Dr Malik Babiker Badri, revered as the father of Islamic Psychology for his pioneering and visionary work in developing the field passed away on February 8, 2021, in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.
Dr Badri held the Chair of Ibn Khaldun in the Faculty of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM).
Born on February 14, 1932, in the Egyptian city of Rufaa’, Dr Badri was born to Sheikh Babiker Badri, an influential scholar and social activist, who laid the foundations for women’s education in Sudan. Sheikh Babiker Badri was present at the battle of Omdurman, where the Mahdist army was destroyed.
Dr Badri earned a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the American University of Beirut in 1956, a Master’s degree at the University of Leicester in 1958, and a PhD in Leicester in 1961, in addition to a specialisation certificate in Clinical Psychology in 1967.
He held several positions, including, Assistant Professor at the American University of Beirut from 1962 to 1964, Visiting Professor and Head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Jordan in 1965, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology and Education and Director of the Guidance and Psychological Counselling Unit at Omdurman Islamic University from 1967 to 1971. He was also the Founder and President of the International Association of Islamic Psychology.
Dr Badri published many books and research articles in both Arabic and English. Among his research papers published in English are: “Islam and Analytical Psychology,” “Islam and Alcoholism,” and “The Catastrophe of AIDS.” And his books “The Dilemma of Muslim Psychologists”, “Contemplation: An Islamic Psychspiritual Study” and “Sustenance of the Soul” were foundational publications in the field of Islamic psychology.
