Salafiyya from “below”: The Al-Fatḥ Journal and the “Popular” Salafī Discourse in the Interwar Egypt

Much has been written about Salafism and its encounter with the modern world since the late nineteenth century. Historians focused on the triangle of Muslim reformism, viz., Jamāl al-Dīn Al-Afghānī (1838-1897), Muḥammad ʿAbduh (1849–1905), and Muḥammad Rashīd Riḍā (1865-1935), to understand the later development of Salafī ideas in the Muslim World. Although this connection is legitimate, the current project argues that their line of thought became to be the fault-line in 1920s-1930s, especially after the abolishment of the Ottoman Caliphate. Their early “elitist” Salafī ideas turned into a more “popular” discourse addressing the Muslim sentiments on issues that include, but are not limited to, atheism, Christian missions, sectarianism, and moral corruption in the Muslim society. This research project proposes a study of Salafism from “below” by focusing on the popular Salafī-oriented journal of Al-Fatḥ (The Opening), edited by the Syrian writer and activist Muḥibb al-Dīn al-Khaṭīb (1886-1969) in Cairo over the period of 22 years (1926 –1948). By analyzing some of the so-called Salafī figures and publications of this period, this project attempts to highlight the dichotomy and blurring zones between the “elitist” and “popular” lines of thought, which are still polarizing the Salafī discourse in a modern and/or post-modern context.