Reimagining Hadith Studies: Embodied Islamic Knowledge and the Integration of Religion and Science in Southeast Asia Islamic University

Abstract

The transformation of Islamic higher education institutions into universities has intensified demands to integrate religious sciences and modern disciplines, while also raising concerns about marginalizing hadith studies as a core normative field. This article reimagines hadith studies in the university era by examining how an embodied Islamic knowledge approach sustains their relevance within religion–science integration frameworks. Employing a qualitative comparative case study design, this research draws on fieldwork conducted at State Islamic University Syekh Wasil Kediri, State Islamic Institute Madura, State Islamic Institute Ponorogo in Indonesia, and Fatoni University in Southern Thailand. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, participant observation, and document analysis, and analyzed thematically. The findings show that although institutional transformation creates structural opportunities for interdisciplinary integration, formal policies and curricular reforms alone are insufficient to sustain hadith studies. Instead, hadith demonstrates resilience through embodied practices, including pesantren-based academic traditions, ethical pedagogical exemplification, community engagement, and applied ethical initiatives. Through these practices, hadith functions not merely as a textual reference but as a lived moral and epistemological foundation that mediates relations between normative Islamic knowledge and empirical sciences. This study argues that the sustainability of hadith studies depends on praxis-oriented and experience-based integration rather than purely cognitive or administrative models. Theoretically, it contributes to debates on religion–science integration and Islamic anthropology by conceptualizing hadith as lived and embodied knowledge within academic life.