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Barelvi (Hindi: बरेलवी, Urdu: بریلوی, pronounced /bəreːlviː/ alternately Ahl-e-Sunnat) is a movement of Sunni Islam originating in the Indian subcontinent. The Barelvi movement was started in 1880 to promote South Asia's distinctive Islamic practices, which are deeply influenced by Sufism.[1] The movement in British India was greatly shaped by the writings of Ahmad Riza Khan (1856-1921).[2] The movement takes its name from Ahmad Raza Khan's home city of Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, India.[3] The name is also variously spelled as Barelwi, Barelavi, or Bareillwi.
In India, the Grand Mufti is traditionally from the Barelvi school of Sunni Islam.Presently Muhammad Akhtar Raza Khan Azhari Mian is grand Mufti.
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Etymology
The movement is known to its followers as Ahle Sunnat ("People of the traditions of Mohammed"), differentiating it from Deobandi, Ahle Hadith and Nadwa movements.[2] However, the term Ahle Sunnat is also used by Sunnis in general, many of whom do not recognise an exclusive claim to the term by the Barelvi movement. The term Barelvi is also used pejoratively by some orthodox Islamic groups which disapprove of the Barelvi's adherence to heterodox practices, many of which are derived from Sufism.[2]
Presence
India Today estimates that the majority of Muslims in India adhere to the Barelvi movement,[4] and The Times (London) writes that a majority of Muslims in the United Kingdom adhere to the movement as well.[5] Similarly, the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation gives such estimates for the majority of Muslims in Pakistan.[1]
Beliefs
Like other Muslims, Barelvis base their beliefs on the Quran and Sunnah, and believe in monotheism and the prophethood of Muhammad. Barelvis follow the Ashari and Maturidi schools of aqidah, the Hanafi school of fiqh, and the Qadri, Chishti, Naqshbandi or Suhrawardi Sufi orders.
Distinctive beliefs
- The prophet Muhammad is made out of noor (light), and is present at all places and at all times, despite his physical death.
- Muslim saints (the Sufi aulias or, in Farsi pīrs ) are able to intercede to Allah on behalf of the living
Distinctive practices
- The praise of Muhammad in poetry, especially during Mawlid.
- The recitation of Urdu and Arabic praise poems, such as salat-o-salam, durood and naat, after Fajr and Jumuah prayers.
- The celebration of Islamic holidays such as Mawlid, Miraj, Shab-e-Barat, Laylat al-Qadr and the death and birth anniversaries of various Sufi saints.
Missionary activities
Barelvis have expanded their missionary activities in various countries of Asia, Europe, North America and South Africa through an organization named Ahle Sunnah-wa-Al-Jamaah (ASWJ). Ilyas Attar Qadri founded an additional ASWJ foundation, Dawat-e-Islami, in 1981.
Relations with other Islamic movements
The major opposition to the Barelvis in the Indian subcontinent come from another Sunni school of Islam called the Deobandis, who claim to follow a more puritanical version of Islam and forbid special reverence to the Sufi saints and even to Prophet Muhammad, because they fear that this could lead to polytheism (Shirk). Likewise, the Deobandis also forbid instrumental music and many Islamic holidays. Religious extremism in the Indian subcontinent has been attributed to the Deobandi Muslims, which influenced the Taliban of Afghanistan. By contrast, the Barelvis have been relatively peaceful, because the Barelvis not only take the literal meaning of the verses of the Quran (zaahir), but also the mystical, philosophical and metaphorical "hidden" meaning (baatin). The Salafi/Wahhabi movement originating in, and funded by, Saudi Arabia has also been condemned by the Barelvis as extremist and misled. Barelvi ulema have declared Indian Salafi preacher Zakir Naik as non-Muslim and Kafir, for praising Yazeed I, the murderer of Prophet Muhammad's grandson Hussein, and for forbidding intercession of Prophet Muhammad and the Aulia.[6]
Ahmad Raza Khan issued fatwas of takfir against the founders of the Deobandi sect, Wahabism and Qadianism. Commenting on this, historian Usha Sanyal in her research entitled, Devotional Islam and Politics in British India: Ahmad Raza Khan Barelwi and His Movement, 1870-1920 stated:
| “ | Not only did Ahmad Raza Khan obtain confirmatory signatures from other scholars in the subcontinent, he managed to get agreement from a number of prominent ulama in Mecca. That occurred in the first years of the twentieth century--long before the Al-Saud and their Wahhabi allies got control of the Haramayn. The feat was, nevertheless, stunning. The antipathy of the Deobandis toward the Ahl-i Sunnah on the emotional level becomes more comprehensible when Ahmad Riza's fatwa receives a full explication.[7] | ” |
Opposition to the Taliban
The Barelwi movement of South Asia have taken a stance against Taliban movements in South Asia, organising rallies and protests in India and Pakistan, condemning what they perceive as unjustified sectarian violence.[8] The Sunni United Council (SUC),an amalgamation of eight Sunni organizations, launched the Save Pakistan Movement to stem the process of Talibanisation. Terming the Taliban a product of global anti-Islam conspiracies, the leaders of SUC charged it with playing into the hands of the United States to divide Muslims and bring a bad name to Islam.[9]
Supporting this movement, the foreign minister of Pakistan Shah Mahmood Qureshi, said:
| “ | The Sunni Tehreek has decided to activate itself against Talibanisation in the country. A national consensus against terrorism is emerging across the country.[10] | ” |
Sectarian Violence
In the 1990s and 2000s, sporadic violence resulted from disputes over control of Pakistani mosques between Barelwi and Deobandi and Salafi groups.[11] In May 2001, sectarian riots broke out after Sunni Tehreek leader Saleem Qadri was assassinated by the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, a Deoband-affiliated terrorist group.[12] In April 2007, Sunni Tehreek activists attempted to forcibly gain control of a mosque in Karachi, opening fire on the mosque and those inside, resulting in one death and three injuries.[13]
Notable scholars
Early scholars
- Mustafa Raza Khan
- Hamid Raza Khan
- Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi
- Abdul Aleem Siddiqi
- Syed Abdullah Shah Naqshbandi
- Shah Ahmad Noorani Siddiqi — Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan and World Islamic Mission
- Abdul Wahab Siddiqi — United Kingdom
- Muhammad Karam Shah al-Azhari
- Shams Barelwi - Pakistan
- Arshadul Qaudri -Jamia Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya
- Sarfraz Ahmed Naeemi - Lahore
- Huzoor Mufti Azam Islam Ghausul Waqt Mufti Abdul Wahab Khan Qadri -Pakistan
Present scholars
- Muhammad Akhtar Raza Khan Grand Mufti of India - India
- Muhammad Imdad Hussain Pirzada Founder of BMF and Muslim Charity
- Ilyas Attar Qadri Dawat-e-Islami
- Turab-Ul-Haq Qadri- Pakistan
- Ameen Mian Qaudri — Barkatiya Silsila, India
- Ahmad Saeed Kazmi — Pakistan
- Aboobacker Ahmad All India Sunni Jamiatul Ulma, Kerala
Mukarram Ahmad — Fatehpuri Masjid Delhi,- Hazrat Maulana Yousuf sheikh Qadri Razavi — Bazm-e-Aalahazrat Pakistan
Notable organizations
- British Muslim Forum U.K
- Sunni Tehreek Pakistan
- Sufi Muslim Council U.K
- World Islamic Mission London
- MSO of India New Delhi
- Raza Academy Mumbai
- Imam Ahmad Raza Academy South Africa
- Sunni Students' Federation (SSF) India
- Shabab e Islami (SIP) Pakistan
- Dawat e Islami
- Anjuman- e - Talaba - e - Islam (ATI) Pakistan
- Bazm-e-Aalahazrat Imam Ahmad Raza Khan Qadri Pakistan
Main Institutions
- Al Jamiatul Ashrafia -Uttar Pradesh, India
- Markazu Saqafathi Sunniya -Kerala ,India
- Jamia Nizamia -Hyderabad ,India
See also
- Maulana, Andhe ki laathi, a book detailing theological debates between Barelvis and Deobandis
References
- ^ a b "Pakistan plays Sufi card against jihadis | World War 4 Report". Ww4report.com. http://www.ww4report.com/node/7500. Retrieved 2009-09-30.
- ^ a b c http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=1&fid=69415&jid=ASS&volumeId=32&issueId=03&aid=69414
- ^ http://attahawi.com/2009/05/07/ahmad-riza-khan-barelwi-in-the-path-of-the-prophet-by-Usha Sanyal/
- ^ Sandeep Unnithan and Uday Mahurkar (2008-07-31). "The radical sweep". India Today. http://indiatoday.digitaltoday.in/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12343&Itemid=1&issueid=67&limit=1&limitstart=0. Retrieved 2009-09-30.
- ^ http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article2402973.ece
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62c63A6Vp7U
- ^ http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go2081/is_4_119/ai_n28754415/pg_2/?tag=content;col1
- ^ http://www.twocircles.net/2009jun17/indian_muslims_protest_against_talibani_terrorism.html
- ^ http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/pakistans-sunnis-unite-against-talibanisation_100190373.html
- ^ http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009%5C05%5C05%5Cstory_5-5-2009_pg3_1
- ^ " Serious threat to Pakistan's civil society" The Hindu, April 18, 2006
- ^ The Hindu : Opinion / Leader Page Articles : Serious threat to Pakistan's civil society
- ^ "One dead as ST tries to take control of Ahle Hadith mosque" Daily Times (Pakistan), April 11, 2007
External links
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