Tazkiyah — the purification and development of the self — is one of the most important sciences in the Islamic tradition, described in the Qur’an as one of the core missions of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Yet in contemporary Muslim educational institutions, it is often reduced to superficial exhortation rather than studied as a rigorous discipline.
This article makes the case for reviving Tazkiyah as a systematic science with practical applications in counseling, education, and personal development. Drawing from the works of classical scholars including Imam al-Ghazali’s Ihya Ulum al-Din and Ibn Qayyim’s Madarij al-Salikin, we outline the key principles and stages of spiritual development.