THE ROLE OF THE ULEMA — Guidance and Reformation

In life, the question of people’s character is more important than that of the government that rules over them. The former is the base, while the latter is the super-structure, which rests on this base. Often, people mistakenly perceive this superstructure to be more important than the base, but in reality the base is much more vital. It is for this reason that the status of the ulema is loftier than that of the rulers, and the divine reward that they will receive is more, too. This principle was established in the early period of Islam, and it shaped the actions of the ummah in later times as well. In Islam’s early period, a group among the Companions of the Prophet engaged in physical jihad, while another group, including, for instance, Abdullah ibn Abbas, Abdullah ibn Masud and Abdullah ibn Umar, devoted themselves to the fields of scholarship and inviting people to Islam. No matter how degenerate the system of governance may appear to have become, the ulema must not deviate from the work that they have been entrusted with. Among the two generations that followed the Companions of the Prophet, this same division of sphere of activity was observed. Some of these early Muslims specialized in the scholarly field, including Quranic commentary, Hadith, fiqh and related disciplines. This pattern continued for around a thousand years. Those who specialized in the field of scholarship, as Quranic reciters, Hadith scholars, fuqaha, ulema, Islamic missionaries, Sufis, teachers and so on, focused on their own particular sphere of activity. This division of work gave rise to a glorious history of scholarship and communicating the message of God, a precious legacy of the ummah. Had all the Muslims in this period devoted themselves to armed jihad, it would certainly have created an enormous vacuum in the history of Islam. The Emperor Aurangzeb This tradition, of a clear distinction between the spheres of activity of the ulema and the political class, was first breached in India in a significant way at the time of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb (16181707). Although Aurangzeb was born in the royal family, he was an alim. Aurangzeb’s father, the Emperor Shah Jahan, wanted to make his elder son, Dara Shikoh, his successor. In this way, circumstances seemed to have been taking Aurangzeb in the direction of becoming an