Reza Aslan, Beyond Fundamentalism: Confronting Religious Extremism in the Age of Globalization, Random House, 2010 As in science fiction movies, where war breaks out between two forces that aim to destroy the universe, Beyond Fundamentalism depicts a cosmic war between two camps of fundamentalists. In its essence a metaphysical war between conflicting conceptions of good and evil, this is also a physical struggle with one ultimate goal: to go on non-stop. The book exposes the ideology of fundamentalism, the mythical and historical narratives that shape it, and offers a way out. Aslan starts the book by drawing on the vivid spectacle of the collapse of the Twin Towers in New York on September 11, 2001. He takes his cue from a letter found with one of the hijackers, which describes the attack was as "a battle for the sake of God". The battle is apparently grounded on earthly grievances: the occupation of the Palestinian land or conflicts involving Muslims in different countries. Yet for Aslan these are, more than anything else, symbols that work to keep the battle going on: "At no point did the hijackers assume their assault on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon would bring peace to Palestine or result in the removal of the US troops from the Middle East; in fact, they hoped it would bring more troops to the region." The reaction of the US military to the attack shows it to be in tune with the idea of an eternal cosmic war. Senator John McCain talked of " transcendent evil that wants to destroy everything we stand for and believe in"; Lieutenant General William G. Boykin, former deputy undersecretary of defense for intelligence, referred to Bin Laden as "Satan who wants to destroy us as a Christian army "; and George W Bush promised "to get rid of the evil". Put that way, the dichotomy of "good" and "evil" turns into a conflict of "us" and "them": "those aligning their will with the will of God" versus "the allies of Satan". The problem with such simple division is that "if you are not us, you must be them. If you are them, you are the enemy and must be destroyed". Underlying this polar equation of "us" versus "them" is a surge of religious identity. Aslan cites what he calls the failure of secular nationalism as one reason for this religious inflation of identity. Secular nationalism thrived in the light of the Enlightenment in Europe, promising prosperity to people with a common ethnic or cultural background. But the most heinous crimes were carried out in the name of secularist ideologies such as fascism, Nazism, Maoism and Stalinism. And Globalisation is equally implicated. Not only does globalisation refer to technological advancement and transnational relations but also to one's sense of self in a world perceived as a single, undifferentiated space (one that is nonetheless shaped and dictated by only one of many world views). This self has multiple markers of identity including nationality, class and gender. If those markers recede, it is natural that other markers such as religion will come to the foreground, fundamentalism being one form of such a transformation. Aslan draws a distinction between Islamism and Jihadism. Islamism is a nationalist ideology set by boundaries. Hizballah, for instance, stops at Lebanon's borders. Jihadism, however, transcends boundaries, nations and ethnicities in favour of a global battle between good and evil. In fact, Jihadism has no roots in Islam. The Quran talks of "jihad" as an internal struggle against one's passions, instincts and the temptations that suppress the soul. Militant groups, however, have transformed Jihad to include "the physical struggle against the internal and external enemies of Islam, even against disbelief". Perhaps it is pointless to describe Jihadism as a reaction to Zionism, an antecedent militant movement. Officially, Zionism started with the publication of "auto-emancipation" in Germany. Yet its roots go back to the establishment of the state of Israel, back in 1894. At that time, a political scandal involving Alfred Dreyfus, a Jew living in France, took place. Dreyfus was wrongly accused of submitting French military secrets to the Germans. He was sentenced to a life of solitary confinement, his case raising issues of national identity among the French. This incident convinced Theodor Herzl, a Viennese Jew, that there was no future for Jews in Europe. Ironically, the Zionists will later use brutal methods to eradicate the Arabs from Palestine: "The Arabs will have to go," Ben Gurion wrote in 1937. As Aslan points out, Zionism does not stop at establishing the state of Israel. Its aim -- contrary to Jewish orthodoxy, as it happens -- is to usher the return of the Messiah by rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem, which will not happen unless the Dome of the Rock is demolished. In fact, Christian evangelicals have the same mythical narrative; for them the Messiah is Jesus Christ. This is how Zionism and Christian evangelicalism intersect. Throwing light on the cosmic war now underway, Aslan believes that the best way to stop it is to address the earthly grievances that fan the fuel of war, the Palestinian issue and the wrongdoings against Muslims in different countries. Democracy is also a way out. Unlike Jihadist movements, Aslan believes that Islamic movements could develop their ideology or even prove to be a failure if they are given a fair chance in a true democratic system. This may seem controversial to some, yet it drives home the book's central message: the way to win a cosmic war is to refuse to fight in it. Reviewed by Shaimaa Zaher
