Rise of Islam, Sufism, Neo-Vaishnavism, & Muslim Power in Bengal.

1. Rise of Islam, Sufism,
Neo-Vaishnavism, &
Muslim Power in
Bengal.
HIS 101 |ASZ | Section 6 | Group 4 | Summer 2019

2. The Bengal Before Islam
What did the community look like
before the emergence of Islam?
• The community was mainly divided
into two:
A Buddhist Community
A Hindu Community
• Back then, there was no Bengal
and we were all a part of Delhi,
India.
• India had major trade relations
with the Arabs.
The picture above is a
representation of Arab
influence in Medieval
Indian Art.
The map on the right shows
India’s close proximity with
the Arabian Sea.

3. The Inception of Islam in Bengal
Where Did It All Begin?
• It is strongly believed that the Rise of Islam in Bengal
was actually initiated in India during the 7th Century.
• India had a strong trade relationship with the Arabs
which resulted to a large number of them settling
on the coastal areas in the south-west regions.
• Slowly and steadily the influence made its way
through coastal regions called Sind, Kathiware,
Gujrat, and Kankan in west India which now known
as west Bengal.
• Though the religion made its way to India through
trade, there is no historical evidence of the Arabs
particularly preaching the religion or influencing its
entrance.

4. Spread of Islam in Bengal
• The first Muslim Sultanate (lands owned by the Sultan)
in India was founded by Muijuddin Mohammad bin
Sam/Mohammad Ghori after defeating Prithiraj
Chouhan in the battle of Tarain. Delhi was then
pronounced the capital of Muslim Sultanates.
• There is no historical evidence of the Arabs’
contribution towards the spread of Islam in
Bengal/India. It is rather said that the religion was
forcibly preached with the dominance of a military
conquest set out by Mohammad Bin Quasim (General)
and was preached with threat among the unbelievers.
However, it is evident that the spread of Islam was
actually done by preachers and not forced upon.

5. Spread of Islam in Bengal
It is, however, evident that the spread of Islam
was actually done by preachers and not forced
upon. Though these accounts amount to the
historical evidence of the entrance of Islam in
the Bengal, it is safe to believe that this is
definitely not the first of its prevalence.
The reasoning behind this theory stems from
the finding of two kinds of Arabic coins found by
modern researches while digging into the ruins
of Paharpur of Rajshahi and Mainamati of
Comilla.
It is assumed that the existence of these coins
within these areas is due to the trade business
between Indians and Arabs.

6. Two Kinds of Arabic Coins found by
Modern Researchers:
These are real images of the coin found by modern researches at Paharpur, Rajshahi.
They may be seen live at Bangladesh National museum.
While the coin found in Mainamati remains unidentified, the one from
Paharpur has an inscription by the name of Abbasyde Caliph Harun-ar-Rashid (172
Hijri or 788 AD).

7. The Two Tariquas In
Which Islam Was
Preached

8. The Two Tariquas In Which Islam Was
Preached
The Turkana Tariqua
Refers to the way in which the
soldiers forced Islam upon the
people through threats and
destruction.
The Sufiana Tariqua
Refers to the contradicting way in
which Islam was actually preached
through the teachings of Sufis.

9. SUFISM AND
NEO-VAISHNAVISM

10. SUFISM
• Hazrat Muhammad (SM) transmitted to his
Companions and to his son-in-law Hazrat Ali
(R) the essential doctrines of Sufism.
• Sufism was further developed and popularized
by Sufi dervishes, poets, and philosophers who
wrote religious treatises, poems,
commentaries etc.
• The advent of Sufism in Bengal may be dated
to the mid-eleventh century with the arrival of
Muslim and Sufi preachers.
• For the next six centuries, learned Sufis and
saints continued to arrive in Bengal from
Arabia, Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Central Asia and
north India.

11. The Essence of Sufism
The ideal of Sufism, attaining the love of God through love of His
creation, has greatly influenced the devotional doctrines of Vaishnavism
as well as the mysticism of them.
At times Sufism in Bengal has been transformed into a folk religion Baul
with many of the Sufis being regarded as saints.

12. Neo Vaishnavism or
Vaishnava Movement:
• The religious and social movement introduced
by Sri Chaitanya (1486-1533).
• The movement was also known as Bhakti
Andolan or devotional movement.
• Its purpose was to counter the caste system
and religious and social superstitions of Hindu
society in that period.
• He adopted the concept of jivatma (the human
soul) and paramatma (eternal soul) and added
to it the idea of dvaitadvaita tattva, the idea of
the simultaneous diversity and unity of God
and soul.

13. Neo Vaishnavism or
Vaishnava Movement:
• Chaitanyadev fought against the social
abuses of the Hindu higher castes and
also gave the common people equal
rights in his religion of love.
• To resist the ever-increasing influence of
Islam, Smrti scholars like Raghunandan,
Devibar Ghatak and Dhrubananda
Mishra adopted the policy of enforcing
Hindu social rites even more harshly.
Instead of treading that path.
• Chaitanyadev absorbed the liberal
teachings of Islam. The gurus of the
Vaishnava's are similar to the pirs of the
Sufis.

14. THANK YOU