Living in South London, I was keen to complete the full 6 year alim course. The part time aalim course at lantern of knowledge has allowed me to both complete my studies whilst having the opportunity to work full time.
Within the London area I found this aalim class to be the most appropriate for brothers working and who have other responsibilities.
With knowledgeable teachers, and enthusiastic students, I feel that this course is ideally suited for people who, for whatever reason, are not able to attend a full time course.
The teachers are all qualified scholars who work with students in teaching classical works both in Arabic grammar and syntax and well as advanced studies in quran and ahadith.
Some of the books that we have studied so far in the first year are easy grammar and syntax, stories of the prophets and the Arabic Medina books series volume 1.
In later years, we will be looking in depth into principles of Islamic theology as well as studies of Quranic verses and narrations of the prophet Muhammad (sallalaahu alahi wa sallam).
I would recommend this alim course to brothers who are unable to attend full time courses and wish to specialize in various fields of Islamic theology.
Currently, I have almost completed my first year of the aalim course which to my amazement, has flashed past. Being a mature student and having just graduated opened a multitude of doors.
However, I have found my true location in this aalim course which was introduced to me through a couple of brothers who were enrolling for the two week trial period.
The course appealed to me and without undue hesitation I embarked on the course to ascertain whether I could manage alongside other commitments such as being married, having family and working full-time in the city. I was extremely delighted to discover that this course was absolutely ideal due to multiple reasons.
The teaching is facilitated through bite-sized learning which is manageable, saves you from being overwhelmed and from seeking dispensation. The environment is conducive to learning with the traditional learning methods being applied. I have found the environment and the learning experience enriching and spiritually nourishing on a day to day basis.
The attachment with the institute, teachers, brothers, books and learning process have all contributed in upholding my faith and the application of the theory learnt.
In addition, the course material and kitaabs has captivated and lured me in to progressing to the next stage. Furthermore, there are clear progression routes which keep me motivated and allow me to persevere.
I have enjoyed most aspects of the course particularly Arabic and I am incredibly grateful to Allah SWT for having endowed me this fantastic opportunity in seeking ilm.
Undoubtedly, with divine ability, commitment and fierce determination one will develop and progress to become a qualified alim possessing exemplary skills with the overall objective of serving the deen.
There is a great requirement for ulama who are able to contextualise Islam in contemporary Britain with a British level of education and understanding in order for the development of our Muslim communities.
We need to eradicate the deeply rooted ignorance, make rapid changes within our societies and benefit the masses. The wealth of knowledge and expertise acquired throughout this course will be valuable in setting up establishments to preserve sacred learning and produce future huffaz, ulama and daees within our communities.
I earnestly appeal to all brothers to seriously consider this course and endeavour to enrol even though it may initially be for the two week trial period (like myself) which commences at the start of the new academic year after Ramadan.
Furthermore, the fees are relatively affordable in comparison to other institutes.
I cannot emphasize further the significance of seizing the opportunity of enrolling on the aalimi programme and acquiring this sacred knowledge. I pray that you participate in this noble cause.
Wa ma taufeeq illah Billah.
May Allah SWT guide everyone.
Ameen
Note by Amin: The link to the alim course is in the sidebar and in the topmost post.
I am currently a 2nd year university student; alongside my secular studies I am studying the part time aalim course. In the morning I commit my time to attend university lectures and seminars, and in the evening I attend the aalim course. My free time is utilized in out of class room studies and in spending some time with family and friends.
I was told about the evening aalim course by a friend who had already enrolled. At first I thought that it would be ‘too much’.
However, I thought I give it a try. Immediately I was attracted by the traditional Islamic teaching methods and material and Alhamdulillah there was a lot of Barakah (blessing) in my time.
I decided to fully enroll on the aalim course and dedicate myself in seeking this beautiful divine knowledge.
The aalim course has been really interesting and enjoyable. All aspects of religion is covered.
Thus far I have studied Arabic, Fiqh, Seerah, Hadith and the translation of the Quran. Yet there are still many more areas for me to study including tafseer, principles of fiqh and hadith and the famous hadith books.
I would recommend this part time alim course to anyone who is interested. I believe that if you are a committed person, interested in benefiting from the best of both worlds then with the help of Allah the part time aalim course alongside academic learning or work commitments is practicable and manageable.
Wassalam
Farooq
Note from Amin: The link to the alim course is in the sidebar
My name is Abdul Baasit, I am 20 years old. I am a university student and I am also currently taking part in the aalim course being run at Lantern of knowledge (Siraj ul Uloom). I started the course 2 years ago when I was in my second year of college and ever since then I have never regretted it. Before joining, I searched for many aalim courses but because this one was the closest one to me and it was part-time I chose this one.
The alim course has enhanced my knowledge of Islam and has given me a deeper understanding and insight to the laws and beauty of the Quran. This knowledge has helped me a lot in dealing with day to day situations where confusion occurs amongst the common people with regards to matters of deen and fiqh.
Not only that but the love for Allah and His beloved Messenger Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam has also increased through the studying of hadeeth with ulama.
I believe that such benefits cannot be gained through any other way, apart from being taught directly from a scholar himself. Reading books is one thing but having that teacher there to explain it to you and add any other relevant knowledge that can apply to it as well is what really does help.
A lot of people may assume that this course is painstakingly hard and that they wont be able to cope. If you can make the hours that are in place then all it takes is one or two hours outside of class to quickly go over what you have learnt.
If this course is taken seriously by a person and effort is made to fit it in, then I am confident that Allah Ta’ala will grant that person the ability to manage and to stay on top of his work. It has been done and it can be done
but like with all things valuable it may take a little bit of a sacrifice.
Below is a post from Mohammad who is a 2nd year student…
Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh
I am a student at college and I also study part time at jamia sirajul uloom.
Before I started I was looking for an aalim course which was as close as possible to the course taught in full time darul ulooms.
Because this darul uloom was the closest, I went down to have a look and was given a few weeks trial period to decide if I wanted to continue there.
Now I am in my 2nd year and am more than satisfied with the standards of the darul uloom and will be looking to complete the course here.
After seeing other part time courses I haven’t found a part time alim course in London which makes full use of the few hours we have as well as Jamia sirajul uloom.
I recommend this darul uloom to anyone who is looking to study the course locally and those people who can’t attend full time.
Everyday we hear Quran and Hadith lectures/taaleem at our local masjids and yet, we wish we could understand it better.
Then again, some of us have a different agenda. Some of us wish to gain thawab by propagating the deen of Allah to others with a deeper understanding.
The worst intention to undertake an aalim course is fame. Doing it for this reason will possibly see you being thrown into the fire pit, head first, according to the famous hadith.
But if you do have the right intention, then it’s definitely commendable and also important that you get started.
There are many, many benefits to becoming an aalim. The most obvious benefit is the ability to understand the Quran and Hadith in its original language. This allows you to gain a better understanding without needing to consult an alim on a regular basis.
Furthermore, Fiqh is an important science of Islam and one which has the most controversy in certain areas.
If one had the knowledge of the 4 aimmah and their ijtihaad, then he could apply his fiqh knowledge practically throughout his life as well as others around him.
If you had a question about salah or marriage, who do you turn to? A Doctor? Of course not. You’d refer the question to an expert in this field and this would be an alim.
You’d listen to him and take his advice because he would be speaking from the quran and hadith.
Similarly, when you undertake an alim course, you will be in that position where you can research and find answers to questions asked by the common man.
Darul Uloom literally means ‘House/Place of Knowledge’.
The term is synonymous with aalim courses as these houses of knowledge are used specifically for this purpose and possibly Hifz classes as well.
The bigger Darul Ulooms also have sleeping/boarding facilities. This means that the student spends his entire day, every day, in the much needed Islamic environment.
This in itself is a great benefit to becoming an alim.
Starting an alim course without the proper environment will not be conducive to achieving the benefits of Ilm.
In such an environment, students can help each other and help is always at hand when needed. It brings solidarity and brotherhood amongst the students and this is the backbone of the Islamic scholarly way of life.
If you can’t attend a full time aalim course at a darul uloom, you can always take a part time alim course with one of the smaller institutions.
I will recommend one to you at a later date.
Here’s a video I chose just to illustrate the benefits of classical aalim course education in a Darul Uloom.
There is a great draw to taking an alim course online.
In fact, more people search for this than any other method of becoming an aalim.
The question is, how can anyone even fathom becoming an alim online?
My view is, it’s practically impossible to become a full alim with any course on the net.
It just wont work! For starters, alim courses last from between 5 years to a period of up to 8 years depending on what’s included. The normal period is 6 years.
In addition, you need student-teacher interaction to be able to receive that spiritual enlightenment whilst learning. Although this point seems small, it’s actually one of the biggest, but unless you’re spiritually inclined, you won’t understand the importance of this.
Trust me on this point. You need to have a teacher in front of you to become a good alim. There’s no way you can learn the arabic language, complete the rules of fiqh, learn volumes of fiqh and hadith and learn the quranic translation along with scholarly opinions if you don’t have a teacher in front of you.
Furthermore, you can ask questions and receive answers in a way that you wouldn’t be able to do online.
An alim course online may serve part of a full alim class but definitely not all of it. You may be able to do the beginning parts such as learning basic arabic (Sarf and Nahwa) but I don’t see it progressing past the third year, if that.
No, you definitely need to be with a teacher, even if you do it part time, like I do.
Even missing a single lesson with the benefits of a teacher is a great catastrophe to a true student of Ilm.
Imam Abu Yusuf (student of Imam Abu Hanifa RA) purposely missed the funeral of a member of his family (his son, I think), because he was in the middle of a dars (lesson/class) at that time. The dars was more important to him than the burial of a family member.
So if you’re looking to becoming an alim online, you should know that you wont be taking an alim course as such. It’s better to call it an Islamic course. It just can’t be classified as an alim course which our ulama take 6 years to complete normally.
The normal aalim courses taken in Darul Uloom’s around the world follow the Nizami Silsila which is a specific type of syllabus. This syllabus cannot be taken online, not even if you had mic, speakers and video.
Instead of taking an alim course online, re-think your strategy and consider the darul uloom I have recommended in my topmost post and in the sidebar.
If you feel differently to the statements above, please leave your comments below.
This is intended to serve the needs of fellow students looking to take-up studies with an approved aalim course or even a part time alim course.
Inshallah, I will be posting information which will benefit everyone concerned and hopefully, you will be able to make an informed decision by the time I have finished writing my experiences and recommendations.
I will be using the term ‘alim’ and ‘aalim’. They mean the same thing but are spelt differently.
