Al-Afghani Lives

Jamal ad-Din al-Afghani was a late nineteenth century Persian intellectual, widely remembered as an advocate of Pan-Islamism, Islamic Modernism, and as a great opponent of Western Imperialism. He agitated from India to Egypt to Russia to Qajar Iran to the Ottoman Empire for unity and opposition to imperialism. Raised a Shia, he didn't place a particular emphasis on theology. His pamphlets are linked to the Tobacco Revolt in Iran, which proved the weakness of the Shah, that Europe was not invincible, and set the stage for further resistance. Only in his late fifties, he died in 1897 of cancer under house arrest in Istanbul.

So say he never developed cancer, or else lasted longer. How might he affect further developments, both ideological and concrete, in the Muslim world? He reserved a particular deal of animosity for the British and the Qajars. What role might he play in an alt-Constitutional Revolution in Iran?
 
I love the idea of a more defiant early Iran, perhaps early Iranian revolution, leading to sweeping reforms and perhaps becoming a true power. Perhaps they would then participate in WW1 if that was the case, although idk what side they would choose. However I doubt him living longer would lead to a "United Islam"as such a thing has never been done, and things are getting more and more complicated the older Al-Afghani gets.

Let me explain, in 1405 Timur the great died on his way to China to reinstate the Yuan dynasty fulfilling his dream of a rebuilt Mongol Empire. His death led to the complete fracturing and weakening of his empire with the rise of the Qara Qoyunlyu and their capture of Baghdad. This event set the stage for the rise of the Safaviyya, led by Shah Ismail. Originally a Sufi order, upon Ismail's leadership, it became a political power and more importantly adopted the radical ideals of Twelver Islam. Ismail then conquered Iran and with it he instituted a ritual cursing of the first two caliphs and A'isha. As well he forcibly converted Iran to Twelver Islam. This combined with the calls from Sunni in northern Iraq caused the Ottomans to wage war after war against the Safavids.

The events with the Twelvers polarized an already separated Ummah, this would get worse however when the Salafi come out of the Najd taking Mecca and Medinah, and unlike Sunni before them, they do not brand Twelvers different from other Shia and say that all Shia sects are Kaffir. Thus things get even more polarized with the Salafi seperating the camps into two groups, Sunni or Shia.

So I think that Al-Afghani if lived longer could possibly lead to a modernized Iran but with it's same Twelver ideals, but this time looking towards improvement and at pushing out the foreigner (Europeans).
 
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