"Stay up during the night, except for a little” (Q 73:2): The Qurʾānic Vigils as Ascetic Training Programs

TY - JOUR

T1 - "Stay up during the night, except for a little” (Q 73:2): The Qurʾānic Vigils as Ascetic Training Programs

AU - Christiansen, Johanne Louise

PY - 2019/10/2

Y1 - 2019/10/2

N2 - In the field of history of religion, the Qurʾān and early Islam often seem to be ignored in discussions of asceticism and cultural evolution. With the usage of Peter Sloterdijk’s definition of áskēsis as ‘training’, this article proposes a new way to understand the qurʾānic attitude(s) to ascetic practices. By seeing the text’s articulations of vigils as two types of ascetic training programs, I argue that a hypothetical chronological development of the vigils takes place, and that this development illustrates a shift from the Prophet’s own extraordinary ‘improvement’ to a more general ‘maintenance’ practice for the ordinary believer. That the Qurʾān calls the believers to participate in such training programs may also explain the text’s divergent approach to other religious traditions’ ascetic practices. Through Sloterdijk’s definition of asceticism, it is made clear that the Qurʾān in its own way partakes in and negotiates the overarching ascetic tendency of its time.

AB - In the field of history of religion, the Qurʾān and early Islam often seem to be ignored in discussions of asceticism and cultural evolution. With the usage of Peter Sloterdijk’s definition of áskēsis as ‘training’, this article proposes a new way to understand the qurʾānic attitude(s) to ascetic practices. By seeing the text’s articulations of vigils as two types of ascetic training programs, I argue that a hypothetical chronological development of the vigils takes place, and that this development illustrates a shift from the Prophet’s own extraordinary ‘improvement’ to a more general ‘maintenance’ practice for the ordinary believer. That the Qurʾān calls the believers to participate in such training programs may also explain the text’s divergent approach to other religious traditions’ ascetic practices. Through Sloterdijk’s definition of asceticism, it is made clear that the Qurʾān in its own way partakes in and negotiates the overarching ascetic tendency of its time.

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0048-721X

JO - Religion

JF - Religion

ER -