Islam in Kyrgyzstan - Term Paper Example

Islam in Kyrgyzstan Introduction If one takes a close look at the history of development of the society, one can not help noticing that religion has played a tremendously important role in it. Indeed, the existence of various spiritual teachings can be traced up to the very dawn of it. That is why it may be particularly useful to examine religion and the way it is represented in the social environment as this is likely to shed light on the human nature. In spite of the fact that in the contemporary word Church and State are separated, one can hardly dismiss the fact that there are many countries where the former has an impact on the latter. This paper will analyze Islam in Kyrgyzstan and present an objective account of the role that this religion plays in this country. In order to do so, the paper will provide a general overview of the religion in question in the country and examine the process of introduction of it. Next, it will analyze the extent of influence of tribal religious system of the contemporary Islam as it is practiced in Kyrgyzstan, paying particular attention to tengriism, elements of shamanism as well as the peculiarities of their coexistence with the Muslim faith. The following aspect of investigation is the relationship between Islam and the state, namely the way the former influences rhetoric of certain politicians as well as legal system of the country. Finally, the paper will analyze the current status of Islam in Kyrgyzstan, including the increase in the number of mosques, introduction of Islamic banking and national holidays. General overview of Islam in Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan is a rather peculiar country. It is situation in the Central Asian region is border with such influential countries as China and Kazakhstan. It was a part of the Soviet Union and, therefore, was able to experience influence of communistic atheism on its religious life. In spite of the fact that Kyrgyzstan does not play a key role in the politics of the religion or its cultural life, this is a country that should be taken into account when it comes to understanding the diversity of the part of the world in question. It would not be a mistake to suggest that Islam was introduced to these lands relatively late: in the tenth century the southern part of the modern Kyrgyzstan was converted into Sunni Islam. However, the process of consolidation of tribes and their unification was slow: even today there is a big different between the southern and the northern parts of Kyrgyzstan. The people of this country were closely connected to their traditional beliefs; that is why to a certain extent such spiritual systems as tengriism and shamanism influence the practice of Islam and coexist with it. The state claims to be secular; however, the politicians put a significant emphasis on Islam in the social life of the country. At the present moment, the number of Muslims in the country is close to ninety percent. History of Islam in Kyrgyzstan When one considers the history of introduction of Islam, one will have to note several stages. Thus, the very first one can be identified around tenth century which coincides with the general spread of this religion in the region. However, it was not really successful. The next and more successful stage starts in the seventeenth century and is associated with the Jungars. They forced the Kyrgyz who are the nation which will latter build the state in question from the mountainous region of Tian Shan and made them relocate in the Fergana Valley. Since the Jungars were Muslims, the Kyrgyz had not choice, but to be converted to their religion. Nevertheless, one should point out that this includes the population of the southern region of the modern Kyrgyzstan. The next stage of development of Islam focuses on the decline of significance of the Jungards in the political as well as religious life of the region. When they power was no longer the dominant one, the Kyrgyz received an opportunity to return to their traditional spiritual beliefs. Nevertheless, the impact of the Jungars was so strong that the tribes who lived in the southern part of the modern Kyrgyzstan did not feel the urge to restore their tribal practices. Moreover, the acknowledge the significance of Islam: it no longer had more sophisticated and better developed system of knowledge than tengriism and shamanism, but also included the Kyrgyz into a wider context of the Muslim nations which allowed them to feel themselves a part of the Islamic world. In the next century Quqon Khanate seized the political power and tried to advance north, bring the dominant religion with it. The latter has become the symbol of new power. However, people in the north were reluctant to obey and they were not eager to be converted into a new religion, holding on to their customs. Nevertheless, in the course of the nineteenth century their opposition was overridden and one might see that as the time when the entire Kyrgyz population became Muslim. This greatly contributed to the unification of the country in general, but the part of the population that was living in the north always felt the urge to maintain its uniqueness when it comes to spiritual teachings. That is why nowadays, the southern part is considered to be more religious. Influence of the tribal beliefs on Islam in Kyrgyzstan It must be noted that for a considerable period of time the Kyrgyz lived a nomadic way of life. That is why they perceived their spiritual teachings as a part of their national identity. One of the most important systems that should be taken into account is tengriism. It heavily affected life of the people prior to Introduction of Islam and maintained a proportion of its influence even after the conversion. In broad meaning, tengriism represents a kind of religious belief that suits the nomads: that is why it was difficult for them to accept Islam. The next important element which should be taken into account is the widely spread practice of shamanism. Unlike the previously discusses system of beliefs, shamanism relies heavily on the first hand experience of a person and enhances a strong personal spiritual bond between people. Sometimes it may be so deep that people will be reluctant to cease to believe in it in favor of a different religion. One of the peculiarities of it lies in the fact that women could be powerful shamans; this provided an interesting opposition with Islam which was strictly male dominated religion. Indeed, while the latter fitted perfectly the role of a tool that would shape the social life, shamanism satisfied the immediate spiritual needs of the people and granted them a connection to their ancestors. Therefore, the widely spread respect for tengriism and shamanism resulted in the fact that these religious systems did not cease to exist, but rather adapted to the existing conditions. That is why it would not be a mistake to suggest that in the contemporary Kyrgyzstan Islam coexists with the remaining elements of tengriism and shamanism. One might suggest that this is a common practice for the nations for which national identity was closely connected to a spiritual practice. That is why the Kyrgyz, especially in the north, are not willing to fully integrate into the Muslim world since they are afraid of losing the fundamental elements of their culture in the form of religious belief. Islam and the state power in Kyrgyzstan To begin with, it must be noted that the political life of Kyrgyzstan has been largely influenced by the Soviet Union. Indeed, in the course of seventy four years Islam was not eradicated, but it experienced a significant setback. After this country was finally independent, the Constitution restricted any influence of religion on the political life. Nevertheless, many politicians tend to show their approval of Islam in order to receive the votes of the people (Banchoff 88). Furthermore, many of the conventionally accepted values comply with the traditional Islamic principles. That is why one might suggest that though Kyrgyzstan remains a secular state, the presence of the Muslim element in it is quite significant as the population wants the political life be carried out according to the traditional norms. However, over and over it has been noted that there is no room for radicalization of Islam in Kyrgyzstan. The President of this country warned the public that Islamic extremists are not welcome in the society and that the government will put every effort into making sure that the state will remain secular and maintain a reasonably close relationship with Islam. Indeed, when it comes to an increased role of this religion in the social life, many people fear that at a certain point radicalization would occur and religion will dominate the state. However, the current political world of Kyrgyzstan made specific reservations about it, pointing out that the country is willing to accept every element of the Muslim world except for the radicals who activities bring more hard than good. One should also point out that there is a part of the politicians who lobby introduction of various laws that would bring the social life closer to the standard of the Muslim world. For example, there have been various initiatives that claimed that abortion should be outlawed. In addition to that, there is a movement for legalization of polygamy. It is often stated that the latter is a part of the actual life in Kyrgyzstan and the public will only benefit if this is recognized. Nevertheless, the government is not willing to do so because of various reasons. The politicians also argue that pilgrimages to Mecca that will be organized by the state are able to have a positive impact on the social life of the country. The current status of Islam in Kyrgyzstan Finally, it may be particularly useful to examine the current status of Islam in Kyrgyzstan. First of all, one might point out that the number of mosques in the country has significantly increased. It was found that in 2009 there were around 1970 mosques while in 2012 there were as many as 2200 mosques in Kyrgyzstan. This can be seen as a fact that the population expresses a sheer interest towards Islam and needs more places of worship so that their spiritual demands will be satisfied. In addition to that it shows that Islam has a rather strong position in this country which is obvious as almost ninety percent of the population is Muslims. Secondly, one should note that the principles and practices of Islamic banking have been introduced into this country. While it may not be seen as a direct influence of the religion on the social life, it surely shows that the people feel more comfortable with a certain part of their affairs being guided by the spiritual norms. Even though the northern part of the country is though to be less religious than the southern one, they both agree that Islamic finance might appear to be a rather effective system of organizing the economic part of the social life as it ensures that money is distributed properly and to the area which need it the most, contributing to the general level of prosperity. Lastly, if one takes a look at the social life of Kyrgyzstan, one will be able to see that two traditional Islamic holidays are recognized as state holidays. They are Eid ul-Fitr which marks the end of Ramadan which is the holy month of fasting for the Muslims, and Eid ul-Adha which is dedicated to the even when Ibrahim (Abraham) was ready to sacrifice his son. In spite of the fact that Orthodox Christmas is also recognized as a state holiday, one will not make a mistake suggesting that the social life puts more emphasis on the Islamic tradition. Therefore, though remaining formally a secular state, Kyrgyzstan shows signs of respect and appreciation of a particular religion, granting it a special place in the social environment. Conclusion Having examines all the points which were mentioned in the paragraphs above, one is able to make a logical conclusion: Islam plays an important role in the social life of Kyrgyzstan. This, this religious system was introduced relatively late and the process was carried out in the context of spreading Islam in the region and was not targeted at a particular nation. Thus, in the seventeenth century the Jungars dominated the southern part of the modern Kyrgyzstan and brought their religion with them. However, afterwards as they lost their power, the local population did not want to return to its original beliefs. Next, there was a process of consolidation of tribes and those who lived in the north resisted spread of Islam greatly. Nevertheless, the ultimately were not able to overcome the power and had to obey, but they remained faithful to a certain extent to the traditions of the past, such as tengriism and shamanism. All the present moment all three religious traditions are able to coexist peacefully. Speaking of the connection between Islam and the state power, one is able to point out that several aspects. Thus, the country is proclaimed to be secular; however, Islam is given preference over other religions. However, the government says that it takes all measures to make sure that there will not be an Islamic revolution. A part of the politicians often proposes various changes into the legal system so that it would make the social life more similar to the one in Muslim world. Works Cited Banchoff, Thomas F. Religious Pluralism, Globalization, and World Politics. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2008. Print. Read More