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March 30, 2003
Review: Educating for progress
AFTER the 1857 uprising, when the British got total control over India and peace was enforced in the country, the government introduced a number of reforms. The most important — and equally controversial — were the changes in the educational system. The Hindus readily accepted them and benefited from them, thus progressing much ahead of the Muslims in all areas of life. The Muslims, who were blamed for the 1857 uprising by the British and were subjected to the most horrendous atrocities, opposed the educational reforms tooth and nail. Decrees were issued declaring the learning of the English language and science as un-Islamic. The reforms were branded as an attempt by the British to convert the Muslims to Christianity.
As the editor of the book under review writes in the introduction, “Lord Macaulay insisted on the adoption of English and the closure of Arabic and Sanskrit colleges to divert the students to English schools. He believed that this mechanism would promote prozelytization without asking Indians to accept Christianity”.
As a result of the rejection of the new educational system by the Muslims, “they found all the avenues of public life closed to them”. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was upset at the dogmatic attitude of the Muslims of India which resulted in their moral and spiritual decadence and intellectual bankruptcy. What worried Sir Syed was that this was rapidly eating into the vitals of the Muslim community. He was quick to realize that unless the Muslims changed their attitude and accepted the reforms wholeheartedly, the Muslims and Islam were both doomed to perish from India.
He took it upon himself to reverse this process of degradation, initiated by the Muslims themselves by their ignorance and lack of foresight. He tried to convince the Muslims to overcome their prejudice, particularly against the educational reforms. The first step he took was to establish an educational institution. This was designed not just to impart modern education but also to explore new horizons of knowledge which were sadly missing from the old and antiquated system prevalent in the Madressahs and Maktabs.
The Mohammadan Anglo-Oriental College was founded in 1877 at Aligarh. But the Muslim response was so discouraging that it was thought necessary to establish yet another organization to disseminate the aims and objectives of Sir Syed’s mission and carry his message far and wide in the country to convince the Muslims about the utility and advantages of western education. For this purpose, the All India Muslim Conference was founded in 1886.
The book under review is a collection of some of the presidential addresses delivered at the conference sessions and the resolutions adopted at the annual sessions from 1886 to 1947. During this period 54 conferences were held; but notwithstanding the best efforts of the editor of this book, the records of only 34 conferences could be located and retrieved from the piles of records scattered at different places in the country.
The first conference held at Aligarh on December 12, 1886 was marked by an atmosphere of despondency and desperation which is evident from the very emotional and soul stirring speech of Sir Syed in which he drew the attention of delegates towards the decadence of the Muslims and their slide to the lowest depths. He said that the remedy for this lay only in “education and education alone to take us out of the morass of degeneration”. This remarkable speech is reproduced in the Introduction of the book (page XVI).
This first conference was attended by only 61 delegates from different parts of the country and 150 teachers and students of the MAO College. In all, five resolutions were passed at this conference, but the one which brought very positive results was the one embodying the decision to hold the conference annually and in different parts of the country. Consequently, conferences were held at such far flung places as Poona, Amroti, Surat, Jubbalpur and even Rangoon in 1909.
This was a very wise decision which made it possible to take Sir Syed’s message to the very doorsteps of the Muslims in the remotest parts of the country. Another feature of far reaching consequences was that the conferences were presided over by highly respected and influential personalities — religious scholars, politicians, intellectuals, justices of high courts and Englishmen such as Theodore Morrison and Justice Bodam, who enjoyed great influence with the British rulers. This enabled the conference to use the influence and popularity of these personalities in their regions to popularize modern education, and also counter religious and political opponents and undo their propaganda and opposition.
The speakers in these conferences dwelt on a wide range of subjects from advising people to cast aside the evils which had penetrated Muslim society to improvising measures to improve the socio-economic conditions of the Muslims. Subjects which were emphatically discussed by a number of speakers were women’s education, adult education, scientific and technological education and industrial training, and promotion and reorganization of art, handicraft industries and cottage industry on modern lines. Proposals were approved to create special funds for higher education and scholarships for students with modest means, and more importantly for elevation of MAO College to the university level.
A subject of vital importance which was taken up in almost each conference was the need for character building of the youth. In his presidential address, Justice Amir Ali emphatically said, “If you want your youth to grow up into useful and worthy manhood, you must insist upon ethical training.” Elucidating his opinion about religious training, he further said, “I attach a great deal of importance to religious training... but it will be of absolutely no value unless there is joined to it a full appreciation of its ethical lessons”. Similar thoughts were also expressed by many others.
Most of the presidential addresses are of very high standard, full of very valuable information and, in terms of their style and language, they can be rated as pieces of literature. From these addresses and accounts of the proceedings of the conferences it is easy to trace the resurgence of the battered, crushed and oppressed Muslims to become a nation bubbling with courage and determination, which ultimately led them to create an independent homeland for themselves. This became possible owing to the sagacity and steadfastness of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, to whom the Muslims of this subcontinent will remain eternally indebted.
By compiling this book, Professor Shah Muhammad of the Muslim University Aligarh has done yeoman service to the cause of research and scholarship. He has had to put in tremendous work to produce this book which is a rich source of information on the socio-economic history of the Muslims of India and their development as a political force by virtue of the Aligarh movement.
The All-India Muslim Educational Conference (Select Presidential Addresses 1886-1947)
Edited by Professor Shah Muhammad
A.P.H. Publishing Corporation, 5 Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi 110002, India. Tel: 23274050
Email: aph@mantraonline.com Website:
www.aphbooksindia.com
ISBN 81-7648-457-1
612pp. Indian Rs1495
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