Hassan al-Banna, founder of the Muslim Brotherhood group, writes to the great enlightenment figure Taha Hussein on Islamic education
Hassan al-Banna, founder of the Muslim Brotherhood group, writes to the great enlightenment figure Taha Hussein on Islamic education
“A new Egypt that enjoys freedom and prosperity…under an umbrella of education, knowledge, and a constitution built on an elevated culture.”
This was the dream Taha Hussein lived for, but he passed away without seeing any of it fulfilled.
But why focus now on Taha Hussein? The answer is not that he was the first Egyptian dean of the faculty of arts at Cairo University, nor the minister of education—despite being blind—nor the most prominent enlightenment figure of the 20th century, nor even for his stature as a man of letters who came to be known as the doyen of Arab literature. Today, Hussein warrants attention not because of all these unique features, but rather because of his intellectual prowess.
Conflicting visions
Hussein’s vision centred mainly on democracy, freedom, and making education accessible to every child and adult. The features of his project were that, “Education is like water and air; knowledge is a university’s religion, knowledge can set human beings free; a State may not be founded on religious bases.”
Hussein’s programme objectively and boldly tackled the many taboos which for centuries introduced a sanitised version of Arab history steeped in self-praise and superstition, and called for a wider cultural perspective that embraces opening up to the modern world. These thoughts and others were represented in his book Mustaqbal al-Thaqafa fi Misr (Future of Culture in Egypt) issued in 1938. Not surprisingly, his vision was the contrary of that of the Muslim Brothers (MB).
The MB founder and leader till his death Hassan al-Banna (1906 – 1949) responded to Hussein’s Mustaqbal al-Thaqafa fi Misr (Future of Culture in Egypt) with an elaborated message under the title Mustaqbal al-Thaqafa fi Misr Taht Hukm al-Ikhwan (Future of Culture in Egypt Under the Rule of the Brotherhood).
Under the Brotherhood
The message began as follows:
“From Hassan al-Banna to Taha Hussein
“The Future of Culture under the Brothers’ Rule
“Date: 16 Rabee al-Akhar 1357”
The reader must note that Banna ignored to cite the Gregorian date used all over the world, including Egypt, and opted for the Hijri date.
The letter continued:
“We, friend, [are] a united nation in everything except one, which is culture and way of thinking. I have travelled all over the land of Egypt, and met members of most of its sectors and classes; I concluded that unity engulfs all aspects of Egyptians’ lives from lifestyle to customs and traditions, except for some differences related to some specific conditions.
“There was no essential difference in general lifestyle. The lifestyle of the middle-class is the same in Aswan, Cairo, Tanta, Zaqaziq and others from east to west. The food, drink and clothing are the same. There is only one difference, however, and this difference is obvious and substantial. It is a difference in thinking and culture…hopes and pains. That is why, when a case is discussed in Egyptian society, views seldom meet.”
This approach paved the way for Banna to introduce his vision on education, and hence the future of culture.
Separating the girls and boys
Sheikh Hassan al-Banna went on to explain that he was opposed to teaching foreign languages in schools before the secondary stage in order to allow students to focus on and be fluent in their mother tongue.
Girls and boys, according to Banna, should be separated at all stages of schooling. “There must be taught different curricula, and there must be separate places for girls and boys, because the formation of a girl is different than a boy and her mission in life is [different] from his. Shortage of space or capital is no excuse; maintaining the nation’s ethics and entity is much more precious than space and money. We have already experienced the disadvantages of coeducation, and returning to uprightness is better than continuing with this wickedness.” Banna’s plan also insisted on the necessity of linking graduation to the study of the Qur’an by heart.
Banna’s message concluded by citing the MB’s preparedness to struggle with their power against every ruling regime that attempts to wipe out Islamic manifestations. “We are an Islamic nation,” he wrote, “we want to restore what we have lost of our Islamic indications, and to preserve what remains of it, whatever the cost.”
Intellectuals as infidels
The Egyptian people today find themselves in a dilemma. The revolution, if anything, has unleashed the power of the Islamist forces in Egypt and has brought them close to the highest executive post in the country. After taking over Parliament, they are after the presidency. As proved by the first round of the presidential elections, a large sector of Egyptians today are not for an Islamist State. Some 41.5 per cent of the vote went to the Islamist candidates Mohamed Mursi and Abdel-Moniem Abul-Fotouh, and 54.6 per cent went to the liberal candidates Ahmed Shafik, Hamdeen Sabahi, and Amr Moussa. It’s a fierce race in the finals between Mursi and Shafik, and will pronounce the final verdict on an Islamist State in Egypt.
The journalist and literary critic Farida al-Naqqash says that Islamists, especially the supposedly moderate MB, have a black history in regard to intellectuals and progressive thinkers. One of those they considered an infidel was Farag Fouda, (1946 – 1992), an important Egyptian liberal, human rights activist, writer and columnist noted for his critical articles and sharp satires about Islamic fundamentalism in Egypt. Fouda was assassinated in his office in 1992 by two Islamic fundamentalists from al-Gama’a al-Islamiya. An Azhari scholar and MB leader, Mohamed al-Ghazali, a witness before the court in Fouda’s case, declared it was not wrong to kill an apostate.
Sworn enemy
“The killing of Farag Fouda was, in fact, the implementation of the punishment against an apostate which the State had failed to implement,” Sheikh Ghazali said.
He also wrote the report advocating a ban on the novel Awlad Haretna (Children of our Alley); the ban was approved by al-Azhar. Both the ban and the novel stirred wide controversy; Mr Mahfouz received death threats from extremists and was given police protection, but Islamic extremists almost succeeded in assassinating the 82-year-old novelist by stabbing him in the neck outside his Cairo home. He survived but his right hand was permanently affected by nerve damage.
There were also calls of religious infidelity, Ms Naqqash reminded, against the prominent director Youssef Chahine for his film Al-Muhagir (The Emigrant) because it was based on the Biblical and Qur’anic story of Joseph. It is accordingly clear that the religious tide in general is a sworn enemy of creativity, art and intellect.
WATANI International
10 June 2012