 |
This article or section has multiple issues. Please help improve the article or discuss these issues on the talk page.
|
Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī (August 19, 1863 – July 4, 1943) (Urdu اشر فعلی تھانوی) was an Indian Islamic Sunni Hanafi scholar of the Deobandi school.
Contents |
Early life
Ashraf 'Alī Thanwī was born as 'Abdul Ghanī in the village of Thāna Bhāwan within the Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh, India on August 19, 1863. He was named Ashraf 'Alī by Hāfiz Ghulām Murtazā Pānīpatī, a maternal relative. He belonged to the Shaikhzada community, and his family was well-respected and held a high position in Thāna Bhāwan. His father, 'Abdul Haqq, was a wealthy landowner, devout Muslim, and respected citizen. Ashraf 'Alī Thanwī’s lineage can be traced back to the second Caliph of Islam, 'Umar ibn Al-Khaṭṭāb.
Education
Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī graduated from the Dār-ul 'Ulūm of Deoband in 1884. When Rashīd Ahmad Gangohī, one of the founders of the institution, arrived for the graduation ceremony, Shaikhul Hind Mahmūd-ul Hasan informed him that an especially intelligent student was about to graduate. Gangohī wanted to test this student by asking the most difficult questions that he could think of. Ashraf 'Alī's answers amazed and pleased Gangohī, who himself conducted the Dastārbandī Jalsa, the turban-tying ceremony marking graduation.
Spiritual training
During his studies at Dār-ul 'Ulūm Deoband, Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī asked Gangohī to train him in the spiritual sciences as well. Gangohī, however, advised him to wait until the completion of his traditional studies. Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī remained restless and looked for a way to ask Hājī Imdādullāh, the spiritual guide of Gangohī, to recommend him to his student. When Gangohī departed for Hajj, Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī sent a letter with him to Hājī Imdādullāh, requesting him to persuade Gangohī to initiate him into his spiritual order (Tariqah|Ṭarīqah).
Career
After his graduation, Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī taught religious sciences in Kanpur for fourteen years. Over a short period of time, he acquired a reputable position as a religious scholar, of Sufism among other subjects.[1] His teaching attracted numerous students and his research and publications became well-known in Islamic institutions. During these years, he traveled to various cities and villages, delivering lectures in the hope of reforming people. Printed versions of his lectures and discourses would usually become available shortly after these tours. Until then, few Islamic scholars had had their lectures printed and widely circulated in their own lifetimes. The desire to reform the masses intensified in him during his stay at Kanpur.
Eventually, he retired from teaching and devoted himself to reestablishing the spiritual centre (khānqāh) of his Shaikh in Thāna Bhāwan. Upon this transition, Hājī Imdādullāh remarked, "It is good that you have arrived in Thāna Bhāwan. It is hoped that people will benefit from you spiritually and physically. You should engage yourself in revitalizing our madrasah and khānqāh once more in Thāna Bhāwan. As for myself, I am always praying for you and attentive towards you."
Students and disciples
Thanwi’s students and disciples constitute a generation of leading scholars of South Asia. His disciples settled in all parts of South Asia. Among his disciples are:
- Abdul Hai Arifi
- Qari Muhammad Tayyib Qasimi (grandson of the founder of Dar al- ‘Ulum Deoband, Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi, and head principal of Dar al- ‘Ulum Deoband for over 50 years, from the early 1930s to the early 1980s)
- Muhammad Masihullah Khan (founder of Madrasa Miftah al- ‘Ulum in Jalalabad, India, and a leading spiritual figure of the past century)
- Mufti Muhammad Shafi ‘ (head mufti of Dar al- ‘Ulum Deoband before partition and, after migrating to Pakistan, founder of Dar al- ‘Ulum Karachi, one of the largest academies of religious sciences today in Pakistan, and, also the former Grand Mufti of Pakistan)
- Abdul Bari Nadvi (renowned theologian and philosopher in India who taught modern philosophy at Osmania University in Hyderabad and translated the books of Western philosophers such as Descartes, into Urdu and left behind many literary tracts)
- Allamah Syed Sulaiman Nadvi (great researcher and the outstanding student of Shibli Nu ‘mani who turned to Thanwi for spiritual reformation)
- Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi (founder of the Tablighi Jammat Movement, Igu Oilo Kut'thar Baicha)
Literary contribution
Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī was a prolific author. His literary contributions are in the order of eight hundred to one thousand in number, including sermons, discussions, discourses, treatises, and books of the highest standard and quality. Sayyid Sulaimān Nadwī said, 'Hazrat (i.e Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī) was a translator and exegete (mufassir) of the Quran; he explained its injunctions and wisdoms. He removed doubts and answered questions pertaining to it'. Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī was a scholar of hadīth (muhaddith) too and expounded its intricacies and subtleties. He was a jurist (faqih|faqīh) who issued thousands of legal rulings (fatwā). He solved numerous legal problems in contemporary issues in Islamic law or fiqh and answered them with the utmost caution only after credible research. He was a moving orator (khaṭīb) and hundreds of his speeches have been published and widely circulated.
Quran recitation
While teaching in Kanpur, Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī was reported to have seen 'Abdullāh bin 'Abbās , the cousin of the Prophet Muhammad, in a dream. In this dream, he indicated to him that tafsir should become his primary task. Sayyid Sulaimān Nadwī said, “He not only memorized the words of the Qur’aan but also memorized the deeper significance of these words. He was an exceptional reciter (qārī) of the Quran, who had mastered the art of recitation. The uniqueness of his recitation of the Quran was such that each letter was uttered from its proper place of pronunciation (makhraj). There was no imitation or overly exertive effort to make his voice melodious. He would rather recite in his normal voice, which was full of inspiration and absorbed in reflection”.
Humility and simplicity
Muftī Muhammad Taqī Uthmānī relates about him that, "Hazrat used to say, 'I consider myself inferior to every Muslim at the present time and possibly inferior to every non-Muslim with respect to the future'. He meant that he was inferior to every Muslim and non-Muslim with respect to the future because a non-Muslim may accept Islam in the future and become more advanced than him. Hadhrat was more concerned with rectifying himself than correcting others. Once, when he had to deliver a number of lectures, he said, 'Whenever I feel the need to reform myself, I speak on that specific shortcoming of mine. This method is very beneficial. My speech entitled 'Anger' is an example of this'. Once, after praising Allah, Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī said, 'I am never unmindful of reckoning with my own self. Whenever I admonish a disciple of mine, I also inspect my own self and continuously seek Allah’s protection from His Reckoning”.
Discourses
The propagation of Islam was an essential part of Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī’s life. He would be highly organized and would plan his tours well in advance. Thousands of people would attend his lectures, which usually lasted between two and five hours. Once he visited Gajner, a village in the Kanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, when the Ārya Samāj had started to preach Hinduism among the Muslims of that area. Using wisdom and tolerance, he was able to persuade the Muslims there to promise that they would not commit apostasy. To prevent the spread of apostasy, he wrote the treatise, Al-Insidād li-Fitnat-il Irtidād (Putting a Stop to the Temptation of Apostasy).
Opposition to Barelvi and Sufi practices
Thānwī opposed a wide variety of religious practices in South Asia, which he saw as bidah, unacceptable innovation within Islam. These practices, often derived from Sufism, were common among the sect now called Barelvi. He wrote a number of books that dealt with this subject. His book, Hifzul Imān (Protecting Faith), denounced such common acts such as worshipping at tombs, asking for intercession from other than Allah, and believing in the omnipresence of Muhammad and Muslim saints.
Criticism
Thanwi's statements drew criticism from a variety of other Islamic authorities.
- Barelwi scholar Sheikh ul Islam Alahadhrat Ahmad Raza Khan Rahmatullahi-alaih issued a fatwa of kufr against Thanwi for his stance on the Shafi-al-alameen, Nabi Muhammed Salallahu-alaihi Wa-Sallam, and various scholars from hijaz(20 Meccan and 13 Medinese Ulama)supported this fatwa of Kufr against Thanwi, Ahmad Raza khan stated in his fatwa that Thanwi's belief of "Knowledge of unseen" possessed by Prophet Muhammad could be attained by (any Tom, Dick and Harry), by the epileptics and the insane, the animals and the beasts as well .[2] and thus Ahmad Raza Khan issued Fatwa of Kufr against Thanwi.[3]
Views on politics
Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī was not a politician nor was politics his subject of interest. However, Islam is a lifestyle that encompasses all human activities and provides clear and complete guidelines for all aspects of life. Thus, at appropriate places in his speeches and writings, he does comment on politics and provides useful explanations in that field. While battling secularism, contemporary Muslims perceived Islam as a branch of government and politics. Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī proved, using mainly verses of the Quran, that political rule is only a means of instituting Islam in people's lives and not the purpose of life itself. All modern political notions that contradict the Quran and Hadīth would have to be forsaken, and the pure, untainted political thought reflected in those sacred sources should guide Muslims in organizing and structuring their governments (Hakim al-Ummat ke siyasi afkar (The political views of Hakim al-Ummat)
Death
Ashraf 'Alī Thānwī died in Thāna Bhāwan on July 4, 1943. His funeral prayer was led by his nephew, Zafar Ahmad Uthmānī, and he was buried in the graveyard of 'Ishq-e-Bāzān.
See also
References
- ^ Ali Abbasi, Shahid. (2008, January–March). Rethinking in Islam: Mawlana Ashraf 'Ali Thanawi on Way and Way-faring. Hamdard Islamicus, 21(1), 7–23. (Article on Ashraf 'Ali's teachings on Sufism.)
- ^ Hifz-ul-lmaan, Page 7 & 8, by Janab Ashraf Ali Thanvi
- ^ Hussam-ul-Harmain by Ala Hazrat Imam Ahmad Raza Khan
External links
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
