Salafism

Abstract

Salafism is a branch of Sunni Islam whose modern-day adherents claim to emulate “the pious predecessors” (al-salaf al-ṣāliḥ; often equated with the first three generations of Muslims) as closely and in as many spheres of life as possible. Different scholars of Islam throughout time have striven to emulate the early Muslim generations in the legal sphere, in theological matters, or in both. The ideas espoused by these scholars have more or less culminated in the Wahhabi movement that started on the Arabian Peninsula in the 18th century, which in turn helped spread a Salafi message to the rest of the Arab and Muslim worlds and even beyond. As such, the trend now referred to as Salafism came about, expressing itself ideologically in teachings that are meant to present the trend as exclusively and meticulously adhering to the example of the salaf, while rejecting all other sources of influence. Practically, Salafism can be divided into three branches: quietist Salafism, whose adherents shun political activism and concentrate on “cleansing” and teaching Islam in all its “purity”; political Salafism, which does concentrate on political commitment as an integral part of Islam through contentious debates, parliamentary participation, and founding political parties; and Jihadi-Salafism, whose followers seek to overthrow supposedly apostate regimes in the Muslim world through violent jihad. Although the term “Salafism” is heavily contested among Salafis—with adherents of one branch often not allowing the application of the label to be applied to the other branches—its various ideas and manifestations show that Salafism is quite a diverse phenomenon.

Varieties of Misrecognition: Connecting Bourdieu and Fanon toward an Analysis of Racialized Islamic Fields

“…Salafism is a global Islamic reform movement that generally aims to restore Islamic practice to its earliest foundations. Its adherents are mostly quietest and shun politics, although some branches embrace political militancy and violence (Wagemakers 2016). Salafi ideas and movements have a long history, but scholars agree they have widely influenced Islamic revival movements around the world since the 1990s.…”

Danske moskéer og salafisme

“…110-133 vaekkelsesbevaegelse med historiske rødder hos blandt andre reformisten Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, der i 1700-tallet levede i det nuvaerende Saudi-Arabien. Salafister praediker typisk en personlig og gennemgribende tilbagevenden til islams primaere tekstuelle kilder, Koranen og Hadith, med det formål at imitere de første generationer af muslimer (al-salaf al-salih), som man selv forstår dem, så taet som muligt (Wagemakers 2016). Et sådant fokus betyder, at salafisme i forskelligt omfang ofte repraesenterer et puritansk og fortolkningsbogstaveligt opgør med de samlede pakker af fortolkningstraditioner, som gennem tiderne har udkrystalliseret sig til de fire store retsskoler inden for sunniislam (Meijer 2013a, 3-4).…”

Is Sadeem Legally Married to Waleed? Islamic Feminism and the Intersection of Culture, Religion, and Gender in Banāt al-Riyāḍ

“…It has been effective in the perpetration of patriarchal ideologies in Muslim communities since the seventh century, soon after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. A perfect example to illustrate this is a quote by the medieval Muslim jurist Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (1292-1350) who, together with his mentor Ibn Taymiyya (1263-1328), has always been the regular point of reference in Salafism [54][55][56][57], the ultra-conservative brand of Islam that is deep-rooted in the Saudi religious establishment. Ibn Qayyim is reported to have said that: "The wife is her husband's prisoner, a prisoner being akin to a slave.…”

“…Alev Adil, The Independent ntroduction a. Nevertheless, his ideas, like those of his mentor, have been very instrumental in the emergence of some of the so-called neo-Salafi, reformist ideologies in modern Sunni Islam [54][55][56][57]. What is more relevant here is his idea of the wife as a prisoner or a slave of the husband, whereas the Qur'an says exactly the opposite: "hunna libās lakum wa-antum libās lahunna" (Qur'an 2: 187), which simply translates as "they [wives] are your dress and you [husbands] are their dress."…”