Tablīgh Jamā‘at : a transnational movement of Islamic faith regeneration

The Tablīgh Jamā‘at (Convey Group or Group for conveying the message of Islam) established in 1927 in Mewat in India is an independent transnational movement of Islamic faith regeneration. It is an offshoot of Deoband movement and emerged in direct response to Hindu Arya Samaj sect which was seen by the Tablīgh Jamā‘at as a threat to vulnerable and non-practicing Muslims. From its humble beginnings in Tablīgh Jamā‘at gradually grew from local to national settings and ultimately traversed the globe by entering over two hundred countries becoming the world’s largest transnational movement of Islamic faith regeneration. Its success is mainly due to its itinerant preaching style which revolves around rudimentary teaching and its Six Principles. This paper looks at the genesis of the Tablīgh Jamā‘at in the crisis situation of the people of Islamic faith. It argues that he growth and development of the Tablīgh Jamā‘at as the world’s largest transnational movement of Islamic faith regeneration is attributed to its response largely to the negative consequences of modernity or to the crisis situation in specific local context. However, the rise of Tablīgh Jamā‘at is also in part due to its ability to negotiate through modernity rather than destroying it