Comunism and Islam

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Communism and IslamAuthor(s): Bernard LewisSource: International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944-), Vol. 30, No. 1(Jan., 1954), pp. 1-12Published by: Blackwell Publishing on behalf of the Royal Institute of International AffairsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2608416 .

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COMMUNISM AND ISLAMBERNARD LEWISM[Y purposehere s to try o see howfar slamand Communism

are compatible-howfar, hatis, Islam predisposes hosewhohave been brought p in itto acceptortoreject he Communistteaching. I shall not attempt o examine Communistnfiltrationndpropagandan Islamiccountriesr thedegree ftheir uccess r failure-that s a taskcalling or rofessionalkills ndsources f nformationtherthanthosewhich re at mydisposal.Rather hall try o considerwhatqualities r tendenciesxist n Islam, n Islamiccivilizationnd society,whichmight ither acilitater mpede he advanceofCommunism.The obviousobjectionwillno-doubt t once be raisedthat Islam isafter ll a religion ased on revelation,elief nwhich s clearly ncom-patible withMarxist deology.Thatis undoubtedlyrue, nd the samecould be said withequal truthof Orthodox,Catholic,or ProtestantChristianity,fJudaism,ranyother eligion orthyf hename. Never-theless, hat doctrinalncompatibilityas not preventedmany formerfollowersf thesereligions rom ecoming ommunists. o doubt,thedevout ndpiousMuslimheologian hohas studied ndunderstandsheimplicationsf dialecticalmaterialism illrejectthatcreed,but such acombinationf circumstancess notofcommon ccurrence,or ikely obe offar-reachingignificance. he questionbefore s shouldrather eput thus: in thepresent ompetitionetween he Western emocraciesandSovietCommunismor hesupport fthe slamicworld,whatfactorsorqualities re theren slamic radition,r n thepresenttateof slamicsocietyndopinion, hichmight repare he ntellectuallyndpoliticallyactivegroups o embraceCommunistrinciplesndmethods fgovern-ment, ndtherest o acceptthem?Before roceedingnyfurtherfeel hata writer na subjectofthisnatureowes his readersome definitionf his own political ttitude.Let me confess ightwaythat lackonequalification hichnowadaysis generallyccepted s-conferringothauthoritynd respectability-Iamnotan ex-Communist.can however leadas an extenuatingircum-stance hat grew p in a generation hichwasdeeply ffectedywhatwashappeningnRussia, ndwhich elt, enerallypeaking,hat,with llthebrutalitiesndcrimes fthe Russianrevolution,tneverthelessepre-

sented omethingaluableand significantorhumanity-'blisswas it inthatdawnto be alive'-and I am thereforeerhaps ble to understandsomethingftheattractions wellas of therepulsion f theCommunistcreed. Ofmyownpolitical ttitude etme say this, hat believethat


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2 INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS [JAN.parliamentaryemocracys practisedn theWest,with ll itsmanifestfaults,s still hebest and most ustform fgovernmentet devisedbyman. But at the ametime believe tto be themostdifficultooperate,requiringertain ualities fmind ndhabit, f nstitutionndtradition,perhaps ven ofclimate, or tseffectiveorking.t has takenfirmootonlyamongthe peoplesof the northern nd north-westernringes fEurope, ndinthe territoriesolonized ytheir escendantsverseas. thas maintained, r maintains, precarious xistence n a fewotherregions,nd is showing igns fpromisingutstill mmaturerowthnafewmore-but otherwiset is unknownotherestofthe human ace, nmost ftheworld,ndthroughmost frecorded istory.Knowing, hen, hatparliamentaryemocracys farfrom eingthecommonxperiencefmankind, am,tomyregret, ynomeans ertainthat t representshecommon estiny fmankind,nd I shallthereforetry o avoid the toofrequentractice,whichhas thefault fbeingbothinaccurate nd inexpedient,f representingheworld'sdilemma s astraighthoicebetweenCommunismnd parliamentaryemocracy;ofmaking,therefore,n appearanceof parliamentaryovernmentheuniversalestofpolitical ndevenmoral irtue-inotherwords, fmak-ingourownpresentwayof ife he olepattern fgoodness,lldeviationsfromwhich renecessarilyvil,all alternativesowhich re lumped o-gethern a massofundifferentiatedickedness. hisprinciple, otevenconsistentlypplied, eads us to such ogical nd political bsurditiesssimultaneouslyourting he favours f some slave-owningnd poly-gamous utocrat n another ontinent, hile nubbingheGovernmentofSpain-because of theirdisregard fcivil iberties.The unfortunateandunpalatable act s that t s we who are theexceptionnbothhistoryandgeography,nd that uthoritarianndnotrepresentativeovernmentapproximatesmostcloselyto the common xperience fmankind. nmostoftheworld utocracy,f essattractive,smore amiliarndmoreintelligiblehandemocracy,nd even thearbitrarynd capricious icta-torshipfMoscow s neither s strange ortherefores repellentomuchofAsiaand Africa-evenmuchofEurope-as it is to us. We should er-tainlydo ourbest to encouragehegrowthffree nstitutionshereverpossible;butat thesametime,wewoulddo welltorecall hatfor greatpart of the humanrace,parliamentaryemocracy emains omethingremote,lien, ndincomprehensible,n object ometimesfwonderment,even nvy,more ften las ofmistrustndhatred,whichwemust oncedeis notentirelynjustified henwe recalltheexamples fdemocracy ywhich lonethey an udge t. If thepeoplesof slamareforcedomakea straighthoice, o abandon heir wn raditionsnfavour feither om-munismrparliamentarianism,henweareat a greatdisadvantage.It is,however, ortunate,othfor slamand for heWesternworld,thatthechoice s not restrictedo thesetwosimple lternatives,or hepossibilitytillremains or he Muslim eoplesofrestoring,erhapsn a


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I954] COMMUNISM AND ISLAM 3modified orm, heirown tradition;of evolving form fgovernmentwhich, hough uthoritarian,ndperhaps ven autocratic,s neverthelessfarremoved rom hecynical yrannyf European-styleictatorship.do not wishto be misunderstood-Iwould muchprefer o see all Islamenjoy the benefits f constitutionalovernment,emocraticiberty, ndthefreedevelopmentfthe individual,nd I by no means excludethepossibilityf this desirableconsummation,hichin a few favouredcountriess already n sight-but I wishto makeclearmyview that nlarge reasof he slamicworld his onsummations not nprospect nd,furthermore,hat the presentcircumstances,nd indeed the ancienttraditionsfIslam,do notwholly avour sbut,onthecontrary,ontainmuchwhichmightncline heMuslimndividual, lass, rnation,which sready o abandon raditional alues nd beliefs,oaccept heCommunistrather hanthe democraticlternative.

I propose owtoselect nddiscuss few fwhat eemto me to be themore mportant lements avouringhe successof Communismn theIslamicworld, nd to deal with hemunder woheadings: irst, he acci-dentals, hosethatarepartofthepresenthistoricalituation, nd thenthe essentials,hosewhich re innateor inherentn theveryqualityofIslamic nstitutionsnd ideas.The first nd most mportantf theaccidentals s theanti-Westernmotif.The Communistsre against heWest and for hatreason an atoncecount nimportantlementsf upportn the slamicworld, ustastheNaziswere ble todo in their ime-to a considerablextent hesameelements fsupport nd for he same reasons. Like theNazis,theCom-munists re anti-Westernn the double sense-they are against theWesternowers ndthey realsoagainst heWestern ayof ife,Westerninstitutionsnd ideas. Underbothheadings heyhave a strong ppeal.The present nti-Westerneactionn the Islamicworld s obviousandwellknown.After heperiodof admirationnd imitation fthenine-teenth ndearly wentiethenturies,here s nowa general ndgrowingrevulsion.Publicattention as beenfocusedn themainon a seriesofspecific rievancesf the Islamicworld gainsttheWest-Morocco andTunisia,Suez and theSudan,Palestine,Abadan,and therest,ofwhichnow one,now another, as been adduced as the main cause of anti-Western eeling.Thereare alwaysthose n theWestwhowillseek togrindnaxeortitillate prejudice y attributingll troubles o the mis-deeds f heir avouritecapegoats-theFrench rtheJews,heAmericansor the British-and theywill alwaysfind nthusiasticgreement romsomebodyn the Orient. Muslims endto stress heimportancefanyspecificssue n the measure f their wn nvolvementn it-Westerners,of theirown freedom rom nvolvement. n reality, ll of themaresymptomsr aspectsofa fundamentalnd universal evulsion rom llthat sWesternnd,as we haveseen of ate,even the removal f oneor


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4 INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS [JAN.another rievanceannotbringmore hana local and temporaryllevia-tion. This movements made up of variousstrains, f which maymention hereaction gainst colonialism, hichgrows trongers thelatter s manifestly ying; againstWesternprivilege nd arrogance,economic,ocial,political; gainst he dislocationsndupheavalsresult-ingfromhe mpact fthe West, hechanges roughtboutbyWesterninfluencendactivities,ynomeans ll ofwhich re-as we ike o flatterourselves-beneficial.The liberaland constitutional ovementsn the Islamiccountries,whichwere aunchedwithsuchhigh hopesin the nineteenthentury,have,withfew xceptions,nded nfailure, isappointment,ndfrustra-tion.The local leadershave all too often elapsed ntoa cynicismndopportunismhathas outraged hemoral ense ofthosewhom heypro-fessed o lead,or else have soughtcomfortn a rabidand xenophobefanaticism,amningndiscriminatelyll andeverythinghathascome utof theWest. They expr'essedheblindprotest fthemasses gainst healien ndpowerfulorceshathad dislocated heir raditional ayof ife,destroyedheir raditionalocialequilibrium,nd posednewproblemsforwhichtheyoffered o effectivenswer. It is no doubtunjustofMuslims o blametheWestfor heexuberant nd destructive asteoftheir wnreformersndfor he ncompetencendselfishnessftheir wnparliamentarians.utwe must dmit hattherecord ftheWest n itsdealingswith he slamicworld nd forthat mattern its own nternalaffairsoesnot furnish aterial or nyvery trikingebuttal.Communistropaganda gainst heWestcan thereforelways ounton a readyresponse, speciallywhen trikingheanti-imperialistrum.It mayseem trangeous thatthe Sovietempire,till udibly ructatingafter aving oltedhalfofEurope, houldbe able toposesuccessfullysthe championftherightsfoppressed eoples gainst he mperialists-that heStatewhich uleswithno ight andover omanyMuslimubjectpeoples, houldneverthelesse abletocarry ffhisposeamong heotherpeoplesof Islam. Yet so it is. For most slamicpeoplesthenotion f'imperialist'-and amspeaking ereofcourse fthepopular mage-isratherrestrictednd surprisinglyrecise. The imperialists alwaysWestern-infact,Western mperialist's a natural nd normal olloca-tion fterms,ikeGermanmeasles rSpanishflu.TheArabwhoprotestsagainst mperialismoes not thinkforone moment hat his putativeancestors hoconqueredn empire rom hePyrenees otheOxus werealso imperialists,orthe Persianthatthevauntedglories fCyrus ndDariuswerealso of an imperial uality. Even the modernJapanese,except fcourse mong heir mmediateictims,re somehowegardedsdifferentnd as belongingundamentallymong he heeprather han hegoats-blacksheepperhaps, ut still heep.The mperialistfthepopularprototype,hestockfigurefcontemporaryolitical emonologyn theOrient, s Western,nd is moreoverlwaysmaritimend commercial.


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I954] COMMUNISM AND ISLAM 5Theimperialists a manwhocomes cross he sea ina ship, andson thecoast, uys ndsells,works isway nland, ndfinally,yvarious evices,mostly ishonest,stablishes isrule.This s ofcourse distillationndinsomemeasure distortionftheexperiencefmostofAsia andAfrica fPortuguesend Dutch,Frenchand British xpansion ince the sixteenthentury. t is in factthe soledirect xperiencef mostof thesecountries,n the ast few enturies,fthephenomenonfimperialism. he otherkind,overlandmilitaryx-pansion,s notreally rasped,xcept gainbythosewhohaveexperiencedit directly. urkey,or xample, as for enturiesought defensivectionagainst hesuccessivetagesoftheRussianoverlanddvance, irsto theBlack Sea, thendownthroughhe Balkans and theCaucasus. Turkeymoreovers related y anguage ndorigin o theTartarpeopleswho arenowunder ovietyoke.Hencethegreater egree f warenessmong heTurks f henature fSoviet mperialism,ndthevastly ifferentttitudeadoptedby Turkey o thepresentworldproblems. n therest of theIslamicworld oviet mperialism ay perhaps,nsomecircles, e appre-hended ntellectually,ut it failsto evokeanyreal emotional esponse.It is remarkableow slamic pinion enerallyefusesoaccord oancientMuslim entres f cultureike Bukhara ndSamarkand nehundredthfthe nterestnd attentioniven o, ay,Casablanca, smailia, ndAbadan.Even thosewho reanti-Communistilloftenay-most ofusmusthaveheard t-'At least,theRussians re not mperialists'-and eallybelievethattheSovietregime, espite tsother aults,s somehow ree romhatparticulartigmawhich endershe WesternPowers o odious. Here itmustbe statedthattheRussiansare greatly elped by Western acialand colourprejudice ndbytheir wnapparent reedomromt. This san immense sset to them,both in Asia and Africa, nd one that iswantonlyresentedothem.Thesecond ccidentalwithwhich shalldeal is thepresent iscontentof the Islamicworld, nd more pecificallyhesocialand economic is-content.Theabjectpovertyfthemasses nd thecallous rresponsibilityof hepossessinglasses re oftenmentioneds sources fpossible anger.Quiteclearly,warningsfthe threat o libertyndpropertyreunlikelyto move hosewhopossessneither;on thecontrary,ommunistdeasandpromiseswillhave a readyattraction or mportantroups n a societywhich, s has often eenpointed ut, n manywaysresembleshat ofRussiaon theeveoftheRevolution.Thispoint s self-evidentnd has often eenmade,and there s noneedforme to dwellonit. I would,however,iketomentionhree actswhichwemight ear n mindwhenwespeak of the mmemorialovertyand irresponsibilityf the Orient.The firsts that thispoverty,t anyrate n itspresent orm,s in factnot mmemorial. bviously,he gapbetween ich ndpoorhas always xisted, ut as far s we canascertain,ithasnot nearlier imesbeenas wideand as unbridgeables it is now.


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6 INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS [JAN.In its present orm, hisgap is largely heresult f theWestern mpact,the effectfwhichhas beentomaketherichricher,nd thepoorpoorerthan they werebefore.The economic ffects f Westernizationnd ofcontactwith he West area complex roblem; propose ere o mentiononly wo spects. One sthegreater pportunityoamasswealth ffordedby Westernndustrial,ommercial,tnd inancialechniques,nd thecon-sequent growth ffortunesn a scale unknownn earlier nd simplereconomies; heotherstherapid ncrease fpopulation,madepossible yWestern ygienend security,utunaccompanied yany correspondingincreasenfood upplies.Moreover,hedisparityetween ich ndpoor snotonlygreaterhanbefore, ut,what sperhapsmoremportant,smore isible, hanks o theintroductionf Western menities nd the flowof Western onsumergoods,whichafford astly greater pportunitiesorthe public displayand enjoymentfwealth. These changes re notdue tothevillainy ftheWest reven nanygreatmeasure o thedirectnterventionfWesterners;theyare ratherthe consequences f the processof Western ontact,Westernnfluence,nd Westernizationenerally.TheWest snowdoingsomethingoremedy hem, ndcandoverymuchmore.I havesaid that hepovertyf theOrientwasnot, nitspresent orm,immemorial.Norfor hatmatter s theirresponsibilityf the Orientalruling lasses. Before he impactofWesternizationrom, ay, the lateeighteenth entury nwards, he corporative tructure f traditionalIslamicsociety, houghworm-eaten,as still tanding, nd thecomplexsystem f social andmoralduties ssociatedwith twas stillfunctioning.Thenthe oldorderwas shattered, otbythewickedmperialists,utbynativereformers,en of thestampofMahmud I in Turkey nd Mu-hammadAli nEgypt,whodestroyedetter han heybuilt. Nothing ascome oreplace heold bonds. That s the cause ofthe ocialandpoliticalformlessness hichhas struck o manyobservers f modern slamicsocieties, he absenceofanybutpurelypersonal nd family oyalties-since hefamilystheonly urvivingocialunitwith nyreal ife rmean-ing. So that,we might remember, hatwe condemn s the vice ofnepotisms,for hosewhopractise t,thevirtue ffamilyoyalty,heonlyintelligibleorm floyalty hatremains.The disappearance fthe oldsocial ethos and the breakdown f the old social cohesionhave left adangerous apwhichWesternocial deals and institutionsavefailed ofill.Mythird ointsthat he entre fdangers notthe tarving easantryso often eferredo,but rather heaspiringmechanics, hoarethemainrecruitso theCommunistause. Thepeasantryrestill, o a large xtent,integratedn their raditionalocialunits, nd sustained y theloyaltyand cohesion f thefamilyndvillage roup. t is the emi-skilledrun-skilledabourers hoareuprooted rom heir ribal ndvillage ommuni-ties,deprived f thesupport f their sualsystem f socialrelationships


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1954] COMMUNISM AND ISLAM 7andmutual id, andplaced n alienandunfamiliarurroundings.n theCommunistell the transplantedroletarian r mechanicmayhope tofindome ubstituteorhis ost ocialarmature,s wellas encouragementin theambitionsndresentmentshathe acquires ogether ithhis newskills.

I turnnowfromheaccidental o theessential actors,o thosede-riving rom hevery natureof Islamicsociety, radition,nd thought.The first f these s theauthoritarianism,erhapswe mayevensay thetotalitarianism,f he slamicpolitical radition.t isbynow amentablyclearthatanytotalitarianovernment,owevernti-Communisttspro-fessed reedmaybe,does nfactprovide he tarting-pointor swiftndeasy transition o Communist ictatorship.The democraticFinns,isolatedand abandonedto the merciesof Russia, have neverthelesssucceeded n maintainingheirdemocraticiberties hroughong anddifficultears. The moreorless Fascistregimes fEasternand CentralEurope,by a few imple djustments, ere oontransformedntoCom-munist tates,forwhich hemachineryndpersonnelfrepression,ndthehabitofacquiescencenit,wereready ohand. Thepolitical xperi-ence andtraditionsf slam, though erydifferentromhoseofEasternEurope,doneverthelessontain lementswhichmight,ncertain ircum-stances, repare hewayforCommunism.Many ttempts ave beenmade toshow hat slamanddemocracyreidentical-attempts suallybased on a misunderstandingf Islam ordemocracyr both. This sort ofargumentxpresses need oftheup-rootedMuslimntellectual ho is no longer atisfiedwithorcapableofunderstandingraditionalslamic values, and who tries to justify, rrather,e-state, is nherited aithnterms fthefashionabledeology ftheday. It is an example f the romantic nd apologetic resentationfIslamthat s a recognizedhase n the reaction fMuslimhoughto theimpactoftheWest. There are of course lements,ven mportant le-ments,n Islam,especiallyn theearlyperiod,whichwemightnotun-justlycall democratic,ut on the whole thetendencywhich s usuallyadduced nsupport f thisthesis s equalitarian ather handemocratic;a verydifferenthing, nd one thatgoeswithauthoritariant least aswell s withdemocraticnstitutions.n point ffact, xceptfor heearlycaliphate,when the anarchic ndividualismf tribalArabia was stilleffective,hepoliticalhistory f slam is one of almostunrelieved uto-cracy.I sayautocracy, otdespotism,ince hesovereign asboundbyandsubject otheHolyLaw,and was acceptedbythepeopleas rightfulruler,maintainingnd maintainedythe uthorityftheHolyLaw. Butstill, t was authoritarian,ften rbitrary,ometimesyrannical.Thereareno parliamentsrrepresentativessemblies fanykind,no councilsorcommunes,ochambersfnobilityrestates,nomunicipalitiesnthehistoryf slam; nothing ut thesovereign ower, o which hesubject


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8 INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS [JAN.owed complete nd unwaveringbedience s a religious uty mposed ythe HolyLaw. In thegreat daysof classical slam thisdutywas onlyowed to the awfully ppointed aliph, s God'svicegerent n earth ndhead ofthetheocraticommunity,ndthenonlyfor s long s heupheldthe aw; but with hedecline f thecaliphate nd thegrowthfmilitarydictatorship, uslimurists nd theologiansccommodated heir each-ings o the changed ituationndextended hereligiousuty fobediencetoanyeffectiveuthority,owevermpious, owever arbarous.Forthelast thousand ears, hepolitical hinkingf slam has beendominated ysuch maxims s 'tyrannys better hananarchy' nd 'whosepower sestablished,bedience ohim s incumbent'. he classicalformulationfIslamicpoliticalquietismmaybe foundn an often itedpassage fromtheSyrian urist bn Jama'a,whobecameChiefQadi ofCairo nddied nI333:Forced omage. hishappens hen chief eizes ower y force,na time fcivildisorders,nd it becomes ecessaryo recognizeim n order o avoidfurtherroubles. hathemayhavenone fthequalificationsf overeignty,thathebe illiterate,njust rvicious,hathebe even slaveora woman,sofnoconsequence.e sa sovereignnfact, ntiluch ime sanother,trongerthan e,drives im romhe hronend eizes ower.Hewill hen esovereignby he ame itle,nd hould erecognizednorder ot o ncreasetrife.Who-everhas effectiveower astherightoobedience,or government,ven heworstne, s betterhan narchy,ndof wo vils ne houldhoosehe esser.

It willbe clear hat hese re notthewords f time-serverrflatterertryingomakehis career t an autocraticourt.Theyarethewords fapious nddevout eliever, utting luntlyndsadly nunpalatable ruthas he sees t. It willberememberedhat hewritersa doctor ftheHolyLaw andspeakingn terms ftheHolyLaw. Whenheprescribesecogni-tion and obedience, e is layingdown hedutyofthebeliever nder heHolyLaw-that is to say,he is formulatingruletheviolation fwhichis, n ourterminology,sinaswell s a crime,nvolvingell-fires well ssuch nticipatoryhastisements thesovereignmighteefit o imposenthisworld. Even a slaveora woman' aysIbn Jama'a; onlyonethingworse anbe imagined-an nfidel,nd thatstagetoowasreachedwhen,after heNorman onquest fSicilyfromheMuslims, Muslimurist fMazara aiddown hat ven Christianulermust eaccepted ndobeyed,providedhe accordsreligious oleration o theMuslims.A communitybrought pon suchdoctrines illnotbe shocked yCommunistisregardofpoliticalibertyr human ights;tmayevenbe attracted ya regimewhich ffers uthlesstrengthnd efficiencyn the serviceof a cause-anywayin appearance-in place of the ineptitude, orruption,ndcynicism hich n theirmind, nemayevensayin their xperience,reinseparable rom arliamentaryovernment.EventheCommunistoctrinehattheState mustdirect conomicifeis notas alien o theMuslimsmight ethought-rathers heaccustomedtolookto the Statefordirectionnd control f certain entral spectsof


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I9541 COMMUNISM AND ISLAM 9economicife. The classical slamic ocial orderwas evolved n Iraq andEgypt, nd conformd to the ancientpattern f river-valleyociety. nthose andsof ittle ainfallherewas an intensivegriculture,ased onartificialrrigationrom heriver. This required rmies f engineersndofficials,mployed nd controlled y a central uthority, hosetask itwasto maintain he elaborate tructurefdykes, ams, anals, nd otherirrigation orks, ywhich lone the economicife fthe country ouldbemaintained. or this ystem strong entral uthority as a paramountnecessity,ndone does not have to look fartofind xamples f theruinand mpoverishmenthich ollowedhebreakdownf he entral uthorityin times fpoliticalweakness ndthe consequent eglect fthe rrigationworks. In countries lessedwith ainthe farmeranlook toGodforhiswater nd maintain certain ndependencenother espects. n theriver-valleysocietieshe must ook to the central uthority o maintain hesystemndtosupply he ife-givingtream, ndheknows imselfo be atits mercy. It is in suchcommunitieshatwefind he typeof ocial orderthatWittfogelas called thehydraulicociety',where heregimend theruling lass are based on thesupplyof waterfor rrigation. ts charac-teristicsre wellknown: docile ndhelpless easantry,t themercyfcentralizedndbureaucraticuthoritynd a ruling lassofofficialsndland-ownersn unchallenged,nd indeedunchallengeable,ontrol fthesources f economicife ndthereforefpolitical ower. The samebasictypeofsociety xists n Egyptand Iraq, in the river-valleysf India,in China, and, one may perhaps add, in the river-valleysf Russia.Whetherhe historic ussian ociety s 'hydraulic'n this ense wouldnotpretend o say; there re, however,ertain trikingimilarities. hetraditionalslamicautocracy estson three illars:thebureaucracy,hearmy,ndthereligiousierarchy-and mayrecall npassing he nterest-ing uggestion ecently adein thisJournal yMrAlbertHourani, hatwe maybe witnessing return o thispatternn therecent hangesnEgypt. In thispattern, nlythethird, hereligious ierarchy,eed bechangedn order oprepare hewayfor Communisttate.Thatthird, owever,sbyno means nimportant. uiteobviously,he'Ulamaof slamarevery ifferentrom heCommunistarty.Neverthe-less,on closer xamination, e find ertain ncomfortableesemblances.Both groups profess totalitarian octrine,with complete nd finalanswers o all questionsn heaven nd earth;the answers redifferentnevery espect,likeonlyn their inalitynd completeness,nd nthecon-trast hey ffer ith heeternal uestioningfWesternman. Bothgroupsoffero theirmembers nd followersheagreeable ensation fbelongingto a communityfbelievers,whoare alwaysright, s against n outerworld funbelievers, hoare alwayswrong.Bothoffern exhilaratingfeeling f mission, fpurpose, fbeing ngagedn a collective dventureto accelerate hehistoricallynevitable ictory f the truefaith vertheinfidelvil-doers.The traditionalslamicdivision fthe world nto the

B


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IO INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS [JAN.House of Islam and the House ofWar, twonecessarilyopposed groups,ofwhich-he firsthas the collectiveobligationofperpetual struggle gainstthe second, also has obvious parallels in the Communistview of worldaffairs. There again, the content of belief is utterly different, ut theaggressive fanaticism of the believer is the same. The humorist whosummed up the Communist reedas 'There is no God and Karl Marx is hisProphet' was laying his finger n a real affinity. he call to a CommunistJihad, Holy War for the faith-a new faith,but against the self-sameWesternChristian nemy-might well strike responsivenote.

I have referred o collective obligations. Here too there is a possiblepointofcontact between Communism nd Islam, thecollectivist endenciesof which have struckmany observers.A good deal has been written boutthe innumerable religio-Communisticects and movements that havearisen all over Islam, almost since its beginning. Let me quote from nalmost contemporaryArabic chronicle,describingthe activities of anagent of one such sect in Iraq, in the neighbourhoodof Kufa, about themiddleofthe ninth entury.This agent,we are told, having converted heinhabitantsof some villages to his doctrine, mposed on them an ever-increasing eriesoftaxes and levies and finally:The duty fUlfa . .; this onsistedf ssemblinglltheir oods none place andenj yinghemn common ithoutnyoneretainingnypersonal roperty hichmight ivehim an advantageover theothers.He assured hem hattheydidnot needtokeep any propertyecause all the andbelonged o them nd tonoone else. That,he toldthem, s the testbywhichyou are proved o that wemayknowhowyouwillbehave. He urged hem obuyandprepare rms. Themissionariesppointed n each villagea trustworthyan to assemble ll thatthe peopleof thevillageownedby way ofcattle, heep, ewellery, rovisions,etc. He clothed he naked and metall theirneeds, eavingnopoormanamongthem, orany needy ndinfirm. verymanworkedwithdiligence nd emula-tionat his taskin order o deservehighrankby thebenefit e brought.Thewomanbroughtwhatshe earnedby weaving, hechildbrought iswagesforscaring waybirds.Nobody mong hem wned nythingeyondhissword ndhis arms.

This is no doubt an exaggerated description fthe proceedingsof thesegroups, but it is not untypical. And this is but one ofmany such move-mentsrecorded n Islam, and in Persia also longbefore slam. All of themfailedandweredulycondemnedbythe orthodoxas heresy, uttheyrevealthe recurring endency n Islam to throwup such ideas and groups,andthey also help to explain the otherwisemystifyingonnexionswhicharereportedfrom time to time between certain extremist slamic religiousorganizationsand Communism. It was precisely n organizationsof thissort, the popular, semi-secret,mysticalbrotherhoods, f dubious ortho-doxyand mistrusted y theregular Ulama, thatthesereligio-Communistictendenciesusually appeared. Nor is thiscollectivism imited to what onemightcall the 'popular sub-stratum'of Islam. It is also discernible n


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I954] COMMUNISM AND ISLAM IImany aspects of orthodox slamic ife and thought, n the attitude osociety nd government,hich have alreadymentioned,ven n litera-ture. The classicalArabicbook is oftenpresented ot as an individualand personal reation ftheauthor, ut as a link n thechainoftradition,theauthor ffacingis ownpersonality ehind he prestige f authorityandtheranks fprevious ransmitters. any f hegreatworks fArabicliterature re as impersonal nd as collective s a medievalcathedral.Thiscollectivisms perhaps learest n theMuslim dea of hePerfectManandthe Perfect tate as given, mmutable atterns xternallypplied, owhich ll must ntheory ttempt o conform y imitation,nstead f, sin theWesterndeal,by developing heir wnpotentialitiesromwithin.But all this, t maybe objected, ould quallywellbe saidof nyotherreligions of slam, nd amounts o no more han aying hatCommunismis itself religion. concede hat some of the comparisons have made,though y no means ll, also apply to someother eligions. would ddthat had thesereligions etained he same formativend determinativepower vertheir dherents s Islamstillhas, the observationmight avesome practical elevance.But I cannot ccept the statement hat Com-munisms a religion,nd nothing, would uggest,llustrates ore learlythedecayed tateofreligionnourWesternworld, hanthat uch com-parison anbe made t all. Admittedly,heresemblancesre at firstightstriking.n Communism,s inmost eligions, e find itual nd hierarchy,revelation nd prophecy, cripture nd exegesis, rthodoxy nd heresy,excommunicationnd persecution.Even some of the deeper spiritualstrengthfreligiousaith eems ofortifyhetrue onvinced ommunist.Despitehis professedmaterialism,e has objectives eyondhis own elf-interest,nd beyond his own lifetime.He is filledwithan evangelicfervour nd a messianic aith. It is thisqualitywhichhas givenCom-munismtsspecial trength-the angerous ascination hich t exercisesin so many oriental ountries.Fascism and Nazism,with theirnakedappealtogreed, ate,pride, ndenvy, ould n the ongrun ddress hem-selvesonly o theevil nstinctsfman, ndwere orrespondinglyimited.Communism,hile xploitingheseto thefull,has also pervertedo itsserviceomeof henoblest spirationsfthehuman ace-as peace,socialjustice, he brotherhoodfman-and has used themwithdeadlyeffect.We shall failto understandndmeetthe threat fCommunismfwedonotrecognizets attractionor hebest,though ot thebrightest,s wellas for heworst pirits.Communismhushas manyfeatures n commonwithreligion, utthosethat are lacking reperhaps he most mportant. would iketoquotea passagefromheDanish writer ilhelmGr0nbech, hosays:The roubles thatwe confuseeligiosityith eligion. ust ecause eople resodevoutntheir ersonal ay, hey reunable o conceive religionhichsthe oulof ociety,heobverse fthepractical, livingndrealreligion,hepractical elationshipf thepeople oGod, oul andeternity,hatmanifests


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12 INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS [JAN. I954itselfnworshipndworks s a life-givingowern politics nd economics,ncrafts nd commerce,n ethics s in aw. In this ense hemoderntatehasnoreligion.In this ense,one mayadd, Communisms not and cannotbe a religion,while slam,for hegreatmass ofbelievers,till s; and that s the coreofthe slamicresistanceo Communistdeas. Though heir elief n libertybe. ooweakto sustain hem, heir elief n Godmayyetbe strongnough.The Islamic peoplesare still profoundlyeligiousn the sitnplestnddeepestmeaning fthe word. Islam as a religions no more nti-Com-munist hanChristianity;n fact, s I have suggested,ather ess so. Butit is morepotent s a force ffectinghe lives and thoughts f its ad-herents. Pious Muslims-and mostMuslimnsre pious-will not longtolerate n atheist reed,nor one that violates heir raditionaleligiousmoralprinciples hich, ecause theydo nottally withour own, re toooften verlooked yWestern bservers. he present evolt ftheMuslimsagainst he mmoralitynd opportunistnf heir wn nd of omeWesternleadersmay temporarilyavour he Communists, iththeir ppearanceofselfless evotion o an ideal,but will work gainstCommunism henMuslims ome to see the realities ehindthepropaganda. Let us hopethat heywillnottaketoo ongover t.

In any case, there s nota greatdeal thatwe can do about t. Ourownpublic and politicalmoralitys undoubtedly etter than that of theCommunists,ut the differencesapparently ot argeenough rstrikingenough o makeanynotable mpressionn the rest of theworld. ThepeoplewhorepresentWestern emocracyn itsdealingswith slam arecertainlystimablemen,doing mportantnd meritorious ork, ut aspromotersf moral nd religious evival hey reunlikely o carry on-viction.We ofthe Westcandomuch opromotehematerialwell-beingand raise thematerial tandards f the lands of Islam. We can alsoperhapsdo somethingo encourage-andthat meansto justify-a morepositive ttitude owards urselves,ur deas, nd ouraspirations;but nthepresentrisist sfrom ithinhat slammust ind hemoral trengthandspiritual esourceso resist hegreat ecularheresy f ourtime.Wecan do nomore hanrefrain rom fferingmpediments.

Addresst Chatham ouse6 October953

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Comunism and Islam