Educational Interpretations of the Command to Read in the Classical Age of Islam

Abstract

The command to "read" in the first and third verses of the first five verses of Surah Alaq has always been considered important in education. Based on this statement, commentators are almost united in the conclusion that Islam attaches great importance to reading and learning. However, the specialty of the first commandment is not only in its message but also in the fact that it allows for a wide range of interpretations as an absolute expression. The command to read did not take any object and thus did not make a binding judgment on who should read and what they should read. This has opened the door for the commentators to ask the questions, "Who is the addressee of the command to read, and what constitutes its subject matter?" thus opening the door to the formation of different answers. This study, conducted as qualitative research based on document analysis, reveals how the commentators interpreted the read expressions in the first five verses of Surah Alak in the classical period tafsirs of the 14th century. "What is the addressee of the command to read?", "What is the object of the command to read?" and "What is the purpose of the command to read?" are the questions this study seeks to answer. The commentators of the classical period generally thought that this address was made to the Prophet Muhammad as the first addressee of the revelation. However, from a relatively early period, al-Maturidi [d. 333/944] states that the fact that the first address was made to the Prophet Muhammad does not change anything and that this address covers everyone. Ibn Taymiyya [d. 728/1328] was Maturidi's greatest supporter on this issue. He, too, accepts the first commandment as an address to all human beings in an absolute sense. These interpretations lead us to the conclusion that the addressee of the command to read is all human beings. Naturally, this understanding means giving equal opportunity to the education of all people regardless of gender, class, etc. Considering that education was presented as a privilege of certain groups of people from the earliest known examples until the end of the pre-modern period, the style of the first verse, which includes everyone in the education process without discrimination, seems remarkable. The command to read, which is left absolute, does not impose any restrictions on the recipients of this command, nor does it limit what should be read. Just as the object of creation was not mentioned in the first verse and the commentators concluded an unlimited object of creation from this, the same is true for the subject of the command to recite. In the words of al-Kirmani [d. 500/1106] and al-Bay.awi [d. 685/1286], the command to read, which is left "ta'mim/mutlaq," opens a wide field of reading and learning for Muslims. In addition to the Holy Qur'an, the most important content of Islamic educational programs, all useful knowledge (wisdom), regardless of religious/non-religious distinction, falls within the scope of Islam's command to read. The shelving of 400 thousand artifacts, considered world heritage, in Bayt al-Hikmah is a concrete and very early example of this understanding. It is meaningful that the first verse, which does not bring a record to the questions "Who is knowledge for?" and "What is its subject?" gives a clear answer to the question "How and why is knowledge done?" and brings a clear record. The fact that the command to read does not mention a specific object of reading or an addressee regarding who and what to read, while it introduces the record "bismi rabbik" regarding how and why it should be read, has been a subject much emphasized by the commentators. In their interpretations based on this expression, the commentators have concluded by starting reading by mentioning Allah's name, reading by asking for His help, and reading for Allah. Accordingly, the first verse emphasizes, "Whoever wants to learn whatever he wants to learn, let him do it in the name of Allah, asking for Allah's help, and the sake of Allah." Islam, which has the understanding that "the addressee of learning is everyone and the subject of learning is everything (that is useful)," has the sole record of knowledge and education as "the pleasure of Allah." According to the Islamic understanding, knowledge and education are done "in the name of Allah," "by asking for Allah's help," and "for Allah". When the literature of the classical period is examined, it will be seen that almost all authors, regardless of the field of science, first express the importance of knowledge in Islam and then emphasize that it should be done for the sake of Allah. "Why is education done?" is undoubtedly one of the most important questions of those engaged in education. Islam's answer to this question is "for the sake of Allah." From the Islamic point of view, it can be assumed that knowledge and education done for the sake of Allah will have positive results reflected worldwide. As a religion with a claim to universality, Islam invites "everyone" to learn "everything" useful without any limit by this claim, on the other hand, it has been stated since the first revelation that education, which today increasingly serves pragmatic purposes, should be done for lofty purposes.