The Educational Thought of Abul Hasan Al-Nadwi

The Educational Thought of  Abul Hasan Al-Nadwi


This study aims at highlighting the educational thought of Abul Hasan Al Nadwi. This reformer played prominent roles in various Islamic fields. Shaikh Abul Hasan Al-Nadwi (1914-1999) witnessed the weakness of the Islamic nation. This weakness was apparently due to inside as well as outside reasons. This weakness hundred this nation of carrying its own responsibility in mankind civilization. This weakness left a great grieve in his heart especially when he saw the Islamic societies imitating foreign cultures .He assorted in most of his works that the Islamic nation could restore its role of his works that the Islamic nation could restore its role if there is good  will and determination in upbringing the new generations   in the light of the true original Islamic teachings and benefiting from the ideologies of its own reformers .

This study tries to extract the educational thought of Shaikh Abul Hasan Al-Nadwi through the following:

1-    what has been written about him  (selective writings)

2-    interviewing some selected experienced teachers who taught his books as some students who study those books.

3-    visiting the cultural, social and physical sites and environment that contributed to the build up of this reformer.

4-    interviewing some of his elegant students in Dar Al – Ulama (India).

5-    Reviewing g good selection of his works.

Through theoretical and field work, this research proved that Shaikh Abul Hasan Al Nadwi had educational thought that can be summarized up as follows:

1-       The ideological and cultural inheritance of the Islamic nation is the source of education. And because the source of Islamic education is a divine source, there are no means to resort to any other educational principles that stand in conflict with the fixed religious principle of the Islamic especially that pertains to faith, ethics, and high values. As for human output that doesn’t conflict with the teachings of Almighty God (Allah) and Prophet Mohammad  (p.b.u.h.), then Islamic education could benefit from it because it is common for all people.

2-       Islamic education is universal, good for establishing real happiness to mankind wherever they might be as it is concerned with morals and good behavior. Meanwhile secular education (non Islamic) which is prevailing now doesn’t have the least concern with spiritual and divine morals; thus it destroys what it constructs because it changes the moral happiness to a hell of distress confusion and disorder.

3-       Islamic teachings links education with faith, so from the Islamic point of view – all sciences are regarded as Islamic and could be oriented to achieve happiness, peace and security to the society. Thus Al-Nadwi sees the dual education is one of the reasons behind the ideological and cultural struggle in Islamic societies.

4-       It is highly important to implant religious values in the hearts of children and youngsters, culturing them and directing their behaviors and emotion towards loving their Creator and their prophet and their good ancestors.

5-       Education is a life-long process that accompanies man throughout his life and is concerned with the development of the mind, soul, and body side by side.

The study came to certain conclusions and recommendations that could be briefed as follows:

The educational thought that Abul Hasan Al-Nadwi has adopted is clear modern Islamic thought derived from the Holy Quran and the traditions of Prophet Mohammad (p.b.u.h) and his companions and righteous followers. This thought is characterized as moderate, balanced, and comprehensive, and aims at reforming individuals as well as societies through adopting old righteous heritage and making use of the beneficial new principles that would not contradict with the fixed and established principles of the Islamic nation. As for the recommendations, they were-in all-addressing thinkers, educationists, scholars, erudite and decision makers in the Islamic societies, so as to draw their attention to the Islamic ideologies in general and the thought of Abul Hasan Al-Nadwi in particular with the hope that they may find there in what may contribute to the solution of the problems that face education in the Islamic societies nowadays.

Abdul Mun`im Usman Al-Shaikh