Undesired Walrus
23rd July 2007, 03:49 AM
Since September 11th, 2001, the world has arguably changed. For the many amongst us in the Western World, Islam was only a thing to come across in the doctors surgery, in the corner shop, or vaguely touched upon in school.
For Londoners, the only mention we heard was the usual joke about Hindu parents being terrified of their daughters marrying Muslim men. Since the Danish cartoons, It is hard to imagine a similar joke being made again, or at least without a sharp intake of breath from the unconfrontational amoung us.
So why are so many afraid of this faith? Why do so many so keen to brush Islamic extremism under the rug with the classic phrase known to so many, 'Islam is a religion of peace'?
Ed Husain attempts to address these questions. He makes us understand the appeal of this radical faith, it's drive, the romantic words of one of the godfathers, Mawdudi, and how there can be only one answer in this 'ignorant', and 'godless' world:
Islam.
Never before have I thought of how easy it could be for me to become a religous extremist. Even now, in my twenties, I could see how, in an uncaring world arguably obsessed with illegitimate sex and television shows such as Big Brother, surrendering yourself to the ordered laws of a God can be the justification you wish to achieve for feeling outcast and unequal to the confident souls of the world.
Without blame, without scorn, and without accusing anyone other than himself, Husain shows us the intense attraction towards this strain of Islam, and to such a detailed extent that we breath in with relief when he realises the irrational years he spent as a radical. Slowly, he understands how much he was raped by the words of Qutb and Mawdudi, and gets a better ideal on the virtues of rationality and reason.
Many critics have slammed The Islamist, branding it as a 'Neo-Con's dream' and intensly conservative, a book that wishes to blame not the United States and its foriegn policy, but solely radical Islam.
Maybe so, but I see it more as a book that shows us how much we are all so similar, and allowing us, however small it may be, to recognise ourselves in the mind of an Islamist. Too many times people brush off events such as Madrid, 9/11 or 7/7 as carried out by a bunch of 'nuts', 'unintelligent fools', without getting to grips with what drove them to the ends.
'You are either with us, or you are with the terrorists'?
Ed Husain wishes to change that.
An essential read, and perhaps the start of a theological shift in our society.
For Londoners, the only mention we heard was the usual joke about Hindu parents being terrified of their daughters marrying Muslim men. Since the Danish cartoons, It is hard to imagine a similar joke being made again, or at least without a sharp intake of breath from the unconfrontational amoung us.
So why are so many afraid of this faith? Why do so many so keen to brush Islamic extremism under the rug with the classic phrase known to so many, 'Islam is a religion of peace'?
Ed Husain attempts to address these questions. He makes us understand the appeal of this radical faith, it's drive, the romantic words of one of the godfathers, Mawdudi, and how there can be only one answer in this 'ignorant', and 'godless' world:
Islam.
Never before have I thought of how easy it could be for me to become a religous extremist. Even now, in my twenties, I could see how, in an uncaring world arguably obsessed with illegitimate sex and television shows such as Big Brother, surrendering yourself to the ordered laws of a God can be the justification you wish to achieve for feeling outcast and unequal to the confident souls of the world.
Without blame, without scorn, and without accusing anyone other than himself, Husain shows us the intense attraction towards this strain of Islam, and to such a detailed extent that we breath in with relief when he realises the irrational years he spent as a radical. Slowly, he understands how much he was raped by the words of Qutb and Mawdudi, and gets a better ideal on the virtues of rationality and reason.
Many critics have slammed The Islamist, branding it as a 'Neo-Con's dream' and intensly conservative, a book that wishes to blame not the United States and its foriegn policy, but solely radical Islam.
Maybe so, but I see it more as a book that shows us how much we are all so similar, and allowing us, however small it may be, to recognise ourselves in the mind of an Islamist. Too many times people brush off events such as Madrid, 9/11 or 7/7 as carried out by a bunch of 'nuts', 'unintelligent fools', without getting to grips with what drove them to the ends.
'You are either with us, or you are with the terrorists'?
Ed Husain wishes to change that.
An essential read, and perhaps the start of a theological shift in our society.