Islam in Southeast Asia: An Appealing Social Message

From 632-750 C.E., following Muhammad’s death, Islam was able to spread throughout Southeast Asia until it was a dominant religion in the area.  Why was Islam able to flourish across Southeast Asia, a territory already rich in religious culture, in a relatively short amount of time? The first main reason is straightforward, military conquests. The second answer to this question gives some insight into which characteristic of Islam was most appealing to followers during the time period. I believe that Islam offered the promise of egalitarian societies, which other religions lacked, and therefore attracted followers.

The first reason for the spread of Islam in South Asia, military conquest, was possible because of geographic proximity. From the 7^th to 8^th centuries, Islam expanded from present day Saudi Arabia to Egypt and eastward to the Sasanian Empire (present day Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan). Muslims promoted their beliefs in these newly claimed areas. Under a central command, the Muslim empire could conquer a vast amount of land because it could “mobilize the military potential of the entire Arab population.” Overtime, many Hindus and Buddhists in northern India chose to convert to Islam, the religion of their conquerors. With battles won against the Byzantine and Sasanian Empire, Islam became a dominant religion in the course of around a century.

Yet I would argue that the idea of shared geography is not enough to convert people whose families have followed certain beliefs for decades. There had to be something especially attractive about Islamic values or beliefs that gave individuals the incentive to join the religion.   This incentive was Islam’s promotion of an egalitarian society. Hinduism and Buddhism, two dominant religions in South Asia at the time, were not structured with the same sense of equality between all individuals like Islam was. Hindus in India were organized in a social hierarchy called the caste system.  The individuals lowest on the caste system were never given an opportunity to rise out of the poverty and hardship that they were born into. Therefore, the idea of an egalitarian society was especially appealing. Even before their military conquests, Muslim merchants and traders were able to convert local Hindus in Southeast Asia because Islam promoted an equal society. At the time, an equal society was an attractive idea to those who had no hope for material improvement. 

Similarly to the conversion of Hindus, Buddhists began converting to Islam in large numbers in around 1174 C.E. The same significant reason for these conversions was the desire to live in an equal society rather than in a culture where monks were benefiting from Buddhism more than everyone else. At the time, monks were profiting from life in the monasteries. Islamic ideals of an equal society were attractive to Buddhists who were fed up with the monks’ power.

Islamic ideas and beliefs spread throughout South Asia in a short amount of time due to the Muslim conquer of land as well as the appealing Islamic value of an equal society.  This suggests that the spread of religion can often depend on an appealing social message. Many Buddhists and Hindus ended up converting to Islam because Islam gave them the opportunity to live in an environment where they could be content with their position in society.