Tawjihat Islamiyya li-Muhammad ibn Jamil Zino
- Author died
- 1431 AH
- Editions
- Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Da'wah and Guidance - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Tawjihat Islamiyya li-Islah al-Fard wa-al-Mujtama‘ (Islamic Directives for the Reform of the Individual and Society) is a concise pedagogical work on Islamic creed, worship, ethics, and social reform written by the Syrian-born educator Muhammad Jamil Zino (d. 1431 AH / 2010 CE), an instructor at Dar al-Hadith al-Khayriyya in Mecca.
Purpose and Scope
The book was conceived as an accessible guide for general Muslim readers, addressing fundamental religious and daily practical concerns in simplified language. It serves as the opening treatise of Zino's multi-part series Majmu‘at Rasa’il al-Tawjihat al-Islamiyya li-Islah al-Fard wa-al-Mujtama‘ (Collection of Islamic Directive Treatises for the Reform of the Individual and Society). The work aims to rectify common theological misconceptions and cultural practices that diverge from traditional texts, offering direct instruction grounded in the Quran and the Sunnah according to the understanding of the early righteous generations (al-salaf al-salih).
Content and Structure
The book is arranged into concise thematic chapters addressing theological principles, ritual obligations, ethics, and contemporary social matters:
- Foundational Characteristics of Islam: Discusses core features of the faith, including monotheism (tawhid), the universality of the Prophetic message, ease of practice, the integration of material and spiritual life, equality among believers, and the absence of clerical intermediaries.
- Creed and Worship: Covers the five pillars of Islam and six pillars of iman (faith), the status of supplication (du‘a’) as worship, the theological position that Allah is above the Throne (istiwa’), the distinction between lawful seeking of means (tawassul) and prohibited non-divine invocation (istighatha), and the nullifiers of Islam.
- Prophetic Example and Character: Highlights aspects of the Prophet's character, manners, method of propagation (da‘wah), and struggle (jihad).
- Family and Social Ethics: Outlines guidelines for raising children, fulfilling the rights of parents, avoiding major sins (al-kaba'ir), adhering to the Sunnah while avoiding religious innovations (bida‘), and upholding the duty of enjoining good and forbidding evil.
- Specific Rulings and Practices: Examines the Islamic bequest (al-wasiyya), the obligation of maintaining the beard, rulings regarding singing, images, statues, and the prohibition of tobacco smoking, concluding with prescribed prayers for healing, travel, and finding lost items.
Reception and Publication
The work was commended by several contemporary scholars, including Abdullah Khayyat, former imam and preacher of the Grand Mosque in Mecca and member of the Council of Senior Scholars, who praised the series for charting paths of religious and social reform and awakening awareness of foundational Islamic principles.
The book achieved wide distribution across the Muslim world and was printed in multiple editions in Mecca, Jeddah, Riyadh, Algeria, Kuwait, Jordan, and Lebanon. To encourage widespread dissemination, Zino explicitly relinquished personal copyright fees, permitting any publisher or charitable organization to reproduce and distribute the text provided they consulted him for revised drafts. It was also translated into various languages, including Bengali, for international educational and missionary distribution.
Answer updated