Graduate Student Session
This paper explores the intersection of religion and politics during the emergence of Bangladesh with a special focus on Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani (1880-1976). Bhashani was a Sufi saint and peasant leader who throughout his life fought for the causes of toiling masses and oppressed peasants and was known as the “prophet of violence”, “Red Maulana” and “Fire-eater Maulana”. Though intellectuals and political commentators from Bangladesh have written volumes on him, there is a paucity of scholarly work that focuses on his religio-political philosophy, without which, one can only see the tip of the iceberg, hence, it will bring a hollow interpretation. This paper scrutinizes the core religious philosophy of Maulana Bhashani, which shaped his anti-colonial and emancipatory politics. Simultaneously this paper argues that Bhashani’s politics derived from the philosophy of Rububiyah (Divine Providence) and a hermeneutic engagement with the concept (Rububiyah), we will be able to understand how religion became a central domain for the emancipation of the oppressed.
This paper explores the intersection of religion and politics during the emergence of Bangladesh with a special focus on Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani (1880-1976). Bhashani was a Sufi saint and peasant leader who throughout his life fought for the causes of toiling masses and oppressed peasants and was known as the “prophet of violence”, “Red Maulana” and “Fire-eater Maulana”. Though intellectuals and political commentators from Bangladesh have written volumes on him, there is a paucity of scholarly work that focuses on his religio-political philosophy, without which, one can only see the tip of the iceberg, hence, it will bring a hollow interpretation. This paper scrutinizes the core religious philosophy of Maulana Bhashani, which shaped his anti-colonial and emancipatory politics. Simultaneously this paper argues that Bhashani’s politics derived from the philosophy of Rububiyah (Divine Providence) and a hermeneutic engagement with the concept (Rububiyah), we will be able to understand how religion became a central domain for the emancipation of the oppressed.