Abstract
The chapter focuses on Al-Ḥājj Salim Suwari, an icon in West Africa’s Islamic history. In the Mande world, oral sources stress a legacy blending his pilgrimage to Mecca with his call for peaceful cohabitation between Muslims and their neighbors of different creeds. This chapter offers a close reading of the available evidence, generating new perspectives on an outstanding scholar credited with founding Muslim communities based on outstanding Islamic knowledge, political autonomy, and pacifism, among other things. By focusing on the analysis of Jakhanke records and cultural practices, the chapter provides an overview of religious leadership in African societies where mobility played a fundamental role.
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Diallo Lélouma, A.M. (2020). Religious Leadership and Mobility: Revisiting the Legacy of Al-Ḥājj Salim Suwari. In: Ngom, F., Kurfi, M.H., Falola, T. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Islam in Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45759-4_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45759-4_3
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