The legal framework for the functioning of Muslim community in the Russian Federation

At present, the Muslim community in the Russian Federation grows in importance and strength. The religious freedom, which came as a result of the democratic transformation that took place in the Russian Federation in the late 1980s and early 1990s opened the opportunity for its Muslim residents to develop their own culture, educational system and administrative structure. The freedom of religion was one of the most important elements of perestroika and one of the directions of Russia’s development following the transformation. Here, the freedom of religion can be considered as both an element of liberalization of the Soviet regime, and, after the break-up of the USSR, as a step towards democratization. The article aims to present the most important legal acts and documents that constitute the legal basis for the functioning of Muslims in the contemporary Russian Federation.

Securitization of Islam in Central Asia

The aim of the article is to analyse mechanisms of constructing Islam in the discourse and practices of undemocratic Central Asian countries. This objective will be accomplished through the references to securitization theory located within the framework of the constructivist paradigm. The major argument of the paper is that the discursive transformation of various dimensions of Islam’s existence into a homogeneous threat to the security was an important securitizing move. Its relevance is related to the national and international level of legitimacy. The strength of the securitizing move results from the amount of resources of the authoritarian Central Asian elites as the dominant securitizing actors. In the first part, the text critically discusses the radicalization of Muslims in Central Asia thesis and the practices of the state structures towards Islam. In the next part it will present various manifestations and dimensions of the securitization of Islam in the discourse and practice of the incumbent elites in Central Asia countries.

Relations Chechen-Saudi (august 1997–february 2007)

In the article, the author presented the most important events relations of Chechen-Saudian from the middle of 1999 to February 2007. The author showed how politics looked like for example during presidency of Aslan Maskhadov’s, Ahmat Kadyrov’s.

Chechen religious leaders from the 18th to 19th centuries

The proposed topic is a focus on political and religious activity by religious leaders in the North Caucasus in the fight against the Russian colonizer. Under their leadership they sought victory over the Russian Empire. The author tried to present the most important and vital moments in the life of Mansur Ushurma, Kazi mullah, Gamzat bek and imam Osman Shamil too.

Hodja Ahmad Yasawi – a mystic from Central Asia

The main aim of the article is to analyze the life and activity of the Islamic mystic Hodja Ahmad Yasawi and to present the legacy he left behind. Sufism or Islamic mysticism is an important element of the spiritual heritage of the countries of Central Asia. Ahmad Yasawi was one of the first persons in the region who worked for the development of Islam in Sufism. He gave a lot from himself not only during his lifetime, but also after his death. The article will present the information on the death of the Sufi and his tomb, which is currently on the UNESCO World Heritage List. An important element of the article is the reference to the teachings preached by the mystic (including the silent dhikr) and his works (e.g. his most popular work i.e. Divan-i Hikmet).

Selected Factors Shaping Turkish Foreign Policy

The analysis of determinants shaping the foreign policy of modern states requires taking into account a whole range of internal and external factors, both of an objective and subjective nature. The use of the typology of foreign policy determinants should be supplemented with the characteristics of factors specific to a given country, most often included in the social or cultural sphere. The lack of this type of supplement not only impairs the analysis but also makes it impossible to obtain a full picture of the phenomena and processes studied. One of the countries in which the analysis of foreign policy conditions requires consideration of a whole range of additional factors is the Republic of Turkey. The Kemalist ideology, Turkish Islam and Kurdish separatism described in this article, have a significant impact on the shape of contemporary Turkish foreign policy, thus should be thoroughly studied by all attempting to understand Turkish foreign policy.

Jadidism and the Reform of Muslim Education in Russia at the Turn of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries

The concept of Jadidism - the reform movement among Muslims in the Russian Empire - at the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and to the present day has beeen of interest to researchers. Scientists discuss it not only the issues of terminology, but also in regard to determining the exact date of the occurrence of this phenomenon and determining its most important stages. Representatives of this movement have been recorded on the pages of history, and their achievements today are an extremely rich source for analysis, mainly due to the ideas they proclaim, which at the turn of the centuries were courageous, and sometimes innovative. The article aims to present the concept of Jadidism in the context of socio-religious changes among the Muslim (Tatar) community in the Russian Empire at the turn of nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

The Life and the Activity of the Central Asian Sufi Najm ad-Din Kubra

The article presents the life and the activity of the Sufiand Central Asia - Najm ad-Din Kubra. The paper describes the life that formed the later master of Islamic mysticism. Much emphasis was placed on the issues related to the teachings of the Sufi(e.g. about zikr) and the on the description of the color theory (Latoif), extremely important for students of Kubra. Attention was also paid to the effects of the teachings of ad-Din Kubra (which the brotherhoods drew from the wisdom of the mystic) and how they adapted in society and politics over the centuries.

Saffronization of India? Hindutwa ideology in the rule of Narendra Modi in 2014-2021

In the era of Narendra Modi’s rule in India, we are dealing with a significant increase in the importance of Hinduva. This applies not only to the rhetoric and practice of goverment’s actions, but also to the general change of the socio-political climate. It can be said about the transition of the said ideology to the Indian mainstream. In turn, the most important threads related to the interpretation of Hinduva are distrust towards the followers of Islam and the desire to subordinate them to the Hindu majority. From this conviction and electoral calculation follow further anti-Muslim actions, whether taken directly by Modi’s government, or approved by it, or at least not blocked. The situation of Indian Muslims has deteriorated significantly in so many fields since 2014 that the use of “saffronization of India” to illustrate this phenomenon seems appropriate. It means glorifying the role of the followers of the Hindu religion in India, while diminishing the importance of other religious groups, especially in the historical context.

The Kafala System in the Persian Gulf States – Worker Protection or Slavery in the 21st Century? Outline of the Issues

The human rights protection system in the Middle East, especially in the Persian Gulf states, is often discussed in the literature in the context of women’s rights or the use of torture and the death penalty. An important topic related to human rights in the modern world is the kafala system, which has been operating in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, i.e., Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, and Jordan for years. The states have perceived it as a system of foreign worker protection. According to the latest data, it is estimated that 25 million migrants live and work in the GCC countries, 70% of the Gulf Cooperation Council workforce consists of migrant workers, and 49% of the total GCC population are migrants. The kafala system determines the dependence between a foreign employee and an Arab employer, which is often associated with the emergence of various types of violations of employee rights and threats to their lives and health.

A Hijab in Considerations of Qasim Amin and Musa Bigiev

In the Western world, a hijab is seen as a special form of oppression of women who are hidden and fully controlled by men. In this context, it seems to be interesting what Muslim men thought about the veil, how they interpreted Islamic law, its Koranic verses and hadiths that refer to the title issue to justify that it is not necessary to apply it. The article’s purpose is to present the views of two Muslim modernists – the Egyptian: Kasim Amin and Tatar, and Musa Bigijew – on issues related to women’s rights in Islam regarding the obligation to cover up women. The author tries to answer the following questions: is it really possible to consider their thoughts as a manifestation of a kind of struggle for women’s rights and efforts to “liberate” them? To what extent the views on the isolation of women in the Arab-Muslim world have changed in the time between the publishing of both analysed texts; and whether Musa Bigijew considered the socio-political changes that took place in the Middle East in the 1920s?

The Ideas of Jadidism in Contemporary Russia

The development of the Muslim religion in the Russian Federation is undoubtedly a very important and, at the same time, interesting element influencing the contemporary socio-political situation in Russia. One of the most important components of religious revival in this country was the change in the Russian Muslims’ attitude to issues related to religiosity. In the conditions of religious pluralism, Muslims in Russia, scientists, thinkers, and publicists often refer to the intellectual output of Russian Muslim socio-political activists whose activity took place at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The article aims to show how the jadidism movement is being received in contemporary Russia. Nowadays, the ideas of jadidism are also the pretext for discussing the nature of Russian Islam and its future.