A Note

Even after more than a century, Jamãl al-Di̅n al-Afghãni continues to maintain his direct relevance to the contemporary discourse on Islam versus modern political and social theories and institutions. His duel confrontation against the Western political and economic interventions in the Muslim lands and against the Muslim theological authorities has defined various new perspectives on the inter-relationship between the non-changing Islamic belief-system and the changing times. The political West (and not its thinking elite) continues, as in the days of Afghãni, to treat Islam and the Muslim countries, particularly of West Asia, as two main challenges to its ambitions of controlling the world politically, economically and culturally. The Muslim mind, on the other hand, is still not ready to take notice of challenges the new knowledge has posed for the medieval Islamic theology and, for this, to revisit the Qur’ãn. Afghãni had offered his analysis of both these situations and suggested the remedies. He is one of the most prominent Muslim intellectuals of the East who may help in a proper understanding of the contemporary complexities of the dynamics of world peace and the knowledge driven concept of religiosity.
A new chapter has been added on Afghani’s stay in India (not studied adequately, so far) during which he emerges as a social thinker suggesting a new idea of Islam—-not a theological-political system but as a functioning social system responsive to change.
I thank Ashhar Farhan for going through the manuscript, making various important suggestions and preparing the final electronic version of the book. I also thank Mr. Muhammad Moosa for the images of the mausoleum in Kabul.Anwar Moazzam

Preface
(First edition)

The present work is based on my Ph.D. thesis on Afghãni’s religious ideas submitted at Aligarh Muslim University in 1963. Since then important data on his life and thought has come to light. Some valuable work has also been done on Afghãni during this period, particularly at the universities and other research centers in Europe and USA, which indicates his growing relevance to the recent trends and political developments in the Muslim world. However, these works are focused mostly on his political activities. Among such studies two books by Nikki R. Keddie deserve special attention due to their comprehensive coverage of Afghãni’s political life, based on all published and the available unpublished material including research monographs, leaving little scope for any further research in this regard. However, the existing works are not much helpful in giving an exact idea of Afghãni’s theoretical framework, explaining his behavior as a political strategist and as an intellectual. My claim to be different is based on an analysis of various aspects of Afghãni’s intellectual personality, with a focus on points either not noticed or inadequately evaluated by others.
I owe a special debt to the late Prof. Abdul Aleem, my adviser, who remained a source of inspiration throughout the tenure of my research. I am particularly grateful to Prof. S. Maqbul Ahmad and Prof. Munibur Rahman, who had gone through the original manuscript and offered valuable suggestions. I also acknowledge the constant help I received from Prof. Mahmudul Haq, Prof. Moin Shakir, Prof. Afzal Mohammad and Mr. Mahdi Ansari in giving this work a final shape. My wife, Jeelani Bano, and my son, Ashhar Farhan, with their encouraging presence around, made me treat the preparation of this work more as a creative involvement than a mere mechanical exercise in research.
Anwar Moazzam
Hyderabad