No comments about The Isma'ilis: Their History and Doctrines.

No comments about A New Muslim Order: The Shia and the Middle East Sectarian Crisis.

No comments about Mediaeval Isma'ili History and Thought.

1 comments about An Enchanted Modern: Gender and Public Piety in Shi'i Lebanon (Princeton Studies in Muslim Politics).

1. This is an impressive work, and a rare find as well. It is difficult to find very good analysis from inside an Islamic community such as the one written about here in the English language. I think Lara Deeb has done Western readers who are interested in getting a glimpse into this world a great service by doing this field work and writing this book. The power of this book is that the author focuses on the micro (a large community in Beirut called al-Dahiyya) which in so doing gives the reader a greater perspective on the macro. Of course this experience is not universal so the reader must resist the urge to apply this book to other areas, but it is a good look into what is happening within Islamic societies in general.
   
   What struck me most about this book was the duality in which women see themselves within this society. Not only must they present a pious face for their own community, but they also feel a responsibility to present a "modern" face for the West as well. This duality creates an almost kaleidoscopic lense through which these women must see themselves. An ever changing set of values that they must represent to an ever changing audience creates an inordinate amount of pressure on these women. In the West Muslim women are seen as the measure of "modernness" that these societies have attained. Cross that with their own sense of religious duty and they are presented with an almost impossible dilemma. How to present a "modern" face to a Western audience that has a very different set of values and standards than their own set of values and standards. It was something I had not thought about, but this book thoroughly expounds upon.
   
   What I also found fascinating was the role women's activism was playing within this society. There seemed to be a duality at play here as well. These women felt that the charity work they did in the community represented their own jihad. It was their own struggle for their community and to a greater extent their country. This activism gave them a role outside of the home, and offered a vehicle to express their own talents in the public sphere. This greater role within the public sphere may be the vanguard to a greater feminist movement in the future, but what this book tells us is that this movement will not look anything like the Western feminist movements of our past, but will instead reflect these women's own unique set of values that will in all probability reflect an Islamic influence.
   
   The duality expressed within this movement comes from the fact that while women are finding a greater role within their society it seems that this greater role may be coming to the detriment of the individual. As this society becomes much more homogenized around an Islamic core, pressure builds on the individual to conform to the societal norms. This creates an atmosphere were the individual may be able to have a much more active role within the community, but they must suppress their own identity to do so. Also some people may feel as though they have no choice but to follow these norms which creates a situation where the public display of piety may simply be a facade. Of course this type of pressure exists within every society and community, but the description here seems a little more intense.
   
   One of the main points I came away with from this book is that for many women Islam is not a sexist religion. The problem is that it has been interpreted by traditional, patriarchal societies to the "benefit" of men and to the detriment of women. This is the intellectual jihad many of these women have embarked upon. They are pushing back against the traditionalist view of women and asking for greater equity if not necessarily greater equality. Not only have these women availed themselves of greater knowledge and understanding of their own religion, but there are some very powerful religious leaders who believe as they do.
   
   This book gives a picture of a very fluid society being influenced by not only national but international factors. This creates at times an almost dual personality for these women, but it also presents them with an enormous opportunity as well. In this revolutionary moment in Lebanese history almost anything is possible. Things will change in Lebanon but what we in the West have to remember is that they are following their own path based upon their own values. Our rubric for judging our society is vastly different from the one they judge their own. No one can predict what will happen, but there is too much pressure on this community for change not to occur.

No comments about A Portrait of Pluralism: Aga Khan's Shia Ismaelis.

No comments about The Shadow of God and the Hidden Imam: Religion, Political Order, and Societal Change in Shi'Ite Iran from the Beginning to 1890 (Center for Middle).

1 comments about The Women of Karbala: Ritual Performance and Symbolic Discourses in Modern Shi'i Islam.

1. This superb book is a collection of 11 articles written by different authors, each of whom discusses some aspect as to how Shia-Muslim women are affected by or participate in a "taziyeh" (a performance not only detailing the death of the third Shiite Imam Hosayn at the Battle of Karbala in Ashura Moharran 680 CE/352 AH), but also how his martyrdom influenced the social and political lives of Shiite women -- particularly between 1970-2000. Following is my brief inadequate description of each chapter: (1) analyzes the gender dynamics of Ashura taziyeh ritual dramas during the Qajar period. (2) focuses on the gender dynamics of Shia symbols and rituals in Qajar Iran/Persia and how the dynamics and symbols served to restrict female behavior in certain ways. (3) discusses how Shia women participate in Ashura rituals to achieve divine intercession in this world for better health, aid or fortune. (4) discusses the representations of female characters in Moharran elegies, chants, and slogans. (5) discusses how women in Shia rituals serve as models of chastity, purity and self-sacrifice. (6) analyzes how gendered themes are expressed in women's mourning rituals in Pakistan. (7) explores the symbolic rhetoric and stylistic devices used in representing Zaynab within the South Asian tradition. (8) studies the Ismaili-Shias in the Bohra community of India. (9) very briefly compares the two major Shia immigrant communities in the USA: Iranians and South Asians, in the 1990s. (10) studies women's Ashura rituals in Iraq. (11) studies changes in Lebanese Shia rituals during the 1990s. Before reading this book, it would be very beneficial to first read the author's previous book in order to develop a better understanding of the overall Karbala paradigm in Shia theology: "The Martyrs of Karbala: Shi'i Symbols and Rituals in Modern Iran."

No comments about Scripturalist Islam: The History and Doctrines of the Akhbari Shi'i School (Islamic Philosophy, Theology, and Science).

2 comments about Fadlallah: The Making of a Radical Shi'ite Leader.

1. This biography is very informative. The tone is calm and scholarly, the author does not get into any of the extremist debates about Islam.
   
   As a whole, the biography is sympathetic to Fadlallah, and reading it gives a good picture of his view of the world. This book will be appreciated by those who want to know more about the politics of the Middle East in the era leading up to the current war. But it is very much a work of political history - there is little information on private life and culture - I did think that the author could have written more about that.



2. Very well written! This book is highly recommended for those who are interested in Lebanese politics and indeed Islamic politics.

3 comments about Shi'ite Islam.

1. Shi'ite Islam by Tabatabai. Translated into English by Seyyed Hossein Nasr. Shia Institute of Pakistan Pub.; Karachi, Pakistan; May 1971, paperback; 253 pgs. The author was born in 1321 A.H./1903 C.E. The translator noted: "Only Sufism or gnosis can reach that Unity which embraces these two facets [Sunni & Shiite] of Islam and yet transcends their outward differences....The distinctive institution of Shi'ism is the Imamate and the question of the Imamate is inseparable from that of walayat, or the esoteric function of interpreting the inner mysteries of the Holy Quran and the Shari'ah. According to the Shi'ite view the successor of the Prophet of Islam must be one who not only rules over the community in justice but also is able to interpret the Divine law and its esoteric meaning. Hence he must be free from error and sin and he must be chosen from on high by divine decree (nass) through the Prophet. The whole ethos of Shi'ism revolves around the basic notion of walayat, which is intimately connected with the notion of sancitity (wilayah) in Sufism." [p.10] The author presents a pro-Shi'ism analysis in this book. Contents include: The cause of the separation of the Shi'ite minority from the Sunni majority; the political method of the selection of the caliph by vote and its disagreement with the Shi'ite view; the termination of the caliphate of Ali Amir al-muminin; the benefit that the shiah derived from the caliphate of Ali; the bleakest days of Shiism; Shiism between the 2nd and 20th centuries; Divisions within Shism (Zaydism, Ismailism, Batinis, Nizaris, Druzes, Muqannaah, Twelve-Imam Shiism, Zaydism); Three methods of religious thought (Shiism and the transmitted sciences; the way of intellection and intellectual reasoning; Mystical unveiling [Sufism]); Islamic beliefs from the Shiite point of view (the necessity of God; divine essence and qualities; destiny and providence; man and free will); the prophets and proof of revelation and prophecy; Eschatology; The meaning of Imam and succession; the Imamate and its role in the esoteric dimension of religion; a brief history of the lives of the twelve imams; the spiritual message of Shiism; Mutah (pro-temporary marriage); ritual practices in Shiism; and a note on the Jinn. Unlike many Islamic books from Pakistan, this is a very, very well written book in both analyzing and explaining Shi'ism. Because it lacks critical self-analysis, however, I rate it only 4 stars. Yet, it is far superior to the typical religious tract. As the editor, Nasr, opined: "The reader must therefore always remember that the arguments presented in this book are not addressed by Allamah Tabatabai to a mind that begins with doubt, but to one that is grounded in certainty and is moreover immersed in the world of faith and religious dedication."



2. Even though the book dates from the seventies, I dare say that the book is still considered a valuable reference and an introduction to the thoughts and principles of Shi'a Islam. Forwarded by Nasr, the translator. I highly recommend reading the books of Nasr, if you seek books on Shia that are of a more recent date. But this book is well written manual, with an excellent authorship and translator.



3. This book is an excellent complement to Dr. Momen's work An Introduction to Shi`i Islam: The History and Doctrines of Twelver Shi`ism but not a substitute therefor. It is written from a more esoteric, albeit still theological, perspective. In the section "Man and Gnostic Comprehension" Prof. Dr. Allamah Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tabatabai states: "The polytheistic religions and Judaism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, and Islam all have believers who are gnostics." This statement alone is worth at least one star and will be felt quite shocking for some more zahiri (exoteric) Muslims.
   
   The preface and notes by Prof. Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr are extremely worthwhile in themselves and provide considerable additional insight into the subject matter.
   
   The title of the book should have been: "Twelver Shi'ite Islam" as the other 2 significantly extant branches of Shi'ite Islam, Zaydi and Ismaili, are discussed only in a very summary manner. Modesty is a becoming virtue.
   
   In Chapter VI Eschatology the first section is entitled "Man is Composed of Spirit and Body". This is rather disappointing especially in view of the Quranic triad of spirit (Ar-Ruh), soul or mind (An-Nafs) and body (Al-Jism).