Dynamics of Shariah by Timothy Daniels translation by Dr. Mohammed Al-Haj Salem

Over the past decades, the field of Islamic anthropology, which is considered a virgin field compared to other religious fields, has transformed into a battleground among anthropologists regarding what the subject of this field should be, what the essence of Islam is, and what are the most important ethnographic and theoretical methods that must be used for a more accurate understanding of Islam, which has begun to transform or take the lead in the scene in the Middle East and the Islamic world, as a spokesperson for groups calling for its replacement instead of Western nationalist and modern ideas. In this context, it can be said that researchers have divided into two main visions, the first of which sees that researchers in this field should study Muslims' ideas, feelings, and interpretations, considering them as producing local Islamizations, or specific according to the environment in which they live, and according to this view, talking about one or essential Islam based on traditional texts is just a partial reading of the scene, as any new reading requires paying attention to people's speech and their mixing of the religious and daily in their lives, in addition to the necessity of studying their interpretations and practices. Anthropologist Gabriele Marranci, author of the book "Islam Anthropology" published by Oxford University in 2008, is one of the most prominent proponents of this view, as he believes that the Quran and the pillars of Islam will remain mute and meaningless without minds and feelings that give them form and add uniqueness by informing the individual himself as a Muslim. According to this vision, we are not today facing one Islam in any country, but rather multiple Islamizations, some historical, others being re-created or reshaped by revivalist movements, or by state regimes, and others by globalization, within what Olivier Roy called the religious market, where teachings of religion are dealt with according to market logic, as individuals take what they desire from ideas and discard others.