Pluralism and Multiculturalism: 
an Islamic Perspective 

Abdur-Rahman Momin 

Abstract 
This article attempts to reconceptualize the theories of pluralism, 
ethnicity and multiculturalism by analyzing the present predicament of 
Muslims and their mode of organization. However, this cannot be done 
in isolation from the normative theory, which is grounded in the Islamic 
sources and worldview. It provides an analytical insight into the inter- 
face of unity and diversity and limitation of achieving a haixnonious 
relationship between them in the modem western societies. Ideals of the 
westem social theory are critiqued through the Islamic ideals to 
conceptualize alternative way of socio-political organization. 

For you, your religion and for me, mine. (Hub Qur'an 109:6) 

The enlightenment project assumed that the answers to all questions 
relating to the universe, society, and human nature could be expressed in a 
single, universal, and rational frame of discourse. In keeping with the 
legacy of the Enlightenment, western social scientists, in the first half 
of the twentieth century, regarded modernization as a universal, 
homogenising process and held it as a universal solvent. During the 1950s 
and 60s modernization theory confidently asserted that all questions of 
economic, political and social backwardness would be resolved by progress 
towards integration in a world economic system defined by the western 
model. Daniel Lerner argued that the non-western world could save itself 
by adapting to the paradigm of modernization.' However, this euphoria 
dissipated in the wake of developments that took place in the West as well 
Abdur-Rahman Momin is Professor of Cultural Anthropology, Department of Sociology, University 
of Bombay, India. Parts of this paper were presented in a seminar at the Islamic Foundation, 
Lcicester, UK on May 22,2000. 



116 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

as in the Third World from the 1970s onwards. Sociologists, anthropolo- 
gists and political scientists became increasingly aware of the world-wide 
resurgence of ethnic consciousness and the changing demographic 
character of many western countries as a result of extensive international 
Emigration. The recognition of the existence of extensive ethnic 
diversities within modern nation-states is manifested in the growing 
popularity of the terms pluralism, multiculturalism and ethnicity. 

Three significant dimensions of pluralism in the contemporary context 
may be noted. First, most nation-states in the western world as well as in 
Asia and Africa are increasingly being viewed, not as culturally homoge- 
neous, but as ethnically diverse and pluralistic in character. Secondly, the 
question of the integration of ethnic minorities into the cultural mainstream 
of the majority population is seen as problematic and contentious. Thirdly, 
it is widely recognized that pluralism and multiculturalism not only 
characterize most nation-states of the modern world but also entail a set of 
moral premises and value-orientations, namely, peaceful co-existence, 
tolerance, and respect for human and community rights. 

Plural societies may be defined as those that contain multiple ethnic 
groups within a shared economy and a centralized political ~ystem.~ The 
post-war period witnessed an unprecedented wave of migrations across 
countries and continents. These migrations, which are continuing apace, 
have brought about a growing multiplicity of religions, languages and 
cultural traditions within and across national boundaries and have 
challenged the notion of homogeneous national cultures. Most 
countries in Europe and North America, as well as in Asia and Africa, 
may now be characterised as plural. Great Britain, for example, is now 
projected as a plural, multicultural and polyethnic state. Wales, Scotland, 
Ireland and England scrupulously maintain their separate identities. The 
case of North America is more or less the same. American Bureau of 
Census projections in the United States indicate that the proportion of non- 
Whites in the US will increase to almost half (47 per cent) by the year 2050. 
In seven of the ten largest cities in the US, people of African, Latin 
American, Caribbean and Asian backgrounds constituted more than half of 
the population in 1990. In a speech delivered at the University of California 
in June 1997, President Bill Clinton described the United States as a 
multi-racial society? Australia has officially declared itself multicultural. 
France has become a multicultural society despite the official policy of 
assimilation and integration. Fourteen million French citizens -nearly a 



Momin: Pluarlism and Mutticulturahm 117 

quarter of the country’s population have at least one immigrant parent or 
grand-parent. Many western countries have witnessed the resurgence of 
indigenous cultures in recent years. In France, for example, the revival of 
indigenous cultures is marked by the proliferation of Breton-language 
schools, the rising popularity of Celtic music, the boom of regional tourism, 
the growing cult of local cuisine and the spread of provincial festivals. The 
cultural assertiveness on the part of Spain’s Basque minority has become 
increasingly violent in recent years. 

This paper does not seek to establish, in an apologetic vein, the 
compatibility between the Islamic ethos and the modem spirit of pluralism 
and multiculturalism. Furthermore, I do not propose to argue, superficially 
and dogmatically, that “Islamic pluralism” is far superior to contemporary 
western pluralism. Rather, the paper is based on the following two 
premises. 
(i) Some of the past societies and civilizations made a serious attempt to 
come to terms with the vexing issue of cultural diversity and sought to 
resolve it, not through forced assimilation and homogenization, but in terms 
of the principles of tolerance, peaceful co-existence and respect for human 
and community rights. I have suggested that some useful lessons can be 
drawn, for the benefit of contemporary multicultural societies, from certain 
fruitful experiments in harmonious living and multicultural co-existence 
that were carried out in such societies. 
(ii) I have tried to show that the prototype or model of Islamic society that 
existed during the time of Prophet Muhammad and the four caliphs sought 
to reconcile the conflicting demands of diversity and unity in a humane and 
democratic framework. This pristine model of Islamic society has inspired 
and sustained generations of Muslim scholars, sages, reformers and revo- 
lutionaries across the world. I have argked that this model has much to offer 
to contemporary plural and multicultural societies. 

The Interface of Diversity and Unity 
A comparative study of history affords us four important insights into the 
dynamics of human society and civilization. First, history bears testimony 
to the extensive interaction and exchange of ideas, values, technology, 
social institutions and cultural patterns among societies and civilizations. 
Secondly, most societies and civilizations have sought to preserve their 
unity and solidarity by forcibly assimilating the ethnic minorities into the 
mainstream culture. Thirdly, in the wake of imperial conquests in the 



118 The American Journd of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

ancient and medieval periods and the colonial expansion of recent times, 
the vanquished people were either enslaved or driven out of their ancestral 
lands or simply massacred. Fourthly, despite the over-bearing pressure of 
assimilation, ethnic minorities have by and large preserved and maintained 
their distinctive identities and cultural traditions. In other words, ethnic 
consciousness and identities cannot be suppressed for too long. 

The assimilationist and homogenizing tendency has been all too evident 
in the ancient, medieval and even modern periods. I will cite certain 
examples and illustrations, particularly from western history, in support of 
this observation. A particularly dismal illustration of western intolerance is 
provided by the history of the Iberian peninsula. Muslims, who ruled over 
Spain for over seven centuries and made it the pride of the westem world 
in the Middle Ages, were relentlessly persecuted and finally hounded out 
of the country by Ferdinand and Isabella in 1492. They were given the 
choice to either convert to Christianity or to leave the country. Most of 
them preferred migration to forced conversion. Many of them perished in 
the long and arduous journey to North Africa. Mosques, schools, colleges 
and hospices were vandalised and razed to the ground. A number of 
mosques, including the famed mosque of Cordoba, were converted into 
churches and cathedrals. 

Many western countries contain sizeable ethnic minorities: the Flemish 
in Belgium, Catalans and Basques in Spain, the Quebecois and the 
aborigines in Canada, the indigenous Sami people in the Scandinavian 
countries, the French and Italians in Switzerland. In most cases, these 
ethnic minorities were involuntarily assimilated into the culture of the 
dominant national groups, by means of conquest or colonization. European 
conquest in the New World resulted in the enslavement and even 
decimation of whole native populations. The number of native Americans 
at the time of the European conquest is estimated to have been between two 
and five million. In the four centuries following this contact, the native 
population was reduced to 250,000 due to forced migration and 
deportation, enslavement and genocide. They were exposed to diseases 
introduced by the European settlers -small pox, measles, influenza, 
typhus, diphtheria -against which they had no immunity. 

The Muslims of Central Asia faced persecution and oppression over a 
long period, first at the hands of the Czars and then under the Soviet regime. 
In the 17th century, Czar Alexi Mikhailovich banned conversion to Islam 
and prescribed severe punishment for those who embraced Islam. The Tatar 



klomin: Pluarlism and Multiculturahsm 119 

Muslims of Poland were bitterly persecuted by the Czarist regime. 
Kazakhstan was occupied by Russia in 1730. Kazakhstan has a rich soil and 
vast fodder lands which led to migration and settlement of large numbers 
of Russians. By 1914 almost half of the population of Kazakhstan was 
Russian. On the eve of the Russian Revolution in 1917, Kazakh Muslims 
were estimated to number about four million. In 1929, their lands were con- 
fiscated by the communist rulers, as a result of which one million Kazakh 
Muslims died of hunger. Thousands of Kazakhs were massacred on the 
orders of Stalin, leading to a massive decimation of the Kazakh population. 
Stalin tried to eradicate the presence of Islam in the former Soviet Union by 
closing down mosques, madaris, and Sufi hospices, by proscribing the 
observance of religious rituals, and by banning the use of Arabic and 
replacing it by the Latin script and then the Cynllic script. There were 
26,000 mosques in the Soviet Union in 1917. This number was reduced to 
just 400 by 1985.3 

In Ethiopia, Muslims were persecuted by the monophysite Christians. 
During the nineteenth century, Emperor Yohannis razed mosques and the 
Muslims of Gondar were given the choice to either embrace Christianity or 
to leave the dominions of the emperor. 

The most homfying manifestation of intolerance and barbarism in recent 
years was witnessed in Nazi Germany. Jews, Gypsies and Slavs were 
stigmatised and demonised and subjected to every kind of humiliation. The 
Jews were eliminated from public life, from the armed forces, and from 
state education. Ultimately, six million of them were ruthlessly massacred. 
During the Second World War, most of the Tatar Muslim intelligentsia was 
exterminated by the Nazis. 

In Bosnia-Herzegovina, Muslims, Christians and Jews lived together in 
peace and harmony, thanks to the tolerant and benevolent rule of the 
Ottoman emperors, for over 500 years. This happy phase of pluralism and 
peaceful co-existence was brought to a tragic end in 1992. The famous 
bridge at Mostar, which was built in 1566 by the Turkish emperor 
Suleyman the Magnificent and which linked the different ethnic quarters of 
the city, was destroyed by the Serb and Croat militia. Thousands of 
Muslims were brutally massacred and forced to leave their homes. 
This horrifying genocide was ironically described as ethnic cleansing? 
The tragedy of Bosnia-Herzegovina in the wake of the break-up of 
Yugoslavia exposed the hypocrisy of the western powers and undermined 
the credibility of international agencies and organizations, including the 



120 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

United Nations. The second phase of ethnic cleansing in Kosovo once 
again brought into relief the dismal record of the West in respect of toler- 
ance and human rights, 

The assimilationist model of political or national integration takes the 
nation-state as its ideal and holds that no polity or nation can maintain 
stability and solidarity unless its members share a common, homogeneous 
national culture, including common moral and religious values, 
cultural practices and a common language. Undoubtedly, a culturally 
homogeneous society has its advantages and strengths. It facilitates a sense 
of community and solidarity, makes inter-personal communication easier 
and can mobilise the loyalties of its members with ease. However, it 
also has a tendency to become closed, intolerant, averse to change, 
claustrophobic and oppressive, and to discourage differences and dissent? 

The concept of “nation” in Europe was born in the aftermath of the 
French Revolution. It made cultural homogeneity a necessary pre-requisite 
of the nation-state. When the state was exported to the non-western world, 
the cultural assumptions of the nation-state followed in its wake. However, 
in the culturally heterogeneous societies of today this model of the 
nation-state is not applicable? 

The experience of most countries in the western world, as elsewhere, 
shows that assimilation has been a failure in the long run. For example, 
despite the pressure of homogenization and assimilation, the Jews have 
scrupulously maintained their religious and cultural identity. In Central 
Asia, even during the heyday of communism, the Azeris, Tajiks, Kazakhs, 
Turkomans, Uzbeks and Kirghiz assiduously preserved their ethnic 
identity. They fought against the Russians for centuries to maintain their 
separate identity. The Caucasians ( the Chechens, Inguish, Daghestanis and 
Tartars), despite their physical affinity with the Russians, have always 
defined their separate identity on the basis of religion and culture? In the 
1980s, the Bulgarian government promulgated a decree, forcing all 
minorities, including Muslims, to Bulgarize family names. The move did 
not succeed and resulted in the migration of over three hundred thousand 
Bulgarian Muslims to Turkey. As a nation of immigrants, the United States 
has long insisted on the “swift assimilation of aliens” and the ideal of the 
“melting pot”. However, from the 1960s onwards, the assertion of ethnic 
identity by the African Americans, Puerto Ricans, Mexican Americans, the 
indigenous people and Asian Americans has put a question mark on the 
ideal of assimilation. Nathan Glazer and Daniel P. Moymhan have 



Momin: Pluarlism and Mdttdturahsm 121 

characteristically remarked that "the point about the melting pot is that it 
did not happen.'' * Since the French Revolution, the immigrants in France 
have been expected to forsake their culture, language and identity in favor 
of a homogeneous and typically French way of life. The model of 
integration worked fairly well in absorbing Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and 
Polish immigrants earlier in the century. But it has failed in the case of 
Arab, African and Asian immigrants who began entering France in large 
numbers in the post-War period. "Today integration is a total failure", says 
Jean-Francois Cope, mayor of Meawc, 54 kilometres south-east of Paris, 
which counts 29 different ethnic groups among its 50,000 residents. 

Limitations and Problems of Plural hieties 
The emergence of multiculturalism as a social and political reality can be 
traced to the 1970s. Multiculturalism is essentially a contemporary 
response to the fact of cultural diversity, which is conspicuous not only 
across countries and continents but also within the nation-state. 
It is worthwhile to draw a distinction between multiculturality and multi- 
culturalism. Multiculturality connotes the fact that a given society or 
country is composed of many diverse ethnic groups who have their own 
values, ethos and cultural traditions. Multiculturalism, on the other hand, 
refers to a political and social philosophy based on a positive and 
nonnative response to the fact of cultural diversity. A heterogeneous 
country may respond to the fact of cultural diversity in either of two ways. 
It may perceive cultural diversity as a hindrance to national unity and may 
thus impose cultural uniformity and homogenization on its people, as is the 
case with China. Or it may look upon cultural diversity as a source of its 
creative potential and strength and accordingly may value and cherish it. 
Multiculturalism holds that cultural homogeneity is not a pre-requisite for 
national unity and solidarity? According to Parekh, multiculturalism is 
characterised by three salient features. 
(i) Human beings are culturally embedded in the sense that they grow up 
and live within a culturally structured world and organise their lives and 
social relations in terms of a culturally derived system of meaning and 
significance. 
(ii) Different cultures represent different systems of meaning and visions of 
the good life. One's way of life is likely to be richer if one also enjoys 
access to others, if one has an attitude of openness towards other cultures. 
Openness and access to other cultures expands one's moral and intellectual 
horizon. 



122 The American Joumd of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

(iii) Every culture is internally plural and reflects a continuing conversation 
between its different traditions and strands of thought. A culture grows out 
of interactions with other cultures. Its identity is plural, fluid and open.l0 

Undoubtedly, plural and multicultural societies have provided a better 
and humane alternative to societies founded on forced uniformity and 
homogenization. They symbolise a valuable and worthwhile experiment in 
peaceful and harmonious co-existence among people belonging to different 
ethnic groups. The protagonists of multiculturalism tend to draw a rather 
idealised picture of multicultural societies and gloss over their inherent 
limitations and shortcomings. My own view is that most contemporary 
multicultural societies are passing through a phase of transition and are 
therefore faced with a number of serious problems. 

A basic ingredient of a good and humane society is equality and belief in 
the brotherhood of mankind. Unfortunately, many multicultural societies 
have not freed themselves from the shackles of ethnocentrism, racism and 
anti-Semitism. Till the 1960s the white majority in the United States denied 
the African Americans the right to vote. Until recently, Canada did not 
extend citizenship rights to its Native American population. By and large, 
the perception and experience of ethnic minorities about the success, 
effectiveness and viability of multicultural societies is at best ambivalent 
and at worst negative. 

Contemporary multicultural societies are subject to the widespread and 
pervasive influence of the processes of migration, urbanization and 
globalization. International immigration has been responsible for a radical 
redistribution of the worlds population. Over the past ten years, more than 
80 percent of population growth in Greece and Austria and more than 40 
percent in Canada and Australia has come from international immigrations. 
Currently, there are over 20 million legal immigrants in Western Europe 
along with an estimated 20 million illegal immigrants. Every year, more 
than one million legal immigrants and a substantial number of illegal 
immigrants enter the United States. International immigration has given 
rise to two inter-related problems. On the one hand, it has engendered 
tensions and conflicts between the migrants and the host society. The 
members of the host society feel that their cherished values, traditions, 
ethos, and social institutions are being threatened by the influx of migrants. 
On the other hand, the integration of immigrants in the host society has 
become increasingly problematic. Most immigrants live in segregated 
ethnic enclaves in the poorer quarters of cities where poverty, 
unemployment, crime, juvenile delinquency and drug trafficking abound. 





124 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

school as children from two-parent families and that they often have 
behavioral and psychological problems. In addition, they tend to become 
victims of delinquency and drug addiction. A widespread concern is being 
voiced in western society about the increase in violence perpetrated 
within the family, which is mostly directed at wives and children. An 
eminent British sociologist, Anthony Giddens, says in exasperation: "The 
home is in fact the most dangerous place in modem society."11 

In the industrialized countries of the West, the relatively stagnant birth 
rates and rising life expectancy have brought about a significant increase in 
the proportion of elderly people. In spite of social security, better standards 
of living and improved health care facilities, the problems of the elderly 
continue to cause concern. The acceleration in international migrations 
has added to the gravity of the problem. The exaggerated ethic of individ- 
ualism and freedom, the mindless pursuit of material prosperity, the 
unprecedented spurt in spatial mobility, and the disintegration of family, 
neighborhood and community have contributed to the plight of the elderly. 
Many elderly people in the western countries live alone or in old age 
homes. Many have a lonely life and are often faced with depression and 
despair. 

More than a century ago, the German sociologist Ferdinand Toennies 
observed that the move from the countryside to the city was accompanied 
by the breakdown of stable forms of community. He argued that the process 
of urbanization transformed the character of social interaction: it shifted 
intimate and stable relationships between friends and neighbors to imper- 
sonal relationships of organizations and associations. In other words, city 
life engendered a greater sense of individuality, detachment, and 
atomization. The phenomenal expansion of cities and the unprecedented 
pace of technological change in the western world has further reinforced 
urban anonymity and individualism. A strange and disturbing 
manifestation of this phenomenon is the tendency in some parts of the 
westem world towards what may be characterised as social isolationism. In 
the United States, for example, there has been a growing tendency to 
isolate oneself from neighbors. In several parts of the country, clusters of 
private communities have come up within cities. Currently, more than 32 
million people in the US live under the regulations of home-owners' 
associations with private amenities and services such as security, recreation 
centers, and even schools. Paradoxically, the increasing use of the internet 
has led, on the one hand, to a remarkable compression of time and space 



Momin: Pluarlism and Multiculturakm 125 

and, on the other, has engendered a tendency towards social isolationism. 
The ethos of globalization has been largely derived from the dominant 

values of American society such as the glorification of freedom and 
individualism, the compulsive pursuit of material prosperity, and 
consumerism. The high rate of economic development in Western 
countries has resulted in substantial leisure time as well as disposable 
income. In the absence of an ethic of moral accountability, consumerism is 
the inevitable option in an affluent society. The world-wide diffusion of 
American pop culture is represented by fast food restaurants which are 
mushrooming across the world, by the global popularity of T-shirts, 
sneakers, baggy jeans, baseball caps, and Hollywood films and television 
soaps. McDonald’s, a multi-national corporation based in Oak Brooke, 
Illinois, has 18400 restaurants in over a hundred countries. McDonald’s 
restaurants are opening at the rate of six a day around the world. 
Entertainment around the world is dominated by American movie 
corporations and American-made products. The seven US-based movie and 
television giants, Disney, Warner Brothers, MGM-UA, Sony, Paramount, 
and 20th Century Fox, monopolize the world’s entertainment industry. 
Even in small and poor countries, illegally copied videos of Hollywood’s 
latest blockbusters are freely available. 

The powerful Western media project western products, cultural symbols, 
and images, such as M ’ W ,  McDonald’s, Madonna, Michael Jackson, 
Barbie dolls, Coca-Cola, Levi jeans, Mickey Mouse, as global ones, 
purportedly aimed at global audiences. The promotion of western culture in 
the guise of global culture sends out the subtle message, especially to the 
younger generation in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, that the value 
system and cultural patterns of the West are superior and preferable to those 
of the non-Western world. This cultural invasion, effected through the 
world-wide network of satellite communications and American-made 
video films, poses a serious threat to the value systems, cultural traditions, 
and ethnic identities of the Third World. It has engendered value conflict, 
disorientation, and ambivalence in traditional societies, particularly in the 
younger generation. 

Some scholars have spoken of globalizing patterns of illness and 
morbidity. There seems to be a convergence towards similar patterns of 
morbidity and mortality throughout the globe, with the growing incidence 
of cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Across the world, globalization has 
encouraged and promoted a certain lifestyle marked by sedentary 



126 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

occupations, smoking, use of alcohol, consumption of high-cholesterol 
foods, colas and junk foods, and lack of exercise. The high-tech promotion 
of colas and junk food, which supply empty calories with no nutritional 
value, leads to the accumulation of saturated fats, cholesterol, and salt in the 
body. This results in obesity and puts people at greater risk of 
cardiovascular diseases. l2 Globalizing pressures emanating from the 
increased pace of life, working in large organisations and living in huge, 
impersonal urban milieus have significantly contributed to increased levels 
of stress. There is growing evidence to the effect that stress makes one more 
vulnerable to immunologically-related illnesses. Stress has a critical 
bearing on the onset and course of a variety of illnesses, including coronary 
heart disease, diabetes, skin diseases, a decrease in digestive and 
eliminative processes, and respiratory ailments. 

One of the significant features of our globalizing era is the 
unprecedented rate and scale of change. A faster pace of life creates 
problems of adaptation, adjustment, coping and stress. Technological and 
social changes are taking place so rapidly that most people find it difficult 
to adapt to them. It is bringing about a dizzying disorientation among them. 
More and more people in western societies now feel that their lives are 
rushed all the time. The fast pace of life has brought about what is described 
as the chronic fatigue syndrome. 

As a result of the fast pace of life, people are becoming 
progressively desensitized to the importance of continuity and wholeness 
in their lives. Unable to cope with the accelerated pace of life, many 
people find short cuts to happiness through steroids, psychotropic drugs, 
sex, live-in relationships, and virtual sex on the Internet. The power of 
speed undermines the value of those experiences that require time and 
slowness to develop: psychological maturity, genuine love and sympathy, 
patience, creativity, self-actualization, self-sacrifice, insight, the building 
of meaningful and lasting human relationships, the cultivation of aesthetic 
sensibility, and the cultivation of moral values. 

The Islamic Model of Society 
Every society rests on a set of premises or presuppositions relating to 
human nature, the universe, ultimate reality, the structure and source of 
knowledge and the guiding principles of behavior. These premises, 
relating to ontology, epistemology and ethics, constitute a society's ethos or 
world-view. The Islamic model of society is guided and inspired by certain 
fundamental principles which are outlined in the following. 



Momin: Pluarlism and MuIticuIturaIism 127 

Tawhid: Tawhid refers to the oneness, omnipotence and supremacy of 
God. In the Islamic view, God is transcendent, but not like an extemal 
despot, high in the skies, who is unconcerned about the fate of man. He, as 
the Qur'an says, is closer to man than the artery of his neck. He is the Most 
Compassionate, the Most Merciful. He is not a parochial or racial deity like 
Jehovah, but the Lord of the universe and of all mankind. He is not an 
enigmatic entity with an ambiguous status, like the Father in the Christian 
Trinity. He is the one and only God, who "begetteth not, nor is He 
begotten; and there is none like unto Him", as the Qur'an (1 12 : 3-4) says. 
He is beyond the finitude and imperfections of human or other tangible 
forms. 

In the Islamic view, the relationship between God and man is direct and 
personal. Unlike other religious systems, Islam does not recognize any 
priestly class, which has exclusive access to sacred knowledge and which 
mediates between God and man. God Almighty, in all His mercy and love 
for mankind, is approachable and accessible in equal measure to every 
individual and to all sections of humanity, without any external mediation. 

Universalism: Islam is not a racial or parochial religion, confined to a 
particular people or to a given period of history. It is universal in its 
message, appeal and scope. Islamic civilization encompasses people of 
varied racial and ethnic stocks, who speak a variety of languages and 
dialects and live under divergent ecological and social conditions. 
However, the pervasiveness of the Islamic tradition cuts across and 
transcends the diversity and heterogeneity of Muslim populations. The 
tenets, rituals, moral precepts, and institutions of Islamic civilization have 
moulded the otherwise divergent Muslim peoples into a universal 
community or ummah. 

The universalism of the Islamic faith is reflected in its view of the 
universality of divine revelation as well as in its relationship with other 
religious traditions. According to the Islamic belief, prophets and 
messengers have been sent by God to people in all parts of the world 
(Qur'an 16:36). Since their essential teachings were the same, Muslims are 
required to respect and believe in all of them. 

As a universal faith and civilization, Islam possesses not only inner 
strength and resilience but also substantial openness, dynamism and 
flexibility. In the course of its onward march, Islamic civilization has 
incorporated several regional traits and traditions into its matrix. Thus, in 
all parts of the Islamic world one can notice a richly textured synthesis of 



128 The American Journd of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

the Great tradition of Islam and the local, regional traditions. However, it 
is the Great tradition of Islam which dominates the cultural landscape of the 
Islamic world and which binds the Muslim people together. 

Historicity: The unbroken continuity of the Islamic tradition, in ideas, 
beliefs, institutional structure and behavior patterns, is remarkable 
and unparalleled in the religious and cultural history of mankind. This 
continuity was ensured through the planned and systematic preservation 
of the original teachings of Islam and their faithful transmission from 
generation to generation. 

Unlike other religious leaders, Prophet Muhammad lived in the full light 
of history. His Companions took great care to collect, preserve and 
transmit a remarkably wide range of information about his message, 
precepts, behaviour and even personal habits. The preservation of the 
original teachings of Islam through a planned process of memorization and 
writing had far-reaching consequences for the continuity as well as the 
world-wide diffusion of the Islamic faith. 

Rationalism: Islam views man as essentially a rational being. The Qur'an 
repeatedly urges man to exercise his rational and imaginative 
faculties and to ponder over the mysteries of nature, historical events and 
the complexities of the human psyche. The Qur'an invites mankind to 
reaffirm its primordial covenant with God, not through blind faith or the 
dead weight of tradition, but through observation and reflection. Islam 
repudiated the irrational beliefs and superstitions of pagan Arabs and 
substituted for them a rational system of beliefs, ideas, rituals and cultural 
patterns. 

Humanism: The idea of the divine as well as the conception of human 
nature in Islam is permeated by a deep humanistic ethos. God is the 
absolute epitome of kindness and mercy towards mankind and man is His 
vicegerent. He has been endowed by God with freedom and moral choice. 
Though man is expected to submit himself to the will of God and is 
accountable to Him for his actions, this obligation does not stretch beyond 
his capacity. 

The Islamic Shariah follows the path of ease and convenience, and not 
one of hardship and inconvenience for people. The Prophet's own life 
exemplifies humanism of the highest order. 

A significant dimension of the Islamic ethos is its remarkable 
tolerance of other religions and cultural traditions. This cardinal 
principle is enshrined in the Qur'anic verse "There is no compulsion in 
religion" (2 : 256). 



Momin: Pluarlism and Multiculturalism 129 

Holism: The Islamic faith is characterized by a holistic orientation as well 
as balance and moderation. Its comprehensive and all-pervasive ethos 
covers all spheres of human life, both temporal and spiritual. Unlike 
Christianity, Islam makes no differentiation between what is God's and 
what is Caesar's, between the external world and the inner world. It does 
not posit a rigid duality between the sacred and the profane. The Islamic 
faith avoids the extremes of renunciation and self-abnegation, on the one 
hand, and excessive self-indulgence, on the other. It underscores the value 
of balance and moderation. 

The Islamic tenet of moral accountability is of special importance. As the 
vicegerent of God on earth, man is accountable to Him for all his deeds. 
Though the world and all its bounties have been created for man, he is 
required to utilize the God-given resources judiciously and with 
moderation. The principle of moral accountability provides a corrective to 
the wasteful consumption of resources. 

Human Nature in Islamic Perspective 
According to the Islamic view, man is not the product of a blind process of 
evolution. Rather, he has been created by God with a purpose. 'All men 
have descended from Adam, and are therefore equal before Him. All 
humans are born innocent, untainted by original sin or guilt. Man is born 
with a primordial nature. The Prophet is reported to have said "There is 
not a new born who is not born in a state of nature. His parents make him 
a Jew, a Christian, or a Magian." 

Man has been endowed with a reasoning faculty, self-consciousness, 
and moral choice. He has been created in the best of moulds and given 
dominion over all that is in the universe. According to the Islamic view, 
human nature is characterized by a certain duality or polarity. On the one 
hand, the human has been created from clay, a lowly substance (Qur'an 
23:12; 327). On the other, God has breathed His soul into him (Qur'an 
1529). In addition, mah has been given the freedom to exercise a choice 
between good and evil (Qur'an 76:3; W:8-10). Thus, man has two kinds of 
potentialities: sublime and divine-like, on the one hand, and base and 
demonic, on the other.l3 Man tends to be impatient and greedy (Qur'an 
7019). The Prophet is reported to have said that i f  the son of Adam 
happens to possess two valleys fdled with wealth, he would still crave for 
a third. Likewise, man has a tendency to be ungrateful, niggardly, and 
contentious. He is prone to injustice and sometimes tends to make his desire 



130 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

into god (Qur'an 4523). This dual nature of man is illustrated in the story 
of Abel and Cain (Qur'an 527-3 1). 

Islamic Egditarianism 
It cannot be gainsaid that a good society should be based on the 
principles of equality and brotherhood of mankind. Among all world 
religions Islam has the distinction of having clearly enunciated the ideals of 
human equality and brotherhood and having translated them into reality. 
The Qur'an says: "Mankind was one single community, and God sent unto 
them Messengers" (2213). In his last sermon, the Prophet declared in 
explicit terms: "0 people! Verily your Lord is One, and your father is one. 
All of you (were) created from Adam and Adam was created from dust. 
Beware! An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor is a non-Arab 
superior to an Arab. A dark-skinned man has no superiority over a white- 
skinned man, nor is a white-skinned man superior to an Arab, except in 
respect of fear of God" (Hamidullah,1983:362).14 

A significant aspect of Islamic egalitarianism is reflected in the humane 
treatment of slaves and their emancipation under the Islamic dispensation. 
During the early years of the Islamic era, slaves were obtained in the wake 
of legitimate and defensive wars. The institution of slavery, which was 
rampant in pre-Islamic Arabia, was temporarily continued with a view to 
providing shelter and succour to prisoners of war. The Prophet exhorted 
Muslims to deal with slaves in the most humane manner and to treat them 
like one's own family in respect of food, dress and education. He sought the 
gradual and ultimate eradication of the institution of slavery. The Qur'an 
says that liberating a slave is the best form of charity (9O:ll). The Prophet 
declared that the liberation of a slave ensures one's deliverance from 
hell-fire. A large number of slaves were set free by the Prophet as well as 
the Companions. Abd al-Rahman al-Awf, for example, purchased thirty 
thousand slaves and set them free. 

According to Islamic law, a freed slave and a free-born are equal in 
status. The Prophet got his cousin Zaynab married to his freed slave Zayd 
ibn Haritha. Islamic law stipulates that a slave has the right to purchase his 
freedom by paying some compensation to his master. It is remarkable that 
thousands of eminent scholars and sages rose from the ranks of freed slaves 
and their de~cendants.'~ 

A significant dimension of Islamic egalitarianism is enshrined in the 
Islamic view of knowledge. The Prophet declared that the acquisition of 



Momin: Pluarlism and Multiculturalism 131 

knowledge is an obligation on every believer. He said that, “wisdom is 
(like) the lost animal of a believer; wherever he finds it, he catches hold of 
it.” The Prophet exhorted his followers to carry the torch of knowledge and 
learning far and wide and warned against concealing or withholding it. 
Islam opened the portals of knowledge to all and sundry: men and women, 
rich and poor, king and slave. It declared learning and piety to be the sole 
criteria of honor and nobility. In India, inequality was institutionalised 
through the caste system. The caste system upholds the inborn superiority 
of the priestly class of Brahmans, who are believed to be the guardians 
and eustodians of sacred knowledge. Hinduism denies access to sacred 
knowledge to lower castes as well as women. In contrast, every Muslim has 
equal and unrestricted access to religious knowledge. There is no 
distinction or discrimination, in this or any other respect, between an Arab 
and a non-Arab, rich and poor, men and women. 

Franz Rosenthal has perceptively observed that Islam’s lasting and 
invaluable gift to mankind is that it made the hidden treasures of knowledge 
available and accessible to all sections of society. Islam’s refreshingly 
open, dynamic and egalitarian approach to the pursuit and dissemination of 
knowledge brought about revolutionary consequences not only for Islamic 
civilization but for humanity as a whole. The intellectual revolution ushered 
in under the aegis of Islamic civilization played a key role in the making of 
western civilization and the modem world.16 

Islam’s characteristically open and dynamic attitude towards the 
acquisition and pursuit of knowledge is exemplified in the efflorescence of 
science and technology in the Islamic world. A movement for the 
internationalization of science through the translations of scientific and 
philosophical works from India, Greece, Persia and Egypt was initiated 
during the reign of the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur (754-775). In the 
Academy of Science (Bayt al-Hikmah), set up by the Abbasid caliph 
al-Mamun in Baghdad in 832, a number of Indian works on medicine, 
astronomy, mathematics, astrology and philosophy were translated from 
Sanskrit into Arabic. The caliph Harun al-Rashid, who was a great patron 
of learning and scholarship, invited Hindu scholars to his court and 
commissioned them to translate Sanskrit works into Arabic. One of them 
was appointed as Director of Hospitals in Baghdad and another served as 
a personal physician to the royal family. Muhammad Musa al-Khwarimi 
(d. 863), a renowned mathematician who invented algebra, expounded the 
Indian system of reckoning in his works. 



132 T h e  American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

The scientists and scholars who participated in the ambitious project of 
translating the classical scientific and philosophical heritage into Arabic 
included not only Muslims but also Jews, Christians, Magians, Sabaeans 
and Hindus. One of the most prolific translators, Hunayn ibn Ishaq or 
Johannitus (d. 877), was a Christian. He was appointed by the caliph 
al-Mamun as the head of Dar al-Hikmah or the Academy of Science. 
He also served as a personal physician to the caliph al-Mutawakkil. 
Yuhanna ibn Masaway (d. 857), another famous translator, was a Christian. 
Jurji ibn Bakhtishu (d. 830), who was employed as a court physician by the 
caliph al-Mansur, was also a Christian. Other eminent translators, such as 
Qusta ibn Luqa (d. 912) and Abu Bishr Math (d. 940) professed the 
Christian faith. Ibn Maymun or Maimionides (d. 1204) was a Spanish Jew. 
Ali ibn Abbas al-Majusi (d. W4), an eminent scientist and translator, was 
a Magian. Thabit ibn Qurra (d. 901), a translator and scientist of repute, 
was a Sabaean from Harran. 

The central importance of these translations is indicated by the fact that 
some of the most significant works of Greek science have been 
preserved only in their Arabic translations, while the original manuscripts 
have been lost. Thus, the seven volumes of Galen's Anatomy are extant 
only in the form of its Arabic translation by Hunayn ibn Ishaq. Roger 
Bacon, writing in 1292, acknowledged that almost all of Aristotle's works 
were available only in Arabic. In the introduction to his philosophae, he 
observed that, without Arabic, Greek knowledge would have never reached 
the Europeans. It is noteworthy that some of the eminent European 
scholars and scientists who played a leading role in the flowering of 
the European Renaissance had studied under Muslim scientists at the 
universities of Cordoba and Cairo. 

society and state during the early Islamic period 
In the Islamic perspective, society is not a self-regulating system nor does 
it have an independent reality of its own. Rather, it is viewed as a 
purposive creation, brought into being and regulated by God in accordance 
with divinely-ordained principles. Society, like the rest of nature, has not 
been created without meaning or purpose; it has been created by God for 
man's welfare and betterment. Since man has been endowed with the 
faculties of reasoning, self-consciousness and moral choice, he is expected 
to take advantage of God's bounties in keeping with the moral framework 
enshrined in the Islamic Shariah. Thus the Islamic view of society allows 



Momin: Pluarlism and M u l t i c u ~ t ~ i s m  133 

ample scope for human inter~enti0n.l~ 
Islam takes cognizance of cultural and ethnic diversities and views them 

as divinely ordained (Qur'an 30:22; 49:13). One can clearly discern a 
certain dialectic of plurality and universality in the Islamic tradition. Thus 
the Qur'an says that prophets have been sent to all parts of the world in 
all ages and that, notwithstanding the variations in time, space and the 
cultural context, their teachings were characterised by a fundamental unity 
and universality. Consequently, Muslims are required to believe in all the 
prophets and in all revealed scriptures. The Islamic tradition eschews 
xenophobia as well as solipsism. It has an open attitude towards other 
cultures and civilizations. This was exemplified in the life of the Prophet 
himself. He occasionally donned Roman and Persian attire and advised the 
use of Indian medicines. In the famous Battle of the Ditch, when Salman 
the Persian suggested the digging of a wide ditch, a Persian war strategy, 
around the city of Madinah, the Prophet readily accepted the idea. The 
Qur'an sets forth the principles of tolerance and peaceful co-existence in an 
explicit and unequivocal manner. It says, "There is no compulsion in 
religion" (2:256), and," for you, your religion and for me, mine" (109:6). 

The principles of tolerance, peaceful co-existence and respect for human 
rights did not remain just pious hopes in the Islamic tradition; they were 
translated into reality by the Prophet and his Companions, especially the 
four caliphs. When the Prophet set up a city-state at Madinah, he dew up its 
constitution, which was committed to writing at his instance. This 
constitution included two significant passages: first, Muslims will have 
their religion, and the Jews will be entitled to their religion; secondly, the 
Jews will constitute a community with the Muslims. This covenant was 
extended, at a later date, to the Christians of Najran and the pagan Arabs. 
Thus the Pax Islamica included not only the Muslims but also the Jews, 
Christians and the pagan Arabs, and guaranteed to them religious, cultural, 
and judicial autonomy. In fact the Islamic state assumed responsibility for 
the maintenance and even defence of Jewish, Christian and pagan 
identities. The charter of rights and assurances issued to the Christian 
population of Najran by the Prophet included the following passage: 

An assurance is hereby extended, on behalf of God and the Prophet, 
to the people of Najran, that their lives, religion, lands and wealth will 
be protected. No change in their existing conditions will be effected. 
Their rights will not be violated. Their commercial caravans and 
delegations will be protected. 



134 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

No cardinal will be dismissed from his position, nor will an ascetic 
be denied a right to his way of life. The custodians of churches will 
face no interference in respect of their functions. The Christians will 
not be obliged to pay the tithe tax, nor will the Muslim army enter 
their areas. 

The protection of minority rights under the Islamic dispensation has no 
parallel in the annals of history. The Prophet exhorted his followers to 
scrupulously protect the legitimate rights and privileges of the dhimmis 
(non-Muslim subjects of the Islamic state). He is reported to have said 
"Whosoever oppresses any dhimmi, I shall be his prosecutor on the Day of 
Judgement." The attitude and behaviour of the Prophet towards 
non-Muslims exhibited remarkable tolerance, understanding and 
magnanimity. Some Jewish families lived in his neighbourhood in 
Madinah. If one of their children fell sick, he would visit the sick child. If 
their funeral passed through the streets of Madinah and the Prophet was 
around, he would stand up as a mark of respect for the deceased. 

This attitude of tolerance and sympathy was continued by the four caliphs 
and the Companions. When Khalid ibn Walid made a treaty with the 
Christian population following the conquest of Hira during the caliphate of 
Abu Bakr, he gave the following written assurance to them: 

And I have guaranteed the right that if an old person becomes 
incapable of working or has suffered a mishap or after having been 
rich has become poor so much so that his co-religionists start giving 
him alms, his jizya will be remitted. He and his children shall receive 
maintenance allowance from the public treasury as long as they live in 
our country. 

It is remarkable that the occupation of Syria by the Muslim army during 
the caliphate of Abu Bakr met with no resistance from the local Christian 
population, who welcomed the Muslim soldiers not as invaders but as 
liberators. During the caliphate of Umar, some Muslims usurped a piece of 
land belonging to a Jew and constructed a mosque on the site. When the 
Caliph got to know about it he ordered the demolition of the mosque and 
the restoration of the land to the Jew.'* Caliph Umar used to consult non- 
Muslims in military and administrative matters. During the caliphate of Ali, 
the Muslim-occupied territories of the Byzantine empire faced internal 
strife. Emperor Constantine I1 sent a secret message to the Christian 
population in the Islamic state, urging them to rise in revolt against Islamic 



Momin: Pluarlism and Multiculturahsm 135 

rule and assuring them of his military support. The Christians, however, 
spumed the offer, saying: "These enemies of our religion are preferable to 

The Islamic state guaranteed not only the safety of the lives and honour 
of the dhimmis and the protection of their religious beliefs and rituals but 
also the protection and maintenance of their personal laws, institutions and 
 endowment^.'^ When Amr ibn al-As, a distinguished Companion of the 
Prophet, conquered Egypt, he allowed the properties and endowments 
attached to Christian churches to remain with the Christian custodians. The 
caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz sent a circular to his governors, which stated 
"Pay attention to the conditions of the dhimmis and treat them with kind- 
ness. If any of them reaches old age and has no means of livelihood, you 
should take care of him. If he has contractual brethren, ask them to look 
after him. Apply retaliation if any body commits torts against him." An 
Umayyad caliph had appropriated a church to enlarge the Great Mosque at 
Damascus. Later, when the Christians lodged a complaint in this matter 
with Caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, he ordered the demolition of the 
appropriated part of the mosque for restoration to the Christians. But the 
Christians asked for monetary compensation and the matter was amicably 
settled. 

The dhimmis were entitled to preserve and maintain their places of 
worship and to construct new ones. In some cases, the expenses for the 
maintenance and repair of their places of worship were met from the 
public treasury (Bayt al-Mal). Similarly, the salaries of rabbis and priests 
were often paid from the state treasury. Non-Muslims living in the Islamic 
state are entitled to certain rights and privileges which are not available to 
Muslims. For example, they are allowed to take and give interest, which is 
forbidden to Muslims. All Muslims are obliged to take part in a war in the 
event of an external aggression, which is not binding on non-Muslims. In 
lieu of this exemption, they are required to pay the jizya. During the time 
of the Prophet, the jizya was about ten dirham annually, which amounted 
to the expenses of an average family for ten days. Women, old persons and 
children are exempted from the payment of jizya. 

In some cases, when the religious rights of the dhimmis were violated 
by a ruler, the ulama and the qadis took the initiative in rectifying the 
situation. During the caliphate of al-Hadi in the second century AH, Ali ibn 
Sulayman was the governor of Egypt. For unknown reasons, he ordered the 
demolition of some Christian churches. When Musa ibn Isa succeeded him, 

you." 



136 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

he approached the ulama in this matter. Layth ibn Sa’ad, who was the doyen 
of the ulama of his times, decreed that all the demolished churches should 
be reconstructed at state expense. The governor readily complied with this 
decree. The grand mosque of Damascus had a church in its vicinity. The 
caliph Muawiyah requested the Christian community to forego their right 
over the church in lieu of some compensation, so that the church premises 
could be included in the mosque. The Christians refused. The caliph did not 
press the matter. 

Following the end of the period of the four caliphs, Muslim rulers began 
to deviate from the principles of governance as laid down in the Islamic 
Shariah. Nevertheless, the state and society set up by the Prophet and 
consolidated by the caliphs and the Companions continued to serve as a 
beacon for successive generations of Muslims. By and large, Muslim rulers 
and governments have exhibited remarkable tolerance and magnanimity 
towards non-Muslims living in the Islamic state. After the Roman 
destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, the Christians had prohibited the Jews 
from entering or living in the city. It was only after the Muslim occupation 
of Jerusalem that the Jews came to live in the city. When the Jews were 
evicted from Spain in 1492, they took shelter in Muslim lands. In Turkey, 
they were welcomed by the mayor of Istanbul. It is significant to note that, 
in Spain, Jewish communities who speak Ladino (Judaeo-Spanish) survive 
only in the eastern Mediterranean lands which were part of the Ottoman 
empire. Under Ottoman rule the cherished principle of tolerance was 
institutionalised through the millet system where administrative control 
was exercised through legally constituted religious communities, notably 
the Greek Orthodox and Armenian Christians and the Rabbanite Jews. 
The state did not demand conversion or cultural conformity from the 
ethnic and religious minorities. 

Ethnicity and Community 
The term ethnicity has become increasingly popular in the social sciences 

since the 1960s, following the end of western colonialism and the 
emergence of new nation-states. The large scale immigration of people 
from Asia and Africa to western Europe and North America during the 
second half of the 20th century and the question of their integration in the 
host society contributed to the increasing use of the term in the social 
sciences. Postmodemism has also added to the wide currency of the term 
in contemporary academic discourse?0 Ethnicity connotes the positive 



Momtn: Pluarlism and Multiculturahn 13/ 

consciousness of belonging to a group. Factors such as religion, culture 
and language constitute the key components and markers of 
ethnicity?' Ethnicity is closely linked to the concept of community. In 
sociological literature, a community is defined in terms of the relationship 
among people who share certain cultural characteristics and who live in a 
given area. The community serves a number of vital social, cultural and 
psychological functions, including the following: 
(i) Humans have a basic need for forming meaningful bonds with each 
other. This need is actualised through the community. The community 
fosters human co-operation, the sharing of joys and sorrows and 
brotherhood. 
(ii) The community promotes a sense of belonging, rootedness and 
identity among its individual members. It serves as an anchorage in the face 
of life's inevitable uncertainties, anxieties and frustrations. 
(iii) Both good and evil are embedded in the structure of human'nature. 
The community tames and neutralises man's aggressive- impulses and 
angularities and facilitates the unfolding of his benign potential. 
(iv) The community serves as an effective agency for the inculcation of 
moral values and for the transmission of a society's cultural and moral 
heritage through the process of socialization. 
(v) The community contributes to the maintenance of the social order by 
fostering compliance with socially approved norms and values and by 
discouraging deviance. 

Ethnicity and Globalization 
In many respects, globalization is a paradoxical phenomenon. It 
engenders, on the one hand, uniformity and homogenization and, on the 
other, facilitates the reinvention and revival of ethnic identity, thanks to 
international immigrations, the growing networks among diasporic 
communities, and the rapid strides in information and communications 
technology." International tourism has also contributed to the revival of 
indigenos cultures and ethnic identities. Thus the residents of Brittany, a 
province of France, are in the forefront of a vibrant revival of Breton cul- 
ture. International tourism has played an important role in this revival and 
resurgence. More than ten million tourists are visiting Brittany every year. 
In August this year Breizh Television began broadcasting in Breton as 
France's first regional channel. The Kurds are spread over a vast territorial 
area covering Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Armenia. In addition, there is a 



138 The American Joumd of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

sizeable diaspora of Kurdish expatriates in Europe and North America, 
particularly in France and Germany. The number of Kurds in the Middle 
East is currently estimated to be 20 to 25 million. Through local television 
networks, audio and video cassettes, telephones and newspapers the Kurds 
have created and maintained a world-wide network for the preservation of 
their ethnic identity and the furtherance of their political aspirations. Thus, 
ethnic identities are becoming trans-regional and trans-national. 

Modern information technology has played an important role in Islamic 
revival and re~urgence.2~ Since the 1970's audiocassettes have become an 
important and highly effective means of communication in the Islamic 
world. During the 1970's the speeches of the Iranian scholar Ali Shariati 
were recorded at Mashhad University and other centres of higher learning 
and were clandestinely distributed in Iran as well as other countries. The 
taped discourses and messages of Imam Khomeini were widely circulated 
and disseminated in mosques, seminaries, shrines, community centers, 
colleges and universities. All this ultimately paved the way for the Iranian 
Revolution of 1979F4 The wide circulation of audiocassettes on Islamic 
discourses and Uzbek nationalism significantly contributed to the 
independence of Uzbekistan from the former Soviet Union. For many 
years the taped sermons and discourses of the Egyptian scholar and savant 
Shaykh Umar Abd al-Rahman have been widely distributed in Egypt, 
Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and the United States. 

Ethnicity and Community in Islamic Perspective 
In the Islamic tradition, community (ummah, millat) has four 
connotations: 
(i) The over-arching group of mankind, to which all human beings belong 
(Qur'an 2:213; 21:92). 
(ii) The ethnic or primordial community, defined in terms of shared descent 
and territory, which is to be found in all societies (Qur'an 18:20; 2:120; 
72%). The Qur'an says: "God has established relationships of lineage and 
marriage" (2554). It further says: "0 mankind! We created you from a 
single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into groups and tribes, 
that ye may know each other" (49:13). 
(iii) A political or contractual community. When the Prophet set up a 
city-state at Madinah, he described its population, which was composed of 
Muslims, Jews and Christians, as a composite millat or political 
community. 



Momin: Pluarlism and Multiculturalism 139 

(iv) The global community of believers which, unlike (ii) and (iii), is 
trans-regional, trans-ethnic, and trans-historical. 

The basic premises which go into the making of the global community of 
believers are the oneness of God, unity, equality and brotherhood of all 
Muslims, and compassion. The Prophet eloquently described the distinctive 
character of the global Islamic community in the following words: "You 
will recognise the believers by their mutual compassion, love and 
sympathy. They are like one organism: if any of its parts is ill, the whole 
organism suffers from sleeplessness and fever. Whosoever fulfils the needs 
of his brother, God will fulfil his needs. Whoever delivers his brother from 
a discomfort, God will deliver him from the discomforts of the Day of 
Judgement." One of the most remarkable achievements of the Islamic faith 
lies in moulding people of diverse ethnic backgrounds into a unified 
community. 

Undoubtedly, ethnicity plays an important role in social solidarity, in the 
inculcation of norms and values, and in providing a sense of belonging and 
anchorage to the individual. At the same time, it can be a source of social 
conflict and tension. Ethnicity, like other social processes and mechanisms, 
reflects the polarity and paradox of human nature. It is a Janus-faced 
phenomenon, having benign as well as dysfuctional implications and 
 consequence^.^^ In the Hadith literature, the negative and socially 
disruptive connotations and consequences of ethnicity are described as 
usubiyyuh. The Prophet was asked about the definition of usubiyyuh. He 
said that it is helping one's own people in a manner that is morally wrong. 
He then said he who invites people towards usubiyyuh is not one of us; he 
who fights for it is not one of us; he who dies for the sake of it is not one 
of us . One day a scuffle took place between a Migrant (muhajir) and a 
Helper (ansari). Both called out to their respective groups for help. When 
the Prophet heard about this incident, he expressed displeasure over it and 
remarked: why do you raise slogans like those of the age of ignorance 
(iuhiliyyuh) ? Give them up; they stink. A Companion asked the Prophet 
whether loving one's own people was also a part of usubiyyuh, to which he 
replied in the negative and added: usabiyyuh is helping one's community in 
matters of injustice and oppression. 

The renowned philosopher and sociologist Ibn Khaldun (d.1406), in his 
celebrated work the Muquddimh26 has dwelt at considerable length on the 
social significance and functions of usubiyyuh and its bearing on political 
processes, especially on the establishment of political power. However, 



140 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

while he takes a largely instrumentalist view of ethnicity, he fails to take 
cognizance of the negative and dysfunctional connotations and 
consequences of u~ubiyyuh.2~ 

One of the remarkable achievements of Islamic civilization is that it 
recognised the bonds of primordiality and at the same time made them 
subservient to an over-arching Islamic identity. Thus it gave a new 
identity to disparate ethnic formations, as in Central Asia, Afghanistan and 
China. The Chinese Muslims, for example, who are otherwise known as 
Hui, Uighur, Kazakh etc, have increasingly become conscious of their 
over-arching Islamic identity. One of the significant dimensions of 
ethnicity is what may be described as the politics of ethnicity. Western 
colonial powers have often manipulated ethnicity for the purpose of 
political exploitation and for suppressing the Islamic identity of Muslim 
people. In 1982, the Muslims comprised 75 per cent of the total population 
of Albania. The communist regime tried to suppress the Islamic identity of 
Muslims and played up their ethnic identities. The Muslims of Albania 
were identified in terms of ethnic affiliation -as Gheg-Tosk- rather than as 
Muslims. Recently, during the Kosovo crisis, they were projected by the 
western media as ethnic Albanians, rather than as Muslims. 

A striking illustration of the clever manipulation of ethnicity and the 
construction of a dubious ethnic identity for political purposes was 
provided by the French colonial administration in Morocco. The colonial 
regime in Morocco sought to play up the ethnic differences between the 
Arabs and Berbers and tried to construct and project the Berber identity 
as distinct from the Arab-Muslim identity. In actual fact, the ethnic 
categorisations of Berber and Arab in Morocco are often situational and 
overlapping. In 1930, The colonial government issued the infamous Berber 
Proclamation in Morocco, which excluded the Berber regions from the 
jurisdiction of Islamic law courts. The Berbers were forbidden to learn 
Arabic in schools. The move was clearly aimed at creating dissension and 
turmoil in Moroccan society. The Proclamation set off widespread protests 
in Morocco as well as in the Islamic world?* 

Ethnic Nationalism 
In many countries ethnicity as been closely inter-twined with nationalism. 
In Israel, nationalism is inseparable from the Jewish religion and culture. In 
Thailand, national identity is defined in terms of the triumvirate of 
Buddhism, monarchy and nation. A few years ago, the Serbs sought to 



Momin: Pluarlism and Multiculturalism 141 

create a Greater Serbia where people would be of a single ethnicity, spoke 
a single language and shared the same religion. In the Islamic world, ethnic 
nationalism is represented by Arab nationalism, which is based on a 
common Arabic language, common descent and shared history and 
cultural traditions. The fiist Arab nationalist conference was held in Paris 
in 1913. In subsequent years Arab nationalism was advocated by Jamal 
Abd el Nasser in Egypt, the Ba'th Party in Iraq and Colonel Qadhdhafi in 
Libya. Arab nationalism suffered a grave setback when Syria, Libya and 
Algeria sided with Iran in the Iran-Iraq war in 1980-88. Iraq's invasion of 
Kuwait and the military alliance between Saudi Arabia and the United 
States betrayed the deep fissures in the ranks of Arab states and exposed the 
fragile edifice of Arab nationalism. From an Islamic perspective, ethnic 
nationalism suffers from the following shortcomings. 
(i) In a sense, ethnic nationalism and usabiyyuh are analogous. Since 
ethnicity is a two-faced phenomenon with positive as well as negative 
functions and consequences, it needs to be tempered with balance, justice 
and fairness. Ethnic nationalism upholds assimilation and tends to fall 
down the slippery path of intolerance and aggressiveness. Ernest Gellner 
has perceptively observed that nationalism has not been so sweetly 
reasonable or so rationally symmetrical. This has particularly been the case 
with ethnic nationalism. The history of ethnic nationalism is replete with 
intolerance, aggression, discrimination, oppression and genocide. 
(ii) Patriotism in the sense of emotional attachment to one's country is 
natural and therefore rational. However, when patriotism feeds on hatred 
and mistrust of outsiders and becomes xenophobic and intolerant it ceases 
to be rational. Islam is not against patriotism, provided it is not in conflict 
with the cherished principles of the equality and brotherhood of mankind, 
justice, fairness and compassion. However, the Islamic ethos is opposed to 
sectarian, aggressive and chauvinistic nationalism. 
(iii) Western colonial powers have played a treacherous role in the Islamic 
world through the manipulation and exploitation of ethnic loyalties for the 
furtherance of their economic and political interests. This fact has been 
amply documented. 
(iv) As far as Arab nationalism is concerned, the Arabs are no longer a 
cohesive ethnic group. There are significant political, economic, sectarian, 
factional and ethnic divisions among them, which prevent them from 
emerging as an effective political block or even as an international pressure 
group. 



142 T h e  American Journd of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

Muslims in Multicultural Societies 
Plural and multicultural societies across Europe, North America, Asia and 
Australia share certain characteristics in common. At the same time, there 
are significant variations among them in respect of the degree of openness, 
tolerance and flexibility. Accordingly, the status and problems of Muslims 
living in multicultural societies differ from country to country. However, 
one may speak, on the one hand, of a commonly shared set of problems and 
challenges faced by Muslims in plural and multicultural societies and, on 
the other, of specific problems faced by them in the context of particular 
countries. 

Muslims living in non-Islamic multicultural societies, particularly in 
Europe and North America, have to bear the brunt of an atmosphere which 
is suffused with what has come to be known as Islamophobia: a pervasive 
fear of and hostility towards Islam and Muslims. Islamophobia in the 
western world is partly a legacy of the Crusades, a hang-over of centuries 
of vilification of Prophet Muhammad and demonization of Muslims, and a 
rather pathological response to the reality of Islamic re~urgence.2~ In the 
late 1970s, following the Iranian Revolution, many western governments 
identified a major threat to westem economic and political interests from 
what was described as “Islamic fundamentalism”. At the same time, 
leaders of the former Soviet Union began to perceive and portray Islamic 
resurgence in Central Asia as a threat to the Russian state.30 The term 
“Islamic fundamentalism”, which has been widely popularized by the 
western media, is obfuscating and pejorative. It reflects and perpetuates 
western prejudices and stereotypes about Islam and Muslims and thereby 
causes misunderstanding and mistrust between Muslims and non- 
Muslims .3 

The integration of immigrant people, especially Muslims, in western 
societies has become a vexing and highly controversial issue in recent 
years. Three dimensions of the issue are noteworthy. First, though most 
western countries have become much more open and sensitive to the 
existence of substantial numbers of immigrants, they still find it difficult to 
embrace the reality of multiculturalism with an open heart. Feelings of 
mistrust, xenophobia and racism still seem to have a tenacious hold over the 
minds of many people in western countries. Secondly, many immigrants 
tend to keep themselves aloof from the local culture, which reinforces the 
mistrust and stereotypes of the host society. The local people in Germany 
and Austria, for example, complain that many Turkish immigrants show 



Momin: Pluarlism and Mukicultudism 143 

no inclination to learn the German language or to participate in local events. 
Thirdly, due to a variety of reasons, most immigrants live in segregated 
ethnic enclaves or ghettos. These ethnic clusters serve both positive and 
negative functions. On the one hand, they heighten ethnic identity and 
social solidarity among the immigrants. On the other, this ghettoization 
alienates the immigrant population from the host society and produces 
misunderstanding and mistrust between them. In several western countries, 
such as Germany, France and Switzerland, Muslim immigrants lead a 
rather isolated and fragmented life. This problem is compounded by the 
existence of ethnic, regional and linguistic divisions among the immigrant 
Muslims. In Geneva, for example, where Muslims number over 20,000, 
there is little interaction among them as members of a trans-ethnic Islamic 
community. The interaction is mainly along national, regional and 
linguistic lines. 

Like the general population, Muslims living in western countries are 
exposed to the pervasive atmosphere of secularization. The ubiquitous 
secularization process is at work in school and college, neighbourhd, 
recreation centers and the work place. In all western countries religion has 
been relegated to the private sphere. Many Muslim immigrants, especially 
those of the younger generation born and brought up in western countries, 
tend to experience religion only during important festivals at birth, 
marriage and death.32 Muslims living in western countries are influenced, 
in varying degrees, by the value system and cultural ethos of western 
societies, including individualism, unfettered freedom, materialism, 
consumerism and sexual permissiveness. In addition, They are exposed to 
the popular culture of globalization, including rap and hip-hop music and 
cult figures such as Madonna and Michael Jackson. 

These influences are imbibed through the media, the educational system 
and the peer group. The younger generation of Muslims born and brought 
up in Western societies is exposed to two conflicting cultural environments: 
a broadly Islamic one at home and a secularized, individualized and 
globalized one outside. This cultural conflict produces confusion, 
ambivalence and alienation in the youth. They are placed in an unenviable 
position in the sense that they are neither fully accepted by the host 
society nor can they identify themselves fully with the culture and ethos of 
their parents. This problem is particularly acute in the case of Muslim girls. 
The issue of wearing the headscarf (hijab) by Muslim girls in public 
schools has generated a good deal of debate and controversy and has 



144 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

brought the question of the integration of immigrant Muslims in western 
societies into sharp focus. In 1994 the Education Minister of France banned 
the wearing of the headscarf by Muslim girls in school. This led to angry 
protests by Muslim parents and students. The controversy was highlighted 
and abetted by the French media. Serge July, the editor of Liberation, 
commented on the issue in the following words: “behind the scarf is the 
question of immigration; behind immigration is the debate over integration; 
and behind integration is the question of lai~itee.”~~ It is ignificant to note 
that French schools allow Catholic girls to wear the cross and Jewish girls 
to wear the kipa. Jewish students are allowed to miss Saturday classes to 
observe the Sabbath. Similar concessions are denied to Muslim students. 
Ironically, the French government heavily subsidizes private Roman 
Catholic schools, but refuses to grant funds to Jewish and Muslim schools. 

Muslim girls studying in public schools have to not only sit with boys but 
are also required to go for picnics, camps, swimming and gym classes in 
mixed groups. The problem is compounded in the case of girls who are 
brought up in traditional Muslim families in Asia and Africa and are 
married to boys born and brought up in western societies. Their adjustment 
to an alien cultural environment and a westemised family often becomes 
problematic. The tensions and frictions born out of such situations some 
times lead to marital breakdown. 

In many western countries the day-to-day problems faced by Muslims 
include the lack of facilities for the slaughter of animals according to the 
Islamic method, difficulties in obtaining halal food, problems in getting 
days off on Islamic feasts such as Id al-Fitr, space for prayer in the work 
place, and difficulties in getting a large space for the Friday prayer. 

In some western countries, the policies of the state are unfair and 
discriminatory. In Britain, for example, thousands of Anglican, Catholic 
and Jewish religious schools are funded by the state but, until recently, such 
facilities were denied to Muslim schools. According to British law, 
blasphemy against Christianity is an offence. This provision, however, is 
not applicable to Islam or other religions. This is clearly discriminatory and 
contrary to the principle of equality which is a cardinal feature of the British 
legal system. 

However, things are slowly changing for the better as a result of the 
growing recognition of the salience of multiculturalism and the concerted 
efforts of Muslims across the world. 



Momin: Pluarhm and Muiticulturabm 145 

Notes 
1. Daniel Lemer, The Passing of Traditional Society, Free Press, New YorkJ964. 
2. Pierre L.Van Den Berge “Pluralism” in J.J. Honigmann ed. Handbook of Social 

and Cultural Anthropology, Chicago: Rand McNally, 1973. 
3. Shirin Akiner, Islamic Peoples of the Soviet Union, London: Kegan Paul Intemational, 

1986; Muhammad M. A. Khan (1988) “’Demographic Changes in the Muslim 
Population of Soviet Russia: Facts and Fiction”, Jownal of the Institute of Muslim 
Minority M a i n ,  Vo1.9, N0.1~1988; M. A. Kettani, Muslim minorities in the WorM 
Today, London: Institute of Muslim minority Affairs, 1986; Ahmad Rashid, The 
Emergence of Central Asia : Islam or Nationalism, Oxford University Press, London 
1994; Ronald Takaki, Ronald, A Diferent Mirror: A History of Multicultural America, 
Little Brown and Company, New York, 1993. 

4. C. Eennette, Ethnic cleansing in former Yugoslavia in M.Guibemau and John Rex eds. 
The Ethnicity Reader, 1997; B. Denitch, (1994): Multiculturalism: A Critical Reader, 
Oxfonk Blackwell, 1994; Robert. J. Donia, John V. Fine Jr. Bosnia and Herzegovina: 
A Tradition Betrayed, Hurst, London, 1994. 

5. Bhikhu Parekh, Rethinking Multiculturalism: Cultural Diversity and Political Theory, 
Macmillan, London, 2000. 

6. Bhiku Parekh, “The Dialectic of Diversity and Unity” in A. R. Momin ed. 
Pluralism, Ethnicity and Nationalism in South Asia (forthcoming), 2001. 

7. Iftikhar Malik, ”’Islam, the West and Ethnonationalism: A comparative analysis of 
contemporary Central and South Asia” American Jownal of I s h i c  Social Sciences, 
Vo1.9, No.1, 1992. 

8. Nathan Glazer and Daniel P. Moynihan, Beyond the Melting Pot, Cambridge, ha, 
Mass.), 1%3. 

9. Bhikhu Parekh, Rethinking Multiculturalism: Cultural Diversity and Political Theory, 
Macmillan, London, 2000. 

10. Ibid. 
11. Anthony Giddens, The Consequences of Modernity, Polity Press, Cambridge, 1990. 
12. B. Turner, Medical Power and Social Knowledge, Sage, London, 1987. 
13. A. R. Momin, “Introduction to Sociology: An Islamic Perspective”, International 

Islamic University, Kuala Lumpur and Institute of Objective Studies New Delhi, 2001; 
A. R. Momin, “Philosophical Anthropology in the Discourse of Sufism”’ in B.N. 
Saraswati ed. Alternative Models in Anthropology, Indira Gandhi National Centre for 
the Arts, New Delhi, 2001. 

14. Until the turn of the 20th century most people refused to acknowledge that all races and 
groups of mankind belonged to a single species. The guiding ideology of European 
colonialism was deeply ethnocenhic. It held, as Edmund Leach has bluntly put it, that 
“all non-Europeans are stupid, childish, barbarous and servile by their very nature” 
(Leach,1982:16). Only the white Christians of the Western world could claim to 
be fully human; all other men were rated as “subhuman animals, monsters, degenerate 
men, damned souls, or the products of a separate creation” (Leach, 1982:74); 
M. Hamidullah, AI-Wathaiq al-Siyusiyyah, Dar al-Nafais, Beirut, 1983. 



146 

15. A. R. Momin, “Islam and the Promotion of Knowledge”, International Islamic 

16. Ibid 
17. A. R. Momin, “Islamic Sociology: Towards a Conceptual Framework” Journal of 

Objective Sfudies, vol.4 No. I I ,  1992; A. R. Momin, Introduction to Sociology: An 
Islamic Perspective, International Islamic University, Kuala Lumpur, Institute of 
Objective Studies, New Delhi, 2001. 

The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 18.2 

University, Kuala Lumpur and Institute of Objective Studies, New Delhi: ,2000. 

18. M. Hamidullah, Introduction to Islam, Habib and Company, Hyderabad, 1969. 
19. M. Khadduri, The Islamic Law of Nations: Shaybani’s Siyar Johns Hopkins Press, 

Baltimore, MD,1%6, I. R. Faruqi and L. L. Faruqi eds, A Cultural Atlas of Islam 
Macmillan, New York, 1987. 

20. Z. Bauman, Intimations of Postmodernity, Routledge, London, 1992. 
21. M. Guikrnau and John Rex &.The Ethnicity Reader: Nationalism, Multiculturalism 

and Migration, Polity Press, Cambridge, 1997; P. S p n l e y ,  Racism and Ethnicity 
Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1988. 

22. Walker Connor, Ethmnationalism: The Quest for Understanding, Oxford University 
Press, Princeton, 1994. 

23. Y. Haddad, John 0.Voll and John L. Esposito eds. The Contemporary Islamic 
Revival: A Critical Survey and Bibliography, Oxford University Press, New York, 1991. 

24. John L. Esposito, The Iranian Revolution: Its Global Impact, Miami, 1990. 
25. C. Geertz, Old Societies and New States: The Quest for Modernity in Asia and Africa, 

Free Press, New York, 1967; Michael Walzer, The Politics of Ethnicity Harvard 
University Press, Cambridge, Mass., 1982. 

New York, 1958. 

Bibliography”, Institute of Objective Studies, New Delhi, (forthcoming), 2001. 

the Modern Islamic World, Oxford University Press, New York, 1995. 

Gamet Publishing, Reading, UK.; Norman Daniel, Islam and the West: The Making of 
an Imuge, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 1960; T. B. Irving, Islam Resurgent 
Suhail Academy, Lahore, 1979. 

landing in Spain to the second Turkish siege of Vienna, Europe was under constant 
threat from Islam” (Lewis,1993:13). Samuel Huntington has written: “Islam is the only 
civilization which has put the survival of the West in doubt, and it has done that at least 
twice” (Huntington, 1996:210). 

31. R. Mottahedeh, ‘The clash of civilizations: an Islamic critique” Harvard Middle 
Eastern and Islamic Review, V01.2 N0.2, 1995; K m  B. Akhtar and Ahmad H. Sakr 
Islamic Fundamentalism, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 1982; C. F. Hallencreutz and 
D. Westerlund eds. Questioning the Secular State: The Worldwide Resurgence of 
Religion in Politics, Hurst, London, 1996; A. R. Momin, “On Islamic Fundamentalism: 
The Genealogy of a Stereotype”, Hamdard Islamicus, Vo1.X No.4, 1987. 

32. Jocelyne Cesari, “Pluralism in the Context of Globalization: European Muslim Youth” 
ISIM Newsletter, vo1.2flo.99, 1999. 

33. Bhikhu Parekh, Rethinking Multiculturalism: Cultural Diversity and Political Theory, 
Macmillan, London, 2000. 

26. Ibn Khaldun, The Muqaddimah, translated by Franz Rosenthal. 3 Vols.Pantheon Books, 

27. A. R. Momin, ed. “Sociology and Anthropology in Islamic Perspective: Readings and 

28. Dale F. Eickelman, “Ethnicity” in John L. Esposito ed. The Ogord Encyclopaedia of 

29. M. Reeves, “Muhammad in Europe: A Thousand Years of Western Myth Making” 

30. Bernard Lewis says: “For almost a thousand years, from the first Moorish