Ml Cassim Mohammed Sema (12 May 1920 – 9 June 2007) was a South African Sunni Muslim scholar who established the first
madrasa
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...
in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
and possibly the first
madrasa
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...
that uses
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Culture, language and peoples
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
* ''English'', an Amish ter ...
as its medium of instruction. He was the founder of
Darul Uloom Newcastle.
Biography
Ml Cassim Mohammed Sema was born on 12 May 1920 in
Newcastle
Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...
.
He graduated from the
Jamia Islamia Talimuddin
Jamiah Islamiah Talimuddin Dabhel (or Dabhel Jamiah Islamiah or Jamiah Islamiah Dabhel) is a Deobandi Islamic seminary in Dabhel, Gujarat, India.
Education pattern
The Jamiah has the following departments:
* Nazirah-e-Qur'an (reading the Qur ...
in the traditional
dars-e-nizami
Dars-i Nizami () is a study curriculum or system used in many Islamic institutions (madrassas) and Darul Ulooms, which originated in the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century and can now also be found in parts of South Africa, Canada, the United ...
in October 1942.
His teachers include
Yousuf Banuri.
Sema taught in Wasbank 23 years and returned to Newcastle in 1968 as the head of the Newcastle Muslim Community.
During his career at Wasbank, he formulated a "madrasa syllabus" which was chosen by the Jamī’at al-Ulama Natal in 1967 as a single Madrasah syllabus for the Province.
Sema was trying to establish an Islamic institution with boarding facilities in South Africa, and succeeded in starting the first madrasa using the English medium "madrasa", the Darul Uloom in Newcastle on 13 May 1973.
The madrasa is said to be the first Deobandi madrasa in South Africa.
Ml Sema passed away on 9 June 2007 and Mufti Faiyazur Rahim whom Ml Sema appointed as the Bukhari teacher lead the
Janaaza Salah. His funeral was attended by 4000 people.
See also
*
Deobandi movement in South Africa
Darul Uloom Deoband was established in 1866 in the Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, India, as part of the anti-British movement. It gave rise to a traditional conservative Sunni movement known as the Deobandi movement. The Deobandi Movemen ...
*
List of Deobandis
Deobandis represent a group of scholars affiliated with the reformist Deobandi movement, which originated in the town of Darul Uloom Deoband in northern India. Founded in 1866, this movement sought to safeguard Islamic teachings amidst non-Musli ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sema, Cassim
1920 births
2007 deaths
People from Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal
Jamia Islamia Talimuddin alumni
Deobandis
South African Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam