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A unique collection of studies, the present volume sheds new light on central themes of Ibn Taymiyya's (661/1263-728/1328) and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya's (691/1292-751/1350) thought and the relevance of their ideas to diverse Muslim societies. Investigating their positions in Islamic theology, philosophy and law, the contributions discuss a wide range of subjects, e.g. law and order; the divine compulsion of human beings; the eternity of eschatological punishment; the treatment of Sufi terminology; and the proper Islamic attitude towards Christianity. Notably, a section of the book is dedicated to analyzing Ibn Taymiyya's struggle for and against reason as well as his image as a philosopher in contemporary Islamic thought. Several articles present the influential legacy of both thinkers in shaping an Islamic discourse facing the challenges of modernity. This volume will be especially useful for students and scholars of Islamic studies, philosophy, sociology, theology, and history of ideas.

This book is designed to reflect both our current knowledge regarding sport, globalisation and '\"encounters\" with several important \"post-colonial\" or non-western societies and to draw together scholars from a range of different disciplines. Case studies of cultural encounters in Central, South-East Asia, Asia Minor and the Arabian peninsula capture the paradoxical processes of emulation, resistance and transformation that are at work in the diffusion and development of \"sport\" and body cultures. These case studies bring together insights from anthropology, cultural studies, geography, history, law, sociology, various area and post-colonial studies.

This volume showcases a variety of innovative approaches to the study of Muslim societies and cultures, inspired by and honouring Gudrun Krämer and her role in transforming the landscape of Islamic Studies.

Among the martial arts of Asia that have been decisively shaped by Islamic influences, heavy athletics used to capture center stage. Traditionally, they are practiced in a specific institution, namely the Iranian \"house of strength\" (Persian: zūrkhānah). In an historical perspective, heavy athletics are not only related to a certain type of architecture and deeply inspired by an Islamic as well as an Iranian imaginaire, but have also drawn a lot of attention from Western visitors and scholars. In this regard, the two intersecting groups have focused on Iran much more than on any other Muslim country. Writings and additional materials on Islamically tinged martial arts, including wrestling, often convey the impression that they are a mainly Persian and ]Shiite 1 phenomenon. However, the topic should also be seen against the background of the-predominantly Sunnite-Islamic world. It is worthwhile to relate it to the wider range of traditional Turco-Muslim athletic practices, to global connectivities throughout Asia and beyond and even to modern, nationally tailored versions. Although the traditional Iranian gymnasia with their tremendous exotic appeal and attractive visual inventory managed for a long time to attract audiences, other local and national variants, and even transnational visions fostered by more creative sports policies elsewhere, are very much on the rise. It is no coincidence that Iran, with its impressive athletic tradition, is not the only country that made it into the \"Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity\" in 2010. 2 In the same year, its neighbor Turkey likewise got its ancestral sport (Turkish: ata sporu) of traditional oil wrestling (yağli güreş) inscribed on the prestigious list; 3 and the Asian, though non-Islamic, country Mongolia achieved this for the Nadaam festival (with its traditional triad of wrestling, horseracing, and archery). 4 These UNESCO-crowned 'traditions' still exhibit significant family resemblances. Despite their fame, the Iranian \"Pahlevani and Zoorkhanei rituals\" 5 are increasingly rivalled if not outstripped by the management and cultural policies of other countries. The most striking example is Turkey, with its development of more successful narratives that offer inclusiveness towards world society. Iranians abroad have not presented the meanwhile allegedly \"global Zurkhane sports\" 6 as substantially more than somatic nostalgia 'light' (that enable Iranian migrants or people from those states that lie within the realm of Persia's historical boundaries or sphere of influence) to somehow feel as if taken back home. National and religious affiliations are increasingly contested by various other imagined communities that form part and parcel of an athlete's identity (and also a spectator's preferred choices). On the global scale, it is not the famous Iranian Shiite stronghold of power that has developed really original and inspiring initiatives, but the much more secularly oriented Sunnite 'cousins' from the western part of Turkey. Sensing attention both from the West and from several Asian countries and especially Japan, Turkey purposely employs oil wrestling for the creation of a translocal, international community. The tremendous family resemblance between many traditional martial arts cum wrestling styles and their related ceremonial practices across Asia and elsewhere provides a pathway to new-or, rather, (re)invented-cross-cultural relationships. However, Iran has not yet taken this path. The second part of this chapter tries to approach this question by taking an historical perspective on the development of the traditional gymnasia against the background of Iranian history. The third section on the instruments and exercises of Zurkhane athletics as a Shiite martial art investigates the actual practices that bolster its exclusivity. The fourth part underlines the impact of the nationalization project in 20th-century modernizing politics, especially during the period of Reza Shah. Attempts to later open up or even connect to the global sportive community will be discussed in part five. The conclusion revisits the initial comparative dimension, i.e. it discusses recent developments in Zurkhane athletics in comparison with the (neo-)traditional Turkish counterpart.