Book

Hans Jansen

The Historical Mohammed

de Mekkaanse verhalen & de verhalen uit Medina

The Historical Mohammed looks primarily at the legendary Mohammed as portrayed in old, unreliable biographies. But this Mohammed, although a product of the imagination, has probably made a deeper impression on world history than his historical namesake who, Islam specialist Hans Jansen believes, almost certainly did exist.

Jansen has no illusions that researchers will ever discover the real, historical Mohammed. The source material is too fragmentary. In his account he takes as his starting point an Arabic biography written by Ibn Ishaaq in the mid-eighth century, around 120 years after the presumed date of Mohammed’s death. Jansen shows how this biography, like other old Arabic biographies, is full of fabrications. He wonders how generations of Western experts were able to follow the example of orthodox Muslims in accepting Ibn Ishaaq as a reliable source.

The fantasy Mohammed of legend has lost none of his importance over the centuries and many Muslims still regard him as an infallible example. For them the biographies are historically accurate and they believe it is possible to deduce from them how they must follow the prophet. This is dangerous, Jansen argues, since the biographies are marked by a bloodlust that is contagious even after fourteen centuries. The prophet commits many mass murders, particularly of Jews. Cynicism is rife. ‘Keep that she-devil away from me,’ exclaims Mohammed as a Jewish woman weeps at the sight of the bodies of Jewish men at the Khaybar oasis, where he also has a man tortured to death.

For extremist Muslims these ancient stories convey commands that are as valid today as ever. Jansen suggests that the murder of filmmaker Theo van Gogh in 2004, for example, perfectly fits the pattern of assassination of those who mock, regularly ordered by the prophet. A close acquaintance of Van Gogh, Jansen is a formidable participant in the current debate surrounding Islam in The Netherlands and he denounces attempts by colleagues in the field to gloss over uglier aspects of the faith, one such being the acclaimed Scottish academic William Montgomery Watt.

In The Historical Mohammed Jansen tries to remain charitable, even funny, but the underlying tone is sombre. The dazzling narratives and sometimes delightful jokes are outweighed by horror stories.

The Historical Mohammed is a courageous and important book, and its accessibility makes it unique.

NRC Handelsblad

Jansen has produced a minor masterpiece, a scholarly historical commentary on an early-medieval text that offers an insight into Islamic orthodoxy, is a pleasure to read, yet also makes a link with contemporary times – an achievement few Arabists can match.

de Volkskrant

Translations

Hans Jansen

Hans Jansen (1942-2015) was Professor of Contemporary Islamic Thought at the University of Utrecht. He frequently published work on modern radical Islam or ‘jihad ideology’ and in 1997 he edited the Dutch translation of the Koran.

Books

  • The Neglected Duty (1986)
  • The Dual Nature of Islamic
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Details

De historische Mohammed. de Mekkaanse verhalen & de verhalen uit Medina (2005). Non-fiction, 312 pages.
Words: 88,000
Copies sold: 7,000

With references

Publisher

De Arbeiderspers

Weteringschans 259
NL - 1017 XJ Amsterdam
The Netherlands
Tel: +31 20 760 72 10

E-mail:
[email protected]
Website:
http://www.singeluitgeverijen…

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