Product Description

For many people in the West, Islam appears to contradict such democratic values as freedom, individualism, and personal choice; perceptions resulting from over-generalization and the characterization of certain Islamic movements as "radical", "fundamentalist" etc. In this book, M.J. Gohari describes one such movement which has been roundly criticized and condemned in the West: the Taliban in Afghanistan. He analyses the rise of the Taliban and their effect on Afghan society, takes into account their impact on Afghanistan's neighbours, their troubled relationship with the UN, and throws light on their doctrine. Gohari concludes with a short chapter on the life and views of Bin Laden, which serves to demystify an elusive radical who has famously and brutally, translated his beliefs into action.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #851456 in Books
• Published on: 2001-08-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 172 pages

From the Publisher
For many people in the West, Islam appears to contradict such democratic values as freedom, individualism, and personal choice, perceptions seemingly confirmed by outsiders as 'fundamentalist', 'radical' or 'militant'. Such widespread opinions held by people living in Europe and America frequently are not informed by factual information, but result from overgeneralizations and characterisations of Islamic movements. In this new book relevant to Islamic studies, M J Gohari describes the rise of one such controversial movement widely criticised by the West, The Taliban in Afghanistan. Dr Gohari describes the historical background in Afghanistan, outlines the context for rapid ascent to power of the Tlaiban, clarifies what the movement stands for and analyses how it affects various groups in Afghan society. He also provides helpful sections on the Taliban Islamic Theology, the impact of the Taliban on Afghanistan's neighbours and what he calls 'the Taliban- UN dilemma'. Gohari concludes with a helpful summery of the life of Bin Ladin, who has been named by the United States as prime suspect in two deadly bombings in Africa. The book provides an objective picture of the Taliban in language that is understandable for both Muslim and non- Muslim readers.

Customer Reviews

an unsatisfactory book
A book on Taliban By Ali Usman Qasmi

Taliban s' dizzying ascendancy in the political arena of Afghanistan startled the geo-political pundits. Their origin was obscure and their ambitions vague. Fall of Kandhar & the religious edicts that followed internationalized Taliban s' stature and their potential as one of the main warring factions of Mujahadeen was recognized. However, little could be ascertained about their origin, as during the Soviet occupation, their existence was rather unknown or was not so prominent as it turned out be after the Kandhar take over. But the international community was apprehensive of Taliban s' religious rigidity and so their origin, funding resources, training facilities, recruiting grounds and religious ideals _ all became the focus of attention. Resultantly, quite a number of good books can now be seen in the market. But very few of them look at the issues with a researchers' purity & neutrality. More than often these books are value-laden. The best book to date comes from Ahmed Rashid, a journalist and a veteran of Afghan affairs for the last 22 years. The present book under review may not be called as an enviable addition to the plethora of material on Afghan affairs. The book suffers from the serious deficiency of being devoid of any references at all which is an astonishing deficiency to be noted in a book published by Oxford University Press, by a writer who happens to reside in Oxford with all conceivable facilities for research writing at his disposal. The book is not so much about Taliban as it is about the background of their religious and spiritual beliefs. It would have been better if the writer had tried to link their past with the present practices. The book starts with a brief introduction of Afghan history, showing how imperialistic standoff between Britain & Soviets in the late 19th century gradually ended in the favor of later when the "Great Saur Revolution" of 1978 led to the establishment of Democratic Republic of Afghanistan and Soviets signed a Treaty of Friendship in December 1978. The Marxist state was resented by Tribes and hence unrest resulted and the Soviets intervened to keep Afghans under their sphere of influence and hence started an era of unending suffering for the people of Afghanistan. After the Geneva accord, civil strife among the Mujahadeen themselves eluded the chances of Peace. Even the 1993 peace deal failed to deliver sustainable peace. By the end of 1994 the peace treaty had collapsed, fighting resumed among the rival factions and there arose in Southern Afghanistan another militant group Taliban, capturing the cities of Kandhar & Charasiab, eventually taking over Kabul in 1996 to establish a new government for Afghanistan based on Islamic Law. In the next chapter, the author has narrated brief biographical sketches of different Mujahadeen factions including Ahmed Shah Masood. Burhan-ud-din Rabbani, Hikmatyaar, Younis Khalis and others. This chapter has little relevance given the scope of the book. The chapter about the history of Hanfite school of theology yields one or two important but incomplete conclusions. First the writer notes that Abu Hanifah was a Persian. "He is the son of a nation that is currently neighboring Afghanistan and whose language has had a deep impact on the historical and cultural progress of the whole region." Secondly, the author believes that "Hanafites are equipped with appropriate tools as well as sufficient liberty to bring together the long standing traditions of Islam with the requirements of modern life." In the actual scenario however, neither Iran s' cultural ancestry seems to have an influence over Afghans nor the Taliban are imbued with the modern spirit that Hanafitism supposedly implies. The writer believes that the Taliban s' experiment with democracy is more transparent than that of Iranians. Unlike the Supreme Leader of Iran, Mullah Omar cannot over rule the edicts put forth by majority of Mullahs. He called upon Ulemas to deliberate upon a 6 point "istifta" (religious inquiry) which shows the importance attached to mutual consultation in the eyes of Taliban. "This pattern is clearly visible in the historical relations between the Saudi rulers and the Wahabi Ulema starting from Ibn-e-Saud, the grand ancestor of the current house of Saud, until today". The chapter regarding the economy under Taliban is replete with details about natural resources of Afghanistan & possible ventures for foreign investments, & surprisingly one of these lucrative temptations is Tourism. Rest of the chapter deal with the Quranic injunctions regarding Economic affairs and very little detail is available about any comprehensive Economic policy, if any, being pursued by Taliban. On the whole the book could have been improved a lot if proper references had been made and a coherent relation established between the historical descriptions and the present implications. The book may be appreciated by those readers who want an elementary crash course on the religious affinities of Taliban and the socio-political ambitions they cherish.

A panoramic view to origins and features of the Taliban
In contrast to other sources contemporarily available in the market, this book is not just another journalistic attempt to illustrate the Taliban movement as a purely political phenomenon generated and promoted as a result of complicated political and economic equations on regional and international scales. Gohari delves directly into the main characteristic of this movement namely the theological concepts through which the movement has found its shape. By providing first hand information as regards to religious upbringing as well as theological creeds of the Taliban, Gohari has been able to lay a firm foundation for the study of the Taliban's political aspirations, their historical and tribal connections as well as causes of their disagreement with other veteran Muslim fighters known as the Mujahideen. The graphic account of the Taliban's school of religious thought has enabled Gohari to demonstrate vividly the Taliban's links to Pakistan as well the nature of relations between them and Afghanistan's neighbours namely Iran, China, India and former soviet republics of the Central Asia. Yet the book is not entirely dedicated to ideological studies. An extensive chapter on economy, provides details about various Islamic systems of economic administration as well as an in-depth study of Islamic economy based on original scriptures of this religion as well as theories presented by Muslim thinkers. This chapter also expounds the Taliban's economic policies as well as their plans to expand their business ambition by enhancing their internal economic infrastructure and their international relations. This book is in brief a compendium of the Taliban's history and contains well-organised chapters on Mujahideen, theology and politics of the Taliban as well as economy and society under them. Chapters on Bin Laden and human rights in Afghanistan are supplementing the book. This book is a valuable source for politicians and political scientists regionally and internationally as well as Islamicists. The book also can provide a good insight into prospects of investments in Afghanistan by international traders.

A panoramic spectrum of origins and features of the Taliban
In contrast to other sources contemporarily available in the market, this book is not just another journalistic attempt to illustrate the Taliban movement as a purely political phenomenon generated and promoted as a result of complicated political and economic equations on regional and international scales. Gohari delves directly into the main characteristic of this movement namely the theological concepts through which the movement has found its shape. By providing first hand information as regards to religious upbringing as well as theological creeds of the Taliban, Gohari has been able to lay a firm foundation for the study of the Taliban's political aspirations, their historical and tribal connections as well as causes of their disagreement with other veteran Muslim fighters known as the Mujahideen. The graphical account of the Taliban's school of religious thought has enabled Gohari to demonstrate vividly the Taliban's links to Pakistan as well the nature of relations between them and Afghanistan's neighbours namely Iran, China, India and former soviet republics of the Central Asia. Yet the book is not entirely dedicated to ideological studies. An extensive chapter on economy, provides details about various Islamic systems of economic administration as well as an in-depth study of Islamic economy based on original scriptures of this religion as well as theories presented by Muslim thinkers. This chapter also expounds the Taliban's economic policies as well as their plans to expand their business ambition by enhancing their internal economic infrastructure and their international relations. This book is in brief a compendium of the Taliban's history and contains well-organised chapters on Mujahideen, theology and politics of the Taliban as well as economy and society under them. Chapters on Bin Laden and human rights in Afghanistan are supplementing the book. This book is a valuable source for politicians and political scientists regionally and internationally as well as Islamicists. The book also can provide a good insight into prospects of investments in Afghanistan by international traders.