‘BETWEEN BELIEF AND UNBELIEF LIES THE PERFORMANCE OFSALĀT’: MEANING AND EFFICACY OF A MUSLIM RITUAL

Abstract

Drawing on fieldwork in Istanbul,Turkey, the article analyses the role of the Muslim fivetimes-daily prayer (sal t), within the Islamic tradition. It is argued that the prayer, with its intricate ritual format, provides practitioners with a formidable resource for strengthening their commitment to Islam and asserting membership in a community of believers while at the same time enabling religious Muslims to pursue new and diverse interpretations of Islam. The character of the sal t as a mobile discipline that can easily be inserted into very different forms of life has become especially important as religious Muslims have increasingly been incorporated into liberal society in Turkey in the past decades.

From the Ottoman to the American Empire: Syrian Narratives of Global Power

“…The examination of speech acts is nothing new in anthropology, although such acts are usually considered in ritualistic form, such as prayers, poetry, or even recitations of history (see Caton 1990;Henkel 2005;Swedenburg 1995;Tambiah 1968). While Syrian narratives of global power are not as formulaic or ritualistic as some of these examples, I would argue that the regularity and gravity with which they are spoken indicate that they occupy a similar position.…”

Ambivalent Commitments: Troubles of Morality, Religiosity and Aspiration among Young Egyptians

“…Th is wave, often referred to as '(re-)Islamisation ' (aslama) or 'Islamic revival' (as-sahwa al-islâmiya) has inspired vast amounts of research that, after an earlier focus on the politics of Islamist movements, has increasingly turned to analyze the motivations, forms and eff ects of the religious revival in people's everyday lives and the ways they imagine themselves, the community they live in and the practices, rights and obligations that make up the society (see, e.g., Henkel 2005;Mahmood 2005;Hirschkind 2006aHirschkind , 2006bvan Nieuwkerk 2008;Jouili 2007). Th is is no doubt a welcome counterpoint to the tradition of political analysts who have focused on Islamism as a threat to secular states and legal orders, overlooking the degree to which their power to mobilize is based on their promise of clarity, happiness and closeness to God.…”

The social life of prayers – introduction

“…In this body of work, a theme of the cultivation of spiritual habitus has been prominent (Asad 1993;Henkel 2005;Mahmood 2005;Hirschkind 2006). This focus is fertile in attesting to the devoted labour of the pious subject in disciplining a particular moral and spiritual self.…”