Relevance of al-Ghazali`s doctrine of al-wasat (the desired balance middle way) in countering the ideologies of extremists with special reference to Jemaah Islamiyyah in Singapore

Abstract

Al-Ghazali’s personality as a multi-dimensional, full-fledged scholar in the rich Islamic intellectual tradition is acknowledged widely, both in Muslim and non-Muslim circles, and remains relevant until today. This proposed study aims to investigate al-Ghazali and his thoughts, specifically his doctrine of al-wasat (the desired balanced middle way), in seeking a way towards countering a key contemporary problem besetting the Muslim World – the problem of terrorism. This proposed study suggests that the energy and emphasis that al-Ghazali showed and projected to promote a spirit of moderation in embracing true Islamic teachings and spirit through this doctrine, could help towards finding an avenue in countering contemporary terrorists’ ideologies. This study proposes to show that these terrorists are working within a misconstrued ideology, based on the wrong understanding of Islamic universal values and concepts, to promote their wayward goals and ambitions. In trying to highlight this fact, the case of the Jemaah Islamiyah in Singapore is taken as its case study. This proposed study will try to prove that a way towards countering misconceptions of Islamic ideologies can be found through seeking and consulting the classical Islamic intellectual tradition for guidance. This study hopes to encourage more research into classical Islamic tradition to find ideas, methods and solutions to overcome the threat of terrorism.