Theological and Intellectual Roots in Deobandi Thoughts

Abstract

This article focuses on one of the important books of Muḥammad Qāsim Nānawtawī—Ḥujjat al-Islām. Many of his 32 books, epistles and letters are written in response to Christian and Hindu missionaries. From the perspective of neo-ʿilm al-kalām (Islamic scholastic theology) they have great importance. These are the works through which a lay reader can understand Nānawtawī’s methodology in polemics and his various dialectical aspects, which are based on propositional logic and pragmatic philosophy and differ from the early discourses of ʿilm al-kalām. Most of his works include his critiques and strong refutation of both Christian theological anthropology and Hindu mythology. This article examines a limited part of Nānawtawī’s dialectic discussions which include the existence of God, His essence, meaning of the monotheism, including evidence in support of monotheism and his refutation of the Trinity.

Keywords

• Deoband, al-ʿUlūm al-Qāsimī, polemics, God Consciousness, monotheism, existence, essence