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Built for Islamic scholarship
Shamela Agent is an independent app built around your Maktabah Shamela: a scope by its sections, authors and eras, answers cited to the page, a Side agent beside the book. Projects, Space, skills and memory fit it to how Islamic scholarship works.
Side by side
Compare with
Shamela AIA place to askChatGPT + Shamela PluginShamela from outsideShamela AgentA research workspace
LibraryWhere it runs
On shamela.ws
In ChatGPT, through the shamela.ws server
With Shamela on your computer, in its own window or inside it
Library it searches
The online library
The online library
The books installed on your computer
If shamela.ws is down
Stops
Stops
Searching your library keeps working
AnswersSearch scope
No scope options
No picker: the model narrows by book, author, section or date from your prompt
Sections, authors, books or an era, locked by the search tools
Citations
Numbered sources with a page preview
Links to shamela.ws
Opens the cited page beside the answer, highlighted, then in Shamela
Visual answers
Text and tables
Text and tables
Tables, chains, charts and quizzes, with a source in each cell
Side agent while reading
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—
Ask about the page you’re reading, with your highlight quoted
Web
Library only
General web search, no priority sources
Official fatwa bodies first: 59 in 30 countries
WorkspaceProjects
—
ChatGPT’s own, not tied to Shamela
Instructions, scope, memory and your own files, cited to the page
Space
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ChatGPT’s own writing tools, not tied to Shamela
Pages, tables, surveys and dashboards you build with the agent and your supervisor
Skills
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Saved research methods, with the books and editions to read first
Automations
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ChatGPT’s scheduled tasks, not tied to Shamela
Daily, weekly or on an event, like reading the next pages of a book and summarising them
Memory
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ChatGPT’s own, not tied to Shamela
Your preferences, corrections, notes on pages and favourite books
Personalisation
—
ChatGPT’s custom instructions
Your madhhab, level, answer style and preferred sections
AI and your dataAI model
Not stated, with an extra-effort switch
ChatGPT’s models
Claude or ChatGPT: you pick the model and effort
Account
Google or Apple sign-in
A ChatGPT account
Your Claude or ChatGPT plan, no account with us
Where chats are kept
Your shamela.ws account
Your ChatGPT account
On your computer
What if the shamela.ws server goes down?
Shamela AI and the ChatGPT plugin reach the library through shamela.ws. Shamela Agent searches the books on your computer.
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A simulation, not live data.
What the workspace adds
Intelligent UI
A disagreement as a table, an isnad as a chain, each with its source.
Learn more →Side agent
Ask about the page you’re reading, next to the book, with your highlight quoted.
Learn more →Automations
Tasks the agent runs on your schedule, from a daily reading to a weekly review.
Learn more →Space
Pages, tables, surveys and dashboards beside your library, built with the agent.
Learn more →Projects
One space per study: its chats, instructions, scope, memory and files.
Learn more →Skills
Save a research method once, like a takhrij, and reuse it with the right books.
Learn more →Search scope
Pick sections, authors, books or an era. The search tools only see those books.
Learn more →Web grounding
Widen an answer to the web, with official fatwa bodies first: 59 in 30 countries.
Learn more →Memory
It learns your preferences and corrections, and keeps notes on books.
Learn more →Personalisation
Your madhhab, level and answer style shape each answer, never the citations.
Learn more →Built-in browser
Web sources open in tabs beside the chat, so you never leave the app.
Modern UI
A simpler Shamela interface in one window, with every function kept.
Learn more →Which one is for you
- ChooseShamela AI
If you want a quick answer from any device, free and with nothing to install.
- ChooseChatGPT + Shamela Plugin
If you already work in ChatGPT and want to search Shamela in the same chat.
- ChooseShamela Agent
If you want a workspace on your own library, with every answer cited to the page.
Shamela Agent needs Shamela on a Mac or Windows computer, and a Claude or ChatGPT plan. Searching your library happens on your computer; your question and the passages it reads go to the AI provider you chose.
Based on shamela.ws/ai and shamela.ws/mcp-guide, as of 14 November 2026.
FAQ
Is Shamela Agent made by Maktabah Shamela?
No. Shamela Agent is by Takhrij Hadith Lab and isn’t affiliated with Maktabah Shamela. It works with the Shamela program you already have.
Which books does it search?
The books installed in Shamela on your computer. A book that isn’t installed isn’t searched, and you can narrow the search further with a scope.
Does it work without the internet?
Searching your library runs on your computer. The answer itself is written by Claude or ChatGPT, so that step needs a connection.
Which AI does it use?
Your own Claude or ChatGPT plan, or an API key. You choose the model and how much effort it puts in.
Where are my chats kept?
On your computer. Your question and the passages it reads go to the AI provider you chose.
Can I still use Shamela AI or the ChatGPT plugin?
Yes. They don’t conflict with Shamela Agent, so use whichever suits the question.