Islamic Studies Curriculum
The Islamic Studies Curriculum
This curriculum provides a clear, systematic five-level program for students of Islamic Knowledge. It is taught by qualified scholars, and presents traditional Islamic knowledge in a deep, practical, inspiring manner--with an emphasis on living knowledge as guidance.
Download ProspectusThe Essentials
In Level One: The Essentials, the Islamic Studies Curriculum focuses on religious knowledge that every Muslim must learn, that which is "personally obligatory," or fard ayn.
Foundations
In Level Two: Foundations, the Islamic Studies Curriculum builds on the Essentials Level by teaching the remainder of that which is, “personally obligatory” (fard ayn). And to introduce and ground the student in the Islamic Sciences - the formal disciplines of the tradition.
Intermediate
In Level Three: Intermediate, the Islamic Studies Curriculum builds upon the previous two levels but also marks an important shift, building in reasoning and application. In order to begin Level Three, the student will be expected to have reached a level of mastery in Arabic that suits the topics and subject-matter to be covered to accommodate the methodological and curricular shifts in this level.
Advanced
Level Four: Advanced, is the pinnacle of the general Islamic Studies Curriculum. In Level Four, the student is expected to move beyond simple accumulation to activation. Our intellectual heritage is not a historic artefact of the past, rather it is a living inherited system that continues to produce through its application by those with the technical expertise and know-how.
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The Essentials
In Level One: The Essentials, the Islamic Studies Curriculum focuses on religious knowledge that every Muslim must learn, that which is "personally obligatory," or fard ayn.
Foundations
In Level Two: Foundations, the Islamic Studies Curriculum builds on the Essentials Level by teaching the remainder of that which is, “personally obligatory” (fard ayn). And to introduce and ground the student in the Islamic Sciences - the formal disciplines of the tradition.
Intermediate
In Level Three: Intermediate, the Islamic Studies Curriculum builds upon the previous two levels but also marks an important shift, building in reasoning and application. In order to begin Level Three, the student will be expected to have reached a level of mastery in Arabic that suits the topics and subject-matter to be covered to accommodate the methodological and curricular shifts in this level.
Advanced
Level Four: Advanced, is the pinnacle of the general Islamic Studies Curriculum. In Level Four, the student is expected to move beyond simple accumulation to activation. Our intellectual heritage is not a historic artefact of the past, rather it is a living inherited system that continues to produce through its application by those with the technical expertise and know-how.
Coming Soon
This course provides guidance on the Halal and Haram of everyday life according to the Hanafi school. It covers food, proper dress, interacting with the opposite gender, guarding your gaze, and guarding your tongue.
Course detailsLiving Right: Halal and Haram and Living Prophetic Excellence (Hanafi)
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course provides an introduction to the formal study of Islamic beliefs through a traditional manual of Islamic theology. You will gain evidence-based conviction in Allah Most High, His attributes, His messengers, and the afterlife.
Course detailsWhat Muslims Believe and Why: Dardir's Kharida al-Bahiyya
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course provides a concise but comprehensive introduction to Islamic Law (fiqh). It explains the rulings of worship, slaughtering, sacrifice, and hunting according to the Hanafi school. It is based on the primer Maraqi al-Sa‘adat by Imam Shurunbulali.
Course detailsOn Worship (Purification, Prayer, Fasting, Zakat, and Hajj): Shurunbulali’s Ascent to Felicity
- Ustadh Tabraze Azam
This course is based on an introductory primer to Islamic beliefs. By studying Taqrib al-`Aqai’d, you will learn the foundations of Islamic beliefs, their textual evidence from the Quran, and the basics of the rational proofs that are derived from the verses.
Course details`Ilish’s Taqrib al-`Aqa’id: Quranic Foundations of Theology
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
This course covers what every Muslim must know about the basic guidance of Islam in its three dimensions: (1) beliefs (iman) (2) submission (Islam) (3) spiritual excellence (ihsan).
Course detailsAbsolute Essentials of Islam (Hanafi): Getting Started With Your Belief and Practice
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course covers the essentials of Islamic spirituality and provides guidance on living the sunna, avoiding the sins of the limbs and heart, and upholding good character. It is based on Imam Ghazali's text Beginning of Guidance (Bidaya al-Hidaya).
Course detailsOn Spirituality: Living the Sunna, Leaving Sin, and Acquiring Good Character: Ghazali’s Beginning of Guidance
- Shaykh Yahya Rhodus
This course covers how the Quran, the Sunna, and its understanding have been preserved from the time of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) all the way down to our times.
Course detailsHow Islam Works: What is Religion, and How It Is Preserved, Transmitted, and Interpreted
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This is the third of four courses based on the famous primer, Mukhtasar of Imam Quduri. It serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of marriage and divorce according to the Hanafi school.
Course detailsQuduri's Mukhtasar: On Marriage and Divorce
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This is the second of four courses based on the famous primer, Mukhtasar of Imam Quduri. It serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of trade and transactions according to the Hanafi school.
Course detailsQuduri’s Mukhtasar: On Financial Transactions
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This is the second course on Usul al-Fiqh (Hanafi) in Level Two. It covers the text Samt al-Wusul by Imam Aqhisari, which summarizes issues, simplifies expressions, and explains the more subtle parts of Imam Nasafi’s Manar.
Course detailsUsul al-Fiqh: Aqhisari's Samt al-Wusul Explained - Understanding the Principles of Legal Interpretation (Hanafi)
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This is the fourth of four courses based on the famous primer, Mukhtasar of Imam Quduri. It serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of public law according to the Hanafi school.
Course detailsQuduri's Mukhtasar: On Public Law
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This is the first of four courses based on the famous primer, Mukhtasar of Imam Quduri. It serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of worship according to the Hanafi school.
Course detailsQuduri's Mukhtasar: On Worship (Purification, Prayer, Fasting, Zakat and Hajj)
- Shaykh Yusuf Weltch
This expansive course will cover all the chapters on personal law and commercial transactions in Imam Mawsili's Mukhtar. You will gain a necessary and detailed understanding of rulings related to marriage, divorce, sales, leasing, and more.
Course detailsMawsili's Mukhtar: On Transactions, Marriage, and Public Law [Elective]
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This expansive course covers all the chapters on worship in Imam Mawsili's Mukhtar. You will gain a necessary and detailed understanding of Islamic Jurisprudence (fiqh) related to the acts of worship, i.e. prayer, zakat, fasting, and the pilgrimage.
Course detailsMawsili's Mukhtar: On Worship: Understanding Purification, Prayer, Fasting, Zakat, and Hajj [Elective]
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course serves as a guide to right action and proper comportment in all matters of personal conduct: consumption of food and drink; dress and clothing; sight and touch; earning an income and practicing a craft; virtues and blameworthy traits of the heart.
Course detailsNahlawi's al-Durar al-Mubaha fi al-Hadhr wal-Ibaha: A Manual of Proper Conduct [Elective]
- Shaykh Talal Al-Azem
This course provides guidance on occasional and voluntary prayers that a Muslim prays, such as the eclipse prayer, prayer of need, prayer of guidance, the night-vigil prayer, and more.
Course detailsPrayers of Occasions: An In-Depth Understanding and Application of the Voluntary Sunna Prayers [Elective]
- Shaykh Talal Al-Azem
This course provides an introduction to the science of Usul al-fiqh and serves as a clear first step in building your understanding of this critical science. It explains how rulings are derived based on the Quran, Sunna, Consensus, and Legal Analogy in the Hanafi school.
Course detailsUsul al-Fiqh: How Islamic Law is Derived and Interpreted: Halabi’s Mukhtasar al-Manar
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course is based on Imam Shurunbulali's Nur al-Idah, a comprehensive work that covers the issues of purification, prayer, and fasting at an intermediate level. It eliminates confusion and provides you with a good grounding in the rulings of worship.
Course detailsLaw: Shurunbulali’s Nur al-Idah Explained [Elective]
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course is based on a spiritual manual by Ibn ‘Ata’illah al-Sakandari. It explores the relationship between creation and provision and explains how one can safely deal with the world and its wealth without becoming spiritually impure.
Course detailsIbn `Ata’illah’s Book of Illumination: The Path of Liberation from Self-Absorption.
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
This course is based on a fundamental primer in the science of Hadith. It explores the process of Hadith authentication, the methodology of verifying Hadith narrators, the dynamics of Hadith transmission, and the evaluation of chains of narration.
Course detailsIbn Hajar’s Nukhba Explained: Principles of Hadith
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
This course is an introduction to the rules of Logic. It covers all the essential topics of formal Logic as summarized by one of the most prominent philosophers and logicians in the Islamic tradition, Imam Athir al-Din al-Abhari.
Course detailsAbhari’s Isaghuji: An Introduction to Traditional Logic
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
This course is an introduction to Islamic theology based on Imam Sanusi’s Summary of Theological Proofs. It summarizes the rational arguments for the attributes of Allah Most High and His Messengers (upon them be peace).
Course detailsBeliefs: Sanusi's Umm al-Barahin: Foundational Proofs for Why Islam is True
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
This course is an exposition of The Book of Assistance by Imam Haddad. It summarizes the stages of the spiritual journey and its most important milestones, such as certainty in the Afterlife, stages of spiritual development, and presence of heart in acts of worship.
Course detailsHaddad's Book of Assistance: Complete Guidance for Turning to Allah
- Shaykh Yahya Rhodus
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
This course introduces basic technical terms and categorizations associated with Ḥadith Studies. It explores core questions investigated in the field, as well as the critical methods employed by ḥadith scholars in testing a given report’s authenticity.
Course detailsAn Introduction to the Science of Hadith: Bayquni's Hadith Terminology
- Shaykh Mohammed Tayssir Safi
This course explores intermediate Islamic beliefs through a close study of Imam Sawi’s commentary on Imam Laqqani’s Jawhara al-Tawhid — a poem that covers mainstream Islamic beliefs about Allah Most High, His messengers (peace be upon them), and the Hereafter.
Course detailsBelief: Sawi On Jawhara al-Tawhid: Understanding Islamic Beliefs [Elective]
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course explores how the Quran was revealed to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), how it has been impeccably preserved down to our times, and why we are certain that it could not have been invented by anyone.
Course detailsUlum al-Qur'an: On Revelation, How It Was Preserved and Understood, and Why It Is True
- Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
This course covers the explanation of some of the central suras of the Quran: Yasin, Mulk, Waq'ia, and Kahf. It is based on a number of classical and contemporary Quranic commentaries and related works.
Course detailsTafsir of Great Suras: Yasin, Mulk, Waq'ia and Kahf: Linguistic and Thematic Analysis
- Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
This course covers Ibn Abi Jamra’s Mukhtasar Sahih Bukhari. This summary distills a work intended for hadith specialists into a highly practical manual containing nearly 300 narrations that present a key selection of Prophetic teachings.
Course detailsHadith: Ibn Abi Jamra's Abridgement of Sahih Bukhari Explained
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course clarifies the meanings, beauty, and guidance in the 40 hadiths selected by Imam Nawawi. Each hadith is based on a foundational principle of Islam and showcases the beauty of the comprehensive words of our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
Course detailsNawawi’s 40 Hadith: The Essential Guidance of Islam
- Shaykh Yusuf Weltch
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Instructor: Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Course Overview Allah Most High says, “I have not created jinn-kind nor mankind for any purpose other than to worship Me.” (Qur’an, 51:56) Take this course to increase your knowledge of the questions that worshipper...
Course detailsOn Worship: Shurunbulali’s Nur al-Idah - In-Depth Study of Purification, Prayer, and Fasting
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Course Overview This course covers a comprehensive commentary on the five acts of worship written by one of the authorities of the Hanafi school of law.
Course detailsOn Worship: Shurunbulali’s Maraqi al-Falah Sharh Nur al-Idah: In-Depth Study of Purification, Prayer, and Fasting [Elective]
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Course Overview This is a Level Three course in the Islamic Studies Curriculum.
Course detailsLaw: Nasafi's Kanz al-Daqa’iq: Explained: On Worship - Deeper Understanding of Legal Rulings (Hanafi)
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Course Overview This is a Level Three course in the Islamic Studies Cur...
Course detailsBeliefs: Bajuri's Hashiya al-Sanusiyya Explained: Allah's Attributes and Proofs for His Existence
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Level: Three Instructors: Shaykh Yahya Rhodus & Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary Course Overview This is a Level Three course in the Islamic Studies Curriculum. This course is based on the text Minhaj al-Abideen (The Best Way for the Worshippers) by Imam ...
Course detailsGhazali's Minhaj al-Abidin - Understanding the Hurdles on the Path to Allah and How to Overcome Them
- Shaykh Yahya Rhodus
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
This course is taught live in person at SeekersGuidance Canada (220 Britannia Rd E, Mississauga, ON -- full schedule of classes at www.seekersguidance.org/canada), and broadcast online weekly. Live on Tues...
Course detailsNasafi's Kanz al-Daqa’iq Explained: On Public Law - Deeper Understanding of Legal Rulings
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Course Overview The first in a series of courses that covers one of the four main primers of the Hanafi school; Imam Nasafi's Kanz al-Daqa‘iq. It gathe...
Course detailsLaw: Nasafi's Kanz al-Daqa’iq Explained | On Financial Transactions - Deeper Understanding of Legal Rulings (Hanafi)
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course is taught live in person at SeekersGuidance Canada (220 Britannia Rd E, Mississauga, ON -- full schedule of classes at www.seekersguidance.org/canada), and broadcast online weekly.Live on&n...
Course detailsSpirituality: Attaining Taqwa: Birgivi's Tariqa Muhammadiyya
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course is taught live in person at SeekersGuidance Canada (220 Britannia Rd E, Mississauga, ON -- full schedule of classes at www.seekersguidance.org/canada), and broadcast online weekly.
Course detailsLaw: Halabi's Multaqa al-Abhur
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat Course Overview Shaykh Abd al Ghani al Maydani’s commentary is one of the best written on the Mukhtasar of Imam Ahmad ibn Muha...
Course detailsLaw: Maydani's Lubab Explained - Understanding a Key Commentary on Quduri's Mukhtasar
- Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Course Overview This is a Level Three course in the Islamic Studies Curriculum. This course is based on the Kanz al-Daqa’iq of Imam ‘Abdullah ibn ...
Course detailsLaw: Nasafi's Kanz al-Daqa’iq: On Marriage and Personal Law - Deeper Understanding of Legal Rulings
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary Course Overview: This is a Level Three course in the Islamic Studies Curriculum of SeekersGuidance. It’s a traditional word-by-word explanation of Imam al-Sanusi’s commentary on his primer Umm al-Barahin (The Founda...
Course detailsSanusi's Commentary on Umm al-Barahin: An In-Depth Investigation of the Foundational Proofs
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary Course Overview This is a Level Three course in the Islamic Studies Curriculum. It covers an intermediate commentary on Imam Athir al-Din Abhari’s fundamental logic primer, Isaghuji. It provi...
Course detailsIntermediate Islamic Logic: Zakariyya al-Ansari’s Commentary on the Isaghuji Explained
This course is taught live in person at SeekersGuidance Canada (220 Britannia Rd E, Mississauga, ON -- full schedule of classes at www.seekersguidance.org/canada), and broadcast online weekly.Tuesdays & Thursdays at 4:00 PM ET...
Course detailsLaw: Tumurtashi's Tanwir Al Absar Explained.
- Ustadh Sufyan Qufi
- Shaykh Yusuf Weltch
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Level: Four Instructor: Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary Course Overview This is a Level Four course in the Islamic Studies Curriculum. This course covers how to address modern challenges to belief through the application ...
Course detailsAnswer to Modernism: Contemporary Applications of Traditional Theology
- Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary
This course is taught live in person at SeekersGuidance Canada (220 Britannia Rd E, Mississauga, ON, and broadcast online weekly. Live on Mondays 3:30 - 5:00 PM ET. Registration is essential. View full schedule of classes at
Course detailsBajuri’s Tuhfat al-Murid ‘ala Jawharat al-Tawhid: An Advanced Study of Islamic Beliefs
- Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
This course provides guidance on how to have God-consciousness in daily life. It covers the Shafi‘i rules of eating halal food, proper dress, interacting with the opposite gender, guarding your gaze, investing and saving your money, and guarding your tongue.
Course detailsLiving Right: Halal and Haram and Living Prophetic Excellence (Shafi'i)
- Mawlana Irshaad Sedick
This course is the first step in your pursuit of religious knowledge. It explains what your religion is, what you must know about it, and how you should learn it. This course is taught according to the Shafi‘i school.
Course detailsGetting Started with Your Belief and Practice : Habshi’s Encompassing Epistle Explained (Shafi` i)
- Shaykh Farid Dingle
This course empowers you to fulfill your ritual acts of worship confidently. It focuses on the detailed rules of purification, prayer, funeral rites, zakat, fasting, spiritual retreat, pilgrimage (Hajj), trade, and marriage according to the Shafi‘i school.
Course detailsOn Worship: Ba Fadl's The Short Abridgment
- Shaykh Muhammad Carr
This thought-provoking and insightful course in Islamic Legal Theory (Usul al-Fiqh) illustrates how Islamic law is derived from its sources. It sets a foundation and framework for further studies in Shafi‘i jurisprudence.
Course detailsUsul al-Fiqh: How Islamic Law is Derived and Interpreted: Juwayni's Waraqat
- Shaykh Muhammad Carr
This is the third of four courses based on the renowned text, Matn Abu Shuja. It serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of marriage and divorce according to the Shafi‘i school.
Course detailsAbu Shuja's Matn: On Marriage and Divorce
This is the second of four courses based on the renowned text, Matn Abu Shuja. It serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of trade and transactions according to the Shafi‘i school.
Course detailsAbu Shuja's Matn: On Financial Transactions
This is the fourth of four courses based on the renowned text, Matn Abu Shuja. It serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of public law according to the Shafi‘i school.
Course detailsAbu Shuja's Matn: On Public Law
This is the first of four courses based on the renowned text, Matn Abu Shuja. It serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of worship according to the Shafi‘i school.
Course detailsAbu Shuja's Matn: On Worship (Purification, Prayer, Fasting, Zakat and Hajj)
- Shaykh Muhammad Carr
Level: Two Instructors: Shaykh Jamir Meah & Shaykh Farid Dingle Course Overview This course will cover the details of financial transactions, inheritance, marriage, divorce, child custody, injurious crimes, fixed Sharia punishments, hunting and halal ...
Course detailsAbu Shuja's Matn: On Marriage, Transactions, and Public Law
- Shaykh Muhammad Carr
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Irshaad Sedick Course Overview This is a Level Three course based on the text Reliance of the Traveller and Tools of the Worshipper. This course covers the chapters on Worship taught by Shaykh Irshaad Sedick. The entire...
Course detailsReliance of the Traveller: Intermediate Worship Course in Shafi` i Fiqh
- Mawlana Irshaad Sedick
Level: Three Instructor: Shaykh Muhammad Carr Course Overview This is a Level Three course based on the text Reliance of the Traveller and Tools of the Worshipper. This course covers the chapters on Contract Law and Commercial Law taught by Shaykh Muh...
Course detailsReliance of the Traveller: Intermediate Contract Law and Commercial Law
- Shaykh Muhammad Carr
Instructor: Shaykh Irshaad Sedick Level: Three Course Overview Lubb Al-Usul is traditionally considered as an intermediate to advanced level of study, and has, therefore, been included in our level three curriculum. ...
Course detailsAnsari’s Lubb Al-Usul: Deeper Understanding of How Islamic Law Works (Shafi`i)
- Mawlana Irshaad Sedick