notions held by Muslims in the field of Dawah. These scholars The features of Prophetic Dawah Methodology bearing the testimony of acceptance, moderation
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© 2018 JETIR May 2018, Volume 5, Issue 5 www.jetir.org (ISSN – 2349 – 5162) JETIR1805 6 49 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 294 Dawah and its Contemporary Relevance; A study of Muslim Scholars Azad Hussain Aakhoon Research Scholar, Department of Islamic studies University Of Kashmir, Srinagar J&K, India, 190006 Abstract Muslim in the esat and west are facing lot of problems regarding their sustenance, maintenance and the preaching of their faith to the fellow human beings. The reason for these crisis can be ascribed to the methodology and approaches utilized to arrive at the objectivity of the . On one hand these approaches lack proper consideration with Quran and Sunnah and on the other hand the y are full of errors on our part. To these pessimistic conceptions/notions and efforts as delivered by our Muslim fellows which go against the revealed dictates and the ground realities we need to redraft or reform our Dawah Methodology. These measures mus t be inconformity with Quran and must be viable, relevant and objective in nature. Many modern scholars made critical evaluation of such approaches and notions held by Muslims in the field of Dawah. These scholars reflected their respectives models and app roaches which are primarily based on the Quranic insights and also maintain efficacy, viability and relevance. The features of Prophetic Dawah Methodology bearing the testimony of acceptance, moderation, tolerance, diversity, sympathy and other principles of universal character hold valid today if brought into limelight. This paper intends to explore the significance of Quranic Dawah methodology and its reflections with the recommendations put forth in the light of models/approaches shared by Contemporary Muslim Scholars like Maulana Islahi and Dr. Alwani, so as to arrive at the endeavor of the Ummah from divisions, profligacy of thoughts, discordance, and deformation in creed and conduct. Keywords : Approaches, Realities, Ethics, Insights Introduction 1 It is used to refer to the act of conveying or callin g people to the message of Isla m. The quran categorically reveals as: 2 .
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© 2018 JETIR May 2018, Volume 5, Issue 5 www.jetir.org (ISSN – 2349 – 5162) JETIR1805 6 49 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 295 the invitation addressed to men by Allah through His Messenger to believe in the true religion , Islam. All the Messengers have been sent to invite a says: He sent the Book in truth, to judge between people in matters wherein they differed . 3 This verse of the Quran points out the great responsibility of this community regarding the guardianship of the message of Truth. The purspose to serve this was to warn of the grave differences that came out from the nations of past which were dealt t hrough the agency of Prophets and messengers so as to stand by the truth. In this verse ther lies the success of the preachers of Islamic faith conditioned on the being on the side of truth and standing firm on it. 4 Nasihah, Tabligh, Tabshir, Tadhkir, Hujjah, Islah, Tajdid, Sadaqah, Jihad. e.g. o reject Faith, it is the same to them whether thou warn them or do not warn them , they will not believe 5 Moulana Islahi comments on this verse that in the call of Prophets there are evidences for it concrete and universal on one hand while warn and glad tidings in terms of fatalities and triumph. 6 Scope of Dawah : Thus Scope of Dawah extends to a wider range which involves; a) Inviting people towards the Islamic faith and its Practice b) Witnessing in favour of the ultimate truth Islam, giving witness by words and deeds. c) Warning people against the dreadful con sequences of rejecting the truth or neglecting it. d) Advising people to accept Islam and to practice it. e) Conveying the message of Islam to every member of mankind. f) Giving people glad tidings about the beneficial results of accepting and practicing t he truth. g) Reminding people of the forgotten reality that their real success and salvation lies in accepting the way ordained for them by their creator. Dawah is based on the feelings of love and fraternity. Islam believes that the entire humanity is the family of Allah and therefore all humanbeings are the members of this family. . This love for humanity is deep rooted and comprehensive . – wishing their worldly success and above it their spiritual salvation. 7 : Im portance of Dawah is quite evident from it being the Prophetic domain and from its weightiness in driving people towards the ultimate truth. It is an admitted fact that the last Messenger has been commanded to proclaim the Message, which has been revealed to him by
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© 2018 JETIR May 2018, Volume 5, Issue 5 www.jetir.org (ISSN – 2349 – 5162) JETIR1805 6 49 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 296 says: 8 9 Noted scholar of 20 th bove that in the nations of the world the Muslims are the unique nation that can foster to the reconstruction of humanity in civilizational perspective. It is so because of the belief and the ethics they share which created the potential of best community within it. These verses make it mandatory and projection of sacred mission to guide the humanity to truth and the way of excellence irrespective of deno minations. 10 The Islamic jurisprudence differ on the subject of nature and magnitude of importance of dawah. Some categorise it as fard ayn (compulsory), while as others bring it under fard kifayah (optional) . Both the sections of Islamic scholars base t heir viewpoints on the verse you a brand of people inviting to all that is good , enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong. Dawah is dynamism in Islam without which there will be stagnation. Any movement having dynamism in it is a living movement. A nation fallen into slumber itself never influences others but in turn get influenced by other movements and nations. It is the zeal of dawah in the Muslim communitie s that has led to the victory of Muslims in the past. And it is their lethargy towards this most important and divinely ordained responsibility that is responsible for their present decline and persistent confusion among other peoples of the world. To conc lude, preaching of Islam is incumbent upon Muslims not only to earn the pleasure of Allah and fulfill the ordained commandments but also as a sense of responsibility and care sprouting for the entire humanity Islamic Dawah intends to solve many more proble ms of the world. Many countries in the world , today , face different kinds of social evils and tension. Muslims being the upholders of the Message of peace, reconciliation, concord, safety, tranquility, security, prosperity, and above all submission and su rrender 11 before the Supreme Will of Allah cannot remain mute spectators to these human agonies. They are dutybound to help these societies and the humanity at large to get rid of these problems. Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) has blessed for the person who tak e note of His sermons and then passes it to others as it is.
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© 2018 JETIR May 2018, Volume 5, Issue 5 www.jetir.org (ISSN – 2349 – 5162) JETIR1805 6 49 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 297 verses and the Prophetic traditions deal extensively with its concealment. The person w ho conceals the knowledge and its virtues has been cursed severely of the dire consequences here and hereafter. 11 The prophet said, Convey (teachings) from me to the people even if it were a single sentence. This depicts the Prophetic exhortation to his com panions for the spread/convey of the divine message to others. 12 It is incumbent upon those who are present to inform those who are absent because those who are absent might comprehend (what I have said) better than the present audience. The tradition makes it mandatory for the learner of knowledge of matters of religion to pass it to others, it is so because the man who is being presented (third person) may memorize, compile it, understand and explain it in a better way than person who directly takes it. Al so the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) emphasized that the matters of knowledge and importance must be transmitted to the future generations so that they may be benefitted like their predecessors. 13 CHOOSING YOUR APPROACH Choice of Subject Next we have to choose our approach. After reading the situation carefully and correctly, – Kitaab, so the first thing you should invite them to is them about Tawheed. When you know the people, the situation and the circumstan ce, now you choose your topic. Method of Delivery The next thing which we need to keep in mind when approaching others is our method of delivery. We have to decide how we are going to communicate our message. Are we going to use an emotion approach? Although, emotional arguments are to be avoided in general because they tend to cloud the issues and the facts, sometimes they are the best method. Gradual Progression Read your progress by analyzing the level s relative to the point they are trying to get across and to gradually get the person to agree with their point. By according to the scale. At the bot is ignoring you, it means that they are completely indifferent to what you have to say and to the topic on ecause they just do not care about your point of view. Convincing them is virtually impossible, because they have no interest in what you have to say.
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© 2018 JETIR May 2018, Volume 5, Issue 5 www.jetir.org (ISSN – 2349 – 5162) JETIR1805 6 49 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 298 Moulana Amin Ahsan Islahi (1904 – 1997) Mawlana Amin Ahsan Islahi is considered to be a prominent Islamic s cholar in Pakistan. He belonged to Farahi school that is known after Mawlana Hamiduddin Farahi. Mawlana Islahi was also a religio – political activist, thinker and wrote extensively on various issues faced by the Muslims in his time. He wrote various books o . Errors in Contemporary Dawah Methodology Modern Scholars have higlighted the numerous errors that are clearly visible in the approaches and the methodology of our fellows while conveying this message. Moulana Islahi has dedicated two complete book s Dawat – i – Din aur Uss ka Tareeqay Kar/ Islamic Faith and its Presentation and the second one is – i – Din Ki Ahmiyat aur . The book opens up with th e basic errors that are in p ractice during preaching. He has classified therein these errors as; 1. Theore tical /Conceptual Errors . 2. Practical Errors. The first kind of flaws that had crept in our approach deal wi th the failure of the conveyors to appreciate their own position, the position of scripture (Quran) and in presenting it to others. Our failure to present it as the religion or the way of life from the very inception of entire humanity rather we presented it as rival to other faiths at the cost of ridiculing other faiths. There we had made comparisond between the Prophets on the basis of Asabiyyah (group prejudice) by our preachers which ultimately led to the creation of malice among other faiths . 14 Dr. Taha Jabir al `Alwani Born in Iraq 1354/1935, h e received his primary and secondary education in his native land and then graduated with an Honors Degree from the College of Shari`ah and Law at al Azhar University in Cairo in 1378/1959. From the same university, he was awarded his Master’s degree in 1 388/1968 and a doctorate in Usu l al fiqh in 1392/1973. that we must address the three things in it which would serve the purpose of conveying/preaching message if recognized. 1. Ethics of Disagreement. 2. Understanding the Principles of Jurisprudence and its difference s in it . 3. Reformation in Islamic thought. The f wherein the circumstances in the Muslim community ( Ummah ) had the splits in the groups, confusion among masses, disappointment over
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© 2018 JETIR May 2018, Volume 5, Issue 5 www.jetir.org (ISSN – 2349 – 5162) JETIR1805 6 49 Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR) www.jetir.org 299 to minimise these differences so as to revive the higher aims and purposes of the Ummah has cited durable examples from the text s of classical Muslims scholars beyond the academic domain or the cause of haderning feeling of hatred and otherness. 15 The Ethics of Disagreement in that serves the purpose of the theme and the glorifying examples for the contemporary preachers of Islamic faith to forebearence and understanding throughout Muslim history. The efficacy of this system of thought and concept lies in the revival of the ethical spirit to look ahead with hope and endeavor. The alarming challenge that Muslim community today is facing is the issue of differences that havd crept into it in terms of beliefs, charater, taste, thought, juristic and methodologi cal approaches and even in the wholistic perspective in all domains of life. 16 Conclusion recover and glory to attempt in this direction ended in absolute failure because the means adopted, applied and practised were flawed and are not in confirmation with the natural and divine patterns set by almighty Allah. In this new era of resurgence, a search has began to explore the way out that is viable, sound and authentic that may facilitate the whole discourse of rectification at this stage. The means must same that were used to set it right on the right course at the very beginning and this produced a phenomenon known as reawakening. So in this situation there is a dire need to expand the meaning of preaching in broader terms of mending human society towards the path of Allah through various stages and situations. We must clarify and cognize the whole course of action and work of Proph et as as attested by Quran in comprehensive way that suits to the mission of Prophet. References 1 Al Hussaini, Muhammad bin Muhammad, Vol 20, Dar ul Hidayah, Kuwait, 1983 pp. 548 – 49 , /Al Isfahani, Raghib, Mufradat al Quran, Vol 1, Islamic Academy, Lahore, 1390 A.H, p. 366 2 Goodword Books, Newdelhi, 2010 Quran: Surah Yusuf, 12: 108 3 n. Text Translation & Commentary, 2: 213. 4 Islahi, Amin Ahsan, Tadabbur I Quran, Vol 1, Chapter 2, verse 213, Faran Foundation , Lahore, 2009, pp. 502 – 504 5 nslation & Commentary, Goodword Books, Newdelhi, 2010 2:6. 6 Islahi, Amin Ahsan, Tadabbur I Quran, p. 109 7 Qutb, Muhammad, Ed. Kamal ud din, Haamid, , Areeb Publications New Delhi, 2012, p.8
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