Sayyid Qutb Research Paper

Explain the contribution to the development and expression of Islam of Sayyid Qutb

Sayyid Qutb was born in 1906 in Egypt and became a teacher involved in Egypt’s ministry of Education in 1933. He had a strong conviction that Islam was superior to all other systems and was one of the most influential contemporary interpreters of Islam, revered to as a martyr of Islamic revivalism after his execution in 1966. He contributed significantly to the expression and development of Islam through his major works such as Milestones and In the Shade of the Quran, being the editor of the Muslim Brotherhood Newspaper, through his jail time, his social commentary and “fundamentalist” beliefs concerning Islam and the Koran and his martyrdom.

The catalyst for his extremist beliefs eventuated after his
In it he views the world as black and white; either Islamic societies or jahili societies. He views Islam as the religion of the whole universe and it provides the solution to all societal problems, thus, resulting in Milestones becoming a classic manifesto associated with the terrorist wing of Islamic fundamentalism. He explored the concept of jihad as “struggling in the cause of God” and believed it needs to be waged universally. He commented that jihad is a “universal declaration of the freedom of man from slavery” as he believed that the people of the West are oppressed and their only resolution is in being exposed to the Islamic society. This impacted on the development of Islam with many adherents viewing their religion as superior in comparison to the predominant religions in the West. This has also resulted in many adherents continuing acts of jihad to abolish government authorities who don’t believe in Shariah Law (Law of the Qur’an) to restore his vision of a “living community of