Abstract
This chapter discusses the relationship between economics and religion on the basis of a Turkish film, A Man’s Fear of God, which polarizes pure belief and organized religion through the story of an ascetic who is presented as the true representative of ‘authentic Islam’. The chapter discusses how the religious order in the film disguises politics as theology and economics as service to God. In doing so, it shows how economics manifests itself as the articulation of sovereignty and governmentality. It also shows how organized religion conceives of divine life as an economic/governmental vocation by focusing on the different meanings of economics: as subsistence, accumulation and investment; as a mediator between the profane and the divine; and as an activity disguised as service to the lodge.
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Notes
- 1.
Director: Özer Kızıltan, Production: 2006, Release: 2006, Festival Screenings (and Awards): 2006—Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival (Best Actor, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Music, Best Screenplay, Lab Competition, Make-Up, Special Jury Award); Toronto International Film Festival (Innovation Award); 2007—Asia Pacific Screen Awards (Best Actor and nominations for Best Feature Film, Best Screenplay); Berlin International Film Festival (FIPRESCI Prize); Geneva Film Festival (Best Actor); İstanbul International Film Festival (Best Film); Nuremberg ‘Turkey–Germany’ Film Festival (Best Actor); Sarajevo ‘Heart of Sarajevo’ Film Festival (Best Picture, Jury Prize for Best Film); Tallinn ‘Black Nights’ Film Festival (EurAsia Grand Prix).
- 2.
Seclusion is the practice of isolating oneself in the interest of cultivating spiritual discipline.
- 3.
Henna is used in a traditional wedding ritual in Turkey. The bride’s palms are coloured to symbolize her transition from girl to woman, reinforcing the religious principle that women should engage in sexual activity only with their husbands. In this context, hennaed hands often indicate that a woman has recently married.
- 4.
Interview with Önder Kızıltan: http://filmpressplus.com/wp-content/uploads/dl_docs/TAKVA-Notes.pdf.
- 5.
See the interview: http://filmpressplus.com/wp-content/uploads/dl_docs/TAKVA-Notes.pdf.
- 6.
Sufi theosophy includes elements of Neoplatonism and Gnosticism .
- 7.
İbn Arabi certifies the authenticity of this hadith. See: http://www.ibnarabisociety.org/articles/addas1.html.
- 8.
From the interview with Önder Kızıltan. http://filmpressplus.com/wp-content/uploads/dl_docs/TAKVA-Notes.pdf.
- 9.
It should be noted that a law of 1925 abolished the assignment of religious terms such as sheikh , dervish and disciple and closed down Turkey’s dervish lodges. Management of the tombs of religious figures was transferred to the Ministry of Culture.
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Thwaites Diken, E. (2018). A Man’s Fear of God (Takva). In: The Spectacle of Politics and Religion in the Contemporary Turkish Cinema. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71700-5_3
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