This course aims to give a general overview of Islam from its beginnings till today. For a thorough understanding of its spirit, Islam is analyzed as a spiritual mission, as it started out with the commencement of the revelation of the Koran, through the first efforts of the pioneering Muslim scholars to devise a viable legal system during the dawn of the Islamic state era, to the pre-colonial time and the present day. An analysis is given about the causes and effects of the Ijtihad endeavor, its causes, principles, subject matter and concerns. Alongside with mysticism and Islamism, the Islamic culture is expounded through its main components, especially the family code (with such issues as marriage, divorce, inheritance, etc.), (sartorial, social, culinary, etc.) traditions, art (architecture, calligraphy, etc.) make important parts of the course. Much of the work will be done with special reference to Morocco.
Learning outcomes:
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Clearly understand what it means to be a Muslim,
• Fully understand the elements of legislation in the Islamic legal system,
• Objectively appraise the foundations of the Muslim society.
Method of presentation:
Lectures followed by discussions, workshops, and meetings with local students
Field study:
• Visits to highly prestigious institutions as Dar Al Hadith Al Hassania, the Majlis Al Ilmi and the Royal
Library in Rabat, and once busy schools such as the Bou’naniya School of Salé and/or Shella.
• A visit during the trip to the desert to an old Coranic school.
Required work and form of assessment:
Completion of readings and active participation in class (10%); homework (30%), Midterm (25%); Final exam (35%)
content:
Week 1: The context of the New Mission: the socio-economic context of the Arabs at the advent of
Islam.
Week 2: The five pillars of Islam, the six pillars of Faith, and the reaction of Quraish and other tribes. Week 3: Pluralism in Islam: issues of cohabitation (particularly with Jews and Christians):
Week 4: The sources of legislation in Islam: (1) The Quran, (2) the Sunna, and (3) Qiyas.
Week 5: The rise and evolution of Jurisprudence schools (Madhhabs): an overview of the major schools of Fiqh.
Week 6: Ijtihad vs. Jihad. An investigation of the apparatus of mainstream and non-mainstream interpretations of the Text.
Week 7: Philosophy, Kalam (and intellectual schools), and Sufism.
Week 8: The Sunnis and the Shiites: the roots of a dispute.
Week 9: The rise of (Pan) Islamism and (Pan) Arabism: a survey of the main political trends in the
Islamic world today (particularly in North Africa) and attempts of the governments in the
Muslim world to adapt the Islamic religion to the new world order – the case of Morocco.
Week 10: Some basic components of the Muslim society: the Family (including marriage and divorce), celebrations, cuisine, clothing, architecture, etc.
Week 11: Islamic Art (with particular reference to architecture, calligraphy, and music). Week 12: A brief history of Muslim Morocco, Sufism and saints.
Required readings:
Boutaleb, Abdelhadi. Pour Mieux Comprendre l’Islam. 1998. Buyukcelebi, Islamil. A la découverte de la foi en islam. The Light, 2004.
Chaltût, Mahmoud. L'islam: dogme et législation. Al bouraq, 1999.
Fritsch, Laurence E. Islam, foi et loi: quelques clés pour découvrir la deuxième religion du monde. Paris
Pocket, 2002.
Gaïd, Tahar. Qu’est ce que la foi ? Maison d’Ennour, 2001.
Hamidullah, Muhammad. Le Prophète de l'islam, sa vie, son œuvre. Edité par l'association des étudiants islamiques de France, 1989.
Ibn Taymiyya, Ibn al-Jawzî, Yousoûf Qaradawi et Abd al-Azîz Ibn Bâz. Statut de la femme musulmane.
Al Qalam, 2007.
Mahdi, Tahar. Méthodologie de la pensée juridique en islam. Dar Al Kalemah, 2002. Ramadan, Said. La shari’a; le droit islamique, son envergure et son équité. Al Qalam, 2008.
Recommended readings:
Al-Ghazali, Abû-Hâmid. Les dix règles du soufisme. Editions Albouraq, 1999. Alili, Rochdy. Qu'est-ce que l'islam? Paris: La Découverte, 2004.
Amir-Moezzi, M. Ali. Dictionnaire du Coran. Robert Laffont, 2007.
Chebel, Malek. Dictionnaire des Symboles Musulmans, Rites, Mystique, et Civilisation. Albin Michel, 1995.
---. Symboles de l'islam. Paris: Assouline, 1997.
Djait, Hichem. Connaissance de l'Islam. Paris: Syros-Alternatives, 1992.
El-Qarni, Aidh Ibn Abfullah. Mohammed comme si tu le voyais. Dar Ibn Hazm, 2003.
Encyclopédie de l'Islam . Leiden: Late E.J. Brill and Paris: G.-P. Maisonneuve & Larose S.A., 1993-2005. Ferre, Lucien. Introduction à l’Islam. Publisud, 1990.
Hattstein, Markus and Peter Delius. Arts & civilisations de l'Islam. Cologne: Könemann, 2000.
Islam, le grand malentendu Paris: Autrement, 1987.
Korbendau, Yves. L'architecture sacrée de l'Islam. Courbevoie: ACR, 1997.
Michon, Jean-Louis. Lumière d'Islam : institutions, art et spiritualité dans la cité musulmane. Milano : Miquel, André. L'Islam et sa civilisation. 1996
Ramadan, Tariq. Muhammad, Vie du Prophète, les Enseignements spirituels et contemporains.
Archipoche, 2006.
Rodinson, Maxime. L'islam : politique et croyance. Paris: Fayard, 1993. Archè, 1994.
Zemmouri, Hammad. Le discours coranique a travers une tradition (étude thématique). Rabat Net
Maroc, 2008.
Brief Biography of Instructor:
Khalid Saqi has a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from the University of Mohammed V, the Faculty of the Sciences of Education (under the joined supervision of Dr. Mohammed Melouk, from Morocco, and Dr. William Grabe, from Northern Arizona University). He is currently Assistant Director of Dar El Hadith El Hassania for Higher Islamic Studies. He has a weekly show in English on Mohammed VI Radio, titled ‘The Eternal Message’, which presents an exegesis of the Quran relating the whys and wherefores of the revelations with current issues. His interests include efforts of inter-religious entente in the world, and translation.
This course aims to give a general overview of Islam from its beginnings till today. For a thorough understanding of its spirit, Islam is analyzed as a spiritual mission, as it started out with the commencement of the revelation of the Koran, through the first efforts of the pioneering Muslim scholars to devise a viable legal system during the dawn of the Islamic state era, to the pre-colonial time and the present day. An analysis is given about the causes and effects of the Ijtihad endeavor, its causes, principles, subject matter and concerns. Alongside with mysticism and Islamism, the Islamic culture is expounded through its main components, especially the family code (with such issues as marriage, divorce, inheritance, etc.), (sartorial, social, culinary, etc.) traditions, art (architecture, calligraphy, etc.) make important parts of the course. Much of the work will be done with special reference to Morocco.
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Clearly understand what it means to be a Muslim,
• Fully understand the elements of legislation in the Islamic legal system,
• Objectively appraise the foundations of the Muslim society.
Lectures followed by discussions, workshops, and meetings with local students
• Visits to highly prestigious institutions as Dar Al Hadith Al Hassania, the Majlis Al Ilmi and the Royal
Library in Rabat, and once busy schools such as the Bou’naniya School of Salé and/or Shella.
• A visit during the trip to the desert to an old Coranic school.
Completion of readings and active participation in class (10%); homework (30%), Midterm (25%); Final exam (35%)
Week 1: The context of the New Mission: the socio-economic context of the Arabs at the advent of
Islam.
Week 2: The five pillars of Islam, the six pillars of Faith, and the reaction of Quraish and other tribes. Week 3: Pluralism in Islam: issues of cohabitation (particularly with Jews and Christians):
Week 4: The sources of legislation in Islam: (1) The Quran, (2) the Sunna, and (3) Qiyas.
Week 5: The rise and evolution of Jurisprudence schools (Madhhabs): an overview of the major schools of Fiqh.
Week 6: Ijtihad vs. Jihad. An investigation of the apparatus of mainstream and non-mainstream interpretations of the Text.
Week 7: Philosophy, Kalam (and intellectual schools), and Sufism.
Week 8: The Sunnis and the Shiites: the roots of a dispute.
Week 9: The rise of (Pan) Islamism and (Pan) Arabism: a survey of the main political trends in the
Islamic world today (particularly in North Africa) and attempts of the governments in the
Muslim world to adapt the Islamic religion to the new world order – the case of Morocco.
Week 10: Some basic components of the Muslim society: the Family (including marriage and divorce), celebrations, cuisine, clothing, architecture, etc.
Week 11: Islamic Art (with particular reference to architecture, calligraphy, and music). Week 12: A brief history of Muslim Morocco, Sufism and saints.
Boutaleb, Abdelhadi. Pour Mieux Comprendre l’Islam. 1998. Buyukcelebi, Islamil. A la découverte de la foi en islam. The Light, 2004.
Chaltût, Mahmoud. L'islam: dogme et législation. Al bouraq, 1999.
Fritsch, Laurence E. Islam, foi et loi: quelques clés pour découvrir la deuxième religion du monde. Paris
Pocket, 2002.
Gaïd, Tahar. Qu’est ce que la foi ? Maison d’Ennour, 2001.
Hamidullah, Muhammad. Le Prophète de l'islam, sa vie, son œuvre. Edité par l'association des étudiants islamiques de France, 1989.
Ibn Taymiyya, Ibn al-Jawzî, Yousoûf Qaradawi et Abd al-Azîz Ibn Bâz. Statut de la femme musulmane.
Al Qalam, 2007.
Mahdi, Tahar. Méthodologie de la pensée juridique en islam. Dar Al Kalemah, 2002. Ramadan, Said. La shari’a; le droit islamique, son envergure et son équité. Al Qalam, 2008.
Al-Ghazali, Abû-Hâmid. Les dix règles du soufisme. Editions Albouraq, 1999. Alili, Rochdy. Qu'est-ce que l'islam? Paris: La Découverte, 2004.
Amir-Moezzi, M. Ali. Dictionnaire du Coran. Robert Laffont, 2007.
Chebel, Malek. Dictionnaire des Symboles Musulmans, Rites, Mystique, et Civilisation. Albin Michel, 1995.
---. Symboles de l'islam. Paris: Assouline, 1997.
Djait, Hichem. Connaissance de l'Islam. Paris: Syros-Alternatives, 1992.
El-Qarni, Aidh Ibn Abfullah. Mohammed comme si tu le voyais. Dar Ibn Hazm, 2003.
Encyclopédie de l'Islam . Leiden: Late E.J. Brill and Paris: G.-P. Maisonneuve & Larose S.A., 1993-2005. Ferre, Lucien. Introduction à l’Islam. Publisud, 1990.
Hattstein, Markus and Peter Delius. Arts & civilisations de l'Islam. Cologne: Könemann, 2000.
Islam, le grand malentendu Paris: Autrement, 1987.
Korbendau, Yves. L'architecture sacrée de l'Islam. Courbevoie: ACR, 1997.
Michon, Jean-Louis. Lumière d'Islam : institutions, art et spiritualité dans la cité musulmane. Milano : Miquel, André. L'Islam et sa civilisation. 1996
Ramadan, Tariq. Muhammad, Vie du Prophète, les Enseignements spirituels et contemporains.
Archipoche, 2006.
Rodinson, Maxime. L'islam : politique et croyance. Paris: Fayard, 1993. Archè, 1994.
Zemmouri, Hammad. Le discours coranique a travers une tradition (étude thématique). Rabat Net
Maroc, 2008.
Khalid Saqi has a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from the University of Mohammed V, the Faculty of the Sciences of Education (under the joined supervision of Dr. Mohammed Melouk, from Morocco, and Dr. William Grabe, from Northern Arizona University). He is currently Assistant Director of Dar El Hadith El Hassania for Higher Islamic Studies. He has a weekly show in English on Mohammed VI Radio, titled ‘The Eternal Message’, which presents an exegesis of the Quran relating the whys and wherefores of the revelations with current issues. His interests include efforts of inter-religious entente in the world, and translation.