THE POLITICAL GENEALOGY OF ISLAMIC EDUCATION IN THE ERA OF THE PROPHET AND THE RIGHTLY-GUIDED CALIPHS

Abstrak

This study analyzes the political genealogy of Islamic education during the era of the Prophet Muhammad and the four Rightly-Guided Caliphs (Khulafaur Rasyidin), focusing on the relationship between knowledge, power, and the formation of early Islamic civilization. Using a qualitative-descriptive library research design informed by a genealogical perspective, the study traces primary classical historical texts alongside secondary scholarly literature through content analysis. Findings show that in the Meccan period, education functioned as an instrument of liberation centered on cultivating monotheism (tawhid) as an epistemological and social critique of pre-Islamic (jahiliyah) structures, chiefly through the informal institution of Dar al-Arqam. In Medina, education became institutionalized around the Prophet's Mosque, integrating spiritual, social, and political functions. Under the Rightly-Guided Caliphs, education was further institutionalized: Abu Bakar's Qur'anic codification stabilized epistemic authority, Umar bin Khattab's dispatch of scholar-teachers expanded and decentralized learning across newly conquered territories, Uthman bin Affan's mushaf standardization enforced textual unity, and Ali bin Abi Thalib's era fostered intellectual discourse amid political conflict. The study concludes that Islamic education was never neutral but consistently mediated by the dialectic between political authority (ulil amri) and scholarly authority (ulama), reflected in the shift of learning spaces from private to public and in curricula moving from moral-spiritual formation toward state-administrative needs, underscoring education's role as a strategic instrument in building and sustaining Islamic civilization.