Bastions of The Believers by Yoginder Sikand

Author:Yoginder Sikand [Sikand, Yoginder]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2005-08-24T00:00:00+00:00

Madrasa Reform and the Worldly Prospects of the ‘Ulama

Advocates of reform see the present syllabus used in most South Asian madrasas, generally some variant of the dars-i nizami, as stagnant and in many respects no longer in tune with the demands of the times. While it is recognized that the dars-i nizami did indeed produce its share of brilliant scholars in the past, it is stressed that it was a product of a particular society, suited to the particular social and administrative needs of its time. Now that social conditions have changed drastically and human knowledge has expanded, the madrasa curriculum must correspondingly change in order that madrasas can provide a ‘useful’ and ‘relevant’ education.30 This is regarded as particularly important for the future economic prospects of madrasa students.

This notion of ‘useful’ knowledge is itself novel, and one that can be traced to colonial discourse about what constituted appropriate learning. The classical ‘ulama insisted, as many traditionalist ‘ulama indeed still do, on the central importance of ‘pure intention’ (sahih niyyat) in the acquisition of knowledge. The quest for knowledge was, ideally, seen as being motivated simply to acquire God’s favour, and students were sternly warned against any base or worldly motives. Knowledge, it was said, was a divine gift to be used only to do God’s will, and not for worldly advancement. Yet, today, numerous Muslim scholars, including even some traditionalist ‘ulama, are arguing precisely for the need for madrasas to seriously consider the worldly prospects of their students and to take these into account in framing their curricula.

The ‘useful’ knowledge that is sought to be included in the madrasa curriculum is variously described by different advocates of reform. Generally, it includes the basics of modern natural and physical sciences, as well as Hindi and English.

Often the need to include these subjects is justified as being in accordance with the classical notion of ‘pure intention’, and not motivated by worldly concerns on the part of the ‘ulama. It is sometimes expressed as a means to help salvage the sagging prestige of the ‘ulama and reinforce their moral authority. For instance, a Deobandi graduate writes that since the ‘ulama lack a knowledge of basic Hindi or English, they often ‘feel humiliated’ when they ‘step out of the four walls of their madrasas, having to depend on others for even such small things as filling out a train reservation form’. This, he says, leads to a ‘loss of prestige on the part of the ‘ulama’, auguring ill for Islam.31 It is thus forcefully asserted that unless modern subjects are added to the curriculum, thereby enabling madrasa students to remain abreast of contemporary developments, there is little to stop the growing irrelevance of the ‘ulama in the eyes of the general Muslim public.32

For many advocates of madrasa reform modernization is proposed as a means to do away with or at least reduce the rigid dualism that sets modern-educated Muslims apart from the traditionalist ‘ulama. If the madrasas were to incorporate modern subjects into

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