A New Scholarly Dissertation on Republican Thought in Light of Islamic Law, Modernity, and Postmodernity

Review by: Othman Abuzaid

Dr. Muhammad Waqi’ Allah Ahmad was awarded a second PhD for his dissertation entitled: “Republican Thought in Light of Islamic Law, Modernity, and Postmodernity.” The dissertation was defended at the Institute of Research and Studies of the Islamic World at Omdurman Islamic University, Monday, November 9, 2026. The Study was supervised by Professor Ahmad Muhammad Zain Al-Khader.

Dr. Muhammad Waqi’ Allah, a renowned thinker and professor at several universities in Sudan, the United States, and the Gulf, and recipient of two international academic awards, crowned his research career with this achievement, which adds to the dozens of books, academic papers, and articles he has produced since his university career in the 1970s.

This new scholarly study examines the heritage of republican thought, analyzing its intertextuality, contradictions, and incompatibility with the fundamentals of Islamic doctrine, the established principles of Islamic law, the criteria for renewal, the requirements of rational logic, and the imperatives of enlightenment and modernization. The dissertation covers approximately 1,200 pages, and its richness can be illustrated by a brief overview of the table of contents.
Following the introductory chapter, which contains the theoretical framework, comes the second chapter, entitled: “The Remaining Traces of the Pantheistic Sects’ Heritage.” It presents examples from the predecessors and successors of pantheistic sects and groups, such as the Qarmatians, the Assassins, the Babis, the Baha’is, and the Qadianis.

The third chapter provides a comprehensive account of the Republican Party leader’s personality, including his origins, upbringing, education, and professional work, as well as glimpses into the superstitious aspects of his history, among other things.

The fourth chapter analyzes the party in its non-esoteric phase, followed by a chapter on the history of the Republican Party in its esoteric phase. This chapter includes a detailed account of the party’s activities and the trials and controversies it faced, from 1951 until the execution of the party leader in the mid-1980s.

The sixth chapter, entitled “The Execution and After the Execution,” contains subheadings such as: “Hastening the Manifestation,” “Initiating Conflict with the Rulers,” “The Death Sentence,” and “The Attempt to Revive the Party.” The following chapters critically analyze topics bearing the following titles:

– The Theory of Cognitive Inspiration in Republican Thought
– The Undisciplined Methodology in Interpreting the Holy Qur’an
– The Innovated Republican Concept of the Prophetic Sunnah
– The Theory of the Unity of Existence in Republican Thought
– The Theory of the Evolution of God and Man in Republican Thought
– The Phenomenon of Absolute Republican Sanctification of the Leader
– The Theory of the Muhammadan Messiah in Republican Thought
– The Islam of the First Message and the Islam of the Second Message
– Republican Thought’s Views on Predestination and Free Will.
Chapter Sixteen presents and analyzes the party’s modern political and intellectual content, followed by a chapter on the party’s modern social and intellectual output, including women’s rights, the elevation of the constitution over the Qur’an, calls for amending the Personal Status Law, the justification of marriage without a guardian or dowry, marriage without a guardian for women, marriage without a dowry for women, and the prohibition of polygamy. This is in addition to the confiscation of the right to divorce, the call for modern unveiling, the conflation of the hijab with dress, and the specification of a republican women’s dress. Chapter 18 presents the jurisprudential disagreements with the four schools of Islamic law. The proponents of republican thought are known for what is called the “authentic prayer Salat alasalah” and the rejection of the “imitation prayer,” the permissibility of the “innovated” fast of authenticity, the abolition of zakat with its fixed times and amounts, and the republican interpretation of Hajj, the sacrifice, and funeral jurisprudence.
Chapter 19 discusses the points of convergence and divergence between republican thought and the foundations of modern thought, such as the interaction of republican thought with modernist paradigms, the break with post-Hijra Islam, the republican continuation of Darwinian evolutionary theory, the republican movement’s initiation of the secularization of religion, and the republican movement’s pronouncement of the end of history.
There is also a chapter on the points of convergence and divergence between republican thought and the foundations of postmodern thought, discussing the foundations of postmodern thought, such as the deepening of the culture of meaninglessness, postmodern hermeneutics, the postcolonial school, and involvement in serving imperialism. There is a final chapter before the conclusion on the future of republican thought, bearing the following titles:
1- The Fate of Utopia
2- The Fate of Intellectual Fragmentation
3- The Fate of Cultural Dissonance
4- The Fate of Organic Atrophy
5- The Fate of Sectarian Transformation
6- The Fate of Organizational Fracture
7- The Fate of the Functional Body
8- The Fate of an Alliance with a Dictatorial Government
9- The Persistence in Indulging in Superstitions
10- The Rising Global Interest in Republican Thought
Chapter Twenty-Two contains conclusions, reservations, objections, investigations, a conclusion, and recommendations, as follows:
First: Conclusions
1- The Intertextuality of Republican Thought with the Heritage of Deviant Sects
2- The Conflict of Republican Thought with the Rulings of Islamic Doctrine
3- The Clash of Republican Thought with the Rulings of Islamic Law
4- The Agreement and Conflict of Republican Thought with the Heritage of Modernity
5- The Agreement and Conflict of Republican Thought with the Heritage of Postmodernity

Second: Reservations
1- The Criteria for Islamic Renewal
2- What is Obligatory for the Mujtahid (qualified scholar) but not for the Mujaddid (reformer)

Third: Violations
1- Violations of rational logic
2- Violations of the motives of enlightenment and modernization

Fourth: Investigations
Fifth: Conclusions
Sixth: Recommendations

1- For preachers and missionaries
2- For intellectuals and thinkers
3- For political activists
4- For teachers
5- For young people
The study includes the following appendices:
Appendix One: Evidence of Mahmoud’s knowledge of Ibn Arabi’s thought
Appendix Two: Further evidence of Mahmoud’s knowledge of Ibn Arabi’s thought
Appendix Three: Quotation of the phrase “(The Second Epistle)” from Ibn Arabi’s book
Appendix Four: The party’s decision to comply with the May regime’s repressive orders
Appendix Five: Al-Azhar’s opinion on republican thought
Appendix Six: The Ministry of Religious Affairs’ response to Al-Azhar’s letter
Appendix Seven: The Muslim World League’s opinion on republican thought
Appendix Eight: The Sudanese scholars’ letter to President Nimeiri
Appendix Nine: The Sudanese Scholars’ Council’s statement on Republican thought
Appendix Ten: Mahmoud’s letter to the Khartoum University Students’ Union
Appendix Eleven: The final letter to his followers
Appendix Twelve: This or The Deluge
Appendix Thirteen
R: Court of Appeal Reasons
Appendix Fourteen: Eyewitness Account of the Execution
Appendix Fifteen: Repentance of Followers
Appendix Sixteen: Post Repentance

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