Islamic Methodology: A New Method for Collecting Biographical Data

On February 27, the Department of Religious and Cultural Studies of the Faculty of Philosophy and Political Science of the Kazakh National University named after Al-Farabi organized a scientific webinar on the topic of "Islamic Methodology: A New Method for Collecting Biographical Data". This event was implemented within the framework of the sustainable development goals "Quality Education" and "Partnership for Sustainable Development".

The main guest of the scientific webinar, Mustafa Celil Altuntaş, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Theology of Istanbul University, PhD, Associate Professor, specialist in Hadith Studies and Hadith Methodology, gave a detailed presentation to students of Islamic studies and researchers on the importance of hadith ijaza and sebets in collecting biographical data about scholars. This topic was not chosen by chance. The professor conducted an in-depth study on this topic, wrote a scientific article and included them in the curriculum for doctoral students of Istanbul University. It is known that in Islamic literature, biographical information is presented in the books of tabaqat and tarajum. But when searching for the biography of a scholar in a particular field, it is not enough to limit to them. That is why Dr. Mustafa indicated about ten sources for collecting and searching for biographies of scholars. For example, historical books, genealogies, travelogues, memoirs, archival data, notes in manuscripts, ijazas and sebet (collections). Although ijaza on hadith is a document that includes the chain of transmitters to the Prophet, the concept of sebet as a term is probably not as well known as ijaza, due to the lack of research. Sebet, as the professor noted, is a type of work that includes the teachers of the individual and the books he read. The professor studied the writings of the 17th century and named several scholars whose ijazas have get to this days. He presented the results of the study using specific examples, not limiting himself to theoretical information, demonstrating manuscripts. Thus, he conveyed to future researchers the importance and specificity of working with manuscripts. While studying the manuscript collection of Turkey, Mr. Mustafa Celil Altuntaş discovered new information regarding the biography of Ahmed Rumi, which had previously been distorted due to limited information, proving that the study of manuscripts is extremely relevant. And this is just one example.

In general, when searching for biographies of specific individuals, studying all types and versions of sources leads to a more complete and objective results. In addition, it is important to pay attention not only to the main text of the notes, but also to the footnotes and references in the margins. PhD, Associate Professor, Senior Researcher of the Department of Religious and Cultural Studies Zhamashev Azamat Shutbaevich supplemented the above data and noted the importance of these methods in studying the biobibliography of scholars of Turan and the Turkestan region. Biographies of Farabi, Ispizhabi, Kerderi, Zhendi and Tarazi scholars are studied in world archives. As the professor said in his report, it is obvious that we will find new data by systematically studying various sources. The webinar was held within the framework of the project AP22686474 "Anthology of Arabic-language sources of the Kazakh thinkers in foreign archives". (Head of the scientific project – A.Sh. Zhamashev) It is known that Turkey is at the forefront of restoration and analysis of the content of manuscripts. Therefore, the experience of scholars such as Dr. Mustafa Celil Altuntaş, who combine Islamic sciences and archival science, will undoubtedly provide valuable information not only to Islamic researchers, but also to archival specialists and researchers. The webinar was attended by professors, teachers of the faculty and department, as well as students of the Islamic and religious studies programs, who got acquainted with new concepts and research related to Islamic methodology.

Organizers: D.Sc. (Philos.), Professor Borbassova K.M., PhD Kaupenbayeva S.M., Cand.Sc. (Philol.), Associate Professor Baltymova M.R., Cand.Sc. (Philos.) Alikbayeva M.B., PhD, Associate Professor Zhamashev A.Sh., Senior Lecturer Mazhen E.K., 1st year doctoral student in the program "8D02204-Islamic Studies" Yeleussyzbayeva N.M.