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Lesser Known World - The Madrasa
Need an editable PowerPoint map of India “We want you to design and conduct an education development program for the Maulanas and Mohtamims of Madrasas in four states” - I was told by my client. “Who is actually a Maulana?” and “who is a Mohtammm ....err?”- I reacted. This was how my journey began in this lesser known world about four months ago. As soon as I started pondering over the issue, the visuals of Muslim kids moving back and forth like a pendulum and reading aloud some religious verses crossed my mind. Suddenly, “Breaking News” on 9/11 and “Breeding ground for terrorists” flashed in front from somewhere deep inside my subconscious mind. I was wondering – what on earth do Madrasas have to do with education? I tried to talk about this issue with some friends but withdrew with a threat of these thoughts getting reinforced. So, I decided to have a first-hand experience, and with this thought, I visited a Madrasa in Delhi. I met the Principal (Mohtamim) and bombarded him with questions. He smiled at me as if I am a lost kid and asked me to explore the Madrasa. I headed towards a classroom, where to my utter surprise students were solving mathematical problems. Next classroom, a gentleman with long beard was explaining photosynthesis to his students. I found that he was a retired school teacher who was now teaching in Madrasa daily for two hours. In another classroom students were learning to construct sentences in English. I rushed back to the Mohtamim and asked if this is some special kind of Madrasa. He laughed and said – “This is not a special but a typical Madrasa”. I didn’t believe him and asked if there are few Madrasas nearby which I can visit just now. He gave me a few addresses including that of a girls’ Madrasa. I went to those and many more Madrasas in four states of UP, Bihar, Rajasthan and Delhi and found the same story – students getting not just religious education (Din i Taleem) but also the general education (Duniyawi Taleem). Not just boys but also the girls, although separately. Madrasa literally means "a place where learning/studying is done". Maulana of a Masjid or any educated person from the community finds some place in the Masjid and starts imparting religious and life skills education to the Madrasa children in his or her locality. After some time s/he is able to hire few more people on a very low salary and gets involved in managing the Madrasa and gets some funds for it basically through Zakat. It is not that Madrasas teach just the Quran or other religious texts. There is a separate batch for people who just want take religious education and these are known as Hafiz. Others (a larger percentage) read science, math, and other general subjects along with religious texts. Madrasas actually play a vital role in educating the Muslim community by bridging the gap created due to non-availability of formal educational opportunities in backward areas of the country. Madrasas teach Muslims who are poor and have no other alternatives for education. Parents of many students studying in government schools send their children to Madrasas to learn not just adab (manners) but also the general subjects as they consider them better than government schools. The graduate certificates of the Madrasas are recognized by many universities like Jamia Milia Islamia, Jamia Hamdard, and Aligarh Muslim University for enrolment in select post graduate programs. In states like Bihar, Madrasa certificates are recognized as equivalent to secondary and senior secondary level. A key I consider this to be an opportunity of life time to meet Madrasa people. We discussed, argued, laughed and sang together. Many questions were answered, many doubts resolved. I found a new love in the form of Urdu and have started understanding Ghazals better! To those who want to understand more, I suggest making a visit to a nearby Madrasa, and, to those who think that Madrasas breed terrorists, think again!
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