A summary of the concepts held by the Ahl al-Sunnah.
The formation of the righteous individual.
The process of forming the righteous individual.
It is the purification (tazkiyah) mentioned as one of the favors Allah bestowed upon the believers through the mission of the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
“Allah verily hath shown grace to the believers by sending unto them a messenger of their own who reciteth unto them His revelations, and causeth them to grow, and teacheth them the Scripture and wisdom; although before (he came to them) they were in flagrant error.” (3:164)
He recites His verses to them, purifies them, and teaches them the Book and wisdom.
Even though they were, before that, in manifest error.
Ibn 'Ashur stated that purification means cleansing.
It is to cleanse the souls through the guidance of Islam.
When Islamic education strives toward this,
it does not strip the individual of their humanity.
Rather, it raises them as a person with a humanitarian disposition.
Their heart overflows with compassion for all of mankind,
with all the human frailty they possess.
For when they enjoin good, forbid evil, and strive in the path of Allah,
and that is an essential trait of theirs,
they do so because they desire guidance and goodness for the people.
They perform these acts out of love for Allah and as an act of worship,
not because they wish to dominate them or drive them forward to obey them.
They are a balanced person who is not carried away by fleeting whims,
because their intellect restrains them from impulsivity.
In sum, they are a person who lives to their fullest potential in the real world,
while simultaneously attempting to realize the ideal.
There is no disconnect within their self or their world between the real and the ideal.