PERTANIKA JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES

This study examines the use of religious metaphor in Malaysian political speeches delivered in response to the unprecedented 1997-1999 financial Asian crisis, which originated in Thailand and spread to other Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia. It focuses on how religious metaphors were used to criticise the dogmatic commitment of free market proponents who promoted market liberalism as the sole solution to the crisis, thereby advancing the view that market forces should be balanced by social protection. The data was drawn from thirty-nine political speeches delivered in 2000 by Mahathir Mohamad, former Prime Minister of Malaysia. The study aims to identify the types of religious metaphors selected for inclusion in his speeches and examine how they were used to represent fanaticism among those supporting free-market ideology, taking into account the socio-political context of the speeches and Mahathir’s religious beliefs. The analysis draws on Charteris-Black’s approach to political rhetoric and Fairclough’s (2003) textually oriented discourse analysis. Five speeches were selected for close analysis to illustrate how religious metaphors were used to represent the doctrine of the free market as a “quasi-religion”, characterised by dogmatism and resistance to alternative perspectives. The findings show that religious metaphors enabled Mahathir to present a vision of economic independence for Malaysia, while framing his opposition to free-market capitalism within a morally resonant narrative. The study demonstrates how religious metaphor functions as a powerful rhetorical and ideological resource in political discourse, particularly in times of crisis, contributing to critical debates on metaphor, ideology and resistance in political communication.