The main object of course is to give an academic analysis of what Islam is, and how it evolved from a simple spiritual mission in Arabia into a full-fledged system of life adopted by over a billion people worldwide. It aims to help the students explore the different bases of Islamic thinking, and develop a better understanding of the Muslim’s philosophy of life. Too westernized a view of a Muslim’s mentality seems to dispossess the researcher of balanced and sensible criteria to appraise it. This course aims to equip students from the west with the tools to see the Muslim’s character as well as the Muslim social structure from within.
Learning outcomes:
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Clearly understand what it means to be a Muslim,
- Objectively appraise the foundations of a Muslim society,
- Fully understand the elements of legislation in the Islamic legal system.
Method of presentation:
Lectures followed by discussions, workshops, organized discussions with scholars from Dar Al Hadith Al Hassania and elsewhere.
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 Sale and 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%); 3 essays (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).
Week 10: A brief history of Muslim Morocco.
Week 11: Some basic components of the Muslim society: the Family (including marriage and divorce), celebrations, cuisine, clothing, architecture, etc.
Week 12: Modernizing Islam: attempts of the governments in the Muslim world to adapt the Islamic religion to the new world order – the case of Morocco.
Week 13: Sufism and saints in Morocco.
Week 14: Islamic Art (with particular reference to architecture, calligraphy, and music).
Required readings:
Al ‘Alwani, Taha J. Source Methodology in Islamic Jurisprudence (Usul al-Fiqh al-Islami): Methodology for Research and Knowledge.
The International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1990.
Esposito, John L. Islam: The Straight Path. New York: Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2005.
Esposito, John L. and Mogahed, Dalia. Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think. Gallup, Inc., 2007.
Recommended readings:
Ruthven, Malise. and Nanji, Azim. Historical Atlas of Islam. Harvard University Press, 2004.
Abun-Nasr, Jamil M. A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1978.
Bannerman, Patrick. Islam in Perspective: An Introduction to Islamic Society, Politics and Law. London: Routledge, 1988.
Denffer, Ahmad V. Ulum Al-Qur'an: An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qur'an. Islamic Foundation, 1996. Eberhardt, Isabelle. In the Shadow of Islam. London: Peter Owen, 1993.
---. Muslim Society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981.
Green, Joey. Jesus and Muhammad, the Parallel Sayings. Ulysses Press, 2003.
Haddad, Yvonne Y. and Adair T. Lummis. Islamic Values in the U.S.: A Comparative Study. New York: Oxford
University Press, 1986.
Haddad, Yvonne Y. and John L. Esposito, eds. Islam, Gender and Social Change. New York: Oxford University
Press, 1997.
Ishak, Ibn. The Life of Muhammad. Alfred Guillaume, trans. London: Oxford University Press, 1967.
Iqbal, Sir Muhammad. The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam. Lahore, Pakistan: Sh. Muhammad
Ashraf. 1951.
Karen, Armstrong. Islam: A Short History. Modern Library, 2000. Minai, Naila. Women in Islam. New York: Seaview Books, 1985.
Munson, Henry. Religion and Power in Morocco. New York: Yale University Press, 1993. Murata, Sachiko and Chittick, William C. The Vision of Islam. I B Tauris & Co Ltd, 1996.
Parker, Richard. A Practical Guide to Islamic Monuments in Morocco. Charlottesville: Braaka Press, 1981.
Pikhthall, Muhammad Marmaduke. The Cultural Side of Islam. New Dlehi: Kitab Bhavan, 1927. Rauf, Muhammad A. The Islamic View of Women and the Family. New York: Robert Speller, 1977. Said, W. Edward. Orientalism. London: Penguin, 1978.
The Quran (in translation, preferably by Yussuf Ali).
Vol, John O. Islam, Continuity and Change in the Modern World. 2nd ed. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press,
1994.
Waterbury, John. The Commander of the Faithful: The Moroccan Political Elite; A Study in Segmented Politics.
New York: Columbia University Press, 1970.
Zafrani, Haim. Deux milles ans de vie juive au Maroc. Maisonneuve et Larose, 1998.
Brief Biography of Instructor:
Khalid Saqi has his Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from Muhammad V University, 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.
The main object of course is to give an academic analysis of what Islam is, and how it evolved from a simple spiritual mission in Arabia into a full-fledged system of life adopted by over a billion people worldwide. It aims to help the students explore the different bases of Islamic thinking, and develop a better understanding of the Muslim’s philosophy of life. Too westernized a view of a Muslim’s mentality seems to dispossess the researcher of balanced and sensible criteria to appraise it. This course aims to equip students from the west with the tools to see the Muslim’s character as well as the Muslim social structure from within.
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Clearly understand what it means to be a Muslim,
- Objectively appraise the foundations of a Muslim society,
- Fully understand the elements of legislation in the Islamic legal system.
Lectures followed by discussions, workshops, organized discussions with scholars from Dar Al Hadith Al Hassania and elsewhere.
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 Sale and Shella.
A visit during the trip to the desert to an old Coranic school.
Completion of readings and active participation in class (10%); 3 essays (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).
Week 10: A brief history of Muslim Morocco.
Week 11: Some basic components of the Muslim society: the Family (including marriage and divorce), celebrations, cuisine, clothing, architecture, etc.
Week 12: Modernizing Islam: attempts of the governments in the Muslim world to adapt the Islamic religion to the new world order – the case of Morocco.
Week 13: Sufism and saints in Morocco.
Week 14: Islamic Art (with particular reference to architecture, calligraphy, and music).
Al ‘Alwani, Taha J. Source Methodology in Islamic Jurisprudence (Usul al-Fiqh al-Islami): Methodology for Research and Knowledge.
The International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1990.
Esposito, John L. Islam: The Straight Path. New York: Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2005.
Esposito, John L. and Mogahed, Dalia. Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think. Gallup, Inc., 2007.
Ruthven, Malise. and Nanji, Azim. Historical Atlas of Islam. Harvard University Press, 2004.
Abun-Nasr, Jamil M. A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1978.
Bannerman, Patrick. Islam in Perspective: An Introduction to Islamic Society, Politics and Law. London: Routledge, 1988.
Denffer, Ahmad V. Ulum Al-Qur'an: An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qur'an. Islamic Foundation, 1996. Eberhardt, Isabelle. In the Shadow of Islam. London: Peter Owen, 1993.
---. Muslim Society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981.
Green, Joey. Jesus and Muhammad, the Parallel Sayings. Ulysses Press, 2003.
Haddad, Yvonne Y. and Adair T. Lummis. Islamic Values in the U.S.: A Comparative Study. New York: Oxford
University Press, 1986.
Haddad, Yvonne Y. and John L. Esposito, eds. Islam, Gender and Social Change. New York: Oxford University
Press, 1997.
Ishak, Ibn. The Life of Muhammad. Alfred Guillaume, trans. London: Oxford University Press, 1967.
Iqbal, Sir Muhammad. The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam. Lahore, Pakistan: Sh. Muhammad
Ashraf. 1951.
Karen, Armstrong. Islam: A Short History. Modern Library, 2000. Minai, Naila. Women in Islam. New York: Seaview Books, 1985.
Munson, Henry. Religion and Power in Morocco. New York: Yale University Press, 1993. Murata, Sachiko and Chittick, William C. The Vision of Islam. I B Tauris & Co Ltd, 1996.
Parker, Richard. A Practical Guide to Islamic Monuments in Morocco. Charlottesville: Braaka Press, 1981.
Pikhthall, Muhammad Marmaduke. The Cultural Side of Islam. New Dlehi: Kitab Bhavan, 1927. Rauf, Muhammad A. The Islamic View of Women and the Family. New York: Robert Speller, 1977. Said, W. Edward. Orientalism. London: Penguin, 1978.
The Quran (in translation, preferably by Yussuf Ali).
Vol, John O. Islam, Continuity and Change in the Modern World. 2nd ed. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press,
1994.
Waterbury, John. The Commander of the Faithful: The Moroccan Political Elite; A Study in Segmented Politics.
New York: Columbia University Press, 1970.
Zafrani, Haim. Deux milles ans de vie juive au Maroc. Maisonneuve et Larose, 1998.
Khalid Saqi has his Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from Muhammad V University, 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.