Majallat al-Haqa'iq
- Author died
- 1362 AH
- Editions
- Majallat al-Haqa'iq
Majallat al-Haqa'iq (The Journal of Realities) is a Damascus-based Islamic scholarly periodical founded and edited by Abd al-Qadir al-Iskandarani (d. 1362 AH / 1943 CE), dedicated to religious scholarship, the defense of Islamic orthodoxy, and the refutation of contemporary intellectual doubts.
Founding and Publication
The journal published its inaugural issue on August 7, 1910 CE in Damascus. Over the course of its run, a total of 34 issues were released. The journal's stated mission was to serve religious learning, make the truth evident, and respond to theological and social misconceptions facing Muslims in the modern era. Regarding editorial policy, the journal noted that pieces submitted under explicit names or pseudonyms represented the personal views and responsibility of their respective writers, whereas contributions written directly by the journal's editors appeared unsigned.
Content and Method
Majallat al-Haqa'iq addressed a wide range of religious, legal, and social subjects. Its opening issue featured foundational theological treatises on Islamic monotheism (tawhid) and the principles of the faith. It also maintained a dedicated legal inquiry section titled al-As'ila wa-al-Ajwiba (Questions and Answers), which offered jurisprudence rulings—particularly according to the Hanafi school—on pressing local matters, such as the legal status of using the piped waters of Ayn al-Fija in Damascus.
The periodical also frequently commented on public ethics, social conditions, and cultural practices in Damascus. It criticized the religious justification of Western-style theatrical acting among students at the Ottoman School of Damascus, and published detailed articles calling upon the municipal authorities to suppress public immorality and prevent the establishment of brothels.
Intellectual Debates and Reception
Majallat al-Haqa'iq was an active forum for intellectual contestation against modernists and westernized thinkers (al-mutafarnijun):
- It published rejoinders to reformist scholars such as Jamal al-Din al-Qasimi and Abd al-Qadir al-Maghribi, including a critique of al-Maghribi's article arguing against the religious basis of the hijab.
- It responded to Shukri al-Asali regarding the determination of the crescent moon of Ramadan through astronomical calculations, arguing that reliance on clear prophetic hadiths and physical sighting remained the established standard.
- It engaged in sharp journalistic polemics with contemporary Damascus publications, notably the newspaper al-Mufid and Muhammad Kurd Ali's al-Muqtabas.
The journal received laudatory encomiums (taqriz) from traditionalist scholars and literary figures in Damascus, including poetic tributes composed by Muhyi al-Din al-Khani and by Muhammad Ali Bey al-Maydani at the direction of Abd al-Razzaq al-Bitar.
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