Edinburgh Studies in Islamic Apocalypticism and Eschatology
Looks at how ISIS employs a millennial agenda within the presentation of its ideas
- The first comprehensive study of ISIS primary sources, previously only discussed as part of the background to broader interpretations of the ISIS campaign
- Introduces and analyses the key topics of ISIS propaganda
- Places particular manifestations of ISIS apocalypticism in a consistent and meaningful framework
- Based on a coherent critical approach to the primary sources, both in Arabic and Western languages, including new media and social network sources
- Interpretations are interspersed with extensive quotations from ISIS sources, providing the reader with the specifics of the Jihadist approach to apocalyptic rhetoric
- Includes an appendix containing an ISIS ‘apocalyptic reader’ of primary source material
Focusing on apocalyptic manifestations found in ISIS propaganda, this book situates the group’s agenda in the broader framework of contemporary Muslim thought and explains key topics in millennial thinking within the spiritual context of modern Islamic apocalypticism.
Based on the group’s primary sources as well as medieval Muslim apocalyptic literature and its modern interpretations, the book analyses the ways ISIS presents its message concerning the Last Days as a meaningful, inventive and frightening expression of collectively shared expectations relating to the supposedly approaching the End Times.
Discusses the concept of the vision of God in Sufi Qur’an Commentaries
- First in-depth study of the concept of the vision of God in Sufi eschatology, not only focusing on the hereafter, but also on this-worldly vision
- Compares five understudied tafsīr sources, gaining new insights into the genre of Sufi tafsīr and its intertextuality
- First study that intensively deals with the yet unpublished Qur’an commentary of Shams al-Dīn al-Daylamī
- Includes detailed descriptions of Sufi imaginations of Paradise and Hell and discussions of Qur’anic passages on Adam, Moses and Muhammad related to seeing God
This history of Sufi conceptions of the hereafter – often imagined as a place of corporeal reward (Paradise) or punishment (Hell) – is built upon the study of five medieval Sufi Qur’an commentaries. Pieter Coppens shows that boundary crossing from this world to the otherworld, and vice versa, revolves around the idea of meeting with and the vision of God; a vision which for some Sufis is not limited to the hereafter. The Qur’anic texts selected for study – all key verses on seeing God – are placed in their broader religious and social context and are shown to provide a useful and varied source for the reconstruction of a history of Sufi eschatology and the vision of God.
The first annotated translation of the 9th-century Islamic apocalyptic work The Book of Tribulations
The Book of Tribulations is the earliest complete Muslim apocalyptic text to survive, and as such has considerable value as a primary text. It is unique in its importance for Islamic history: focusing upon the central Syrian city of Hims, it gives us a picture of the personalities of the city, the tribal conflicts within, the tensions between the proto-Muslim community and the majority Christian population, and above all details about the wars with the Byzantines. Additionally, Nu`aym gives us a range of both the Umayyad and the Abbasid official propaganda, which was couched in apocalyptic and messianic terms.
Key Features
- Includes materials for Islamic military history: internal Muslim wars, the wars against the Byzantines, and the projected warfare of the Mahdi
- Presents fascinating social history, detailing earthquakes, plagues and appearances of comets
- Alludes to the technological advances of the time: the use of water-wheels, the construction of ships and various methods of transportation
- Gives a unique perspective on Syrian Muslim history with an extraordinary level of detail and richness of local perspective
Traces the medieval Islamic notion of a world of image from its conception until today
One of the most controversial issues that divided Islamic philosophers and theologians during the Middle Ages was whether human beings would have a spiritual or bodily existence after death. The idea of a world of image was conceived as a solution, suggesting that there exists a world of non-physical (imagined) bodies, beyond our earthly existence. This world may be reached in sleep, in meditation or after death.
From the embryonic conception by Ibn Sina, to the radical rethinking by Suhrawardi and Shahrazuri into a sophisticated system, L. W. C. van Lit unravels the history of this idea. Using a distant reading approach for measuring the transmission, he further shows how the idea remained relevant for Muslim thinkers through the centuries, up until today.
Key Features
- Sets the record straight for the provenance and development of the idea of a world of image
- Reconsiders the extent of Suhrawardi's innovation and his importance for the development of philosophy in the Islamic world
- Shows the surprising trajectory of the development and reception of his idea
- Gives an insight to the nature of commentary writing in premodern Islamic discourse
Explores the role of apocalyptic symbolism in the formation and maintenance of a medieval Islamic empire
How can religion transform a society? This book investigates the ways in which a medieval Islamic movement harnessed Quranic visions of utopia to construct one of the most brilliant and lasting empires in Islamic history (979-1171). The Fatimids’ apocalyptic vision of their central place in an imminent utopia played a critical role in transfiguring the intellectual and political terrains of North Africa in the early tenth century. Yet the realities that they faced on the ground often challenged their status as the custodians of a pristine Islam at the end of time.
Through a detailed examination of some of the structural features of the Fatimid revolution, as well as early works of ta'wil, or symbolic interpretation, Jamel Velji illustrates how the Fatimids conceived of their mission as one that would bring about an imminent utopia. He then examines how the Fatimids reinterpreted their place in history when the expected end never materialised. The book ends with an extensive discussion of another apocalyptic event linked to a Fatimid lineage: the Nizari Ismaili declaration of the end of time on August 8, 1164.
Key features
- Introduces selected themes, texts and theoretical problems in early Fatimid history and thought to those unfamiliar with Islam or the Shia tradition
- Explores the nature of apocalyptic rhetoric, what constitutes an apocalypse and how apocalyptic prophecies can be reinterpreted
- Uses techniques from religious studies and rhetorical analysis on data from the Fatimid tradition, showing how Islam can contribute to broader discussions in the history of religions
- Contains extensive translations from two Fatimid texts, including: the Kitab al-Kashf (Book of unveiling), and Qadi l-Nu'man’s Ta'wil al-da'a'im (Symbolic interpretation of his Pillars of Islam)
