Recently, our country was shocked by the arrest of a preacher in a southern state for delivering a religious talk without an official teaching license (tauliah) issued by the state’s religious authority. This incident sparked debate among the public: is it appropriate to arrest a religious preacher simply for delivering a religious ceramah, especially when his purpose was merely to preach, invite people to do good, and not to lead them into sin?
At first glance, such a statement may appear to hold truth. However, upon closer inspection, it becomes evident that each state has its own regulations to control the dissemination of Islamic teachings, in order to prevent misunderstandings within the community. The right to permit or prohibit religious teaching is the absolute prerogative of the Sultan, King, or Yang di-Pertuan Agong. This authority is delegated or empowered to the respective State Islamic Religious Councils or Departments, depending on the state in question.
This permission is known as tauliah to teach Islamic knowledge in a particular state. A person who holds tauliah in a northern state, for instance, may not necessarily be allowed to teach religion in a southern state, as all 14 states in Malaysia have their own respective powers. The granting of such permission lies entirely at the discretion of each state and varies from one to another. Some have cited the hadith of Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-‘As RA, narrated by Imam al-Bukhari in his Sahih, in which the Prophet said: “Convey from me, even if it is only a single verse,” as though this hadith proves that anyone can preach Islam without needing approval or accreditation.
However, this hadith does not mean that everyone is free to teach religion without knowledge, responsibility, or supervision. More importantly, it does not permit giving fatwas or delivering public religious talks indiscriminately, especially on complex matters of the faith.
The granting of permission or tauliah to teach religion falls under the domain of Siyasah Shar‘iyyah—that is, the discretionary authority of the government (Ulil Amri) in managing the administration of a country or state. During the lifetime of the Prophet SAW, there was no concept of tauliah because he alone was the teacher and reference for all matters. However, after his passing, many companions began teaching—some qualified, and some not. Even the hypocrites (munafiqun) were likely to become involved in teaching. This situation went largely unchecked until the time of Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab RA, who began regulating who was permitted to teach Islam. In Imam Malik’s al-Muwaṭṭaʾ, Umar is reported to have said: “The thing I fear most for this Ummah is a hypocrite who is eloquent in speech.”
It is also narrated that ʿUmar once struck a man with his staff for issuing a fatwa without knowledge, saying: “You issue religious verdicts to the people in matters you do not understand?! Do you intend to speak about Allah without knowledge?!” (Ibn al-Jawzī, Sifat al-Ṣafwah; al-Dārimī in his Sunan)
ʿUmar RA thus showed that giving religious opinions without knowledge is a scholarly offence. Issuing religious views or preaching should only be done by those truly qualified, and this marks the foundation of the concept of tauliah. ʿUmar also prevented people from issuing fatwas freely, saying:
“Reduce your narration of hadith from the Prophet ﷺ, except what is practiced with understanding.” (al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī) His aim was not to prohibit hadith transmission, but to prevent the general public and those lacking comprehension from spreading them without regulation—another early form of religious teaching control, or tauliah in principle.
In summary, the purpose of religious teaching license (tauliah) Includes:
- To Preserve the Purity of Islamic Teachings
- Prevents the spread of deviant, misinterpreted, or extremist views.
- To Prevent Unqualified Individuals from Issuing Fatwas
- Religion is not a trivial matter. Misstatements can mislead others.
- To Ensure Religious Knowledge is Rooted in Authority
- Even the Prophet’s companions sought knowledge seriously before teaching.
- Scholars like Imam Malik and Abu Ḥanifah only taught after being endorsed by their teachers.
- To Maintain Social Harmony
- Without verification, various ideologies and conflicting views may confuse the public and cause division—especially from non-mainstream or sectarian groups outside of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamāʿah.
Tauliah is not a barrier but a regulatory mechanism to ensure that only those with proper religious education and understanding are allowed to teach. Such individuals should also possess proper manners, know their responsibilities, and respect local customs (ʿurf) to prevent confusion. There are instances where a person may indeed have formal religious education, but fails to respect local traditions by promoting strange or deviant views (shadhdh) that contradict the Shafi’e madhhab and the creed of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamāʿah (Sunni), thus causing unease and division among the lay public.
