Read a selection of articles from Critical Muslim
CM40: Biography
We celebrate ten years of Critical Muslim, Shanon Shah examines recent biographies of the Prophet, Ziauddin Sardar honours the life of anthropologist and writer Merryl Wyn Davies, Robert Irwin puzzles over the memoir of the seventeenth-century writer and storyteller Hanna Diyab, Josef Linnhoff thinks that Mohammad Asad is a neglected thinker, Shabana Mir discovers transcendence, Hilman Fikri ...
CM39: World Order
C Scott Jordan dissects the notion of 'world order', Abdelwahab El-Affendi suggests we are moving towards radical evil, Anwar Ibrahim reconsiders ...
CM38: Humour
Hassan Mahamdallie remembers the comedy and comedians of his youth, Hussein Abdulsater explores the Islamic approach to humour, Bruce B Lawrence is ...
CM37: Virus
Ehsan Masood unravels the connections between Covid science and geopolitics, Anwar Ibrahim wants to see true justice in a post-pandemic world, Colin Tudge ...
CM36: Destinations
Samia Rahman explores potential directions of travel, Ebrahim Moosa considers the influences that affect our choices of Destinations, C Scott Jordan takes a ...
CM35: Muslim Atlantic
Daniel Nilsson DeHanas and Peter Mandaville pin down the notion of Muslim Atlantic, Aisha Khan explains how a Muslim Atlantic can be realised, Amandla ...
CM34: Artificial
C Scott Jordan reflects on life, death and whether or not authenticity is possible, Jeremy Henzell-Thomas tries to pin down the numerous meanings and ...
CM33: Relics
Samia Rahman is concerned about her personal relics, Boyd Tonkin meanders through Sicily, Aaron Tugendhaft exposes the veneration of certain relics, ...
CM32: Music
Samia Rahman is lost in music; Jeremy Henzell-Thomas suggests music opens hidden windows to the soul; Ziauddin Sardar witnesses the annihilation of the ...
CM31: Climate
Ehsan Masood fears a coming mass extinction, Medina Tenour Whiteman sings the praises of water, Giles Goddard denounces Western attitudes to the ...
CM30: West Africa
Yovanka Paquete Perdigao and Henry Brefo navigate the rich cultural and political geography of West Africa by telling the Lion’s story, Shanka Mesa ...
CM29: Futures
Ziauddin Sardar argues that our survival depends on taking alternative futures seriously. Mirza Sarajkić shows that the Qur'an is a future-oriented ...
CM28: Narratives
Merryl Wyn Davies argues that narrative, the weaving of information into world pictures, is integral to cultures, Jeremy Henzell Thomas explores the ...
CM27: Beauty
Shanon Shah goes in search of beautiful Muslims, Samia Rahman refuses to take a selfie, Doris Behrens-Abouseif reads the extensive Islamic literature on ...
CM26: Gastronomy
Merryl Wyn Davies shreds foodie culture as the construct of affluence and essence of abundance; Jeremy Henzell-Thomas is convinced that the rise of ...
CM25: Values
Merryl Wyn Davies tries to make sense of values in the post-truth age; Kabir Helminski provides a primer on Islam and human values; Boyd Tonkin welcomes ...
CM24: Populism
Ziauddin Sardar dismembers post-truth angst; Richard Appignanesi mourns the loss of world; Barnaby Rogerson traces the history of the word demagogue; Bhavik ...
CM23: Bangladesh
Shanon Shah tries to unravel the paradox of Bangladesh; Hassan Mahamdallie has strange encounters in Dhaka; Zeeshan Khan asks real Bangali Muslims to raise ...
CM22: Utopias
Boyd Tonkin surfs the coast of utopia, Bruce Wannell explores the Gardens of Paradise, Hassan Mahamdallie joins the community of Findhorn, Marco Lauri ...
CM21: Relations
Samia Rahman is perplexed by our complex network of relationships, Aamer Hussein looks back on his affectionate bonds with the great Urdu writer Qurratulain ...
CM20: PostWest
Shanon Shah suggests PostWest is a speculative concept that obscures as much as it explains, Jasper M Trautsch explores the concept of the 'West', ...
CM19: Nature
Jeremy Henzell-Thomas goes for a long walk 'out in the open', Charles Upton delineates basic Islamic concepts and symbols for the contemplation of ...
CM18: Cities
Hassan Mahamdallie discovers shoots of hope in the wastelands of Detroit. Peter Clark thinks that Istanbul is the eternal capital of the world, Robert Irwin ...
CM17: Extreme
Ziauddin Sardar and Samia Rahman suggest that extremism is an expected product of our complex and chaotic postnormal times, Anne Alexander traces the ...
CM16: Turkey
Tahir Abbas is captivated by the complexity of Turkish politics and culture. Ahmet T. Kuru is unimpressed by the authoritarian tendencies of the current ...
CM15: Educational Reform
Jeremy Henzell-Thomas seeks an integrated approach to education and knowledge, Richard Pring answers the question – what is a university, Marodsilton ...
CM14: Power
Ziauddin Sardar and Merryl Wyn Davies attempt to locate the sources of power. Barnaby Rogerson deconstructs the dreams of Caliphate. Malise Ruthven ...
CM13: Race
Hassan Mahamdallie thinks that the colour line will blight the twenty-first century, Shanon Shah argues that Islam and race have combined to produce a ...
CM12: Dangerous Freethinkers
Ziauddin Sardar argues that freethinkers can be dangerous in numerous ways, James E. Montgomery examines the radical freethought of the ninth-century ...
CM11: Syria
Peter Clark explores the roots of the Syrian crisis, Robin Yassin-Kassab explores revolutionary culture, Sam Hamad dissects the Islamist opposition, Rasha ...
CM10: Sects
Ziauddin Sardar and Merryl Wyn Davies put sectarianism under the scalpel; Ebrahim Moosa suggests the Sunnis, the majority Muslim sect, need to rethink ...
CM09: The Maghreb
Robin Yassin-Kassab has an enlightening sojourn in Morocco, Robert Irwin argues that the great historian Ibn Khaldun was a Sufi, Marcia Lynx Qualey is ...
CM08: Men in Islam
Ziauddin Sardar confesses his shortcomings as a Muslim man, Merryl Wyn Davies asks what exactly is the problem with men, Abdennur Prado grapples with ...
CMO7: Muslim Archipelago
Merryl Wyn Davies unravels the paradox that is Malaysia and Indonesia, Ziauddin Sardar reads the history of Kuala Lumpur from the window of his ...
CM06: Reclaiming Al-Andalus
Ziauddin Sardar sides with the philosophers of al-Andalus in their struggle with orthodox theologians, Robin Yassin-Kassab goes on a poetic journey, Nazry ...
CM05: Love and Death
Aamer Hussein takes love to its logical conclusion, Robert Irwin traces the origins of the ghazal (love lyric), Christopher Shackle recites epic Panjabi ...
CM04: Pakistan?
Ziauddin Sardar questions the question mark that is always placed in front of Pakistan, Robin Yassin-Kassab asks why Pakistan has not imploded, Taimur Khan ...
CM03: Fear and Loathing
Merryl Wyn Davies explores what we fear, AbdelWahab El-Affendi tackles Islamophobia and Orientalism in the age of liberal paranoia, Arun Kundnani charts the ...
CM02: The Idea of Islam
Ziauddin Sardar argues why Islamic reform is necessary, Bruce Lawrence sees Muslim cosmopolitanism as the future, Parvez Manzoor declares jihad on the idea ...
CM01: The Arabs Are Alive
Critical Muslim is a quarterly magazine devoted to examining issues within Islam and Muslim societies.
