Modern Intellectual Readings of the Kharijites

The Author: Hussam S. Timani is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Christopher Newport University, Newport News, Virginia. He holds a Ph.D. in Islamic studies from the University of California, Los Angeles, and has taught Islamic and religious studies at various universities in the United States and Lebanon.

«Hussam S. Timani’s important contribution to our understanding of the role of Kharijite discourse in modern Muslim thought highlights the positive images of the Kharijites found in contemporary Arab literature and the compatibility of these images with western-style liberalism. Anyone interested in the complex interplay between Muslim past and present should read this work.» (Jeffrey T. Kenney, Professor of Religious Studies, DePauw University; Author, ‘Muslim Rebels: Kharijites and the Politics of Extremism in Egypt’)«Although very few in number today, the Khawārij have played an important role in the early history of Islamic theology and political thought. In modern times, Muslim scholars and governments have labeled certain terrorist groups as the neo-Khawārij because they emphasize the practice of takfīr against fellow Muslims and justify the killing of innocent people. The usage of the term, Khawārij, in contemporary context has equated the excesses and extremism of Islamic fundamentalists with the origins and emergence of the movement during the early centuries of Islam. It is against this backdrop that this book attempts to rectify the one-sided negative image of the Khawārij and offers a major reassessment by presenting the positive image of the Khawārij portrayed by Arab/Muslim intellectuals who promoted their own ideologies by reinterpreting early Islamic history. The Khawārij in the latter sources are therefore depicted as being liberal in their theory of the caliphate, egalitarian in their attitude towards Arab and non-Arab Muslims, tolerant in their treatment of women and pious Muslims. A study of this nature is a distinct contribution to the understanding of early Islamic historiography.» (Professor Ismail Poonawala, University of California, Los Angeles)