Globalising female Muslim piety: Transnational Qubaysiyyat networks. (English)

The Qubaysiyyat movement was founded in Damascus by Mounira Al-Qubaysi in the 1960s, as a unique religious group to which only women are able to adhere. Although disengaged from direct involvement in politics, its influence resulted from the recruiting of women within the top strata of Syrian society. This study explores the intellectual foundations of the movement, its interaction with society, other religious groups, and the Syrian regime, and its expansion to create a network of branches in other countries, including in Europe since the start of the revolution. The study reveals how this expansion has changed relations between the branches and the Centre in Damascus, and how branches have adapted their practices, to reflect the cultures of the countries in which they have been established. It also demonstrates the continued resilience and adaptability of the movement as a whole, fueled by its expansion, albeit with a resulting weakening in the influence of, and ties to, the Centre in Damascus, from which some of the movement’s leading figures have disappeared.