Understanding and Importance of Honour and Pudeur in Muslim Communities of the Maghreb

This article introduces the concepts of honour and pudeur in the Maghreb – an area whose culture was shaped mainly by three factors: the tribal traditions of the indigenous Berber people, the customs of the Arabs who arrived there in the seventh century, and Islam. Two complementary principles mentioned in the title are among the most important regulators of all aspects of the lives of traditional Maghreb communities: social, family, individual and personal. The author tries to define both concepts, which, despite their apparent obviousness, turns out to not be an easy task. She examines the reasons for their high position in the system of values of societies living in the western part of North Africa and the ubiquitous manifestations of their impact that are visible in, for example, local customs, rituals, social structure and the organisation of space. She also explores the selected, individual consequences of living under constant pressure from the community which controls the lives of its members.

This paper critically re-examines some of the prevailing narratives about the religious ideology of the early Taliban and analyses the four most common conventional concepts of it: being an oversimplified version of Islam, being born in madrasas located in Pakistan, being a local variation of Deobandism and being a Pashtun nationalist movement. The author argues that the ideology of pre-2001 Taliban is a non-static, multilayered and oversimplified interpretation of religious dogmas mixed with local tribal customs and definitely more rural fundamentalism than political Islamism. In the first section, the author provides basic definitions, such as ideology and Deobandism. The second section is a presentation of the religious context of Afghanistan and roots of the Taliban. The next section is an analysis of the Deobandi influence over Taliban religious life followed by a paragraph about Pashtunism and the Pashtunwali role in Taliban’s ideology. The next paragraph concerns the practical dimension and implementation of religious rules on the policy of Afghanistan during the first emirate.

Muslim Women in the National Movement of Crimean Tatars since the Late Nineteenth Century. The Birth of Women’s Activism, Their Historic Role and Social Position

The socio-political movement of Crimean Tatars since the second half of the nineteenth century, aiming for political and territorial autonomy in Crimea, is traditionally associated with the name of its iconic leader Mustafa Dzhemilev. Meanwhile, a closer look at the nation’s struggle to reach its goals allows us to also see the role of women by no means reduced to the function of mothers and wives of activists. Examples can be drawn from the dawn of the movement to the present day, describing the profiles of prominent female figures whose socio-political activities have influenced the formation of the modern national and religious identity of Crimean Tatars. This publication presents a description and analysis of the role women played in the history of the nation during its independence movement. Using the example of outstanding silhouettes, the author demonstrates that Crimean Tatar women activists often performed key tasks at the most decisive moments of history, which in no small measure influenced the relatively high position of Muslim women in the social hierarchy of the nation.

Meskhetian Turks are a Turkish-speaking ethnic group, which lived in Georgia until 1944. The origins of this ethnic group is a matter of academic dispute. Since their beginnings, they have been under the influence of many cultures due to their location on the borders of the Christian and the Muslim worlds. In 1944, they were forced to leave Georgia and were displaced and dispersed throughout the territory of the Soviet Union, mainly to Central Asia. There are currently around 350–600 thousand Meskhetian Turks scattered all over the world. They are the only ethnic group which did not gain permission from the Soviet authorities to return to their homeland of Georgia. The deportation is the most tragic event in the history and collective memory of Meskhetian Turks which has directly affected their traditions, their religiousness, and their religious and national identity. The aim of this paper is to analyse how these events and the present situation have influenced and reshaped religious and national identity of Meskhetian Turks as well as their traditions in the Soviet and post-Soviet period.

Recenzja: Ireneusz Ziemiński, Religia jako idolatria. Esej filozoficzny o nieuchronności elementów idolatrycznych w religii, Uniwersytet Szczeciński, „Rozprawy i Studia”, T. (MCXCVIII) 1124, Szczecin 2020, ss. 218.

Recenzja: Słownik biograficzny uczestników ruchu zadrużnego w XX wieku, red. M. Dymek, T. Szczepański, „Trygław. Kwartalnik Metapolityczny”, Warszawa 2019, ss. 180.

Recenzja: Polskie tradycje ezoteryczne (1890–1939), seria „Światło i Ciemność”, edycja specjalna, T. I–V, red. serii M. Rzeczycka, T. 1–IV: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Gdańskiego, Gdańsk 2019; T. V: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Gdańskiego / Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, Gdańsk–Warszawa 2020; [English edition: Polish Esoteric Traditions (1890–1939): Selected Issues, ed. A. Świerzowska, transl. S. Jones, Gdańsk University Press, Sopot 2019, ss. 335].