Center Musjid Pietermaritzburg: Its Continuous Issues
A Concerned Note: Guard the Sanctity of Our Masaajid & The Adab of Tarbiyah
I am not a regular attendee, nor do I reside in town. However, whenever my work brings me into the city, I make it a point to stop at the houses of Allah. Among them is Center Musjid Pietermaritzburg.
It pains me to address matters that have become increasingly common.
To the parents and guardians:
I am a father of four. I understand the challenges of raising children today. But we cannot be negligent with tarbiyah, especially in sacred spaces.
What I have witnessed:
1. Children loitering: Boys arriving directly from school, bags and phones in hand, sitting in the compound, laughing and engaging in idle talk.
2. Sitting by shoe racks: People and children sitting by the shoe racks and making noise, disturbing those who are engaged in ibaadah.
3. Mess in bathrooms: The bathroom floors are being left messy with water.
4. Water wastage: There is clear wasting of water in the Wudhu Khana area. Then the same people turn around and complain — even Mufti Sahab and his board members have mentioned that “the water is coming too high.” We must blame all the children and adults who are wasting and make them tale account.
5. Free intermingling: There are also many girls and women who pass through or sit in and around the Madrasa premises. This has led to boys loitering, talking, and intermingling in a manner that is completely unbecoming of an Islamic institution.
6. Discipline of learners: There are also reports and sightings of learners being disciplined with excessive physical force — slapping across the face, and being hit repeatedly on legs, thighs, and feet with pipes and sticks. This is done multiple times,for which i have witnessed myself, and sometimes in a manner that leaves marks and becomes a mockery. Where does Islam teach us to degrade and harm children in this way? Tarbiyah must be with hikmah, not humiliation.
7. Male teachers for female students: There are females who are being taught by Male Ustaadhs. This issue was raised in the Majlis a few years ago. At that time it was addressed by segregating the students, but the male Ustaadhs remained.
With all due respect Mufti Sahab, we ask that we first put the affairs of the Musjid and its people in order, so that the Nasiha from the Mimbar can be lived by us all.
The Musjid and Madrasa are not malls, nor are they meeting places. They are the houses of Allah. They are where we learn haya, adab, and the mercy of Deen.
My humble request:
1. Parents: Your responsibility does not end at the gate. Instruct your sons and daughters on the adab of coming to and leaving the Musjid/Madrasa. Girls should come for a purpose and leave with purpose. Boys should go straight to class or straight home. No loitering. No sitting around.
2. Teachers & Ulama: We respect you immensely. But discipline must follow the Sunnah. The Prophet ﷺ never struck a child or servant. Let us correct with wisdom, not with violence that leaves harm.
3. Children: Fear Allah in private and in public. The Ulama are your mentors. The Masjid is not a place to “hang out.”
4. Community: This is our collective Amaanah. If we see our children or others out of line, we correct with wisdom. Silence is also a form of participation.
Mufti Desai and the Ulama at Center Musjid Pietermaritzburg and the administration, you all carry a heavy Amaanah.
The Masjid does not belong to you or any one person, nor to any trust fund. It belongs to the community. We all have to take initiative.
Alhumdullilah there many good things that you,Mufti AS Desai, has implemented within the institute and has benefitted a lot
But the above issues and not minor and should not be taken lightly.
We thank Allah for all the good work that has been done over these years. But these issues keep coming up every time and it’s simply pushed aside.
If these matters are not sorted out, then nothing will ever get sorted.
May Allah grant us the tawfeeq to protect His houses, to uphold justice and mercy in tarbiyah, and to raise children of haya and adab.
A concerned servant,
Imraan Ismail