Islamic Resurgence & Sayyid Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi

These two books by a meticulous, perceptive scholar based in South Africa capture remarkably well the recent history of Islamic revivalism, especially in the twentieth century Indo-Pak subcontinent, with a special reference to the noble mission and accomplishments of Sayyid Abu’l-Hasan [Ali Nadwi (19131999). The first, though an independent and exhaustive intellectual history in its own right, serves also as the backdrop and context for appreciating better Nadwi’s contribution to upholding and championing the cause of Islamic revivalism which is elaborated ably in the latter. Islamic Resurgence comprises an extensive “Introduction” (pp. 1–40), five cogent Chapters, Conclusion and valuable Bibliography and Index. Besides defining Islamic revivalism and its time-line, and distinguishing it from its Western/Orientalists’ construct as “fundamentalism”, Choughley places Nadwi’s profile in the broader context of revivalism. His main concern is to examine Nadwi’s concept of the Islamic order, to contextualize it in the contemporary setting and to identify the interaction between the Islamic resurgent movements and the Muslim society. (p. 26)