The reform efforts of Muhamad Al-AMIN BIN FAL AL KHAIR AL- HASSANI AL-SHINQITI

Abstract

Muhammad al-Amin ibn Fal al-Khair al-Hassani al-Shankiti was a scholar, educator, and reformer who devoted his life to the pursuit of knowledge, education, and the reform of Muslim society. He left his hometown of Shankit to further his studies before the arrival of the colonizers. After spending years in various centers of learning, he considered returning to his homeland, only to find that the colonizers had already taken control of it. so he abandoned his original plan and followed the fatwa stating the necessity of leaving upon the arrival of Christian colonizers—a fatwa that was widely heard in the Shankit region and echoed throughout both urban centers and rural areas. The sheikh then began searching for a place to establish his grand educational and reform project.
Ibn Fal al-Khair found fertile ground for his educational and reformist project in the city of al-Zubayr in Iraq, where he settled and began his reformist activities. The obstacle of colonialism, which had prevented him from returning to his homeland, was transformed into a driving force that spurred him to uplift future generations and shape them into defenders of their identity in word and deed. He founded Al-Najah School in Al-Zubayr, which produced generations of scholars and politicians, and he waged a cultural resistance against British colonialism through his sermons and fatwas; his participation in some battles against it has been well-documented. In this paper, we will attempt to highlight some of this man’s contributions and his reformist efforts.