Head On History

The holy book of Islam is the Qur'an but its history remains shrouded in mystery. What are the historical origins of the book and how did it develop. In this podcast we present the major theories about the origins of the Qur'an, from those that attribute it to Muhammad, to those that argue for a later date and longer period of development. We talk about the recent manuscript findings and carbon dating and its significance for the history. We talk about how the Qur'an was complied, transcribed, and then commented on. We explore the development of commentary literature or tafsir and the major theological debates about the Qur'an's nature. And finally conclude with the history of how the Qur'an comes to us today.

In this episode we trace the history of the hijab and religious garb. We start by examining the Qur'an on the subject, historicizing the verses and providing context. We then look at the broader tradition of veiling and headscarves in the near east in Late Antiquity. Tracing the tradition from Jewish, Christian, Byzantine, and Persian roots we look at how the headscarf and veil took shape within Islamic society and its intersection with class in the early Muslim empires. We discuss how the current manifestation of the hijab was shaped by cultural practices of the Turko-Persian world and conclude with a discussion on how the hijab and religious garb in general became major symbols in the debates about modernity. We discuss the rise of secular nationalists and their attempt to create national character against the religious garb and the backlash from the religious movements that followed. Finally we conclude by noting how the hijab has become an identity-forming act.

After summarizing the history in part 1, this episode focuses on how the concept of jihad was transformed in the modern world. We examine the major thinkers of the time period and how they defined jihad according to their historical experiences. We discuss Emir Abdulkadir in Algeria and his use of jihad against the French colonizers. We explore the thinking of Jamal ad-Din Al Afghani and his formation of a sort of Islamic nationalism. Then we look at how the ideas of a political Islam are fused with new interpretations of jihad by Abul A'la Maududi and Sayyid Qutb. This episode digs deep into the intellectual history behind jihad and provides the foundation to then explore whether or not the jihad mainstream Islam is related to the jihad espoused in the terrorism of Al Qaeda or ISIS.

We're back for season 2 of Head on History and diving into the deep end. Building on the chronology established in last season, we are going to focus now on important themes in Islam and how they've been shaped by history. In our first episode trace the history of the concept of "jihad" in the premodern Islamic world. We explore the various ideas of fighting and conflict in Islam and how they were shaped by the experience of imperial wars in Late Antiquity and communal violence. We take a look at the various words used in the Qur'an to express fighting and how over time all of these ideas were gathered under the umbrella of "jihad" as theologians began to expand the idea and codify it in Sharia or Islamic Law. We trace the development of jihad from the early Muslim community through the Crusades, setting the stage for a part two which will cover jihad in the colonial and modern world.

In this Head On History Special we move away from our season outline and discuss the current events of Charlottesville, Virgina. We use history to help explain how we got to this moment with Nazi's and white supremacist marching in the streets. In this podcast we talk about the historical connection between America's race project and Nazism, we discuss the connection between American race legislation and the Nuremberg Laws. We dispel the myth about the Confederacy being about state's right providing evidence that at its heart was the institution of slavery. We explore how race has always been at the heart of citizenship in America and how laws like the Racial Integrity Act and anti-immigrant sentiment weren't just part of American Nazism, but mainstream politics. Finally, we talk about the history of Confederate statues, dispelling the myth that they were merely about heritage. We end with a discussion on historical amnesia and America's failure to critically engage it's dark past.

In our final episode of the season we talk about how Islam is shaped by the decline of the gunpowder empires and the coming of European colonialism. We talk about the rise of Wahhabism and its historical context, the emergence of pan-Islamism, Islamic modernism, and fundamentalism. We talk about the genealogy of these movements in figures like Jamal Ad Din Al Afghani, Khayr ad Din al Tunisi and how the historical experience of colonialism and globalization shaped their thinking. We discuss Hasan al Banna and the Muslim Brotherhood and Sayyid Qutb's influence on the emergence of political Islam. We also talk about Abul A'la Maududi and his influence on the concept of the jihad. In this episode we chart the remergence of the language of the caliphate and the influence of European thought in political Islam. We explore the ideological foundation behind the Iranian Revolution with Ali Shariati. Finally we conclude with the intellectual divisions in contemporary Islam from Islamism and Wahhabism to political Islam, to reform and revival movements; setting the stage for next season.

In our penultimate episode we discuss the Indo-Persian world and the establishment of the Mughal Dynasty. We talk about the particular expression of Islam that flourishes in South Asia and how it is shaped by the religions of the region. We explore the ecstatic or "drunken" Sufism of poetry and music, with special attention payed to the poetry of Rumi, the style of the ghazal, and the flourishing of qawwali music. We talk about the origins qawwali with Amr Khusru as well as the fusion of Indian and Persian art in the Taj Mahal and jali. We regale the story of Layla and Majnun as characteristic of the type of devotional, universalist Sufism that features prominently in the reign of Akbar. Finally, we conclude with a brief discussion of the Sunni-Shia split under the Ottomans and Safavids, setting the stage for the coming of the Europeans.

In this episode we explore how Muslims experience the fall of the Caliphate and how in turn Islam is shaped by the historical circumstances. Building upon the scholarly Islam developed by the Seljuks, we talk about the fusion of internal spirituality in the form of Sufism with orthodox Sunni Islam in the figure of al Ghazali. We also discuss the heir of Al Andalus, Ibn Arabi and the philosophical Sufism that emerges. The anxieties about the Mongol invasion shape much of the developments of Islam in this time period as we see in the theology of ibn Taymiyyah and the poetry of Rumi. Understanding this context sets the scene for the rise of the Ottomans and the Safavids. We discuss Ottoman society, the division of powers, the influence of the harem, the role of scholarly Sunni Islam, the millet, and how the state continued and broke with the previous caliphate. Finally we talk about the rise of the Savafids, the formalization of popular Twelver Shi'ism through the Ayatollahs and Taziyeh and the conflict of the Ottoman-Safavid wars.

This episode focuses on the way Islam was shaped by the experience of the crusades. We talk about the historical development of the concept of "jihad" and how it was defined over time. Providing a brief overview of the major events of the first and second crusades, we talk about the politicization of jihad in the campaigns of Imad ad Din Zengi and Saladin. We discuss how the cultural production of a genre of literature known as fadai'l al quds along with poetry work with theological writings to articulate the experience of the loss of Jerusalem and how that in turn produces a militarization and professionalization of jihad. Finally we discuss the collapse of the Abbasid caliphate, the rise of the Seljuk Empire, and the coming of the Mongol Horde which in turn gives rise to the Turko-Persian world.

Like all religions, Islam took several hundred years to develop its orthodoxy. This episode is dedicated to the history behind how sharia and orthodoxy developed in Islam. We discuss the historical circumstances from the political aspiration of the Abbasids to redefine the caliphate along a divine monarchy lines to the intellectual debates between the Mutazili and the Ash'ari known as the minha. We talk about the emergence of shariah as a counter culture to the courtly lifestyle of the caliphate, the development of the madhhab or the schools of Islamic jurisprudence, the philosophical tradition of cultural Islam, and the rise of popular mysticism in the form of Sufism. We discuss the evolution of Sunnism and Shi'ism and the formations of the concept of the Imamate and "taqiyya." We also talk about the influence of the previous Greek and Persian civilization on the developments of Islam. As usual we end with book recommendations.