MSA Lecture : ” The Future of Muslim Students in the West ” 21/03/2013

Thank you Dr. Ramadan for your lectures, they are very inspiring. What do you think about the muslims students or any students in the East, particularly in Central Asia? There is a book of yours written especially for Westerners and many lectures aimed to the Western community. I try to get everything right and practice them in my daily lives. However, (don’t misunderstand me I am not complaining about our condition or seeing myself as a victim) I can not buy all the useful books that I need to read or attend lectures of great scholars and debates of young intellectuals. What should we do in this case? How can we solve these problems and get out of these situations? What should we do to be useful to ourselves, community and the world? For 5 years I have been trying to go to Western countries and get quality education but sometimes financial problems or lack of knowledge to get the Scholarship crosses my road. What is your suggestion and view for this case? Sometimes, I say to myself knowledge is everywhere not only in the West , you can get what you want here too. But I understood it is very difficult to take all these heavy responsibilities like learning, applying and passing to others on your own without a teacher or a guide. I would be very glad to get a reply for my questions. Allah bless you and your family. Thank you for everthing you share with people around the world.

You say students should be able to question teachers not just blindly follow and parroting. I am ok with this, I got it. However, I am in a dilemma and I do not know the adab of questioning my teachers. Once I questioned one of my teacher’s method of teaching and I expressed my dissatisfaction with his sources and the topicality of his themes, I got a great criticsm from both of my groupmates and the teacher. They see me as a bad person, but I do not mind. My question is there is a hadith by our Prophet sav ” You are governed however you are”, it is about the quality of questions we ask for people who manage us, teaches …. I tried but my best to be a critical thinker and ask good questions with the intention to change myself to better and my groupmates but I couldnt make any change, except criticism. In the past people were free to choose their ustad ulamas to follow or learn but nowadays there is no such choice, compulsory schooling or university classes. What should we do in this case? I want to be respectful towards my teachers but I am not satisfied with their teaching and their understanding of some topics. Should I keep silent just to be a good student in the eyes of the teachers or I should continue demand more from them even if it doesn’t help. Or I should take a way on my own go on that way just demanding from myself?