Page 297 - Neglected Arabia Vol 1 (2)

r

NEGLECTED ARABIA

Missionary News and Letters
Published Quarterly
FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION AMONG THE FRIENDS OF
! THE ARABIAN MISSION

The Mohammedan University at Cairo
Rev. S. M. Zwemer, D.D., F.R.G.S.

A MONG the sights that attract tourists in great numbers in Cairo
is the famous Jamia-ul-Azhar, the cathedral mosque, and the
center of Islamic learning tor many centuries, not only for
Egypt, but for the whole Near East.
The buildings are located in one of the intensely Mohammedan centers
of Cairo, toward the right as you come to the end of the bazaar called
Al-Musky. One passes from the twentieth century through this Levan­
tine thoroughfare, back to the middle'ages. Nothing could resemble
conditions in the 14th century more than the character of this institution,
a vivid example of the petrifying power of Islam.
The cultivation of learning and the method of instruction are carried
out in a very different fashion from that which is usual in the West
unlay, but they remind one of the earlier periods of our culture. “ The
ilogmalR* interdict, proceeding from the theological center, which with us
lu» been nun-existent for centuries, still exists there in unmitigated
hardiness,** says Professor Vollers. ."The object of education is not
research, proof, comparison or correction, but the true transmission of
«hat their ancestors have left them. Each generation is supposed to
U inferior to the preceding; from the Prophets there is a decline to his
companions and their successors: the independent inquirers and authori­
ties (al-Mudjtahidun) lie far behind us in the dim and distant past.
The history of the lands of Islam is regarded from this point of view
uj continued decline, in this case not unjustly."
The University, so called, began as a mosque, built in 972 A. D. by
Jauhar-al-Katib al-Sakilli, and gradually in the course of the various
gccupations of Egypt by the different dynasties the mosque became a
^tulip of buildings centering around a great open court, surrounded on
all sides by porticoes, used for class rooms, facing the large area of
the mosque proper. One enters the building by the gate of the Barbers,
above which is a famous inscription taken from the first page of the
Traditions of Bokhari, viz:
"Verity all acts are judged by their intentions."
To the left as one enters is the library, containing 75,000 volumes, and
to the right is a smaller library and reading room for the professors.
Immediately on entering the main court, one sees high on the wall an
•id >un dial, which is the only time piece officially used. All the recita-
imi hours are regulated by solar time, and there is a special official
frsijjnated who fixes these periods, confirms the observations of the
moon and determines the exact period of fasting.