Peter the Venerable
An Axiological Analysis of His Polemics against the Prophet Muḥammad
Abstract
Polemics against Islam, the Qur’ān and the Prophet Muḥammad (peace be on him) are not new in the realm of literature. Nonetheless, the artefacts produced by Peter the Venerable (1092-1156 CE) were seminal and had lasting effects on the perceptions of Islam in the West. His work has been considered prophetic and the line of arguments he developed continued to find space in contemporary Islamophobic literature. His work included translation of the Qur’ān in Latin with the help of his associates and annotations by himself; besides al Kindy, Summa, and Contra, to name a few. This paper analyzes the polemics produced by Peter the Venerable against the Prophet Muḥammad in the twelfth century CE. This analysis encompasses three main dimensions i.e., exploring axiological connections of the polemicist with his chosen area for creating literary artefacts, linguistic techniques and metaphors used, and areas of the personality of the Prophet aimed in the polemics. Further, six main areas of the life of the Prophet have been identified and analyzed, which included polemics against the person of the Prophet; polemics against his family and friends; polemics against his actions; polemics against his regional affiliation; polemics against his prophethood; and the polemics to prove the Prophet a personification of Satan. The paper concludes that the continuation of negativities in such an organized fashion against Islam and the Prophet has transformed Islamophobia into neo-Islamophobia, wherein a socio-cultural and political order seems to have been prevailing in the West.
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