May 5, 2008
Hadhrat Mawlana Qamr al-Zaman Ilahabadhi, the khalifah of Hadhrat Mawlana Shah Wasi-Allah Ilahabadi, may Allah shower him with mercy, writes:
The four personalities for whom Shaykh ‘Abd al-Fattah [Abu Ghuddah], may Allah shower him with mercy, would habitually supplicate daily, included his teacher and Hadhrat Mawlana [Abu ‘l-Hasan ‘Ali al-Nadwi], may Allah shower him with mercy.
Nuqush wa Athar-e-Mufakkir-e-Islam, page 331, (Maktabah Dar al-Ma’arif, Ilahabad, 2004)
April 21, 2008
Mauritanian Shuyukh on the Deobandi ‘Ulama
Introduction
Several months ago, Pearls of the Elders received an email from a Mauritanian student of the Sacred Sciences who expressed admiration and love for the ‘ulama of Deoband. In a subsequent email, he sent a fascinating account of how the erudite ‘ulama of Mauritania had come to know of the ‘ulama of Deoband and how they had benefited from them, especially their books.
The student, who asked his name not be published, became acquainted with the writings of the blessed scholars of India and Pakistan through the effort of tabligh. With his permission, Pearls would like to share this email with our readers and hope it will be a means of kindling the love of, and respect for, the ‘ulama of Deoband.
The email has been edited to make it suitable for a wider readership. Translations of Arabic words, relevant footnotes and subheadings have also been added.
He wrote:
Brother Abu Unaysah, wa ‘alaykum salaam wa rahmatullah,
I wanted to take some time out to write this because it is an important subject.
I was first introduced to the Deobandi ‘ulama through the effort of tabligh when I was in the USA. I lived there from 1996 to 2004. Obviously, I benefited greatly from the elders of tabligh. From an academic perspective though, it was from Hadhrat Shaykh Zakariyya Kandhlawi’s writings that I benefited the most. These include the books of fadha’il,[1] the English translation of his commentary of Shama’il al-Tirmidhi and his autobiography, Aap Beti, which I have read several times and greatly benefited from.
I often tell my close friends that people who have children — as well as people who wish to understand how important it is to be associated with the mashayikh of tasawwuf — must read Aap Beti.
Sometimes our brothers fail to realise how much Mawlana Ilyas Kandhlawi (rahimahullah) and Mawlana Yusuf Kandhlawi (rahimahullah) relied on Hadhrat Shaykh Zakariyya (rahimahullah) to advance the effort of tabligh. Understanding this would help the brothers associate themselves more assiduously to the ‘ulama; our elders still insist on this in their lectures. We ask Allah for tawfeeq.
Studying in Mauritania
Mauritania is a very poor country and the ‘ulama here, for the most part, have remained in the country. A few have had the opportunity to travel and bring books back from countries such as Egypt and Morocco.
Of course, a couple of hundred years ago, printing did not exist so certain books were copied on manuscripts etc. The teaching style in Mauritania is very different from other parts of the world. Generally it is based on memorising a matn (text) on a subject in the form of a nadhm (rhyming verses). The explanations and details of the texts are taken from the shaykh and his competent students.
For example, in nahw (Arabic grammar), the Alfiyyah of Ibn Malik (rahimahullah) is taught. In usul (principles of fiqh) it is the Kawkab of Imam Al-Suyuti (rahimahullah), or the Maraqi al-Sud of the Mauritanian scholar, Al-’Alawi (rahimahullah). Classical books and their commentaries on different subjects were brought to the country by those ‘ulama who travelled abroad.
Deobandi Books in Mauritania
Books written by Deobandi ‘ulama were introduced to our native Mauritanian ‘ulama very recently; I would say, in the past 20 to 30 years. The ‘ulama who have travelled abroad during the period when the works of some prominent Deobandi ‘ulama had been published did get access to them and benefited from them, as is evident by some of them quoting from their works.
One example is Shaykh Muhammad Habibullah al-Mayyaba (rahimahullah) who passed away in 1944. He was a great ‘alim and hafidh of hadith. It is said that he had memorised the six mutun (texts) of hadith with their sanad (chains of narration). He also wrote a nadhm on the importance of the Mu’atta [of Imam Malik] and a short commentary on it in which he repeatedly quotes from Shah Waliullah Dehlawi (rahimahullah).
Another interesting point is that Mawlana Yusuf Binnori (rahimahullah) has taken from him and was greatly impressed by him. In his introduction to Awjaz al-Masaalik,[2] Mawlana Yusuf Binnori (rahimahullah), when quoting Shaykh Muhammad Habibullah (rahimahullah), writes: قال شيخنا بالإجازة (“Our shaykh in ijazah said…”)
I intend to further question some of our ‘ulama on how our elders have benefited from Indo-Pak ‘ulama and vice versa.
As you know, Al-Haramayan al-Sharifayn used to be a place where ‘ulama would meet and take from each other. For instance, Mawlana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri (rahimahullah) had an ijazah in hadith from Ibn Dahlan (rahimahullah), who resided in Makkah al-Mukarramah.
Awjaz al-Masalik in Mauritania
As far as contemporary Mauritanian ‘ulama are concerned, the ones I know here have benefited from Awjaz al-Masalik in ways that cannot be described. Hadhrat Shaykh’s (rahimahullah) work can be most greatly appreciated by one who has studied fiqh, usul and Arabic in-depth; and alhamdulillah, these subjects are studied and mastered by the Mauritanian ‘ulama, hence their appreciation of the book to its fullest.
I have, alhamdulillah, gifted the book to five different ‘ulama — two of whom are considered among the most qualified fuqaha (jurists) here — and the comments I have received have been the same each time: “The person who wrote this is a real ‘alim,” or, “The book is greatly beneficial.”
This book is more so beneficial given that writings on hadith from our ‘ulama are very rare. Shaykh Muhammad Habibullah (rahimahullah) has written a commentary of Bukhari and Muslim (Zad al-Muslim fi ma Ittafaqa ‘alayhi al-Bukhari wa Muslim). His brother has also written a commentary of Bukhari, and al-’Alawi (rahimahullah) has compiled a nadhm on the terminology of hadith (mustalah al-hadith), which is a summary of the Alfiyya al-’Iraqi.
Hadith is studied in Mauritania on an individual basis. After a student has studied fiqh, nahw, mustalah of hadith, and balaghah and bayan (rhetoric), they have enough knowledge to study hadith through their own reading of the commentaries.
An Interesting Note on Hadhrat Shaykh Zakariyya’s Awjaz al-Masalik
One interesting thing to note is that Hadhrat Shaykh (rahimahullah) has quoted from the mu’tamad (relied upon) books of the different madhhabs in Awjaz al-Masalik and relied on them for giving the mashhur (well-known) opinion on a given madhhab.
This means that when a Maliki ‘alim reads Awjaz al-Masalik, he sees the evidences for the Maliki madhhab as he knows it from his long years of study as well as being able to benefit from Hadhrat Shaykh’s (rahimahullah) commentary on other aspects of the hadith.
Hadhrat Mawlana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri’s (rahimahullah) Badhl al-Majhud.
Another more recent and more obvious example of the benefit derived from the mashayikh of Deoband is Mawlana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri (rahimahullah)’s Badhl al-Majhud.[3]
I gifted the book to Shaykh Muhammad Hasan Ibn Ahmad al-Khadim[4] a year ago. He is an ‘allamah who has written on almost all subjects. The Shaykh is in his early 70s. He is without doubt among the five most knowledgeable ‘ulama in the country. Anyone who reads his writings can appreciate the depth of his knowledge. When I asked him a couple of months later if he had time to look into Badhl al-Majhud (he is busy teaching and writing all day; he teaches from 11am to Maghrib time with a break at Dhuhr time), he told me: “I have not had much time yet to look into it but I have benefited from it. There was a mas’alah (juristic problem) that had been unclear to me for a long while and I found the answer to it in there.”
For us who know Shaykh Muhammad Hassan, this means a thousand words. At the time when I gifted him the book and told him about Mawlana Khalil Ahmad, he said: “The ‘ulama of India are ‘ajeeb (wonderful), they are very strong Sunnis in their ‘aqidah (creed)”.
Sorry, I’m making this email long, but the subject deserves it. Insha-Allah I hope we can exchange correspondence in the future.
We have several books written by our ‘ulama here that may be of interest to your ‘ulama, and we’ll be happy to send copies. I can give you a list of the books and the subjects they deal with, or if there is a specific subject some are interested in you can send me that and I will tell you what we have available.
May Allah Almighty accept your efforts and please remember us in your du’a. Also, we’ll be happy to receive you as a guest for a short visit. There are three to four places here that are really worth visiting to meet the ‘ulama.
[1] Hadhrat Shaykh Zakariyya’s brilliant books of fadha’il — originally written in Urdu, and translated into several languages, including English, French, Persian, Gujarati and Bengali — consist of selected verses of the Qur’an, hadiths, their commentary and other material. The books are read globally and consist of: Stories of the Sahabah, Virtues of Salah, Virtues of the Qur’an, Virtues of Remembering Allah, Virtues of the Holy Month of Ramadan, Virtues of Invitation and Preaching, Virtues of Sending Salutations, Virtues of Charity and Virtues of Haj.
[2] Awjaz al-Masaalik is a multi-voluminous commentary of Imam Malik’s Mu’atta, authored by Hadhrat Shaykh. It has recently been researched under the supervision of Shaykh Taqiuddin Nadwi, a student of Hadhrat Shaykh, and republished in 18 large volumes by Dar al-Qalam in Damascus.
[3] Badhl al-Majhud is also a multi-voluminous commentary of Imam Abu Dawud’s Sunan; it was also recently researched and republished in 14 large volumes by Shaykh Taqiuddin and published by Dar al-Basha’ir al-Islamiyyah in Beirut.
[4]Shaykh Muhammad al-Hasan ibn Ahmad al-Khadim is one of the most senior ‘ulama of Mauritania. Extremely pious and humble, the shaykh is a master in every field of the Islamic sciences, without exception. He is also the only Mauritanian scholar who has so many published works to his name (over 30), having written books on fiqh, usul al-fiqh, usul al-hadith and tasawwuf. Among his published works is a commentary on the Alfiyyah of Imam Suyuti (rahimahullah) in usul al-hadith, a commentary on the Nadhm of Jam’ al-Jawami’ of Imam Suyuti (rahimahullah) in usul al-fiqh, a commentary on the Nadhm of Imam al-Kafaf (rahimahullah) in Maliki fiqh and numerous books on tasawwuf.
He is also a senior Sufi shaykh of the Tijani tariqah and very strict in following the Sunnah and wary of bid’ah (innovation). The Shaykh also has great love for the ‘ulama of India and has great admiration for their service to hadith as can be noted from the above.
December 9, 2007
Hadhrat Mufti Muhammad Taqi ‘Uthmani (may Allah lengthen his shadow over us) writes regarding Hadhrat Shaykh al-Hadith Mawlana Muhammad Zakariyya (may Allah enlighten his grave):
”This lowly one’s honourable father, Hadhrat Mawlana Mufti Muhammad Shafi’ (may Allah sanctify his secret) had a special relationship with Hadhrat Shaykh (rh). Whenever he would visit Karachi, my respected father (rh) would take us brothers to him. In spite of his illness and preoccupations, it was impossible that Hadhrat (rh) would leave Karachi without having visited Darul ‘Uloom Korangi at least once. Then, even when he would be far away, he would write to my father (rh), and they would discuss many problems relating to society. And it was due to Hadhrat’s (rh) boundless compassion that he would, in every letter, mention my respected brother Hadhrat Mawlana Mufti Rafi’ sahib (may Allah lengthen his shadow over us) and this worthless one with great love. He would offer us precious advice and would counsel our respected father (may Allah sanctify his secret) with regards to our islah (spiritual rectification) and upbringing.
He once arrived in Karachi at a time when my father (may Allah sanctify his secret) was bedridden. Due to heart problems he was unable to move. Hadhrat Shaykh al-Hadith (may Allah sanctify his secret) also had fever, and in spite of this, he did not break his habit of visiting Darul ‘Uloom. When he entered my respected father’s room (rh), my father tried to stand to meet him. However, Hadhrat (rh), said from his place:
Look Mufti sahib! It will not be good if you attempt to stand. The truth is that you are ill, and so am I. Neither of us have the strength to remain seated. I will lie down and we will remain in conversation while lying down.
Accordingly, Hadhrat (rh) lied down on a bed next to my father’s. Both elders remained in conversation for a long time in this state. Allahu Akbar! Where are such heart-penetrating portraits of simplicity, informality, spontaneity, sincerity and love to be seen in this day and age?”
Nuqoosh-e-Raftagan, Page 179 (Maktabah Ma’arif al-Qur’an Karachi)
April 22, 2007
In the biography of Hadhrat Maulana Muhammad Ilyas رحمه الله (the Founder of the Tabligh Jama’at), Hadhrat Maulana Sayyad Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi رحمه الله, the author, writes:
A great evil which is the source of a thousand evils these days and has deprived the Muslims of each other’s virtues and Islam of the collective goodness of the Muslims, is the disparagement of fellow Muslims. Every Muslim has taken it for granted that he is the embodiment of virtue while all other Muslims are mean, vicious and sinful, and hence, he alone is worthy of esteem. This attitude is responsible for all the ills and evils that are plaguing the religious and social life of Muslims.
There was a special favour of the Lord on Maulana Mohammad Ilyas رحمه الله in this regard and he made respect for Muslims a cardinal point of his endeavour. The nature of the tabligh movement is such that, in it, one has to deal with all sorts of Muslims and numerous difficulties can arise if this basic principle is overlooked.
In place of the prevalant attitude of self-righteousness, the Maulana insisted that people saw their own faults and learnt to admire the good qualities of others. It was the only way to ensure peace and co-operation in individual as well as collective life.
As the Maulana once wrote: ”There is no man or Muslim who is wholly good or wholly bad. Everyone has his own virtues and weaknesses. If the practice of appreciating the good and ignoring the bad points of each other became current among us, many evils will disappear by themselves from the world and virtues will take their place. But, unfortunately, what obtains in actual practice, today, is far different.”
Life and Mission of Maulana Muhammad Ilyas, Academy of Islamic Research and Publications (Lucknow), Page 137
Pearls of the Elders 