| Publication |
2011.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Research on contemporary Islam in Tajikistan and Central Asia frequently refers to the categories of 'official' and 'parallel' to describe, explain and frame regional 'Islam' and Muslim communities. Additionally, the relevant academic discourse is enriched by notions of an 'everyday' opposed to a 'scriptural' Islam. Despite these research paradigms, surprisingly little consistent research has been conducted on the representatives of these alleged spheres of, respectively, 'official' and 'parallel' Islam: their theological, social or political agenda, relations with the state, interactions and networks. Based on an analysis and contextualization of a recent publication of one of Tajikistan's leading religious authorities, Hoji Akbar Turajonzoda, this paper questions the heuristic capability of the prevalent research categories.
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