Publication: The ulama networks of Aleppo
Abstract
Ulema ağları, Halep toplumunun göze çarpan ve canlı bir tarihsel bileşenidir. Bu ağlar yüzlerce tarihi medreseyi, tarikatları, sosyal grupları, eğitim kurumlarını ve bağımsız şahsiyetleri içermektedir. Dindarlıkları (hatta dinleri) ne olursa olsun, her Haleplinin bir noktada kendi varlıklarından veya ağlarından birini kullandığı noktaya kadar topluma yerleşmişlerdir. Bu, ulemanın başta Halep olmak üzere Osmanlı kozmopolitlerindeki üç “kent ileri gelenleri” kategorisinden biri olması gerçeğinde görülmektedir. Etkileri, dini ve sosyal alanlara, siyasi ve ekonomik alanlara genişletilmemiştir. Halepli Şeyh Ahmed Badr al-Din Hassun'dan daha belirgin olan hiçbir amblem yoktur. Yakın zamanda görevden alınana kadar yaklaşık yirmi yıl boyunca yalnızca Suriye'nin Baş Müftüsü değildi, aynı zamanda iki dönem Parlamento üyesiydi ve oğulları bir iş adamıyla bir emlak şirketinin ortak sahibiydi. Halep, rejimin siyasi-askeri muhalefetinin sıcak noktalarından biri olduğu ve dini aktörlerin başını çektiği için Halep ulemasının siyasi etkisi 1980'lerdeki ayaklanmalarda görüldü. Bu, 2011'de Suriye devriminin patlamasıyla bir kez daha yaşandı. Halep'teki dini aktörler çatışmada aktif aktörlerdi. Bu, Halep'teki ulema ağlarının öneminin devam eden bir başka göstergesidir ve onları incelemenin önemini açıklar. Yeterince çalışılmamış bir konu olmasına rağmen bu ağları tespit etmek ve dinamiklerini ele almak, Halep toplumunu ve Halep'teki Suriye çatışmasını anlamak için elzemdir. Ayrıca, çatışma sırasındaki dayanıklılıkları ve uyum sağlamaları, çatışma sonrası dinamiklerin ilginç bir olgusu ve ulemanın modernite altındaki otoritesi ve rolüne ilişkin ilginç bir vaka çalışmasıdır.
Ulama networks are a salient and vivid historical component of the Aleppian society. These networks include hundreds of historical madrasas, Sufi brotherhoods, social groups, educational institutions, and independent figures. They are entrenched in society to the point that every Aleppian, regardless of their religiosity (or even religion), went through one of their entities or networks at some point. This is seen by the fact that ulama are one of three categories of “urban notables” in the Ottoman cosmopolites, Aleppo on top of them. Their impact is extended not only to the religious and social fields but also to the political and economic ones. No emblem is more evident of this than the Aleppian Sheikh Ahmad Badr al-Din Hassun. He was not only the Grand Mufti of Syria for about two decades, until his recent dismissal, but he was also a member of the Parliament for two terms, and his sons co-own a real estate company with a business tycoon. The political impact of the Aleppian Ulama was seen in the upheavals of the 1980s, as Aleppo was one of the hotspots of the political-turned-military opposition of the regime and was spearheaded by religious actors. This occurred once again with the eruption of the Syrian revolution in 2011. Religious actors in Aleppo were active actors in the conflict. This is another ongoing indicator of the significance of the ulama networks in Aleppo, explaining the importance of studying them. Identifying these networks and addressing their dynamics, despite being an understudied topic, is essential to understanding the Aleppian society and the Syrian conflict in Aleppo. Also, their resilience and adaptation during the conflict is an interesting phenomenon of the post-conflict dynamics and an interesting case study of the ulama’s authority and role under modernity.
Ulama networks are a salient and vivid historical component of the Aleppian society. These networks include hundreds of historical madrasas, Sufi brotherhoods, social groups, educational institutions, and independent figures. They are entrenched in society to the point that every Aleppian, regardless of their religiosity (or even religion), went through one of their entities or networks at some point. This is seen by the fact that ulama are one of three categories of “urban notables” in the Ottoman cosmopolites, Aleppo on top of them. Their impact is extended not only to the religious and social fields but also to the political and economic ones. No emblem is more evident of this than the Aleppian Sheikh Ahmad Badr al-Din Hassun. He was not only the Grand Mufti of Syria for about two decades, until his recent dismissal, but he was also a member of the Parliament for two terms, and his sons co-own a real estate company with a business tycoon. The political impact of the Aleppian Ulama was seen in the upheavals of the 1980s, as Aleppo was one of the hotspots of the political-turned-military opposition of the regime and was spearheaded by religious actors. This occurred once again with the eruption of the Syrian revolution in 2011. Religious actors in Aleppo were active actors in the conflict. This is another ongoing indicator of the significance of the ulama networks in Aleppo, explaining the importance of studying them. Identifying these networks and addressing their dynamics, despite being an understudied topic, is essential to understanding the Aleppian society and the Syrian conflict in Aleppo. Also, their resilience and adaptation during the conflict is an interesting phenomenon of the post-conflict dynamics and an interesting case study of the ulama’s authority and role under modernity.