Hamka, Great Muslim Scholar, was Born

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VIVAnews - Familiarly known as Hamka, Prof. Dr. Haji Abdul Malik bin Karim Amrullah was born on 17 February 1908, in Maninjau, West Sumatra, into a deeply religious family. His father, Syeikh Abdul Karim bin Amrullah, or commonly known as Haji Rasul, was the leader of the modern Muslim movement in Sumatra.

Hamka completed his education at his father's school, the famous Sumatra Thawalib. At the same time, he became a student of several famous Muslim scholars in his native province, such as Syekh Ibrahim Musa, Syekh Ahmad Rasyid, Sutan Mansyur, and several others.

Upon his graduation from high school, Hamka became a religious teacher at Tebing Tinggi, Medan, and later in Padangpanjang, West Sumatra. At the same time, he was also involved in the country's religious and political movements, especially Muhammadiyah which he had been a member since 1925.

In 1928, Hamka was appointed chairman of Muhammadiyah's Padangpanjang branch. Three years later, he was elected consul of Muhammadiyah in Makassar. And in 1946, he was appointed chairman of Muhammadiyah West Sumatra's branch.

Hamka was an avid reader. Thanks to his fluency in Arabic, he was able to read the books written by many great scholars of the time, both Arabs and Westerners. It helped him mastered various sciences, from religion, philosophy, to history. Thus, Hamka was not only a Muslim scholar, but also a novelist, historian, and politician.

From 1951 to 1960, Hamka was appointed high religious officer at the Department of Religious Affairs. At the same time, he became a lecturer at the Islamic University in Jakarta and Muhammadiyah University in Padangpanjang. Later, he was elected president of the Islamic University Jakarta and Prof. Dr. Moestopo University.

In addition to teaching, Hamka was also active in Indonesian politics. He was a member of the Sarekat Islam (SI) Party since 1928. Later, when SI was merged into Masyumi, Hamka joined the party and became a House member representing the party.

In 1964, following the ban of Masyumi, Hamka and several other leaders of the party was arrested by President Soekarno. He was freed in 1966, after Soeharto took over the country's executive power from Soekarno.

In 1977, Prof. Dr. Mukti Ali, then Minister of Religious Affairs, appointed Hamka as chairman of the Muslim Scholars Council of Indonesia. He held the position until 1981, when he resigned from his post after he came into conflict with the government.

During his life, Hamka had written dozens of books on various topics, ranging from religion, philosophy, politics, history, Sufism, to literature. Among his most celebrated books were “Tafsir Al-Azhar” (translation of The Holy Koran), “Di Bawah Lindungan Kabah” (novel), “Tenggelamnya Kapal Van Der Wick” (novel), “Merantau ke Deli” (novel), “Tasauf Modern” (philosophy), and “Sedjarah Umat Islam” (history).

Hamka's literary and writing endeavors were not limited to books alone. He was also a seasoned journalist, editor, and publisher. From the 1920s until 1981, Hamka had worked for several newspapers and magazines, including Pelita Andalas, Seruan Islam, Bintang Islam, Al-Mahdi, Pedoman Masyarakat and Panji Masyarakat.

Hamka passed away on 24 July 1981 in Jakarta, at the age of 73.