Why the Brotherhood despises intellectuals: A reading into al-Banna’s cultural inferiority

Mohamed Abul Enein

The Muslim Brotherhood, which was founded in 1928, has been known for hate and hostility to the well-learned elite. The Brotherhood’s members used to expel any other fellow members, who are intellectuals, and considered them an imminent hazard that should be eliminated.

The Brotherhood’s members would tarnish the intellectuals’ reputation in a bid to keep the people away from them. Moreover, they may assassinate them, if they thought these intellectuals would expose their falsity and their Masonic schemes.

The Brotherhood’s enmity towards the well-learned elite has roots dating back to the psychological nature of the founder’s personality. Moreover, the exclusion of intellectuals ensures the implementation of their schemes.

Hassan al-Banna (1906-1949), who was never known for any intellectual abilities, was a low-level student. Al-Banna had no intellectual skills all over his life. He was infected by what can be labeled as “cultural inferiority” syndrome.

Cultural inferiority

Al Banna’s cultural inferiority was a characteristic all over his life. He used to make friends with only those who were inferior to him on the intellectual level.

Undoubtedly, al-Banna, when he founded the Muslim Brotherhood, was gripped by this cultural inferiority. However, we cannot say he founded the Brotherhood due to psychological motives alone, but this aspect sheds light on the personality of this terrorist, who planted terrorism that has claimed the lives of millions of innocent people across the world.

Al-Banna consecrated obedience as a fundamental principle on which the main structure of the Brotherhood was based. He sought two targets: absolute obedience of his followers and the well-learned elite would keep away from his group.

Absolute obedience

Salah Fadl, professor of literary criticism and member of the Supreme Council of Culture, says that the core of the group’s hostility to any intellectual emanates from the fact that the Brotherhood is an organization of suspicious schemes.  Therefore, absolute obedience and loyalty are the core of the Brotherhood’s organizational structure.

Professor Fadl points out that any intellectual would be a thinker, creative and innovative, and consequently would keep away from joining the Brotherhood.

Moreover, professor Fadl says that the Brotherhood’s attempts to appear lovers of culture are false, citing their hostility to the well-learned elite and intellectuals in general.

For instance, Fadl said the Brotherhood launched a war on late intellectual Taha Hussein, dubbed Dean of the Arabic Literature, when the organization seized power. Fadl added that the Brotherhood couldn’t do that before.

Sameh Eid, a dissident from the Brotherhood and an Islamic researcher, said: “The Brotherhood despises the well-learned elite and seeks to get rid of any intellectual”.

Moreover, Eid says that the Brotherhood’s leaders are afraid of any intellectual debate.

As for the ways used by the Brotherhood to get rid of intellectuals, Fadl says that the organization seeks a policy of violence, murder and bloodshed, especially if the well-learned educated person is a heavyweight.

However, Eid says that the Brotherhood has never been involved directly in the elimination of intellectuals. However, it drew on another trick to enable them to reach the same purpose without appearing in the picture, according to Eid.

The trick was to incite to kill via what is known as “intellectual violation” against any intellectual, by accusing him of apostasy and infidelity. That would drive other parties, especially the jihadi Salafists, to kill him like what happened  to late intellectual  Farag Fouda, according to Eid.