Common Patterns of Religious [Islamic] Revival in Central Asia and Challenges to Develop Human Rights and Inclusive Society

CommonPatternsofReligious[Islamic]Revivalin

CentralAsiaandChallengestoDevelop

HumanRightsandInclusiveSociety
GALYM ZHUSSIPBEK, Independent scholar, Suleyman Demirel atindagi Universitet
For the seminar organized by PEER Network, Graduate School of Education,
Nazarbayev University

Disclaimers
• The author does not intend to target anyone for their religious and other views; the critical
analysis is about the ideational trends, the conceptual framework of a particular viewpoint.

• The author adopts the naturalistic conception of human rights, which is one of the leading in
today’s academia and which by default is promoted by the primary international human rights
documents.

• The author, a-priori, accepts that society by its nature is a diverse phenomenon. Moreover,
society in Central Asian countries has been getting more diversi
f
ied in recent years because
of globalization, new generations becoming active in social life, the spread of digital
technologies, modern education, human rights, equal rights, and academic freedom.

• The information in this presentation and comments of the author should not be taken as
attacking the religious beliefs of any group and aiming at the discrimination of anyone or any
group.

Theconcepts
• human rights, inclusive society;

• formal Institutions, informal institutions;

• “conservative Islam”, epistemological crisis in conservative Islamic scholarship

• Hana
f
i-Maturidi Islam, Islamic rationalism, "de-modern" Central Asian Islam.

• authentic culture, “traditional religion;”

• Some of our papers where the ideas presented in this seminar are discussed:

• 1)Liberalism and Islam, Routledge Handbook of Contemporary CA, 2021.

• 2)Epistemological Reform and Embracement of Human Rights, Open Theology, 2019

• 3)Some Common Patterns of Islamic Revival in Post-Soviet Central Asia, Religions; 2020.

• 4) Human rights of daughters-in-law (kelins) in Central Asia: harmful traditional practices
and structural oppression, Central Asian Survey, 2020

UniversityofAmsterdam)
Social
(inc.gender
-equalilty,
children’s
rights)
Relational
4
Economic
[a set of policies aimed at improving the [1] economic & social well-
being of [2] all segments of society by maintaining relational
inclusiveness and achieving [3] environmental friendliness of [4]
(social, economic and political) development models.
Ecological
NickyRMPouw(PhD),
 
JoyeetaGupta
 
Inclusivedevelopmentisabout

Inclusivedevelopment(humanrights-baseddevelopment).
 
Thefocusofthisseminarisonlythedevelopmentofhumanrights.
 
Inclusivesocietyandhumanrightsarecloselyrelated
Social
inclusiveness
Development of
human rights, non-
discrimination
Relational
inclusiveness
Economic
inclusiveness
Care about nature/
environment
Social welfare/
protection

Humanrights
•Universal, inherent, indivisible, interrelated/ interdependent and
inalienable.
•The universality of human rights is not an abstract philosophical
and Western/ European notion. It is a response to the universality
of the modern state as a globally convergent mode of governance
and challenges of the modern market (Afshari, 2001: xvii).
•According to the naturalistic/ moral conception of human rights,
being human is the essential & fundamental reason to enjoy human
rights. The legal documents, both international and domestic, only
confirm human rights and have to undertake the duty of protection
of human rights. This conception of human rights implies that:
“human rights are (1) moral rights that all human beings (2)
possess at all times (3) and in all places (4) simply in virtue
of being human (5) and the corresponding duty-bearers are all able
people and state organs in appropriate circumstances”.

The following patterns may explain the ongoing Islamic revival in Central Asia:
 
(1) the so-called “de-modern” and “ethnicized” Islam as an enduring legacy of the Soviet
period;

A)“de-modern” Islam may evolve and has evolved [under some contexts] into
“conservative” Islam. There are some serious problems in conservative Islamic scholarship
in accepting wholeheartedly the contemporary concept of human rights (later);

(2) penetration of different branches of Sala
f
i Islam;

(3) securitization of the so-called “non-of
f
icial” Islam and religious groups by state and
non-state actors;

(4) the rise by default of conservative Islam which goes hand in hand with
retraditionalization.
These patterns/factors, in their turn, pose serious challenges to developing inclusive
societyandhumanrightsinCentralAsiancountries. Overall,Iarguethatreligious[Islamic]
revival in Central Asian countries has come to the point when it can be analyzed under the
prism,whetheritimpedesthedevelopmentofinclusivesocietyandhumanrightsornot.

A primary focus of the seminar is to analyze the challenges posed by the rise of
conservative Islam to the development of an inclusive society and human rights. The
rise of conservative Islam is a result of combination of the factors ranging from the
state policy, the grassroots re-traditionalization, securitization of non-traditional
Islamic groups, to global spread of scripturalistic (furthermore, literalistic/Sala
f
i)
Islamic discourses.
These challenges are divided into three sub-sections: (a) women’s rights, (b)
children’s rights and individual human rights at the family level, (c) ethnic
minorities of “traditionally” Muslim origin.

In general, these challenges can be conceptualized as clash of rights

Securitization of the so-called “non-official” Islam and
religious groups by state and non-state actors
• Post-Soviet Central Asian countries have not successfully tackled the dilemma of
how to create a balance between being alert to religious radicalism and
respecting the human right of freedom of consciousness, religion, and
association.

• The securitization (threat construction) mechanism can explain how non-
traditional Islamic groups are presented and constructed as existential threat.

• The securitization of some religious groups led to the situation when religion itself
or different from “locally approved” religious schools became stigmatized.

• The application of this concept can explain the reasons and underlying factors
why the political regimes in these countries resorted to adopting more restrictive,
even repressive policies in the religious
f
ield, which had repercussions in social
and political life. Moreover, the intensity of securitization of non-traditional groups
may shed light on different questions ranging from the nature of the political

Informal institutions and religious revival
• I argue about the importance of informal institutions (such as informal social norms, patterns of
behavior, traditions, the in
f
luence of religious teachings and interpretations) in the countries-in-
transition, e.g., Central Asian countries.

• Informal institutions are dynamic; therefore, it is important to study religious revival and development
of religious discourses.

• There is a direct association between (1) “ethnic” and “national”, (2) “ethnic” and “religious” because of
the ethnic status of religion and Soviet legacy of equalizing ethnicity and nation/ ethnic and national.

• The concept “ulttyq” and “ult” in Kazakh ("ulut" in Kyrgyz) or “milli” in Uzbek or Tajik (e.g. “ulttiq
qundiliqtar”, literal translation “national values” but in fact “ethno-conservative-patriarchal-paternalistic
values” as they understand in conservative Central Asian society).

• There is a close interaction between formal and informal institutions, including between of
f
icial
education and informal norms spread in society, inter alia shaped by religious norms which are
dynamic because of religious revival.

• Some effects of the rise of conservative Islam can be observed in formal and informal education.

“Unconscious” Political Claims of mainstream religious
(Sunni Islamic-Hanafi ) communities in Central Asia
• Ethnic status of religion leads to the perception that choosing a religion is
not an individual right but a collective, communal right which
fundamentally contradicts the fundamental human rights.

• The choice to practice a religion or not is an inalienable human right.

• Ethnic status of religion, if combined with the perception that nation
equals ethnicity, produces the situation when this religion (the adherents)
makes political claims, “aspires” ( “unconsciously “ ) for power.

“De-modern” and “ethnicized” Central Asian Islam and conservative Sunni
Islam are two different concepts in my research. While the former is less
rigorous and less scripture- and “tradition” (hadith)-based and the latter is
essentially rigorous and scripture-/and “tradition” (hadith)-based, however,
both are characterized by lack of, even de
f
iciency of rationalism.
Custom-based and infused with superstitions, “de-modern” and “ethnicized”
Central Asian Islam has the potential to evolve into conservative scriptualistic
Sunni Islam. These, at
f
irst glance, contradictory phenomena (de-modern non-
scripturalisticandconservativescripturalisticIslam),incloseinspectioninrecent
years,appeartobemutuallysupportive.

Being a part of the global Muslim community, Central Asian Muslims are not
immune against the broader problems of traditional conservative Islamic
teachings, such as the epistemological crisis of the traditional Islamic scholarship,
manifested among other things in insuf
f
icient protection of human rights under
the conservative Islamic teachings (if to approach from the prism of naturalistic/
philosophical conception of universality of human rights - as I try to do).
Clash of rights

“De-modern” ethnicized Islam in Central Asia, and to a greater extent, the “conservative”
scripturalistic Islam can be discussed within the framework of “epistemological crisis.”

The epistemological crisis of conservative Islamic scholarship manifested in the lack, even the
denial of rationalism, anti-rationalism, which appeared especially as a response to the
challenges posed to Islamic thought by modernity and post-modernity.
Two BIG Epistemological Problems of conservative Islamic scholarship:

A] con
f
inement of reason within the strict boundaries;

B] “Hadithi
f
ication” of “Sunnah” which means that the written hadith-based body of knowledge
became Sunna’s only vehicle of transmission and embodiment. Naturally, conservative believers may
literally refer to sound and written hadiths for direction in life, of which literal meanings may
contradict not only contemporary legal standards and norms, but also human reason (Duderija 2015).

C] ethical voluntarism, which means that whatever God (e.g., in Scripture) wishes are good, whatever
God forbids/prohibits is bad, no place for reason-based thinking, in opposition there is ethical
objectivism -- what God wishes is morally/ethically good (can be perceived by the mind/reason that it
is good); hence, God does not order what is evil and horrible according to human reason. No
contradiction between ethics/ moral rules and religious prescriptions.

Clash of rights (when the claims about some rights, e.g. pertaining to religious
freedoms,mayleadtotheviolationofthefundamentalhumanrightsofotherpeople)
Critical issues for conservative religious communities:

(a) gender relations;

(b) freedom of thought (the emergence of unthinkable / impediment to
development of critical thinking), normally, freedom of thought is an absolute
human right which can be limited under whatever condition or reason;

c) freedom of expression (however, this right does not entail the right not to be
offended); d) freedom of consciousness; e)status of religious, gender minorities;

f) the main principles of children’s rights (the denial of children from enjoying
some fundamental human rights, foremost freedom of religion, prohibition of
corporal punishment, etc.)

Reasons laying the grounds for clash for rights
A] Conservative Islamic discourse in gender relations based on three pillars:

1) traditional masculinity,

2) gender oppositionality, and

3) patriarchal concept of honor (Duderija 2019, p. 97).

B] Conservative Islamic discourse in the views concerning the fate of “other” tends to
be exclusivist. Exclusivist religious doctrine accepts that salvation belongs only to the
adherents of “only one true” interpretation;

C] if not obvious but tacit and concealed practice of excommunication from Islam of
one Muslim by another (“tak
f
ir”, the concept which is found in neither the Quran or
Sunnah).

D]Epistemological problem: con
f
inement of reason within strict boundaries

Theso-called“conservative”mind
tentative explanation
1] status quo and hierarchy; 2) group’s (including the religious communities)
interests; 3]respect for “traditions” and the lack and disrespect for rationalism.
In totality these three make up 60% on conservative mind. 4] justice and 5]
interests of individual. These two may comprise max 40% in the conservative
mind]

The so-called human rights-friendly, liberal (in broad sense) mind-set
tentative explanation
1] rationalism, critical thinking; 2] justice/fairness and respect for human rights
and interests of individual. Each comprises 50% and in totality these values
make up 100%.

TheconceptrationalisticinIslamictraditionpredominantlyandwrongly,hasbecomeassociated
withMutazilateschool.AsaresultofassociationofrationalisminIslamwithMutazilism,
rationalismobtainednegativeconnotationsforagreatmajorityofMuslims,whotendto
denounceMutazilismasheretical.
ToparaphraseMarcusBorg(2001),reasonisnecessarytobeabletoreadIslamicsources
fromahistorical–metaphoricalpointofview,whichmeansthattheyaretakenseriously
withoutbeingtakenliterally.Furthermore,reasoncanbeseenasthehumancapacityto
shaperealityinahumaneway,includingthedevelopmentofprogressive,humanrights-
friendly religiousinterpretationsandteachings.Progressivereligiousteachingsare
contextual,interpretive,inductiveandgoal-oriented,andtheyspeaktothecurrenttimeand
contextandthusimplicitlytheyarerationalistic.

WillCentralAsianpeoplewhoareatleast“culturally”Muslimacceptandinternalizethe
contemporarynotionofhumanrights,individualrights,women’srights,and,whatisthe
mostcritical,humanrightsofLGBTQ,andbuildaninclusivesociety?Importantly,
MuslimLGBTQactivistscanpointtotheperiodsoftheIslamicpastwhentheMuslims
weremoreliberalwhenthegenreof“gaypoetry”
f
lourishedorthefactthat
decriminalizationofhomosexualitywasundertakenbytheOttomanEmpirelongbefore
BritainandtheUS(TheEconomist2021))?
 
Itisunlikelythatthiswillhappenintheshortterm,butmostlikely,thisisthe
prospectofdecades.

Intheend,Islam,likeanyreligion,isasocialphenomenonthatisproneto
evolution.
Conclusion: Thereisaneedtotransforminformalinstitutions,developmentof
inclusiveunderstandingsofidentity,culture;developmentofhumanrights;
«epistemologicalreform»ofconservativeIslambyrevivinglostrationalismand
“ethicalobjectivism” toproducehuman-rightsfriendlyinterpretations

Somesources:
1.Afshari, R. 2001. Human Rights in Iran. The Abuse of Cultural Relativism. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

2.Abdallah, Umar. 1974. “The Doctrines of the Maturidite School wiSpecial Reference to As-Sawad Al-Azam of Al-Hakim As-
Samarqandi.” Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Edinburgh.

3. Ali, Ayyub. 1963. “Maturidism.” In A History of Muslim Philosophy, edited by M. Sharif. Weisbaden: Otto Harrassowitz.

4.Beyer, J & Finke, P. 2019. “Practices of traditionalization in Central Asia”, Central Asian Survey, 38:3, 310-328.

5.Borg, Marcus. 2001. Reading the Bible Again For the First Time. HarperCollins.

6.Cruft, R.; S. Liao & M. Renzo. 2015. “The Philosophical Foundations of Human Rights: An Overview”. In Philosophical
Foundations of Human Rights, edited by R. Cruft, S. M. Liao and M.Renzo, 1- 45. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

7.Duderija, Adis. 2019. “Using Progressive Muslim Thought Take Down Patriarchy”. Tikkun Magazine, 34-1.

8.Duderija, Adis. 2015 “Introduction.” In The Sunna and Its Status in Islamic Law. The Search for a Sound Hadith, edited by
Adis Duderija. Palgrave Macmillan.

9.Sandkühler, Hans J. 1998. “Pluralism and the Universality of Rights.” 20th World Congress of Philosophy. https://
www.bu.edu/wcp/Papers/Law/LawSand.htm.

10.The Economist, Gay people are reclaiming an Islamic heritage. 2021. May 27. https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-
africa/2021/05/27/gay-people-are-reclaiming-an-islamic-heritage.

Additional
to shed light on some theological issues covered during this seminar

Retraditionalization andMirageofculturalauthenticity
• Both a top-down and from the bottom-to-top process.

• Provides the political elites with new forms of instrumental meaning-making to create a foundation
upon which they could promote tradition as a marker of “national” identity and political
reconstruction (Beyer and Finke 2019).

• A grassroots phenomenon, perceived as a genuine “national ideology,” the revival of “authentic
culture”, a process of seeking cultural authenticity/ return to “roots”;

• It appears to be a process of (1) re-creating “archaic and patriarchal” social norms (solidi
f
ication of
“gender roles”); (2) legitimizing authoritarian regimes, non-democratic social norms, and practices.

• The claims about cultural authenticity are only about the “mirage of cultural authenticity,” since
seeking authenticity in one’s heritage detaches culture and religion from history (Afshari 2001)

• Deliberately seeking cultural authenticity in one’s cultural legacy is inauthentic. Under the impact of
modernity, traditionalism became pseudomodernised (Afshari 2001).

• No tradition or idea can exist in a vacuum, detached from social and political environment — today,
the primary trend is neoliberal capitalism.

Erosionofrationalismin“historical”Hana
f
i-MaturidiIslam(1)
• 1.Interestingly and importantly, the theological school to which a majority of CA Muslims (traditionally/classically)
belong, might have the potential or possess some grounds to generate “progressive,” ”gender-egalitarian/ gender-
friendly” and even inclusive Islamic interpretations.

• 2.Two main epistemological principles: (1) rationalism; (2) ethical objectivism — could characterize historical
Hana
f
ism-Maturidism but these qualities became seriously eroded, even lost.

• 3.However, the Sunni-Asharite school accepts ethical voluntarism and limited rationalism; hence, it is
literalistic, though of
f
icially it claims to follows/accepts “balanced” rationalism.

• 4.Sala
f
ism - totally ethical voluntarist & anti-rationalistic — literalistic

• 1.ethical voluntarism - whatever God (e.g. in Scripture) wishes is good, whatever God forbids/prohibits is bad, no
place for reason-based thinking

• 2.ethical objectivism - what God wishes is morally/ethically good (can be perceived by the mind/reason that it is
good), no contradiction between ethics/ moral rules and religious prescriptions.What God prohibits is morally/
ethically bad (can be perceived by the mind that it is bad).

•

Erosionofrationalismin“historical”Hana
f
i-MaturidiIslam(2)
• 1.In historical rationalistic Hana
f
ism-Matudism, both reason and revelation were important, no
contradiction between reason and revelation (“ethical objectivism”). This “rationalistic Islamic
epistemology” was historically present in Hana
f
ism but became lost.

• 2. In Asharism, the school which became classic Sunnism and penetrated Maturidism, reason is important
alongside revelation only theoretically, in fact, reason is inferior, and revelation is superior in
understanding orders and prohibitions (leading to ethical voluntarism).

• Hana
f
ism-Maturidism became eroded since 10-11th cc. & underwent Asharization --“Asharization of
Maturidism”, also the in
f
luence of Egyptian Hana
f
ite scholars like Tahawi (who was traditionist, whereas Al-
Maturidi was a dialectical scholar), even “Sala
f
ization of Hana
f
ism-Maturidism,” which happened in
Afghanistan.

• One reason why [skeptical to using/ employ reason in understanding Islam] Asharism became dominant and
prevalent over rationalistic schools (e.g.Maturidism was against monarchical ruling) was the rise of
monarchic dynasties in the Muslim countries and the persistence of the authoritarian regimes in Muslim-
majority countries.

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