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Famous
Personalities of the Global Islamic Movement Throughout History
Sayyid Qutb
(IPA pronunciation: ['saɪjɪd 'qʊtˁb]) (also Seyyid,
Sayid, Sayed; also Koteb, Kutb) (Arabic: سيد قطب; 9
October 1906 – 29 August 1966) was an Egyptian author,
Islamist, and the leading intellectual of the Egyptian
Muslim Brotherhood in the 1950s and 60s. He is best
known in the Muslim world for his work on the social and
political role of Islamic fundamentalism, particularly
in his books Social Justice and Ma'alim fi-l-Tariq
(Milestones). His extensive Quranic commentary Fi zilal
al-Qur'an (In the shades of the Qur'an) has contributed
significantly to modern perceptions of Islamic concepts
such as jihad, jahiliyyah, and ummah.
Life and public career
Qutb was raised in the Egyptian village of Musha and
educated from a young age in the Qur'an. He moved to
Cairo, where he received a Western education between
1929 and 1933, before starting his career as a teacher
in the Ministry of Public Instruction. During his early
career, Qutb devoted himself to literature as an author
and critic, writing such novels as Ashwak (Thorns) and
even elevating Egyptian novelist Naguib Mahfouz from
obscurity. In 1939, he became a functionary in Egypt's
Ministry of Education (wizarat al-ma'arif). From 1948 to
1950, he went to the United States on a scholarship to
study the educational system, receiving a master's
degree from the Colorado State College of Education (now
the University of Northern Colorado) in Greeley,
Colorado. Qutb's first major theoretical work of
religious social criticism, Al-'adala al-Ijtima'iyya fi-l-Islam
(Social Justice in Islam), was published in 1949, during
his time overseas.
Aside from his untimely end, Qutb's personal life was
not always happy. Though Islam gave him much peace and
contentment, he suffered from respiratory and other
health problems throughout his life and was known for
"his introvertedness, isolation, depression and
concern." In appearance, he was "pale with sleepy eyes."
Qutb never married, in part because of his steadfast
religious convictions. While the urban Egyptian society
he lived in was becoming more Westernized, Qutb believed
the Quran (Surat al-Nisa, 4:32) taught women that `Men
are the managers of women's affairs ...' Qutb lamented
to his readers that he was never able to find a woman of
sufficient "moral purity and discretion" and had to
reconcile himself to bachelorhood.
Qutb was extremely critical of many things in the United
States: its materialism, individual freedom, economic
system, racism, brutal boxing matches, poor haircuts,
triviality, restrictions on divorce, enthusiasm for
sports, "animal-like" mixing of the sexes (which went on
even in churches), and lack of support for the
Palestinian struggle.
Qutb concluded that major aspects of American life were
"primitive" and shocking. His experiences in the U.S.
partly formed the impetus for his rejection of Western
values and his move towards radicalism upon returning to
Egypt. Resigning from the civil service, he joined the
Muslim Brotherhood in the early 1950s and became
editor-in-chief of the Brothers' weekly Al-Ikhwan al-Muslimin,
and later head of the propaganda section, as well as an
appointed member of the Working Committee and of the
Guidance Council, the highest branch in the Brotherhood.
Qutb was imprisoned for ten years, from 1954-1964.
In June 1952, Egypt's pro-Western government was
overthrown by the nationalist Free Officers Movement
headed by Gamal Abdel Nasser. Both Qutb and the Muslim
Brotherhood welcomed the coup against the monarchist
government – which they saw as un-Islamic and
subservient to British imperialism – and enjoyed a close
relationship with the movement prior to and immediately
following the coup. Many members of the Brotherhood
expected Nasser to establish an Islamic government.
However, the cooperation between the Brotherhood and
Free Officers which marked the revolution's success soon
soured as it became clear the secular nationalist
ideology of Nasserism was incompatible with the Islamism
of the Brotherhood. Nasser's regime refused to ban
alcohol, or to implement other aspects of Islamic law.
After the attempted assassination of Nasser in 1954, the
Egyptian government used the incident to justify a
crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, imprisoning Qutb
and many others for their vocal opposition to various
government policies. During his first three years in
prison conditions were bad and Qutb was tortured. In
later years he was allowed more mobility, including the
opportunity to write.
This period saw the composition of his two most
important works: a commentary of the Qur'an Fi zilal
al-Qur'an (In the Shade of the Qur'an), and a manifesto
of political Islam called Ma'alim fi-l-Tariq
(Milestones). These works represent the final form of
Qutb's thought, encompassing his radically anti-secular
and anti-Western claims based on his interpretations of
the Qur'an, Islamic history, and the social and
political problems of Egypt. The school of thought he
inspired has become known as Qutbism.
Qutb was let out of prison at the end of 1964 at the
behest of the then Prime Minister of Iraq, Abdul Salam
Arif, for only 8 months before being rearrested in
August 1965. He was accused of plotting to overthrow the
state and subjected to what some consider a show trial.
Many of the charges placed against Qutb in court were
taken directly from Ma'alim fi-l-Tariq and he adamantly
supported his written statements. The trial culminated
in a death sentence for Qutb and six other members of
the Muslim Brotherhood. On 29 August 1966, Sayyid Qutb
was executed by hanging.
Evolution of thought
Different theories have been advanced as to why Qutb
turned from secular reformism in the 1930s to radical
Islamism in the 1950s and 1960s (the latter clearly
evidenced in Ma'alim fi-l-Tariq). One common explanation
is that the conditions he witnessed in prison from
1954-1964, including the torture and murder of Muslim
Brothers, convinced him that only a government bound by
Islamic law could prevent such abuses. Another is that
Qutb's experiences in America and the insufficiently
anti-Western policies of Nasser demonstrated to him the
powerful and dangerous allure of jahiliyyah - a threat
unimaginable, in Qutb's estimation, to the secular mind.
This is problematic however as Qutb's writings indicate
a strong Islamist streak before setting foot in America.
Finally, Qutb offered his own explanation in Ma'alim
fi-l-Tariq, arguing that anything non-Islamic was evil
and corrupt, while following Sharia as a complete system
extending into all aspects of life, would bring every
kind of benefit to humanity, from personal and social
peace, to the "treasures" of the universe.
In general, Qutb's experiences as an Egyptian - his
village childhood, professional career, and activism in
the Muslim Brotherhood - left an unmistakable mark on
his theoretical and religious works. Even Qutb's early,
secular writing shows evidence of his later themes. For
example, Qutb's autobiography of his childhood Tifl min
al-Qarya (A Child From the Village) makes little mention
of Islam or political theory and is typically classified
as a secular, literary work. However, it is replete with
references to village mysticism, superstition, the
Qur'an, and incidences of injustice. Qutb's later work
developed along similar themes, dealing with Qur'anic
exegesis, social justice, and political Islam.
Qutb's career as a writer also heavily influenced his
philosophy. In al-Taswiir al-Fanni fil-Quran (Artistic
Representation in the Qur'an), Qutb developed a literary
appreciation of the Qur'an and a complementary
methodology for interpreting the text. His hermaneutics
were applied in his extensive commentary on the Qur'an,
Fi zilal al-Qur'an (In the Shade of the Quran), which
served as the foundation for the radical declarations of
Ma'alim fi-l-Tariq.
Late in his life, Qutb synthesized his personal
experiences and intellectual development in the famous
Ma'alim fi-l-Tariq, a religious and political manifesto
for what he believed was a true Islamic system. It was
also in this text that Qutb condemned Muslim
governments, such as Abdul Nasser's regime in Egypt, as
secular with their legitimacy based on human (and thus
corrupt), rather than divine authority. This work, more
than any other, established Qutb as one of, if not the
premier radical Islamists of the 20th century.
Political philosophy
Whether he esposed dictatorship, or later rule by Sharia
law with essentially no government at all, defensive
jihad or later offensive jihad, Sayyid Qutb's mature
political views always centered on Islam - Islam as a
complete system of morality, justice and governance,
whose Sharia laws and principles should be the sole
basis of governance and everything else in life.
Although earlier Muslims (Ibn Taymiyya, Sayyid Abul Ala
Maududi and Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahhab) had used
jahiliyyah to refer to contemporary Muslim societies, no
one before Qutb had applied it so widely, nor had such
popular response. While Islam had seen many religious
revivals urging a return to religious fundamentals
throughout its history, Qutb was the first thinker who
paired them to a radical, sociopolitical ideology.
Legacy
Alongside notable Islamists like Maulana Mawdudi, Hasan
al-Banna, and Ruhollah Khomeini, Qutb is considered one
of the most influential Muslim thinkers or activists of
the modern era, not only for his ideas but for what many
consider his heroic martyr's death. His written works
are still widely available and have been translated into
many Western languages. Qutb's best known work is
Ma'alim fi-l-Tariq (Milestones), but the majority of
Qutb's theory can be found in his Qur'anic commentary Fi
zilal al-Qur'an (In the Shade of the Quran). This
30-volume work is noteworthy for its innovative method
of interpretation, borrowing heavily from the literary
analysis of Amin al-Khuli, while retaining some
structural features of classical commentaries (for
example, the practice of progressing from the first sura
to the last).
The influence of his work extends to issues such as
Westernization, modernization, and political reform and
the theory of inevitable ideological conflict between
"Islam and the West", the notion of a transnational umma,
and the comprehensive application of jihad.
Works
Literary:
o Mahammat al-Sha'ir fi'l-Hayah wa Shi'r al-Jil al-Hadir
(The Task of the Poet in Life and the Poetry of the
Contemporary Generation), 1933
o al-Shati al-Majhul (The Unknown Beach), 1935
o Naqd Kitab: Mustaqbal al-Thaqafa fi Misr (Critique of
a Book by Taha Husain: the Future of Culture in Egypt),
1939
o Al-Taswir al-Fanni fi'l-Qu'ran (Artistic Imagery in
the Qur'an), 1945
o Al-Atyaf al-Arba'a (The Four Apparitions), 1945
o Tifl min al-Qarya (A Child from the Village), 1946
o Al-Madina al-Mashura (The Enchanted City), 1946
o Kutub wa Shakhsiyyat (Books and Personalities), 1946
o Askwak (Thorns), 1947
o Mashahid al-Qiyama fi'l-Qur'an (Aspects of
Resurrection in the Qu'ran), 1946
o Al-Naqd al-Adabi: Usuluhu wa Manahijuhu (Literary
Criticism: It's Foundation and Methods'), 1948
Theoretical:
Al-Adala al-Ijtima'iyya fi'l-Islam (Social Justice in
Islam), 1949
Ma'arakat al-Islam wa'l-Ra's Maliyya (The Battle
Between Islam and Capitalism), 1951
Al-Salam al-'Alami wa'l-Islam (World Peace and Islam),
1951
Fi Zilal al-Qur'an (In the Shade of the Qur'an), first
installment 1954
Dirasat Islamiyya (Islamic Studies), 1953
Hadha'l-Din (This Religion), n.d. (after 1954)
Al-Mustaqbal li-hadha'l-Din (The Future of This
Religion), n.d. (after 1954)
Khasais al-Tasawwar al-Islami wa Muqawamatuhu (The
Characteristics and Values of Islamic Conduct), 1960
Al-Islam wa Mushkilat al-Hadara (Islam and the
Problems of Civilization), n.d. (after 1954)
Ma'alim fi'l-Tariq (Signposts on the Road, or
Milestones), 1964
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