Islam and Politics - The Stimson Center

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Madrassas in Pakistan: Role and Emerging Trends Khalid Rahman Religion has always played an important role in shaping South Asian Muslim society and politics. A strong education system was brought by Muslims when they first arrived to the region, helping embed religion into almost all aspects of public and private life. Madrassas (religious educational institutes) were the center of these educational activities and provided guidance not only for religious matters, but for worldly affairs. Students studied science, medical and engineering courses, algebra, geometry, logic, and philosophy alongside fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) and Arabic and Persian grammar. The broad and practical nature of the syllabi enabled the students of madrassas to be good doctors, engineers, architects, teachers, and statesmen. [1] However, with the advent of British rule in 1756, madrassas began to lose their influence. The British built new schools to train people in administrative affairs and divided the system of education into two separate domains: religious and secular, traditional and modern, old and new. The framework and objectives of the curricula in madrassas and the secular schools established during British rule were very different. This created a rift between their graduates that only widened with the passage of time, creating mutual suspicion and incomprehension. Moreover, the scarcity of resources for developing innovative methods of research and teaching, including technology, forced madrassa scholars to adopt a defensive approach: they limited their educational activities to protecting religions texts (the Qur’an, collections of hadith, sayings of the Prophet, and those relating to fiqh) and transmitting them to younger generations. Madrassas in Pakistan Even after the creation of the new Muslim homeland of Pakistan, the opportunity for madrassas to regain their influence was lacking, and the doors for government employment were still closed to their graduates because of the dominance of modern education in the country. Therefore, the objectives of the religious education system in Pakistan remained 57
58 | Madrassas in Pakistan: Role and Emerging Trends the same as they were under British rule in India: preparing imams (leaders) for mosques, teachers for schools, orators for weekly sermons, and religious leaders to carry out rituals and social responsibilities such as nikahs (marriage contracts), divorce, inheritance, and funerals. [2] Madrassas remained largely divided into various schools of thought. Voices from both inside and outside madrassas are raised intermittently in support of bringing change to the system. International events and situations have affected the thinking of those associated with madrassas. The first major event was the Iranian Revolution in 1979, which gave Ulama (religious scholars) and religious segments of society a sense of having political power. Another critical development was the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan around the same time. A broad spectrum of Muslims, including not only scholars and students of madrassas but also the modern educated university teachers and students, supported the people of Afghanistan in ousting the Soviets from their homeland. This laid the basis for cooperation by people of different schools of thought and religious circles, who were all concerned with the Islamic cause and the well-being of Muslims. [3] A more recent influential event was the American invasion of Afghanistan. Whereas the earlier events energized the madrassas, this has caused religious schools to consider modifying their basic role of providing religious education. [4] The policies of Western powers and the international media often treat madrassas solely as a breeding ground for terrorists. [5] This has brought madrassas of different schools of thought closer because of their common feeling of being misunderstood. Apart from these international political events, the increasing number of Islamic centers and communities in the West has created a need for madrassa students to understand Western lifestyles and modern-day issues. Equally important is learning different languages to communicate with Westerners and provide guidance to Muslim diasporas. Madrassas have begun to make concerted efforts to meet these challenges, rather than trying to avoid them as they have in the past. Religious leaders are calling on madrassas to teach subjects that will make their students more relevant in the modern world. [6] These questions are not new, but the extraordinary increase of the debate surrounding them is. How should the current syllabus be reconciled with the contemporary era? How should this change take place? What is the impact of national and international attention on madrassas? Pressures from many quarters add urgency to these matters, including those stemming from the US-led “war on terror,” demands for change in the madrassa system by foreign countries, the publication of reports on madrassas by several international organizations, [7] and actions by the government of Pakistan for the reform of madrassas. This paper is an attempt to increase understanding of emerging trends in madrassas, and is based on empirical research carried out in 56 leading madrassas from all schools of thought. [8] These institutions were chosen because of the excellence of their scholars and the
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Islam and Politics Renewal and Resi
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Contents Preface...................
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Preface Stimson’s Regional Voices
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Acknowledgments This volume would n
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Introduction In the past two years,
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Introduction | xi radicalize, prefe
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Perspectives from the Regions
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4 | Political Islamist Movements: T
Page 19 and 20: 6 | Political Islamist Movements: T
Page 21 and 22: 8 | Political Islamist Movements: T
Page 23 and 24: 10 | Political Islamist Movements:
Page 31 and 32: 18 | Radicalization of Muslims in M
Page 46 and 47: Role of Religion in Afghan Politics
Page 48 and 49: Prakhar Sharma | 35 The Changing Ro
Page 50 and 51: Prakhar Sharma | 37 advent of Afgha
Page 52 and 53: Prakhar Sharma | 39 Afghanistan, wi
Page 54: Prakhar Sharma | 41 Religious leade
Page 57 and 58: 44 | Ethnoreligious and Political D
Page 72 and 73: Khalid Rahman | 59 number of studen
Page 74 and 75: Khalid Rahman | 61 at colleges and
Page 76 and 77: Khalid Rahman | 63 to pay the expen
Page 78 and 79: Khalid Rahman | 65 • While there
Page 80 and 81: Khalid Rahman | 67 • Many madrass
Page 82 and 83: Khalid Rahman | 69 Outreach The omn
Page 84: Khalid Rahman | 71 Interpreting the
Page 87 and 88: 74 | Faith, Justice, and Violence:
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Appendix 1: Author Biographies Amit
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Appendix 2: Experts Consulted Saadi
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Appendix 2: Experts Consulted | 111
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Appendix 3: Partner Institutions Mi
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Appendix 3: Partner Institutions |
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Notes Political Islamist Movements:
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Notes | 119 term “secularized Bud
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