Madrasa Literally Translates To - A Place Where Learning And Studying Takes Place
By Masha Hassan
October 30,
2020
Khurasan Madrasa
-----
Recently,
media reports said that a decision was taken by the BJP government to close all
state-run madrasas in Assam. When you hear the word ‘madrasa’ perhaps what
flashes before your mind is the image of young skull capped boys reciting the
Quran. The Arabic word ‘madrasa’ had a universal meaning; the name was given to
any form of educational institution, secular or religious, and not just Islamic.
It comes from the root ‘Darasa’,
meaning ‘he read repeatedly’ or ‘he studied.’ Madrasa literally translates to
‘a place where learning and studying takes place’.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Origins
Tracking
the origins of madrasas takes us back to the 10th century in Khurasan[N1] , Transoxania and northern Iran.
During the 10th and 12th centuries, madrasas instituted with libraries emerged
in Khwarazm, Merv, Ghazna and Bukhara. In significant urban sites, classical
spatial compositions were built where a somewhat unified architectural body was
constructed with elements of mosque, madrasa and garmabs (public baths).
Even though
the unsettling disturbance brought by the 13th century Mongol invasion
extensively weakened these learning activities, madrasas managed to maintain
their continuity in creativity and culture, expanding their reach to the
eastern Caliphate. The Indian subcontinent too saw the formation of madrasas,
one such example is a madrasa in Gwalior whose structure resembles that of a
Buddhist vihara.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Major
transitions occurred in these educational institutions, giving more importance
to scientific as well as literary thought; they were soon regarded as universal
educational centres, promoting intercultural exchange between diverse
populations. Madrasas were providing a wide range of courses from theology to
science, philosophy and philology, to history and literature and also music and
lessons of Adab, polite culture.
Scholars
acknowledged the importance of secular science for a dynamic society. These ideas
were challenged during medieval times, enforcing stern Islamic theological
teachings. At the same time, madrasas in Herat and Samarkand carried on diverse
cultural centres for astronomy, science and mathematics. In Herat, madrasas
taught and specialised in medicine; Al-Razu and Ibn Sina, medical scholars of
Islam, were given high status at European medical schools. In Baghdad,
disciplines like pharmacy, natural sciences and medicine were taught in
Mustansiriyya Madrasa, built by the Abbasid Caliph Mustansir in 1234.
Madrasas
were not only places for education; they provided housing for Mustshiqqs,
students and the poor, to enable them to study. This remains true in
contemporary times. There have been reports of girls outnumbering boys in some
schools. The Moin-ul-Islam madrasa in Agra, an Islamic institute that believes
co-education strengthens communal harmony is teaching Sanskrit and Arabic
languages to students coming from both Hindu and Muslim communities.
Some tend
to view madrasas as a highly rigid fanatic kind of Islamic institution, but let
us not forget inclusive examples of personalities like Raja Ram Mohan Roy,
Munshi Premchand and India’s first President Rajendra Prasad, who started their
education in madrasas.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Universal Learning
The
interpretation of madrasas indeed remains universal; a place where learning
takes place irrespective of the walls built and demolished. Madrasas have the
potential to transcend concrete institutionalised spaces of education and the
dichotomy of beliefs. All these educational initiatives take place on this very
soil under one galactic roof, in the everyday life where we cultivate a
continuous form of learning, creativity, imagination as well as education.
Original Headline: Madrasas as highways of rich
learning
Source: The Times of India
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-society/madrasa-literally-translates-place-where/d/123320
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism