To learn Islam is not an easy task and learning it while one is studying in a university is more difficult. Muslims who are a product of the modern school system and of the higher education industry simply lose touch with the traditional system of learning Islam. Learning Islam has become a job of either the madrassa going students or autodidacts who learn Islam through reading some books and watching their favourite Scholars’ YouTube videos.
But the team of imaancentral is fortunate enough to experience some of the traditional methods of Islamic education while also being university students! We developed a more nuanced understanding of Islam as well as of the world to appreciate the beauty of our Deen. Through this class we learnt Islam by learning what our Scholars of the past started learning with, that is, compassion, balance and humility. Interestingly we never learn these values in our schools and colleges and therefore many students of Islam today lack basic etiquettes of learning Islam.
The person who helped us experience this was our teacher Saif ul Hadi who is able to understand exactly what it is to learn about Islam while being a university student. He knows where we lack and what can be our strengths because he himself has gone through the same journey. He is well versed in the Islamic sciences as well as engaged productively with the world around him. Most importantly he made us better muslims who are morally equipped as human beings contributing to the world and it’s people in some way or form due to their love of Allah and His rasool sallahu alaihi wa sallam and for seeking Allah’s pleasure.
Saif ul Hadi holds a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering, and a masters in mass communication. He has worked for the Hindustan Times, and is currently involved in socio-behavioral research at the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative. He has studied Islamic studies with Maulana Abdul Haqq Ansari, Mufti Mushtaq Tijarvi and other scholars in India and Saudi Arabia. His areas of interest include Ulum al-Hadith, Usul al-Fiqh and Hanbali Jurisprudence.
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