Conclusion

Abstract

A book titled Islam in an Era of Nation-States: Politics and Religious Renewal in Muslim Southeast Asia was published in 1997. Its editors rightly suggested that the Islamic resurgence in Southeast Asia bears the imprint of the modern nation-state (Hefner and Horvatich 1997, p. 10). However, it is clear that globalization has deepened more than ever since then. Transnational, trans-regional and global changes and dynamism should be taken into account in order to capture the dynamism of Muslims in Southeast Asia. As stated in the Introduction, globalization does not simply bring about homogenization but often causes nationalization and localization. The ways in which states in Southeast Asia seem to consolidate and historical and institutional differences among nation-states cause different effects and responses. Islamic political movements that were originally the same, such as the Muslim Brotherhood, are located on very different political maps in Malaysia and Indonesia. At the same time, although processes of globalization are localized in national or sub-national settings, they are still oriented towards global agendas and systems (Sassen 2006, p. 3). Phenomena such as trans-regional and global changes in Islamic learning and religious practices are vitally important to observe the dynamics of politics and society in Southeast Asia.