Imam Al Ghazali was born in an extraordinary place and time. Thousand Century Baghdad was the center of culture and civilization, of the world, and the Abbasid caliph, (rulers of Baghdad for the past three centuries), were vehement patrons of art, architecture, philosophy, and other academic disciplines. Muslims held the economic, social, and cultural capital of the world, and all eyes were set on the educational institutions in Baghdad to churn out ground-breaking research and discoveries in various fields of education.

These institutions had not only adopted the ancient Greek philosophical frameworks to build their theories but had gradually shifted to appropriating God’s text within the limitations of reason and logic.

For mainstream Islamic thought, this was a highly concerning situation and had to be dealt with. It wasn’t a mere coincidence that Imam Ghazali was born in that particular era. From an early age he was enrolled at the Nizamiyya and soon with his extraordinary intellect and display of dialectical reason, earned favour of his teachers and eventually caught the eye of the caliph himself.

He was not only an expert theologian and philosopher but also mastered the art of logic and rhetoric; attracting seekers of knowledge from across the world, at the time. On reaching the pinnacle of his intellectual pursuits, the caliph awarded him the highest rank at the greatest center of learning of the time- the Nizammiya. The high rank and status as the greatest intellectual of the era, naturally fed into the great Imam’s ego who unfortunately fell deeper into the trap of inflating it further and relying too much on the rational mind.

He had ventured into numerous fields of inquiry, yet one realm remained untouched: spirituality or mysticism. Mysticism appeared to defy the fundamental principles of the scientific method, especially the criterion of falsifiability. Nevertheless, its advocates promised definitive results, but the key was to embark on the journey of spirituality. It was one fortunate moment that turned the tables for the great Al Ghazali and pushed him to explore spirituality for himself. Therefore, he left the Nizammiya to learn more about spiritual rejuvenation but little did he know that he had indeed embarked on a twelve-year journey of much-needed; self-realization.

During this journey he was able to produce his Magnum Opus; “Ihya Uloom ud Din” (The Revival of Religious Sciences), a work widely regarded as one of his most profound and enduring contributions to Islam by any great thinker. Commentators across centuries have argued that this masterpiece was not just a guideline for those pursuing a path of spiritual rejuvenation or seeking Truth and/or God. It was a memoir of Al Ghazali’s failings and how he overcame those to discover the Truth beyond the limitations of the rational mind. Furthermore, it addresses the core illness of intellectual egotism intoxicating our generation of thinkers and intellectuals. It warned that wisdom and true knowledge can only be acquired by chaining up the ego, only then can the heart be truly receptive.

Today, Imam Al Ghazali is revered as the Hujjat-ul-Islam (Proof of Islam), and his works, translated into many languages, remain supremely relevant. Taking forward the vision of the transhistorical figure; Imam Al Ghazali, we at AGU seek to nurture hearts and minds that are receptive and reflective and are amongst the Ulul-Albab (those who reflect and understand); mentioned in the Qur’an. Such individuals will harbour the core value of Altruism and the vision to serve the community. They will also be equipped with contemporary knowledge and research, competing with top-notch professionals and intellectuals, in all walks of life.