acknowledgements
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“Whoesoever is not grateful to people is not grateful to Allah.”
I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude in appreciation of the enthusiasm,sincerity and dedication to Islamic re-awakening of brother Muhammad
Doola without who's support this treatise could not have been accom-plished. Special thanks to brother Muhammad Amod who provided invalu-
able technical assistance in the production of this work. Their love of Faithis most heartening and inspirational indeed. May Allah, the Exalted, grant
them all the best of this world and the hereafter.
I would be failing in my duty if I did not display my gratitude to my mentors,MawlanaHasan Docrat a truly outstanding and erudite scholar of Islam,
who very kindly proof-read the work.
I owe a special debt of gratitude to my wife, Chothia, without whose assistance, support, encouragement and patienceMu'allimahNaeema Desai
this work would not have been Possible.
Finally, let me add that if this work stimulates a more assertive and activeinterest in Islamic faith and doctrine amongst young Muslims, I will consid-
er the effort to have been amply rewarded.
MawlanaFeizel Chothia
MawlanaJohannesburg, South Africa in 1970 he was educated at the Feizel Chothia has devoted his life to the cause of Islam. Born inMadrasah Arabiyah
Islamiyahmost well known institutions of Islamic learning in South Africa. He studied under the(Dar Al-UlumAzaadville) institute of traditional Islamic sciences, one of the
guidance of the eminent Islamic scholar and Tradition), MawlanaFazlur Rahman Azmi and ShaykhMawlanaul-HadithHasan Docrat, author of the(Specialist in Prophetic
popular work on Arabic syntax, ‘A Simplified Arabic Grammar’ and Syllabus Co-ordina-torof Madrasah Arabiyah Islamiyah. He has also acquired a post graduate degree in
Islamic Studies under the guidance of the distinguished academic, Prof. Abdur RahmanI. Doi. He has specialist training in Islamic jurisprudence, primarily the Hanafi School of
Law, and his approach is rooted in a traditional, normative stance. traveled widely in the cause of Islam, visiting Arabia, Palestine, South East Asia, TurkeyMawlanaFeizel has
and England as well as living both in South Africa and Australia where he served asImam in numerous Masjidsand was actively engaged in Islamic propagation, teaching
and administration, and developing curricula and materials for Islamic elementary andafternoon schools (ie. Madaris - primary and secondary Islamic seminaries). Apart
from his formal training and experience, his development as an Islamic scholar withinthe Western milieu and his intimacy with Western culture and its institutions has served
him well in assessing and positively engaging the challenges it poses to Muslims andthe Islamic Faith. He currently lives in Perth where he is associated with a number of
innovative projects in the field of Islamic education and literature.
Mu'allimahTarbiyat ul-BanatNaeema Desai Chothia , a popular tertiary Islamic institute near Johannesburg. She has, inis a South African born graduate of Madrasah
the course of her academic endeavors, also acquired a diploma in the Montessorimethod of nursery and pre-school education. She has experience in teaching in pri-
mary, secondary and tertiary Islamic seminaries (ie.and Nursery and Pre-schools, as well as conducting teenage and adult Islamic educa-Madrasah's and Dar ul-'Ulum's)
tional programs for women and new convert Muslims, both in South Africa andAustralia. Mu'allimah Naeema Desai is a qualified Islamic Studies directress with
twelve years of experience as not only a teacher but also as principal of Islamic primaryseminaries. She currently lives in Perth, Australia.
