164- The Qur’an on Education --- the Madrassas --- and What Went Wrong? (Series: Inviting Reflections).

One of the largest “NGOs” of the world: Madrassas (Muslim Religious Educational Institutions) are being maligned today that they are producing ‘fundamentalists” and “terrorists” in Pakistan. More than 20,000 madrassas cater to the needs of around 2 million students, providing them with the books, food and shelter without getting any financial support from the government. God-fearing and noble citizens support these institutions in order to be recompensed in the hereafter. Government has no control over syllabus or courses of reading, administration, appointment of teachers and over spending the public money collected in the name of Allah and His Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, in these religious institutions. Let us discuss about the importance of education in Islamic culture; and, the history of these institutions in Indo-Pak Sub Continent, in a brief way, before giving recommendations in order to make these institutions commensurating with the needs of the day.  

The first revelation revealed unto the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, reads:

"??????? ??????? ??????? ??????? ??????" (Read in the name of your Lord and Cherisher, Who created); and: "??????? ??????? ???????????" (He Who taught (the use of) the pen). Surah: 96, Verses: 1 and 4.

The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, in one of his famous sayings, emphasized:

."?????????? ?????????? ????? ????? ????????"

(Acquisition of “ilm” (knowledge) is mandatory for every (male and female) Muslim). The term “ ‘ilm ” encompasses knowledge of the phenomena, be it theoretical or practical; or of physical or metaphysical entities; or the higher values; the worldly affairs; and, the rituals in worshiping Allah Almighty.

The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, in his last sermon at Hajj, in Makkah al-Mukarramah, ordained the believers, who were there to perform Hajj:

."????????? ?????? ?? ???? ????"

(If you know even one ayah [one verse from the Qur’an regarding anything], convey it (on my behalf) to others, who do not know it). Sahih al-Bukhari: Hadith 3461.

In the same address Muhammad, peace be upon him, further ordained the Sahaba (the companions) RA:

."???????????? ????????? ??????????"

(All those who are present here, it is made mandatory for them, to convey (what they have learned) to those, who are not here and absent).

The Holy Qur’an, addressing Muhammad, peace be upon him, in an exalted way, mentions the knowledgeable in comparison with an ignorant:

.“???? ???? ????????? ??????????? ???????????? ? ??????? ??????????????”

(O Muhammad! Say: “Can the blind be held equal to the seeing?”. [O people!] Will you not think)? Surah 6: Verse 50.

 Allah further said:

.“???? ???? ????????? ????????? ???????????  ??????????? ??? ???????????"

(O Muhammad! Say: “Are those equal, those who know and those who do not know?”) Surah 39; Verse 9.

Now it is the duty of every literate Muslim to educate the uneducated as ordained by the Prophet, peace be upon him.

What Went Wrong?

The believers have been commanded to ponder upon the creation of the universe and their own selves, but we, after a few centuries of the advent of Islam abandoned research and were engaged in trivialities and useless academic discourses. Though Allah had warned us but we never paid any heed to it. A verse of the Qur’an reads:

."??????????? ????????? ??? ????????? ????? ??????????? ??????? ??????????? ?????? ??????? ?????????"

(Soon We (Allah) will show them Our proofs on the horizons, and in their very souls, until it becomes clear to them that it is the truth). Surah: 41, Verse: 53.

If the Muslim Ummah had understood Qur’an’s message, then they could have been the leaders in technology, healthcare and social sciences. Unfortunately, we were led astray by trivialities of life; and, some ignorant clergy equated acquisition of scientific knowledge and technological excellence with a “worldly affair”. For such people there is a clear message, and that is: Any pursuit of knowledge and time spent while pondering over the creation of the universe and its working is valuable to Allah, as it is described in the Qur’an many times. One example from such verses is as follows:

????? ??? ?????? ????????????? ??????????? ???????????? ????????? ???????????? ???????? ????????? ???????????? ? ????????? ??????????? ??????? ???????? ?????????? ???????? ??????????? ???????????????? ??? ?????? ????????????? ??????????? ???????? ??? ???????? ?????? ???????? ??????????? ??????? ??????? ???????

(In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, are signs for people of understanding. Those who remember Allah while standing, and sitting, and on their sides; and they reflect upon the creation of the heavens and the earth. [And say:] "Our Lord, You did not create this in vain, glory to You, so protect us from the punishment of the Fire). Surah: 3, Verses: 190-191.

Dear readers! The ability to inquire and question is what differentiates us from the animals. There is no path more righteous than a constant struggle for truth. If anyone believes that questioning would shake foundations of their faith then they are no different from those who contested the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, with the contention and plea that how they could leave religion and practices of their  forefathers. Though there are many verses on the above, I quote here just one of them. The Qur’anic verse reads:

."?????? ????????? ????????? ?????? ??????? ???????? ?????? ????????? ????????????" 

[They say to Muhammad:] “We found our fathers following a certain religion, and we will certainly follow in their footsteps”). Surah: 43, Verse: 23.

Dear readers! Before abandoning research, the Ummah was leading the world in all genres and fields of knowledge. I, just, give one example that in the middle ages the Muslims’ contribution to various fields of knowledge was tremendous. It was Abu al-Barakat ‘Abdullah bin Ahmad al-Nasafi  d. 1310 CE, a polymath and a scholastic leader of the century, had explained the Properties of Matter, though not in a text book of physics but in a discourse of theology and ‘Ilm al-Kalam---while discussing the Dimensions (?????????  ) and while discussing the Eternal and the Created (?????? ? ??????); and in his celebrated book: ???????  (The Beliefs) defines: "????????? ?? ?????????" (the Indivisible and Tiniest Particle of the Matter) i.e. an Atom, in the following way:

."??????? ????? ?? ???????? ???????????? ????? ?? ?? ??????? ?? ?? ???????? ? ?????? ???????? ?? ?????????"

( A Particle of Matter which is not further divisible conceptually; nor practically; and, not [even] hypothetically, is called: “The [tiniest] Indivisible Particle of Matter”). This was the latest research seven centuries before done by Muslims and it was upheld even up till first quarter of the twentieth century.

The most interesting and painful aspect of the episode is that the above book and a commentary on it, entitled: ??? ????? ?????? by Sa’ad ud Din al-Taftazani is still part of the curricula and the courses of reading in our religious institutions and is being taught in all madrassas of the Sub Continent. No government has ever thought about revising the syllabus of these institutions. It is known that the syllabus and curriculum is an on-going process which needs revision from time to time except those commandments, axioms and beliefs which have been explained and determined by the Eternal Code (Al-Qur’an al-Karim and Al-Hadith) i.e: "????????? ???????????" (Religious Texts/Phrases).

Dear readers! In Islamic history there has been no distinction between religious and worldly education. In the Sub-Continent, after the Fall of Mughal Empire, the British Colonial Rulers did not close the Madrassas, instead they confiscated the “Jageers” (big land holdings) associated with those academic institutions as “Trusts”, leaving them without financial support. Only in Bengal there were 80,000 Madrassas, each with a capacity of 400 students; and, ? land of Bengal was under control of these Madrassas as associated Trusts, which was confiscated under pretext of genuine ownership of the relevant madrassas. (See for details, Maj. B. D. Basu: Rise of The Christian Power in India, Calcutta, 1931). It is known that in 1844 CE, The East India Company’s Governor-General of India, Lord Henry Hardinge (1844-1848) issued an order that only those who knew English could join a government job in the controlled areas. Resultantly the curriculum and courses of reading in Madrassas squeezed (for non-availability of financial resources) and confined to the teaching of Rituals only. The Colonial Rulers introduced a parallel System of Education with new Medium of Instruction and the Arabic and Persian were replaced by the English language. The new system certainly had its own merits along with a list of demerits which resulted in the Loss of Identity, production of an Elite Class with the Western World View and a big group of Functionaries that could work for the agenda of Colonial Rulers.

The Rate of Literacy at the time of Fall of Mughal Empire was very high among Muslim communities in the Sub-Continent. The Change in the Medium of Instruction and the introduction of new educational system dis-educated a vast majority of Muslims. In our history the academic institutions of the Sub-Continent were imparting useful education of their time. In academic centers like one established in Farangi Mahal by ‘Allama Nizam ud Din Sehalvi (d. 1749 CE) and Jami’a Rahimiyyah by Shah Waliullah Dehlawi (d.1762 CE) used to impart comprehensive information about life, including: engineering, medical science, mathematics, geometry, algebra etc., in addition to religious disciplines like Tafsir, Hadith, Fiqh, Arabic and Persian languages and literature. It will be interesting to note that the religious educational system in the Sub-Continent: “Dars-e-Nizami” has been so named after ‘Allama Nizam ud Din Sihalvi.

Present Status:

There is no central body or organization, established by the government, to control and monitor the religious education in the country. Therefore in all institutions of religious education in Pakistan, only the rituals and ‘Ibadat  (??????); or the peculiarities of the Masalik (Religious Factions) are being taught---which in turn are promoting sectarianism. Some madrassas, however, have taken some ornamental measures, by installing computer labs and internet to show that they are imparting education which is the need of the day. No courses on hard or soft sciences and humanities have been added to the courses of reading in any madrassa. Nevertheless, some madrassas which have established Computer Labs, they are using this technology to propagate their peculiarities and  specific religious philosophy focusing on introduction of their stance at international level. Resultantly, the sectarianism has crossed the boundries of Pakistan and our ‘Ulema (religious scholars) have established their own madrassas, propagating sectarianism and their “masalik”, on the both sides of Atlantic. 

The Holy Qur’an is not a book of history or science but it provides highly significant guidance. At least every fifth verse reminds man of the natural phenomenon which is taking place around him. Some verses of the Qur’an pertain to the biological, physiological data and re-production which establish the divine character of the Holy Book and show that this information given 1450 years ago cannot be a creation of the human mind. It is obvious that such verses cannot be understood if one does not know the elements of basic natural sciences. Business studies, Commerce, Social Work, Sociology, Psychology, Literature, Linguistics, Comparative Study of Religions and other genres are not catered to in these religious institutions as if they are still in medieval centuries. There is no exaggeration if I say that the note able scholars of all religious factions (masalik) condemn sectarianism but their “narratives” are based on keeping the identity of their “maslik” different from the identity of other factions. The intelligentia, government and the people on the helm of affairs in Pakistan should take immediate notice of the present scenario in religious education before it is too late. 

Recommendations: 

Being an alumnus of both religious institutions and general universities, may I suggest some measures to bring Madrassa Education to the main stream, particularly in Pakistan.

1-   Uniform School System (for all students), both in government and private schools, should be introduced with Arabic language as a compulsory subject.

2-   Education up till Secondary level should be made compulsory for all, including Madrassa students.

3-   Medium of Instruction should be the National Language: Urdu. The compulsory subject of Arabic language will also enrich and facilitate studies in the Urdu language. However, any institution that  wants to include one international language like English or some other language, should be allowed to do so.

4-   After Twelve years’ education, in Madrassas, the students who want to pursue higher education for a degree program in General Religious Studies; or for specialization in religious studies in any of the fields like: Tafsir, Hadith, Fiqh, Tasawwuf , Islamic History, Comparative Study of Religions, etc. should be enrolled.

5- If Government of Pakistan, after necessary legislation and consulting stake holders of religious factions, may keep the tier: “Dars e Nizami” intact, but after revising their syllabus and courses of reading, enabling it to have the capacity to produce the religious scholars, who could offer the solutions of day to day problems in the light of Qur’an and Sunnah. 

6-   Madrassas should also be allowed to arrange instruction for Nazira and Hifz e Qur’an Programs. However, for Higher Studies, after twelve year education, Madrassas be allowed to enroll students. The accreditation of all such programmes should be conducted by the bodies appointed under law.

7-   The Government should institute some Autonomous Commission or Board to regulate Madrassa Education; to devise syllabus and courses of reading for all programmes in religious education; rules and critaria for selection of teachers; and, to conduct their examinations and evaluation of their researches.

8-  Before award of higher degrees in religious education, the Publication of Research Papers in internationally recognized Research Journals should be made mandatory, atleast for the M.Phil and Ph.D students.

Dear readers! More than 20,000 madrassas of Pakistan (with two million students atleast) is one of the largest NGOs of the world which can play a vital role in building a cohesive and tolerant society, if administered properly, after necessary legislation, in a progressive way---away from sectarian and hatred driven feelings.