Four People of The Book: From Foreign Jewish Roots to South Asian Islamic Roles

The title is a reference to the shared heritage of Muslims, Jews, and Christians. It is a recognition not just of shared respect for written scriptures but for the shared spiritual devotion to what the three faith traditions regard as the single divine source of all existence. Each of the four persons treated in this book traversed and shaped that shared tradition in different ways. This book explores the lives of foreigners of Jewish descent who moved to South Asia, where they became important figures in Indian and Pakistani Islamic history. Three became Muslims and the fourth was a lifelong defender of Islam. Sarmad (died 1660), Gottlieb Leitner (1840–99), Muhammad Asad (1900–92), and Maryam Jameelah (1934–2012) were born into Jewish families in Kashan (Persia), Budapest, Lemberg (Austro-Hungarian Empire), and Westchester (New York), respectively. However, they did not practice the Jewish religion, function within any Jewish communal setting, interact with Jewish communities in South Asia, or promote any particularly Jewish agenda. Each biographical chapter has been written to present an independent study of that person rather than being shaped by any underlying narrative or need to appeal to any particular audience. This was done because the beliefs, lifestyles, and practices of all four were so dissimilar. Across the globe, Jews who converted to other religions, left their connections to Jewish communities or assimilated into local society have contributed so much and in so many ways to the world. The number of foreigners with some Jewish familial roots coming to South Asia has been very small, but their achievements have been influential.