The Stages of Islamic Scholarship

Golden age: The age at the time of the Prophet (saw). There was a direct link between the ummah and Allah in every aspect of human life through the Prophet (saw).

Organic flourishing: This is the age which begins right after the death of the Prophet (saw) and continues till the time of the salaf. This is the age where differences of opinions started forming. Right after the death of the prophet (saw), the sahabah (ra) differed on the caliphate. However, much of these differences remained confined to legal matters. Another aspect of this age is that the opinions were fluid and there were no clear boundaries between the various opinions.

The age of crystallization: This age begins from the time of the salaf and continues till the 3^rd or 4^th Century. The ummah starts coming in contact with other civilizations and new ideas start getting incorporated. Boundaries become more defined. This age sees the rise of various groups, schools of thoughts etc. Schisms between the shi’a and sunnis become more apparent, and the theology between the two major strands of Islam start to differ.

The age of development: This age begins from about the mid of the 3^rd century and continues until the 8^th century; where the various schools that were formed in the previous age continue to evolve and great scholars emerge in each of the schools. This is the time of Imam al Ghazali, ibn Taymiyyah, ar-Razi and the likes – each making major contribution to their own school of thought. Law starts getting codified and commentaries on earlier books become more popular.

The age of preservation: This age begins at around the 8^th century and continues until the 13^th century. No real “development” happens at this stage – rather, the ‘ulema are more focused on the preservation of the knowledge of the previous generations. On a socio-political front, the empire has begun to decline, and therefore, the ‘ulema feel the need to avoid every single aspect of knowledge that may be imported from non-Muslim sources, even if it did not have anything to do with the deen. Unlike previous ages, where the good from all sources was taken in, the Muslim scholarship became close-minded.

The age of modernity and colonization: The turning point of the ummah begins when Napolean attacks the Mamluks. The symbolism is profound here – the Muslims were fighting with swords, bows and arrows, whereas the French had guns and canons. Elsewhere, in southern Asia, the uprising of 1857 fails and the Mughal sultanate is dead. An attempt to revive the ummah is made. For example, in India, the Deobandi movement focuses on education. In the Arabian peninsula, the Najdi da’wah begins. In Africa, inspired the Shehu Usman dan Fodio’s writings, the Tijani movement, Ahmadu Bamba’s movements get popular. This age was thrust upon the ummah and we’re effectively products of this age. Much of our understanding of the deen remains reactionary.

We pray that a revival occurs in due time.