Jundullah

by Sa'id Hawwa

485 pages, Paperback

About the author

Sa`id Hawwa (Arabic: سعيد حوى, Sa`īd Ḥawwá) (1935–1989) was a leading member and prominent ideologue in the Muslim Brotherhood of Syria. Hawwa authored a large number of books that dealt with the proper organizational principles and structures for Islamist organizations, the proper spiritual and practical training for Muslim activists, and issues of interpretation, jurisprudence, and creed in Islam.

Hawwa enrolled as a student in the Faculty of Islamic Law at the University of Damascus in 1955.As a student at that time, he had the opportunity to take instruction from Mustafa al-Siba'i, founder and first Inspector General of the Syrian Brotherhood.

Hawwa also continued his education in Sufism under the tutelage of a number of shaykhs in Damascus, the most notable of whom was `Abd al-Karim al-Rifa`i (Arabic عبد الكريم الرفاعي) of the Zayd Ibn Thabit Mosque.

In particular, al-Rifa`i's idea of "a school in every mosque" shaped Hawwa's thinking regarding the conditions required to ensure a proper religious education for Muslims in the modern age.

Scholars differ regarding Hawwa's intellectual orientation. Emmanuel Sivan refers to Hawwa as a "disciple" of Sayyid Qutb and, like Qutb, a proponent of Islamic revolution.