ISLAM WORLD WIDE

Islam in Papua New Guinea

2010-12-21T19:43:00.001+07:00

Islam in Papua New Guinea is a minority religion; the US department of state estimates that there are about 2,000 Muslims in the country

History

The people of what is today Papua New Guinea and West Papua traded with China and the Malay empire, the latter of which was Muslim, beginning in the 16th century.^[2] In 1988, Muslims in Papua New Guinea set up the first Islamic center, with the help of a Malaysia-based Islamic organization and the Saudi Ministry of Islamic affairs. In 1996, three more Islamic centers were established, with the help of the Muslim World League. There are now seven Islamic centers in the nation. The first mosque was built in Port Moresby, with a capacity to hold up to 1,500 worshipers.^[3]

Islam in present day Papua New Guinea

Today, there are around 4,000 Muslims in the country, with many taking up the faith in recent years.^[4]

In Papua New Guinea, new Islamic missionary movements are beginning to proliferate. There are pockets of Muslims around Port Moresby, in Baimuru, Daru, Marshall Lagoon, the Musa Valley and in the islands of New Britain and New Ireland. It is in the Highlands that Islam has seen the most growth.

The Muslims and Sri Lanka

2010-12-08T23:24:00.001+07:00

By Kamalika Pieris
.
The first wave of Muslims to arrive in Sri Lanka came from West Asia. Therefore let us briefly look at the Muslim achievements in West Asia. Islam originated in the Arab Peninsula, where the Prophet Mohammed preached in 622 AD. Islamic religious teachings are held in the Koran and the Islamic social life is guided by the Islamic Sharia Law. The Arabs, once converted to Islam, went on an expansionist spree which eventually swallowed up Egypt, Syria, Persia, Iraq and finally, in 711 AD, Spain. Virtually all those countries had their own civilisations prior to Islamisation. Persia had developed the Persian script and had the Zoroastrian religion. But they all converted to Islam and accepted the Arabic language. By the end of the 8th century, the Islamic empire extended from Persia to Spain and included parts of Northern Africa as well. There were two political centres. Firstly, Damascus (660-750 AD) and thereafter Baghdad (750-1258 AD).

Between the 8th and 12th centuries, there developed a great Islamic civilisation, intellectually brilliant, wealthy and enterprising. This Islamic civilisation developed an urban civilisation well before Europe, which got there several centuries later. Cairo in Egypt, Damascus in Syria and Baghdad in Iraq were very advanced cities with paved streets, tiled floors, public baths, bookshops, libraries, and universities. There developed a distinct Islamic art and architecture, which is visible even today. There were great scholars, best known of whom is Avicenna, of Persian origin, (980-1037 AD). His medical writings were used in medical schools in France, Spain and Italy as late as 1650.

Western Europe owes much of its knowledge of mathematics, medicine, astronomy and philosophy to Arabic writings. These writings preserved Greek thought as well. The Arabic writers also functioned as a conduct for the transmission of ideas from India and China. The Arabic scholars formulated the oldest known trignometric tables, introduced Indian numerals, known Arabic numerals, and compiled astronomical tables. They established obsrvatories to study the heavens. In the field of optics and physics, they explained phenomena such as refraction of light, and the principle of gravity. They made significant advances in chemistry. They discovered potash, alcohol, silver nitrate, nitric acid, sulphuric acid and mercury chloride. They originated processes such as distillation and sublimation.
Arabic scholars made significant advances in medicine. Many drugs now in use are of Arab origin. They established hospitals with a system of internees. Discovered causes of certain diseases and developed correct diagnoses of them, proposed new concepts of hygiene, made use of anesthetics in surgery with newly innovated surgical tools and introduced the science of dissection in anatomy. They furthered the scientific breeding of horses and cattle, and improved upon the science of navigation. They also developed a high degree of perfection in art of textiles, ceramics and metallurgy. (Most of this information has been taken from references in Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 ed. 1995).
Christian scholars were greatly impressed by Arabic scholarship. There was considerable cultural interaction between the two groups, with much of it taking place in the Mediterranean shoes, particularly Spain and Sicily. It is not generally known that Arabic culture influenced French culture as well. There are words of Arabic origin in the French language. More importantly, voluminous Latin translations were made in the 12th century, of major Arabic writings. These were studied successively at the major emerging intellectual centres of Europe, such as Italy, France and later England and Germany. It should also be noted that during this time, Arabic had become, not only a religious language, but also the main international language of the region. (lingua franca). It was also the main language for scholarship.
The Arabs also expanded eastwards, towards India and China, in search of trade. In the 9th and 10th centuries, an assortment of Persians, Arabs, Abyssinians, all Muslims, speaking Arabic and therefore conveniently called 'Arabs' dominated the overseas trade from Baghdad to China. The Muslims of Sri Lanka were a part of this trade operation. There is evidence that there were Muslim merchant settlements in Sri Lanka as early as the 7th century. M. A. M. Shukri has used the Arabic (Kufi) inscriptions in Sri Lanka to throw light on the origins of Sri Lanka's Muslims. He says that the Sri Lanka Moors originally came from Aleppo, a city in Syria. ('Sri Lanka and the Silk Road of the Sea' p181). Apparently there is an Arabic document in the possession of one of the oldest Moor families in Beruwela. It said that in 604 AD two sons of the Royal family of Yemen came to Lanka, one settled in Mannar the other in Beruwela (Daily News 25.9. 98. p 16).
Muslim settlements started in Mantai, and thereafter spread systematically in the trading ports. Archaeological evidence, such as tomb stones, indicate that there were Muslim settlements in 10th century, in Anuradhapura, Trincomalee and Colombo. Thereafter, there were Muslim settlements in the port towns along the southwestern seaboard, such as Beruwela and Galle.
Lorna Dewaraja, in her book "The Muslims of Sri Lanka, 1000 years of ethnic harmony 900-1915 AD" (Lanka Islamic Foundation, 1994) has studied the situation of the Muslims in Sri Lanka, with particular reference to the Kandyan Period. She makes several important points.
Firstly, she makes a comparison between the way Muslim settlers were treated in Sri Lanka and the way they were treated in Burma, China and Thailand. In Burma, Thailand and China, Muslim traders established trading posts which eventually became permanent settlements. Every Burmese Muslim had two names, one, Burmese and the other Arabic. For all practical purposes, only the Burmese name was used. Further the Burmese king forbade the slaughter of goats and fowl and forced the Muslims to listen to Buddhist sermons. In China too, the Muslims had two names. They used the Chinese name and spoke Chinese and used their Arabic names only with fellow Muslims. In Thailand too, the Muslims were obliged to camouflage their Muslim identity from hostile eyes. (Dewaraja. p 6, 13, 15). In Sri Lanka, the Muslims had no such problems. As we all know, the Muslims use their Arabic or Persian names very openly and proudly. Even today, the Muslims in Kandyan areas have 2 names, a traditional Sinhala family name denoting the person's ancestry and profession and an Arabic name. For all practical purposes, only the Arabic name is known and used. The Sinhala name is used only in legal documents and is useful in proving long residence in the island and ownership of land. (Dewaraja. p 12-13).
In the latter half of the 13th century, with the decline of the Caliphate of Baghdad, Arab commercial activity in the Indian Ocean decreased. This trade was taken over by the Indian Muslims of Gujerat and other Indian centres. Hindu merchants did not travel. They were based in India. They exported their marchandise in Muslim owned vessels. Thus colonies of Islamised Indians came up in the ports in India's south western (Malabar) and south eastern (Coromandel) coasts right up to Bengal. Thus thriving centres of Muslim commercial activity studded the Indian coastline. Subsequently, colonies of such Indo-Arabs emerged along the coasts of Sri Lanka. These settlements were described by the Dutch and British as 'Coast Moors'. (Dewaraja p 41, 43).
The second wave of Muslims came to Sri Lanka from South India. They were the descendants of earlier Arab traders who had settled in South Indian ports and married local women. Thus Tamil and Malayalam came to be written in Arabic script, and was known as Arabic Tamil. The Koran was translated into Arabic Tamil. It was translated into Sinhala only recently. Since it was compulsory for Muslim children to read the Koran, they had to know Arabic Tamil. This partly explains why Muslims who have lived for centuries in wholly Sinhala speaking areas retained Arabic Tamil as their 'mother tongue'. Generations of Sri Lankan Tamils went to theological institutions in Vellore to study Islamic learning. It has also been suggested that Muslims speak Tamil because Tamil was widely used in maritime commerce in the Indian Ocean (Dewaraja p 17).
Lorna Dewaraja points out that during the time of the Sinhala kings, from the ancient period, right upto the Kandyan Period, there was racial amity between the Sinhalese and the Muslims. The reason was that the Muslim traders were economically and politically an asset to the Sri Lankan king. The King therefore provided protection and permission for the traders to settle in Sri Lanka (Dewaraja p 4).
"Right through from the Anuradhapura period to Kandyan times there was a Muslim lobby operating in the Sri Lankan court. It advised the king on overseas trade policy. They also kept the king informed of developments abroad. The Muslim trader with his navigational skills and overseas contacts became the secret channel of communication between the court and the outside world" (Dewaraja p 8). The Sri Lankan kings encouraged the Muslims to maintain their links with the Islamic world as this was mutually beneficial. In the 13th century, Al Haj Aby Uthman was sent by the Sri Lankan king, Bhuvanekabahu I to the Mamluk Court of Egypt to negotiate direct trade. They were sent on important and confidential missions to South India right up to Kandyan times. The Muslims of Sri Lanka spoke Tamil and other South Indian languages and some even spoke Portuguese (p 8, 16).
Dewaraja says that when the Portuguese first appeared off the shores of Sri Lanka, the Muslims warned the king, sangha, nobles and the people of the potential threat to the country's soveriegnty. When the Portuguese tried to gain a foothold in Colombo, the Muslims provided firearms, fought side by side with the Sinhalese and even used their influence with South Indian powers to get military asistance to Sinhalese rulers. Through the intervention of the Muslims, the Zamorin of Calicut sent three distinguished Moors of Cochin with forces to help Mayadunne (p 50).
When the Dutch appeared and persecuted the Muslims in their coastal settlements, the Muslims ran to the Kandyan Kingdom. Senerat (1604-1635) and Rajasimha II (1635-1687) settled these Muslims in the Eastern coast. Senerat settled large numbers of Tamils and Muslims in Dighavapi area of Batticaloa to revive the paddy cultivation. There were roads leading from Kandy to Batticaloa passing through Minipe and Vellassa (p 127).
Dewaraja points out that it is clear from the writings of Pybus that even in 1762 the authority of the King of Kandy was strongly felt in areas around Trincomalee even among his Muslim and Tamil subjects. It is necessary for us to bear in mind that the Kandyan Kings saw themselves as kings of the whole country. Through Kottiyar in Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Kalpitiya and Puttalam they traded with India, and the Muslims and Chetties acted as the middlemen. From Kottiyar (Trincomalee) to Kandy there was a land route following the Mahaweli. Muslims had pack oxen and caravans and travelled this rout. The resting places on this route became the nucleus of later Muslim settlements (Dewaraja p 91, 125, 126).
Muslims were made welcome in the Kandyan Kingdom. They were integrated into Kandyan society primarily by giving them duties which related to the King's administration. They were made a part of the Madige Badda or Transport Department. They were allowed to trade in arecanut, which was a royal monopoly. The Muslims from Uva, which was near the salterns, had to bring salt as part of their obligatory service (Dewaraja p 100-101). In addition to this, select Muslims were involved in the Maligawa rituals and were given Maligagam lands. Their duties included salt, hevisi, silversmith (acari) also the higher function of kariya karavanarala. Therefore the Muslims were involved however minimally in the administrative and ritual aspects of the Dalada Maligawa as well (Dewaraja. p 107-8, 110). In addition, Muslims also functioned as weavers, tailors, barbers, and lapidarists (p 137-138).
Muslims also functioned as physicians, and presumably they practised Unani medicine. Dewaraja states that at this time, Unani had been practised in its pure form in towns like Colombo, Galle and Beruwela (p 128). A Muslim physician named Sulaiman Kuttiya who was practising in Galle was invited to the Kandyan court, taken into royal service and given land near Gampola. His descendants who lived till 1874 carried the prefix "Galle Vedaralala" (p 91). The most renowned of these Muslim physicians were the Gopala Moors of Gataberiya in the Kegalle District. The family traces its pedigree to a physician from Islamic Spain, whose descendants migrated to the Sind in Northern India, from where they were ordered to come to Sri Lanka to attend on King Parakramabahu II of Dambadeniya (1236-1270) (p 128). The Gopala descendants continued to function as physicians to the king, during reigns of Rajadirajasinghe (1782-1798) and Srivickrama Rajasinghe. (1798-1815). The Dutch also appointed two Muslims as local physicians in their hospitals, and one of them, Mira Lebbe Mestriar was thereafter appointed as Native Superintendent of the Medical Department in 1806 by the British (p 133).
Another important function of he Muslims in the Kandyan Court, was that they acted as envoys to the King. One Muslim envoy had been sent to the Nawab of Carnatic. Another had been sent to Pondicherry soliciting French assistance against the Dutch, in 1765. The King also made use of his Muslim subjects to keep abreast of developments outside his kingdom. The Muslims were useful in this respect because of their trade links and knowledge of languages (p 135-136).
The Muslims were received favourably in the Kandyan Kingdom, as far as can be seen. Robert Knox says that charitable Sinhala people giftd land to Muslims to live (Dewaraja p 115). Muslims adopted the outward appearance and dress and manners of the Sinhalese. Even James Cordiner couldnot see the difference (p 120). In Galagedara there are yet two villages occupied only by Muslims, surrounded by Sinhala villages. These two villages had Masjids (p 104). Masjids were built on lands donated by the king. Present Katupalliya and Meera Makkam Masjid in Kandy were built on land gifted by the king. The architcture of the Katupalliya is Kandyan. (p114-115). Ridi Vihare in Kurunegala gave part of its land for a Masjid and allocated a portion of land for the maintenance of a Muslim priest (p 113).
In 1930, in Rambukkana many Muslim boys had received their education in Buddhist monasteries. Many of them studied Sinhala and idigenous medicine. Facilities were provided for the Muslim boys to say their prayers and attend Koranic classes, while living in the temple. In this remote village in Rambukkana, Muslims made voluntary contributions towards the vihara and they participated in the Esala Perahera. The drumers voluntarily stopped the music when they passed Masjid (Dewaraja p 113).

Between Hammer and Anvil: Sri Lanka's Muslims
Adam's peak, a symmetrically conical mountain set in the gorgeous hill country of southern Sri Lanka, is sacred to all of the island's main faiths. There is a strange indentation set in the living rock of the summit. To the majority Sinhalese Buddhists (69% of the total population) it is the footprint of the Buddha Gautama. The Tamil Hindus (21%) know better - it is, of course, the sacred footprint of the God Shiva. Then again, the island's Muslims (7%) insist, it is the footprint left by Adam when, cast out of the Garden of Eden by a wrathful God, he fell to earth in the place nearest to that celestial grove in terms of beauty, fertility and climate - Sri Lanka.
In happier times Buddhist, Hindu and Muslim - together with the island's Catholic Christians, who believe the footprint to be that of St Thomas - were content to disagree amicably, sharing the pilgrimage season between December and April each year, when every night thousands of people climb the seemingly endless stairs to the 2,224 metre summit and await the sunrise.
As the whole world knows, those days of inter-racial and inter-denominational harmony are long gone - though not at Adam's Peak, secure in the government-dominated Sinhala heartland. Rather the troubles are at the other end of the island, where for twenty years, ever since the simmering hostility between Buddhist Sinhalese and Tamil Hindu exploded into open warfare, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have pursued their struggle for a separate Tamil state.
As the third, and smallest, of the island's racial-religious communities, the Sri Lankan Muslims - generally if confusingly known as "Moors" - have become the forgotten losers in this vicious struggle. The Tamils, evidently misclassified by the British during their long hegemony in South Asia as a "non-martial race", have fought with an extraordinary fanaticism under the cold command of the LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakharan. From the earliest days of the war they did not hesitate to employ "ethnic cleansing" - that late 20th century euphemism for genocide - against Sinhalese villagers living in the north. Subsequently, and with the same ruthlessness, the same tactic has been used against Muslims.
To understand why this should be so, it is necessary to examine the anomalous situation of the Sri Lankan Moors - Tamil speakers who yet, for the most part, support the Sinhalese-dominated government of Chandrika Kumaratunga.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like the legendary Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during the Prophrt Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.
From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as "Tamil-Arabic". None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were "Moors" - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today "worn with pride" by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the "Moros" of the southern Philippines.
In Sri Lanka, as everywhere they went, the Portuguese made a special point of persecuting the Muslims. As a consequence, many fled the western littoral which had passed under Portuguese control, and settled in the north and east of the island where their descendants live to the present day. A hundred years later, in 1656, when the Dutch replaced the Portuguese, a third (and final) element was added to the island's Muslim population - the Malay. Malay sailors had been visiting Sri Lanka for centuries using long-distance outrigger canoes; now, with the arrival of the Dutch, many more were brought from Java to serve their Dutch colonial rulers in Sri Lanka. In time they were absorbed into the island's ethnically diverse Muslim community, though even today many Sri Lankan Muslims identifying themselves as "Malays" rather than "Moors" can be found living in Western Province, and especially in Colombo.
Today Sri Lanka's Muslims live scattered throughout the island, from Galle in the south to the Tamil-dominated Jaffna peninsula in the north. Generally they are involved in commerce, from running local dry goods stores to dominating the wealthy gem business associated with Ratnapura - "Jewel City" and much of the capital's import-export business. In the disputed north and east of the country, where the LTTE are currently battling the Sri Lankan armed forces, many Muslims are farmers or fishermen, living in small villages far from the protection of government forces. It is these people - the poorest of the island's "Moors", descendants of the orginal refugees displaced by the Portuguese four hundred years ago - that are now caught up in the struggle for "Tamil Eelam".
Most Moors speak Tamil as their first language, regarding Sinhalese and English as languages of commerce to be used in their business dealings. Despite this linguistic affinity they do not consider themselves Tamil, however, and have precious little sympathy for the Tamil Tigers' cause. Rather they tend to support the government, albeit passively, wishing simply to pursue their business interests with the full freedom of religion they have long been accustomed too. Unfortunately, this is no longer possible. In those areas contested by the LTTE with a substantial Muslim population - for example, Northern Province's Vavuniya District, and Eastern Province's Tricomalee and Batticaloa Districts - they are under serious pressure.
Initially, it seems, the Tamil separatists hoped to enlist the Tamil-speaking Moors in their struggle for an independent Tamil state encompassing all of Northern and Eastern Provinces. When the Moors remained aloof - and even indicated support for the government position - they became identified as enemies. Worse than that, as Tamil-speakers there seemed, to Tiger minds at least, an element of treason in their lack of support. Subsequently, as the LTTE struggle for secession developed into open warfare with the government in Colombo, Prabhakharan, showing characteristic ruthlessness, targeted the Moors for "ethnic cleansing" - that is, physical expulsion or elimination - from the lands sought by the Tigers as a Tamil homeland.
The Tigers first began to attack the Moors on a systematic basis over a decade ago. In August, 1990, in two separate incidents, more than 230 Muslims were massacred at prayer at towns near Pulmoddai, in the north-east of the island. At the same time Prabhakharan gave notice that the entire Muslim population of Northern Province, including the then rebel-held capital of Jaffna, should leave contested areas forthwith or face being killed. An estimated one hundred thousand people were affected by this threat, many of who have since fled to government-controlled areas in the centre and south of the island. Tens of thousands were made destitute, the majority of whom still eke out a living in refugee camps. Following this incident, Muslim fishermen became a favourite target of LTTE maritime patrols, and Muslim businessmen a preferred target for abduction and ransom.
Muslim leaders in the north and east have responded by voicing their own claims for autonomy in the region, making it clear that - should the LTTE reach an agreement with Colombo on autonomous status - they would seek to opt out from Tamil control. Prabhakharan's response has been as vigorous and ruthless as ever. If the Muslims won't accept Tamil rule, they must be expelled from Northern Province and Eastern Province en masse.
Caught in the intricate and seemingly endless web of violence between Tamil Hindu and Sinhalese Buddhist, Sri Lanka's Muslims are increasingly desperate, unsure which way to turn, and whom to trust. Forgotten victims of a particularly vicious war, they are trapped between hammer and anvil, a long way indeed from the Garden of Eden.
A brief history of the Muslims of Sri Lanka
Introduction
Sri Lanka, known to the ancients as Ceylon, has been recorded in history books as a country that has had many visitations from foreign travellers throughout the ages. The people are mainly Buddhist, with a complex mixture of Hindus, Muslims, Roman Catholics and other Christian denominations. The main race are the Sinhalese while the Tamils, Muslims and Burghers (Anglo-Sri Lankans) form the remaining. The Muslims of Sri Lanka are a very small minority amounting to approximately 10% of a total population of 16 Million people. They claim descendancy from the Arab traders, who made Sri Lanka their home even before the advent of Islam. The Tamils comprise around 25% of the population.
Sri Lankan Muslims can be categorized into two distinct sub groups, the Moors and the Malays. The former is the name given to them by the Portuguese colonial rulers who used the word Moros to identify Arabs in general. The Malays are a group of Muslims who originated from Java and the Malaysian Peninsula. They differed from the Moors, both, in their physical appearance as well as in the language they spoke which was a mixture of Malay and local dialects.
The Muslims of Sri Lanka have a colorful history behind them punctuated by a long spell of hardship suffered during the Portuguese and Dutch ocupation of the Island. It is much to their credit that they withstood the onslaught of economic constraints, political intrigues and religious persecution to stay behind and survive. Most other peoples may have packed their bags and left for good. They not only saved their religion from the Christian enemies but also rebuilt the economy, slowly and steadily, by the 18th century when the British took over control of the island from the Dutch.
Being geographically isolated from the main centers of Islamic culture and civilization the Muslims of Sri Lanka were forced to interact closely with their neighbours, the Muslims of South India, in order to preserve their identity. Had they been denied this slender link, it is possible that, they may have lost their distinct Islamic character completely. However, it must be observed that this link has also caused many Indian (Hindu) traditions and rituals to creep into their culture and life style, some of which, even though vehemently anti-Islamic, are still practised to date. Lack of a correct understanding of the teachings of Islam has been the main cause of this sad situation.
Having adapted to the local conditions in various ways and also contributing largely to the Islands economic prosperity, the Muslim community of Sri Lanka, unlike the Hindu Tamils of the Northern Province, has saved itself from any major clash with the indigenous Sinhalese population. They have also been able to receive a fair share in the countrs Politics and Administration by virtue of their hard work and also of being an important minority whose support has been vital to all the political groups in the country. Although it may be said that the Muslim community was not politically dominant at any stage, yet, it is certainly true that they manouvered their political activity without much noise, unlike the Tamils.
This work attempts to present a brief history of the Muslims of Sri lanka from their early Arab trader beginnings to the present day minority community that is fully integrated into the Sri
Lankan society.
Historical Background
Sri Lanka (previously known as Ceylon) lies of the south-east of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The pear shaped island, often referred to as the pearl of the east is separated from mainland India by a narrow strip of water called the Palk Straits.
Being in such close proximity to and having such easy access from India, it might be expected that Sri Lanka received a large number of migrants from its neighbour from pre-historic times. The original inhabitants of the island are believd to be an aboriginal tribe called the Veddahs. The Sinhalese, presently the majority community, are supposed to be the descendants of the colonists, led by Vijaya, from the valley of the Ganges who settled in the island around the 6th century B.C. Sinhala, the language of the Sinhalese, is an Aryan language, closely related to Pali. Buddhism was introduced to Sri Lanka during the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa during the period 307-267 B.C.
Trade relations between India and Sri Lanka are traced to the 3rd century B.C. Historians have not been able to pin-point the actual date of establishment of Tamil settlements in Sri Lanka. However, during the 3rd century B.C. a Tamil General, Elara, set up a Tamil Kingdom at Anuradhapura, in the North Central Province, and ruled there for 44 years. He earned a reputation for his just and impartial administration among the Sinhalese and Tamils and was thus called Elara the Just.
The strategic location of the island, in the Indian Ocean, together with some of the coveted goods it produced, resulted in a fair degree of foreign trade even from ancient times. The Romans discovered the commercial value of Sri Lanka in the first century A.D. and the island was visited by Greeks, Romans, Persians, Arabs, and Chinese traders. Sri Lankas trade offering included Cinnamon, which grew wild in the forests of the wet zone, precious stones, pearls, elephants and ivory.
While most of the traders were only visitors to the island, who made their fortunes and left, it was the Arabs who settled down, making Ceylon their home. Furthermore as the Muslims of Sri lanka claim their desecndancy from the Arabs it is imprtant to look at the information available on the advent of the Arabs to the island.
The Arabs:
The Tamils of Sri Lanka, throughout history, have attempted to categorize the Sri Lankan Muslims as belonging to the Tamil race. This has been mainly for selfish reasons in a bid to eliminate the minority Muslim community from having its own unique identity. The Government of Sri Lanka, however, treats the Muslims as of Arab origin and as a distinct ethnic group from the Tamils.
Fr. S.G. Perera in his book -History of Ceylon for Schools- Vol. 1. The Portuguese and Dutch Periods, (1505-1796), Colombo (1955), The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd., p 16, writes,
-The first mention of Arabs in Ceylon appears to be in the Mahavansa (Ancient Sri Lankan history) account of the reign of the King Pandukabhaya, where it is stated that this king set apart land for the Yonas (Muslims) at Anuradhapura-
With the decline of the Roman Empire in the 3rd century A.D., Roman trade also died out and the Arabs and Persians filled up the vacuum; engaging in a rapidly growing inter-coastal trade. After the conquest of Persia (Iran), Syria and Egypt, the Arabs controlled all the important ports and trading stations between East and West. It is estimated that the Arabs had settled in Sri Lanka and Sumatra by the 1st century A.D. K.M. De Silvas, Historical Survey, Sri Lanka - A Survey, London (1977), C. Hurst & Co. Ltd., p 50, states,
-by about the 8th century A.D., the Arabs had formed colonies at the important ports of India, Ceylon and the East Indies. The presence of the Arabs at the ports of Ceylon is attested to by at least three inscriptions discovered at Colombo, Trincomalee and the island of Puliantivu-
The manner in which Islam developed in Sri lanka is very closely similar to that on the Malabar coast of India. Tradition has recorded that Arabs who had settled down on the Malabar coast used to travel from the port of Cranganore to Sri lanka on piligrimage to pay homage to what they believed to be the foot-print of Adam on the top of a montain, which, until today, is called Adams Peak.
Ibn Batuta, the famous 14th. century Arab traveller, has recorded many facets about early Arab influence in Sri lanka in his travelogues.
Before the end of the 7th. century, a colony of Muslim merchants had established themselves in Ceylon. Fascinated by the scenic splendour and captivated by the traditions associated with Adams Peak, Muslim merchants arrived in large numbers and some of them decided to settle in the island encouraged by the cordial treatement they received by the local rulers. Most of them lived along the coastal areas in peace and prosperity, maintaining contacts, both cultural and commercial, with Baghdad and other Islamic cities.
According to Tikiri Abeyasinghe in his Portuguese Rule in Ceylon, 1594-1612, Colombo (1966), Lake House Investments Ltd., p 192, tradition has it that,
-the first Mohammadans of Ceylon were a portion of those Arabs of the House of Hashim, who were driven from Arabia in the early part of the 8th. century by the tyranny of the Caliph, Abdel Malik bin Marwan, and who proceeding from the Euphrates southwards made settlements in the concan in the southern parts of the peninsula of India, on the island of Ceylon and Malacca. The division of them which came to Ceylon formed eight considerable settlements along the Nort-East, North and Western coast of that island; viz., one at Trincomalee, one at Jaffna, one at Colombo, one at barbareen, and one at Point de Galle.-
It is perhaps reasonable, therefore, to assume that the Arabs, professing the religion of Islam, arrived in Sri Lanka around the 7th./8th. century A.D. even though there was a settled community of Arabs in Ceylon in pre-Islamic times.
The circumstances that helped the growth of Muslim settlements were varied. The Sinhalese were not interested in trade and were content in tilling the soil and growing cattle. Trade was thus wide open to the Muslims. the Sinhalese Kings considered the Muslim settlements favorably on account of the revenue that they brought them through their contacts overseas both in trade and in politics. The religious tolerance of the local population was also another vital factor in the development of Muslim settlements in Ceylon.
The early Muslim settlements were set up, mainly, around ports on account of the nature of their trade. It is also assumed that many of the Arab traders may not have brought their womenfolk along with them when they settled in Ceylon. Hence they would have been compelled to marry the Sinhalese and Tamil women of the island after converting them to Islam. The fact that a large number of Muslims in Sri Lanka speak the Tamil language can be attributed to the possibility that they were trading partners with the Tamils of South India and had to learn Tamil to successfully transact their business. The integration with the Muslims of Tamil Nadu, in South India, may have also contributed to this. It is also possible that the Arabs who had already migrated to Ceylon, prior to Islam, had adopted the Tamil language as a medium of communication in their intercourse with the Tamil speaking Muslims of South India. The Muslims were very skilful traders who gradually builtup a very lucrative trading post in Ceylon. A whole colony of Muslims is said to have landed at Beruwela (South Western coast) in the Kalutara District in 1024 A.D.
The Muslims did not indulge in propagating Islam amongst the natives of ceylon even though many of the women they married did convert. Islam did attract the less privileged low caste members of the Tamil community who found the factor of equality a blessing for their status and well-being.
There is also a report in the history of Sri Lanka of a Muslim Ruler, Vathimi Raja, who reigned at Kurunegala (North Central Province) in the 14th. century. This factor cannot be found in history books due to their omission, for reasons unknown, by modern authors. Vathimi Raja was the son of King Bhuvaneka Bahu I, by a Muslim spouse, the daughter of one of the chiefs. The Sinhalese son of King Bhuvaneka Bahu I, Parakrama Bahu III, the real heir to the throne was crowned at Dambadeniya under the name of Pandita Parakrama Bahu III. In order to be rid of his step brother, Vathimi Raja, he ordered that his eyes be gouged out. It is held that the author of the Mahavansa (ancient history of Ceylon) had suppressed the recording of this disgraceful incident. the British transaletor, Mudaliyar Wijesinghe states that original Ola (leaf script) was bodily removed from the writings and fiction inserted instead. The blinded Vathimi Raja (Bhuvaneka Bahu II or Al-Konar, abbreviated from Al-Langar-Konar, meaning Chief of Lanka of Alakeshwara) was seen by the Arab traveller Ibn Batuta during his visit to the island in 1344. His son named Parakrama Bahu II (Alakeshwara II) was also a Muslim. The lineage of Alakeshwara kings (of Muslim origin) ended in 1410. Although all the kings during this reign may not have been Muslims, the absence of the prefix -Shri Sangha Bodhi- (pertaining to the disciples of the Buddha) to the name of these kings on the rock inscriptions during this hundred year period may be considered as an indicator that they were not Buddhists. Further during Ibn Batutas visit a Muslim ruler called Jalasthi is reported to have been holding Colombo, maintaining his hold over the town with a garrison of about 500 Abyssinians.
In spite of this the Mulsims have always been maintaining very cordial relationships with the Sinhalese Royalty and the local population. There is evidence that they were more closer to the Sinhalese than they were to the Tamils. The Muslims relationship with the Sinhalese kings grew stronger and in the 14th. century they even fought with them against the expanding Tamil kingdom and its maritime influence.
By the beginning of the 16th. century, the Muslims of Sri Lanka, the descendants of the original Arab traders, had settled down comfortably in the island. They were evry successful in trade and commerce and integrated socially with the customs of the local people. They had become an inseparable, and even more, an indispensable part of the society. This period was one of ascendancy in peace and prosperity for the Sri Lankan Muslims.
The Malays:
Sri Lankan Muslims include the Malays although they form a separate group by themselves. Even the earliest census of Sri Lanka (1881) lists the Muslims as Moors and Malays separately. Malays too, follow the Islamic religion just like the Moors.
The real beginning of the Malays in Sri Lanka dates back to the 13th. century. Husseinmiya writes,
-The definite arrival of Malays in Sri Lanka took place in the 13th. century. Chandra Bhanu, the Malay King of Nakhon Sri Dhammarat in the Isthmus of Kra on the Malay Peninsula invaded Sri Lanka in A.D. 1247, with Malay soldiers. He was determined to possess the relics of the Buddha from the Sinhalese kingdom. In a second invasion he brought soldiers from India-.
Chandra Bhanus 50 year rule of northern Ceylon in the 13th. century is remembered by such place names as Java Patnam (Jaffna), Java Kachcheri (Chavakachcheri), Hambantota etc. Most authors have, yet, linked the origin of the Malays in Ceylon to the period when the uisland was ruled by the Dutch. Murad Jayah in -The plight of the Ceylon Malays today-, MICH Silver Jubilee Souvenir, 1944-1969, Colombo (1970), p 70, writes,
-In 1709 Susana Mangkurat Mas, king of Java, was exiled to Sri Lanka by the Dutch with his entire retinue. He was followed in 1723 by 44 Javanese princes and noble men who surrendered at the battle of Batavia and exiled to this country with their families. These familes formed the nucleus from which the Malay community grew.-
-The Dutch continued to bring more -Java Minissu- (Malay people) as exiles, and employed them to fill the ranks of the army, the police force, the fire brigade, the prison staff and other services. They formed the bulk of the servicemen during the Dutch occupation and the early British times. The British too imported Malay families for settlement in Ceylon with the idea of raising a regiment. The Kings colors were awarded in 1801 to the Ceylon Malay Regiment, the first Asian to receive that Honor.-
The unsuccessful attempts of the British to attract more Malays from overseas, the meagre salaries paid to the malay soldiers coupled with more avenues for lucrative employment in the plantation industry, resulted in the disbandment of the malay Regiment in 1873. The Malays released from the army were absorbed into the police and the fire brigade services.
The mother tongue of Malays is Malay (Bahasa Melayu). Murad Jayah writes,
-Bahasa Melayu has been preserved in this country for over 250 years due to the fact that the original exiles from Indonesia were accompanied by their womenfolk and it was not necessary for them to find wives among Sinhalese and Tamil women, unlike the Arab ancestors of the Ceylon Moors.-

2010-01-17T21:46:00.001+07:00

Islam in Haiti

The estimated population of Haitian Muslims is about 3250, representing approximately 0.04 percent of the population, although local Muslims claim the actual number is larger, nearing 5000 due to many Muslims that supposedly aren't counted due to inaccessibility or unavailability. Islamic organizations in Haiti include the Bilal Mosque and Islamic Center in Cap-Haïtien, which offers programs in Islamic studies and daily prayers, and the Centre Spirituel Allah ou Akbar in Port au Prince.

The history of Islam on the island of Hispaniola (which Haiti shares with the Dominican Republic) begins with the slavery in Haïti. Many Muslims were imported as slaves to Haiti. Although many were forced to abandon Islam over time, their Islamic heritage has persisted in the culture of native Haitians. Additionally, a revisionist history of Dutty Boukman, whose death is largely considered the start of the Haitian Revolution, suggests that he was Muslim. In the early portion of the 20th century, a wave of Arab immigrants came to the Americas, in which a surprisingly noticeable amount settled in Haiti (and other countries as well). It is said that the first to arrive in Haiti around 1920 was a man hailing from the Palestinian village of Aizariya, near Jerusalem, along with 19 other families. Today, the majority of the country's Muslims are indigenous Haitians, followed by the ethnic Middle Easterners. As a result of limited financial resources, they were unable to build a mosque or school until 1985, when a residence was converted into a mosque and a minaret was constructed. In 2000, Nawoon Marcellus, a member of Fanmi Lavalas from San Raphael, became the first Muslim elected to the Chamber of Deputies of Haïti.

2010-01-13T12:06:00.000+07:00

Islam in Thailand

Islam, while a minority faith in Thailand, is quickly growing, with the 2005 statistics from National Statistic Office of Thailand estimating approximately 2.2 million, or equivalent to 4.5% of the adult population of 49.5 million (this number does not include children below the age of 15), are Muslims^[1] Most Thai Muslims belong to the Sunni sect.^[2]

Demographics & Geography

Popular opinion seems to hold that a vast majority of the country's Muslims are found in the Thailand's three Southernmost provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat. However, the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs' research indicates that only 18% of Thai Muslims live in those three provinces. The rest are scattered throughout Thailand, with the largest concentrations being in Bangkok and throughout most Southern provinces.

According to the National Statistics Office, in 2005, Muslims in Southern Thailand made up 30.4% of general population above the age 15, while less than 3% in other parts of the country.^[3]

Ethnicity and Identity

Thailand's Muslim population is diverse and multicultural, with ethnic groups having migrated from as far as China, Pakistan, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Indonesia, as well as comprising indigenous Thais, while about two-third of Muslims in Thailand are ethnically Malay.^[4]

Indigenous Thai

Many Thai Muslims are ethnically and linguistically Thai, who are either hereditary Muslims, Muslims by intermarriage, or recent converts to the faith. Ethnic Thai Muslims live mainly in the Central and Southern provinces - varying from entire Muslim communities to mixed settlements.

Malay Muslims

In the three Southernmost border provinces, the vast majority of the local Muslim population is predominantly Malay in origin. These people, known colloquially as Yawi, speak a dialect of Malay that is not mutually understood by Thai speakers.^[5] This adds to the culturally unique identity of Thai Malay Muslims.

The high number of Malay origin inhabitants in the Southern region is due the historical nature of the area, which was once known as the Pattani Kingdom, an Islamic Malay kingdom established in the nineteenth century, but later annexed to Siam (the older name of Thailand).^[6]

Chinese Muslims

Chinese muslims walking inside a mosque in Amphoe Pai, northern Thailand

In the far North, as well as in select Central and Southern urban areas, there are pockets of Thai Muslims of Chinese Hui origin.^[7] Most Chinese Muslims belong to a group of people called Chin Ho or Haw in the Thai Language, although most of the Chin Ho are not Muslim. Some historians believed that the name Chin Ho can be explained to be a combination of "Chin" (China) and "Ho" (Hui). It also bears a striking similarity in pronunciation to the name of Zheng He, one of the first great Imperial Chinese diplomats to have visited Thailand in its early Siamese history, who was also of the Chinese Hui extraction. The Chin Ho people, thus, can be seen as "The People of Zheng He"^{[citation needed]} - traders and emigres who carried with them Hui Muslim traditions from China. One of the most famous Chinese mosque is Baan Haw Mosque, located in Chiang Mai Province.

Burmese Muslim groups

Burmese ethnic groups, such as the Rohingya are refugees and economic migrants whom are scattered throughout Thailand's refugee camps, rural fishing villages, as well as in many small towns and cities close to the Myanmar border.

Northern Thailand, as well as being home to many Chinese Muslims, also is home to many Burmese, and mixed Chinese-Burmese or Pakistani-Burmese peoples.

Other Asian Muslim groups

Other represented groups include Cham Muslims, originally from Cambodia who can be found between the mutual border and Bangkok as well as the deep south.

South Asians, including Tamils, Punjabis, Bangladeshi, and Pakistanis can be found throughout Thailand working in professions ranging from wealthy business owners to lowly paid labourers.

Other groups include Indonesian Muslims, especially Javanese and Minangkabau.

Distinctives of Thai Islam

Except in the small circle of theologically trained believers, the Islamic faith in Thailand, like Buddhism, has become integrated with many beliefs and practices not integral to Islam.

In the South, it can be difficult to draw a line between animistic practices indigenous to Malay culture that were used to drive off evil spirits and local Islamic ceremonies because each contained aspects of the other.

Places of Worship

According to National Statistic Office of Thailand in 2007, the country has 3,494 mosques, with the largest number (636) in Pattani province.^[8] According to the Religious Affairs Department (RAD), 99% of the mosques are associated with the Sunni branch of Islam with the remaining 1% Shi'a.

Governance & Education

Education and maintenance of their own cultural traditions are vital interests of these groups.

The National Council for Muslims, consisting of at least five persons (all Muslims) and appointed by royal proclamation, advised the ministries of education and interior on Islamic matters. Its presiding officer, the state counselor for Muslim affairs, was appointed by the king and held the office of division chief in the Department of Religious Affairs in the Ministry of Education. Provincial councils for Muslim affairs existed in the provinces that had substantial Muslim minorities, and there were other links between the government and the Muslim community, including government financial assistance to Islamic education institutions, assistance with construction of some of the larger mosques, and the funding of pilgrimages by Thai Muslims to Mecca, both Bangkok and Hat Yai being primary gateway cities.

Thailand also maintains several hundred Islamic schools at the primary and secondary levels, as well as Islamic banks, (Pattanakarn, Bangkok), shops and other institutions. Much of the packaged food marketed is tested and labeled halal (unless it has pork), regardless of who eats it

2010-01-11T19:47:00.000+07:00

Islam in Singapore

About 15% of Singapore's population are Muslims. A majority of Malays are Sunni Muslims. Other adherents include Indian and Pakistani communities as well as a small number of Chinese, Arabs and Eurasians.^[1]^[2]17 per cent of Muslims in Singapore are of Indian origin^[3]. While the majority of Muslims in Singapore are traditionally Sunni Muslims who follow the Shafi'i school of thought, there are also Muslims who follow the Hanafi school of thought as well as Shi'ite Muslims.

Legal History

In 1915, the British colonial authorities established the Mohammedan Advisory Board. The Board was tasked to advise the colonial authorities on matters connected with the Mohammedan religion and custom.

In 1963, Singapore became part of Malaysia. Singapore separated from Malaysia and declared independence in 1965. The constitution of the independent republic included two provisions relating to the special position of the Malays and the Muslim religion i.e. Articles 152 and 153.

Article 152 states:

(1) It shall be the responsibility of the Government constantly to care for the interests of the racial and religious minorities in Singapore.

(2) The Government shall exercise its functions in such manner as to recognise the special position of the Malays, who are the indigenous people of Singapore, and accordingly it shall be the responsibility of the Government to protect, safeguard, support, foster and promote their political, educational, religious, economic, social and cultural interests and the Malay language.

Article 153 states:

The Legislature shall by law make provision for regulating Muslim religious affairs and for constituting a Council to advise the President in matters relating to the Muslim religion.

In 1966, Parliament passed the Administration of the Muslim Law Act (AMLA). The Act came into effect in 1968 and defined the powers and jurisdiction of three key Muslim institutions: (i) the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, (ii) the Syariah Court, and (iii) the Registry of Muslim Marriages.

These institutions are under the purview of the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) though the minister responsible for these institutions is the Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs.

Key Muslim institutions

Islamic Religious Council of Singapore

The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore or Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura(Muis) is a statutory board which plays an important role in the administration of Muslim affairs.

Function and duty of the Majlis

Section 3 (2) of the Administration of Muslim Law Act (AMLA) states that:

It shall be the function and duty of the Majlis —

(a) to advise the President of Singapore in matters relating to the Muslim religion in Singapore;

(b) to administer matters relating to the Muslim religion and Muslims in Singapore including any matter relating to the Haj or halal certification;

(d) to administer the collection of zakat and fitrah and other charitable contributions for the support and promotion of the Muslim religion or for the benefit of Muslims in accordance with this Act;

(e) to administer all mosques and Muslim religious schools in Singapore; and

(f) to carry out such other functions and duties as are conferred upon the Majlis by or under this Act or any other written law.

Membership of the Majlis

Section 7(1) of AMLA lists the membership of the Majlis. It states:

The Majlis shall consist of —

(a) a President to be appointed by the President of Singapore;

(b) a Vice-President, if one has been so appointed under subsection (6);

(d) not more than 7 members to be appointed by the President of Singapore on the recommendation of the Minister; and

(e) not less than 7 members to be appointed by the President of Singapore, from a list of nominees to be submitted by the President.

Office of the President

Under section 14(1) of AMLA, the President of Muis is also the Chairman of the Majlis and "shall preside at all meetings of the Majlis". The President of Muis also has "general control of all deliberations and proceedings of the Majlis" under section 19(1) of AMLA.

While AMLA provides for the post of Vice-President, Muis does not have a Vice-President.

Office of the Secretary

The Secretary of Muis also attend the meetings of Majlis but does not have the right to vote under section 8(1) of AMLA. The duties and powers of the Secretary is delineated in section 20 of AMLA. It states:

Subject to such directions as may be given to him by the President, the Secretary shall —

(a) have charge of all correspondence and documents of the Majlis, including all books of account thereof and all title deeds and securities;

(b) be generally responsible for the proper collection of, accounting for and disposal of all funds of the Majlis; and

(c) in all other respects carry out such duties as may be imposed upon him by this Act or allotted to him by direction of the President.

Office of the Mufti

Apart from the President and Secretary of Muis, another important office is that of the Mufti. Under section 30(3), the "Mufti shall be ex-officio a member of the Majlis."

Section 30(1) authorises the President of Singapore to appoint a fit and proper person to be the Mufti after consultation with the Majlis. In 1967, Mohamed Sanusi Mahmood was appointed as Singapore's first Mufti. He was succeeded by Syed Isa Semait in 1972.

The Legal Committee

The President of Singapore also appoints the members of the Legal Committee (also known as the Fatwa Committee). The relevant provision relating to the Legal Committee is section 31 which states:

(1) There shall be a Legal Committee of the Majlis, consisting of —

(a) the Mufti;

(b) 2 other fit and proper members of the Majlis; and

(2) The members of the Legal Committee, other than the Mufti, shall be appointed by the President of Singapore on the advice of the Majlis for such period as he thinks fit.

(3) A notification of every such appointment shall be published in the Gazette.

(4) The Mufti shall be chairman of the Legal Committee.

Under section 33, the Legal Committee is authorised to follow the tenets of the Shafi'i school of thought. It states:

(1) Subject to this section, the Majlis and the Legal Committee in issuing any ruling shall ordinarily follow the tenets of the Shafi’i school of law.

(2) If the Majlis or the Legal Committee considers that the following of the tenets of the Shafi"i school of law will be opposed to the public interest, the Majlis may follow the tenets of any of the other accepted schools of Muslim law as may be considered appropriate, but in any such ruling the provisions and principles to be followed shall be set out in full detail and with all necessary explanations.

(3) In any case where the ruling or opinion of the Majlis or the Legal Committee is requested in relation to the tenets of a particular school of Muslim law, the Majlis or the Legal Committee shall give its ruling or opinion in accordance with the tenets of that particular school of Muslim law.

Syariah Court

In 1880, the British colonial authorities introduced the Mahomedan Marriage Ordinance which officially recognised the status of Muslim personal law in Singapore.

In 1958, pursuant to the 1957 Muslim Ordinance, a Syariah Court with jurisdiction to hear and determine disputes pertaining to Muslim marriages and divorce cases was established.

The Court replaced a set of government-licensed but otherwise unsupervised qadhi (Muslim judges) who had previously decided on questions of divorce and inheritance, following either the traditions of particular ethnic groups or their own interpretations of Muslim law.

Today, the Syariah Court continues to exist as a court of competent jurisdiction with power and jurisdiction to hear and determine disputes defined by AMLA.

Registry of Muslim Marriages(ROMM)

The ROMM registers marriages when the couple are both Muslims. In the case of mixed-religion marriages, the marriage is registered at the Registry of Marriages.

Previously, the registration of Muslim marriages as well as divorces were conducted under one unit, which is the Syariah Court.

It was first located in a bungalow at Fort Canning and later moved to Canning Rise in 1983.

Appeals on decisions of the Syariah Court and the ROMM are heard and determined by the Appeal Board.

Unlike Muis, the Syariah Court and ROMM are not statutory boards but constitute a part of MCYS.

Muslim Organisations

Malay-Muslim Organisations

Apart from these key Muslim institutions, there are also community self-help groups, voluntary welfare organisations and civic groups like the Association of Muslim Professionals, Yayasan Mendaki, Muslim Missionary Society (Jamiyah),PERDAUS, Singapore Islamic Scholars and Islamic Teachers Association (PERGAS), Muhammadiyah and Islamic Theological Association of Singapore (Pertapis).

Indian-Muslim Organisations

There are also many Indian-Muslim organisations in Singapore e.g. Federation of Indian Muslims, Singapore Kadayanallur Muslim League, Singapore Tenkasi Muslim Welfare Society, Thiruvithancode Muslim Union, and United Indian Muslim Association.

Religio-Cultural Groups

There are also religio-cultural groups like Al-Usrah Ad-Dandarawiyah, at-Tariqah al-Ahmadiah al-Idrisiah ar-Rasyidiah ad-Dandarawiah, and Naqshbandi Haqqani Singapore.

Shi'ite Organisations

The Shi'ite community consists of Twelver Shi'ites, Ismailis and Dawoodi Bohras.

In Singapore, the history of the Twelver Shi'ites began with the immigration of the Khoja commmunity from India. A member of Khoja community spearheaded the founding of the Jaafari Muslim Association.

During the 1980s, Malays from the Muslim Youth Assembly (Himpunan Belia Islam) joined the Shi'ite community. A centre known as Hussainiyah Azzahra was later established.

The Jaafari Muslim Association and Muslim Youth Assembly cater to the Twelver Shi'ites.

The spiritual leader (Da'i al-Mutlaq) of the Dawoodi Bohras is Mohammed Burhanuddin, who represents the twenty-first imam. The Anjuman-E-Burhani caters to the Dawoodi Bohra community in Singapore. Bohra traders started settling in Singapore in the 1820s. The mosque for the Bohra community is the Burhani Mosque which was established in 1829. It has since been rebuilt and is now an 11-storey complex comprising of prayer halls, function halls, meeting rooms and offices.

The Ismailis are followers of Aga Khan. The Aga Khan has decided to establish an Ismaili Centre and regional representative office of the Aga Khan Development Network in Singapore.^[4]

Converts

The Muslim Converts' Association of Singapore (also known as Darul Arqam) provides support for converts.

Mosques

There are 69 mosques in Singapore. With the exception of Masjid Temenggong Daeng Ibrahim (which is administered by the State of Johor), all the mosques in Singapore are administered by Muis. 23 mosques were built using the Mosque Building and Mendaki Fund (MBMF). Masjid Al-Mawaddah, the twenty-third MBMF mosque, was officially opened in May 2009.

Madrasahs

There are six full-time madrasahs. There are also part-time madrasahs.

2010-01-10T14:18:00.000+07:00

Islam in Indonesia

Islam is Indonesia's dominant religion and approximately 86%, or about 200 million, of its population identify as Muslims, making it the world's largest Muslim population.

The Indonesian Central Statistic Bureau (BPS) conducts a census every 10 years. The latest data available, from 2000, indicated that of 240,271,522 people, 86.1 percent of the population label themselves Muslim, 5.7 percent Protestant, 3 percent Catholic, 1.8 percent Hindu, and 3.4 percent "other or unspecified"^[1]. The country's religious composition is a politically charged issue, with some commentators saying that the census perennially undercounts non-Muslims.^{[citation needed]}

Most Muslims are Sunni, although some follow other branches of Islam. Shia number around one million.^[2] In general, the Muslim community can be categorized in terms of two orientations: "modernists," who closely adhere to orthodox theology while embracing modern learning; and "traditionalists," who tend to follow the interpretations of local religious leaders (predominantly on Java) and religious teachers at Islamic boarding schools.

History

[edit] The spread of Islam (1200 - 1600)

Main article: The spread of Islam in Indonesia (1200 to 1600)

Mosque in Medan.

The first Indonesians to adopt Islam are thought to have done so as early as the eleventh century, although Muslims had visited Indonesia early in the Muslim era. The spread of Islam was driven by increasing trade links outside of the archipelago; in general, traders and the royalty of major kingdoms were the first to adopt the new religion. Dominant kingdoms included Mataram in Central Java, and the sultanates of Ternate and Tidore in the Maluku Islands to the east. By the end of the thirteenth century, Islam had been established in North Sumatra; by the fourteenth in northeast Malaya, Brunei, the southern Philippines and among some courtiers of East Java; and the fifteenth in Malacca and other areas of the Malay Peninsula. Through assimilation Islam had supplanted Hinduism and Buddhism as the dominant religion of Java and Sumatra by the end of the 16th century. At this time, only Bali retained a Hindu majority and the outer islands remained largely animist but would adopt Islam and Christianity in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Despite being one of the most significant developments in Indonesian history, historical evidence is fragmentary and generally uninformative such that understandings of the coming of Islam to Indonesia are limited; there is considerable debate amongst scholars about what conclusions can be drawn about the conversion of Indonesian peoples.^[3] The primary evidence, at least of the earlier stages of the process, are gravestones and a few travellers' accounts, but these can only show that indigenous Muslims were in a certain place at a certain time. This evidence cannot explain more complicated matters such as how lifestyles were affected by the new religion or how deeply it affected societies. It cannot be assumed, for example, that because a ruler was known to be a Muslim, that that the process of Islamisation of that area was complete; rather the process was, and remains to this day, a continuous process in Indonesia. Although it is known that the spread of Islam began in the west of the archipelago, the fragmentary evidence does not suggest a rolling wave of conversion through adjacent areas; rather, it suggests the process was complex and slow.

In the late fifteenth century, the powerful Majapahit Empire in Java was at its decline. After it had been defeated in several battles, the last Hindu kingdom in Java fell under the rising power of Islamized state Sultanate of Demak in 1520. Islam in Java then began to spread formally, largely influenced by the Wali Songo (or the Nine Saints).^[note]

[edit] European colonization

Mosque in the early twentieth century in Indonesia

The Dutch colonized Indonesia for many reasons, however the main reason was for economical purposes. Indonesia was full of resources, such as coffee, sugar and spices. Spices in particular such as cloves and nutmeg were what brought in most of the money for the Dutch.

In the late 19th century, reformist Muslim who led by Jamaluddin al-Afghani and Muhammad Abduh influenced Maritime Southeast Asia. The Minangkabau ulema play an important role in the early reform movement.^[4] In 1906, Tahir bin Jalaluddin published al-Iman, the Malay newspaper in Singapore. Five years later followed publication of al-Munir newspaper in Padang. In the first 20th century, Muslim modernist school arose in West Sumatra, such as Adabiah (1909), Diniyah Putri (1911), and Sumatera Thawalib (1915). Later, islamic movement also developed in Java with the birth of the NU and Muhammadiyah.^[5]

[edit] Post Independence

When Indonesia declared independence in 1945, it became the largest Muslim-majority nation in the world. Today it has about 88% of the population of 235 million people following Islam. In recent years there has been a trend toward a more orthodox interpretation of Islam. In 2006 poll, 58% of people surveyed believed adulterers should be stoned, as is mandated by Islamic law, up from 39% five years before.^[6]

[edit] Demographics

Mosque in East Java.

Muslims constitute a majority in most regions of Java, Sumatra, West Nusa Tenggara, Sulawesi, coastal areas of Kalimantan, and North Maluku. Muslims form distinct minorities in Papua, Bali, East Nusa Tenggara, parts of North Sumatra, most inland areas of Kalimantan, and North Sulawesi. Together, these non-Muslim areas originally constituted more than one third of Indonesia prior to the massive transmigration effort sponsored by the Suharto government and recent spontaneous internal migration.

Internal migration has altered the demographic makeup of the country over the past three decades. It has increased the percentage of Muslims in formerly predominantly Christian eastern parts of the country. By the early 1990s, Christians became a minority for the first time in some areas of the Moluccas. While government-sponsored transmigration from heavily populated Java and Madura to less populated areas contributed to the increase in the Muslim population in the resettlement areas, no evidence suggests that the Government intended to create a Muslim majority in Christian areas, and most Muslim migration seemed spontaneous. Regardless of its intent, the economic and political consequences of the transmigration policy contributed to religious conflicts in Maluku, Central Sulawesi, and to a lesser extent in Papua.

[edit] Organizations

The leading national "modernist" social organization, Muhammadiyah, has branches throughout the country and approximately 30 million followers. Founded in 1912, Muhammadiyah runs mosques, prayer houses, clinics, orphanages, poorhouses, schools, public libraries, and universities. On February 9, Muhammadiyah's central board and provincial chiefs agreed to endorse the presidential campaign of a former Muhammadiyah chairman. This marked the organization's first formal foray into partisan politics and generated controversy among members.

Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the largest "traditionalist" social organization, focuses on many of the same activities as Muhammadiyah and indirectly operates a majority of the country's Islamic boarding schools. Claiming approximately 40 million followers, NU is the country's largest organization and perhaps the world's largest Islamic group. Founded in 1926, NU has a nationwide presence but remains strongest in rural Java. The Islam of many NU followers has heavy infusions of Javanese culture, and followers tend to reject a literal or dogmatic interpretation of Islamic doctrine. Many NU followers give great deference to the views, interpretations, and instructions of senior NU religious figures, alternately called "Kyais" or "Ulama." The organization has long advocated religious moderation and communal harmony.

Mosque in Sumatra.

Membership of the Indonesian Islamic Propagation Institute(LDII) continues to grow.^[7]

A number of smaller Islamic organizations cover a broad range of Islamic doctrinal orientations. At one end of the ideological spectrum lies the controversial Islam Liberal Network (JIL), which aims to promote a pluralistic and more liberal interpretation of Islamic thinking. Equally controversial are groups at the other end of this spectrum such as Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI), which advocates a pan-Islamic caliphate, the Indonesian Mujahedeen Council (MMI), which advocates implementation of Shari'a as a precursor to an Islamic state, and the sometimes violent Front Pembela Islam (FPI). Countless other small organizations fall between these poles.

Separate from the country's dominant Sunni Islam population, a small minority of persons subscribe to the Ahmadiyah interpretation of Islam. However, this group maintains 242 branches throughout the country. In 1980 the Indonesian Council of Ulamas (MUI) issued a "fatwa" (a legal opinion or decree issued by an Islamic religious leader) declaring that Ahmadiyah is not a legitimate form of Islam.

In addition there are small numbers of other messianic Islamic groups, including the Malaysian-affiliated Darul Arqam, and the syncretist Indonesian Jamaah Salamulla group (also called the Salamulla Congregation or God's Kingdom). Its leader, Lia Eden, is currently facing charges of disdaining Islam and many Islamic organizations in Indonesia consider them as a heretical form of Islam.

[edit] Islam in Indonesian society

This section does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2007)

Many Indonesians are Modernist Muslims.

To a significant degree, the striking variations in the practice and interpretation of Islam — in a much less austere form than that practiced in the Middle East — in various parts of Indonesia reflect its complex history. Introduced piecemeal by various traders and wandering mystics from India, Islam first gained a foothold between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries in coastal regions of Sumatra, northern Java, and Kalimantan. Islam probably came to these regions in the form of mystical Sufi tradition. Sufism easily gained local acceptance and became synthesized with local customs. The introduction of Islam to the islands was not always peaceful, however. As Islamized port towns undermined the waning power of the east Javanese Hindu/Buddhist Majapahit kingdom in the sixteenth century, Javanese elites fled to Bali, where over 2.5 million people kept their own version of Hinduism alive. Unlike coastal Sumatra, where Islam was adopted by elites and masses alike, partly as a way to counter the economic and political power of the Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms, in the interior of Java the elites only gradually accepted Islam, and then only as a formal legal and religious context for Javanese spiritual culture.

These historical processes gave rise to enduring tensions between orthodox Muslims and more syncretistic, locally based religion — tensions that were still visible in the early 1990s. On Java, for instance, this tension was expressed in a contrast between the traditionalist santri and abangan, an indigenous blend of native and Hindu-Buddhist beliefs with Islamic practices sometimes also called Javanism, kejawen, agama Jawa, or kebatinan. The terms and precise nature of this opposition were still in dispute in the early 1990s, but on Java santri not only referred to a person who was consciously and exclusively Muslim, santri also described persons who had removed themselves from the secular world to concentrate on devotional activities in Islamic schools called pesantren—literally the place of the santri.

In contrast to the Mecca-oriented philosophy of most santri, there was the current of kebatinan, which is an amalgam of animism, Hindu-Buddhist, and Islamic — especially Sufi — beliefs. This loosely organized current of thought and practice, was legitimized in the 1945 constitution and, in 1973, when it was recognized as one of the agama, President Suharto counted himself as one of its adherents. Kebatinan is generally characterized as mystical, and some varieties were concerned with spiritual self-control. Although there were many varieties circulating in 1992, kebatinan often implies pantheistic worship because it encourages sacrifices and devotions to local and ancestral spirits. These spirits are believed to inhabit natural objects, human beings, artifacts, and grave sites of important wali (Muslim saints). Illness and other misfortunes are traced to such spirits, and if sacrifices or pilgrimages fail to placate angry deities, the advice of a dukun or healer is sought. Kebatinan, while it connotes a turning away from the militant universalism of orthodox Islam, moves toward a more internalized universalism. In this way, kebatinan moves toward eliminating the distinction between the universal and the local, the communal and the individual.

Another notable view is the division between traditionalist and modernist Islam. The nature of these differences was complex, confusing, and a matter of considerable debate in the early 1990s, but traditionalists generally rejected the modernists' interest in absorbing educational and organizational principles from the West.^{[citation needed]} Specifically, traditionalists were suspicious of modernists' support of the urban madrasah, a reformist school that included the teaching of secular topics.^{[citation needed]} Traditionalists also sought to add a clause to the first tenet of the Pancasila state ideology requiring that, in effect, all Muslims adhere to the sharia.^[8] On the other hand, modernists accused traditionalists of escapist unrealism in the face of change; some even hinted that santri harbored greater loyalty towards the ummah (congregation of believers) of Islam than to the secular Indonesian state.^{[citation needed]}

A mosque in Bukittinggi.

Despite these differences, the traditionalist [[Nahdlatul Ulama, the progressive Consultative Council of Indonesian Muslims (Masyumi), and two other parties were forcibly streamlined into a single Islamic political party in 1973—the United Development Party (PPP). Such cleavages may have weakened Islam as an organized political entity, as demonstrated by the withdrawal of the Nahdlatul Ulama from active political competition, but as a popular religious force Islam showed signs of good health and a capacity to frame national debates.

At some time the Islamic Defenders Front (Front Pembela Islam), a radical group based in Jakarta, emerged. The Islamic Defenders Front raids gambling dens, nightclubs and bars in the city to punish proprietors and patrons whom they allege do not adhere to Islamic mores. This group has also barged into foreign-owned hotels (e.g., Novotel in Surakarta) for the purpose of expelling Americans.^{[citation needed]} The Islamic Defenders Front and similar groups have no official support from the government, but a large number of Indonesian citizens and even lawmakers are sympathetic to at least some of their goals.

[edit] Religious freedom

The Indonesian Constitution provides "all persons the right to worship according to their own religion or belief" and states that "the nation is based upon belief in one supreme God." The Government generally respects these provisions; however, some restrictions exist on certain types of religious activity and on unrecognized religions.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs extends official status to six faiths: Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism. Religious organizations other than the six recognized faiths can register with the Government, but only with the Ministry for Culture and Tourism and only as social organizations. This restricts certain religious activities. Unregistered religious groups cannot rent venues to hold services and must find alternative means to practice their faiths.

Although it has an overwhelming Muslim majority, the country is not an Islamic state. Over the past 50 years, many Islamic groups sporadically have sought to establish an Islamic state, but the country's mainstream Muslim community, including influential social organizations such as Muhammadiyah and NU, reject the idea. Proponents of an Islamic state argued unsuccessfully in 1945 and throughout the parliamentary democracy period of the 1950s for the inclusion of language (the "Jakarta Charter") in the Constitution's preamble making it obligatory for Muslims to follow Shari'a. During the Suharto regime, the Government prohibited all advocacy of an Islamic state. With the loosening of restrictions on freedom of speech and religion that followed the fall of Suharto in 1998, proponents of the "Jakarta Charter" resumed advocacy efforts. This proved the case prior to the 2002 Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), a body that has the power to change the Constitution. The nationalist political parties, regional representatives elected by provincial legislatures, and appointed police, military, and functional representatives, who together held a majority of seats in the MPR, rejected proposals to amend the Constitution to include Shari'a, and the measure never came to a formal vote. The MPR approved changes to the Constitution that mandated that the Government increase "faith and piety" in education. This decision, seen as a compromise to satisfy Islamist parties, set the scene for a controversial education bill signed into law in July 2003.

Shari'a generated debate and concern during 2004, and many of the issues raised touched on religious freedom. Aceh remained the only part of the country where the central Government specifically authorized Shari'a. Law 18/2001 granted Aceh special autonomy and included authority for Aceh to establish a system of Shari'a as an adjunct to, not a replacement for, national civil and criminal law. Before it could take effect, the law required the provincial legislature to approve local regulations ("qanun") incorporating Shari'a precepts into the legal code. Law 18/2001 states that the Shari'a courts would be "free from outside influence by any side." Article 25(3) states that the authority of the court will only apply to Muslims. Article 26(2) names the national Supreme Court as the court of appeal for Aceh's Shari'a courts.

Aceh is the only province that has Shari'a courts. Religious leaders responsible for drafting and implementing the Shari'a regulations stated that they had no plans to apply criminal sanctions for violations of Shari'a. Islamic law in Aceh, they said, would not provide for strict enforcement of "fiqh" or "hudud," but rather would codify traditional Acehnese Islamic practice and values such as discipline, honesty, and proper behavior. They claimed enforcement would not depend on the police but rather on public education and societal consensus.

Because Muslims make up the overwhelming majority of Aceh's population, the public largely accepted Shari'a, which in most cases merely regularized common social practices. For example, a majority of women in Aceh already covered their heads in public. Provincial and district governments established Shari'a bureaus to handle public education about the new system, and local Islamic leaders, especially in North Aceh and Pidie, called for greater government promotion of Shari'a as a way to address mounting social ills. The imposition of martial law in Aceh in May 2003 had little impact on the implementation of Shari'a. The Martial Law Administration actively promoted Shari'a as a positive step toward social reconstruction and reconciliation. Some human rights and women's rights activists complained that implementation of Shari'a focused on superficial issues, such as proper Islamic dress, while ignoring deep-seated moral and social problems, such as corruption.

There were no reports of forced religious conversion, including of minor U.S. citizens who had been abducted or illegally removed from the United States, or of the refusal to allow such citizens to be returned to the United States. This coincided with a continuing de-escalation of violence in the country's main areas of interreligious conflict: the eastern provinces of Maluku, North Maluku, and Central Sulawesi.

Some Muslim, Christian, Hindu, and Buddhist holy days are national holidays. Muslim holy days celebrated include the Isra and Mi'raj, Idul Fitr, Idul Adha, the Islamic New Year, and the Prophet's Birthday. National Christian holy days are Christmas Day, Good Friday, and the Ascension of Christ. Three other national holidays are the Hindu holiday Nyepi, the Buddhist holiday Waisak, and Chinese New Year, celebrated by Confucians and other Chinese. On Bali all Hindu holy days are regional holidays, and public servants and others did not work on Saraswati Day, Galungan, and Kuningan.

The Government has a monopoly on organizing the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, and in February, following the latest hajj, the Department of Religious Affairs drew sharp criticism for mismanaging the registration of approximately 30,000 prospective pilgrims after they had paid the required fees. The Government unilaterally expanded the country's quota of 205,000 pilgrims, claiming it had informal approval from the Saudi Government, an assertion that proved incorrect. Members of the House of Representatives have sponsored a bill to set up an independent institution, thus ending the department's monopoly.

2009-12-31T09:28:00.000+07:00

ISLAM IN DUBAI

More than 80% of the population of the United Arab Emirates are non-citizens. Virtually most of the country's citizens are Muslims; approximately 85% are Sunni and the remaining 15% are Shi'a. Foreigners are predominantly from South and Southeast Asia, although there are substantial numbers from the Middle East, Europe, Central Asia, the former Commonwealth of Independent States, and North America. According to a ministry report, which collected census data, 76 percent of the total population is Muslim, 9 percent is Christian, and 15 percent is "other". Unofficial figures estimate that at least 15 percent of the population is Hindu, 5 percent is Buddhist, and 5 percent belong to other religious groups, including Parsi, Bahá'í, and Sikh. These estimates differ from census figures because census figures do not count "temporary" visitors and workers, and Bahá'ís and Druze are counted as Muslim.

2009-10-09T23:59:00.001+07:00

JABAL MAGNET

Madinah - Kota Madinah memang dikelilingi jabal (gunung). Salah satu jabal yang menarik wisatawan adalah jabal magnet. Jabal ini terletak sekitar 30 km dari Kota Madinah menuju arah kota Tabuk. Jalan sepanjang sekitar 4 km di kawasan gunung ini diyakini memiliki daya magnet. Mobil akan berjalan dengan kecepatan tinggi di saat perseneling mobil dalam posisi nol. Reporter detikcom Arifin Asydhad telah mengunjungi kawasan ini, Rabu (13/12/2005) lalu bersama sejumlah anggota DPR yang berkunjung ke Madinah. Rombongan menuju kawasan ini dengan menumpang bus tanggung berkapasitas 18 tempat duduk. Lokasi Jabal Magnet ini ditempuh sekitar 30 menit dari pusat Kota Madinah. Jalanan menuju kawasan ini memang cukup indah. Sebelah kanan dan kiri dikelilingi oleh gunung berbatu. Ada juga pohon-pohonan yang membuat gurun menjadi agak menghijau. Jabal Magnet sudah bukan berada di daerah haram. Kawasan ini agak sedikit bebas. Bahkan, kawasan ini bisa disebut 'Puncak'-nya Madinah. Kawasan gunung ini menjadi tempat rekreasi bagi para keluarga Arab Saudi. Sebelah kiri dan kanan sepanjang jalan ini banyak dipenuhi tenda yang disewakan. Juga ada sejumlah toilet untuk umum. Nah, di sepanjang jalan inilah diyakini ada magnet. Kondisi jalan yang mengarah menjauhi Kota Madinah agak menanjak. Karena itu, pengaruh magnet terhadap kendaraan yang menjauhi Kota Madinah dan menuju Tabuk ini tidak terasa. Hanya saja, sopir mengaku sangat berat melajukan kendaraan. "Tiba-tiba langsung berat Pak. Harus masuk gigi 1," kata Bambang, sang sopir bus. Dengan laju yang berat itu, dia meyakini adanya pengaruh magnet itu. Sebab, dengan kondisi jalan yang tidak terlalu menanjak, seharusnya gigi persneling dua juga masih kuat. Tidak ada batasan yang jelas, mulai dari mana jalan yang memiliki daya magnet itu. Namun, ancer-ancernya gampang. Bila kendaraan melaju dari Madinah, maka jalan bermagnet ini dimulai sejak terlihat bendungan air di sebelah kiri jalan hingga 4 km ke arah luar kota Madinah. Batasan akhirnya ada percabangan jalan di samping gunung berbatu yang cukup tinggi. Pengaruh magnet sangat terasa bila kendaraan melaju dari batas gunung tinggi itu hingga bendungan air. Bus dibiarkan dalam kondisi mesin yang tetap nyala. Namun, gigi persneling diarahkan ke posisi nol (netral). Lambat laun, kendaraan itu makin melaju dengan kencang. Memang jalan menuju Kota Madinah menurun. Namun, menurunnya tidak curam, landai-landai saja. Yang mengherankan, kendaraan terus melaju dengan cepat. Ini terlihat dari speedometer mobil. Saat detikcom berkunjung ke tempat ini, kecepatan bus bisa mencapai 120 km. "Kalau menurunnya hanya seperti ini harusnya kecepatannya tidak sampai 100 km," kata Bambang. Setelah sekitar melaju 3 km, kecepatan bus mulai berkurang sedikit demi sedikit, padahal jalan masih menurun. Dan akhirnya, bus memiliki kecepatan sangat lambat saat berada di depan bendungan air. Memang misterius. Belum diketahui secara jelas apa hubungan magnet dengan laju kendaraan. Meski begitu, kawasan ini dikenal sebagai Jabal Magnet. Orang-orang dari negara asing saat berkunjung ke Madinah jarang yang melewatkan peristiwa langka ini. (ary/)

2007-07-30T21:58:00.000+07:00

Islam in South America

The terms Caribbean and South American refer to aggregations of countries, not to specific areas within legally defined boundaries. Thirty-one countries form the Caribbean, which is divided into English, French, Spanish, and Dutch linguistic regions. The total Muslim population by country varies from 4 to 15 percent. The largest Muslim populations are in English-speaking countries such as Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. There are small communities made up of Muslims of African descent, but the greatest number of Muslims are descendents of immigrants from India and Indonesia who came as indentured servants. In French-speaking countries, such as Guadeloupe, Guyana Françoise, Haiti, and Martinique, the Muslim community is mainly composed of African Muslim immigrants from West Africa. Martinique is also home to a very wealthy immigrant Palestinian Muslim community supported by Saudi Arabia.
Muslims on the Spanish-speaking islands Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico claim an Islamic heritage in the Americas dating back to the days of slavery and trace their history prior to slavery back to Islamic Spain during the VIII to XV centuries. Thus, many trace their ultimate cultural ancestry to northern Africa and the Moriscos—Moors who were forcibly converted to Christianity. These Muslims are aware that Moriscos were enslaved with other Africans during the Atlantic slave trade. There are also much Islamic and Moorish retention in this sector of Caribbean society, especially in language and names.
In the Caribbean, Muslims continue to experience life as minorities. Christian missionaries continue to try to convert Muslims—though there is also increasing evidence that Muslims are trying to convert Christians. In 2002, reports in local newspapers asserted that of the few conversions that take place, most are from Christianity to Islam.
The history of Muslims in Mexico is difficult to trace. Spanish conquistadors from both Cuba and Spain came to pillage Mexico’s resources in the early 1500s. The indigenous population was converted to Catholicism during this time. Many in the native population died as a result of the importation of European diseases and from starvation, as Europeans devastated the farming land and depleted water resources. Mexicans themselves regained control only in the 1900s.
Historians are divided over when Islam came to Mexico and who brought it. Some claim it was introduced by Syrian immigrants, whereas others point to Turkish immigrants. One recent (2002) study estimated that 10 percent of the Syrian-Lebanese immigrant community were Muslim. Today this community is one of the richest and contains more than 250,000 people. The history of Islam in Mexico is largely undocumented, with the exception of a sixteenthcentury book called Un Herehe y un Musulman. Written by Pascual Almazan, this recounts the exploits of Yusuf bin Alabaz, who came to Mexico after expulsion during the Reconquista in Spain. Today, Islam is a recognized entity following the establishment of the Muslim Center de Mexico in 1994 in Mexico City. There are also centers in Monterrey, Torrion, Guadalajara, and San Cristobal de las Casa.
Islam in Cuba has not been documented before the twentieth century. At the start of the twenty-first century, Muslims in Cuba continue to pray at home because there is no mosque where they can freely congregate. There is an Arab House built by a wealthy Arab in the 1940s, which houses an Arabic museum, a restaurant, and a prayer space for diplomats. Monies are currently being solicited for the building of a mosque. In the late XX century, a representative of the Muslim World League making his own solicitations on behalf of Cuban Muslims referred to the example of a small town, Pilaya de Rosacio, which has a Muslim population of 40 percent.
If the number of Muslim organizations and centers is any indication, there are Muslims all over other areas of South America. The origins of Islam in Chile have not been researched, but census reports show that in 1854 two Muslims from the Ottoman Empire came to Chile. Given that the Ottoman Empire (the last Muslim empire), which fell in 1929, covered a great deal of the Arab world, it is difficult to state ethnic origins of these immigrants. It is also only presumed that they were Muslim, for religion was not noted in the Chilean census of 1865. However, by 1895 the census did note the presence of 58 Muslims who lived in Tarapaca, Atacama, Valparaiso, and Santiago—all in the north of the country. By 1907 there were approximately 1,500 Muslims, all of them immigrants. The first Islamic institution in Chile was the Society of Muslim Union of Chile, founded in 1926. Interestingly, the numbers of Chilean Muslims rises and falls throughout the twentieth century for reasons that are unaccounted for in any reports. Through the 1970s and 1980s there were no religious leaders or mosques in Chile. In the 1990s the construction of Al-Salam Mosque was begun, following which other mosques were built in Temuco and Iquique. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, it is estimated that there are 3,000 Muslims in Chile, many of whom are Chilean by birth. The majority are SunnI, but there are both Shia and Sufi communities present as well. Muslims, still a small minority group, generally face great pressure to convert to Christianity.
In times past, Rio de Janeiro was one of the disembarkation points for those millions abducted or sold from Muslim Africa. The native population learned about Islam primarily through Muslim behavior—prayer and abstention from pork and alcohol. Islamic revivals are reported to have occurred frequently enough over the centuries to leave a permanent mark. In 1899 the Cairo-based magazine Al-Manar published in its August issue an article entitled “Islam in Brazil.” Here it was noted that the Muslim communities in Rio were made up of direct descendants of Muslim slaves. During the 1920s, Arab immigrants and traders added to Brazil’s Islamic presence. Now, university students lead the way in teaching about Islam. There are currently five large Islamic organizations in Brazil: in Sa˜o Paulo, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Boa Vista, and Florianopolis.
Venezuela currently has fifteen Islamic civic associations in ten states. Arab immigrants, Venezuelans, and Creoles have come together to make Islam a known tradition. The closest estimate of when Islam came to Venezuela is “centuries ago.” Estimates of the number of Muslims range from 700,000 to almost a million. Venezuelan Muslims have many of the same problems as Muslims in other countries where Muslims are a minority and Islam is a potentially competing faith—issues revolving around dress, political participation, civic concerns, and Christian missionizing.
Muslims in Peru trace their ancestry to the Spaniards and the Moros. As Moros fled persecution in Spain, they settled in many South and Latin American countries. In Peru they have had a lasting influence on dress, food, architecture, and both the social and political systems. Women who covered their hair were called las tapadas Limenas (The covered ones from Lima). There are also the famous balcones lumenas, which are protruding balconies done in a style known as Arabescos—a term clearly referring to an Islamic heritage. Twentieth-century Islam in Peru is dominated by Palestinian Arabs who arrived in the 1940s, fleeing Jewish persecution. Today, after several aborted construction projects, Peruvian Muslims (there are no estimates of their numbers) still have no mosques, but they do have the Asociacion Islamica del Peru in Lima and a school.
Argentinean Muslims currently number hundreds of thousands, perhaps up to 800,000. If Arabs and other ethnic groups are included this number increases to three million. It is reported that Muslims first arrived in Argentina around 1870 from Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine. Today, there are mosques all over the country, as well as nine Islamic centers. Bolivia traces its Islamic heritage to immigrants from the Ottoman Empire, but as with Chile the ethnicities of the Muslims who came is unknown. The first mosque however, was not commissioned until 1992, in Santa Cruz. There are already three civic organizations, known as Centro Islamico Bolivanos.
What is significant about the Islamic presence in the Caribbean and South America is that it has survived for so long. The patterns that lie behind the introduction of Islam into various countries appear to be multifold: in some countries the Islamic presence can be traced to the Atlantic slave trade; in others it is due to the influx of refugees caused by the Spanish persecution of non-Christians in Spain; in yet others it is the result of Muslims fleeing a ravaged Ottoman Empire in search of opportunities or of Arab refugees fleeing persecution by Jews in Palestine; and in others still it is attributable to the arrival of Muslim Indians, both indentured servants and immigrants seeking better opportunities. Regardless of the origin of the Islamic presence, it has endured and is currently growing.

2007-07-25T10:55:00.000+07:00

ISLAM IN MYANMAR

Forefathers

The first Muslims had landed in Myanmar / Burma’s Ayeyarwady River delta, Tanintharyi coast and Rakhine as seamen in ninth century, prior to the establishment of the first Myanmar (Burmese) empire in 1055 AD by King Anawrahta of Bagan or Pagan. [1][2] [3][4][5]The dawn of the Muslim settlements and the propagation of Islam was widely documented by the Arab, Persian, European and Chinese travelers of Ninth century.[6] The current population of Myanmar Muslims are the descendants of Arabs, Persians, Turks, Moors, Indian-Muslims, sheikhs, Pakistanis, Pathans, Bengalis, Chinese Muslims and Malays who settled and intermarried with local Burmese and many ethnic Myanmar groups such as, Rakhine, Shan, Karen, Mon etc.[7][8]

The population of the Muslims increased during the British rule of Burma because of new waves of Indian Muslim Immigration. [9]This sharply declined in the years following 1941 as a result of the Indo-Burman Immigration agreement,[10]and was officially stopped following Burma's (Myanmar) independence on 4th January, 1948.

Muslims arrived in Burma as travelers, adventurers, pioneers, sailors, traders,[11]Military Personals (voluntary and mercenary)[12], and a number of them as prisoners of wars.[13] Some were reported to have taken refuge from wars, Monsoon storms and weather, shipwreck [14]and for a number of other circumstances. Some are victims of forced slavery [15]but many of them are professionals and skilled personals such as advisors to the kings and at various ranks of administration whilst others are port-authorities and mayors and traditional medicine men.[16]

Persian Muslims traveled over land, in search of China, and arrived northern Burma at Yunnan (China) border. Their colonies were recorded in Chronicles of China in 860 AD.[17][18] Myanmar Muslims were sometimes called Pathi, and Chinese Muslims are called Panthay. [19]It is widely believed that those names derived from Persi (Persian). Bago / Pegu, Dala, Thanlyin / Syriam, Taninthayi /Tenasserim, Mottama / Martaban, Myeik / Mergui and Pathein /Bassein were full of Burmese Muslim settlers and they outnumbered the local Burmese by many times. In one record, Pathein was said to be populated with Pathis.[20] In Kawzar 583 (13th Century), Bassein or Pathein was known as Pathi town under the three Indian Muslim Kings. [21] [22] [23] Arab merchants arrived Martaban, Margue. Arab settlement in the present Meik’s mid-western quarters. [24]

During Bagan King, Narathihapate, 1255-1286, in the first Sino Burman war, Kublaikhan’s Muslim Tatars attacked and occupied up to Nga Saung Chan. Mongols under Kublai Khan invaded the Pagan Kingdom. During this first Sino Burman war in 1283, Colonel Nasruddin’s Turks occupied up to Bamaw. (Kaungsin)[25] (Tarek) Turk were called, Mongol, Manchuria, Mahamaden or Panthays. [26]

] Muslims in Bagan (Pagan) Period
Byat Wi and Byat Ta

The first evidence of Muslim landing in Burma’s chronicle was recorded in the era of the first Burmese Empire of Pagan (Bagan) 1044 AD. Two Arab Muslim sailors of BYAT family, Byat Wi and Byat Ta, arrived Burmese shores, near Thaton.[27][28](There are people in Iraq, Arabia and some Surthi Northern Indian Muslims with the same sir name even at present. See Byat and Bayt) After their ship wrecked, they managed to use a plank to swim to the shores. They took refuge and stayed at the monastery of the monk in Thaton. Thaton king became afraid of them and killed the elder brother. [29] The younger brother managed to escape to Bagan and took refuge to king Anawratha. [30] He married a girl from Popa and got two sons, Shwe Byin brothers.[31]

Shwe Byin brothers

Later they also served the king as worriers,[32] even as the special agents to infiltrate the enemy’s inner circle. They were famous after they successfully infiltrated the Chinese King Utibua’s bodyguards. That event forced the Chinese to sign a peace agreement with the Burmese.[33][34]

After the war, on the way back home, they refused to contribute in the building of a pagoda at Taung Byone[35], just north of Mandalay. The brothers’ enemies left vacant the spaces for the two bricks so that the king could notice. After a brief inquiry the king ordered to punish the brothers for disobedience but they were later given death sentence. [36]

The royal raft could not move after that. Brahmans, royal consultants interpreted that, the two brothers were loyal faithful servants but unjustly punished, became Nat (spirit) and they pulled the rudder of the royal boat to show their displeasure. Then only, Anawratha ordered the building of the spirit-palace at Taung Byone and ordered the people to worship the two brothers.[37]

For five days each year Taung Byone village becomes a fairground. Taung Byone, 14 km north of Mandalay, has about 7,000 nat shrines, nearly 2,000 of them elaborate ones dedicated to those two brothers. [38][39]

King Anawratha 1044-1077 AD also had Myanmar Muslim army units and body guards. When King Anawrahta attacked Martaban, capital of Mon (Talaing) King, Mingyi Swa Saw Kae’, two Muslim officers’ army unit fiercely defended against his attack.[40]

Nga Yaman Kan

The King Anawrahta appointed a Muslim Arab [41] as a Royal teacher for his son, Prince Sawlu. That teacher’s son later became the Governor of Bago (Pegu) known as Ussa City. [42] His name was Raman Khan.[43] (Known as Nga Yaman Kan in Burmese). King Sawlu himself had given the town to his childhood friend, also an adopted brother because they were fed from the same breast as Raman Khan’s mother was the wet nurse of Prince Sawlu.[44]

Once Raman Khan won the game of dice, jumped with joy and clapped the elbows. King Sawlu was angry and challenged Rahman Khan to rebel against him with the Bago province. Raman Khan accepted the challenge and successfully trapped King Sawlu and his army in swamps.[45]Kyanzittha tried to rescue but Sawlu refused to be rescued and was later killed by Raman Khan. Rahman Khan himself was ambushed by the sniper bow-shot of Nga Sin the hunter and died.

Kyanzittha became the third king of Bagan Dynasty. While expending the empire he brought back many Indian-Muslim captives. They were settled in central Burma.[46]

Muslim sailors and traders

In the chronicles of Malaysia, during the first Melacca Empire of Parameswara in the early fifteenth century, it was recorded the Burmese (Muslims) sailors and traders were regularly arriving there. [20] Those Bago (Pegu) seamen, likely to be Muslims, were also recorded by the Arab Historians of tenth century. During fifteen to seventeen centuries, there were a lot of records of Burmese Muslim traders, sailors and settlers on the whole coast of Burma. That was from Arakan coast (Rakhine), Ayeyarwady delta and Tanintharyi coast (Including all the islands along the whole coast).[47]

During Peik Thaung Min (early Bagan dynasty, 652-660 AD), Arab travelers from Madagascar to China through East Indian Islands, visited Thaton and Martaban ports. It was recorded in Arab chronicles in 800 AD. [48]

In seventeenth century, those Muslims controlled the business and became so powerful because of their wealth. They were even appointed as Governor of Mergui, the Viceroy of the Province of Tenasserim, Port Authorities, Port Governors and Shah-bandars (senior port officials). [49] [50][51]

Muslim sailors built many mosques, but those should be more appropriately called Temples as they were equally holy to Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and Chinese. They were called Buddermokan, The so called Buddermokan on Sittway island is claimed by believers of different faiths. ... ‘Buddermokan’ [52][53][54] in memory to Badral-Din Awliya, a saint. They are found in Akyab, Sandoway and on a small island off Mergyi. [55]

Sa Nay Min Gyi King (King Sane) had two flotillas of Steam-ships, named Alarhee and Selamat, both are Arabic Islamic names. In 1711, Myanmar Missionary was sent to Mogul King Shah Alam. They used the Alarhee Ship and the captain was an Arab. [56]

Muslim prisoners of war
When Tabinshwehti, TaungooKing 1530-50 AD attacked Hanthawaddy, Muslim soldiers were helping Mons with artillery. [57] [58] [59]

Ava king Anaukpetlun captured Thanlyin or Syriam in 1613 and crucified the rebel Nat Shin Naung, and Portuguese mercenary Philip de Brito. The Indian Muslim mercenaries and five battle ships were captured. Muslim prisoners of wars were settled at the north of Shwebo in Myedu, Sagaing, Yamethin and Kyaukse.[60]

King Thalun (1629-1648)., the successor of Anaukpetlun settled those Muslims at Shwebo, Sagaing and Kyaukse. [61] Muslim prisoners of war were settled in upper Myanmar by successive Burmese kings. Myae Du near Shwebo was one of the sites. Muslim prisoners from Bago during 1539-1599 AD were the first settlers.

Tabinshwehti brought back the Muslim prisoners, after attacking Arakan in 1546 and 1549 AD.

King Alaungpaya attacked Assam and Manipur of India and brought back more Muslims to settle in Burma. These Muslims later assimilated to form core of Burmese Muslims.[62]

King Sane (Sa Nay Min Gyi) brought back several thousand Muslim prisoners of war from Sandoway and settled in Myedu in 1707 AD. Next year few thousands more were settled in those places and Taungoo. 3000 Muslims from Arakan took refuge under King Sane in 1698-1714. They were divided and settled in Taungoo, Yamethin , Nyaung Yan, Yin Taw, Meiktila, Pin Tale, Tabet Swe, Bawdi, Syi Tha, Syi Puttra, Myae du and Depayin. This Royal decree was copied from the Amarapura Royal Library in 1801 by Kyauk Ta Lone Bo. [63]

During King Bagyidaw 1819-37 rule, Maha Bandula conquered Assam and brought back 40,000 prisoners of war. About half of them were likely to be Muslims. [64] Maha Bandula and Burmese Army’s war at Ramu and Pan War were famous. Burmese captured one big cannon, 200 firearms, mixed Sepoy Indian 200. Muslims amongst them were relocated at the south of Amarapura that is Myittha river’s south. [65]

Royal Muslim-soldiers

When the famous Raza Dirit attacked and conquered Dagon (Yangon), Muslim soldiers defended from the Burmese side and Raza Dirit also had to use the help of Muslim sailors.[66]

The army of King Anawratha (eleven century) already boasted Indian units and bodyguards, Muslims apparently among them. [67]

When Tabinshwehti attacked Martaban in 1541 AD, many Muslims resisted strongly. .[68]

When Bayinnaung successfully conquered Ayuthaya (Thailand) in 1568-1569 AD he use the help of Muslim artillerymen. King Alaungpaya 1752-1760 AD conquered Syrim. Muslim prisoners of war were forced to serve in his army.[69]

Pagan Min 1846-1853 AD appointed U Shwe Oh , a Burmese Muslim, as the Governor of the Capital city, Amarapura. His personal secretary U Paing (also a Burmese Muslim) donated a two- mile long bride, made of teakwood across the Taung Tha Man Lake. In 1850, the Governor of Bagan was also said to be a Muslim.[70]

Burmese kings employed a lot of Muslims in his inner circle: Royal bodyguards, eunuchs, couriers, interpreters and advisers.[71] [72]

Muslims in Konbaung Dynasty

Muslims in Amarapura

Muslims in Amarapura were about 20,000 families, at the time of Innwa (Ava) kingdom (1855 AD). Most of them were Sunni Muslims. [73]

During the Konbaung dynasty Alaungpaya’s attack of Mons near Pyay, Mon warrior Talapan was assisted by Muslim soldiers. Because of their artillery fire, a lot of Burmese soldiers were wounded and died. [74]

In 1755 Alaungpaya conquered Dagon and renamed it Yangon (meaning 'The End of Strife'). Mon soldiers surrendered and four Muslim rich men also surrendered with the expensive presents, ammunitions and four warships. [75] Although conquered Yangon there are more battles to fight with Mons. So Alaungpaya rearranged the army. Pyre Mamet was one of the “Thwe Thauk Gyi” assigned to serve as the Royal Bodyguard. [76]Alaungpaya attacked Thanlyin or Syriam, and many Muslim artillery men were captured. [77]Alaungpaya captured four warships and Muslim soldiers. They were later allowed to serve him. [78] On the page 203 of the Twin Thin Teik Win’s Chronicles of Alaungpaya’s battles, it was recorded as only three warships.

After Alaungpaya captured Pegu, and at the parade, those Pathi Muslim soldiers were allowed to march with their traditional uniforms. [79] Four hundred Pathi Indian soldiers participated in the Royal Salute March. [80] [81]

King Bodawpaya Bodaw U Wine (Padon Mayor, Padon Min) (1781-1819) of the Konbaung Dynasty founded Amarapura as his new capital in 1783. He was the first Burmese King who recognized his Muslim subjects officially by the following Royal decree. He appointed Abid Shah Hussaini and assistants, Nga Shwe Lu and Nga Shwe Aye to decide and give judgment regarding the conflicts and problems amongst his Burmese Muslim subjects. [82] Abid Shah Hussaini burial place was well known as a shrine in Amarapura Lin Zin Gone Darga.

Before Ramu and Pan War battles, Captain Nay Myo Gone Narrat Khan Sab Bo’s 70 Cavalry (horse) Regiment's marching among the Burmese army, was watched by Maha Bandula. [83]Burmese Muslim Horsemen were famous in that Khan Sab Bo’s 70 Cavalry (horse) Regiment. Khan Sab Bo’s name was Abdul Karim Khan and was the father of the Captain Wali Khan, famous Wali Khan Cavalry Regiment during King Mindon and King Thibaw.

Khan Sab Bo was sent as an Ambassador to Indo China by Bagyidaw. During Bagyidaw’s reign, in 1824, Gaw Taut Pallin battle was famous. British used 10,000 soldiers but defeated. During that battle Khan Sab Bo’s 100 horsemen fought vigorously and bravely. [84]More than 1300 loyal brave Kala Pyo Muslims (means young Indian soldiers) were awarded with colourful velvety uniforms. [85]

When Konbaung Dynasty’s 8th. Tharrawaddy Min (King) marched Okkalapa, more than 100 Pathi Muslim Indian Cannoners took part. [86] There are also a lot of Muslim soldiers in other parts of the Tharrawaddy Min’s army.

But during the Konbaung Dynasty’s 9th. Pagan Min 1846-52 there was a blemish in Muslim’s history. Royal Capital Amarapura’s Mayor Bai Sab and his clerk U Pain were arrested and sentenced to death.

King Mindon

During Pagan Min reign, Mindon Prince and brother Ka Naung Prince run away with their servants to Shwebo and started a rebellion. U Bo and U Yuet were the two Muslims who accompanied the princes. Some Kala Pyo Burmese Muslim artillery soldiers followed them. [87]U Boe later built and donated the June Mosque, which is still maintained in 27th. street, Mandalay. U Yuet became the Royal Chief Chef.

Regent Prince Ka Naung sent scholars to study abroad. Malar Mon @ U Pwint was a Burmese Muslim sent to study the explosives. He became the Yan Chet won or Minister of explosives.

In the Royal Defence Army, many Cannoners were Kindar Kala Pyos and Myedu Muslims. [88]

In 1853 King Mindon held a donation ceremony. He ordered to prepare halal food for his Muslim soldiers from, Akbart Horse Cavalry, Wali Khan Horse Cavalry, Manipur Horse Cavalry and Sar Tho Horse Cavalry altogether about 700 of them.

U Soe was the Royal tailor of King Mindon . [89]

Kabul Maulavi was appointed an Islamic Judge by King Mindon to decide according to the Islamic rules and customs on Muslim affairs.

Captain Min Htin Min Yazar’s 400 Muslims participated to clear the land for building a new Mandalay city.

Burmese Muslims were given specific quarters to settle in the new city of Mandalay[90]

Sigaing dan
Kone Yoe dan
Taung Balu
Oh Bo
Setkyer Ngwezin
June Amoke Tan
Wali Khan Quarter
Taik Tan Qr
Koyandaw Qr (Royal Bodyguards’ Qr)
Ah Choke Tan
Kala Pyo Qr
Panthay dan for the Burmese Chinese Muslims. [91]
In those quarters, lands for 20 Mosques were allocated out side the Palace wall. [92] [93]

Sigaing dan Mosque
Kone Yoe Mosque
Taung Balu Mosque
June Mosque
Koyandaw Mosque
Wali Khan Mosque
Kala Pyo Mosque
Seven lots of lands for Setkyer Ngwezin
King Mindon donated his palace teak pillars to build a mosque at North Obo in central Mandalay. (The pillars which failed to place properly at the exact time given by astrologers.)
The broadminded King Mindon also permitted a mosque to be built on the granted site for the Panthays (Burmese Chinese Muslims)[94][95] Photos of Mandalay Panthay mosque.[21]
Inside the Palace wall, for the Royal Body Guards, King Mindon himself donated and started the building of the Mosque by laying the Gold foundation at the South-eastern part of the Palace located near the present Independent Monument. This Mosque was called the Shwe Pannet Mosque. That mosque was destroyed by the British to build the Polo playground.

King Mindon (1853-78) donated the rest house in Mecca for his Muslim subjects performing Hajj.[96] Nay Myo Gonna Khalifa U Pho Mya and Haji U Swe Baw were ordered to supervise the building. The Kind donated the balance needed to complete the building which was started with the donations from the Burmese Muslims. This was recorded in the Myaedu Mosque Imam U Shwe Taung’s poems.[97]

King Thibaw

Muslim soldiers who participated in the Royal Parade during King Thibaw’s reign were_

Captain Bo Min Htin Kyaw and his 350 Kindar Kala Pyo artillery soldiers.
Setkyer Cannon Regiment Captain Hashim and 113 Cannoners
Mingalar Cannon Regiment Captain U Kye and 113 Cannoners
Mingalar Amyoke Sulay Kone Captain U Maung and 113 Cannoners
Mingalar Amyoke Bone Oh Captain U Yauk and 113 Cannoners. [98]
After King Thibaw’s declaration of war on the British, Burmese Army formed three groups to descend and defend the British attack. One of those, Taung Twingyi defence chief was, Akhbat Horse Calvery Chief, Mayor of Pin Lae Town, Minister Maha Min Htin Yar Zar. His name was U Chone when he was the Chief Clerk of Kala Pyo Army. During the Myin Kun Myin Khone Tain revolt, he carried the Chief queen of Mindon on his back to safety. So he was rewarded with the Mayor position of Pin Lae Myo which was located 12 miles south of Myittha. [99]

Under Maha Min Htin Yar Zar there were 1629 soldiers:

Kindar Captain Bo Min Hla Min Htin Kyaw Thu’s 335 Kindar soldiers two cannon and Sein let Yae 3 regiments
Shwe Pyi Captain Bo Min Hla Min Htin Thamain Than Like and Shwe Pyi 100 soldiers, one cannon and Sein let Yae 2 regiments
Wali Khan’s 990 Akhbat Horse Calvery and Sein let Yae 20 regiments
Specially trained 200 soldiers.[100]
On 28 November 1885, after the British took over the administration, the British revamp the new administration with, Kin Won Min Gyi, Tai Tar Min Gyi, the Minister Maha Min Htin Yar Zar U Chone was included as the representative of the Parliament.

Muslim Mogul Emperor of India
The last Muslim Mogul Emperor of India, Abu Za’far Saraj al-Din Bahadur Shah and his family members and some followers were exiled to Yangon, Myanmar. He died in Yangon and was buried on 7.11.1862.[101]
After the British took over the whole Burma all sub groups of Burmese-Muslims formed numerous organizations, active in social welfare and religious affairs.

Mosques in Yangon
1.Surtee Mosque

Surtee mosque is situated in Mogul Road and is one of the biggest mosques in Yangon. It was built by Surtees who migrated from India during the World War II. The mosque displays architecture that's similar to the mosques in India. Most people who pray in this mosque are surtees. Most weddings that take place in this mosque are those of the surtees and the chief reason why the surtees have their marriage in this mosque is because the way the mosque is built reflects their own culture. The mosque has constant renovations, but the basic architecture is never changed.

2.Rakine Jamae Mosque(Arakan Mosque)

Rakine Jame Mosque is situated in Yangon. It is located in 130th street in Mingalar Townyunt Township. It is one of the biggest mosque in Yangon. The mosque was built at the time of Burmese King Dynasty. The exact time is still unknown. Rakine Mosque was established by the people(Arakans) who came from Rakhine state (a state of Myanmar). These people gave the name of the mosque as Arakan Mosque. However this name was changed into Rakhine Mosque.

2007-01-28T20:26:00.000+07:00

Islam In India

Islam is the second-largest religion in India (after Hinduism - 76.5%), where Muslims number around 174 million (16.4%) Census of India.Govt. site with detailed data from 2001 census [1]. India has the second-largest population of Muslims in the world after Indonesia. Islam first arrived in India through Arab traders who spread the Sufi way of thought. The total emergence of Islam in the region occurred through the Islamic invasion of India, where Islamic rulers took over administration of numerous places within India and which was accompanied by forced conversions. Since its introduction to India, Islam has made religious, artistic, philosophical, culture, social and political contributions to Indian history, heritage and life.

In modern times, the Muslims of India have had a turbulent history within India. After the mass rioting of 1946, Muslim League politicians achieved a purely Islamic state known as Pakistan. In modern times, the Muslim populations of India and Pakistan are roughly even. The President of India, APJ Abdul Kalam, along with numerous other politicians, are Muslims, as are numerous sports and film celebrities within India. Isolated incidences of violence nonetheless have occurred between the Muslim populations and the Hindu, Sikh and Christian populations.

History

Main article: Muslim conquest in the Indian subcontinent
Contrary to general belief, Islam came to India long before Muslim invasions of India. Islamic influence first came to be felt in the early 7th century with the advent of Arab traders. Trade relations between Arabia and the Indian subcontinent are very ancient. Arab traders used to visit the Malabar region, which was a link between them and ports of South East Asia, to trade even before Islam had been established in Arabia. According to Historians Elliot and Dowson in their book The History of India as told by its own Historians, the first ship bearing Muslim travelers was seen on the Indian coast as early as 630 AD. H.G. Rawlinson, In his book Ancient and Medieval History of India[2] claims the first Arab Muslims settled on the Indian coast in the last part of the 7th century AD. This fact is corroborated, by J. Sturrock in his South Kanara and Madras Districts Manuals[3], and also by Haridas Bhattacharya in cultural Heritage of India Vol. IV.[4]It was with the advent of Islam that the Arabs became a prominent cultural force in the world. The Arab merchants and traders became the carriers of the new religion and they propagated it wherever they went[5].

The first Indian mosque was built in 629 A.D, at the behest of Cheraman Perumal, during the life time of Muhammad(c. 571 – 632)in Kodungallur by Malik Bin Deenar.[6][7][8]

In Malabar the Mappilas may be the first community to come to the fold of Islam because they were more closely connected with the Arabs than others. Intensive missionary activities went on the coast and a number of natives also embraced Islam. These new converts were now added to the pile of the Mappila community. Thus among the Mapilas, we find, both the descendants of the Arabs through local women and the converts from among the local people [9]

In the 8th century, the province of Sindh was conquered by Syrian Arabs led by Muhammad bin Qasim. Sindh became the easternmost province of the Umayyad Caliphate. In the first half of the 10th century, Mahmud of Ghazni added the Punjab to the Ghaznavid Empire and conducted several raids deeper into modern day India. A more successful invasion came at the end of the 12th century by Muhammad of Ghor. This eventually led to the formation of the Delhi Sultanate.

Conversion Controversy

Considerable controversy exists both in scholary and public opinion about the conversions to Islam typically represented by the following schools of thought:[10]

That muslims sought conversion through jihad or political violence [10]
A related view is that conversions occurred for pragmatic reasons such as social mobility among the Muslim ruling elite [10]
Conversion was a result of the actions of Sufi saints and involved a genuine change of heart [10]
Conversion from the lower castes for social mobility and a rejection of oppressive caste strictures [citation needed]
Was a combination, initially made under duress followed by a genuine change of heart [10]
Embedded within this lies the concept of Islam as a foreign imposition and Hinduism being a natural condition of the natives who resisted, resulting the failure of the project to Islamicize the Indian subcontinent and is highly embroiled with the politics of the partition and communalism in India.[10] Other reasons given for the size of the Muslim expansion are the killings of Hindu's[citation needed], migrations and the influence of Arab traders along the Indian Ocean.[citation needed]

An estimate of the number of people killed, based on the Muslim chronicles and demographic calculations, was done by K.S. Lal in his book Growth of Muslim Population in Medieval India, who claimed that between 1000 CE and 1500 CE, the population of Hindus decreased by 80 million. His work has come under criticism by historians such as Simon Digby (School of Oriental and African Studies) and Irfan Habib for its agenda and lack of accurate data in pre-census times. Lal has responded to these criticisms in later works. Historians such as Will Durant contend that Islam spread through violence. [11][12] Sir Jadunath Sarkar contends that that several Muslim invaders were waging a systematic jihad against Hindus in India to the effect that "Every device short of massacre in cold blood was resorted to in order to convert heathen subjects." [13] In particular the records kept by al-Utbi, Mahmud al-Ghazni's secretary, in the Tarikh-i-Yamini document several episodes of bloody military campaigns. Hindus who converted to Islam however were not completely immune to persecution due to the Muslim Caste System in India established by Ziauddin al-Barani in the Fatawa-i Jahandari. [14], where they were regarded as an "Ajlaf" caste and subjected to discrimination by the "Ashraf" castes[15]

The disputers of the "Conversion by the Sword Theory" point to the presence of the strong Muslim communities found in Southern India, modern day Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Western Burma, Indonesia and Philippines coupled with the distinctive lack of equivalent Muslim communities around the heartland of historical Muslim Empires in the Indian Sub-Continent as refutation to the Conversion by Sword Theory. The legacy of Muslim conquest of South Asia is a hotly debated issue even today. Different population estimates by economic historian Angus Maddison[16] and by Jean-Noël Biraben[17] also show that India's population did not decrease between 1000 and 1500, but in fact increased by about 35 million during that time[dubious — see talk page].

Not all Muslim invaders were simply raiders. Later rulers fought on to win kingdoms and stayed to create new ruling dynasties. The practices of these new rulers and their subsequent heirs (some of whom were borne of Hindu wives) varied considerably. While some were uniformly hated, others developed a popular following. According to the memoirs of Ibn Batuta who traveled through Delhi in the 14th century, one of the previous sultans had been especially brutal and was deeply hated by Delhi's population. His memoirs also indicate that Muslims from the Arab world, from Persia and Turkey were often favored with important posts at the royal courts suggesting that locals may have played a somewhat subordinate role in the Delhi administration. The term "Turk" was commonly used to refer to their higher social status. S.A.A. Rizvi (The Wonder That Was India - II), however points to Muhammad bin Tughlaq as not only encouraging locals but promoting artisan groups such as cooks, barbers and gardeners to high administrative posts. In his reign, it is likely that conversions to Islam took place as a means of seeking greater social mobility and improved social standing.[18].

Sufism and spread of Islam

Sufis (Islamic mystics) played an important role in the spread of Islam in India. They were very successful in spreading Islam, as many aspects of Sufi belief systems and practices had their parallels in Indian philosophical literature, in particular nonviolence and monism. The Sufis' unorthodox approach towards Islam made it easier for Hindus to practice. Hazrat Khawaja Muin-ud-din Chisti, Nizam-ud-din Auliya, Shah Jalal, Amir Khusro trained Sufi groups for the propagation of Islam in different parts of India. Once the Islamic Empire was established in India, Sufis invariably provided a touch of colour and beauty to what might have otherwise been rather cold and stark reigns. The Sufi movement also attracted followers from the artisan and Untouchable communities; they played a crucial role in bridging the distance between Islam and the indigenous traditions. Even today Sufi tombs are visited by Hindus and Muslims alike.

Role of Muslims in India's freedom movement

The contribution of Muslim revolutionaries, poets and writers is immense in India's struggle against the British. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Hakim Ajmal Khan and Rafi Ahmed Kidwai are a few of Muslims who devoted their life for this purpose. Muhammad Ashfaq Ullah Khan of Shahjehanpur who conspired and looted the British treasury at Kakori (Lucknow) to cripple the administration and who, when asked for his last will, before execution, desired: No desire is left except one that some one may put a little soil of my motherland in my winding sheet. Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan (popular as Frontier Gandhi), a great nationalist who spent 45 of his 95 years of life in jail for the freedom of India; Barakatullah of Bhopal, one of the founders of the Ghadar party which created a network of anti-British organizations and who died penniless in Germany in l927; Syed Rahmat Shah of the Ghadar party who worked as an underground revolutionary in France and was hanged for his part in the unsuccessful Ghadar (mutiny)uprising in 1915; Ali Ahmad Siddiqui of Faizabad (UP) who planned the Indian Mutiny in Malaya and Burma along with Syed Mujtaba Hussain of Jaunpur and who was hanged In 1917; Vakkom Abdul Khadar of Kerala who participated in "Quit India" struggle in 1942 was hanged ; Umar Subhani, an industrialist and a millionaire of Bombay who provided Gandhi with congress expenses and who ultimately gave his life for the cause of independence. Among Muslim women, Hazrat Mahal, Asghari Begum, Bi Amma contributed heavily in the struggle of freedom from Britishers.

The following is a list of some famous Muslims who fought for a unified India (as opposed to Pakistan): Maulana Azad, Hakeem Ajmal Khan, Tipu Sultan, Hyder Ali, Hasrat Mohani, Professor Barkatullah, Dr. Zakir Husain , Saifuddin Kichlu, Allama Shibli Nomani, Vakkom Abdul Khadir, Dr. Manzoor Abdul Wahab, ,Bahadur Shah Zafar, Hakeem Nusrat Husain, Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan, Samad Achakzai, Colonel Shahnawaz, Dr. M.A.Ansari, Rafi Ahmad Kidwai, Fakhruddin Ali Ahmad, Ansar Harwani, Tak Sherwani, Viqarul Mulk, Mustsafa Husain, VM Ubaidullah, SR Rahim, Badruddin Tyabjee, and Moulvi Abdul Hamid.

However, Muslims such as Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Maulana Shaukat Ali, Maulana Mohammad Ali, and Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy would lead the Muslim League party to desire a segregated Islamic Republic of Pakistan and, to that effectm instigate massive riots such as Direct Action Day against Hindus which eventually spread outwards into massive anti-Hindu pogroms such as the Noakhali Massacre, as well as retaliatory attacks by Hindus against Muslims in Punjab and the North Western Frontier Province.

Law and politics

Indian Muslims are among the freest in the world to live according to their faith. [citation needed] Muslims in India are Governed by The Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937.[19]. it directs the application of Muslim Personal Law to Muslims in a number of different areas mainly related to family law which includes marriage, Mahr(Dower), Divorce, Maintenance, Gifts, Wakf, Wills and Inheritance.[20] The courts generally apply the Hanafi Sunni law, with exceptions made only for those areas where Shia law differed substantially from Sunni practice.

Although the Indian constitution provided equal rights to all citizens irrespective of their religion, Article 44 recommended a Uniform civil code. The attempts by successive political leadership in the country to integrate Indian society under common civil code was strongly resisted and is still viewed by Indian Muslims as an attempt to dilute the cultural identity of the minority group of the country. All India Muslim Personal Law Board was established for the protection and continued applicability of “Muslim Personal Law” i.e. Shariat Application Act in India.

Hindu-Muslim Conflict

India maintains a constitutional commitment to secularism and does not distinguish amongst the people on the basis of religious beliefs. However, Hindu-Muslim relations in India has been marred by communal violence. This communal conflict is inherited from the convulsive and turbulent course of history, starting with the Islamic invasion of India. The aftermath of the Partition of India in 1947 saw large scale sectarian strife and bloodshed throughout the nation. Since then India have witnessed occasional bouts of large-scale violence sparked by underlying tensions between sections of its majority Hindu and minority Muslim communities. The conflicts also stem from the ideologies of Hindu Nationalism versus Indian Muslim Nationalism , Islamic Fundamentalism and Islamism prevalent on certain sections of the population.

Violence against Hindus by Muslims took place in the Sindhi riots of 1980 when Muslims in Gujarat burnt Hindus alive [2]. In addition, Islamist attacks on Hindus in Kashmir such as the Wandhama massacre and Kaluchak Massacre contribute to the rising communal tensions in the region. The ethnic cleansing of the Hindu Kashmiri Pandits from the region by the Islamists has worsened the situation. In addition, the Indian military stationed there has been accused by Muslim-majority Pakistan, as well as human rights advocacy groups, of atrocities against the Muslim population of the region. For details see Terrorism in Kashmir.

The sense of communal harmony between Hindus and Muslims n the post partition period has been compromised in the last decade with the demolition of the disputed Babri Mosque in Ayodhya (matter for which in the court following a case in which it is claimed that there was Ram Temple there) . The demolition took place in 1992 and was perpetrated by the Hindu Nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party and organizations like Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh , Bajrang Dal, Vishwa Hindu Parishad. This was followed by violence between Hindus and Muslims all over India, especially in Mumbai, with the Bombay Riots where mobs of Hindus, allegedly led by the Hindu nationalist party Shiv Sena, attacked and killed a substantial number of Muslims. The 1993 Mumbai Bombings were perpetrated by the Muslim Mafia don Dawood Ibrahim and the predominantly Muslim D-Company criminal gang in the aftermath of the Bombay Riots.In 2001, a high profile attack on the Indian Parliament by radical Muslims created considerable strain in community relations.

Some of the most violent of such events took place in recent times during the infamous Gujarat riots in which around one thousand people died. The riots were in retaliation to the the Godhra Train Burning in which 50 Hindus belonging to group called the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, who were returning from disputed site of the Babri Mosque were burnt alive at the Godhra railway station.The train burning was a planned act executed by the extremely radicalized Ghanchi Muslims in the region against the Hindu Pilgrims as confirmed by the Gujarat police[3].The commission appointed to investigate this finding alleged that the fire was an accident, but the results were refuted by the High Court in 2006[4]. The Gujarat riots that took place in retaliation for the incident swiftly took the state out of control, with massive killings of Muslims by mobs of Hindus, and corresponding counter-attacks on Hindus by Muslims. Several Hindu Nationalist groups have been accused of direct involvement in the anti-Muslim riots.

Muslim-Hindu conflicts has also been formented due to the mushrooming of radical Muslim organisations like SIMI (Students Islamic Movement of India) whose goal is to establilsh Islamic rule in India. Other groups such as Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed have been formenting bias in the local Muslim populace against Hindus. These groups are believed to be responsible for the 11 July 2006 Mumbai train bombings, where nearly 200 people were killed in a terrorist attacks. Such groups also attacked the Indian Parliament in 2001, declared parts of Indian Kashmir to be Pakistani in 1999 (leading to the Kargil War) and have orchestrated numerous other terrorist attacks including constant attacks in Indian Kashmir and bombings in the Indian captial New Delhi. Presently, the meteoric rise of the popularity of Lashkar-e-Toiba among fringe radicals in the Muslim population of Kashmir is regarded as a major problem.Today, with moderate Islamic beliefs such as Sufism and the Hanafi school of thought being under threat from competing understandings of Islam, and with assaults on Muslims in India at the hands of Hindu Nationalist groups, Kashmir's indigenous religious resources of conflict-managementand inter-communal dialogue are less effective in challenging to the politics of religious hatred. In the meanwhile, the toll of innocent Muslims and Hindus at the altar of communal strife continues to mount [5].

Muslim Christian Conflict

For the most part, Muslims and Christians form the same votebank in the left-of-center arena of politics, typically at odds with Hindus. However, in troubled areas of India, Muslims and Christians have come into conflict with each other.

Muslims in India who convert to Christianity are often subjected to harassment, intimidation, and attacks by Muslims. In Kashmir, a region overrun by Islamic Fundamentalists, a Christian convert named Bashir Tantray was killed , allegedly by Militant Islamists in 2006[21].

A Christian priest, K.K. Alavi, who is a convert from Islam, recently raised the ire of his former Muslim community and has received many death threats. An Islamic terrorist group named "The National Development Front" actively campaigned against him.[22].

Muslims in Modern India

A Muslim couple is being wed in India, even as a Hindu man takes his ritual bath in the river.Muslims in India are 13.1% of total population. Like in all minorities, Muslims have played roles in various fields of the country's advancement.

Prominent Indian Muslims include:

Khawaja Abdul Hamid, who in 1935 founded one of the first Indian-owned industries in the colonial era, CIPLA (The Chemical, Industrial & Pharmaceutical Laboratories). In 1939, when Mahatma Gandhi visited CIPLA he wrote that he was "delighted to visit this Indian enterprise". CIPLA today is a pharmaceutical company with a global presence, it's products being sold in over 150 countries worldwide.
There have been three Muslim presidents of India, Dr. Zakir Hussain, Dr Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed and the current president, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.
Salim Ali (November 12, 1896 - July 27, 1987) is one of India's best known ornithologists and naturalists. Known as the "Birdman of India", Salim Ali was among the first Indians to conduct systematic bird surveys in India and his books have contributed enormously to understanding and protecting India's birds and also other wildlife.
Azim Premji is the founder of and the highest stake holder in Wipro, one of the leading software service providing companies in India. In 2005, Yusuf Hameed of CIPLA and Azim Premji received one of India's highest civilian awards, the Padma Bhushan for his contributions to the country.
Muslims are also playing pivotal roles in the advertising industry, film industry (Bollywood), modern art, academics, theatre and sports. Some large industries like Wipro Ltd., Wockhardt, Himalaya health care, Hamdard Laboratories and Mirza Tanners are owned by Muslims.

Muslims are proportionally represented in Indian politics. For details on parliamentary representation see Muslims in Parliament of India.

Sachar report controversy

According to a recently published report to government, called the Sachar Report, Muslims are heavily under-represented in different government and social areas [23] [24] [25].

The Sachar report is highly controversial in that it has received substantial criticism, including allegations of bias in the media coverage concerning the report. Indian media expert[26] Dasu Krishnamoorti has criticized the media coverage of the report. He criticizes the claims made in the media that the fault of the plight of the Muslim lays squarely on the Hindus and the Congress Party as politically motivated in favor of the Muslim community and encouraging "emotional segregation [between Muslims and Hindus] that hardly helps Muslims share the Indian miracle"[27].The report stand criticized for misrepresenting data and figures, bias and "misrepresenting inequities"[28]. Leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party have also criticized the report as "distorted, politically motivated and dangerous", also pointing out that proposals of special reservation given to Muslims would harm the country, and criticized the UPA Government's endorsement of the report as a snub to their previous efforts to help the Muslim community[29][30]. BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi said that the the tone and texture of the Sachar Committee "has a striking similarity to the Muslim League of pre-independence era. Unfortunately, the government is irrationally following a policy of blind populism which threatens to divide the nation."[29]

Muslim employment in government sectors (according to the Sachar Report) [31]

Area Muslim %
Total 4.9
PSUs 7.2
IAS, IFS, and IPS 3.2
Railways 4.5
Judiciary 7.8
Health 4.4
Transport 6.5
Home affairs 7.3
Education 6.5

see: List of notable Muslims of independent India

Muslim Institutes

There are several well established Muslim institutes in India. Here is a list of reputed institutes established by Muslims.

Modern Universities and institutes: Jamia Millia Islamia, Hamdard University, Al Ameen Educational Society, Al-Kabir educational society.
Traditional Islamic Universities: Sunni Markaz Kerala (the largest charitable, non governmental, non profit islamic institution in india), Raza Academy, Darul Uloom Deoband, Darul-uloom Nadwatul Ulama .

[edit] Population Statistics
Islam in India

History

Architecture
Mughal architecture • Indo-Islamic Architecture

Major figures
Akbar • Maulana Azad

Communities
North Indian Muslims • Mappilas • Tamil Muslims
Konkani Muslims • Marathi Muslims • Memons
North East Muslims • Kashmiris • Hyderabadi Muslims
Dawoodi Bohras • Khoja • Nawayath • Meo
Sunni Bohras • Kayamkhani • Bengali Muslims

Islamic Sects
Deobandi • Barelvi• Shia

Culture
Muslim culture of Hyderabad

Other Topics
Indian Muslim nationalism • Indian Wahabi movement
Muslim chronicles for Indian history

This box: view • talk • edit
Islam is India's largest minority religion, with Muslims officially constituting 16.4% of the country's population, or 174 million people as of the 2001 census.However, unofficial estimates claim a far higher figure supposedly discounted in censuses. For instance, in an interview with a well circulated newspaper of India The Hindu Justice K.M. Yusuf, a retired Judge from Calcutta High Court and Chairman of West Bengal Minority Commission, has said that the real percentage of Muslims in India is at least 20%.[6] Even pro Hindutva people say in their reports that the Muslim population has reached 30%.[7]

The largest concentrations--about 47% of all Muslims in India, according to the 2001 census--live in the 3 states of Uttar Pradesh (30.7 million) (18.5%), West Bengal (20.2 million) (25%), and Bihar (13.7 million) (16.5%). Muslims represent a majority of the local population only in Jammu and Kashmir (67 % in 2001) and Lakshadweep (95 %). High concentrations of Muslims are found in the eastern states of Assam (31 %) and West Bengal (25 %), and in the southern state of Kerala (25 %) and Karnataka (12.2%). Muslims are generally more educated, urban, integrated and prosperous in the Western and Southern states of India than in the Northern and Eastern ones[citation needed]; this could be due to partition when the more affluent and educated population migrated over the border[citation needed], to Pakistan in the North and Bangladesh(then East Pakistan) in the East. India has the second largest Muslim population (after Indonesia) and also the third largest Shia Muslim population (after Iran and Pakistan) in the world.[citation needed]

The analysis on religious data, among the six major religious communities, shows that the decadal growth of the Muslims was the highest (36.0%) in the 2001 census. This statistic suggested that while the growth rate for Hindus has fallen between 1991 and 2001 compared with 1981 and 1991, Muslims have actually grown faster in the last decade, this led Indian media[32] and different parties raising an alarm at the growing number of Muslims and expressing concern about the demographic imbalance and overpopulation, which the Indian government is desperately trying to stop democratically[33].

A grave objection to this theory is the fact that the 1991 census did not include Jammu & Kashmir, the only Muslim majority state and strife-torn Assam, while the 2001 census does include Jammu & Kashmir. Adjusted for this, the Muslim growth rate plunges from 36 per cent to 29.3 per cent.

Muslim population in Indian states according to 2001 Census.[34]

State Population Percentage
Lakshadweep 57,903 95.4707
Jammu & Kashmir 6,793,240 66.9700
Assam 8,240,611 30.9152
West Bengal 20,240,543 25.2451
Kerala 7,863,842 24.6969
Uttar Pradesh 30,740,158 18.4961
Bihar 13,722,048 16.5329
Jharkhand 3,731,308 13.8474
Karnataka 6,463,127 12.2291
Uttaranchal 1,012,141 11.9225
Delhi 1,623,520 11.7217
Maharashtra 10,270,485 10.6014
Andhra Pradesh 6,986,856 9.1679
Gujarat 4,592,854 9.0641
Manipur 190,939 8.8121
Rajasthan 4,788,227 8.4737
Andaman & Nicobar Islands 29,265 8.2170
Tripura 254,442 7.9533
Daman & Diu 12,281 7.7628
Goa 92,210 6.8422
Madhya Pradesh 3,841,449 6.3655
Pondicherry 59,358 6.0921
Haryana 1,222,916 5.7836
Tamil Nadu 3,470,647 5.5614
Meghalaya 99,169 4.2767
Chandigarh 35,548 3.9470
Dadra & Nagar Haveli 6,524 2.9589
Orissa 761,985 2.0703
Chhattisgarh 409,615 1.9661
Himachal Pradesh 119,512 1.9663
Arunachal Pradesh 20,675 1.8830
Nagaland 35,005 1.7590
Punjab 382,045 1.5684
Sikkim 7,693 1.4224
Mizoram 10,099 1.1365

Percentage distribution of population (adjusted) by religious communities : India – 1961 to 2001 Census (excluding Assam and J&K) Indian Census

Year Percentage
1961 9.9%
1971 10.4%
1981 10.9%
1991 11.7%
2001 12.4%

Percentage distribution (unadjusted) of population by religious communities India - 1961 to 2001 Census (without excluding Assam and J&K)Indian Census

Year Percentage
1961 10.7%
1971 11.2%
1981 11.4%
1991 12.1%
2001 13.4%

Islamic Traditions in South Asia

This article or section does not cite its references or sources.
Please help improve this article by introducing appropriate citations. (help, get involved!)
This article has been tagged since November 2006.
The Jama Masjid, Delhi is one of the largest mosques in the world.A large number of Indian Muslims follow Sunni Barelwi (Sufi) traditions attached to the memory of great Sufi saints. Sufism is a mystical path (tarika) as distinct from the legalistic path of the sharia. A Sufi attains a direct vision of oneness with God, often on the edges of orthodox behavior, and can thus become a Pir (living saint) who may take on disciples ([murid]s) and set up a spiritual lineage that can last for generations. Orders of Sufis became important in India during the thirteenth century following the ministry of Moinuddin Chishti (1142-1236), who settled in Ajmer, Rajasthan, and attracted large numbers of converts to Islam because of his holiness. His Chishtiyya order went on to become the most influential Sufi lineage in India, although other orders from Central Asia and Southwest Asia also reached to India and played a major role in the spread of Islam. Many Sufis were well known for weaving music, dance, intoxicants, and local folktales into their songs and lectures. In this way, they created a large literature in regional languages that embedded Islamic culture deeply into older South Asian traditions.

The leadership of the Muslim community has pursued various directions in the evolution of Indian Islam during the twentieth century. The most conservative wing has typically rested on the education system provided by the hundreds of religious training institutes (madrasa) throughout the country, which have tended to stress the study of the Qur'anand Islamic texts in Arabic and Persian but little else. Several national movements have emerged from this sector of the Muslim community. The Jamaati Islami (Islamic Party), founded in 1941, advocates the establishment of an overtly Islamic government. The Indian branch of the party had about 3,000 active members and 40,000 sympathizers in the mid-1980s. The Tablighi Jamaat (Outreach Society) became active after the 1940s as a movement, primarily among the ulema (religious leaders), stressing personal renewal, prayer, a missionary spirit, and attention to orthodoxy. It has been highly critical of the kind of activities that occur in and around Sufi shrines and remains a minor if respected force in the training of the ulema. Conversely, other ulema have upheld the legitimacy of mass religion, including exaltation of pirs and the memory of the Prophet. A powerful secularising drive led by Syed Ahmad Khan resulted in the foundation of Aligarh Muslim University (1875 as the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College)--with a broader, more modern curriculum -- and other major Muslim universities.

Indo Islamic art and architecture

The Masjid-i-Jahan NumaIndian architecture took new shape with the advent of Islamic rule in India towards the end of the 12th century AD. New elements were introduced into the Indian architecture that include: use of shapes (instead of natural forms); inscriptional art using decorative lettering or calligraphy; inlay decoration and use of coloured marble, painted plaster and brilliantly glazed tiles.

Taj Mahal mosque or masjidIn contrast to the indigenous Indian architecture which was of the trabeate order i.e. all spaces were spanned by means of horizontal beams, the Islamic architecture was arcuate i.e. an arch or dome was adopted as a method of bridging a space. The concept of arch or dome was not invented by the Muslims but was, in fact, borrowed and was further perfected by them from the architectural styles of the post-Roman period. The Muslims used the cementing agent in the form of mortar for the first time in the construction of buildings in India. They further put to use certain scientific and mechanical formulae, which were derived by experience of other civilizations, in their constructions in India. Such use of scientific principles helped not only in obtaining greater strength and stability of the construction materials but also provided greater flexibility to the architects and builders. One fact that must be stressed here is that, the Islamic elements of architecture had already passed through different experimental phases in other countries like Egypt, Iran and Iraq before these were introduced in India. Unlike most Islamic monuments of these countries, which were largely constructed in brick, plaster and rubble, the Indo-Islamic monuments were typical mortar-masonry works formed of dressed stones. It must be emphasized that the development of the Indo-Islamic architecture was greatly facilitated by the knowledge and skill possessed by the Indian craftsmen, who had mastered the art of stonework for centuries and used their experience while constructing Islamic monuments in India.

The Delhi Fort, also known as the Red Fort, is one of the popular tourist destinations in Delhi.In simple terms the Islamic architecture in India can be divided into religious and secular. Mosques and Tombs represent the religious architecture, while palaces and forts are examples of secular Islamic architecture. Forts were essentially functional, complete with a little township within and various fortifications to engage and repel the enemy.

Mosques: The mosque or masjid is a representation of Muslim art in its simplest form. The mosque is basically an open courtyard surrounded by a pillared verandah, crowned off with a dome. A mihrab indicates the direction of the qibla for prayer. Towards the right of the mihrab stands the mimbar or pulpit from where the Imam presides over the proceedings. An elevated platform, usually a minaret from where the Faithful are summoned to attend the prayers is an invariable part of a mosque. Large mosques where the faithful assemble for the Friday prayers are called the Jama Masjids.

The Taj MahalTombs: Although not actually religious in nature, the tomb or maqbara introduced an entirely new architectural concept. While the masjid was mainly known for its simplicity, a tomb could range from being a simple affair (Aurangazeb’s grave) to an awesome structure enveloped in grandeur (Taj Mahal). The tomb usually consists of solitary compartment or tomb chamber known as the huzrah in whose centre is the cenotaph or zarih. This entire structure is covered with an elaborate dome. In the underground chamber lies the mortuary or the maqbara, in which the corpse is buried in a grave or qabr. Smaller tombs may have a mihrab, although larger mausoleums have a separate mosque located at a distance from the main tomb. Normally the whole tomb complex or rauza is surrounded by an enclosure. The tomb of a Muslim saint is called a dargah. Almost all Islamic monuments were subjected to free use of verses from the Holy Koran and a great amount of time was spent in carving out minute details on walls, ceilings, pillars and domes.

Islamic architecture in India can be classified into three sections: Delhi or the Imperial style (1191 to 1557AD); the Provincial style, encompassing the surrounding areas like Jaunpur and the Deccan; and the Mughal style (1526 to 1707AD). (Courtesy: Culturopedia.com)

Post - Independence

The Muslims of India have generally been treated well although there have been many anti-Muslim riots.

Indian Muslim Students
Muslims in India
Muslims in India Census 2001
IndianMuslims.info Informational website on Indian Muslims
South Asian Islam Links
Islam, Muslim and Politics in India
IndianMuslimsOrg One-start portal for IndianMuslims

2007-01-16T06:56:00.000+07:00

More Germans Embracing Islam

A new Interior Ministry-sponsored study on Muslim life in Germany has found a noticeable surge in the number of Germans embracing Islam, according to the weekly Der Spiegel.According to the study, conducted by the Islam-Archive Central Institute, based in the western town of Soest, the number of conversions between July 2004 and June 2005 reached 4,000, four times as many as in the prior period.Salim Abdullah who heads the institute said that most of those who converted to Islam have been women and well-educated, stressing an interesting point that each time the German media launches a new campaign aimed at defaming Muslims, more people convert to Islam.Mohammad Herzog, a Berlin-based Muslim leader, couldn’t cite a particular reason behind such increase in the number of Muslim converts, but he said that many of those who newly embraced Islam have been former devout Christians who had cast doubts about their faith.There are approximately 3.5 million Muslims in Germany, the large majority of which is of Turkish and Yugoslavian origin.Among the organizations that represent German Muslims, the Central Council on Muslims and the Islamic Council.Like other Muslim communities in the West, Muslims living in Germany continue to suffer anti-Muslim discrimination that surged noticeably following September 11 attacks on the United States.

2006-10-31T20:15:00.000+07:00

Islam in Mexico

Official data estimates that there are 318,608 Muslims in Mexico, representing 0.3 percent of the total population. There is very little information about the origins of Islam in Mexico, but most sources claim it arrived with either Turkish or Syrian immigrants. Although the Muslim community in Mexico is quite small, the panorama is already showing considerable diversity: There are roughly equal numbers of Muslims of foreign origin and indigenous Mexican converts. Today, most Mexican Islamic organizations focus on grassroots missionary activities which are most effective at the community level.

The Centro Cultural Islámico de México (CCIM), a Sunni organization headed by Omar Weston, a British convert to Islam, is active in several big cities in northern and central Mexico. It has established a dawah (call for conversion) centre near Mexico City with the aim of offering a place for recreation, prayer and Islamic learning. Apart from CCIM there is a Sufi order called Nur Ashki Jerrah in Mexico City which is headed by two women, Shaykha Fariha and Shaykha Amina, whose beliefs and practices are considered by many to be a fairly unorthodox mixture of Islam, mysticism, and feminism.

Islam in Chiapas

The Spanish Murabitun community, the Comunidad Islámica en España, based in Granada in Spain, has the strongest ties to the Chiapas community. The Spanish missionary Muhammad Nafia (formerly Aureliano Perez), now emir of the Comunidad Islámica en México, arrived in the state of Chiapas shortly after the Zapatista uprising and established a commune in the city of San Cristóbal. Since then there have been reports of indigenous Mayans and Tzotzil-Indians converting to Islam in large numbers. President Vicente Fox has voiced concerns about the influence of the fundamentalism and possible connections to the Zapatistas and the Basque separatist organization Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA), but it appears the Indians have no interest in political extremism. In San Cristóbal, the Mayan Muslims run a pizzeria and a carpentry workshop. In a Quran school (madrasa), children learn Arabic and five times a day they pray in the backroom of a residential building.

2006-10-17T07:40:00.000+07:00

Islam in Indonesia

Islam in Indonesia is the dominant religion by far with the greatest number of religious adherents. The high number of Muslims makes Indonesia the most populous Muslim-majority nation in the world.

The Indonesian Central Statistic Bureau (BPS) conducts a census every 10 years. The latest data available, from 2000, drew on 201,241,999 survey responses; the BPS estimated that the census missed 4.6 million persons. The BPS report indicated that 88.22 percent (210 million in 2004) of the population label themselves Muslim, 5.87 percent Protestant, 3.05 percent Catholic, 1.81 percent Hindu, 0.84 percent Buddhist, and 0.2 percent "other," including traditional indigenous religions, other Christian groups, and Judaism. The country's religious composition remains a politically charged issue, and some Christians, Hindus, and members of other minority faiths argue that the census undercounted non-Muslims.

Most Muslims are Sunni, although some follow other branches of Islam, including the Shia, who number approximately 100,000 nationwide. In general the mainstream Muslim community belongs to two orientations: "modernists," who closely adhere to scriptural orthodox theology while embracing modern learning and modern concepts; and predominantly Javanese "traditionalists," who are often followers of charismatic religious scholars and organized around Islamic boarding schools.

Demographics of Muslims in Indonesia
Muslims constitute a majority in most regions of Java, Sumatra, West Nusa Tenggara, Sulawesi, coastal areas of Kalimantan, and North Maluku. Muslims form distinct minorities in Papua, Bali,East Nusa Tenggara, parts of North Sumatra, most inland areas of Kalimantan, and North Sulawesi. Together, these non-muslim areas originally constitute more than one third of Indonesia prior to the massive transmigration effort sponsored by the Suharto government and recent spontaneous internal migration.

Internal migration has altered the demographic makeup of the country over the past 3 decades. It has increased the percentage of Muslims in predominantly Christian eastern parts of the country. By the early 1990s, Christians became a minority for the first time in some areas of the Moluccas. While government-sponsored transmigration from heavily populated Java and Madura to less populated areas contributed to the increase in the Muslim population in the resettlement areas, no evidence suggests that the Government intended to create a Muslim majority in Christian areas, and most Muslim migration seemed spontaneous. Regardless of its intent, the economic and political consequences of the transmigration policy contributed to religious conflicts in Maluku, Central Sulawesi, and to a lesser extent in Papua.

Islamic organizations

The leading national "modernist" social organization, Muhammadiyah, has branches throughout the country and approximately 30 million followers. Founded in 1912, Muhammadiyah runs mosques, prayer houses, clinics, orphanages, poorhouses, schools, public libraries, and universities. On February 9, Muhammadiyah's central board and provincial chiefs agreed to endorse the presidential campaign of a former Muhammadiyah chairman. This marked the organization's first formal foray into partisan politics and generated controversy among members.

Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the largest "traditionalist" social organization, focuses on many of the same activities as Muhammadiyah and indirectly operates a majority of the country's Islamic boarding schools. Claiming approximately 40 million followers, NU is the country's largest organization and perhaps the world's largest Islamic group. Founded in 1926, NU has a nationwide presence but remains strongest in rural Java. The Islam of many NU followers has heavy infusions of Javanese culture, and followers tend to reject a literal or dogmatic interpretation of Islamic doctrine. Many NU followers give great deference to the views, interpretations, and instructions of senior NU religious figures, alternately called "Kyais" or "Ulama." The organization has long advocated religious moderation and communal harmony.

The Indonesian Islamic Propagation Institute (LDII) has long been misunderstood by many Indonesians, with the enormous amount of black propaganda launched against them. Nevertheless, the number of the adherers of this organization continue to grow [citation needed]. LDII has a bi-monthly magazine named Nuansa Persada that includes a lot of news about activities and/or events that have been held by its adherers.

A number of smaller Islamic organizations cover a broad range of Islamic doctrinal orientations. At one end of the ideological spectrum lies the Islam Liberal Network (JIL), which promotes a less literal interpretation of Islamic doctrine. At the other end of this spectrum exist groups such as Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI), which advocates a pan-Islamic caliphate, and the Indonesian Mujahidin Council (MMI), which advocates implementation of Shari'a as a precursor to an Islamic state. Countless other small organizations fall between these poles. Some lie beyond this line altogether, one of particular note among them the controversial (and arguably violent) Front Pembela Islam (FPI).

Separate from the country's dominant Sunni Islam population, a small minority of persons subscribe to the Ahmadiyah interpretation of Islam. However, this group maintains 242 branches throughout the country. In 1980 the Indonesian Council of Ulamas (MUI) issued a "fatwa" (a legal opinion or decree issued by an Islamic religious leader) declaring that Ahmadiyah is not a legitimate form of Islam.

In addition there are small numbers of other messianic Islamic groups, including the Malaysian-affiliated Darul Arqam, and the syncretist Indonesian Jamaah Salamulla group (also called the Salamulla Congregation or The God's Kingdom). Its leader, Lia Eden, is currently facing charges of disdaining Islam and many Islamic organizations in Indonesia consider them as a heretic form of Islam.

Islam in Indonesian society

To a significant degree, the striking variations in the practice and interpretation of Islam — in a much less austere form than that practiced in the Middle East — in various parts of Indonesia reflect its complex history. Introduced piecemeal by various traders and wandering mystics from India, Islam first gained a foothold between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries in coastal regions of Sumatra, northern Java, and Kalimantan. Islam probably came to these regions in the form of mystical Sufi tradition. Sufism easily gained local acceptance and became synthesized with local customs. The introduction of Islam to the islands was not always peaceful, however. As Islamized port towns undermined the waning power of the east Javanese Hindu/Buddhist Majapahit kingdom in the sixteenth century, Javanese elites fled to Bali, where over 2.5 million people kept their own version of Hinduism alive. Unlike coastal Sumatra, where Islam was adopted by elites and masses alike, partly as a way to counter the economic and political power of the Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms, in the interior of Java the elites only gradually accepted Islam, and then only as a formal legal and religious context for Javanese spiritual culture.

These historical processes gave rise to enduring tensions between orthodox Muslims and more syncretistic, locally based religion — tensions that were still visible in the early 1990s. On Java, for instance, this tension was expressed in a contrast between the tranditionalist santri and abangan, an indigenous blend of native and Hindu-Buddhist beliefs with Islamic practices sometimes also called Javanism, kejawen, agama Jawa, or kebatinan. The terms and precise nature of this opposition were still in dispute in the early 1990s, but on Java santri not only referred to a person who was consciously and exclusively Muslim, santri also described persons who had removed themselves from the secular world to concentrate on devotional activities in Islamic schools called pesantren--literally the place of the santri.

In contrast to the Mecca-oriented philosophy of most santri, there was the current of kebatinan, which is an amalgam of animism, Hindu-Buddhist, and Islamic — especially Sufi — beliefs. This loosely organized current of thought and practice, was legitimized in the 1945 constitution and, in 1973, when it was recognized as one of the agama, President Suharto counted himself as one of its adherents. Kebatinan is generally characterized as mystical, and some varieties were concerned with spiritual self-control. Although there were many varieties circulating in 1992, kebatinan often implies pantheistic worship because it encourages sacrifices and devotions to local and ancestral spirits. These spirits are believed to inhabit natural objects, human beings, artifacts, and grave sites of important wali (Muslim saints). Illness and other misfortunes are traced to such spirits, and if sacrifices or pilgrimages fail to placate angry deities, the advice of a dukun or healer is sought. Kebatinan, while it connotes a turning away from the militant universalism of orthodox Islam, moves toward a more internalized universalism. In this way, kebatinan moves toward eliminating the distinction between the universal and the local, the communal and the individual.

Another important tension dividing Indonesian Muslims was the conflict between traditionalism and modernism. The nature of these differences was complex, confusing, and a matter of considerable debate in the early 1990s, but traditionalists generally rejected the modernists' interest in absorbing educational and organizational principles from the West. Specifically, traditionalists were suspicious of modernists' support of the urban madrasa, a reformist school that included the teaching of secular topics. The modernists' goal of taking Islam out of the pesantren and carrying it to the people was opposed by the traditionalists because it threatened to undermine the authority of the kyai (religious leaders). Traditionalists also sought, unsuccessfully, to add a clause to the first tenet of the Pancasila state ideology requiring that, in effect, all Muslims adhere to the sharia. On the other hand, modernists accused traditionalists of escapist unrealism in the face of change; some even hinted that santri harbored greater loyalty towards the ummah (congregation of believers) of Islam than to the secular Indonesian state.

Despite these differences, the traditionalist Nahdlatul Ulama (literally, Revival of the Religious Scholars, also known as the Muslim Scholars' League), the progressive Consultative Council of Indonesian Muslims (Masyumi), and two other parties were forcibly streamlined into a single Islamic political party in 1973--the United Development Party (PPP). Such cleavages may have weakened Islam as an organized political entity, as demonstrated by the withdrawal of the Nahdlatul Ulama from active political competition, but as a popular religious force Islam showed signs of good health and a capacity to frame national debates.

Religious freedom

The Constitution provides "all persons the right to worship according to their own religion or belief" and states that "the nation is based upon belief in one supreme God." The Government generally respects these provisions; however, some restrictions exist on certain types of religious activity and on unrecognized religions.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs extends official status to six faiths: Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism. Religious organizations other than the six recognized faiths can register with the Government, but only with the Ministry for Culture and Tourism and only as social organizations. This restricts certain religious activities. Unregistered religious groups cannot rent venues to hold services and must find alternative means to practice their faiths.

Although it has an overwhelming Muslim majority, the country is not an Islamic state. Over the past 50 years, many Islamic groups sporadically have sought to establish an Islamic state, but the country's mainstream Muslim community, including influential social organizations such as Muhammadiyah and NU, reject the idea. Proponents of an Islamic state argued unsuccessfully in 1945 and throughout the parliamentary democracy period of the 1950s for the inclusion of language (the "Jakarta Charter") in the Constitution's preamble making it obligatory for Muslims to follow Shari'a. During the Suharto regime, the Government prohibited all advocacy of an Islamic state. With the loosening of restrictions on freedom of speech and religion that followed the fall of Suharto in 1998, proponents of the "Jakarta Charter" resumed advocacy efforts. This proved the case prior to the 2002 Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), a body that has the power to change the Constitution. The nationalist political parties, regional representatives elected by provincial legislatures, and appointed police, military, and functional representatives, who together held a majority of seats in the MPR, rejected proposals to amend the Constitution to include Shari'a, and the measure never came to a formal vote. The MPR approved changes to the Constitution that mandated that the Government increase "faith and piety" in education. This decision, seen as a compromise to satisfy Islamist parties, set the scene for a controversial education bill signed into law in July 2003.

Shari'a generated debate and concern during 2004, and many of the issues raised touched on religious freedom. Aceh remained the only part of the country where the central Government specifically authorized Shari'a. Law 18/2001 granted Aceh special autonomy and included authority for Aceh to establish a system of Shari'a as an adjunct to, not a replacement for, national civil and criminal law. Before it could take effect, the law required the provincial legislature to approve local regulations ("qanun") incorporating Shari'a precepts into the legal code. Law 18/2001 states that the Shari'a courts would be "free from outside influence by any side." Article 25(3) states that the authority of the court will only apply to Muslims. Article 26(2) names the national Supreme Court as the court of appeal for Aceh's Shari'a courts.

Aceh is the only province that has Shari'a courts. Religious leaders responsible for drafting and implementing the Shari'a regulations stated that they had no plans to apply criminal sanctions for violations of Shari'a. Islamic law in Aceh, they said, would not provide for strict enforcement of "fiqih" or "hudud," but rather would codify traditional Acehnese Islamic practice and values such as discipline, honesty, and proper behavior. They claimed enforcement would not depend on the police but rather on public education and societal consensus.

Because Muslims make up the overwhelming majority of Aceh's population, the public largely accepted Shari'a, which in most cases merely regularized common social practices. For example, a majority of women in Aceh already covered their heads in public. Provincial and district governments established Shari'a bureaus to handle public education about the new system, and local Islamic leaders, especially in North Aceh and Pidie, called for greater government promotion of Shari'a as a way to address mounting social ills. The imposition of martial law in Aceh in May 2003 had little impact on the implementation of Shari'a. The Martial Law Administration actively promoted Shari'a as a positive step toward social reconstruction and reconciliation. Some human rights and women's rights activists complained that implementation of Shari'a focused on superficial issues, such as proper Islamic dress, while ignoring deep-seated moral and social problems, such as corruption.

Some Muslim, Christian, Hindu, and Buddhist holy days are national holidays. Muslim holy days celebrated include the Ascension of the Prophet, Idul Fitr, Idul Adha, the Muslim New Year, and the Prophet's Birthday. National Christian holy days are Christmas Day, Good Friday, and the Ascension of Christ. Three other national holidays are the Hindu holiday Nyepi, the Buddhist holiday Waisak, and Chinese New Year, celebrated by Confucians and other Chinese. On Bali all Hindu holy days are regional holidays, and public servants and others did not work on Saraswati Day, Galungan, and Kuningan.

The Government has a monopoly on organizing the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, and in February, following the latest hajj, the Department of Religious Affairs drew sharp criticism for mismanaging the registration of approximately 30,000 prospective pilgrims after they had paid the required fees. The Government unilaterally expanded the country's quota of 205,000 pilgrims, claiming it had informal approval from the Saudi Government, an assertion that proved incorrect. Members of the House of Representatives have sponsored a bill to set up an independent institution, thus ending the department's monopoly.

2006-09-28T18:28:00.000+07:00

Islam in Russia : by Abdur Rauf

What is the present position of Islam in contemporary Russia and China? In order to provide a perspective answer to this vital question this article presents a summary of an up to date history of Islam in these two famed states of the world.

History of Islam in Russia

The long history of Islam in Russia is grand and glorious as well as doleful and dreadful. Many stringent steps were taken against Islam and the Muslims during and after the Russian Revolution. Those tough and tight measures, however, failed to wipe out the Muslims and their rich cultural heritage. On the contrary, the present position rather confirms the fact beyond doubt that like all other Muslim regions of the world the Russian Muslim areas are also in the grips of a rising wave of awakening. Despite strict Russian censure of the media the entire world has known by now how vigorously the people of the Muslim majority areas of Russia have asserted their separate political identity and revitalized their distinctive cultural heritage. The more recent upsurges in all the Muslim states of Russia are simply eye-opening for everyone. All awakening movements among the Russian Muslims have always been distinctly Islamic in letter and spirit.

Islam and Muslims in Russia

Islam entered on the Russian scene in the seventh century A.D. (first century A.H.). Even during the Rightly Guided Caliphate at Madinah, the Muslim armies had started making penetrations into Russian soil. In 642, Azerbaijan came under Muslim control. The Muslims also occupied the extreme border town of Darbund in 658. After the conquest of eastern Caucasia (Qafqaz) Islam began to spread in these areas without any resistance. The Muslim armies crossed river Oxus in 673. Bukhara fell to the Muslims in 674.

The series of such conquests went on up to the tenth century when Islam became the most popular religion in the entire central Asia. With the passage of time these very areas began to be considered as the main centres of Islamic civilization and culture. Thereafter Islam’s popularity went on increasing in the whole of Russia. Such developments inspired and encouraged missionary activities of the Sufi saints of central Asia Qafqaz.

Unfortunately, however, Russia had a tight grip over the Muslim territories from the middle of the sixteenth century to the beginning of the twentieth. But despite her oppressive operations there was never any decline in the spread and popularity of Islam in Russia. The pace of Islam’s dissemination maintained a high momentum in eastern Russia. The Russian Muslims of these areas maintained their brotherly links with the rest of the Muslims world for quite a long span of time. Central Asia and Qafqaz played a vital role in promoting the Islamic civilization and its culture for full one thousand years. These areas enjoyed the same honours in the rise and glory of Islam as have gone to the lot of Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and the indo-Pak subcontinent. Taimur’s capital was Samarqand. From the literary point of view, Persian became popular in Bukhara for the first time. Khawarizam was the ancestral city of the renowned Muslim physician-cum-philosopher, Avicenna.

Movements for Autonomy

After the Russain Revolution of 1917, the Russian Muslims faced a highly hazardous situation. The leaders of the communist revolution were determined to impose such on authoritarian system over the entire Russia as was totally hostile to the religion and traditions, civilization and culture, politics and polity of the Muslims. Around 1924, a tight iron curtain was imposed on the Muslim areas. Consequently, the Russian Muslims got dissociated from the rest of the Muslims world.

Immediately after the start of the regular official moves against Christianity in Russia, a series of organized onslaughts started against the Muslims in 1928. In Spain, the inimical efforts to eliminate Islam and the Muslims after their downfall had yielded great success. But it was quite different in Russia. All Soviet attempts at uprooting Islam and the Muslims failed flatly. The period of the Russian Iron Curtain from 1928 to 1968 was the most painful tragedy of the Russian Muslim history. During that perilous period attempts to lure Muslims away from Islam and their forcible conversion to communism became a recurring routine with those in power.

Tyranny and oppressive measures gave birth to a wave of new awakening among the Muslims. Movements for independence and self-determination erupted all over the Muslim areas. Among these freedom movements, the guerilla organization called the "Basmachi Movement" is quite well-known. Unfortunately, however, the Russian Muslims got entangled into the wilderness of mutual differences and dissensions, rifts and conflicts. They were then unable to defend themselves as a united block. Consequently, all Muslim areas were forcibly annexed to the Russian territory one after the other.

Ever since Russian occupation of the Muslim territories the Soviet Union had utilized all possible devices to put an end to the distinct spiritual, moral, cultural and political identity of the Muslims. All sorts of traps of atheism, baits of modernization and lures of lewd recreations had been tried in quick succession. These dirty devices, however, failed in toto to dissociate the Muslims from the main stream of their religion and traditions and to get them merged into the blind ocean of communism.

It now appears that no power on earth can diminish or destroy the Russian Muslims’ inherent commitment to their religion and civilization. An illustrative example is the recent upsurge in Azerbaijan which erupted in 1989. It was backed by the most popular political organization of the Soviet Azris, the "Jamiat-i-Watan" (Patriotic Front). Even the most savage ‘Tank Diplomacy’ of the tumbling Russian empire failed rather miserably to quell this historic uprising. In Uzbekistan, a new underground organization, "Islamic Party" had been formed. It called for a federation of all Islamic Central Asian republic independent of Moscow. In 1990, even Tajikistan joined the great upheaval. Its capital, Doshambe, was the scene of the most violent political demonstrations against Russian communism. Thus republic after republic came under the powerful grip of the Islamic awakening. The eagerly-awaited day dawned at last. The year 1991 saw the disintegration of the Soviet Union and complete collapse of world communism. With this, started a new era in the history of the Russian Muslims. The famed Muslim states of Central Asia declared their independence. They are now cementing their broken ties with the rest of the Muslim world. They have been admitted as members of the Organization of Islamic Conference.