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Overview
Abul A'la Maududi (1903-1979) was an Indian-born Islamic thinker, journalist and political leader who founded Jamaat-e-Islami in 1941. He presented Islam as a comprehensive way of life that includes politics and law, and argued for an Islamic state in which sovereignty belongs to God. His writings, including a long Quran commentary, shaped Islamist thought across South Asia and beyond. His ideas are admired by followers and criticised by many Muslims and others.
Context
Maududi was born in Aurangabad in the Deccan and wrote as British rule weakened and as the movement for Pakistan grew. He saw both Western secular nationalism and traditional passivity as threats. After 1947 he moved to Pakistan, where his movement pushed for an Islamic constitution. His influence reached India and Kashmir, where Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir was founded in 1952.
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Curator's notes
- Why it matters
- Islam as a complete political system
- What to read
- Read to understand, critically; hugely influential
- Thinker
- Sayyid Qutb; Abul A'la Maududi
- Tradition (date)
- Political Islam (1940s – 60s)
- Key idea
- Islam as a complete political system
- Read
- Read to understand, critically; hugely influential
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