{"id":22070,"date":"2018-09-18T00:59:22","date_gmt":"2018-09-18T00:59:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/new-wp\/?p=22070"},"modified":"2018-09-18T00:59:22","modified_gmt":"2018-09-18T00:59:22","slug":"chinas-forgotten-legacy-of-islam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/chinas-forgotten-legacy-of-islam\/","title":{"rendered":"China’s Forgotten Legacy Of Islam"},"content":{"rendered":"

According to traditional Chinese Muslim sources and narratives, although, the Prophet Muhammad himself and Muslims during his time must have known of the existence of China as indicated in the well-known statement attributed to the Prophet (“Utlubu al-‘ilm walau bil-sin” <\/em>[Seek knowledge even unto China]), the earliest Chinese contact with Islam was reported to be some years after the Prophet\u2019s passing, when the companion of the Prophet, Sa\u2018d ibn Ab\u012b Waqq\u0101s (d. 674) and three other companions embarked on a mission to China, as documented by two men of moral integrity in Chinese Muslim history: the accomplished scholar, Liu Sanjie, and his son, the famed expounder of Sufi metaphysics, Liu Zhi (d. 1739).<\/p>\n

The subsequent major Muslim personality to have made a significant impact to the early cultural legacy of Islam in Chinese history is Syed Umar Shams al-Din (Sayyid al-Ajall) (d. 1279). He is the 27th<\/sup> generation descendent of Prophet Muhammad and one of the most highly regarded Muslim officials in imperial court during the Yuan Dynasty. He was appointed imperial minister of finance as recorded by Marco Polo in the 13th<\/sup> century. Sayyid Ajall was subsequently tasked to govern Yunnan and was described by one contemporary historian to have brought \u2018civilisation\u2019 to Yunnan.<\/p>\n

During his time in Yunnan, Sayyid Ajall interestingly not only propagated Islam through his words and deeds but also promoted the praiseworthy elements from the indigenious tradition that is compatible with the teachings of Islam and strengthened the solidarity of the community through the establishment of Confucian schools. \u00a0In addition, Rash\u012bd al-D\u012bn Fa\u1e0dlull\u0101h Hamad\u0101n\u012b (d. 1318), the Persian historian recorded in his Jami\u2019 al-Tawarikh<\/em> that out of 12 districts in the Yuan Dynasty at the time, eight of those were governed by Muslims while the remaining four had Muslims as vice-governors.<\/p>\n

Then during what is considered one of the great epochs in Chinese history, that is, the Ming Dynasty, Muslims gained unprecedented acceptance at the highest level. Islam\u2019s significance and prominence during the Ming Dynasty period is perhaps best encapsulated in the \u201cOne Hundred Words of Praise\u201d by Emperor Hongwu (d. 1398), founder of Ming Dynasty in 1368 (and copied in 1375):<\/p>\n

\u201cThe universe began with the heavenly tablet recording
\nhis name. The religion-delivering great sage, born in the western realm.
\nConferring and receiving heavenly scripture in thirty
\nparts, universally transforming all created beings.
\nMaster of the trillion rulers, leader of the ten thousand sages.
\nAssisted by destiny, protector of the community. In each
\nof the five prayers, he silently supplicates for their total
\nwell-being. His intention is that Allah should remember
\nthe needy. Deliver them from tribulations to safety,
\nKnower of the unseen.
\nExalted above every soul and spirit, free from any
\nblameworthy deeds. A mercy to all of the worlds, whose
\npath is preeminent for all time.
\nRenounce spiritual ignorance; return to The One \u2013 that
\nis the religion called Islam.
\nMuhammad is the most noble sage.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition, during the Ming Dynasty period, a great Muslim administrator, diplomatic officer and navy commander began to emerge by the name of Admiral Zheng He (d. 1435) who came from the lineage of the aforementioned Sayyid al-Ajall.<\/p>\n

It is during the Qing period however, that we can see for the first time, the emergence of a few generations of Chinese Muslim theologians, metaphysicians and thinkers who created a distinctive philosophical school later to be named the \u2018Han Kitab\u2019 tradition that seeks to Islamise Confucian thought without rejecting the praiseworthy elements from the Confucian tradition which had begun with Wang Daiyu (d. 1660) who was regarded as a \u2018wali\u2019 or a great saint of the Qing period.<\/p>\n

Imperial recognition of Islam continued even after a century in the Ming Dynasty, based on the imperial edict by Emperor Zhengde (d. 1522) as recorded by Wang Daiyu (d. 1660) in his Zhengjiao Zhenquan<\/em> (Genuine Interpretation of the Right Teaching):<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Confucian study can begin things and complete tasks (in society),
\nbut it is inadequate for penetrating the Spirit or understanding
\ntransformations (of Nature). The study of the Buddhists or Taoists
\ncan get close to penetrating the Spirit and understanding
\ntransformations, but it cannot comply with Heaven\u2019s decree or
\nreach to the truth. The Way of each teaching grasps but a slanting
\nview. It is only the teaching of the Pure and True (i.e. Islam), which
\nrecognizes the Lord and can penetrate to the principle of things.
\nThat is why it will last for 10,000 generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

This edict is meaningful as it may indicate the influence of the local Muslims who were Court officials or administrators at a time when Ming policies were in place barring foreigners from coming into the kingdom. More importantly, this was an imperial recognition of the philosophical differences between two worldviews, Islam and Han Chinese, in that Islam was a revealed religion coming from a higher source than creation itself.<\/p>\n

The next great man during Qing Dynasty is Ma Zhu (d. 1710), who was educated in the Neo-Confucian and Islamic tradition. His masterpiece\u2014the voluminous Qingzhen Zhinan<\/em> (or al-Murshid il\u0101 \u2018Ul\u016bm al-Isl\u0101m<\/em>, or The Guide to the Sciences of Islam) was intended for both non-Muslim elites and Muslims literate among the Chinese. He too describes Prophet Mu\u1e25ammad as a Sage (sheng), while simultaneously calling him the \u201cculmination of the achievements of the ten thousand generations of former [Chinese] sages.\u201d Ultimately, Ma Zhu argued, Islam could help Neo-Confucianism complete its civilising mission (i.e. the fulfilment of Principle).<\/p>\n

The most profound figure in the intellectual history of China is arguably Liu Zhi (d. 1739). At the age of 15 and for the next 15 years, he read up on Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism and Islamic classics. Liu Zhi perhaps represents the intensification phase of Islamisation in China as he re-articulates Sufi metaphysics from the line of the great Sufi master, Ibn \u2018Arabi (d. 1240) in Confucian idiom. For instance, he asserted in his biography of the Prophet Muhammad (Ti\u0101nf\u0101ng zh\u00ecsh\u00e8ng sh\u00edl\u01dc or Veritable Account of the Utmost Sage<\/em>) that the Prophet is the \u201cmost sagely\u201d of all types of sages. In his book on Islamic ritual practice (Ti\u0101nf\u0101ng di\u01cenl\u01d0 or Rules and Proprieties of Islam<\/em>), he states that \u201cobserving and practicing the proprieties (adab<\/em>) of Islam is like observing and practicing the teachings of the ancient sages and kings,\u201d\u00a0and in his\u00a0Ti\u0101nf\u0101ng di\u01cenl\u01d0<\/em>, Liu Zhi called the\u00a0shari\u2019ah <\/em>as\u00a0the \u201cVehicle of Ritual [\u2026] for the one who is diligent in cultivating virtue.\u201d<\/p>\n

The contemporary authority on Confucianism and former professor at Harvard University, Tu Weiming, expressed the following regarding his view of Liu Zhi:<\/p>\n

\u201cMy first reading of Liu Zhu\u2019s Tianfang xingli <\/em>(Nature and Principles of Islam <\/em>or the Metaphysics of Islam<\/em>) evoked in me an electrifying feeling that was unfolding in front of my eyes might be one of the most comprehensive articulations of the meaning of life in Chinese intellectual history\u2026 I was convinced that Liu Zhi\u2019s accomplishment is rare in Chinese philosophy and unique in Ming-Qing thought.\u201d<\/p>\n

The last major figure in this line of Sino-Muslim intellectual tradition is perhaps Ma Dexin (d. 1874). Another descendent of Sayyid Ajjal Shams al-Din Omar, who continued the intellectual tradition of Ma Zhu (d. 1710) and Liu Zhi (d. 1739). He published over 30 books on tafsir, tasawwuf, history, grammar, as well as the earliest translation of the Qur’an into Mandarin. His unique articulation of the significance of Prophet Muhammad in history is perhaps the first of its kind in the Sino-Muslim intellectual tradition:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe world was full of omens
\nwhen the Prophet was born\u2014
\nthe Sage of Sages;
\ncombining all achievement in himself.
\nTo contemplate the symbols of sanctity
\nis to transcend past and present;
\nhe expounded the ancient doctrines
\nwith the utmost clarity;
\nthe seeds of a great renewal
\nbroke through the decadence;
\nwhat had not flowered even in the past
\nnow blossomed forth.
\nNothing in the First and Second Heavens
\nremained obscure.\u201d<\/p>\n

The intellectual and spiritual or cultural legacy of Islam in China demonstrates that Islamisation as a process of intellectual and spiritual liberation did not entail rejection of praiseworthy elements of the indigenous people, but rather it enriched and invigorated the people with spiritual, social and cultural refinement. The Islamisation through language and thought as undertook by profound sino-Muslim sages such as Wang Daiyu and Liu Zhi illustrates the possibility of building bridges with traditions such as Confucianism. Therefore, the course of action that we must follow today in countries such as Malaysia and China if we are to pave the way for a more enlightened future is a deeper understanding between traditions that is based on its best representatives.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

According to traditional Chinese Muslim sources and narratives, although, the Prophet Muhammad himself and Muslims during his time must have known of the existence of China as indicated in the well-known statement attributed to the Prophet (“Utlubu al-‘ilm …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":37,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_analytify_skip_tracking":false,"_wpzoom_pinterest_image_url":"","_wpzoom_pinterest_hidden_image":"0","_wpzoom_pinterest_description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[139],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22070","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-new-straits-times","category-139","description-off"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22070","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/37"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22070"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22070\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22070"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22070"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22070"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}