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Mohammad Amin Sheikho

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Mohammad Amin Sheikho
Born1890 A.D (1308 A.H)
Died1964 A.D (1384 A.H)
Known forInterpretation of the Quran

Mohammad Amin Sheikho (Arabic: محمد أمين شيخو) was a Kurdish[1] scholar and interpreter of the Quran.

Early life and education

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Sheikho was born in the al-Ward district of the Sarouja Quarter in Damascus, Syria. His parents were emigrés from Northern Kurdistan.[1] After the death of Sheikho's father, Mohammad Saleem, the elder and only brother of Mohammad Amin, was appointed as the director of the Military School during Ottoman rule.[2]

At the age of twelve, he was enrolled at the Al-Rashidiya School.[year missing] He then went on to complete his studies at Amber, the Royal Ottoman Faculty in Damascus. Sheiko earned certificates of commendation and praise during the Ottoman rule, as well as under the reign of King Faisal of Syria, copies of which still exist to this day.[3]

Career

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Public administration

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During the period of Turkish rule, he served as the head of many police stations in Damascus and its dependent counties.[4] During the French Mandate for Syria and Lebanon, he was appointed as a director of the prisons of the citadel of Damascus.[5]

When the Great Syrian Revolt took place against the French forces, he helped the Syrian revolutionaries in their attempts to overthrow French rule.[6] Due to his subversive activities, the French governor of Syria issued an order for his execution.[7]

Academic career

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He was the companion of Sheikh Mohammed Amin Kuftaro for twenty years, and following Kuftaro's death, Sheikho became the next in succession to guide and teach the disciples of the eminent sheikh.[8] In 1953, philosopher Sir John Godolphin Bennett from Britain visited him. He remained in his company for three weeks which were filled with lengthy dialogues about Islam.[9] Bennett asked Sheikho many questions about the exact definition of the ‘spirit’ and the difference between that and the ‘soul’, as well as seeking for clarification about Godly Justice, a topic which he found difficult to comprehend. As a result of this visit, Bennett practiced Islamic legislation and performed the prayers along with the followers of Mohammad Amin Sheikho.[6]

Publications

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Mohammad Amin Sheikho authored books about Islam in the Arabic language, a few have been translated into English and French.

  • The Envoy of Peace Looms on the Horizon: the Return of Jesus Christ.[10]

References

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  1. ^ a b Bennett, John G. (1976). Journeys in Islamic countries (1st ed.). Sherborne, Gloucestershire England: Sherborne, Glos. : Coombe Springs Press. p. 43. ISBN 0900306246.
  2. ^ "لمحة موجزة عن حياة العلامة الجليل محمد أمين شيخو". موقع العلامة الإنساني محمد أمين شيخو قدس سره (in Arabic). Retrieved 2024-10-23.
  3. ^ "Biography, The Humane Scholar M. A. Sheikho". موقع العلامة الإنساني محمد أمين شيخو قدس سره (in Arabic). Retrieved 2023-09-17.
  4. ^ History of the Scholars of Damascus, Ch. 3, p. 325.
  5. ^ The Encyclopedia of the Distinguished Personalities of Syria in the Twentieth Century, Solaiman Saleem al-Bawwab, Ch. 3, p. 81.
  6. ^ a b Journeys in Islamic countries, John Godolphin Bennett
  7. ^ Alarabiya.net
  8. ^ Sheikh Amin Keftaro: On the Occasion of the Fiftieth Year of His Death.
  9. ^ Witness, John Godolphin Bennett.
  10. ^ The Second Coming of Christ, Mohammad Amin Sheikho