Around the world Quote by Pankaj Mishra
““There was actually little talk about Islam from the first generation of leaders in Muslim countries. They had distinguished themselves as anti-imperialist activists: Atatürk, for instance, derived his charisma and authority as a nation-builder from his comprehensive defeat of Allied forces in Turkey. He went on to abolish the Ottoman office of the Caliphate soon after assuming power, pitilessly killing the political hopes of pan-Islamists around the world. He forbade expressions of popular Islam and arrested Sufi dervishes (executing some of them); he replaced Shariah law with Swiss civil law and Italian criminal law. This partisan of Comtean Positivism expressed publicly what many Muslim leaders, confronted with conservative opposition, may have thought privately: that ‘Islam, the absurd theology of an immoral bedouin, is a rotting cadaver that poisons our lives. It is nothing other than a degrading and dead cause.””
About This Quote
Source Book: Age of Anger by Pankaj Mishra, 2017
Early Muslim leaders prioritized anti‑imperialism over religious identity, suppressing Islam to modernize and align with secular law.
In simple terms: Leaders ignored Islam to modernize.
Key Takeaway
Recognize how political goals can reshape religious expression.
Themes
secularism
modernization
political power
religion
colonialism
Mood
critical
reflective
Type
historical
political
When to use this quote
- policy reform
- education curricula
- legal systems
- public discourse
Key Concepts
nationalism
positivism
state building
Questions to Reflect On
- How do political agendas reshape religious identity?
- What are the long‑term effects of suppressing faith in nation‑building?
A Different Perspective
Secular reforms can alienate religious communities and fuel backlash.
