Aspects of Islam and Muslim Societies

Islam and Muslims today, than at any other time, are a matter of great attention throughout the world especially in the west. In the wake of 9/11 the global media, with rare exceptions, is feeding the world with largely prejudiced and negative images of both. The unbalanced approach of the global media can only be described as Islam/Muslim can only be described as Islam/Muslim bashing. Islam and Muslims are not monolithic. The “Lived Islam” has a great diversity and heterogeneity. The book, through its twenty three articles, presents a variety of aspects of Islam and Muslim societies. Starting with modernity and Islam and the Arabian quest for freedom, justice and human dignity it journeys through the Islamisation of Moraland in the Philippines and discourse on South Asian identity as Islamic identity in England. Issues regarding Islamic Banking, role of Zakat in poverty alleviation in Bangladesh, analysis of occupation and economy among Indian Muslims have been dealt with in an objective manner. Gender in Islam and women’s movement among Indian Muslims along with imperatives of education among Muslim girls present a relatively ignored aspect of Muslim societies. The socio-economic condition of Indian Muslims based on field studies makes an objective assessment of plight of Indian Muslims while the much maligned Madrasas have also been put under critical scrutiny. A very important article on the role of social scientists in Muslim societies has posed a number of questions of critical important to the Muslims of the entire globe. thus, the present volume may be looked at as an important contribution to the growing literature on Islam and Muslims but one thing that every piece has been written by a social scientist and not by the pamphleteers and non-serious self proclaimed ‘experts’.