My Advice to the Ulama

MY ADVICE TO THE ULAMA The Ulama are charged with being eternal guardians of people’s mental fabric, way of thinking, attitude and behaviour. Being charged with this role, religious scholars should impart education to people. A tradition of the Prophet states: “As you are, so shall be those appointed to govern you.” (Shuabul Iman, Hadith No. 7006) This tradition explains that while the position of political or societal leadership is that of the outer structure, the condition of individuals in society is of the utmost importance. The role of the Ulama are to lay the foundation of society by developing rightthinking in individuals, and political governance is the superstructure that rests on this foundation. It is a fact that people think and act according to their bent of mind. The role of Ulama is to direct the mindset of people towards the right thinking and guide them to the right path. Moreover, if the thinking of individuals in society is right, their actions will also be right; if the state of the individuals, a unit of society, is good, then inevitably, society will also be good. The Ulama continued to discharge their duties on this pattern for around a thousand years. Sadly, with the coming of the age of European colonialism, most