Russia's Muslim heartlands

A unique aspect of Russia's post-Soviet development has been its ongoing religious revival. During the Soviet era, religion was viewed as contrary to communist ideology and, post-1991, many Russians have actively sought out religion. It is often overlooked that the country is home to around 15 million Muslims, with Islam being the second largest religion (after Orthodox Christianity) and that Moscow is one of Europe's largest Muslim cities. However, when Islam is discussed across the post-Soviet space, it tends to be viewed through a state-centric security lens, which focuses on the ongoing Islamist insurgency in the North Caucasus or the threat from extremism. This book dispels the common myth of Russian Islam as a hotbed of radicalism and extremism, depicting a wide-ranging tolerance both within the country's diverse Muslim communities, and between them and Russia's other religious groups. Based on a series of interviews with Muslims from across Russia and central Asia over a three-year period, the book sheds light on the multiple Muslim identities that exist across the post-Soviet space. Individuals and the different ways they define and identify with Islam in Russia are the principal focus of the book. Rubin presents a very wide range of views and explores the diversity, pluralism and contradiction within Russia's Muslim communities

Christianity · Communism · Ideology · Islam · Mythology · Pluralism (philosophy · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Economic Sanctions and International Relations · Gender Studies · History · Korean Peninsula Historical and Political Studies · Law · Religious studies · Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence · Religious Studies