Adhering to the Ways of Our Western Brothers

Abstract

This paper attempts to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between Saudi Arabia and Chinese Salafism. The paper traces, on the basis of a historical approach, the ways in which Wahhabi influences – doctrinal, ritual, and financial - have been transmitted into China since the late 19th century. It focuses specifically on the channels that had emerged following the 1970s and which have facilitated the spread of these influences including the Hajj, the impact of the Saudi-Chinese diaspora, the work of Saudi organizations and preachers operating within China, and study opportunities in the Kingdom. The paper argues that these influences have led to the strengthening of Salafisation tendencies within Muslim Chinese society on the one hand, and intensifying fragmentary pressures within Chinese Salafism on the other.