Seekers Degree

Seeking knowledge and scholarship.

This advanced series of courses deepens and broadens knowledge acquired in the Foundations curriculum. It provides solid, reliable, and comprehensive knowledge.

Seekers is about "seeking knowledge and scholarship." Seekers is designed for English-speaking students seeking scholarship, i.e. mastery of the scholarly tradition, taking them on the shortest path to Inheritors. Seekers is also for students who want to pursue other fields of study but want to learn the most important communally obligatory knowledge for Muslims living in the modern world.

Courses allow you to cover a main classical manual in each Islamic discipline. Specialized courses also provide knowledge extremely relevant to living your life as a Muslim.

The goal of the Seekers Degree is to give you a broad overview of all the central religious disciplines using classical texts and to move you slowly to Arabic reading fluency so that you can smoothly transition to the Inheritors Ijaza program. You will be given sufficient understanding of your religion for you to be able to speak coherently about all aspects of your faith.

This program will also equip you to answer challenges that are prevalent in modern times, such as questions regarding the preservation of the Quran and hadith or concerns regarding the justice and equity of Islamic Law.

The following chart summarizes the courses in the Seekers program:

	Goal	Course Name	Course Code
Arabic (Miftah)	Prepare you for study of classical manuals in their original Arabic form	Basic Arabic Reading	ARB101
		Introductory Arabic, Part 1	ARB111
		Introductory Arabic, Part 2	ARB112
		Intermediate Arabic, Part 1	ARB201
		Intermediate Arabic, Part 2	ARB202
		Intermediate Arabic, Part 3	ARB203
Supplements to Classical Manuals: Provide the most important communally obligatory knowledge*	Cover practical fiqh knowledge that is required today	Introduction to Islamic Finance	LAW120
		Engagement, Marriage, and Divorce	LAX130
		Living Islam	LAH140 LAS140
	Answer modern doubts related to Islamic Law, hadith, and Quran raised against the truth of Islam	The Objectives of Islamic Law	LAW201
		The Historical Development of Islamic Law / The Sources of Islamic Law	LMT101 / LMT102
		The Hadith and Its Disciplines	HDT111
		The Quran and Its Disciplines	QRN111
	Study Quranic commentary without extensive technical knowledge of Arabic	Commentary of the Short Chapters	QRN101
	Some knowledge of history, particularly knowledge of the Prophet's life, is vital religious knowledge that is assumed in other technical disciplines	Seerah: The Meccan Period	HST101
		Seerah: The Medinan Period	HST102
Classical Manuals	Classical manuals represent the Muslim scholarly tradition and are hence the core of all religious learning. These courses give you a taste of real scholarship by studying classical manuals in English in a variety of religious disciplines.	The Jawhara Explained	BLF201
		Ghazali's Kitab al-Arba'in Explained	SPR201
		The 40 Hadith of Imam Nawawi	HDT101
		The Bayquniyya Explained	HDT201
		The Waraqat Explained	LMT201
		Quduri's Manual Explained (Hanafi) or The Reliance Explained (Shaf'i):
		Part 1: Worship (Ibadat)	LAX211
		Part 2: Transactions (Mu'amalat)	LAX212
		Part 3: Personal Law (Ahwal)	LAX213
		Part 4: Justice (Qada)	LAX214

* Traditionally, this knowledge was known to someone who completed the track of scholarship, but was not explicitly treated at the first level of study. However, our modern needs require this knowledge to be moved to the beginning because of the communal need that Muslims in the modern world have for it.

Upon Completion

After successfully completing the Seekers courses and taking the final assessment and oral interview, you are eligible to apply for the Seekers Degree.

At the personal level, successfully completing the Seekers Degree means that you have acquired a sound religious context within which to navigate the modern world. At the community level, you will be able to effectively discharge leadership roles such as public speaking, community activism, teaching, and explaining Islam to people of other faiths. Most of the knowledge taught in this learning track is communally obligatory for Muslims to acquire.

In addition, if you are interested in going abroad for in-depth religious studies, you will find that these courses give you a solid preparatory grounding in the various religious disciplines, saving you precious time in your later studies.

Specifically, you will be ready for the Inheritors Ijaza track at SunniPath or for intensive study with scholars in the Muslim world. You will also be ready to pursue academic degrees at universities across the world.

Auditing and course credit also available for anyone who wishes to complete the courses in the program without gaining full certification.

Course Details

Here are details on the course requirements for the Seekers Curriculum:

Arabic:
For details on the Arabic courses, please go to the Miftah program page.

Belief:
The Jawhara Explained (BLF201) - Gain a comprehensive and systematic overview of orthodox Muslim creed using a late classical manual that was a standard text of instruction for hundreds of years at authoritative centers of learning across the Muslim world. You will leave with a clearly organized understanding of exactly what a Muslim must believe. This will allow you to negotiate, dialogue, and interact with people of different sects, faiths, and worldviews because you will be able to clearly identify exactly where the beliefs of others differ from orthodox Islamic positions.

Islamic Law:
Introduction to Islamic Finance (LAW120, formerly LAH121) - Contemporary issues and practical applications are the main focus of this course, in which you will receive indispensable instruction on fulfilling your financial duties and ensuring that your earnings and transactions are halal.

Engagement, Marriage, and Divorce (LAX130) - Learn the most important rules of engagement, marriage, and divorce, as well an explanation of the spirit and ideals of a successful and happy Islamic marriage. This course focuses on practical issues and goes beyond the letter of the law to examine the spirit in which rules of marriage should be implemented. At the same time, it is different than general courses on having a successful marriage because it will also cover technical fiqh issues, such as the integrals of the marriage contract and the rules related to divorce.

Living Islam (LAH140/LAS140) - Live in the modern world in accordance with the radiant example of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessing be upon him, through learning the rulings related to food, dress, gender interaction, earning a living, and more.

The Objectives of Islamic Law (LAW201) - Drawing on classical works of maqasid—particularly Shatibi's Mawaqif and 'Izz bin 'Abd al-Salam's al-Qawa`id al-Kubra—as well as advanced manuals of legal methodology, this course will explain the wisdom and rationale behind misunderstood rulings of Islamic Law, particularly those that relate to women, conflict, non-Muslims, and criminal laws. The goal is clarify how the intent of the Lawgiver is not oppression and hardship, but justice, equity, and social well-being.

The Reliance Explained (Shafi'i) or Quduri's Manual Explained (Hanafi) (LAX211, LAX212, LAX213, & LAX214) - This series of four courses (Part 1: Worship, Part 2: Transactions, Part 3: Personal Law, and Part 4: Justice) will cover a classical manual of Islamic Law from cover to cover. You will leave with a real understanding of what it means for Islam to be a "way of life" and how we are responsible for fulfilling the command of Allah Most High with every single action that we do. By gaining a comprehensive understanding of Islamic Law, you will be able to attain godfearingness (taqwa) in your lives because you will know how Allah's command relates to everything you they do. In addition, you will become familiarized with more and more fiqh terminology in Arabic. Each course is a double course-load (meaning it involves double the number of instructional hours than a regular full-course).

Spirituality:
Ghazali's Kitab al-Arba'in Explained (SPR201) - A second-level course on Islamic Spirituality that will cover Imam Ghazali's summary of the fundamentals of religion. Organized into forty chapters, Imam Ghazali—the master of Islamic psychology and spirituality—covers a spectrum of issues that relate to outward works, good character, Islamic psychology, and closeness to Allah Most High. The book is essentially a synopsis of his magnum opus, the Ihya `Ulum al-Din.

Quran:
Commentary of the Short Chapters (QRN101) - A detailed and inspiring commentary on the short chapters at the end of the Quran, designed to help you relate with the chapters that you recite frequently.

The Quran and Its Disciplines (QRN111) - An introduction to the Sciences of the Qur'an, including its revelation, collection, arrangement, writing down, types of verses and chapters, occasions of revelation, styles of recitation, and methods of interpretation.

Hadith:
The 40 Hadith of Imam Nawawi (HDT101, formerly HDT102) - Examine a selection from Imam Nawawi's cherished and timeless collection of hadiths, focusing on the language of the hadiths, their implications in Sacred Law, and their relevance to our lives as Muslims in the 21st century. Through reflecting upon and implementing these hadiths, you will understand the beauty of Islamic beliefs, ethics, and morals.

The Hadith and Its Disciplines (HDT111) - Analogous to "The Quran and its Disciplines," this course will provide a similar coverage of the Science of Hadith. You will learn about the history of hadith and the development of the various disciplines, the reliability of hadith literature, how hadith literature is organized, the science of hadith narrator examination, and how hadiths were transmitted from the time of the Prophet down to our times. You will leave with a good understanding of why hadiths should be followed, the methods developed to accurately preserve them, and the major hadith literature that was written over the centuries.

The Bayquniyya Explained (HDT201, formerly HMT111) - The course details the science of haidth methodology (mustalah al-hadith) using al-Bayquniyya, a 34-line poem covering over 30 different hadith terminologies, as well as an abridged translation of one of the most famous commentaries of al-Bayquniyya. You will cover key concepts, terminology, and methods of analysis in how hadiths are authenticated, and then apply the theoretical concepts to practical case studies of hadith analysis.

Legal Methodology:
Historical Development of Islamic Law (LMT101) - This course will examine the foundation of the legal schools through a historical analysis of Islamic law in the era of the Prophet, rightly guided caliphs, tabi'in, and the great imams. Using the Hanafi school as the model, you will see how a legal school was developed and refined over time. Short course.

Sources of Islamic Law (LMT102) - Along with LMT101, this will serve as an introduction to LMT201. You will be given an overview of Islamic Law and how its rulings are derived, and and overview of the four agreed-upon sources of Islamic Law, namely the Quran, the Sunna, scholarly consensus (ijma'), and analogy (qiyas). Short course.

The Waraqat Explained (LMT201, formerly LMT112) - Discover the fascinating methods by which legal rulings are derived through studying the legal methodology that has been used by scholars over the centuries.

History:
Seerah: The Meccan Period (HST101) - This course will cover the life of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and give him peace, from birth up to his emigration to Medina.

Seerah: The Medinan Period (HST102) - This course will cover the life of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and give him peace, from his emigration to Medina until the end of his life.

Ready to Apply?

To apply into the Seekers Program, please fill out the short application form here. Our Admissions Department will contact you within one week.

Download Printable Guide

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