Holisticization of Knowledge versus Islamization of Human Knowledge in the Contemporary Islamic Universities in Muslim World

Abstract

The intellectual soundness and genuineness for the need to Islamize contemporary knowledge, from a secular perspective as well as the need to contextualize Islamic Revealed knowledge, have been elaborately and extensively elucidated by many Muslim scholars. With the trends and success of integration between Islamization of human knowledge and relevantization of Islamic Revealed knowledge so far by the Islamic Universities, little focus of attention is given to the articulation on holisticization of knowledge as an integral process of Islamization of human knowledge and contextualization of Islamic Revealed knowledge in spite of overwhelming literature on the subject-matter since 1970s. Therefore, the primary objective of this paper is to explore the concept of holisticization of knowledge as a process of Islamization of knowledge in Islamic Universities in Muslim world. The paper is library-based using content analysis of different sources as part of qualitative method. The findings indicate that integration of knowledge is a focal objective of the Islamic Universities and holisticization of knowledge as a process of Islamization of knowledge is an endogenous-based target that develops mental, spiritual and character aspects of the learners in various disciplines. Nonetheless, stagnation of Islamic education and secularization of modern knowledge are two major hindrances to Islamic intellectual tradition in the contemporary time. In conclusion, it is not doubtful that holisticization of knowledge as a process of Islamization of human knowledge is viable in addressing multifarious challenges of Muslim countries with specific focus on the development of Islamic university system. It is therefore suggested that, Islamic knowledge should be contextualized while conventional knowledge should be instilled with Islamic worldview.  Also, while designing curricula or academic programmes of various disciplines (religious, pure and social sciences) in different Islamic Universities in the Muslim world, elements of curriculum namely: objective, content selection, method and evaluation should be taken into account in order to achieve holisticization of knowledge as a central climax lucidly elaborated in this paper.