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بِسمِ
اللهِ
الرَّحْمَنِ
الرَّحِيمِ Allah,
in the name of, the Most Affectionate, the Eternally Merciful |
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Islamic
Studies Program
Knowing
is not enough, we must apply! |
علوم
اسلامیہ
پروگرام
علم
کافی نہیں
ہے، اسے
استعمال
کرنا ضروری
ہے |
|
اردو
اور عربی تحریروں کو بہتر
دیکھنے کے
لئے نسخ اور
نستعلیق
فانٹ یہاں سے
ڈاؤن لوڈ کیجیے
New articles and books are added
this website on 1st of each month. |
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Quranic Studies Program Frequently Asked Questions اردو
ورژن کے لئے یہاں
کلک کیجیے |
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Allah,
in the name of, the Most Affectionate, the Eternally Merciful. Different
readers and students ask many questions about the "Quranic Studies Program"
which are mentioned here. They include the advanced
questions asked by the participants who have enrolled themselves into this
program. FAQs before Enrollment Various
readers, after reading the introduction, usually ask the following questions: Q1: What is
the objective of the "Quranic Studies Program? Answer: The main
objective of this program is to provide a resources and a systematic way to
the students of Islamic Studies who want to study the discipline of
Quranology in depth. In addition to that, we have dedicated ourselves to
answer the queries raised related to Quranology. Q2: The
program is for which type of students and what are the conditions for
admission? Answer: The program is designed for the people who are interested in studying
the Holy Quran and related disciplines in depth. All interested Muslims and
Non-Muslims, regardless of their sectarian association, are highly welcomed
in this program. We are committed to respect your viewpoint, even different
from ours. We will take care in using expressions related to sensitive issues
Insha Allah. The condition
to join this program is your interest. If you are interested, please download
the "Admission Form" and send it to mubashirnazir100@gmail.com after
its completion. We shall provide you the study material as soon as possible
after receiving your form. Q3: Is the program not designed for specific type of people? Answer: Yes, the
program is not designed for those who are not much
interested in reading. If it is difficult for you to read books and heavy
volumes scare you, the program is not for you. It is not a weakness
as God has not created every person for every task. As this
program involves comparative study of the exegeses wrote by scholars
belonging to different schools of thought, therefore, it is essential that
you are willing to read a different opinion with an open mind. If you do not
like to read anything different and it causes inconvenience in your mind,
then the program is not for you. Q4: What is
the fee for this program? Answer: We do not
receive any fees for this program. However, in order to improve commitment
level among participants, we advise you to pay a certain amount of fees to
poor person in your vicinity. The receipient should
not be a professional beggar and you should pay the amount to him/her monthly
in a respectful manner. Please mention the amount of fees in your admission
form and provide a confirmation in your progress reports. Q5: What is
the minimum amount payable as fees? Answer: It depends on
your income. Pay the amount you can easily contribute from your income
directly to a poor person. Q6: What is
the reason behind having a fee for this program? People who
cannot afford should do what? Answer: There are two
objectives of having a fees: (1) To develop
habit of spending in Allah's way in the
participants. We want to establish habit in our participants that they share
their income with their brothers and sisters who are unable to fulfill even
their basic needs. You are depositing this amount in your bank account, and
on the Day of Judgment. You will receive exponential return on it from Allah. (2) Due to
payment of fees, many students become regular in their studies and consider
it their responsibility to complete the course work after payment of fees. The
participants, who are unable to pay fees, are exempt from it. However, it is
highly advisable for them to pay a meager amount in order to build habit of
spending in Allah's way. A buck of a poor spent on charity is much rewardable than thousands spent by rich people. Q7: Who are
the people running this program and to which school of thought do they
belong? Answer: The people
running this program do not belong to any particular school of thought. They
associate themselves to "Islam" only and do not subscribe to any
particular school. They include: ·
Professor Muhammad Aqil: He is a professor
in a college in ·
Abu Yahya: He also
belongs to ·
Muhammad Mubashir Nazir: He belongs to
None of them
considers himself as a scholar. All of them call themselves as students of
religion and share their knowledge with others with an intention to serve
others. Q8: What is
the background of current participants enrolled in this program? Answer: We have
participants from diverse backgrounds and ethnic communities. They include
students of religious seminaries and modern universities, civil servants,
professionals like doctors, engineers and accountants, and businesspersons. The only common element in them is that they are
open-minded and use internet frequently for educational purpose. Q9: Who is
financing this program? Answer: We do not
need any financing for running this program as all the required resources are
available free of cost on internet. The participants are working with
different companies and spend their extra time in
religious activities without receiving any remuneration. Q10: Is this
program designed for people belonging to a particular sect or cult? Answer: No. The
program is available to broadminded people of all religions, regardless of
their religious or sectarian association. We have included Quranic exegeses
of scholars belonging to different schools of thought in order to compare
different viewpoints with an open mind. Whether you agree or disagree with us
on any issue, it will not affect your participation in this program and we
will try our best to respect your viewpoint and take care of your emotions. Q11: How could
I get myself enrolled into this program? Answer: Download the
"Admission Form" and send it to the email address mentioned here
after completion. The address is mubashirnazir100@gmail.com.
We shall try to send you the material as soon as possible. Q12: All the
commentaries included in this program are available online. Why should I get
admission? Answer: Enrolling
into this program has its own benefits: ·
ٓAvailability of additional course
material including workbooks. You will be able to organize your studies in a
systematic manner. ·
Availability of online instructors to
answer your questions. You will be able to get answers to your questions as
soon as possible. ·
Availability of an online group of
participants. You will be able to share your experience with each other. If you do not need these benefits, then you can study
the exegeses without enrolling yourselves. Q13: Why did
you select the commentaries of Muhammad Asad, Syed Abul A'ala Mawdudi and Muhammad
Hussain Al-Tabatabi to be studied in this program? Answer: The criteria
of inclusion was as follows: ·
The commentary should be written for a
layman but includes significant discourses of the modern age. ·
The commentary is available online. ·
The
commentary should be neither too long nor too short. ·
Language
used in the commentary should be easy, polite, meets certain literary
standards and avoid negative expressions. The commentary of Asad represents how does a newly
converted Muslim from Q14: Why did
you not include all of those commentaries that are available in the Urdu
version of this program? Answer: The major
reason for not including all of them is that the English translations of most
of them are not available. Secondly, they were included in the Urdu version
to study the subtle disputed issues of the Muslims of South Asia, in which an
international reader may not be much interested. Q15: Why
should I study exegesis? Is it mandatory to study exegesis in order to
understand the Quran? Answer: If you want
to study the Quran at laic level, it is not essential to read its
commentaries. You can read any good translation of the
Quran and may consult any commentary, if a question arises in your mind. If
you are not satisfied by the answer provided in the commentary, you can read
another commentary or consult a scholar. However, if you want to study the meaning of the Quran
at an academic and intellectual level, then you must study the exegeses,
which discuss the hot issues of the modern age. The reason for using exegesis
is as follows: ·
Historical
and background information about the Surahs and verses of the Quran is
available in the books of exegesis. ·
The Quranic
exegetes try to provide answers to the common questions arising in mind of
readers. ·
You can get
additional information about the Quranic content by reading a commentary. For
example, geographical information about the places mentioned in the Quran and
historical information about the nations referred in the Quran is available
in the books of exegesis. ·
Sometimes, a
reader may not properly discern an elusive point but the exegete, an expert
in Quranology, draws his attention towards the point. Q16: Are all
commentaries authentic and free from error? Answer: No. None of
the exegetes claim that their commentaries are free from error. They present
their books as a human work which is subject to error and criticism. They
even present the Quranic verses and their translation in a different format
in order to distinguish God's words with theirs. A commentator is also an ordinary person, not a
prophet, and may commit mistakes. He may forget or misunderstand things, be
affected by emotions of bias, so his commentaries may include mistakes. Q17: How could
we avoid mistakes of commentators? Is there not even a single authentic
commentary free from mistakes? Answer: We cannot
find even a single commentary free from mistakes as all human works are
subject to the element of human error. The correct method to avoid mistakes
is comparative study of different exegesis. It is highly unlikely that two
independent exegetes belonging to different schools of thought may commit the
same mistake. Q18: Is your
"Quranic Studies Program" free from mistakes and authentic? Answer: Not at all.
We are not prophets and are subject to error like other persons. May Allah
forgive us for our mistakes! We are very open to improve ourselves and humbly
request you to inform us about any mistake you find in any of our writings. Q19: Are various
Quranic commentaries completely different from each other? Answer: No. Scholars
and exegetes agree about the meaning of 98% the Quranic words, phrases and
sentences. However, they differ on certain points and present their opinions
with their line of reasoning. We can select the correct point of view by
comparing their arguments. Contents of
various commentaries may be different due to academic orientation, expertise
and priorities of different commentators. For example, if an exegete is expert
in history, he will provide in-depth historical information. Similarly, if he
is proficient in hermeneutics and linguistics, he will give a deep insight
into grammatical and linguistic issues. If he has a good knowhow of social
sciences, he will provide more details about the sociological issues
mentioned in the Quran. Due to this reason, every commentary is unique and
carries special importance. Q20: Am I
required to read all three commentaries in this program? Answer: No. You are required to read only one commentary from
cover to cover. It is your choice to select the commentary you like the most.
However, you will consult other commentaries when you are asked to do so in
your workbook. We have tried to design assignments in a way that you will
automatically read all extraordinary works included in each commentary. If
you are interested in reading all the commentaries from cover to cover, you
can do so. Q21: Your
program sounds too long, too difficult and too boring. Why? Answer: We have tried
our best to keep it as short as possible in order to avoid irksomeness. You
can easily complete a lesson in one to two hours. If you are studying for one
hour daily, you can complete a lesson in two days. Each module is comprised
of 20 lessons at average; therefore, you can complete a module in 30-45 days
which is far less than any course work in a college or university. The program is
not complicated. At beginning, you may feel some difficulties due to not
understanding the structure of the workbook but once you comprehend the
structure, the program will be very easy for you. We have specifically
included the commentaries which are written in easy and intelligible way.
Support of online instructors will be available to you all the times, in case
you feel any difficulty. We have tried our best to design attractive assignments
and covered the most interesting part of each commentary. However, if you
still feel it irksome and tedious, it means that you do not have much
interest in reading academic works. It is not a personality weakness, as God
has not made every person to do every task. In that case, you should read
only the plain translation of the Holy Quran and consult a commentary, if a
question arises. If you do not like reading, then it is better for you to
listen the translation of the Holy Quran which is widely available in audio
format on the internet. Download and copy the audio files on an MP4 player or
make its CDs. You can listen it during traveling or doing some physical work.
In that case, you do not need to join this program. Your suggestions to improve this program will be highly
welcomed. Q22: I have
never read the translation of the Holy Quran. From which module should I
start? Answer: You should
start from the Module QS01 which is specifically designed for the beginners. Q23: I have
read the translation of the Holy Quran. From which module should I start? Answer: You should
start from the Module QS02 that is designed for intermediate students.
However, if you can glance at the assignments
of the Module QS01, you may find them interesting. If you have already studied 2-3 major commentaries of
the Quran, you should directly go for the Module QS07 but it is not available
now. We shall try to make it available in a few months. Q24: I am a
doctor / engineer / accountant / lawyer / businessperson by profession. Why
should I join this program? Answer: It depends on
your academic interests. If you are interested in getting a deep insight into
the meaning of the Quran, this program is specifically intended for you. For
professionals like you, it is difficult to join a religious seminary or a
university on full time basis. We have launched this program to cater the
needs of professional who want to learn by self-study. The program is
designed in a way that you can learn from
beginner to advanced levels and online instructors are available to help you in
finding answers of your questions. Q25: I am enrolled
in a religious seminary and I am a full time student of religion. What is the
attraction for me in this program? Answer: You should
compare the syllabus of this program with the one you are studying at the
seminary. If you feel that additional knowledge is offered in this program,
you are highly welcomed to join us. It is a common practice in religious
seminaries to teach some abridged commentaries of middle ages which do not
address the issues of modern age. In the area of the Quranic Hermeneutics, their
syllabus is not very comprehensive and includes some small books. The
"Quranic Studies Program" carries some benefits for the full time
students of religious seminaries. They include the following: ·
By studying
he commentaries written in the age of modernism and postmodernism, you will
get a deep insight into theological, political, social and economic issues of
the modern age. ·
The expressive
style of the modern commentaries is very different from that of old ones. You
can observe the differences of modern and mediaeval commentaries that will
add diversity to your knowledge level. ·
At Module
QS07, we shall study the Quranology at very advanced level. It will include
the most significant content of the work of great Quranologists like Zarkashi
(d. 794H/1391CE), Sayuti (d. 911H/1505CE) and Shah Waliullah (d.
1175H/1762CE). ·
A person can
comprehend the academic content better if it is taught in his/her native
language. We are providing such content in English and Urdu languages which
will be helpful for their native students. We do not claim that our syllabus is an alternative to
the one being taught at the religious seminaries. It is rather a supplement
to that. If students of religious seminaries study this syllabus along with
theirs, they can develop great expertise in the area of Quranology. If you find that the syllabus at your seminary is more
advanced than the one being studied here, please do provide us your
suggestions to us in order to improve this program. Q26: I am a
full time student of Islamic Studies at a modern university. Why should I
join this program? Answer: In modern universities,
the syllabus of Bachelors and Masters in Islamic Studies is usually modern
and comprehensive. However, it generally does not include an in-depth study
of Quranology and comparative study of the Quranic commentaries. We shall
discuss very advanced issues in the Module QS07 Insha Allah. If you can study
this syllabus along with yours, you will get an exhaustive understanding of Quranology. If you find that the syllabus at your university is
more advanced than the one being studied here, please do provide us your
suggestions to us in order to improve this program. Q27: I do not
find enough time for studies. Can I still benefit from this program? Answer: Yes. If you
do not have enough time, you can continue your studies at a lower pace. For
example, if an average participant completes a lesson in one day, you can
complete it in four days. Similarly, if an average participant completes a
module in six weeks, you can do so in 24 weeks. Your circumstances may change over time. If, for
instance, you are giving half hour to your studies today, you might be
spending two hours in future. Therefore, it is better to continue at the
speed you can, as something is always better than nothing. FAQs after Enrollment Many participants ask the following questions after
enrolment. Q1: The
download links you provided for different commentaries are not working. What
to do? Answer: We provided
you two links. If both of them are not working, do the following: ·
Try after sometime. Due to some
technical issues, respective server may be down but it may start working
after some time. ·
Search the name of the respective
commentary on the internet to find further download links. ·
If you are still unable to find the
commentary, contact us on the email provided and we shall try our best to
provide you the commentary as soon as possible. Q2: I
downloaded a commentary but it is not opening? Answer: This usually
happens when the file is not completely downloaded. Check the size of your
file with that given on the respective web page. If the file is not
completely downloaded, repeat the download. Q3: I have
enrolled myself in this program. Can I read any commentary of the Quran other
than the ones provided by you? Answer: If you have
time, we shall encourage you to do so but please give priority to the ones
included in your syllabus as reading them is compulsory. If you have time and
you want to get more and more knowledge, then your quest is admirable. As you
have already started a systematic study, therefore, we shall advise you to read
other commentaries after completing your syllabus. Q4: A lot of
questions are appearing in my mind during studies. What to do? Answer: Please feel
free to send them to us on mubashirnazir100@gmail.com.
Kindly include only one question in an email and write an appropriate title
in the subject so that we can easily sort and respond to you in minimum time. Q5: In how
much time I will receive your response? Answer: We try our
best to respond all queries in 24 hours. However, if it is delayed due to
sickness, traveling, unavailability of internet or some other reason, we
apologize in advance. Q6: How do you
manage time along with your job to write on religious issues and answering so
quickly to the readers? Answer: The nature of
my job is project oriented and I find enough time to write on religious
issues during the intervals between two projects. Moreover, most of the time
in my job is spent on following my colleagues up to provide information. I
also utilize that time for writing on religious issues. Additional time is
also available on weekends. It does not
mean that I am living an imbalanced life. As I receive salary from my
employer, therefore, the top most priority for me is my official work. I try
my best to not miss any deadline and also try to do my work according to the
professional standards. I also spend time with my family in evening and over
the weekends, play squash or tennis four times a week and take an eight-hour
sleep in the night to keep myself active and healthy. I find enough time in
my evenings because I do not watch television. God has given me a little
sense of time management, so all these works are easily managed. Q7: I am not
finding enough time for studies. Please suggest some tips. Answer: The solution
is proper time management. If you succeed in that, you will have enough time
to do anything. Some tips are as follows: ·
We must realize the importance of
time. Allah, the Almighty, bless us with 86,400 gold particles (seconds)
daily. Each second in our life is equivalent to a gold particle and wasting
time on useless activities is similar to throwing gold away in trash. It is
upon us to utilize these particles in getting some temporal or spiritual
benefit. ·
Establish your priorities. Note down
the tasks you normally do in a week, prepare a complete list and classify them
into necessary and unnecessary tasks. You will be amazed that we spend most
of our time on activities that do not bear any fruit in this world or in the
afterlife. For example, many people spend their time on watching useless
programs on the idiot box (television); many others keep watching news
channels that give them no benefit except raising their blood pressure level.
Talking on politics, gossiping, browsing useless websites, aimless chatting
and even participating in religious programs that add nothing to our
knowledge are the activities in which we waste our time. If we minimize (if
not eliminate) such activities, we can utilize our time better. ·
We waste a lot of time intervals in
our life which could be utilized in a better way. For example, we can use the
commuting time to our office. If you drive your own car, you can listen an
audio file of some academic book on a CD or MP4 player. If you are using
public transport, you can utilize that time by reading a book. In your
office, the time wasted during waiting for documents etc. from our colleagues
can be used better instead of aimless browsing of internet. Businesspersons
can use the time when their peak hours are over. ·
The tasks, which you can assign to
others, should be delegated. For example, if you can afford a servant at your
home, do so. It will give you extra time and an unemployed person will find a
job. If you cannot afford a servant, you can think about delegating some
tasks to your spouse and children without putting extra burden over them. Q8: I have
downloaded all the books but I am confused about the starting point? Answer: There is no
need to be confused. Start with the workbook of the respective module as it
contains detailed instructions for using other sources. You should consult
other books only when you are asked to do so in the workbook. Q9: What
approach have you adopted in raising our knowledge level? Answer: The program
is divided into three levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced. The Module
QS01 is related to the beginner's level while the Module QS07 comprises the
advanced level. The five modules from QS02 to QS06 are related to
intermediate level. Your knowledge level will increase gradually when you
will be promoted from one module to another. Q10: What
reading materials do you provide? Answer: We provide
the following reading materials: ·
The workbooks for all modules ·
An introductory book to the Quranic
Studies that should be read during the Module QS02 ·
An advanced book to Quranology that
should be read during the Module QS07. ·
Three commentaries that we are
studying in the intermediate modules. Q11: I have a
commentary included in this course in printed form. Do I still need to
download it? Answer: No. It is
better to read in the printed form. Q12: I am
facing a problem in online studies. When I read on a computer screen, my eyes
and head is ached. What is the solution? Answer: It may be due
to two reasons. Either your eyesight is weak or there is no proper
illumination at your place of reading. You should consult an ophthalmologist
to discuss this issue. If your eyesight is weak, you should buy anti-reflection
glasses that will help you in reading. Secondly, you can adjust the light of
your monitor and your place of work. If the problem still persists, you
should consult an eye specialist. In that case, it is better to avoid reading
on the computer. You can print the reading material. Some material is
available in the audio format, so you can use your ears instead of eyes. Q13: It is
difficult to download big files of commentaries. What to do? Answer: If you do not
have a DSL internet connection, you can download them in an internet café and
copy them in a flash disk. Q14: Sometimes,
due to power interruption, a file is not completely downloaded. What is the
solution? Answer: You can use
"Mozilla Firefox" for downloading. It saves partial files and
resumes the download when the computer restarts. Q15: I was
busy during last week and did not study. What is your opinion? Answer: It is part of
life but you should spend at least a few minutes even in busy periods in
order to maintain the momentum of your studies. Q16: If I feel
irksomeness during studies, what should I do? Answer: You should
stop reading and go for some entertaining activity. Q17: Is there
a time limit to complete a module? Answer: If you are
spending one hour daily on your studies, you should be able to complete a
module in four to six weeks. If you are spending more or less time daily, the
time of completion will be adjusted in an inverse proportion. Q18: Children
disturb me a lot while studying at home. What to do? Answer: The immediate
solution is that you should conduct your studies in a library or a mosque. If
possible, you can also stay in your office for an hour after the office time.
In the long run, you should develop the habit of reading in your children.
Buy them interesting books and create academic interest in them. Try to develop
academic environment in your home and you will see that soon they will start
realizing that reading is an extremely interesting task. Q19: I did not
find answer of my question in the above-mentioned FAQs. What to do? Answer: Please feel
free to send an email to mubashirnazir100@gmail.com.
We shall try our best to respond to you as soon as possible. |
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مصنف
کی دیگر تحریریں قرآنی
عربی
پروگرام / سفرنامہ
ترکی
/ مسلم
دنیا اور ذہنی،
فکری اور نفسیاتی
غلامی
/ اسلام
میں جسمانی و
ذہنی غلامی
کے انسداد کی
تاریخ / تعمیر
شخصیت
پروگرام / قرآن اور
بائبل
کے دیس میں / علوم
الحدیث: ایک
تعارف / کتاب الرسالہ:
امام شافعی کی
اصول فقہ پر
پہلی کتاب کا
اردو ترجمہ و
تلخیص
/ اسلام
اور دور حاضر
کی تبدیلیاں / ایڈورٹائزنگ
کا اخلاقی
پہلو سے
جائزہ / الحاد
جدید کے مغربی
اور مسلم
معاشروں پر
اثرات / اسلام
اور نسلی و
قومی امتیاز / اپنی
شخصیت اور
کردار کی تعمیر
کیسے کی
جائے؟
/ مایوسی
کا علاج کیوں
کر ممکن ہے؟ / دور جدید
میں دعوت دین
کا طریق کار / اسلام
کا خطرہ: محض ایک
وہم یا حقیقت /
Quranic Concept of Human Life Cycle
/ Empirical
Evidence of God’s Accountability
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