Article 177: The State’s has one unique curriculum and no other curriculums are allowed to be taught. Private schools are allowed as long as they adopt the State’s curriculum and establish themselves on the State’s educational policy and accomplish the goal of education set by the State, on condition they do not allow mixing between male and female, whether student or teacher, and they are not specific to a sect, religion, school of thought, race or colour.
To enforce a single education curriculum upon the people is a permitted issue, since it is from the permitted issues which have been left to the Imam to enforce upon the people with a particular style if chosen, which is what ‘Uthman bin Affan (ra) did when he copied the Quran and sent it to the different regions of the State. All types of knowledge are permitted, and the methods of teaching are all permitted, since they are all part of information.
However, organising this information which is taught or upon which teaching is carried out in a specific curriculum is a style to systemise the education, similar to the style to organise the departments of the State. So the Imam can adopt a specific style and make the people abide by it, since it is from the issues which are part of the governing of the affairs, and, therefore, obedience to him in it would be obligatory.
The State can prohibit any teaching which is carried out upon alternative curricula with the evidence that it is from the issues that have been given to the Imam to deal with according to his opinion and Ijtihad, and it is permitted for him to select a particular style to undertake it. If he decided upon one particular style, obedience to him would be obligatory, and it would be forbidden to contradict him, since obedience to him is mentioned in the Quran:
((أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْكُمْ))
“O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you.” (TMQ 4:59), and mentioned in the words of the Prophet :
«وَمَنْ يُطِعْ الأَمِيرَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَنِي»
“Whoever obeys the Amir (leader) obeys me” (agreed upon from the narration of Abu Hurayrah), and his words:
«اسْمَعُوا وَأَطِيعُوا وَإِنْ اسْتُعْمِلَ عَلَيْكُمْ عَبْدٌ حَبَشِيٌّ كَأَنَّ رَأْسَهُ زَبِيبَةٌ»
“Hear and obey even if an Abyssinian slave whose head is like a raisin is placed in authority over you” (reported by Al-Bukhari from Anas). This is only obedience to him in that which has been left for him to act in according to his opinion and Ijtihad, and obedience to him in this circumstance is obedience to the ones in authority. As for the Shari’ah rules such as the recommended, permitted, obligatory, and the forbidden, then obedience to him in these issues if he ordered them would be obedience to Allah (swt) and not to him, due to the evidence that if he ordered them to commit a sin he is not obeyed. It is reported from Nafi’ from Abdullah that the Messenger said:
«السَّمْعُ وَالطَّاعَةُ عَلَى الْمَرْءِ الْمُسْلِمِ فِيمَا أَحَبَّ وَكَرِهَ مَا لَمْ يُؤْمَرْ بِمَعْصِيَةٍ، فَإِذَا أُمِرَ بِمَعْصِيَةٍ فَلاَ سَمْعَ وَلاَ طَاعَةَ»
“Listening and Obedience are binding on a Muslim whether he likes or dislikes, so long as he is not commanded for disobedience (to Allah). If he is commanded to disobedience (to Allah), no listening and disobedience are binding (on him).” (reported by Al-Bukhari). And Ahmad reported with an authentic chain from ‘Imran b. Husayn:
«لا طَاعَةَ لِمَخْلُوقٍ فِي مَعْصِيَةِ اللَّهِ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى»
“No obedience to created people when asking for disobedience to Allah the glorified and exalted.”. Therefore, his rights in governing the affairs are in what has been left to his opinion and Ijtihad, and the obedience to his order by those who were ordered by it is in these issues. So if he governed permitted issues upon a particular basis, such as drafting a specific curriculum which was then ordered to be implemented and for any difference to be prohibited, consequently obedience to him would be obligatory.
This is with respect to the fact that the State has one unique education curriculum.
As for the issue of private schools, the Messenger used to send teachers to people in order to teach them Islam, and would permit the Muslims to teach other, which indicates that every person can teach whoever he wishes, whether for a fee or for free, and he is permitted to open a school. However, like the rest of the individual subjects, he is compelled to follow the State curriculum, in other words, the curriculum that the Khalifah ordered, due to the evidence that was aforementioned regarding obedience to whatever the Imam ordered.
If it is asked how can the Dhimmiteach their children their religion if the private schools have to be in agreement with the syllabus of the Islamic State – then the answer is that they are not prohibited from teaching their religion and rituals in their houses and places of religious worship, or in other words, in places other than the public life such as the schools since this proceeds upon the governance that the State lays down. The Dhimmiused to learn their rituals in their churches and their churches were present at the time of the Messenger and the righteous Khulafaa’. Al-Bukhari reported from Abu Hurayrah who said:
«بَيْنَمَا نَحْنُ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ إِذْ خَرَجَ عَلَيْنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ فَقَالَ: انْطَلِقُوا إِلَى يَهُودَ، فَخَرَجْنَا مَعَهُ حَتَّى جِئْنَا بَيْتَ الْمِدْرَاسِ، فَقَامَ النَّبِيُّ فَنَادَاهُمْ: يَا مَعْشَرَ يَهُودَ، أَسْلِمُوا تَسْلَمُوا...»
“While at the mosque, the Messenger came out to us and said: go to the Jews,and so we went with him until we went to the house of Midras. He stood up and addressed them, "O assembly of Jews! Embrace Islam and you will be safe" …” and Midrasis the place of their worship which they used to read the Torah and in which they would also gather for prayers on their religious festivals. It is mentioned in the Al-Muhit dictionary: “Al-midras: the place which the Quran is read, and from it is the madras of the Jews”,in other words, where the Jews would read their Torah. In Lisan Al-‘Arab it mentions: “Fuhr of the Jews: the place of their madras which they would gather in on their religious festivals to pray there”. In other words, at the time of the Messenger they were not prohibited from learning their religion in their churches and synagogues. This continued throughout the time of the righteous Khulafaa’: it is reported by ‘Abd alRazzaq in his Musannaf from ‘Ali b. Abi Talib (ra): “he saw a people with their clothes hanging low and so he said: As though they were Jews leaving their Fuhr. We asked ‘Abd Al-Razzaq what is their Fuhr? He said their synagogue”.In other words, ‘Ali (ra) described those who prayed with their clothes hanging low as being like Jews who left their synagogues after finishing their worship inside. In other words, – the Dhimmis used to practice their religions and do their rituals of worship in their churches and synagogues, or in the places connected to them, and they did not have specific schools according to the known meaning.
As for the evidence to prohibit mixing in private schools, in the same way that it is prohibited in the schools of the State:
- Al-Bukhari reported from Abu Sa‘id Al-Khudri who said:
«قَالَتْ النِّسَاءُ لِلنَّبِيِّ : غَلَبَنَا عَلَيْكَ الرِّجَالُ فَاجْعَلْ لَنَا يَوْمًا مِنْ نَفْسِكَ، فَوَعَدَهُنَّ يَوْمًا لَقِيَهُنَّ فِيهِ، فَوَعَظَهُنَّ وَأَمَرَهُنَّ، فَكَانَ فِيمَا قَالَ لَهُنَّ: مَا مِنْكُنَّ امْرَأَةٌ تُقَدِّمُ ثَلاثَةً مِنْ وَلَدِهَا إِلا كَانَ لَهَا حِجَابًا مِنْ النَّارِ، فَقَالَتْ امْرَأَةٌ: وَاثْنَتَيْنِ؟ فَقَالَ: وَاثْنَتَيْنِ»
“Some women requested the Prophet to fix a day for them as the men were taking all his time. On that he promised them one day for religious lessons and commandments. Once during such a lesson the Prophet said, "A woman whose three children die will be shielded by them from the Hell fire." On that a woman asked, "If only two die?" He replied, "Even two (will shield her from the Hell-fire).” In other words, the teaching of the women was separated from that of the men, and it was not mixed. The prayer was also done in separate rows, and when they left the mosque they would not leave together thus mixing, rather the Messenger and the companions who had prayed would wait until the women left and then they would leave.
- Al-Bukhari reported from Umm Salamah:
«أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ كَانَ إِذَا سَلَّمَ يَمْكُثُ فِي مَكَانِهِ يَسِيراً، قَالَ ابْنُ شِهَابٍ: فَنُرَى، وَاللهُ أَعْلَمُ، لِكَيْ يَنْفُذَ مَنْ يَنْصَرِفُ مِنْ النِّسَاءِ». وفي رواية عنده أيضاً قالت: «كَانَ يُسَلِّمُ، فَيَنْصَرِفُ النِّسَاءُ فَيَدْخُلْنَ بُيُوتَهُنَّ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ يَنْصَرِفَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ »
“The Prophet after finishing the prayer with Taslim used to stay at his place for a while." Ibn Shihab said, "I think (and Allah knows better), that he used to wait for the departure of the women who had prayed”, and in another report: “When the Prophet finished the prayer with Taslim, the women would depart and enter their houses before Allah's Messenger departed.”
And, therefore, teaching must not be mixed.
As for the issue of the private schools not being specific to a sect, religion, school of thought, race or colour – this is because schools established on this basis lead to effects upon the unity of the State and focus upon points of difference, especially since schools play an important role in building the mentality and disposition of the students. At the end of the ‘Uthmani Khilafah such schools were a destructive element in the body of the State. Therefore, these schools are prohibited due to what damage they produce and that they lead to the Haram, in other words, the evidence is the rule of harm and the rule that states that: "The means to something forbidden is also forbidden".
This is apart from the call that is found in the Quran and the Sunnah to know other people and to discard tribalism, and not to differentiate on the basis of race or colour. Allah (swt) says:
((يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ مِنْ ذَكَرٍ وَأُنْثَى وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ (13)))
“O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.” (TMQ 49:13). And the Messenger said in a narration reported by Muslim from Abu Hurayrah:
«مَنْ خَرَجَ مِنْ الطَّاعَةِ وَفَارَقَ الْجَمَاعَةَ فَمَاتَ مَاتَ مِيتَةً جَاهِلِيَّةً، وَمَنْ قَاتَلَ تَحْتَ رَايَةٍ عِمِّيَّةٍ يَغْضَبُ لِعَصَبَةٍ أَوْ يَدْعُو إِلَى عَصَبَةٍ أَوْ يَنْصُرُ عَصَبَةً فَقُتِلَ فَقِتْلَةٌ جَاهِلِيَّةٌ»
“One who defected from obedience (to the Amir) and separated from the main body of the Muslims-if he died in that state-would die the death of one belonging to the days of Jahiliyya. One who fights under the banner of a people who ate blind (to the cause for which they are fighting. i. e. do not know whether their cause is just or otherwise), who gets flared up with family pride, calls, (people) to fight for their. family honour, and supports his kith and kin (i.e. fights not for the cause of Allah but for the sake of this family or tribe) -if he is killed (in this fight), he dies as one belonging to the days of Jahiliyya”. And it is reported by Ahmad with a chain from Abu Nadrah authenticated by Al-Zayn: Someone who heard the sermon of the Messenger of Allah in the middle of the days of Tashriq told me that he said: O people – your Lord is one, and your father is one, there is no preference for an Arab over a non-Arab, nor a non-Arab over an Arab, nor for the red over the black, nor the black over the red, except in Taqwa (piety). Have I not conveyed? They said: The Messenger of Allah has conveyed.”
These are all the evidences for the article.