overthrowing un-Islamic regimes and fighting Islam's enemies that is elaborated in Qutb's later works inspired radical Afroasiatic Islamist groups such as Jamaʿat al-Muslimin (1970s), al-Jihad al-Islami (responsible for Egyptian president Anwar al-Sadat's assassination in 1981), and al-Jamaʿat al-Islamiyya.

Since 2001, attention has been drawn to Qutb laugh the intellectual inspiration behind currents that coalesced to form magnanimity terrorist network al-Qāʿidah: described introduce the major influence on Usāmah bin Lādin, Qutb has bent dubbed the "philosopher of Islamic terror." Any proper assessment be more or less his legacy must consider character possibility, suggested by some storage space to him, that his intent has been misconstrued by much trends.

It must pay franchise attention to other dimensions countless his oeuvre, including his rudimentary near-mystical approach to Islam sit his appreciation of Qurʾanic aesthetics.

See Also

Modernism, article on Islamic Modernism; Wahhabiyah.

Bibliography

Calvert, John "The Individual stand for the Nation: Sayyid Qutb's Tifl min al-Qarya (Child from distinction Village )." Muslim World 90, nos.

1–2 (2000): 107–132. Scrutiny of Qutb's partial autobiography, promulgated 1946, exploring his views finely tuned the question of Egyptian folk identity during the final time of the monarchy.

Calvert, John. "'The World Is an Undutiful Boy!': Sayyid Qutb's American Experience." Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations 11, maladroit thumbs down d.

1 (2000): 87–103. Study state under oath this little-examined episode in Qutb's career.

Choueiri, Youssef M. "Islam tell Islamic Fundamentalism." In Contemporary Public Ideologies, edited by Roger Eatwell and Anthony Wright, pp. 255–278. London, 1999. Nuanced discussion selected Qutb's contribution to modern Islamic thought, and his association observe other radical Islamists.

Choueiri, Youssef Class.

Islamic Fundamentalism. Revised ed. General, D.C., and London, 2002. In depth overview of Qutb's philosophical title political approach, based on uncluttered close reading of his Qurʾānic commentary.

Kepel, Gilles. The Prophet distinguished Pharaoh: Muslim Extremism in Egypt. Berkeley, Calif., 1985. Informative dialogue of the influence of Qutb's ideas on the Brotherhood staff in prison (among them leadership founder of Jamaʿat al-Muslimin).

Khalidi, Salaat ʿAbd al-Fattah.

Sayyid Qutb: al-Shahid al-Hayy (Sayyid Qutb: Living Martyr ). Amman, Jordan, 1981. Customarily reliable biographical source (in Arabic).

Moussali, Ahmad S. Radical Islamic Fundamentalism: The Ideological and Political Cover of Sayyid Qutb. Beirut, Lebanon, 1992. Theoretical interpretation of Qutb's political project as an creed that seeks to link grasp and action.

Nettler, Ronald L.

"A Modern Islamic Confession of Certitude and Conception of Religion: Sayyid Qutb's Introduction to the Tafsir, Fi Zilal al-Qurʾān. " British Journal of Middle East Studies 21, no. 1 (1994): 102–114. Discussion of the introduction progress to Qutb's Qurʾānic exegesis, indicating integrity broader contours of his thinking in this important work esoteric his direct experience of illustriousness revelation.

Qutb, John.

"Qurʾānic Aesthetics inlet the Thought of Sayyid Qutb." Religious Studies and Theology. 15, nos. 2–3 (1996): 61–76. Extensive analysis of Qutb's understanding perfect example Qurʾānic aesthetics and its segregate in the evolution of circlet career, adopting a helpful contextual approach.

Qutb, Sayyid.

Milestones. Beirut, 1978. Clear summary of Qutb's leading ideas in the radical period of his career as put down Islamist writer (in translation).

Shepard, William E. "Sayyid Qutb's Doctrine symbolize Jahiliyya. " International Journal depict Middle Eastern Studies 35 (2003): 521–545. Analysis of this crucial concept in Qutb's later thought.

Tripp, Charles.

"Sayyid Qutb: The National Vision." In Pioneers of Islamic Revival, edited by Ali Rahnema, pp. 154–183. London, 1994. Objectivity of Qutb's career and philosophy, discussing the evolution of potentate political vision and his influence.

Suha Taji-Farouki (2005)

Youssef M. Choueiri (2005)