KOZHIKODE: Rinshad C P, a native of Pattambi in Palakkad, is pursuing a course on Islamic Sharia. He is also taking classes on the Upanishads, Advaita philosophy and Bhagvad Gita, besides learning Sanskrit. It is not simply out of personal interest that Rinshad is studying Indian philosophy and Hindu scriptures. This is how the Islamic Sharia course, offered by Thrissur-based Academy of Sharia and Advanced Studies (ASAS), is designed.
In a world where people are quick to ridicule beliefs that differ from theirs, ASAS shows how learning about such views widens a person’s knowledge. This also makes the institution stand apart from other Islamic institutes. Run by Malik bin Dinar Islamic Complex, ASAS is under the management of Samastha Kerala Jam-Iyyathul Ulema, a Sunni organisation.
Samastha Ernakulam district secretary Onampilly Muhammad Faizy, a Sanskrit scholar himself, is the brain behind ASAS. “Here, we try to make our students aware of the rich diversity of Indian culture and inculcate a positive vibe in them at a time when they are bombarded with information that leaves them bitter,” said Faizy, who did graduation and post-graduation in Advaita from Sree Sankara College, Kalady.
Knowing only Islamic terminology hinders Muslim students: Faizy
Faizy said Sanskrit is taught in a systematic way, beginning with Sidharoopam. “Those more interested in learning it are sent to higher levels. Yatheendran, the disciple of Sanskrit scholar K P Narayana Pisharodi, is one of our faculty members. I teach the Bhagvad Gita,” he said.
ASAS holds workshops on Sanskrit regularly and encourages students to learn how to speak it. “Prophet Muhammad had told a youth to study the Syrian language. The more we delve into other systems, the more our horizons are widened,” Faizy said.
He said one of the hindrances Muslim students studying Islamic subjects face is that fact that they know only Islamic terminology. “This creates limitations in their interactions with other sections in society,” he said.
Students are admitted to ASAS after they clear the SSLC examination. Upon completing the eight-year course, they get a university degree besides a religious degree tiled ‘Maliki.’ The graduate degree is provided under the distance education stream of Calicut University. Rinshad, a sixth-year student, said: “I was fortunate to join the course as we are getting an opportunity to learn Sanskrit from experts and know about other beliefs and branches of knowledge here.”