SHAH ALAM, July 28 — The Selangor Turath Islami Festival (FTIS) will return for its fourth edition from September 13 to September 20 as part of the state government's continued efforts to foster a knowledgeable society rooted in the Islamic intellectual tradition.
Menteri Besar Dato' Seri Amirudin Shari said that under the theme "Hikmah Warisan Islam", FTIS 2026 will highlight Al-Hikam al-'Ata'iyyah, the renowned work of the eminent medieval Islamic Sufi scholar Ibn Ata'illah al-Iskandari.
"This book is a collection of pearls of wisdom on sincerity, trust in God (tawakkul), and the relationship between a servant and the Almighty.
"It remains one of the most influential works of Islamic spirituality in the global Islamic scholarly tradition, including in the Malay world," he said during a media conference after chairing the FTIS 2026 meeting today.
Amirudin added that, with most events taking place at Masjid Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah and around Shah Alam, FTIS 2026 will feature 23 local and international scholars, including the former grand mufti of Egypt Sheikh Ali Gomaa.
Other distinguished speakers include Moroccan scholar Prof Sayyid Idris al-Fasi al-Fihri, Indonesian Quranic and Hadith scholar Ustaz Adi Hidayat, Ustaz Wadi Annuar, and Selangor Mufti Dato' Setia Anhar Opir.
"These scholars will participate in more than 42 in-person study sessions, all of which will be livestreamed throughout the eight-day festival.
"Other programmes include dawn lectures, Dalail al-Khairat recitations, a five-day talaqqi (guided study) of Al-Hikam, as well as keynote religious talks, a qasidah gathering, and the Islamic Book Festival, which proved especially popular with young people in previous editions," he said.
The Menteri Besar noted that FTIS 2026 aims to attract at least 50,000 physical visitors over the eight-day event, in addition to audiences following the programmes online.
"I invite the people of Selangor and Malaysians from all walks of life to take part in FTIS 2026," Amirudin said.
Pre-registration and further information on all FTIS 2026 programmes are available on the festival's official website.
The inaugural FTIS in 2023 attracted around 5,000 visitors, while the second edition saw attendance surge to nearly 30,000 participants from Malaysia and abroad.
More than just a series of lectures or forums, the festival provides a rare opportunity for participants to study classical Islamic texts through talaqqi — a traditional chain-of-transmission method of learning seldom available outside pondok institutions.
Participants will have the opportunity to sit before distinguished scholars and study the text line by line and word by word, in keeping with the classical tradition of Islamic scholarship.
