Gamal al-Banna
Encyclopedia
Gamal al-Banna is an Egyptian Islamic scholar, author, and trade unionist. He is the youngest brother of Hassan al-Banna
(1906–49), the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood
. Unlike his brother, however, Gamal al-Banna is a liberal
scholar and well-known for his criticism of Islamic traditional narratives rejecting 635 Hadith
s of Bukhari
and Muslim
which he finds contradictory to Qur'an and its message of justice, freedom, and tolerance.
Gamal al-Banna is also the great-uncle of the well-known Swiss Muslim Tariq Ramadan
.
, egalitarian, feminist, anti-authoritarian, liberal
and secular. As a political thinker and social reformer he adopts an anti-capitalist position and can be regarded as a democratic socialist. In his book al-barnamadj al-islami ("The Islamic Program") Gamal al-Banna writes the following in the preface, when the end of the Cold War became visible in 1991 ("A Disrupted World", page 6-8):
. He contrasts this progressive interpretation of Islam with reactionary versions of Islam which were determined or falsified over the centuries by sharia
jurists (fuqaha). By his appeal to an Islamic revival (al-ihya` al-islami) Gamal al-Banna intends to encourage the Muslims not to rely on traditional opinions but to form their own opinions with the help of the Quran and reason
. While Gamal al-Banna considers the Quran to be the authentic word of God, he criticizes that a lot of alleged hadiths (reports on Messenger Muhammad
’s statements and acts) were obviously falsified and that Muslims should trust only that part of the Sunna
(prophetic tradition) which doesn’t contradict the Quran or reason.
look") showing his anti-materialistic and egalitarian attitude. According to Gamal al-Banna Islam is anti-capitalist: It is not only opposed to historical slavery, i.e. the social enslavement of human beings, but also to their economic enslavement and exploitation. Gamal al-Banna’s humanistic character can be seen in his averseness to severe punishment, e.g. the death penalty for apostasy
as well as in his opposition to the discrimination against women or religious minorities such as the Coptic Christians in Egypt.
(female: imama, i.e. leader) in the prayer salat
. While the traditional "Islam of the jurists" is very restrictive toward women’s rights, the original Islam intended to liberate the women.
In Egypt Gamal al-Banna campaigns for the interreligious understanding between the Muslim majority and the Coptic Christian minority.
Being an anti-authoritarian thinker, Gamal al-Banna is an opponent of the religious establishments; in his homeland this inevitably leads to a continuous confrontation with the state-controlled and basically conservative al-Azhar University. Gamal al-Banna believes that every Muslim has to think for herself/himself and that nobody, neither politicians, nor religious leaders, nor any other individual has the right to enjoin anything on anybody in the religion. Gamal al-Banna breaks a taboo every time he doesn’t adhere to what those theologians say who are undisputable authorities in the eyes of conservative und fundamentalist Muslims (e.g. Ash-Shafi'i). The Muslim forefathers may be role models, yet the Muslims are not obliged to follow their example.
Gamal al-Banna is not anti-authoritarian in the religion only: in the field of politics er regards the state as a necessary evil whose power should be reduced as much as possible in order to keep the abuse of power down as much as possible. It is fair to say that Gamal al-Banna is a democratic socialist.
, but not the secularization
of society), in order to protect both the Muslims and Islam from the political establishment’s misuse of Islam. The Arabic term ´almaniyya (secularism
) tends to have an anti-religious connotation for native speakers, thus Gamal al-Banna avoids it and considers himself an islami (Islamist), which can be misleading. Gamal al-Banna probably wants to make clear by this that for him Islam is not only a private issue but that Islam must be socially relevant and that it can be political. This does certainly not mean that he favors a religious state. The title of a pertinent book conveys this thought best: "Islam Is Religion and Community, not Religion and State."
2006, e.g., he said that smoking wasn’t forbidden in Islam and that Muslims may even smoke in the daytime in Ramadan, i.e. during the fasting period. He justified that by the fact that there were no cigarettes in the prophetic era (7th century AD) and that neither the Quran nor Messenger Muhammad
prohibited smoking explicitly.
In another controversial discussion Gamal al-Banna said that kissing and hugging did not constitute fornication (zina) which some religious leaders regard as a criminal act.
Hassan al-Banna
Sheikh Hasan Ahmed Abdel Rahman Muhammed al-Banna known as Hasan al-Banna was a schoolteacher and imam, best known for founding the Muslim Brotherhood, one of the largest and most influential 20th century Muslim revivalist organizations.-Early life:Banna was born in 1906 in Mahmoudiyah, Egypt...
(1906–49), the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
. Unlike his brother, however, Gamal al-Banna is a liberal
Liberal movements within Islam
Progressive Muslims have produced a considerable body of liberal thought within Islam or "progressive Islam" ; but some consider progressive Islam and liberal Islam as two distinct movements)...
scholar and well-known for his criticism of Islamic traditional narratives rejecting 635 Hadith
Hadith
The term Hadīth is used to denote a saying or an act or tacit approval or criticism ascribed either validly or invalidly to the Islamic prophet Muhammad....
s of Bukhari
Sahih Bukhari
Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī , as it is commonly referred to, is one of the six canonical hadith collections of Islam. These prophetic traditions, or hadith, were collected by the Persian Muslim scholar Muhammad ibn Ismail al-Bukhari, after being transmitted orally for generations. Muslims view this as one of...
and Muslim
Sahih Muslim
Sahih Muslim is one of the Six major collections of the hadith in Sunni Islam, oral traditions relating to the words and deeds of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad. It is the second most authentic hadith collection after Sahih Al-Bukhari, and is highly acclaimed by Sunni Muslims...
which he finds contradictory to Qur'an and its message of justice, freedom, and tolerance.
Gamal al-Banna is also the great-uncle of the well-known Swiss Muslim Tariq Ramadan
Tariq Ramadan
Tariq Ramadan is a Swiss academic, poet and writer. He is also a Professor of Contemporary Islamic Studies in the Faculty of Oriental Studies at Oxford University...
.
Early life
Born in 1920 into a pious family, Gamal is the youngest brother of Hassan al-Banna, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood. His father mended watches for a living but spent much time collecting and classifying hadiths. As a child he was weak and sickly, so he spent his time reading with his father. After completing secondary school he refused to go to university but decided instead to start a writing career.Thinking
Gamal al-Banna represents an interpretation of Islam which is rationalist, humanistHumanism
Humanism is an approach in study, philosophy, world view or practice that focuses on human values and concerns. In philosophy and social science, humanism is a perspective which affirms some notion of human nature, and is contrasted with anti-humanism....
, egalitarian, feminist, anti-authoritarian, liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
and secular. As a political thinker and social reformer he adopts an anti-capitalist position and can be regarded as a democratic socialist. In his book al-barnamadj al-islami ("The Islamic Program") Gamal al-Banna writes the following in the preface, when the end of the Cold War became visible in 1991 ("A Disrupted World", page 6-8):
- "The collapse of MarxismMarxismMarxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
doesn’t mean that capitalism will succeed. Rather, this means that the mistakes of Marxism were bigger than the mistakes of capitalism. [...] Most people forget that Islam occurred at a time when the world was divided into two huge states forcing upon it humiliating subjection, class rule, and the government of tyrants. Both deprived the masses of the most fundamental principles of justice and left them in poverty and ignorance, burdened with the back-breaking load of forced labor which leaves them neither time nor health, nor opportunities to think. Both enthroned Caesars and Chosroes as gods exerting authority over life and death. Then Islam came and destroyed these systems: it replaced the class system with its elitist barriers and dead ends by the general equality of the people, the highest ranks or the strata of notables by the declaration of absolute equality among the people, without any difference between black and white, male and female, rich and poor, base and noble. [...] It was not the prayer or the fast that constituted the new gift, for the cultic commandments are represented in all religions. Rather, what was new was the spirit of freedom, the principles of justice and equality that Islam let shine. Today Islam is called upon to fulfill this role a second time."
Islamic revival
With a rationalist interpretation of Islam, Gamal al-Banna tries to explain the “true” unadulterated Islam of the Quran and Messenger MuhammadMuhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
. He contrasts this progressive interpretation of Islam with reactionary versions of Islam which were determined or falsified over the centuries by sharia
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
jurists (fuqaha). By his appeal to an Islamic revival (al-ihya` al-islami) Gamal al-Banna intends to encourage the Muslims not to rely on traditional opinions but to form their own opinions with the help of the Quran and reason
Reason
Reason is a term that refers to the capacity human beings have to make sense of things, to establish and verify facts, and to change or justify practices, institutions, and beliefs. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, language, ...
. While Gamal al-Banna considers the Quran to be the authentic word of God, he criticizes that a lot of alleged hadiths (reports on Messenger Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
’s statements and acts) were obviously falsified and that Muslims should trust only that part of the Sunna
Sunnah
The word literally means a clear, well trodden, busy and plain surfaced road. In the discussion of the sources of religion, Sunnah denotes the practice of Prophet Muhammad that he taught and practically instituted as a teacher of the sharī‘ah and the best exemplar...
(prophetic tradition) which doesn’t contradict the Quran or reason.
Humanism and social justice
An important aspect in Gamal al-Banna’s humanist thinking is social justice. He has been committed to the labor and trade-unionist movement for decades. Al-Banna used to be a labor union official in the textile industry, and in 1953 he founded The Egyptian Society for the Care of Prisoners and their Families. Gamal al-Banna taught at the Cairo Institute of Trade-Union Studies for 30 years (1963–93). In 1981 he founded the International Islamic Confederation of Labor in Geneva and became its first president. Typically the scholar wears a grey suit ("MaoMao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
look") showing his anti-materialistic and egalitarian attitude. According to Gamal al-Banna Islam is anti-capitalist: It is not only opposed to historical slavery, i.e. the social enslavement of human beings, but also to their economic enslavement and exploitation. Gamal al-Banna’s humanistic character can be seen in his averseness to severe punishment, e.g. the death penalty for apostasy
Apostasy
Apostasy , 'a defection or revolt', from ἀπό, apo, 'away, apart', στάσις, stasis, 'stand, 'standing') is the formal disaffiliation from or abandonment or renunciation of a religion by a person. One who commits apostasy is known as an apostate. These terms have a pejorative implication in everyday...
as well as in his opposition to the discrimination against women or religious minorities such as the Coptic Christians in Egypt.
Egalitarianism and feminism
Gamal al-Banna is a strict egalitarian: Islam gives women and men the same rights and duties, and a good Muslim regards all human beings as equal, no matter what their religion is. As for the role of women in Islam, al-Banna doesn’t see any reason why a Muslima (Muslim woman) shouldn’t take over the role of imamImam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
(female: imama, i.e. leader) in the prayer salat
Salat
Salah is the practice of formal prayer in Islam. Its importance for Muslims is indicated by its status as one of the Five Pillars of Sunni Islam, of the Ten Practices of the Religion of Twelver Islam and of the 7 pillars of Musta'lī Ismailis...
. While the traditional "Islam of the jurists" is very restrictive toward women’s rights, the original Islam intended to liberate the women.
In Egypt Gamal al-Banna campaigns for the interreligious understanding between the Muslim majority and the Coptic Christian minority.
Being an anti-authoritarian thinker, Gamal al-Banna is an opponent of the religious establishments; in his homeland this inevitably leads to a continuous confrontation with the state-controlled and basically conservative al-Azhar University. Gamal al-Banna believes that every Muslim has to think for herself/himself and that nobody, neither politicians, nor religious leaders, nor any other individual has the right to enjoin anything on anybody in the religion. Gamal al-Banna breaks a taboo every time he doesn’t adhere to what those theologians say who are undisputable authorities in the eyes of conservative und fundamentalist Muslims (e.g. Ash-Shafi'i). The Muslim forefathers may be role models, yet the Muslims are not obliged to follow their example.
Gamal al-Banna is not anti-authoritarian in the religion only: in the field of politics er regards the state as a necessary evil whose power should be reduced as much as possible in order to keep the abuse of power down as much as possible. It is fair to say that Gamal al-Banna is a democratic socialist.
Liberalism
For Gamal al-Banna religious thinking may not be restricted in any way. Freedom must reign, and there should be no taboos when it comes to the freedom of expression. Al-Banna’s absolute freedom of belief comprises a Muslim’s conversion which doesn’t permit anyone to harm her/him. There can be no coercion in religion which is a personal issue between oneself and God. Gamal al-Banna also demands the liberation of women from the chains of the sharia jurists. Although Gamal al-Banna is convinced that wearing a headscarf (hejab) is not a religious duty for a woman, which he repeatedly states, he doesn’t want to restrict the hejab-wearing women in what they think is the right religious practice.Secularism
Gamal al-Banna is a religious Muslim whose secular attitude shows in his opposition to the notion of an "Islamic state", for it is abused by politicians for political ends whereby both the Muslims and Islam are harmed. Consequently, he champions the separation of state and religion, i.e. laicism (or secularismSecularism
Secularism is the principle of separation between government institutions and the persons mandated to represent the State from religious institutions and religious dignitaries...
, but not the secularization
Secularization
Secularization is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions...
of society), in order to protect both the Muslims and Islam from the political establishment’s misuse of Islam. The Arabic term ´almaniyya (secularism
Secularism
Secularism is the principle of separation between government institutions and the persons mandated to represent the State from religious institutions and religious dignitaries...
) tends to have an anti-religious connotation for native speakers, thus Gamal al-Banna avoids it and considers himself an islami (Islamist), which can be misleading. Gamal al-Banna probably wants to make clear by this that for him Islam is not only a private issue but that Islam must be socially relevant and that it can be political. This does certainly not mean that he favors a religious state. The title of a pertinent book conveys this thought best: "Islam Is Religion and Community, not Religion and State."
Media
Gamal al-Banna frequently appears on Egyptian and other Arab TV programs where he answers questions and takes part in discussions (see "Videos" below). In the Egyptian media he has been portrayed as someone awkward for many years, as a lateral thinker whose opinions trouble a lot of people. In RamadanRamadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts 29 or 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and...
2006, e.g., he said that smoking wasn’t forbidden in Islam and that Muslims may even smoke in the daytime in Ramadan, i.e. during the fasting period. He justified that by the fact that there were no cigarettes in the prophetic era (7th century AD) and that neither the Quran nor Messenger Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
prohibited smoking explicitly.
In another controversial discussion Gamal al-Banna said that kissing and hugging did not constitute fornication (zina) which some religious leaders regard as a criminal act.
Books by Gamal al-Banna
- al-Banna, Gamal: al-islam din wa umma wa laisa din wa doula (Islam is Religion and Community, not Religion and State). dar al-fikr al-islami. Cairo, 2003.
- al-Banna, Gamal: da´wa al-ihya` al-islami (The Appeal to an Islamic Revival). dar al-fikr al-islami. Cairo, 2005.
- al-Banna, Gamal: ikhwani al-aqbat (My Coptic Siblings). dar al-fikr al-islami. Cairo, 2006.
- al-Banna, Gamal: al-mar`a al-muslima baina tahrir al-qur`an wa taqjid al-fuqaha` (The Muslim Woman Between Being Liberated by the Quran and Being Enchained by the ShariaShariaSharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
Jurists). dar al-fikr al-islami. Cairo, 2002. - al-Banna, Gamal: tathwir al-qur`an (The Revolutionization of the Quran). dar al-fikr al-islami. Cairo, 2000.
- al-Banna, Gamal: matlabuna al-awwal huwa: al-hurriyya (Our First Demand Is: Freedom). dar al-fikr al-islami. Cairo, 2000.
- al-Banna, Gamal: tafnid da´wa hadd ar-ridda (Refutation of the Demand of the Punishment for Apostasy). dar ash-shuruq. Cairo, 2008.
- al-Banna, Gamal: al-hejab (The Headscarf). dar al-fikr al-islami. Cairo, 2002.
Further reading
- Gemeinhardt-Buschhardt, Konstanze: Gamal al-Banna und sein Schaffen - Ein reformislamischer Ansatz zur Verbesserung der Situation der muslimischen Frau. In: Hermeneutik und Exegese - Verstehenslehre und Verstehensdeutung im Regionalen System koexistierender Religionsgemeinschaften im Orient. Hrsg. Ute Pietruschka, Hallesche Beiträge zur Orientwissenschaft 43 (2007), Halle 2009, S.49-62
- Meier, Andreas: Der politische Auftrag des Islam. Programme und Kritik zwischen Fundamentalismus und Reformen. Originalstimmen aus der islamischen Welt (The Political Mission of Islam. Programs and Critique between Fundamentalism and Reforms). Peter Hammer Verlag, Wuppertal (Germany), 1994. Page: 280–287. ISBN 3-87294-616-1
- Lübben, Ivesa: Gamal al-Banna: Gerechtigkeit für alle (Gamal al-Banna: Justice For All); in: Amirpur, Katajun/Ammann, Ludwig: Der Islam am Wendepunkt (Islam at a Turning Point). Freiburg i.B. (Germany), 2006. Page: 164-72. ISBN 3-451-05665-8
- Brochure: About Gamal Al-Banna aus seinem Büro in 195 El Geish Street, 11271, Cairo.
External links
- Website of Gamal al-Banna (in English, French, and Arabic)
- Timothy Garton Ash, Guardian, 15 March 2007 "We are making a fatal mistake by ignoring the dissidents within Islam"
- The Guardian Article
- BBC Article (30 September 2006)