Overview

In Twelver Shi'a Islam, the wait for the return of the Twelfth Imam, Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-Mahdi, at the end of time, overshadowed the value of actively seeking martyrdom. However, what is the place of martyrdom in Twelver Shi'ism today? This book shows that the Islamic revolution in Iran resulted in the marriage of Shi'i messianism and extreme political activism, changing the mindset of the Shi'a worldwide. Suddenly, each drop of martyrs' blood brought the return of al-Mahdi one step closer, and the Islamic Republic of Iran supposedly became the prelude to the foretold world revolution of al-Mahdi. Adel Hashemi traces the unexplored area of Shi'i discourse on martyrdom from the 1979 revolution—when the Islamic Republic's leaders cultivated the culture of martyrdom to topple the Shah's regime—to the dramatic shift in the understanding of martyrdom today. Also included are the reaction to the Syrian crisis, the region's war with ISIS and other Salafi groups, and the renewed commitment to the defense of shrines. This book shows the striking shifts in the meaning of martyrdom in Shi'ism, revealing the real relevance of the concept to the present-day Muslim world.

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9780755633951

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Reviews

The Making of Martyrdom in Modern Twelver Shi'ism helps the reader to understand the contemporary Middle East's sectarian conflicts, beyond mere politics, through the lens of sectarian martyrdom. * Middle East Monitor * This ground-breaking work provides a new perspective on the reassertion of the concept of martyrdom in contemporary Shi’i political thought and how the traditional understanding of martyrdom has been reconceptualized in light of current geo-political conditions. -- Liyakat Takim, Professor and Sharjah Chair in Global Islam, McMaster University, Canada

This ground-breaking work provides a new perspective on the reassertion of the concept of martyrdom in contemporary Shi'i political thought and how the traditional understanding of martyrdom has been reconceptualized in light of current geo-political conditions. -- Liyakat Takim, Professor and Sharjah Chair in Global Islam, McMaster University, Canada

Author Information

Adel Hashemi is a researcher in contemporary Islam. He completed his Ph.D. at McMaster University.

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