Good Muslims

261 Pages·2011·2.73 MB·English

Creating “Good Muslims”:
Qawmi madrasa Schooling in a Rural Town of Bangladesh

A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

by

Md. Nurul Momen Bhuiyan

Department of Social Anthropology, Brunel University

November 2010
To my parents
Dr. Ruhul Amin Bhuiyan and Mrs. Rabeya Khatoon

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Abstract

This thesis is about the processes and practices that underpin everyday life in a
Bangladeshi qawmi madrasa, a rather contentious faith-based Islamic schooling system
that is very popular among the rural poor. Based on 15 months of ethnographic fieldwork
that took place in Biswanath, a rural town in northeastern Bangladesh, this thesis focuses
specifically on the processes that are considered by the qawmi madrasa system to be
crucial for the creation of a „good Muslim‟ persona. The thesis is, therefore, primarily
about a particular form of (religious) schooling and (religious) identity formation
processes in rural Bangladesh.

This study describes a wide range of issues, traditions, and practices embedded within the
qawmi madrasa system. The economic and social dynamics of the locality have also been
observed closely, as these are directly linked with and influenced by the centrality of
Islam in the life of the people. The protagonists of this system believe that every Muslim
requires authentic Islamic schooling in order to become a „good Muslim‟. Essential to the
construction of the „good Muslim‟ within the qawmi madrasa system therefore lies the
assumption that this type of schooling is transformative in nature. Hence, my analysis
highlights the centrality of the believer‟s body and suggests that for the successful
construction of a Muslim persona it is the Islamic orthopraxy, rather than the orthodoxy,
that they (learners) receive here most of their faith schoolings on.

Central to such orthopraxy is Sunnah (ritual and non-ritual actions approved by the
Prophet), which is reinforced and inculcated by the wider community of adults (parents,
teachers) into learners by systematically addressing and synchronizing various qualities
and expectations through the schooling process. Loyalty is one such quality that both the
qawmi protagonists and the wider society believe is infusible. Loyalty towards the moral
and social order is thought to be achievable through both moral and corporal discipline.
Hence, accustoming one‟s body and mind to the knowledge of adab (manner) constitutes
the fundamental knowledge of all within this system. In other words, in this study I
suggest that the qawmi madrasa system is a system of schooling where adab signifies not
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only the moral but also the political identity of a person. However, an ideal Muslim
persona or an approved Muslim body‟s construction within this context also rests on
religious beliefs (iman) and deeds (amal).
In Bangladesh the qawmi madrasa system is categorized as an ultra orthodox Islamic
schooling system on the basis of its stance for authentic and scripture based Islam.
However, as I will demonstrate, in reality, the system is sustained by both
accommodating many secular expectations of the people and by compromising many of
its stances.

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Table of Content

Acknowledgement 11
Glossary of Selected terms 13

Chapter One: Introduction 23

1.1 Qawmi madrasa and some relevant issues 24

1.2 The rise of Islam in Bangladeshi polity and Islamic education 29

1.3 Islamic education, its elements, and madrasa 35

1.4 Qawmi madrasa and its anthropological relevance 38

1.5 On field and fieldwork 40

1.6 Structure of Study 45

Chapter Two: The forces of change and the qawmi madrasa 48

Section 1 50

2.1 The context 50

2.2 Jamian responses to reform 52

2.3 Infrastructural development, proliferation of educational institute 56

2.4 Lodging-mastery 58

Section 2: Impact of the state‟s involvement in religious affairs and institutions 59

2.5 Eid-e-Miladunnaby and the aliya madrasa issues 61

Section 3 64

2.6 Looking within: Jamians during the State of Emergency 64

2.7 Secret grievances 67

2.8 Power struggle 70

2.9 Conclusion 74

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Chapter Three: The political economy of Bishwanath 75

Section 1: Londoni money and the centrality of consumption 77

3.1 Symbols of development 77

3.2 Consuming the landscape 79

3.3 Households and the pattern of consumption 83

Section 2: Land and its socio-political implications in Bishwanath 85

3.4 Land disputes and mitigation 85

3.5 Economic value of land 87

Section 3: Intermediaries, extortion and the dynamics of power around land 91

3.6 The regime of secrecy within the economy of extortion 91

3.7 The actors and dynamics of land deal 93

Section 4: Economy of charity and the Jamia of Bishwanath 96

3.8 The clients and patrons of the economy of charity 97

3.9 Charity as a religious means to achieve a personal benefit 100

3.10 Conclusion 103

Chapter Four: Understanding the line 104

4.1 (a) The underlying motif 106

4.1 (b) The line 106

Section 1: The behavioural aspect of line: 108

4.2 Mr. Ali‟s line 109

4.3 Mr. Ali‟s choices 113

4.4 Munna‟s line 115

Section 2: 118

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4.5 The connection and orientation aspects of line: Jamia‟s line 118

4.6 Learning line in everyday context 122

4.7 Khadim 123

4.8 Qu‟tar 129

4.9 Conclusion 134

Chapter Five: Adab and the Muslim body 135

5.1 Jamia, Jamians, and the body‟s Muslim show 137
5.2 Ways of learning adab! 139
5.3 Khan‟s story 142

Section 1: The adab of the body‟s surface 145

5.4 The „look‟ of the Muslim body 145

5.5 Realizing the „good look‟ in Jamia 147

5.6 The symbolisms in the hair cutting 149

Section 2: The adab of the body‟s action 152

5.7 Body‟s secular actions 153

5.8 Body‟s inadequate actions 156

5.9 Conclusion 161

Chapter Six: Iman and Amal 163

6.1 (a) Amal and iman 164

6.1 (b) Centrality of iman and Jamian mission 167

6.2 Learning to “believing”: What is learnt? 171

6.3 The initiation 173

6.4 The iman-schooling 176

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6.4 (a) “Aamantu billahi… (I believe in Allah..)” 176

6.4 (b) “Wa Malaikatihi...(His Angels…)” 178

6.4 (c) “Wa Kutubihi…( His Books...)” 180

6.4 (d) “Wa Rasulihi…(His Messengers…)” 181

6.4 (e) “Wal Yawmil Aakheri…(The Day of Judgement…)” 182

6.4 (f) “Wal Qadri Khirehi Wa Shar‟rehi…(that Fate good and bad is given..)” 183

6.4 (g) “Wa..Bawsee Bawdal Mawat…(the life after death…)” 184

6.5 Coming to terms with a time 185

6.6 Conclusion: 190

Chapter Seven: Learning to be “good” Muslims 192

7.1 On Institutional policy and pedagogical techniques 193

7.2 A day in the Jamia 196

7.3 Mohammad Imtiaz: The “good” Muslim 205

7.4 Kamran: The in the line type 210

7.5 Monwar: The be-line and be-adab type 216

7.6 Conclusion 222

Chapter Eight: Summary and Conclusion 224

Bibliography 229

Appendix 1 243

Appendix 2 246

Appendix 3 247

Appendix 4 250

Appendix 5 253

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Appendix 6 254

Appendix 7 259

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List of Maps and plates

Map 1: Political map of the South Asia 29
Map 2: Political map of Bangladesh 30
Map 3: Sylhet district and Bishwanath upazila in maps 51
Plate 1: A demolished Bishwanath madrasa during the emergency 65
Plate 2: The brick walls and cane fences are taking over 81
Plate 3: A Londoni house in the middle of a paddy field 89
Plate 4: A large jamaat spills into the courtyard without disrupting the qu‟tars 129
Plate 5: Men prior to a Ju‟ma at the Jamia mosque 146
Plate 6: A typical Bishwanath tea-stall with a TV mounted refrigerator 188
Plate 7: One of the packed ibtedai (primary) classes of Jamia 198
Plate 8: A group of students are having their midday meal together 202
Plate 9: Jamia students attending the annual examination 219

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