Equipping the People With Knowledge

The Role of Syed Ahmad bin Muhammad Semait in Disseminating Islamic Teachings in Modern Singapore

(Includes: The Virtues of the Ahl Al-Bayt by Ustaz Muhammad Mazdiuky Md Ishak)

Among the vanguard of Islamic Scholars of the Nusantara, leading the Malay community in its intellectual and spiritual revival, is Almarhum Ustaz Syed Ahmad Semait (1933-2006).

Recognising that Islamic civilisation has always flourished on literacy, Ustaz Ahmad knew that the way for Muslims to recover from spiritual and intellectual malaise is through the publication and dissemination of books in general, and for the Muslims of the Nusantara specifically, in the translation of classical texts, such as the Ihya ulum al-Din of Imam al-Ghazali, into contemporary Malay vernacular.

This work by Dr. Muhammad Mubarak traces the life of Ustaz Syed Ahmad Semait from his beginnings growing up in an orphanage after the demise of his father, his early education at Madrasah Aljunied, his first foray in the book business, to his learning and scholarship, and what would become his most enduring legacy: equipping the seekers of knowledge of this region with a wide-ranging, indispensable corpus of books on Islam.