When you look at current happenings in the world, you
would realize some countries have had to go to war because of religious
differences. Religion is so much a sensitive spot that moves people to act
passionately in the spirit of defending what they hold sacred.
Karl Marx,
one of the greatest sociologists of all time is quoted to have said “Religion
is the opium of the masses”.
Ghana is not far from countries within the West African
sub region which have been caught in religious violence, the evidence is in
what is happening in our sister African countries like Nigeria, Mali, Kenya, Somalia,
Central Africa Republic and in other parts of the world.
Most of these wars are borne out of petty
misunderstandings of each other’s religion. A little reading on the other’s
religion would help a lot in clearing this misunderstanding. My issue is with
the usage of the term “Mallam” to connote the activities of a ritualist or a
spiritual healer. It is common to hear people say they are going to a Mallam to
seek for one spiritual help or another. I have no worries in seeking super
natural help from people who claim to have such powers. My worry is when these
people are referred to as “Mallams”- an otherwise respected figure in the
Islamic religion.
The word “Mallam” has been given different meanings in
the Ghanaian context for a very long time. Most Ghanaians have come to
understand the word “Malam” differently from its original context. I will take
time to explain the word “Malam” with the hope that misconception and abuse of
that holistic word would stop.
The word “Malam”, is a distorted Arabic word rightly
pronounced "Mu'allim" which means "teacher". The word “Ulama”
is the plural of “Alim”, Arabic for "Man of knowledge," teacher or
authority. “Alim” is derived from the term “Elm”, (knowledge) but, the word
Malam soon became generally referred to a man with deep knowledge about Islamic
religion.
The opposite of Elm is jahl, meaning ignorance, “Jahilia”
or “Jahiliyah” refers, usually derisively, to the period before Islam - the
period of ignorance, in Islamic teaching. Both terms, “Alim” and “Jahil” appear
frequently in the Holy Quran. Therefore “Ulama” are guardians against a return
to “Jahiliyah”. Interestingly, the word “Alim” literarily and generally means
men of secular science or, simply, a Scientist.
The “Ulama” as a class are men of knowledge in Sunni
Islam who have been trained in the religious sciences, such as the Quran, Hadith
and other Islamic Religious Knowledge thus qualifying them to exercise
authority in the mosque or in the “Madrassas” (Islamic schools). Therefore, an
“Alim” may lead prayers and deliver the Friday sermon, perform rituals at
marriage, birth and deaths ceremonies and other religious occasions.
I would like to discuss the role of the “Ulama” (Islamic
scholars) in Islamic society based on the Al-Qur’an and the Sunnah.
In Islam, no person has the religious authority that
require others to submit to his personal view and interpretation. We do have
Islamic scholars who are well-versed in the Qur’an and Sunnah and Islamic
Jurisprudence (Shariah) in general. We know of the national Chief Imam who is regarded
as a father and teacher to all Muslims in Ghana.
The excellence of learned people (Ulama) in the
Qur’an is manifest in: “Allah (Himself) proffers evidence: and so do the angels
and all who are endowed with knowledge - that there is no deity save Him ... “
3:16.
Imam Ghazali commented on this “Ayah” (Verse) by
saying “See then, how Allah has mentioned Himself first, the angels second,
then men endowed with knowledge third. In knowledge is honor, excellence,
distinction and rank. And again, Allah says: ”Allah will raise up to (suitable)
rank (and degree) those of you who believe and who have been granted
knowledge.” 58:11
In “Surat al-Tawba” where Jihad was declared as an
obligation, Allah said that even in this circumstance there should be a group
of people who should stay behind and study and teach - source people – “Ulama”.
The Qur’an referred to them by saying “Li yata faqqahu fildeen.”
“...It is not desirable that all of the believers
take the field in time of war: From within every group, in their midst. Some
shall refrain from going forth to war, and shall devote themselves instead to
acquiring a deeper knowledge of the faith, and thus be able to teach their
home-coming brethren, so that these too might guard themselves against evil.”
9:122
This Quranic verse is very clear that there should
be a class of people who devote themselves to study and who also teach what
they have learned to others.
The Holy Quran had said: “Innama yakhsha Allaha min
ibadihi al Ulama…”. This means: ”Of all of His servants, only such as are
endowed with knowledge stand truly in awe of God; for they alone comprehend
that verily, God is almighty, much-forgiving.” 35:28.:
Our Prophet Mohammed (S.A.W) emphasized the excellence
of the “Ulama” in many Hadith: Abu Umama al Bahili reported that two persons
were mentioned to the Messenger - one being “Abid” (a devout worshipper), the
other being “Alim” (a scholar). The Prophet then said: ”The superiority of a
scholar (Alim) over the devout (Abid) is like my superiority over a worshipper
or like that of the moon in the night when it is full over the rest of the stars,
and truly the scholars are the heirs of the Prophets, and truly the Prophets do
not leave behind them gold or silver, they only leave knowledge as their
heritage. So whosoever acquires knowledge acquires a huge fortune.” Transmitted
by Ahmad, Abu Dawud and al Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah.
In other Hadith, Imam Ahmad bin Hambal is quoted to
have said that the need for these scholars is more important “than air and
water”.
Another narration by Tirmidhi is said to be that Ibn
Abbas reported the Prophet as saying: “A single “Faqih” (scholar of religion)
is more formidable against a devil than a thousand devout persons”.
Our Prophet warned the Muslim nation “Ummah” that
knowledge would be extinguished from the earth and that people would be misled
by ignorant leaders and mushroom scholars.
Abdulla bin Umar (ra) reported the Prophet saying:
”Allah will not cause extinction of knowledge by taking it away from the
servants, but He will cause extinction of knowledge by taking away the learned
ones. When no learned man remains, the people will then take the illiterate as
their leaders. They will seek religious verdicts from them and they will
deliver those verdicts without knowledge and the people will go astray and lead
each other into error.” Bukhari and Muslim.
In view of the above references, Islamic scholars in
the society are:
·
The learned
people (Ulama).
·
Those who lead Muslim people and who must be followed
by the Muslim people.
·
Those endowed
with sound knowledge to guide people to the right path.
·
Those who are necessary for the community’s
benefit.
Today, the Muslim Ummah is in virtual ignorance.
Therefore many mushroom Islamic scholars act as Imams and Sheikhs (Muslim
Scholars) without sound knowledge of the Qur’an, the Hadith, the (Fiqh) Islamic
jurisprudence and the “Ijma” (consensus of opinion). When such unqualified scholars
give religious verdicts, people are led astray. In order to save the Ummah from
this predicament, there must be an umbrella of qualified and accredited Ulama
who specialize in
Islamic Sciences, for the masses to
seek their guidance and opinion on Islamic religious matters.
Religious knowledge is more delicate and tougher than
for example knowledge of fixing a car or a table. The knowledge of worshipping
Allah and knowing his dos and don’ts is the obligatory upon every Muslim. But,
if a Muslim does not have the necessary knowledge to make a religious, social
or financial decision in a specific instance, then he must ask the Ulama. If
that makes them a class of learned people, it is not an evil class.
If you have travelled to some notable regions in
Ghana, you will have noticed advertisement on notice boards about persons
claiming to have spiritual powers, thus conferring the titles of “Malam” upon
themselves. But digging deep into their knowledge capacity you will be
surprised to know that they cannot even read the “Fatiha” (The opening chapter
of the holy Quran), which is the commonest chapter in the Muslims’ holy book. How
then do you call these people Malams?
In Ghana, most people have disrespected Islam and
Muslims from time immemorial. Just look at it this way, the word “Malam”, by
definitions provided by the holy Quran and Hadith, is someone who is a teacher
and or a learned person. The prophet Mohammed (S.A.W) is quoted to have said
that the Ulama (Malams) are his representatives on earth.
In recent developments, some religious leaders and
Journalists from other religious faiths have made mention of the word “MALAM”
in bad taste, I have read a publication in a respected news medium in Ghana,
written by a journalist, whom I believe has gone through the pre-requisite
training and is fully aware of how journalism has caused countries to go to
war. The journalist was quoting a pastor who was advising the family of the
missing Ghanaian musician, “Castro”, not to visit any “Malam” to know the where
about of their son, which I believe was very insulting to all Muslims in Ghana.
(Castro went missing when he went jet-skiing on the Ada River in the Greater
Accra Region of Ghana).
Well, you can’t really blame any of them because
even most Muslims do not understand the word “Malam” in its real sense as it
has been adulterated, misinterpreted and misconceived for many years now.
We have seen how sensitive journalism write ups and
vituperations from radio and TV programs had stirred up troubles leading to
bloodshed between people of different faith, ethnicity or race. At least, the
sad memory of the blood bath manifested in the Rwandan genocide is still fresh
in our minds.
I remember what I heard and read about the Biafran war
in Nigeria which killed and maimed hundreds of thousands of innocent lives,
scarring Nigeria up to date. That senseless war was based on religion and
ethnicity. Religion is one of the most sensitive issues, which we must handle
with great care and mutual respect to ensure peace, tranquility and peaceful
coexistence, so that our dear Ghana would continue to enjoy the peace, stability,
development and progress that made her the envy of all other African states.
I believe prejudice, lose talks, misconception and
insensitivity to the culture of others, are some of the main reasons why some countries
encountered war that led to bloodshed, pain and anguish. This should not be
allowed to happen in our dear motherland, Ghana.
I am not inciting violence against anyone. I’m
rather using this platform to urge Muslims and non-Muslims alike to have
respect for the word “Malam” and to clear the misconceptions and
misunderstanding that has for a long time now shrouded this noble word and
work. I feel very disappointed when I see my Muslim brothers also being misled
or misleading others in the understanding or misunderstanding of the name.
I believe that, as one nation, one people with one
common destiny, we must make it a point to read more about each other’s
religion and to avoid the intentional or deliberate use of certain words or phrases
out of context just to make fun of others.
We thank God for the peace our dear country Ghana is
enjoying and for the peaceful nature of its people. I believe it’s high time the
media houses, who run adverts of fetish priest who call themselves “Malam this
and Malam that” synchronize the kind of ads they put through their channels. It
speaks less of a reputable organization to let ads which speaks less of other
religions go through their channel because of the money involved.
Dear reader, please note that “Mallam” is not
synonymous to a ritualist. These so-called “Mallams” who claim to have super
natural healing powers have no place in Islam and must be condemned and
dismissed by all.
