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The world's oldest
university and Sunni Islam's foremost seat of learning.
Preface
Al-Azhar university concerns itself with the religious syllabus, which
pays special attention to the Quranic sciences and traditions of the
prophet, on the one hand, while on the other, university teaches all the
modern scientific fields of science . Thus, the university has not only
fulfilled its obligations in these two fields of study but also
fulfilled its obligations towards the Arabic language which is the
language of the Holy Quran. In 1961, according to Al-Azhar university's
legislatory law No. 103 new colleges of applied sciences, such as the
faculties of Medicine and engineering, were introduced to Al-Azhar
university. These newly introduced faculties are not duplicates of their
counter- parts in other universities since they combine both the
empirical as well as the religious sciences. Alongside the Egyptian
students who are studying at Al-Azhar university, there are many other
students from the various Islamic and European countries. These foreign
Moslem brothers have exactly the same rights as the Egyptian students.
Al-Azhar
University Educational policy
Al-Azhar University is a natural expansion of the great mosque of
Al-Azhar, the oldest and most celebrated of all Islamic academic
institutes and Universities all over the world without exception. For
over one thousand year Al-Azhar was venerated cultural centre for all
Muslims in the East and West. Al-Azhar's educational policy is governed
and oriented by the following basic guide lines and principles : The
University of Al-Azhar is opened for all Muslim students who wish to
study a particular academic discipline or to further and deepen their
knowledge of Islamic Religion. The University of Al-Azhar is always
attempting to create a kind of intellectual unity between Muslims
everywhere in the Islamic world, it also works hard to cement and
strengthen their relationship and sharpen their loyalty to the Islamic
faith. In all its curriculum and scholarly activities the University is
concerned with everything that can strengthen the spiritual ties of
Islam, and revive the national sense of pride among its people. The
University is also keen to remain a guiding light for Islam and
stronghold for the Arab nation, inculcating the Islamic teaching in the
hearts and minds of Muslims, safeguarding its language, serving its
objectives and aims, reforming its cultural heritage, and illuminating
it for the benefit of mankind. Thus the University can perform the great
task that Al-Azhar took upon itself throughout the ages, and likewise it
keeps Egypt in its leading and pioneering position among Muslims. The
University of Al-Azhar aims to provide Egypt and the Arabic and Islamic
world with scholars and experts, well equipped with Islamic culture and
moral, and well prepared to serve their societies, and play their role
in building up their countries on faith and scientific basis . To
prepare a stock of leading and highly qualified academicians and
scientists for the coming generation in all branches of knowledge and
experience required for life in its spiritual and material sides. To
achieve this goal the university supports the higher studies, creating a
new area of different specializations, providing scholarships in various
walks of life to have the best experiences for the interest of Egypt and
all Muslims in the entire Muslim world. To keep an open eye on the
scientific activities and benefit from them, and to contribute towards
scientific progress and development through establishing and enforcing
academic relations between AL-AZHAR University and the Universities of
the entire world. It is also required to have such relations with
research foundations and all other academic and scientific centres and
to exchange academic visits with other universities, inviting the best
of scholars in their fields to deliver lectures, conduct research in all
different specializations. The university of Al-Azhar sends some of its
members of staff from time to time, to catch up with the most recent,
and up to date discoveries and developments in all the different
scientific and academic fields and various research activities.
Historical
Background
When Jawhar the Sicilian, commander of the Fatimid troops sent by the
Fatimid Caliph Almuiz to conquer Egypt, founded Cairo in 358 AH / 969 SD
he built Al-Azhar mosque. The mosque was completed in nearly two years.
It was first opened for prayers on 7th of Ramadan 361 A.H/ June 22, 972
AD. Since then it has become the most well-known mosque in the whole
Muslim World, and the oldest university ever for both religious and
secular studies.
Historians differ as to how the mosque
got its name. Some hold that it is called as such because it was
surrounded by flourishing mansions at the time when Cairo was founded.
Others believe that it was by then considered as a good omen of the high
status which the mosque was going to attain as a result of the
flourishing studies being conducted in the mosque. A third group believe
that it was named after "Fatima al-Zahraa" the daughter of Prophet
Mohamed (peace and blessing be upon him) to glorify her name. This last
explanation sounds the most likely as Fatimids themselves were called
after her.
The Beginning of the Scholarly
activities at Al-Azhar: Three and half years after its establishment,
Al-Azhar began to acquire its academic and scholastic nature. It was in
Ramadan, 365 AH (October 975 AD) during the reign of Al-Muiz when chief
justice Abu El-Hassan Ali ibn Al-Nu'man El-Kairawany sat in the court of
Al-Azhar and read "El-ikhtisar" a book written by his father Abu Hanifa
Al-Nu'man as a reference on Shi'ite law (fiqh). This happened in the
presence of a large audience whose names were recorded in memorial of
the occasion. Abu El-Hassan was the first to be given the title chief
Justice. This was the first Seminar to be held at Al-Azhar which was
followed by many others. Those seminars were religious, however they had
political overtones. At the beginning of the reign of Al-Aziz Billah,
Al-Azhar made great strides towards real academic studies. Jacob ibn
Killis, the minister of Al-Mu'eiz and later of Al-Aziz read his
'Al-Risalah Al-Azizyah' on Shi'ite law. He later developed studies at
Al-Azhar when he appointed thirty seven Jurists. He gave them monthly
salaries and build them houses near Al-Azhar. During the Fatimid period,
Al-Azhar was an essential part of the intellectual life. Beside the
usual seminars, moral education sessions were held for women. Al-Azhar
was also the official seat of judges on certain days and the accountant
or chief tax collector "Muhtasib" for nearly two centuries. Since the
collapse of Islamic Cultural Centres in Baghdad and Andalusia at the
greatest centre for Arabic and Islamic studies all over the world.
Right from the beginning, the seminars
held at Al-Azhar were of purely academic nature. They were inherently
characterized by free scientific discussions and scholarships. There was
also the system of instructors and visiting professors. Such activities
worked later as the foundations of the University academic system, which
became known later in both East and west. Hence, Al-Azhar has duly come
to be known as the oldest religious university all over the world.
Although Al-Azhar ceased to function
either as a university or as a mosque for nearly a century, during the
Ayyubid reign studies were conducted in the same way as they were during
the Fatimid period. However, they were mainly religious and linguistic.
During the Mamluks period 648-922 A.H/ 1250-1517 A.D, Al-Azhar assumed
new responsibilities towards the Muslim world.
As a result of Mughul attacks on
central Asia and the shrinkage of Muslim rule in Andalusia, Al-Azhar
became the only shelter for the scholars who were forced out of their
homeland. Those scholars helped Al-Azhar to reach the apex of its glory
during the eighth and ninth centuries A.H (14th and 15th centuries A.D).
It should be mentioned here that Al-Azhar played an important role in
the development of natural sciences. Some of Al-Azhar scholars studied
medicine, mathematics, Astronomy, geography and history. They put much
effort to advance these sciences even in times of political and
intellectual deterioration and stagnation.
Under the Ottomans, Al-Azhar was
financially independent because of the Waqfs (endowments), the scholars
were free to choose their fields of study and the text books. Thus
Al-Azhar had its own free identity and became a leading Islamic and
Arabic centre.
It attracted many teachers as well as
many students from all over the Islamic world. It is worth mentioning
that the Ottomans never appointed one of them as Grand Imam of Al-Azhar.
This high position entirely left for the Egyptians. When Bonaparte
attacked Egypt in (1213 A.H / July 1789 A.D) he looked upon Al-Azhar as
the most well-known university in the whole Islamic world. During his
exile at Saint. Helena he wrote in his dairy that Al-Azhar was the
counterpart of Sorbonne in Paris. He looked highly upon Al-Azhar Ulama
as the elite of the educated class and as the leaders of the people.
When he first set foot in Cairo he formed a special council (diwan) to
govern the capital. That council consisted of nine eminent Sheikhs under
the chairmanship of Sheikh Abdullah Al-Sharkawi, the grand Imam of
Al-Azhar at that time. The formation of this council stands as an
evidences of the importance of Al-Azhar and the high status of its Ulama
.
However, Al-Azhar was the meeting place
for the opponents of the French occupation and the seat of the
revolution. A special revolutionary committee was formed under the
leadership of Sheikh Mohamed El-Sadat. When the revolution broke out
against the French, the grand Imam and the Ulama Decided that it was
impossible to carry on their studies, so they closed the mosque.
This has been the only time for
Al-Azhar to be closed over its long history. When the French evacuated
three years later, Al-Azhar resumed its normal activities and received
its teachers and students. When Mohammad Ali took over the rule of Egypt
in 1220 A.H 1805 A.D he planned to set up a modern state. To achieve his
aim he greatly depended on Al-Azhar. He sent scholarships from among the
students of Al-Azhar to Europe. These students were the pioneers who
raised high the banner of the modern renaissance in Egypt. Most of the
leading figures including the leader of the Orabi revolution were
graduates of Al-Azhar. This also applied to the leader of 1919
revolution, Saad Zaghloul as well as many other leading personalities,
Mohamed Abdu and El-Manfaloty for example completed their studies at
Al-Azhar. The most significant incident was the meeting of both Muslim
Ulama and Christian priests in the porticos of Al-Azhar addressing
people from the pulpit of Al-Azhar .
When the 1952 revolution took place,
Al-Azhar was one of the society that has been modernized and developed
so that it can effectively carry out its illuminating role for the
welfare not only of Egypt, but also of the Arab and whole Islamic world.
Contact
Al-Azhar
University Address Any inquiries of correspondence should be addressed
to the president of "AL-AZHAR" University Madinat Nasr, Cairo, The Arab
Republic of Egypt.
Cairo :2611419 - 2623278
Telex :21945
Fax :2611404
Email
Azhar@azhar.eun.eg
http://www.islamfortoday.com/alazhar.htm
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