بسم اللہ الرّحمٰن الرّحیم
Scholars Of Islam
Ulama (Arabic: علماء ʿUlamāʾ , singular عالِم ʿĀlim, "scholar"), also spelt ulema, refers to the educated class of Muslim legal scholars engaged in the several fields of Islamic studies. They are best known as the arbiters of sharia law. While the ulama are well versed in legal fiqh (jurisprudence) being Islamic lawyers, some of them also go on to specialize in other fields, such as hadith or tafseer.
In a broader sense, the term ulama is used to describe the
body of Muslim scholars who have completed several years of training and
study of Islamic disciplines, such as a mufti, qadi, faqih, or muhaddith. Some Muslims[which?] include under this term the village mullahs and imams, who have attained only the lowest rungs on the ladder of Islamic scholarship; other Muslims[clarification needed] would say that clerics must meet higher standards to be considered ulama.
The formative period of Islamic jurisprudence
stretches back to the time of the early Muslim communities. In this
period, jurists were more concerned with pragmatic issues of authority
and teaching than with theory.[1] Progress in theory happened with the coming of the early Muslim jurist Muhammad ibn Idris ash-Shafi`i (767–820), who codified the basic principles of Islamic jurisprudence in his book ar-Risālah. The book details the four roots of law (Qur'an, Sunnah, ijma, and qiyas)
while specifying that the primary Islamic texts (the Qur'an and the
hadith) be understood according to objective rules of interpretation
derived from scientific study of the Arabic language.[2]
The 19th and 20th centuries were marked by a considerable loss of
authority and influence of the ulama in most Islamic states. Many secular Arab
governments attempted to break the influence of the ulama after their
rise to power. Religious institutions were nationalized and the system
of waqf "religious donations", which constituted the classical source of income for the ulama, was abolished. Indonesia, in contrast, began witnessing a revival of ulama activity which culminated in 1926 in the founding of the Nahdlatul Ulama, today one of the world's largest Muslim organizations.
In 1961, Gamal Abdel Nasser put the Al-Azhar University,
one of the highest Islamic intellectual authorities, under the direct
control of the state. "The Azharis were even put in army uniforms and
had to parade under the command of army officers" (G. Keppel, Jihad). In
Turkey, the traditional dervish tekkes
and Islamic schools were dissolved and replaced by state-controlled
religious schools in the 1950s and 1960s. After the independence of Algeria, President Ahmed Ben Bella also deprived the Algerian ulama of their power.
Authors
Many ulama have left behind them only a lifetime of mediating
disputes and giving sermons; their respectable contributions did not
include authorship. Other ulama have been prolific authors, writing
translations of the Quran or Quranic commentaries, studies of hadith,
works of philosophy, religious admonition, etc. There are enormous
bodies of religious literature that form not only the substance of the
courses in Islamic seminaries, but inspirational reading for the
ordinary Muslim. Most of this literature has not been translated into
English, but remains in its original language (usually Arabic, Urdu, Persian, or Turkish). Some has been printed; some remains in manuscript form.
Ottoman ulama
In order to become one of the ulama in the Ottoman Empire, one had to have studied at a madrasah
and be an expert in all the religious sciences, specializing in one or
two specifics. In addition, the student had to have been tested and
approved by higher ranking ulama. Such assessment by experts gave the
ulama legitimacy in the eyes of the public, because it imitated the way
the Caliphs after the death of the Prophet Muhammad were appointed. In 14th and 15th century Ottoman Empire,
there were not many madrasahs, and so the ulama traveled to countries
such as Persia and Egypt to further their education. Upon the conquering
of Istanbul however, the sultan converted eight churches into madrasahs
and placed eight of the best ulama as the heads.[3]
The ulama in the Ottoman Empire had a large influence over politics
because it was believed that secular institutions were all subordinate
to religion; the ulama were emblems of religious piety, therefore
rendering them powerful over state affairs.[4]
Ulama worked as priest-like authorities who had the role of
interpreting and enforcing Islamic shariah law. These jobs were
distributed amongst two types of ulama: Muftis, who interpreted Shariah law and the Qadi, who enforced Shariah law. The Ottomans had a strict hierarchy of ulama, with the Sheikh ul-Islam
holding the highest rank. A Sheikh ul-Islam was chosen by a royal
warrant amongst the qadis of important cities. The Sheikh ul-Islam had
the power to confirm new sultans, but once the sultan was affirmed, it
was the sultan who retained a higher authority than the Sheik ul-Islam.
The Sheikh ul-Islam issued fatwas,
which were written interpretations of the Quran that had authority over
the community. The Sheikh ul-Islam represented the law of shariah and
in the 16th century its importance rose which led to increased power.
Sultan Murad appointed a Sufi, Yayha, as his Sheikh ul-Islam during this
time which lead to violent disapproval. The objection to this
appointment made obvious the amount of power the Sheikh ul-Islam had,
since people were afraid he would alter the traditions and norms they
were living under by issuing new fatwas.[5]
Some Of The Well known Scholars of Today..
