DEVELOPMENT OF ISLAMIC THOUGHT IN CHINA: A STUDY OF THE VIEWS OF ISMA C ĪL ZHANG CHENG QIAN BY ZAINAB YIN ZHIMING A dissertation submitted in fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage (Us . ūl al-Dīn and Comparative Religion) Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Science International Islamic University Malaysia JUNE 2018
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DEVELOPMENT OF ISLAMIC THOUGHT IN CHINA:
A STUDY OF THE VIEWS OF ISMACĪL
ZHANG CHENG QIAN
BY
ZAINAB YIN ZHIMING
A dissertation submitted in fulfillment of the requirement for
the degree of Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and
Heritage (Us.ūl al-Dīn and Comparative Religion)
Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and
Human Science
International Islamic University Malaysia
JUNE 2018
i
ABSTRACT
This research is a study about the development of Islamic thought in China. The
researcher mainly selects the modern Muslim intellectual Ismacīl Zhang Cheng Qian
as the subject of the study and explores his thought expressed in his works. The
researcher achieved the aims of study based on an investigation of Ismacīl Zhang‟s
intellectual background, and elaboration of his controversial views between traditional
Muslim scholars and modernist intellectuals, especially on revelation (waḥy), the
unseen world (cālam al-ghayb) and miracles (mu
cjizāt) since his interpretations are
different from the orthodox Islamic perspective, as presented in his two works; The
Call of Islam (1992) and Chinese Translation and Commentary of Qurʼān (2005). In
addition, the influence of Ismacīl Zhang‟s thought on Sino-Muslim was presented, by
collecting and analyzing readers‟ letters, book reviews, and Ismacīl Zhang‟s own
accounts in interviews by e-mails. There are supporters who donated funds to help
him publish his works and spread his thought in China. The researcher puts them into
different categories according to their identity characteristic; namely, his followers,
educated Muslims and new Muslims. Based on previous studies, the researcher finally
recommended some suggestions for further direction and the emphasis on the study of
Ismacīl Zhang‟s works and thought.
ii
خلاصة البحث
أفكار المثقف المسلم فيو تتناول الباحثةىذا البحث عبارة عن دراسة لتطور الفكر الإسلامي في الصين. لهذه الدراسة، انموذجبوصفها أالصين بالمسلمين فيالصيني المعاصر إسماعيل تشانغ تشنغ تشيان وتأثيرىا
قضايا الوحي والغيبيات فيذلك من خلال تقييم آراء إسماعيل تشانغ، خاصة تحقيق وتحاول الباحثةنداء "حيث أن تفسيراتو لها تختلف عن المنظور الإسلامي الأصيل كما ىو مبين في كتابيو ،والمعجزات. وبالإضافة إلى ذلك، م(٢٠٠٢" )ترجمة معاني القرآن وتفسيره باللغة الصينية"و م(١٩٩٢)الإسلام"
بو الصين من خلال جمع وتحليل ملاحظات القراء لكتبالمسلمين فيسيتم وصف تأثير إسماعيل تشانغ المتأثرين أىم همبوصفها، كما تختار الباحثة شرائح من مؤيدي إسماعيل تشانغ وأتباعو فيالمنشورة وآرائهم
عهدىم بالإسلام وعلاقتهم بالتربية الإسلامية، ةثابآرائو وأفكاره، بتصنيفهم حسب سمات ىويتهم وحد .وفي نهاية المطاف سوف تعطي الباحثة الاستنتاج التحليلي والتوصيات
iii
APPROVAL PAGE
I certify that I have supervised and read this study and that in my opinion, it conforms
to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope and
quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and
Heritage (Uṣūl al-Dīn and Comparative Religion).
…………………………
Megawati Bt Moris
Supervisor
I certify that I have read this study and that in my opinion it conforms to acceptable
standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a
thesis for the degree of Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage (Uṣūl al-
Dīn and Comparative Religion).
…………………………
Noor Amali Mohd Daud
Examiner
This dissertation was submitted to the Department of Uṣūl al-Dīn and Comparative
Religion and is accepted as a fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of
Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage (Uṣūl al-Dīn and Comparative Religion).
…………………………
Head, Department of
Uṣūl al-Dīn and
Comparative Religion
This dissertation was submitted to the Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and
Human Sciences and is accepted as a fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of
Master of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage (Uṣūl al-Dīn and Comparative
Religion).
………….…………………...
Dean, Kulliyyah of Islamic
Revealed Knowledge and
Human Sciences
iv
DECLARATION
I hereby declare that this dissertation is the result of my own investigations, except
where otherwise stated. I also declare that it has not been previously or concurrently
submitted as a whole for any other degrees at IIUM or other institutions.
Zainab Yin Zhi Ming
Signature................................................ Date .........................................
v
AGEINTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA
DECLARATION OF COPYRIGHT AND AFFIRMATION OF
FAIR USE OF UNPUBLISHED RESEARCH
DEVELOPMENT OF ISLAMIC THOUGTH IN CHINA:
A STUDY OF THE VIEWS OF ISMACĪL ZHANG CHENG QIAN
I declare that the copyright holders of this dissertation are jointly owned by the student
No part of this unpublished research may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder
except as provided below
1. Any material contained in or derived from this unpublished research may
be used by others in their writing with due acknowledgement.
2. IIUM or its library will have the right to make and transmit copies (print
or electronic) for institutional and academic purposes.
3. The IIUM library will have the right to make, store in a retrieved system
and supply copies of this unpublished research if requested by other
universities and research libraries.
By signing this form, I acknowledged that I have read and understand the IIUM
Intellectual Property Right and Commercialization policy.
Affirmed by Zainab Yin Zhi Ming
……..…………………….. ………………………..
Signature Date
vi
This dissertation is dedicated to :
My beloved parents, my sister and my husband
For their endless love and continuous support and understanding that give strength
for me to continue my journey in finishing this Master‟s degree and completing this
work.
May Allāh subḥānahu wa tacāla bless them and reward them with His Jannah.
vii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
All praises to the Almighty Allāh, the Most Gracious and the Most Merciful, and
peace and blessing upon our beloved Prophet Muḥammad, his family and his
companions and all those who follow him until the End of Day. Thank you to the
Almighty Allāh for the strength, patience and perseverance that You grant me.
Without your guidance and blessing, I would not be able to complete this research.
Firstly, it is my utmost pleasure to dedicate this work to my dear parents and
my family, who granted me the gift of their unwavering belief in my ability to
accomplish this goal: thank you for your support and patience.
I wish to express my appreciation and thanks to those who provided their
time,effort and support for this project. To the members of my dissertation committee,
thank you for sticking with me.
Finally, a special thanks to Assist. Prof. Dr. Megawati Moris, this difficult
study could not have been done without her valuable guidance, encouragement and
kindness. She has shown admirable patience and dedication as my major academic
supervisor. May Allāh the Most Merciful bless her and her family.
Once again, we glorify Allāh for His endless mercy on us which enable us to
successfully round off the efforts of writing this research. Alhamdulillah.
viii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract .................................................................................................................... i
Abstract in Arabic .................................................................................................... ii Approval Page .......................................................................................................... iii Declaration ............................................................................................................... iv Copyright Page ......................................................................................................... v Acknowledgements .................................................................................................. vii
Table of Contents ..................................................................................................... viii Transliteration Tables .............................................................................................. x
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................ 1 1.1 Introduction ............................................................................................ 1 1.2 Statement of the Problem ....................................................................... 4 1.3 Research Questions ................................................................................ 5
1.4 Objectives of Study ................................................................................ 6 1.5 Significance of the Study ....................................................................... 6
1.6 Limitation of the Study .......................................................................... 7 1.7 Research Methodology .......................................................................... 7 1.8 Literature Review ................................................................................... 8
2.1 Major Trends of Islamic Thought in China ........................................... 15 2.1.1 Sufism (Taṣawwuf) ....................................................................... 16
2.2.1 Ismacīl Zhang‟s Biography and Works ......................................... 23
2.2.2 Ismacīl Zhang‟s Sources of Intellectual Influence ........................ 31
CHAPTER 3: ANALYSIS OF ISMACĪL ZHANG’S VIEWS .......................... 34
3.1 Ismacīl Zhang‟s View on Revelation (waḥy) ......................................... 34
3.1.1 Definition of Revelation (waḥy) ................................................... 35
3.1.2 Ismacīl Zhang‟s View on Revelation (waḥy) ................................ 36
3.2 Ismacīl Zhang‟s View on Unseen World (
cālam al-ghayb) ................... 40
3.2.1 The World of Jinn ......................................................................... 41 3.2.2 The Hereafter (al-Ᾱkhirah) ............................................................ 45
3.3 IsmacīL Zhang‟s View on Miracles (Mu
cjizāt) ...................................... 48
3.3.1 The Miracles of Prophet cĪsā (pbuh) .............................................. 51
3.3.2 The Miracles of Prophet Muḥammad (pbuh) ................................ 53
Sino-Muslims5 have long wrestled with a problem of translation. Unlike
Persian, Turkish, Urdu, or Malay, the Chinese language has never adopted vocabulary
from Arabic to enable a precise understanding of Islam‟s religious and philosophical
foundations. Islam thus had to be translated into Chinese, which lacks words and
arguments to justify Islamic thought.6 As a result, Islamic thought in China became
integrated with Chinese traditional culture and modern ideologies.
Regarding the trends of Islamic thought in China, it is difficult to adopt a
typology that would cover such a wide range of trends and thinkers. However, the
researcher will try to encapsulate, at least at a fairly broad level, the major trends that
exist in China today which are Sufism, Salafism and modernism.7 In this research,
combining with previous research, the researcher will broadly outline these trends of
Islamic thought in China today and focus especially on modernism and its main
representative, Ismacīl Zhang Cheng Qian.
As a trend of Islamic thought formed in the 19th
century, modernists had great
impacts on the Muslim world in the first half of the 20th
century. Under this influence,
in recent years, many Sino-Muslim intellectuals are keen to write their views on Islam
without referring to original Islamic works. Ismacīl Zhang Cheng Qian‟s works are
representative of this trend.
Ismacīl Zhang Cheng Qian (1938-present)
8 is a controversial Muslim
intellectual in China. There has been much debate on his works and views, with The
5 The term Sino-Muslims will be used in this research. Sino-Muslims are usually called Hui in Chinese
to indicate their bicultural heritage. They live in mainland of China, the other Muslims in China, or
other Chinese Muslims living abroad are not considered in this research. 6 Jonathan N. Lipman, ed. Islamic Thought in China ― Sino-Muslim Intellectual Evolution from the
17th
to the 21st Century, (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2016), 1.
7 Ding Shi Ren, “Contemporary Islamic Thought Patterns in China”, Chinese Muslim,