Malaysia's Study Of The Islamic Renaissance Movement

Since the20th century, in Islamic world it is the most important landmark event that a series of independent national states have been established after getting rid of the shackles of western colonialism in the history of Islam. Henceforth, the Islamic world emulated the western countries and chose the development path of secularization and modernization. However, it is difficult for transplanted institutional culture to bear rich fruits. In the process of modernization, the great majority of Islamic countries suffered a universal setback. It was the strong sense of frustration that forced numerous Muslims to seek spiritual comfort and strategies for powerful states from the Islamic traditional culture. In the end of1960s, with a powerful voice of anti-western culture and reversion to religion traditions, Islamic Revival Movement was booming and rapidly spread to the West Asia, North Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia. Eventually it developed into a massive worldwide religious revival movement.Regarding Islamic Revival Movement in Malaysia as an object of study, on the basis of relevant research results at home and abroad, we are trying to show the whole picture of Malaysia Islamic Revival Movement panoramically which consists of the main stages of development, the typical organizations, the basic programs and ultimate goals. Also, we will analyze the reasons for the rise of the Islamic Revival Movement of Malaysia and characteristics in depth. Through the analysis of the complex relationship aspect of Malaysia’s ruling and opposition parties in the Islamic Revival Movement, we will attempt to get knowledge of the inherent relationship among Islamic Revival Movement, secularization and modernization. Finally, from the policies and measures carried out by the government of Malaysia to deal with the Islamic Revival Movement, inspiration and enlightenment can be gained.Since the1970s, the Islamic Revival Movement spread to Malaysia which has experienced four successive development stages:Awakening period-Development period-Official-led period-Islam party period and approached maturity day by day. During the period, a number of organizations have sprung up such as Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia, Darul Arqam, Pertubuhan Kebajikan Islam Malaysia, Sister in Islam, Jamaat Tabligh and so on. These organizations are widely different from each other in such aspects as organization forms, basic programs and political goals. They have carried out various rehabilitation activities which involve the establishment of Islamic banks to foster Islamic financial system, the foundation of the Islamic parties to participate in political election, preparations to construct the International Islamic Universities Malaysia to develop Islamic education, reformations in social life to be fully Islamized and so on. All those activities have made the manifestation of Islamic Revival Movement of Malaysia possess diversified qualities.Confronted with the fierce impact caused by the powerful and dynamic Islamic Revival Movement, the Malaysian government on the one hand has already adopted severe measures to crackdown on extremism revival organizations thoroughly so that they can timely stifle its tendencies of extremism and avoid its trend of degeneration. On the other hand, the Malaysian government has yet actively pursed its own ways of reviving Islam. The government has carried out the national policies of pro-Islam in order to firmly hold the dominant position in Islamic Revival Movement, and in addition has allowed the Islamic parties to participate in democratic politics and state management as legal parties. All that the Malaysian government has done not only has made the Islamic Revival Movement play a positive role but also has ensured that Islamic Revival Movement of Malaysia has always been under the government control and developed moderately and rationally on the centrist Islamic Revival road.Islamic Revival Movement which is an inherent characteristic and historical tradition of Islam as well as means of self-regulation and self-perfection in the process of the development of Islam, is a kind of changes in the name of retro to achieve Ancient restructuring and Cultural awareness so as to highlight the functions of destruction-construction of Islamic Revival Movement. Modern Islamic Revival Movement is confronted with how to deal with the relationship of political democratization and economic modernization and how to make itself cohere with the course of national secularization and modernization. The remarkable economic performance achieved in the Revival Movement of Malaysia has exposed the prophecies that Eastern religion is an obstacle to modernization hold by the western scholars. The irrefutable fact proves that it is no binary opposition for Islam and modernization; on the contrary they can go hand in hand. In fact, in the sustainable development process of the Revival Movement, Malaysia has not only strengthened religious belief, also promoted social Islamization and furthermore development of modern democratic politics. The state has achieved outstanding success in economic modernization and found a pluralism path with Islamic features to accomplish modernization. Thus it can be seen that the Islamic Revival Movement of Malaysia has dual properties of religious culture and revival of national state. It is not only the cultural movement for reviving religious belief and traditional culture, but also the social and political movement to accomplish the comprehensive regeneration of the national state.In short, in the face of the Islamic revival, the Malaysian government based on national conditions and changing with the development of the times, has formulated a series of appropriate measures aiming at promoting democracy, economic development, easing ethnic conflicts and promoting the coordinated development of the multi-culture. It is such flexible, diversified, rational and pragmatic measures that effectively deconstruct the tension of two groups:the tradition and the modern, the sacred and the secular. These measures have played an important role in ensuring the political stability, economic development and social harmony of Malaysia. The successful experience concluded from the Revival Movement of Malaysia can become a successful example for budding exogenous developing countries in integrating these two kinds of contradictions which are the tradition and the modern, the sacred and secular and exploring the path suited for their own national conditions to achieve the modernizations.In the end, although "stones from other hills may serve to polish jade", when learning from foreign experience, we should base on our own historical traditions and current conditions to make a good choice.