Course description

Quran-Kareem

Guran-Kareem is a course with 90 hours of lectures designed for the 1st year students. It deals with the rules such as vasıl (passing), vaqf (stop), madd (stretch), gasr (shorten), the attributes and characteristics of the Arabic letters used to properly read the Quranic verses. After that, students learn to read surahs and memorize some of them with Tajweed rules. Students also learn Ada method. Ada is the simultaneous application of Sama and Arz methods. This happens with the teacher’s reading, student’ listening and vice versa. The primary goal of the course is to protect the tongue from errors while reading Qur’an- Kareem, which is the source of all Islamic sciences, and enable students to read it as the original version read by Prophet Muhammad.

Tajweed of the Quran and Reading

The value given to science by the Holy Quran is high. In the holy book Allah always encourages people to think, to study and to learn. From this point of view, teaching Quran to young people is important as it guides people to go their right way, avoid evil deeds and instills in them the love of God and their homeland. It gains special attention when taught at the faculty of Theology where the rules of the Islamic religion are studied. The rules of the Tajweed taught within this subject serve to teach reading it as the original version read by Prophet Muhammad.

This discipline is taught for three years, under the name of Tajweed of the Quran and Reading at the faculty of Theology. Since the Quran is in Arabic, students are first taught the alphabet of the Arabic language, writing, pronunciation rules, properties of the letters, and then reading separate words and phrases taken from the Quran. In the first course, memorizing surahs and studying tajweed rules are studied predominantly. Students memorize the smallest verses from the Quran called namaz surahs with the application of Ada method for the first year. In the second and third year of their studies, they continue memorizıng certain chapters and practice the theoretical knowledge under the supervision of the instructor. As a hometask, students work on certain pages and eliminate the errors during the class with the help of the instructor.

After translation of the verses, it is easier to memorize them, thus, and students are recommended to read the translatıon of the verses before memorizing them. Students are evaluated for their oral answers. Each month, the instructor listens to the memorized surahs, and if there are still wrong readers, their errors are eliminated and students are evaluated. Evaluation is done after every three to four lessons.

Kalam

Kalam enables students to learn the basic issues of Islam and the differences between the sects. Students are informed about the theme of Kalam, its goals, importance, history, periods, important scholars and their works and some terms. They also get acquainted with the relations between faith and deeds, the place of sinners in religion, uluhiyyat, fate, faith husn-qubh, death, rizq, nubuvvat and samiyyat.The other practical significance of the subject is also the study of the fundamentals of belief by means of mental and narrative arguments. The method of assessment of the subject is based on written and sometimes oral question-answer.

Aqaid

With the help of Aqaid, students acquire knowledge about issues related to belief. The practical significance of the subject is to give knowledge of the basics necessary for each Muslim. Unless you believe in the principles of faith, studying other religions is of no use. Belief is the cornerstone of all the religious issues. It introduces preliminary information about matters related to faith, the evidence of the existence of God, the tawheed and the shirk, the beautiful names of Allah, the accident, the issues of mercy and samiyyat. The details on subjects and the differences in sects are further taught in Kalam. The method of assessment of the subject is based on written and sometimes oral question-answer.

Tasawwuf

This program is based on the curriculum of the Faculty of Theology at Baku State University. At present, the study of Tasawwuf in the Faculty of Theology is designed for one semester. Naturally, it is very difficult to cover all the issues of Tasawwuf widely and richly during short period of time. Therefore, this program aims to provide theoretical knowledge about the history, development and the necessity of Tasawwuf. Over the course of a semester, it is mainly about the basic aspects of Tasawwuf. The program describes the history, methods and practical basics of Sufism. According to this program, Introduction to Sufism, its main features, functions and structures are taught in the 4th course. The materials of the course are based on the original sources of the Islamic moral system. The program consists of two main parts.
The first part identifies the program’s general size, deals with the topics and introduces them in an arranged form. The second part gives the division of teaching materials according to courses and semesters.

Hadith

Hadith covers the Prophet’s speech, behavior, and lifestyle. The course teaches to describe the narrations of the hadiths, the narration system, the narrations of the Sahabah and the Tabi'een, the narration methods, important hadith sources, the different styles applied by the scholars, the comments written on the well-known sources, essence, camilər, müsnədlər, sünənlər, mücəmlər, müstədrəklər, etc. The main purpose of this subject is to introduce the student to the knowledge of the hadiths that are the second source of the religion of Islam, the explanation of the famous Sunnah and Shi'ah sources of the hadiths, the introduction of famous rijal works and the use of the Hadith dictionaries such as Concordance. Students will independently investigate the hadiths and analyze the information about the narrators of the hadiths. Hadith course for the 3rd year students is evaluated in written form. Students are required to take part in a three-or four-time workshop in a mid-term exam. Depending on the volume of the lesson, seminar questions are three or five.

Hadith Issues

Hadith Issues teaches the Sunnah of the Prophet of Islam, his tashri authority, the analysis of the verses that command to follow his path, the rijal knowledge, the explanation of the main and auxiliary elements to understand hadith texts, the possibility of hadith narration through dreams and discovery, analysis of Riwayat (narration) and Dirayat (comprehension), the interference of rawiin the hadith, the meaning and narration of the hadiths, the critique of the hadith works and Mukhtalif al-Hadith. The primary goal of the discipline is to teach students the necessary methodology for the solution of the contradictions in the hadiths and to acquire the necessary knowledge and abilities. Through thie subject, students gain knowledge about the most common areas of the hadith such as ilal, Fiqh ul Hadith, Asbab Wurud, and Ikhtilaf al-hadith (contradictory hadith), and learn the social settings for the emergence of Prophet’s hadith and meanings they carry. In addition to the above information in the subject of Hadith issues, some of the famous hadith explanations are also taught in Arabic. Thus, the student is clearly seen as to how the hadiths are interpreted, as well as the ability to read texts in the Arabic language of the hadith sources. Subjects of Hadith are basically evaluated in written form. Students are required to take part in a three-or four-time workshop in a mid-term exam. Depending on the volume of the lesson, seminar questions are three or five. One of the questions of the seminar is selected from the Arabic texts from the course materials. Student’s knowledge is measured by a 10-point system

Islamic law

Islamic Law are studied under Introduction to Islamic Law and Islamic Law and Modern Islamic Law subjects. Introduction to Islamic law gives general information and teaches basic knowledge about the history of Islamic law. It is one of the major subjects of Islamic sciences. Students learn study the stages of development of this science, important representatives of this development process and the main works written during this period in the history of History of Islamic Law. In addition, basic knowledge about various Islamic law fields, such as family, inheritance, penal and property, is also part of the subject. Islamic law also covers classical Islamic law, as well as approaches to new issues that arise in modern times. This subject covers the vast majority of questions in everyday life. Thus, students who have a good knowledge of Islamic law have the opportunity to answer correctly the questions in this area. The assessment of students’ knowledge in Islamic law is based on the written method. In some cases, students are required to read extracts from classical Islamic law books for the examination of their comprehension of Arabic texts. The program is based on the curriculum of the Faculty of Theology at Baku State University. It is designed to teach Islamic law (Fiqh) as a major. Islamic law is studied during 3 years. Topics of the course are arranged from simple to complex. Three years are not enough to master all the aspects of Islamic law, which are complex. Therefore, the program is designed to teach the methodology and the most important issues of the Islamic law. It covers the history, methods and practical bases of Islamic law. According to this program, the history and methodology of Islamic law are taught in the 3rd year and for the practical bases of Islamic law in the 4th and 5th years. The materials of the Islamic law courses were compiled on the basis of the comparison of the four Sunni types and Jafariyya from the Shiite sect. This program consists of two main parts. The first part identifies the total volume of the training program, deals with the topics and introduces them in an arranged form. The second part gives the division of teaching materials according to courses and semesters.

Fiqh method

Figh is a methodology invented by Islamic jurists for the correct understanding of religion. Religious texts (Qur’an and Sunnah texts) can be obtained more accurate and consistent if studied using this method. It is well known that the method of Fiqh has a unique place among all the Islamic sciences. A large number of works have been written about this science, which has a long history. The course deals with different currents that occurred in various periods of history, as well as the basic principles of this field. Since the classical era, many fiqh scholars have adopted the science of Fiqh as the key to all Islamic sciences. Therefore, students’ knowledge of fiqh has a great role in their education as good specialists. In addition, students gain many skills and knowledge to discuss various issues in the field of Islamic law, the basis of the debate and solutions to new issues. The assessment of students’ knowledge is based on a written method. In some cases, students are required to read extracts from classical Islamic law books for the examination of their comprehension of Arabic texts

Tafseer 

The program is based on the curriculum of the Faculty of Theology at Baku State University. It is designed to teach Tafseer as one of the major courses. Currently, Tafseer is being taught for four semesters. Topics of the course are arranged from simple to complex. Naturally, the period is not sufficient to learn all the details of the Tafseer which is rich and complex. Therefore, the program aims teaching the method and the most important issues of Tafseer. The program describes the history, methodology and practical basics of the methodology of Tafseer. According to this program, Techniques, History and Introduction to this subject are taught in the 2nd year and the practical bases of Tafseer in the 3rd and Tafseer problems in 4th years. The materials of the Islamic law courses were compiled on the basis of the mezheblerustu. The program consists of two main parts. The first part identifies the total volume of the training program, deals with the topics and introduces them in an arranged form. The second part gives the division of teaching materials according to courses and semesters.

Tafseer method

The course aims teaching knowledge and abilities for practical understanding of basic rules, laws and methods to study the Guran, classical sources of Tafseer. It refers to the rules and laws used to interpret the Quran. Therefore, the aim is to enable students to study the Koranic texts and understand the classical sources of the Tafseer method, know their knowledge, and apply the practical skills further. Students who study Tafseer know Guran-Kareem and gains knowledge on Tafseer method for the interpretation of the sacred texts.

Modern Tafseer issues

The aim of the subject is to introduce the students to the knowledge and abilities and cover various tafseers (interpretations) of the Guran. The interpretation of the The perspective of the thinkers, their views, and period can vary in Tafseers. The modern living conditions are quite different from the past. Various problems and new approaches have emerged in the interpretation of the Koran. Therefore, it is necessary to interpret the Qur'an al-karim according to modern conditions. However, to benefit from classical Tafseer sources when interpreting the Quran is one of the important points that needs to be considered. Accordingly, the purpose of the course is to provide students with the ability to study modern tafseer problems and to gain knowledge about how to interpret Quranic verses.

Ilmihal

Ilmihal is a branch of science in Islam that deals with worship. As it is known, Islam places great importance on worship. According to Islam worship is the purpose of human creation. Therefore, the knowledge gained throught this course is of great importance. One of the subjects in society that people are most interested in is worship. The course gives detailed knowledge on prayer, fasting, pilgrimage and zakat. The written test method is used to examine students’ knowledge. In some cases a test method or practical examinations are also included. The practical method examines the application of namaz and dastamaz.

Islamic morality

The subject covers the analysis of the moral values in terms of comparative and Islamic values. It studies the moral values of the pre-Islamic period, Jahiliyyah, the moral values of medieval European countries and Turkic peoples and their attitude to the moral principles of different philosophical movements. The main purpose of this discipline is to ensure that Islamic moral values are acquired by the students. It also teaches the way sahabahs mastered these values when Prophet instilled the values in them. Through the course, students are informed about husnu-zann, honesty, commercial morality, family and kinship, parent-child relations, neighborhood rights and other issues. Analyzing and comparing ethical principles in a broader perspective and in a comprehensive manner gives students a broader judgement skills. Thanks to the knowledge acquired through the course, students gain skills to analyze the views of various Islamic moralists and different movements of moral values developed within Western philosophy. The evaluation is based on written method. Students are required to take part in a three-or four-time workshop, mid-term exam in one semester. Depending on the volume of the classes, seminar questions can be three or five.

Modern Fiqh issues

The course aims teaching modern knowledge and abilities on the subject, as well as studying Islamic jurisprudence profoundly as a major. It covers the issues such as fiqh science, especially the position of the ijtihad, the contemporary issues and the problems that continue to be controversial in our time. Since fiqh concerns issues related to Islamic law, the subject explores topics covering the vast majority of everyday life.

Thus, students who are well-educated in the subject of modern fiqh have the opportunity to respond correctly to questions encountered in the field of Islamic law. Evaluation of students’ knowledge in modern fiqh subjects is based on the written method. In some cases, students are required to read extracts from classical Islamic law books for the examination of their comprehension of Arabic texts

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