The Discourse of Religious Reform in the Nineteenth Century Subcontinent (Sir Seyyed Ahmad Khan)

Whereas the current of Islamic reformism seeks to offer a new interpretation of religious principles following the requirements of time and place to free it from the sting of degeneration and deviation; Therefore, this discourse has always had a prominent place among religious modernists and religious revivalists in all parts of the Islamic world, especially in recent centuries. However, the distinction between the approaches and the solutions of the reformers, no doubt, while being affected by their superior intellectual-practical processes, also goes back to the differences in the productive socio-political structure and the place of growth and development of their personality. The Indian subcontinent, as a land of religious pluralism, has always witnessed the emergence of new sectarian divisions in different religions throughout history. With the arrival of Islam in this region, on the one hand, this process became more widespread, and on the other hand, the acquisition of power and the maintenance of government became problematic for Muslim rulers, despite such various and sometimes conflicting rituals. Therefore, each of the rulers, in dealing with this issue, chose a method that undoubtedly arose from specific factors and had special results. Among the Gurkhani sultans, some, such as Akbarshah and Aurangzeb, believed in religious reform and chanted the slogan of Islamic revival. In the position of the Islamic ruler, they sought to save their society from intellectual stagnation and behavioral petrification by issuing new orders and passing new laws. However, even though all these rulers claimed to reform the religious thought and sometimes, they considered themselves the reformer or the remake of their century in this regard and sought to achieve a common goal; Contradictory and even contradictory thoughts and actions have always occupied the minds of researchers in the field of religious reform and have caused many questions and challenges in this field. Why these rulers, while having numerous commonalities in their education and social status, in cultural-religious categories, during more than half a century of their separate rule over the Muslims of the subcontinent; In presenting reform plans and programs (Akbar Shah with the method of religious tolerance and Aurangzeb with the method of religious prejudice and tyranny) were exactly opposite to each other; It is an important question that requires a scientific and reasoning answer. Therefore, the present study, based on a descriptive-analytical method, tries to introduce the ideological and religious ideas of the Mongols in general, and then specifically and through a case study and comparative study, to identify the infrastructures and contexts of cultural-ideological growth of the two. The ruler of Gurkhani should pay; Finally, while examining the existing challenges, study because and how differences in Islamic reform ideas and practices exist in the Indian subcontinent. Research purpose Convergence or divergence of followers of different religions has always been one of the most challenging and controversial issues in the history of human thought. In many important and historical wars and peace, the traces of the survival of religion as one of the fundamental factors can be easily discovered and examined. Therefore, the land of India has long been considered as a clear and complete model in this field due to the existence of different religions and religions. Due to such special circumstances, it has often been called the "Land of a Thousand Religions", the "Museum of Religions and Beliefs" or the "Land of Wonders". India, despite its thousands of years of religious and cultural background and its multifaceted affinity with Iran (racial, linguistic, cultural, religious, etc.) in terms of scientific research and studies (especially historical-religious), is still a high point. The mystery is unknown and overlooked; Therefore, it still needs in-depth research and exploration by researchers in various social fields, especially in the intellectual-ideological fields. Therefore, the first and most important goal of the forthcoming plan in this regard; While addressing a new and practical topic in the history of Islamic thought in the direction of current studies of the revival of religious thought in the region of India; Eliminating part of the poverty of resources and lack of research topics of researchers in this geographical area is also.