Integrated view of madrasas
Priyanka Singh

Bastions of the Believers
by Yoginder Sikand.
Penguin. Pages 358. Rs 395.

It isn’t surprising that with terror attacks happening just about any and everywhere across the globe, Islam has come to be misunderstood as a menacing religion with intolerance to kafirs and anything to do with a broader, modern vision.

Understandably, as centres of Islamic learning, madrasas have also come in for whiplash. These are seen as dens of darkness, churning out legions of fanatics and propagating jehad in the name of traditional education and religion.

The author, a sociologist, has sought to dispel this thought through research and various articles on Islam and Muslims in contemporary India. For his research, he visited several madrasas, read publications by and about them, and spoke to students and ulama.

The madrasas differ in Islamic understandings and the incorporation of modern subjects. Some are for girls only and are progressive like those in Kerala, while the others are regressive.

An illuminating point is that though the growth of madrasas is being viewed with concern, the reasons for their growth lie in factors distant from seeming fundamentalism.

An educational dualism came about with modern education finding a way into the social fabric during the British rule. This was accentuated with the madrasas beginning to be associated with lower classes and the narrowing of the authority of the ulama. Forward-looking Muslims like Sir Sayyed Ahmad Khan and Jinnah would criticise the ulama for "unrepentant obscurantism" and opposed the intrusion of religion into politics.

For many poor Muslims, madrasas are the only access to education. They receive free education, board and lodging. On graduation, they are generally given a low-paying job as an imam or a teacher. Some even set up madrasas of their own. Yoginder writes: increasing number of madrasas reflect the growing desire on the part of many Muslims to educate their children and to improve their fortunes in life, and cannot be attributed to an imagined global Islamic conspiracy."

Contrary to contemporary belief, the curriculum at madrasas is hardly sinister. The biography of the Prophet, translation of the Koran, Arabic grammar, history of the Caliphs, history of Muslims rulers of India, comparative religions, philosophy, logic and rhetoric etc form the basic curricula. Many Muslims, in fact, complain that the education at madrasas hardly equips them to function in a plural society.

The madrasa studies are "overwhelmingly conservative, literalist and legalist but definitely not politically radical," the author says.

The book lends an unbiased and a well-researched perspective on Islamic education. The author feels reforms must follow at madrasas but without their religious identity being jeopardised. Also, while the madrasas may be many things, they are surely not imparting terror training. In India, numerous Barelwi ulama have actually condemned Islamist groups as "enemies of the faith."

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