As you know,
in the most puritanical form of Islam – if you can call it that -
WAHABISM is very strict in it's definition of Shirk (idolatry and
polytheism and reliance on other than Allah) to the extent that much
of what passes off as superstition and belief in the efficacy of the
charms, and talismans and amulets of West African and North-West
African Maraboutism is looked upon as SHIRK which according to Islamic
tenets is the one sin that Allah subhan t'ala will not forgive.
From Wahabism's point of view this reliance on charms and talismans,
or even
"The medicine man" (has various names from coast to coast) is
regarded as something suspect that's part and parcel of some
indigenous African cultures, going back to the pre-Islamic age of
Jahiliyya
Even Ismail al- Faruqi's classical modern work "Tawhid" is very strict
in its definition of Shirk, and in that definition encompasses the
tenets of Wahabism.
So Wahabism regards itself as the purifier of those who deviate from
the strict understanding of Tawhid and of Shirk……
Whereas many of the local varieties of African Islam which as you
say is sometimes married to more local culture and practices of
indigenous African practitioners of the faith make concession to
amulets as being empowered by Allah.
So there is this on-going conflict between the Purifiers ( from
Saudi Arabia , called Wahabi and those aspects of "African Islam "
which from the Wahabi point of view is dangerously close to shirk, if
indeed not shirk.
I do not see any conflict between Sheikh Othman Dan Fodio's writings
on Tawhid and Wahabism – except that Wahabism does not seem to be very
fond of Sufism……
On 5 Jan, 19:01, kenneth harrow <har...@msu.edu> wrote:
> no religion on earth did not "get" its beliefs, credos, practices,
> from other places, as well as developing aspects of their own.
> as for the ways christianity and islam came to africa, i suggest you
> reread the chapters in my volume Faces of Islam to see that the
> complicated passages that led islam to africa could not every be
> reduced to the simple figures of raiders/traders/colonisers. dave
> robinson wrote the opening chapter on the passage of islam into africa.
>
> lastly, as anyone who knows the first thing about islam in africa, is
> it, like all versions of islamic belief and practice anywhere sui
> generis. to be clear about it, it is african islam, while also
> participating in aspects of "world" islam. but it is the creation of
> indigenous african thinkers and believers--and much that did come
> down across the desert was also being created by north africans.
> it is for this reason that i believe it is totally misleading to
> think of religions as being imported, rather than merging with an
> already existent set of beliefs, beliefs that prepared for the
> possibility of a foreign belief to be integrated into an existing set
> of beliefs.
>
> if you don't know about such basic notions, and want to think of
> these religions as foreign imports, i suggest googling mouridism for
> starters. or kimbanguism for that matter.
> ken harrow
>
> At 04:57 AM 1/5/2011, you wrote:
>
>
>
> >Complements of the season,
>
> >On a much broader perspective, i do not think it is empirically, or
> >even historically correct to say that we got religion and democracy
> >from the colonial interlopers! We may have gotten Islam and
> >Christianity from the European and Arab colonisers and slave
> >raiders/traders; but we certainly had our own religions and pantheon
> >of gods like every other human civilisation. Furthermore we may have
> >gotten this specific form of democracy from the european colonial
> >interlopers, i think and i blieve that history supports this, that
> >we were certainly developing forms of governance which were becoming
> >more participatory, and more representative than the absolute
> >monarchy by the time of conquest.
> >I do not agree that democracy is a western gift to the world.
> >Regards,
> >Jaye
>
> >From: KAYODE EESUOLA <gamesmaste...@yahoo.com>
> >To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
> >Sent: Sat, December 25, 2010 7:54:12 AM
> >Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Jos i perpective
>
> >Two things we got from colonial interlopers: religion and democacy
> >have contnued to bring war and crisis on Africa, yet we continue to
> >patronise them as the solutions to our problem. Like fools we go to
> >church , we go to mosque and we do elections everyyear; and in doing
> >so Africa inflict more woes on herself. Is'nt it hightime we looked elsewhere?
> >I rememberr Fela Anikulapo kuti
>
> >--- On Fri, 12/24/10, orunmilab...@yahoo.co.uk
> ><orunmilab...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
>
> >From: orunmilab...@yahoo.co.uk <orunmilab...@yahoo.co.uk>
> >Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Bombs in Jos
> >To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
> >Date: Friday, December 24, 2010, 6:03 PM
>
> >This is, indeed, sad. It shows the ineptitude and failure of the
> >ruling class to provide basic needs of the people and in this
> >particular instance, security. That this happened without ANY of the
> >countless security agencies being maintained with tax payers money
> >is absolutely lamentable.
> >Sent from my BlackBerry wireless device from MTN
>
> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: Toyin Falola <toyin.fal...@mail.utexas.edu>
> >Sender: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
> >Date: Fri, 24 Dec 2010 16:13:59
> >To: <USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com>
> >Reply-To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
> >Subject: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Bombs in Jos
>
> > >Date: Fri, 24 Dec 2010 22:56:31 +0100
> > >Subject: Bombs in Jos
> > >From: Sati Fwatshak <sfwats...@gmail.com>
> > >To: Toyin Falola <toyin.fal...@mail.utexas.edu>,
> > >j.cheswo...@cmcsoxford.org.uk,
> > > Franz Kogelmann <fr...@kogelmann.eu>, Dana Chivvis
> > ><danachiv...@gmail.com>
>
> > >This is to inform you that this evening, about 730-8pm Nigerian
> > >time, Bombs were dropped in various Christian dominated parts of Jos
> > >killing several and wounding several more people. The affected
> > >areas include Gada Biyu, Angwan Rukuba, and Tina Junction, with
> > >drinking spots and bars most targeted. Though I live in the Staff
> > >quarters very close to the Muslim-dominated part of the town, I
> > >received a phone call from far away Abuja about the incident and
> > >then called people both Christians and Muslims and Jos and they all
> > >confirmed the incident. No one or group has claimed responsibility.
> > >It is sad indeed.
> > >Sati
>
> >--
> >Toyin Falola
> >Department of History
> >The University of Texas at Austin
> >1 University Station
> >Austin, TX 78712-0220
> >USA
> >512 475 7224
> >512 475 7222 (fax)
> >http://www.toyinfalola.com/
> ><http://www.utexas.edu/conferences/africa>www.utexas.edu/conferences/africa
> >http://groups.google.com/group/yorubaaffairs
> >http://groups.google.com/group/USAAfricaDialogue
>
> >--
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> Kenneth W. Harrow
> Distinguished Professor of English
> Michigan State University
> har...@msu.edu
> 517 803-8839
> fax 517 353 3755
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