Madrasas in the Age of Islamophobia

Ziya Us Salam is a noted literary and social commentator. A student of history from the University of Delhi, he is engaged in building bridges of commonality between communities through recourse to the Quran and the Vedas.He has been associated with The Hindu for almost two decades and has been its Features Editor for North India editions for 16 years. At present, he is an Associate Editor, Frontline, and writes on sociocultural issues for the magazine besides doing book reviews.A prolific and an acclaimed author, in 2019, he published Lynch Files, a take on victims of hate violence, and 365 Tales from Islam, a book that aims to introduce Islam to children. In the previous year, he had released Of Saffron Flags and Skull Caps, a take on the challenges to the idea of India, and Till Talaq Do Us Part, a study of various divorce options available in Islam. His book Delhi 4 Shows, a study of cinemas since the talkie era began, was released in 2016. His book Women in Masjid: A Quest for Justice was released recently.Ziya was a jury member of the International Film Festival of India (non-feature film, 2011), Best Writing on Cinema (2008) and Vatavaran.M. Aslam Parvaiz, who holds a PhD in plant physiology, is currently the Vice Chancellor of Maulana Azad National Urdu University at Hyderabad, India. Earlier he was the Principal of Zakir Husain Delhi College (University of Delhi). He is a science communicator, founder and editor of Urdu Science, India’s first and only popular science and environment monthly magazine published in Urdu since February 1994. He heads the Islamic Foundation for Science and Environment, a voluntary, non-profit, charitable organization.He works on interface of Islam and science/environment. He interprets Quran from a scientific perspective and promotes holistic education. His contributed chapters are included in books/ encyclopaedias published by reputed publishers. He has delivered invited lectures at Harvard, Yale, Toronto and many other institutions and organizations across the world.

What is the role of a madrasa? Should it concentrate on imparting Islamic instruction only and memorizing the Quran in Arabic without understanding the meaning or imbibing the values enshrined? Or should it produce a complete aalim (scholar) ready to take his place in the changing world with knowledge of modern science and technology?The answer to this question is provided by Ziya Us Salam and M. Aslam Parvaiz in Madrasas in the Age of Islamophobia.The book addresses two key questions: How madrasas are falsely accused by some politicians of producing radicalized students who pick up arms and indulge in militancy. And, how some madrasas are trying to find ways to stay relevant in contemporary times by imparting modern knowledge alongside Islamic teachings. The book shall remain relevant for those seeking to reform madrasa education.

• PrefaceAcknowledgementsMadrasas under a CloudReminiscences of a Utopian PastThe Deoband Conundrum: The Madrasa That Stood Still in TimeMadrasas in Modern India: Sorry State, Lofty Principles?Inside a Madrasa: A Painting of a Teacher and His PupilsNurturing LivesStepping beyond Their Usual RoleMadrasas in DystopiaThe Need for ModernizationFuture Perfect