Rewriting the Prophetic Sīra in Egypt in the 1930s and 1940s

Abstract

In the Islamic world, interest in the Prophet Muhammad is not in itself cause for reflection as to its intent. It is to be expected that a fascination with the sīra would be just as dynamic as the life of Muslim societies themselves. Yet when four books on the subject appear within less than a decade, it raises the question as to the significance thereof. This article considers four works of scholarship on the Prophet and the prophetic sīra published between 1931 and 1942 in Egypt, seeking to identify their general characteristics, originality, and the causes of their appearance within their historical context. The study concludes that many of these books’ general characteristics reflect their authors’ desire to present Islam as an alternative to the intellectual systems in vogue in Egypt and across the world at the time. This is evident through their endeavour to demonstrate the infallibility of the Prophet and the universality and cogency of his message in the modern era, especially as opposed to the views of certain orientalist "sceptics".