The Discursive Tradition Through Omnia El Shakry
In this essay, I will evaluate the article “Inwardness: Comparative Religious Philosophy in Modern Egypt” by Omnia El Shakry, which explores the intellectual history of religious philosophy in twentieth-century Egypt. I will first explain the concept of discursive tradition, as proposed by Talal Asad, then show how El Shakry’s article can be seen as an example of such a tradition, by conducting the concept of “juwwaniyya” and “reading as an embodied practice”.
According to Asad, discursive tradition offers an understanding of Islam as a dynamic and heterogeneous set of norms, discourses, and practices that are both shaped by and influenced by historical and social settings (Asad 1997, 27–54). In contrast, he suggests that Islam be examined as a historically placed and contested tradition that is continually reinterpreted and changed by its adherents. He rejects the notion that religion can be separated from other spheres of existence and is a universal, unchanging category. Discursive tradition is constantly changing and continually shaped by the social and historical circumstances in which its practitioners live. It is neither fixed nor static. Asad demonstrates how contemporary secularism in Western societies is itself a byproduct of a particular Christian tradition that is difficult to separate from religion. Asad contends that religion is a discursive tradition and cannot be reduced to a set of beliefs, doctrines, rituals, or institutions, as is frequently done by Western secularism (Mahmood 2010).
I argue that El Shakry’s book presents an illustration of a discursive tradition, by tracing the development and transformation of religious philosophy in modern Egypt, through the lens of the Ikhwan al-Safa, a group of intellectuals who emerged in the 1940s and 1950s. The Ikhwan al-Safa claimed that their views and sect encompassed the views of all sects and all sciences and that they were not hostile to any of the sciences, books, or sects (Uysal 2000). They drew upon a variety of sources, both Islamic and non-Islamic, such as the Quran, the Hadith, Sufism, ancient Greek philosophy, and modern Western philosophy. They engaged in dialogues and debates with Muslim and Christian scholars and sought to reconcile reason and revelation, science and religion, and inwardness and outwardness. El Shakry argues that the Ikhwan al-Safa were not simply a product of the historical conditions of their time, such as the rise of Nasserism and the Arab-Israeli conflict (El Shakry 2022), but rather a continuation and reconfiguration of a discursive tradition that dates back to the 10th century, when the original Ikhwan al-Safa, a secret society of philosophers, wrote their famous epistles. For instance, Ikhwan al-Safa introduced concepts that anticipated the modern notions of secularism and enlightenment, such as the idea of the tabula rasa, which they derived from a Quranic verse that states: “And Allah brought you out of the wombs of your mothers while you knew nothing, and gave you hearing, sight, and intellect so perhaps you would be thankful” (Uysal 2000). El Shakry demonstrates that Ikhwan al-Safa’s engagement with science and philosophy, as a “religious” group, was not a contradiction or a compromise, but rather a manifestation of a discursive tradition that was open, diverse, and creative.
The main figure that El Shakry examines in her book is Uthman Amin, a student of Yusuf Karam and a prominent religious philosopher in Egypt. Amin’s philosophy is structured on the concept of inwardness, or juwwaniyya, which is a kind of spiritualism and “the basis of his faith and the philosophy of revolution”, which implies “turning towards the spiritual and spiritual dimension of existence behind its material and corporeal dimension” (Murad 2007), and it is not a mystical but a rationalist intuition. Amin argues that inwardness is key to understanding the dialogue between Muslim and Christian thinkers, as well as the essence of Islam. He also sees inwardness as a way of mediating between the Eastern Sufi values and the Western materialism that he criticizes.
Amin’s philosophy has a strong Christological emphasis, as he views Christ as a model of inwardness and a source of inspiration for his own revolutionary project, a noetic phenomenon, with Christ being the first to turn from appearances to inner essences. He writes: “a revolution in the direction (qibla) and axis (mihwar) of religious spirituality and sensibilities” (El Shakry 2022). Amin integrates Christian and Islamic perspectives on inwardness, combining the Christological focus on inward transformation with al-Ghazali’s normative ethics, and traces the concept back to Christ and even to Greek philosophical inquiry, such as Plato and Aristotle. This approach emphasizes self-becoming as a form of jihad, requiring embodied practices such as prayer, fasting, and charity. He also highlights the role of Augustine, who links inwardness with knowledge and ethical self-correction, a concept that is also central in Islamic thought, particularly in al-Ghazali’s work. This philosophy suggests that religious traditions, especially around the Eastern Mediterranean, have been interlinked and responsive to each other, forming distinctive yet connected intellectual and social fields. This includes the influence of Greek philosophy on early Christianity and medieval Islam, as well as the exchange of ideas and practices among different religious communities. Amin’s philosophy of inwardness, therefore, represents a creative example of a discursive tradition, as defined by Asad.
Reading and prayer are two essential practices that enrich spiritual life and bring believers closer to Allah. According to Amin’s philosophy, reading helps individuals to discover the hidden depths of their being, and awaken their awareness of the divine presence (al-wa’y al-insani). It also shapes their character and behavior according to the tradition they follow, by being exposed to the wisdom and guidance of the past and present scholars and mentors. Prayer, on the other hand, is a direct communication with Allah, a way of remembering Him and expressing gratitude and devotion. In the Quran, the word ikam is used for the performing of prayer, and sometimes it is synonymous with the word quran, which means “read”, which reveals how reading and worship are intertwined in Islamic understanding. This shows the connection between reading and prayer, as both are forms of dhikr, or remembrance of Allah. Surah Ankhebut verse 45 shows that prayer is the most noble worship and that it has a positive effect on individuals’ moral and ethical conduct. However, prayer is only effective when it is done with full consciousness, awareness, and responsibility. If one prays without these qualities, s/he loses the essence of worship and the connection to Allah. Therefore, believers should strive to make reading and prayer meaningful and sincere and to reflect on the signs of Allah in the Quran and in the creation, which would help in attaining spiritual enlightenment and pleasing Allah.
In conclusion, Omnia El Shakry’s engagement with the intellectual group Ikhwan al-Safa can be evaluated in the “discursive tradition” framework proposed by Talal Asad. In order to demonstrate that, I addressed the concepts of “juwwaniyya” and “reading” as a form of embodied practice.
Bibliography
El Shakry, Omnia. 2022. “Inwardness: Comparative Religious Philosophy in Modern Egypt.” Journal of the American Academy of Religion 90 (2). https://doi.org/10.1093/jaarel/lfac032 .
Mahmood, Saba. 2010. “Can Secularism Be Other-Wise?” In Varieties of Secularism, 282–99. Harvard University Press.
Murad, Said . 2007. “Osman Emîn.” TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi. 2007. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/osman-emin.
Talal Asad. 1997. Genealogies of Religion: Discipline and Reasons of Power in Christianity and Islam. Baltimore, Md.U.A.: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press.
Uysal, Enver. 2000. “İHVÂN-ı SAFÂ.” TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi. 2000. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/ihvan-i-safa?ysclid=lpr0vsjr6e136992669.
