The profound realization of the stupendous power of Science, research and lightening swift discovery has been accompanied by man being caught in a dilemmic tug of war between knowledge and faith. In an era when people are
arguing the practicality and practibilty of Islam; at a time when the gross misconception reigns that Islam fears the perpetuation and pursuit of modern knowledge; at a point in history when man has callously attributed this universe of unimaginable dimensions, and all the complex creations constituting it, to be the result of an arbitrary accident, His Holiness Dr. Syedna Mohammad Burhanuddin (TUS) is one who has taken up the arduous challenge to show that all learning lies under the all-encompassing aegis of Islam and that the Holy Quran is the fountain-head of absolute knowledge and truth.

Education has an individual connection with ones belief system making it impossible to separate the mundane, empirical and spiritual aspects of man and his learning. Dr. Syedna Burhannuddin (TUS) has inherited his avidity regarding education from his father, Syedna Taher Saifuddin (R.A) an exceptional Arabic scholar of international acclaim.

Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA had been unanimously elected Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University. This university was established with the noble intention of tejuvenating and preserving the Islamic system of teaching along with the partaking of all the vistas of worldly knowledge for the Muslims of India to emerge from the looming shadow of their rulers and forge ahead towards progress and prosperity. The esteemed Dr. Zakir Hussain in an address had lauded Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA by voicing that it was the dire need of the university to be led by this "great Muslim educationalist".

His heir, Dr. Syedna Mohammad Burhanuddin TUS, has adroitly followed in his
ancestor's footsteps. Merely a year after succeeding his father as Head of the Community, he was conferred with a degree of 'Doctor of Islamic Science' by Al-Azhar University in Cairo in 1966 and in the same year, a 'Doctor of Theology' degree by Aligarh Muslim University, India. In 1999 Aligarh offered His Holiness Chancellorship, which Syedna graciously accepted. The Vice Chancellor of the academy has been quoted to say that since the day. Dr. Syedna Burhanuddin TUS has accepted their offer to guide Aligarh; the universities problems seem to be finding solutions. At the present time the
University of Karachi, on 5th June 2004 conferred on His Holiness the degree of "Doctor of Literature', D. Litt (Honoris Causa).

The funding of the 'Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin TUS Building', at the Department of Genetics, Karachi University is just one of the many glowing examples of Aqa Maula's keen interest in science and technological development. The Saifee Eide Zahabi Institute of Technology is a polytechnic in the private sector of Karachi, open to all without distinction of caste and creed, was established by Maulana's TUS illustrious father, Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA, in 1963 and funded by Syedna Burhanuddin TUS until its
nationalization in October 1972.

An Arabic chair named Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin TUS chair, financed by Maulana TUS was established at the University of Karachi to undertake research on the contribution of scholars of the sub continent to the Arabic language.

Let us turn back into the corridors of the past to put education and the Bohra community into germane context. The Dawoodi Bohra religious organization traces its origin to the dynamic Fatimi Imams SA, who ruled over a massive domain spilling over North Africa, Egypt and Levant from the 10th till the 12th century A.D. They earned incomparable merit as a dynasty that inspired a glorious renaissance of spirit and expression in the assorted spheres of science, art, philosophy, literature, Islamic studies, calligraphy and architecture. Their prime motive was always to promote the inexhaustible pursuit of holiness, purity and truth through the seeking of knowledge and erudition. The Imam's SA perfervid patronage of science and other disciplines was thus, pure, greatly elevated and uncomplicated. It was the Fatimi Imam, Al Moiz Le Dinillah (SA), who, in 970 A.D founded the Al-Azhar University in Cairo which has the unique distinction of being
recognized as the oldest University in the world. Similarly in 1005 AD Fatimi Imam Hakim be Amrillah SA founded the House of Science which served as an irresistible magnet to intellectuals from different parts of the globe. The House boasted of a curriculum entailing Astronomy, Lexicology, Criticism, Law, Grammar, and Poetry. The Fatimi Imams (AS), descendants of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H), were rectors of a magnificent library furnished by hundreds of thousands of works, open for the benefit of all.

The elaborate Fatimi system of education and upbringing perpetuated at the hands of Fatimi Dais, Deputies of the Fatimi Imams, from Cairo to Yemen and then in 1539 A.D to the subcontinent. It was in this part of the world that nearly two centuries ago in 1814, Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin's TUS revered ancestor, the 43rd Dai-el-Mutlaq, Syedna Abde Ali Saifuddin RA, institutionalized the propitious system of learning under the name of "Al-Darse Saifee". This institution was specially reputed for its unique and
effectual system of teaching Arabic. It was the 51st Dai- el- Fatimi, Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA, who modernized and developed the institution into a full-fledged academy that is recognized as "Al-Jamea-Tus-Saifiyah Arabic Academy". The 'Jamea', as it is usually referred to, like its prototype in Surat, India was also established in Karachi, Pakistan, and inaugurated in 1983 by the President of Pakistan. Here a select few of the Dawoodi Bohra youngsters from all parts of the world have the privilege of being educated.

At present the Jamea in Karachi has 400 students our of which nearly 170 are from foreign countries including USA, Britain, France, Kenya, Tanzania, Yemen, Srilanka and Malaysia.

Dr. Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin TUS, like the Fatimi Imams SA and all the Fatimi Dais RA before him, has kept a torch of learning aloft throughout the vicissitudes of turbulent history. Under his patronage, the Jamea has demonstrated resilience to adjust to the demands of the changing times but without letting go of its Islamic heritage. It is here at the Jamea, where the core of all learning is the unshakable faith in the Holy Quran, when an indepth and immaculately regulating study of Islamic lore, Arabic language and literature is undertaken. The Academy reflects its awareness of the
grandeur of the masterful language of Arabic in which the divine Quran has been revealed. The curriculum at the Jamea, however, is dexterously coupled with an up-to-date study of contemporary disciplines like Exact Sciences, Humanities and with Arabic and English being the medium of instruction. One of the most commendable features of the Jamea-tus-Saifiyah, accentuated by a residential campus, is that boarding and lodging is totally borne by His Holiness.

The Jamea's unique feature is the Mahad-Al-Zahra (The Edifice of Light) inaugurated in 1998 in Surat, a center established for the singular purpose of Hifz (memorization) of the Holy Quran. It boasts of state-of-the art recitation cubicles, rooms designed to alter acoustic feedback, and indoor gardens and fountains planned strategically to create an unparalleled tranquil aura to facilitate memorization. The Jamea is thus the pride and
joy of the community, an epitome of the Bohra faith and philosophy.

Maulana Burhanuddin TUS has established a network of madrassas in every region of the world where the Dawoodi Bohra community members reside. The teachers at the madrassas are alumnae of the Al Jamea Tus Saifiyah, sent to various cities and suburbs to impart knowledge. At present there are 550 such madrassas functioning effectively around the world under the auspices of a coordinating department called 'Daeratul Tarbiyat wa Taalim'. Here the young ones who go to regular secular schools are enrolled to habituate them to the basic features of the Arabic language so that they are able to recite Quran and offer their prayers; reflecting the age old Islamic tradition of
educating the child via four basic institutions - the home, the madrassa, the masjid and the society.

Dr, Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin TUS has to his credit the setting up of an international chain of schools under the name "Al-Madresa-Tus-Saifiyah-Tul-Burhaniyah". The first school was established in Kenya, East Africa in 1985 and consequently 18 branches proliferated throughout India, Pakistan, UAE, Kenya, Tanzania, and Madagascar. The institution follows the principle of "deriving light through Islamic learning", and mirrors all that a regular school should embody in providing
complete pre-primary, primary, and secondary school education with a curriculum that is enhanced by the learning of Islamic rudiments and, of course, the Arabic language, thus meshing the secular with the religious. Central coordination guides the working of the various schools, spanning two continents of the world, to ensure efficient organization and meticulous knowledge to be imparted simultaneously consistently and collectively. The Dawoodi Bohra community also runs several regular schools imparting quality
education on a non-commercial basis, subsidized by a community central office thus providing maximum access to schooling for all children. A large number of colleges, in assorted corners of the world, particularly in the sub continent have been the beneficiaries of his munificence.

Today, for many science is viewed as a discipline that does not admit to the existence of anything beyond matter or energy, their interplay being purely physical or biological. Consequently man has committed the folly of trying to study this world of matter without reference to a Creator. But Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin TUS harbours an infallible belief that no discovery or advancement by man can refute or replace the existence and omnipotence of the Creator and that every 'dry' and 'damp' thing has been mentioned in the Holy Quran. By Maulana's TUS step to construct the department of Genetics at the University of Karachi, Huzoorala TUS is thus playing the role of a patron to an educational discipline for research and development within the orbit of Islam.

Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin TUS is a scholar par excellence of international
repute whose definition of education exceeds the conventional connotation of mere intellectual training. To His Holiness education is the strengthening of the moral fibre for the purpose of inducing spontaneous self-discipline and inculcation of humane values thus allowing the fullest flowering of the human personality. Certainly, Aqa Maula's TUS every gesture and utterance resounds with the qualities he preaches, serving as an exemplar, not only for his faithful followers, but for the Muslim Ummah and humanity at large.