Download January 3 2013 - Hope`s Institutional Research Archive (HIRA)

1
Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and Islam
Author Details:
David K. Chester
Department of Geography
Liverpool Hope University,
Hope Park,
Liverpool,
L16 9JD
Angus M. Duncan
Institute of Biomedical and Environmental Science and Technology,
University of Bedfordshire,
Park Square,
Luton,
LU1 3JU
Hamdan Al Ghasyah Dhanhani
Department of Risk Management
Dubai Police
Dubai
United Arab Emirates
and
Institute of Biomedical and Environmental Science and Technology,
University of Bedfordshire,
Park Square,
Luton,
LU1 3JU
Corresponding author: David K. Chester
[email protected]
Acknowledgements: The authors wish to thank Revd. Roger Clarke for his comments on
an earlier draft of this paper. The opinions expressed are, however, those of the authors
alone.
Biographical Details: David K. Chester is Professor of Environmental Sciences at
Liverpool Hope University and a Priest in the Anglican Communion. He has worked on
disasters for more than thirty years.
2
Angus M. Duncan is Professor in Volcanology at the University of Bedfordshire and has
been working on volcanoes since 1973.
Hamdan Al Ghasyah Dhanhani holds a Ph.D. in hazard management, is a major in the
Dubai Police and is Director of Risk Management in Dubai.
Structured Abstract: Purpose - This research examines the extent to which eruptions
and earthquakes are explained using religious terms of reference within Islamic countries,
and those where Muslims constitutes a significant minority. Is the notion that disasters
represent divine punishment so pervasive that the only reaction for the devout believer is
passive acceptance of suffering or, alternatively, is the innovation of policies of disaster
reduction acceptable theologically?
Design/methodology/approach - Information is derived from: bibliographic sources;
archives; questionnaires and interviews.
Findings - a. There is a distinctive theological perception of natural disasters within
Islamic thought.
b. Although the inhabitants of Islamic countries may explain earthquake and eruption
losses in religious terms, there is little evidence to suggest that this inhibits the
introduction of programmes of planned loss reduction.
c. Relief is a generally acceptable response for both aid donors and recipients.
Research limitations/implications - The impacts of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes
is not as well researched as those occurring in countries with a Christian ethos.
Generalizations have had to be made from a more limited set of examples. More detailed
research is required both within the countries affected and in the languages used in hazard
exposed countries Islamic states (e.g. Arabic, Urdu and Farsi).
Practical implications - Introduction of programmes of hazard reduction is generally
possible in Islamic countries, but requires theological justification.
Originality/value - In comparison with the study of earthquake and eruption impacts in
countries with a Christian ethos, little has been published on disasters and Islam.
Keywords: disasters, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, Islam.
Article Classification: Research Paper/Viewpoint
Introduction
Although religious perspectives on disasters have been studied by both
geomythologists1 and scholars concerned with hazard impacts on pre-historic and preindustrial societies (Vitaliano, 1973; Sigurdsson, 1999; Harris, 2000; Chester, 2005;
Piccardi and Masse, 2007), until the 1990s and with the exception of the often cited
3
pioneer study by Dynes and Yutzy (1965), religious perspectives on contemporary and
recent historical events were conspicuous by their absence. What has been published
since then has been heavily slanted towards catastrophes in countries with a
predominantly Christian ethos, and has included studies of both historical and more
contemporary disasters (Chester, 1998; Chester and Duncan 2010)2.
This paper focuses on Islamic countries and examines the extent to which
volcanic eruptions and earthquakes are explained using religious terms of reference.
Within Islamic states there is a rich historical record of religious responses to disasters
that occurred in the Middle Ages. For instance, the sixteenth century polymath Imam
Jalaluddin Al-Suyuti believed that many catastrophes in the Middle East were divine
judgments for sins which included adultery and drinking alcohol (Chester et al., 2012),
the 1576 Cairo earthquake was widely understood as representing punishment for the
popularity of coffee houses and most medieval and early modern Islamic treatises saw
earthquakes as 'chastisement for lenient attitudes towards adultery, wine and music'
(Akasoy, 2007, p. 403-4). There are few studies of either more recent or contemporary
reactions of Islamic faith communities to earthquakes and eruptions.
Volcanology and seismology are sciences and social science frames hazard
analysis and planning, all are rooted in Enlightenment rationalism and academic research
adopts humanistic terms of reference (Chester, 2005; Chester and Duncan, 2007, p. 210211). The consensus, as expressed in intellectual histories of hazard research, maintains
that the conceptualization of catastrophes as ‘Acts of God’ was quickly replaced
following the Eighteenth Century Enlightenment by perspectives which saw disasters as
outcomes of human vulnerability operating within a demoralized natural world, albeit one
4
subject to environmental extremes (Dynes, 2000; Steinberg, 2000). The comment of
David Alexander that 'the repetitiveness of impacts and forms of damage, the deliberate
or inadvertent creation of vulnerability, and the gross predictability of the consequences
of disaster all add up to human, not supernatural, responsibility' (Alexander, 2000, p.
186-7), being one of many encapsulations of this attitude within hazard research (see
Chester and Duncan, 2007, p. 210-212, for additional examples). Today and on the rare
occasions when reference is made to faith-based responses, the predominant attitude - if
not openly hostile - is frequently dismissive, with any religious reaction being viewed as
a symptom of backwardness. In a detailed interview-based study of reactions of people to
the 1999 East Marmara earthquake in Turkey, for instance, 'the statement "God knows
everything!" was used as an indicator of fatalism … (whilst the assertion)… "I am
confident that I will be able to solve the problems that will emerge in the future" was
used as an indicator of rationalism' Kasapoğlu and Ecevit (2003, p. 346), while in a study
of the 1960 Agadir earthquake in Morocco it was concluded that less educated
respondents - who constituted at the time the majority of the inhabitants - were more
likely to deny the significance of scientific understanding, with 'Allah knows best' being a
more acceptable way of accounting for earthquake losses (Paradise, 2006, p. 257).
In the context of Christian theology, we have argued against this received wisdom
by proposing that reactions to disasters that make use of the thought forms and language
of religion constitute a hidden history that has been largely lost or eliminated from
mainstream science and social science. These religious reactions are not confined to the
past, present day societies untouched by modernism and/or the uneducated, but are more
widespread transcending time, place and culture, being of contemporary relevance across
5
a range of hazard exposed countries (Chester, 1998, 2005; Chester and Duncan, 2007,
2009, 2010; Chester et al., 2008, 2012).
In this paper we propose that in Islamic cultures a similar finding may be
sustained, though recovering information on responses is more difficult. In comparison
with ‘western’ countries with a Christian ethos and where most academic work has been
carried out, responses in countries where Muslims either predominate or constitute a
significant minority are under-researched and data collection requires the interrogation of
a far wider range of bibliographic sources than is usually the case in hazard studies.
These range from anthropological, religious and psychological accounts, to newspapers
of record and the very limited number of studies that have been published in the hazard
research literature.
Table 1 represents the results of this bibliographic research and summarises two
catalogues compiled by the authors: one for major earthquakes dating from 1890; and the
other for the principal volcanic eruptions that have occurred after 1856 and which have
impacted Islamic countries or those with a substantial Muslim community. The table
shows instances where losses are expressed using either theological language or more
popular Islamic reportage. The catalogue of major earthquakes contains 55 cases, yet
only 16 of these (ca. 29%) appear in Table 1. Little is known about religious reactions to
some major events (e.g. the 1935 Balochistan or Quetta earthquake which killed between
25 and 30,000 people in present day Pakistan)3, including some that have occurred in the
past decade (e.g. the Algerian earthquake of 2003 in which over 2,000 perished - Anon,
2013b). The situation for volcanic eruptions is better (i.e. 10 out of 15 events, or ca. 66%)
6
It is highly probable that the influence of Islam is more widespread and deepseated than Table 1 implies. Some early events occurred in isolated areas (e.g. eruptions
in Awu, Sangiha Island Indonesia in 1856 and 1892 and earthquakes in Turkestan 1902,
Turkey 1903, 1912, 1914, Iran 1909 and 1923, 1929 and 1930) and only the very briefest
of details are known within international journals or newspapers of record, yet reports
from more recent disasters in these countries show religious interpretations to be both
well established and of long-standing, this being clear from Judith Schlehe's
investigations into eruptions and cultural responses in Indonesia (Schlehe, 1996, 2008).
Although arguments from silence are always weak, detailed investigation of local
archives could well reveal that the influence of Islam is more deep-seated and widespread
than is implied by Table 1.
Table 1 shows the presence of religious reactions, but further discussion of the
examples listed, plus smaller events which did not cause as many casualties, is needed to
tease out the characteristics of Islamic explanations and responses. If little has changed
from the situation in the Middle Ages, when Imam Jalaluddin Al-Suyuti believed that
disasters represented divine punishment for individual sinfulness then, in extremis, the
only reaction for a devout believer would be fatalistic acceptance of suffering. In this
situation, the introduction of policies of civil protection and hazard planning would be
problematic. Alternatively, should the interplay of disasters, human suffering and
theology be more complex and/or more heterogeneous, there may be scope for
reconciliation between faithful religious practice on the one hand and, on the other, an
acceptance that future losses may be reduced through policies of civil protection. It is one
of the objectives of this paper to investigate whether this may be the case.
7
Islamic theology and Disasters
Islam literally means submission to the will of God.4 There is no distinctive Sunni
or Shi'a theology of disasters. In the Qur’an, Hadith (oral traditions which record the
actions of Muhammad) and in many theological statements, suffering is explained as a
punishment for sin, as instrumental to the purposes of God and as a stern test of faith
(Bowker, 1970). The moral issue of the suffering of the innocent is explained by
earthquakes being viewed as a 'chastisement for lenient attitudes towards adultery, wine and
music, a blessing for the believer (and) a punishment for the unbliever' (Akasoy, 2007, p.
403). Innocent individuals killed by disasters become martyrs. Earthquakes are given special
attention in the Qur’an. The whole of Sura 99 is devoted to the earthquake5 and such
events ‘are interpreted within two different, yet related frameworks … (being) … viewed
either as signs of a future apocalypse or as punishment of a limited duration for a specific
group of people’ (Akasoy, 2009, p. 184). Disasters more generally either express God’s
anger at human actions, or act instrumentally as warnings of future punishment for
sinfulness or to presage the eventual Day of Judgment (Akasoy, 2009)6.
Using the events listed in Table 1, evidence is plentiful that many Muslims have
invoked a God of wrath or one testing the faith of human beings in order to account for
losses occasioned by earthquakes and eruptions. The Krakatau eruption in 1883, for
example, was interpreted as punishment for human sinfulness including the acceptance of
colonial rule imposed by the Dutch and, more recently, the eminent physicist Pervez
Hoodbhoy (2007) has discussed the impact on Pakistan of the 2005 earthquake which killed
ca. 90,000 people. He notes that no prominent scientist challenged the idea of divine
8
punishment, some Mullahs encouraged their followers to sell their television sets which
were thought to have provoked Allah’s anger, while many of Professor Hoodbhoy’s
students - representatives of the intellectual elite - publically accepted explanations based on
models of divine wrath. A questionnaire-based study carried out in the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) into public responses to a range of disasters, also concluded that such
events were viewed as Acts of God sent to punish the sinful with the preferred solution
being ‘to pray to God for help’ (Dhanhani, 2010, p. 283).
A theology which perceives disasters as instruments of God's purpose might be
thought to engender a praxis of passive acceptance and there are indeed isolated examples
where this has been observed. One example is from the remote Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Province in Pakistan (Cheema, 2012, p. ii), where in the aftermath of the 2005 earthquake
there was increased prayer and meditation which, although aiding the healing process and
boosting resilience, at the same time made people fatalistic with respect to the building
measures proposed by the government to reduce the impact of future disasters. From the
bibliographic research carried out in this study this appears to be a solitary example and the
reality is usually far more complex. In the first place, what is sometimes perceived as
passive acceptance by outsiders often masks a much more subtle response. During the 2010
eruption of Merapi in Indonesia a prominent local Muslim leader7 died. He was regarded as
the 'spiritual guardian' of the volcano and in the past had defied the government over
evacuation, with some media and many scientists portraying the conflict as one in which
rationality was trumped by superstition. As Bagir (2012) notes the government through its
volcanological agency (i.e. usat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi or the Centre
of Vulcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation) had the reputation of being extremely
9
authoritarian and in the past local people have suffered considerable financial losses by
evacuating the area prematurely. In fact the people have a high regard for science, but also
possess a high tolerance of risk and it was not so much question of refusing to leave, but
rather when to do so. Bagir (2012, p. 363) concludes his study of Merapi by noting:
'such natural events turn to disaster when there are negative impacts on people because of
their vulnerability…In this understanding, the question of natural evil becomes less
relevant, because much if not all the evil coming from disasters …… is non-natural'.
The above statement leads to a second area of complexity which is both practical
and theological. It has been argued by some theologians that the Islamic view of God as all
powerful and unquestioning is misunderstood by western commentators, because at the
heart of Muslim theology is the question 'if God is the sole author of all human deeds, then
how can human beings rightly be held responsible for what they do?' (Cragg and Speight,
1988, p. 13). The answer to this question is dealt with in detail by Abdul Kabir Hussain
Solihu (2007), who argues, inter alia: that disasters are only disastrous from a human
perspective; and people make themselves vulnerable by flouting moral laws which govern
actions in the physical world. The latter point is dealt with by Solihu in a detailed exegesis
of Qur’anic texts8, which recall the drowning of Pharaoh's soldiers following the exodus of
the Jewish people from Egypt, and the stories of Lot (Lūt in the Qur’an), Noah and the
flood. He argues that:
'these unsustainable communities had violated moral laws and thus made themselves
vulnerable to disaster. Indeed, their continued persistence in wrong actions precipitated and
exacerbated the disasters, which otherwise could have been averted' (Solihu, 2007, p. 58).
In other words sinfulness was to be found within the State, in the case of Egypt, and in the
tribal group, in the case of Lot and Noah narratives, and not within the actions of
individuals. In conclusion Solihu reconciles God's omnipotence and human responsibility.
10
'Natural disasters are attributable to God because He created the natural environment with
conditions that, when transgressed, may yield unfavourable results. However, at a lower
level, humanity is responsible for provoking or abusing this condition. This perspective is
grounded in the Islamic view that the creation/design of nature is untimely good, even when
it occasionally leads to a bad result' (Solihu, 2007, p. 62).
Close parallels exist between Solihu's conclusion and the 'best of all possible words' model
of theodicy9 that is prominent in Christian theology and which maintans that the world is
governed by natural laws and is the best that could have been created (see Chester, 1998, p.
505).
Many instances occur where commentators have ascribed 'sinfuless' to collective
bodies such as builders, developers and the State. In our research into hazard perceptions of
people using and managing schools in Fujairah Emirate (UAE) (Dhanhani, 2010, p. 232256), twelve senior administrative staff were interviewed and it was widely recognised that
many schools were potentially exposed to seismic activity due to a lack of maintenance,
poor design and the fact that most were more than forty years old and built before any
earthquake codes were in place. These opinions are encapsulated by one of the respondents.
'The present situation of vulnerability reduces the capacity of such school buildings to resist
additional forces in the future as might be expected as a result of earthquakes…In short the
Fujairah schools are not designed to be safe from earthquakes and other natural disasters'
(Dhanhani, 2010, p. 241).
It is interesting that in the same survey the majority of parents do not believe in natural
agency, but see earthquakes, storms and floods as representing divine retribution, which can
be prevented by religious observance, prayer and avoiding sinful conduct. In the past when
people were more devout there were no disasters (Dhanhani, 2010, p. 251-252).
There are additional examples. Őktem (2010) reports from Turkey that many
younger people accept that it is buildings that kill rather then earthquakes per se, but still
believe that all new structures are safe because they are made of concrete and are commonly
11
ignorant of the necessity of 'retro-fitting' older structures. While also from Turkey Ergül et
al. (2010, pp. 16) argue that:
'signifying earthquake(s)….as divine judgment, wrath of Allah, or simple natural disaster,
might serve to veil the state-centred bureaucratic mismanagements and naturalizes the poorplanning infrastructure that could otherwise have reduced the dramatic effects'.
In a theological interpretation of Iranian earthquakes, Ghafory-Ashtiany (2009) argues that
causing harm, increasing vulnerability and ignoring facts and knowledge is sinful, while
Farhang (2004), is even more forthright in ascribing losses to the poor application of
building codes and the dismal performance of the State in the face of the country's
vulnerability. From Southern Thailand and in the context of the 2004 tsunami, Merli (2010,
p. 1) concludes that 'statements by my informants are framed in plural theodicies and
ultimately impute disasters to human responsibility’.
Further diversity in Islamic response is introduced by syncretism, which is especially
important in countries where belief systems persist from pre-Islamic times and/or where
Islam is practiced side by side with other faiths. For instance in a comparative study of the
eruptions of Krakatau (Indonesia) in 1883 and Pintatubo (Philippines) in 1991, Harris
(2012a; 2012b) notes that accommodation between traditional belief systems and Islam, in
the case of the former, and Christianity, in the case of the latter, were features of responses.
In Indonesia pre-Muslim notions of a sea monster being the cause of tsunamis had been
preserved in oral traditions about events that occurred in 1797 and 1830, with the 'sea
monster' was again invoked alongside more conventional Islamic explanations following the
1883 disaster. More recently and in reviewing eruptions in Java (Indonesia) which occurred
between 2005 and 2008, Lavigne et al. (2008, p. 282) conclude their study of human
behaviour:
12
'although Java's latter-day Islamic society has largely replaced earlier cultures - each having
added to the tapestry of truths, half truths and myths, Hindu and Buddhist cosmogonies are
still valid. The complexity of syncretic spiritualities plays an important role in shaping
reactions.'
Schlehe's (2010) study of the 2006 earthquake is relevant to the discussion. She found that
many Javans blamed the Sultan for the disaster because he had become at the same time too
'modern' (e.g. more business oriented and enthusiastic about globalisation) and also too
literalistically Islamic by ignoring the established leadership role of syncretically reconciling
being a Muslim with more traditional belief systems (see also Merli, 2012, p. 520-53).
Finally complexity occurs because in Islam divine majesty is balanced by mercy
and concern, with the Qur'an being warmer and more compassionate than many Islamic
theologians admit (Cragg and Speight, 1988, p. 16).10 Passive acceptance and certainly
fatalism may also shade into despair which for a Muslim is improper (Bowker, 1970, p.
112). Indeed for the devout the compassion of God should find a response in the generosity
of the believer and all Muslims are under the obligation of Zakat, this being one of the five
pillars of Islam11 and involves giving 1/40 of one's assets to eight groups of people in need,
who include the poor and destitute12 (Benthall, 2003). Zakat also influences policies of
hazard reduction and this is discussed below.
Islamic societies: Accommodating theology and Policies of Hazard Reduction
Seeking a modus vivendi between Islamic understandings of disasters and policies of
hazard reduction has taken both theoretical and practical routes. An impressive example of
the former is Ghafory-Ashtiany’s (2009, p. 221-3) attempt to build on some of the points
made above (see Table 2). The author concludes 'it can easily be seen that many key
13
concepts in Islam support the guiding principles of earthquake risk reduction and disaster
prevention' (Ghafory-Ashtiany 2009, p. 229).
There are numerous examples of more practical approaches. One feature which is
similar to the situation in some Christian cultures, such as southern Italy (Chester et al.,
2008), is that even when people accept divine responsibility for disasters, there is no
evidence to suggest that such beliefs have either prevented policies of hazard reduction
being put in place or of people refusing help either from the State and Non-Governmental
Organisations (NGOs). Holding two mutually irreconcilable worldviews, or acting contrary
to a deeply held belief is known as parallel practice13 (Chester and Duncan, 2009) and this
is clearly a feature of responses in many Islamic countries. As already discussed, people in
rural Pakistan may be fatalistic about some government initiatives but there is no evidence
of active resistance towards them (Cheema, 2012), while our study of the UEA concluded
that, although people may by sceptical about initiatives to mitigate risk especially in rural
areas (Dhanhani, 2010, p. 302), this has not prevented the federal government developing
policies which include: establishing a system to respond to national emergencies; the
identification and training of UAE nationals in responding to disasters; the encouragement
of volunteering and developing co-operation between the State, its agencies and the private
sector (Dhanhani et al., 2010). In Egypt Homan (2003, pp. 147), concluded her research on
the social construction of disasters by observing that 'religious explanation is meaningful to
people but very few felt this precluded practical action', while for many years Indonesia had
been notable amongst economically less developed countries for the quality and expertise of
its volcanologists in particular and hazard management more generally. Although the Centre
of Vulcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation may have a reputation for being
14
authoritarian (see section 2.0), there is no suggestion that its existence is viewed as
incompatible with Islamic belief and practice (Chester, 1993, p.273-4, 289-92).
A good example of practical accommodation between Islamic faith and policy is
discussed by Degg and Homan (2005). Following the 1992 Dahshûr earthquake in Egypt,
the government produced a booklet, Earthquakes Catastrophes and the Role of People in
Facing Them, which successfully brought together Islamic, scientific and planning
approaches to disaster losses. The booklet provided essential background information on
earthquakes and suggested responses (e.g. causal mechanisms, distribution, what people
should do when an earthquake strikes and advice on first aid), all placed within an
Islamic context and supported by quotations from the Qur'an. Another example occurred
in the aftermath of the Dhamar earthquake (Yemen) in 1982 which caused around 2000
fatalities. The government issued a simple information sheet showing how more
earthquake resistant traditional dwellings could be built using locally available materials
(Leslie, 1986). A survey four years later demonstrated that, of the in excess of 1000
people who has been trained under this programme, the majority had changed their
building practices (Coburn and Leslie, 1985). These approaches offer much to other
Islamic countries.
In many Islamic countries Mosques have an established role at the centre of
communities and can be important agencies in the process of recovery. Following the
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, in Aceh Indonesia, McGregor (2010) found
that Muslims wished to rebuild mosques before their homes because they were viewed as
being vital to the process of psychological and spiritual healing. In the aftermath of the
2005 earthquake in rural Pakistan, mosques not only fulfilled a similar role but were also
15
part of the social capital of villages, being foci of community support and critical for
recovery and rehabilitation. An Imam's support was also critical in determining whether
re-development was successful (Cheema, 2012 - see also Candland, 2000).
Under the Zakat obligation (section 2.0) much aid is now provided and is often
channelled via mosques to disaster victims. In a detailed study of two British based
charities, Islamic Relief Worldwide and Muslim Hands, de Cordier (2009, p. 612) shows
how both organizations use Zakat to justify their giving and how, in economically more
developed countries, this often takes the form of a cash donation, to which may be added
sadaqu, or voluntary alms giving, and offerings on the occasion of Qurbani (i.e. the feast
of sacrifice). The latter is a meat offering to the poor, but today is often channelled
through development charities. Both charities see no theological difficulties in aiding
disaster victims and carefully justify their activities. In the case of Muslim Hands, their
approach is grounded within a rationale of collective sinfulness 'the aftermaths of
cyclones, earthquakes and other calamities are made much worse because of existing
poverty. Without the safety net of insurance, savings and accessible transport, people are
left helpless with nothing to fall back on when disaster strikes' (Muslim Hands, 2013 our emphasis), while Islamic Relief Wordwide justify their activity by well-chosen
Qur'anic citations which encourage charity, and a raison d'être which talks of the
marginalised and vulnerable (Islamic Relief Worldwide, 2013). Both these organizations
and many other Islamic charities have signed the 1994 Code of Conduct for International
Red Cross and Red Crescent Movements and Non-Governmental Organizations in
Disaster Relief, to the effect that aid is provided on a non-discriminatory basis.14
16
In recent years there has been a paradign shift in Christian theology over the ways in
which natural hazards are viewed, from a perspective dominated by theodicy9 to one where
responsibility for suffering has changed from being theocentric to anthropocentric (Chester
et al., 2012, p. 116). Disasters are seen as reflecting collective human sinfulness in the form
of the relative differences in wealth, poverty both within and between countries and the
persistence of unsafe conditions, for example, in the form of poorly enforced building codes
and variably applied policies of hazard reduction. A good example of this new perspective is
Jon Sobrino's reflections on earthquake losses in South America (Sobrino, 2004), where
losses are explained in terms of the marginalisation of the poor and disadvantaged. While
there has not been a similar paradigm shift in Islam, as the above discussion shows there has
been movement to reconcile traditional Islamic understandings of disasters with practical
policies of hazard reduction. As shown in the examples above, some Islamic countries, such
as Egypt, Indonesia and the UAE, have started to adopt more practical measures to reduce
vulnerability to natural hazards.
In considering the response of Muslim communities to the impact of damaging
earthquakes and eruptions, there is clear evidence that during the past two decades there has
been little if any conflict between religious belief and policies geared to reducing risk. The
extent to which this reflects reconciliation or, merely, a compartmentalisation of attitudes through 'parallel practice'13 remains an issue that requires further investigation.
Endnotes
1
Geomythology is the study of oral traditions which preserve the memories of prehistoric events.
17
2
In the standard work on Geology and Religion (Kölbl-Ebert, 2009), there is no discussion of Islam.
3
This earthquake and recovery from it was studied in detail by the British colonial authorities. When it
came to burial, the religious identity of victims was respected, but there is no analysis of the religious
reactions of the three faith communities (i.e. Muslim, Hindu and Christian) who were affected (Pinhey,
1938).
4
The division between Sunni and Shi'a is the oldest in the history of Islam and its most significant. It
relates to ethnic composition, political developments and historical experiences which originated over
questions about who should succeed Muhammad as leader of the nascent community after the prophet's
death.
The Qur’an is divided into 114 suwar, or chapters. Sura 99, the earthquake, comprises 8 ayat (verses). It
sees earthquakes in apocalyptic terms and is reproduced below:- 1. When the earth is shaken with its (final)
earthquake. 2. And when the earth throws out its burdens, 3. And man will say: "What is the matter with
it?"4. That Day it will declare its information (about all what happened over it of good or evil).5. Because
your Lord has inspired it.6. That Day mankind will proceed in scattered groups that they may be shown
their deeds.7. So whosoever does good equal to the weight of an atom (or a small ant), shall see it. 8. And
whosoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom (or a small ant), shall see it.
5
6
The theological emphasis is always on divine testing and not divine wrath (Farhang, 2004), though the
distinction is not always recognised by Muslim worshippers, disaster victims or even some theological
commentators.
7
More conservative Muslim leaders in Indonesia were critical of this particular leader because he still
practiced pre-Islamic rituals (Bagir, 2012, p. 362).
8
Since the early centuries in the history of Islam two schools of interpretation that have been relevant to
the discussion of human-free will and divine predestination. The Mu'tazilite school originated in the 8th
century CE and combined free-will (including human responsibility) with rational divine justice. In
contrast, the Ash'arite school of the 10th century CE viewed disasters as occurring by divine degree with
even their locations being selected by God (see Merli, 2010). Solihu's (2007) exegesis is within the
Mu'tazilite tradition.
9
Within Judaism and Christianity attempts to reconcile the concept of an omniscient and loving God with the
simultaneous existence of evil and suffering in the world is termed theodicy (Greek theos - God and dikejustice), the word first being coined by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz in 1710 (Leibniz, 1952). In Islam there is
considerable doubt about whether the term is appropriate because humans have to submit the divine will and
God cannot be held accountable to human moral judgment (Green, 1987, p.16).
10
Sura 6: 12 God 'prescribed for Himself mercy.'
11
The others being: Shahadah, reciting the profession of faith; Salat, praying five times each day in the
prescribed fashion; Sawm,fasting during the month of Ramadan and Hajj, pilgrimage to Mecca.
12
Other categories are: those who collect the Zakat; Non-Muslims who are sympathetic to Islam or wish to
convert to Islam; those in slavery or bondage; those whose debt overwhelms their needs; those committed
to the way of God and travellers in need (Benthall, 2003).
13
In hazard studies parallel practice is sometimes known as cognitive dissonance. In psychology and
religious studies, however, cognitive dissonance has a more restrictive definition (Carroll, 1990, p.123-4) and
for this reason the term parallel practice is used in this paper.
18
14
'This document contains a number of obligations, including non-discrimination on the grounds of race,
faith or nationality; abstention of the use of humanitarian aid for political or religious purposes;
independence vis-à-vis the foreign policies of governments; respect for local cultures and customs; and
maximal use of local capacity' (de Cordier, 2009).
Table Captions
Table 1. A selection of major earthquakes (since 1890) and eruptions (since 1856) in
countries where Islam is the dominant faith. Bold type indicates events where there is a
detailed record of responses being couched in religious terms, whereas plain type indicates
instances where deistic interpretations are mentioned but not discussed in detail. Based on
the references cited in and the lists compiled by: Tanguy et al. (1998); Sigurdsson et al.
(2000); the Smithsonian Institution (Anon, 2013a) and United States Geological Survey
(Anon, 2013b).
19
Table 2. Some key concepts in Islamic teaching that support policies of risk reduction.
The table is a summary of research by Ghafory-Ashtiany (2009, p. 221-3), which
contains additional examples.
References
Akasoy, A. (2007), "Islamic attitudes to disasters in the Middle Ages: A comparison of
earthquakes and plagues", The Medieval History Journal Vol. 10 No 1&2, pp. 150-161.
Akasoy, A.A. (2009), "Interpreting earthquakes in Medieval Islamic texts", in Mauch, C.,
and Pfister, C. (Eds.), Natural Disaster, Cultural Responses. Case studies towards a Global
Environmental History. Lexington Books, Lanham, MD, pp. 183-196.
Alexander, D. (2000), Confronting Catastrophe, Terra Publishing, Harpenden, UK.
20
Ali Badri, S., Asgary, A., Eftekhari, A.R. and Levy, J. (2006), "Post-disaster resettlement,
development and change: a case study of the 1990 Manjil earthquake in Iran", Disasters
Vol. 30 No 4, pp. 451-468.
Anon (1915), "Morocco Days: The Beggar and the Earthquake", The Times, 22
September, pp. 11, column d.
Anon (1919), "Java eruption. Town overwhelmed by lava. Terrified people escape to
hills", The Sydney Morning Herald, 4 July, pp. 8.
Anon (1956), "132 killed in earthquake", The Times, 19 March, pp. 10, column a.
Anon (1975), "Death toll in Turkish earthquake is over 1,700", The Times, 8 September ,
pp. 8, columns a and b.
Anon (1982), "Race against time to find earthquake survivors", The Times, 18 December,
pp. 4), column f.
Anon (1992), "Cairo quake gives Islam fresh chance to steal a march", The Guardian 15
October, pp. 11, columns a and b.
Anon (2002), "Al Qaida: Earthquake a punishment from God", available at:
http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Security-Industry/2002/03/27/Al-Qaida-Earthquakea-punishment-from-God/UPI-64961017269211/ (accessed 15 January 2013).
Anon (2009), "Indonesians blame earthquake on unlucky president", Daily Telegraph 4
October 2009, available at:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/indonesia/6259005/Indonesians-blameearthquake-on-unlucky-president.html (accessed 15 April 15 2011).
Anon (2011), "1948 Earthquake", available at:
http://turkmenistan.wikispaces.com/earthquake (accessed 24 March 2011).
Anon (2013a), "Large Holocene eruption",
http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/largeeruptions.cfm (accessed 4 January 2013).
Anon (2013b), "Earthquakes with 1,000 or more deaths since 1900", available at:
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/world_deaths.php (accessed 4 January
2013).
Bagir, Z.A. (2012), "Nidhal Guessoum's Reconciliation of Islam and Science", Zygon,
Vol. 47 No. 2, pp. 354-366.
Bein, A. (2008), "The Istanbul earthquake of 1894 and science in the Late Ottoman
Empire", Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 44 No. 6, pp. 909-924.
21
Benthall, J. (2003), Humanitarianism, Islam and 11 September, HPG Briefing
(Humanitarian Policy Group) 11, Overseas Development Institute, London.
Bowker, J. (1970), Problems of Suffering in the Religions of the World, Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge.
Candland, C. (2000), "Faith as social capital: Religion and community development in
Southern Asia", Policy Sciences, Vol. 33 No. 3-4, pp. 355-374.
Carroll, R.P. (1990), "Cognitive Disssonance", in Coggins, R.J. and Houlden, J.L. (Eds.), A
Dictionary of Biblical Interpretation. SCM, London, pp. 123-4.
Cheema, A.R. (2012), "Exploring the role of the mosque in dealing with disasters: A case
study of the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan", Ph.D. Thesis, Massey University, New Zealand.
Chester, D.K. (1993), Volcanoes and Society, Edward Arnold, London.
Chester, D.K. (1998), "The theodicy of natural disasters", Scottish Journal of Theology,
Vol. 51 No. 4, pp. 485-505.
Chester, D.K. (2005), "Theology and disaster studies", Journal of Volcanology and
Geothermal Research Vol. 146, pp. 319-28.
Chester, D.K. and Duncan, A.M. (2007), "Geomythology, theodicy, and the continuing
relevance of religious worldviews on responses to volcanic eruptions", in Grattan, J. and
Torrence, R. (Eds.), Living Under the Shadow: The Cultural Impacts of Volcanic
Eruptions. Left Coast Press, Walnut Creek, CA, pp. 203-224.
Chester, D.K. and Duncan, A.M. (2009), "The Bible, theology and religious responses to
historic and contemporary earthquakes and volcanic eruptions", Environmental Hazards,
Vol. 8, pp. 1-29.
Chester, D.K. and Duncan, A.M. (2010), "Coping with disasters within the Christian
tradition, with reference to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes", Religion, Vol. 40, pp. 8595.
Chester, D.K., Duncan, A.M. and Dibben, C.R.J. (2008), "The importance of religion in
shaping volcanic risk perceptions in Italy, with special reference to Vesuvius and Etna",
Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, Vol. 172, pp. 216-228.
Chester, D.K., Duncan, A.M. and Sangster, H. (2012), "Religion, faith communities and
disaster", in Gaillard, J-C., Wisner, B., Kelman, I. (Eds.), Routledge Handbook of Natural
Hazards and Disaster Risk Reduction and Management. Routledge, London, pp. 109120.
22
Coburn, A. and Leslie, J.D.L. (1985), Dhamar Building Project: Project Assessment,
Oxfam, Oxford.
Cragg, K. and Speight, R.M. (1988), The House of Islam, Wadsworth, Belmont California.
De Cordier, B. (2009), “Faith-based aid, globalisation and the humanitarian frontline: an
analysis of Western-based Muslim aid organisations”, Disasters, Vol. 33 No. 4, pp. 608628.
Degg, M. and Homan, J. (2005), "Earthquake vulnerability in the Middle East",
Geography, Vol. 90 No. 1, pp. 54-66.
Dhanhani, H.A. (2010), "Evaluation of the response capability of the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) to the impact of natural hazards", Ph.D. Thesis, University of
Bedfordshire.
Dhanhani, H.A., Duncan, A. and Chester, D. (2010), "United Arab Emirates: Disaster
management with regards to rapid onset natural disasters", in Asimakopoulou, E. and
Bessis, N. (Eds.), Advanced ICTs for Disaster Management and Threat Detection:
Collaborative and Distributed Frameworks. Information Science Reference, Hershey New
York, pp. 65-79.
Donovan, K. and Suharyanto, A. (2011), "The Creatures will protect us", Geoscientist, Vol.
21 No 2, pp. 12-17.
Dynes, R.R. (2000), "The dialogue between Voltaire and Rousseau on the Lisbon
earthquake: The emergence of a social science view", International Journal of Mass
Emergencies and Disasters, Vol. 19 No. 1, pp. 97-115.
Dynes, R.R. and Yutzy, D. (1965), "The religious interpretation of disasters", Journal of the
Liberal Arts, Fall, pp. 34-47.
Ergül, H., Gökalp, E. and Cangöz, I. (2010), "From the wrath of Allah to divine judgment:
natural disasters in the Islamic press in Turkey", Journal of Multicultural Discourses, Vol. 5
No 1, pp. 1-20.
Farhang, M. (2004), Earthquake: Misfortune, injustice, or the Will of God? Dissent, Vol. 51
No.2, pp.65-72,
Ghafory-Ashtiany, M. (2009), "View of Islam on earthquakes, human vitality and disaster",
Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 18 No 3, pp. 218-232.
Green, R.M. (1987), "Theodicy", in Eliade, M. (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Religion,
Macmillan, New York, Vol. 14, pp. 430-441.
23
Halvorson, S.J. (2010), "In the aftermath of the Qa’yamat: the Kashmir earthquake
disaster in northern Pakistan", Disasters, Vol. 34 No. 1, pp. 184-204.
Harris, D. (2012a), "The impact of cultural and religious influences during natural
disasters (volcano eruptions) Earthquake Report CATDAT EDIM", available at:
http://beforeitsnews.com/earthquakes/2012/09/the-impact-of-cultural-and-religiousinfluences-during-natural-disasters-volcano-eruptions-2445152.html (accessed 21
February 2013).
Harris, D. (2012b), "An analysis of cultural and religious responses during volcanic
disasters and their impact on risk management", M.Sc. Thesis, University College
London.
Harris, S.L. (2000), "Archaeology and volcanism", in Sigurdsson, H., Houghton, B., Mc
Nutt, S.R., Rymer, H. and Stix, J. (Eds.), The Encyclopedia of Volcanoes, Academic
Press, San Diego, California, pp. 1301-14.
Homan, J. (2001), "A culturally sensitive approach to risk? 'Natural' hazard perception in
Egypt and the UK", The Australian Journal of Emergency Management, Vol. 16 No. 2, pp.
14-18.
Homan, J. (2003), "The social construction of natural disaster", in Pelling, M. (Ed.),
Natural Disaster and development in a globalizing world, Routledge, London, pp. 140-156.
Hoodbhoy, P.A. (2007), "Science and the Islamic world - The quest for rapprochement",
Physics Today, August, pp. 49-55.
Islamic Relief Worldwide (2013), "Who we are /About us", available at:
http://www.islamic-relief.com/whoweare/Default.aspx?depID=2 (accessed 18 February
2013)
Javadian, R. (2007), "Social work responses to earthquake disasters", International
Social Work, Vol. 50 No. 3, pp. 334-346.
Khaleda, Atta. (1998), "Aid Relief Efforts Made by Afghans in America for Earthquake
Victims. Lemar-Aftaab April – June 1998 (vol. 1, issue 4)", available at:
http://www.afghanmagazine.com/april98/articles/quake.html (accessed 22 March 2011).
Kasapoğlu, A. and Ecevit, M. (2003), "Impact of the 1999 East Marmara earthquake in
Turkey", Population and Environment, Vol. 24 No. 4, pp. 339-358.
Keshishian, F. (1997), "Political bias and nonpolitical news: A content analysis of an
Armenian and Iranian earthquake in the New York Times and Washington Post", Critical
Studies in Mass Communications, Vol. 14, pp. 332-343.
24
Kölbl-Ebert, M. (2009), Geology and religion: a history of harmony and hostility,
Geological Society, Special Publication 310, London.
Lavigne, F., de Coster, B., Juvin, N., Flohic, F., Gaillard, J-C., Texier, P. and Sartohadi,
J. (2008), "People's behaviour in the face of volcanic hazards: Perspectives from Javanese
communities, Indonesia", Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, Vol. 172,
pp. 273-287.
Leibniz, G.W. (1952), Theodicy, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Leslie, J.D.L. (1986), "A building education programme in North Yemen", Disasters,
Vol, 10, pp. 163-170.
Mc Gregor, A. (2010), "Geographies of religion and development: rebuilding sacred
spaces in Aceh, Indonesia, after the tsunami", Environment and Planning, Vol. 42, pp.
729-746.
Merli, C. (2010), "Context-bound Islamic theodicies: The tsunami as supernatural
retribution vs. natural catastrophe in Southern Thailand", Religion, Vol. 40, pp. 104-111.
Merli, C. (2012), "Religion and disaster in anthropological research", in Kearnes, M. (Ed.),
Politics and Ethics, Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 43-58.
Morin, J., Coster, B., De, Paris, R., Lavigne, F., Flohic, F. and Le Foch, D. (2008),
"Tsumami-resilient communities’ development in Indonesia through educative actions",
Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 17 No. 3, pp. 430-446.
Muslim Hands (2013), "Emergency Relief: A Time for action", available at:
http://muslimhands.org.uk/our-work/emergencies/ (accessed 28 February 2013).
Őktem, K. (2010), "The natural, the political and the religious in the borderlands of Europe",
Journal of Multicultural Discourses, Vol. 5 No. 1, pp. 21-25.
Pannell, S. (1999), "Did the earth move for you? The social seismology of a natural
disaster in Maluku, Eastern Indonesia", The Australian Journal of Anthropology, Vol. 10
No. 2, pp. 129-143.
Paradise, T.R. (2006), "Perception of seismic risk in a Muslim City", The Journal of
North African Studies, Vol. 11 No. 3, pp. 243-262.
Pelling, M. and Dill, K. (2009), "Disaster politics: tipping points for change in the
adaption of socio-political regimes", Progress in Human Geography, Vol. 34 No. 1, pp.
21-37.
25
Piccardi, L. and Masse, W.B. (2007), Myth and Geology, Geological Society, Special
Publication 273, London.
Pinhey, L.A.G. (1938), Report of the Quetta Earthquakes of 31st May 1935, Government
of India Press, Delhi.
Schlehe, J. (1996), "Reinterpretation of mystical traditions - explanations of a volcanic
eruption in Java", Anthropos, Vol. 91, pp. 391-409.
Schlehe, J. (2008), "Cultural politics of natural disasters: Discourse on volcanic eruptions
in Indonesia", in Casimir, M.J. (Ed.), Culture and the Changing Environment, Berghahn
Books, New York, pp. 275-299.
Schlehe, J. (2010), "Anthropology of religion: Disasters and the representation of
tradition and modernity", Religion, Vol. 40, pp. 112-120.
Sigurdsson, H. (1999), Melting the Earth: The History of Ideas on Volcanic Eruptions,
Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Sigurdsson, H., Houghton, B., Mc Nutt, S.R., Rymer, H. and Stix, J. (2000),The
Encyclopedia of Volcanoes, Academic Press, San Diego, California.
Simkin, T. and Fiske, R.S. (1983), Krakatau 1883: the volcanic eruption and its effects,
Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Sobrino, J. (2004), Where is God: Earthquake, terrorism, barbarity and hope, Orbis Group,
New York.
Solihu, A. K. H. (2007), "Making sense of natural disasters: An Islamic hermeneutics of
malevolent phenomena in nature and its implication for sustainable development", The
American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, Vol. 24 No.1, pp. 46-72.
Steinberg, T. (2000), Acts of God: The Unnatural History of Natural Disasters in
America, Oxford University Press, New York.
Sugirtharajah, R.S. (2006), "Surfing the scriptures after the tsunami", Theology, Vol. 109,
pp. 323-333.
Sundradjar, A. and Tilling, R. (1984), “Volcanic hazards in Indonesia: The 1982 eruption of
Galunggung”, Episodes. Vol. 7 No. 2, pp 13-19.
Tanguy, J-C., Ribière, Ch., Scarth, A. and Tjetjep, W.S. (1998), "Victims from volcanic
eruptions: a revised database", Bulletin of Volcanology, Vol. 60 No. 2, pp. 137-144.
26
Van Bemmelen, R.W. (1949), The geology of Indonesia, Government Printing Office,
Vol. 1 A, The Hague.
Vitaliano, D.B. (1973), Legends of the Earth, Indiana University Press, Bloomington.
Wilder, A. (2010), “Aid and stability in Pakistan: Lessons from the 2005 earthquake
response”, Disasters, Vol. 34 No. S3, pp. S406-S426.
Winchester, S. (2003), Krakatoa: The day the world exploded, London, Penguin.
Woodward, M. (2010), "Indonesia: As volcano erupts, a spiritual loss. Religion Dispatches
Nov. 10 2010", available at
http://www.religiondispatches.org/archive/atheologies/3717/indonesia%3A_as_volcano_eru
pts,_a_spiritual_loss (accessed 15 January 2013).
Table 1
Earthquakes
Volcanic Eruptions
Krakatau (Sunda Straits, Indonesia)
1883 (Simkin and Fiske, 1983;
Sugirtharajah, 2006;Winchester, 2005;
Schlehe, 2008)
Istanbul (Turkey) 1894 (Bein, 2008)
Kelud (Java, Indonesia) 1919 (Anon,
1919; Van Bemmelen, 1949)
Morocco 1915 (Anon, 1915)
Merapi (Java, Indonesia) 1930 (Van
Bemmelen, 1949)
Ashgabat (Turkmenistan) 1948 (Anon,
2011)
Lebanon 1956 (Anon, 1956)
Agadir (Morocco) 1960 (Paradise, 2006)
Turkey 1975 (Anon, 1975)
Western Arabian Peninsula 1982 (Anon,
1982)
Western Iran 1990 (Ali Badri et al., 2006;
Keshishian, 1997)
Cairo (Eqypt) 1992 (Anon, 1992; Homan,
2001, 2003; Degg and Homan, 2005)
Kelud (Java, Indonesia) 1966 (Schlehe,
1996)
Nila (Banda Strait, Indonesia 1968
(Pannell, 1999).
Galunggung (Java, Indonesia) 1982
(Sundradjar and Tilling, 1984)
Kelut (Java, Indonesia) 1990 (Schlehe,
1996)
27
Merapi (Java, Indonesia) 1994 (Schlehe,
1996, 2008)
Hindu Kush (Afghanistan) 1998 (Khaleda,
1998)
East Marmara (Turkey), 1999
(Kasapoğlu and Ecevit, 2003; Pelling and
Dill, 2009)
Hindu Kush (Afghanistan) 2002 (Anon,
2002)
Bam (Iran) 2003 (Javadian, 2007)
Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami
2004 (Sumatra - Indonesia and affecting
many other countries (Morin et al., 2008;
Mc Gregor, 2010)
Pakistan 2005 (Halvorson, 2010; Wilder,
2010; Cheema, 2012)
Java (Indonesia) 2006 (Schlehe, 2010)
Merapi (Java, Indonesia) 2006 (Donovan,
2010, Donovan and Suharyanto, 2011)
Sumatra (Indonesia) 2009 (Anon, 2009)
Merapi (Java, Indonesia) 2010
(Woodward, 2010)
Table 2
Concept
Submission to the divine, belief and faith should result in 'good
deeds'. Acceptance of disasters must be accompanied by good
deeds.
The Qur'an is capable of multi-dimensional interpretations. 'The
simple and literal text of verses, which are written at the level of
common human cognizance, can unfold multiple meanings and
can exemplify features that can be read by human beings with
different levels of knowledge'.
Human being should live with knowledge and understanding, one
of the objectives of Islam being the rule of the wise and the
conversion of ignorance into knowledge and wisdom.
A high value should be attached to group work, social
responsibility and co-operation 'giving full consideration to
others'.
At birth humans are ignorant, but the ability to grow and gain
success and well-being. Improvement is encouraged by Islam.
Qur'anic Reference
Sura 31: 22
Sura 16:89
Sura 4:59 and 30: 9
Sura 42: 38
28
Without hard work perfection and God's goodwill cannot be
achieved.
People are given free will by God and the ability to distinguish
good from bad. 'Taking the path of safety is a human choice and
requires appropriate actions' (Ghafory-Ashtiany, 2009, p. 222).
Humans do not have the right to harm themselves or other people.
Causing harm or making people vulnerable is an 'unforgivable
sin, unless the person who has been harmed forgives the action'
(Ghafory-Ashtiany, 2009, p. 222).
Human rights are important.
People are encouraged to do good works and are forbidden to do
wrong.
Ignoring God's guidance is sinful and this includes ignoring fact
and knowledge and being negligent.
Sura 3: 104