Muhammad Alawi al-Maliki

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Islamic scholar Muhammad Alawi al-Maliki
Title	Shaykh
Born	1944
Died	2004 (aged 59-60)
Ethnicity	Arab
Region	Arabian Peninsula
Maddhab	Maliki
School tradition	Sunni Islam (Sufism)
Main interests	Aqidah, Tafsir, Hadith, Seerah, Fiqh, Usul, Mustalah, Nahw, Tasawwuf

Shaykh al-Sharif Al-Sayyid Muhammad al-Hasan ibn Alawi ibn Abbas ibn Abd al-Aziz al-Maliki al-Hasani al-'Idrisi al-Makki (1944–2004) was a prominent Sunni Islamic scholar from Saudi Arabia.

Background

Muhammad Alawi al-Maliki was born in Mecca to a family of well known scholars who, like himself, taught in the Sacred Mosque. The Maliki family is one of the most respected families in Mecca and has produced great scholars, who have taught in the Masjid al-Haram of Mecca for centuries.

Five of the his ancestors have been the Maliki Imams of the Masjid al-Haram of Mecca. His grandfather, al-Sayyid Abbas al-Maliki was the Mufti and Qadi of Mecca and the Imam and Khatib of Masjid al-Haram. He held this position during the Ottoman then Hashemite times, and continued to hold it after the Saudi Kingdom was established too.^{[citation needed]} The late King Abd-al-Aziz bin Sa‘ud had great respect for him.^{[citation needed]} His father, al-Sayyid Alawi al-Maliki was considered one of the greatest Ulama of Mecca in the previous century. He taught the various traditional Islamic sciences in the Masjid al-Haram of Mecca for nearly 40 years.

Whereas the Wahhabism is the official branch of Islam in Saudi Arabia, al-Maliki adhered to the Maliki traditional school of Islamic jurisprudence, and was a renowned teacher of traditional Mystical Sufi Islam (known as Sufism). He was the reviver of Ahlus Sunnah in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia and was attacked by the highest Wahhabi scholars of Najd for doing so and even banned and books were written against him calling him Mushrik (Polytheist). He revived the tradition of holding Mawlid in Hejazi family homes. For doing so, al-Maliki has been accused of heresy by the Wahhabi religious establishment of Saudi Arabia.^{[citation needed]}

Education

With his father’s instruction, he also studied and mastered the various traditional Islamic sciences of Aqidah (Islamic theology), Tafsir (Qur'anic exegesis), Hadith (Prophetic tradition), Seerah (Prophetic biography), Fiqh (Islamic jurispudence), Usul (origins and fundamentals), Mustalah (hadith terminology), Nahw (Arabic grammar), etc. Scholars of Mecca, as well as Medina, all of whom granted him full Ijazah (certification) to teach these sciences to others. Some of the scholars from whom he obtained ijazahs and chains of transmission from include: His father, Shaykh al-Sayyid 'Alawi ibn 'Abbas al-Maliki al-Hasani, Shaykh as-Sayyid al-Habib Ahmad Mashhur TaHa al-Haddad, Shaikh Hasanain Makhlouf, Shaykh Muhammad Hafidh al-Tijani, Shaykh Amin Kutbi, and numerous others.^[1] His brother, Sayyid Abbas & Sayyid Muhammad Abd al-Hasan is also a learned scholar but is better known for his beautiful voice and as the topmost Qasidah reciter of Saudi Arabia.

Career

By the age of 15, the al-Maliki started teaching Hadith and Fiqh in the Masjid al-Haram of Makkah to fellow students, by the orders of his teachers. After finishing his traditional education in his hometown of Makkah, he was sent by his father to study at Al-Azhar University of Egypt. He received his Ph.D. from the Al-Azhar uUniversity at the age of 25, making him the first and youngest Saudi to earn a Ph.D. from there. His thesis on Hadith was rated excellent and highly praised by the eminent Ulama (Islamic scholar) of the university at that time, such as Muhammad Abu Zahra.

Al-Maliki, like all traditional Shaykhs, and like his ancestors before him, taught a number of students at his own residence, providing them with food, shelter, and learning material free of cost. These students usually stayed with him for many years, learning the various branches of Islamic knowledge, then return to their lands. Hundreds of his students have become savants of Islamic knowledge and spirituality in their own countries, particularly Indonesia, Malaysia, Egypt, Yemen and Dubai. After returning from the Al-Azhar University he was an appointed professor of Sharia at the Umm al-Qura University in Mecca, where he taught from 1970. In 1971, after his father’s death, the scholars of Mecca asked him to accept his father’s position as a teacher in the Masjid al-Haram, which he did. Thus, he sat on the Chair from which his family had taught for more than century. He also taught in the Al-Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina occasionally. His lessons were the largest attended lessons in the Two Masjids.

His famous students include his son Al-Sayyid Ahmed Bin Muhammed Bin Alawi Al Maliki who still teaches at his family residence in Mecca everyday, Al-Sayyid Abdullah Fad'aq another Famous Saudi Sunni scholar based in and teaches at his residence in Jeddah, Habib Ali al-Jifri and Habib Umar bin Hafiz.

In the early 1980s, he relinquished his teaching position in the Umm al-Qura University as well as his ancestral chair of teaching in the Masjid al-Haram, due to the Fatwās of the Council of the Senior Scholars of Saudi Arabia headed by the late Mufti Ibn Baaz, who considered his beliefs to be in violation of the purity of the Monotheistic belief (Tawhid). Shaykh Saalih Aal-Shaykh, the incumbent Minister of Islamic affairs authored a book entitled "Haazihi Mafaahimuna" [these are our views] in which he attacked the beliefs of the Sayyid, pronouncing him to be deviant and misguided. The book was in fact a rebuttal of Sayyid Al-Maliki's book: "Mafaahim yajib An Tusahhah" [Views that must be corrected].

Since late mufti Ibn Baaz considered the Mawlid-un-Nabi (صلی الللہ علیہ وسلم) as unislamic there was a war of words between the two scholars. In opposition and reply to Sheikh Ibz Baaz’s Fatwa, Al-Maliki produced a clear, decisive and well-supported argument in Arabic on the permissibility of Mawlid-un-Nabi. Al-Maliki, in his book "Holal Ihtefaal Bezikra-al Moulidin Nabawee al-Shareef" raised some very serious questions to Ibn Baaz. He questioned Ibn Baaz about his views on the innovations which are being practised "here" (in Masjid al-Haram) and which were never practised before, neither by the Prophet Muhammad, nor the Sahabah (his companions) and the Tabi‘un (second genearation) and Tabi‘ al-Tabi‘in (third generation) of Muslims (Salaf). The practices, which Al-Maliki mentioned were those such as:

1. The forming of a congregation to perform Tahajjud Salah (night prayer) behind an Imam.

2. The recitation of du'a after the Qur'an has been completed at the end of Ramadan in taraweeh prayer.

3. The gathering of people on the Laylat al-Qadr (27th of Ramadan) at Tahajjud where the Imam delivers a Khutbah (sermon).

4. The call of the muezzin by saying "Salaatul qiyaam athabakumullah."

5. Sending Durood (praise and salaams) upon the prophet during adhan (call for prayer). This was first introduced by Ali who taught it to people of his time. Ibn Jabir mentioned that in his book called "Tah'theeb Al-Aa'thar" so did Imam Tabari, Ibi Assem and Yaqoub bin Shaibah.

From that time until his death in 2004, he taught Hadith, Fiqh, Tafsir and Tasawwuf at his home and mosque on al-Maliki street in the Rusayfah district of Mecca, and his public lessons, between Maghrib and Isha', were attended by no less than 500 people daily. Many students from the University used to attend his lessons in the evenings. Even the night before he died, his lesson was well attended. Hundreds of students from all over the Islamic world benefited from his lessons in the Masjid al-Haram Makkah and many hold key religious positions in their lands today.

He was also nominated as the head judge at the international Qira'at (Qur'anic reading) competition in Mecca for three consecutive years.

Death

He died in 2004 and his funeral was the biggest in Mecca in 100 years.^{[citation needed]} For the next three days after his death, the local Saudi radio stations played the Qur'an only.^{[citation needed]} This was something that was done only for him. Future King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz and the powerful defense and interior ministers also attended his funeral.^{[citation needed]}

Ijazahs

Al-Maliki had the opportunity to study from leading Ulama of his time. Some of the scholars who gave him Ijazah include:

From Mecca:

1. His learned father and his first teacher, al-Sayyid Alawi bin Abbas al-Maliki
2. Shaykh Muhammad Yahya Aman al-Makki
3. Shaykh al-Sayyid Muhammad al-Arabi al-Tabbani
4. Shaykh Hasan Sa'id al-Yamani
5. Shaykh Hasan bin Muhammad al-Mashshat
6. Shaykh Muhammad Nur Sayf
7. Shaykh Muhammad Yasin al-Fadani
8. Al-Sayyid Muhammad Amin Kutbi
9. Al-Sayyid Ishaq bin Hashim 'Azuz
10. Habib Hasan bin Muhammad Fad'aq
11. Habib Abd-al-Qadir bin 'Aydarus al-Bar
12. Shaykh Khalil Abd-al-Qadir Taybah
13. Shaykh Abd-Allah al-Lahji

From Medina:

1. Shaykh Hasan al-Sha'ir, Shaykh al-Qurra of Madinah
2. Shaykh Diya-al-Din Ahmad al-Qadiri
3. Al-Sayyid Ahmad Yasin al-Khiyari
4. Shaykh Muhammad al-Mustafa al-Alawi al-Shinqiti
5. Shaykh Ibrahim al-Khatani al-Bukhari

From Hadhramaut and Yemen:

1. Al-Habib Umar bin Ahmad bin Sumayt, Grand Imam of Hadhramaut
2. Shaykh al-Sayyid Muhammad Zabarah, Mufti of Yemen
3. Shaykh al-Sayyid Ibrahim bin Aqeel al-Ba-Alawi, Mufti of Ta'iz
4. Al-Imam al-Sayyid Ali bin Abd-al-Rahman al-Hibshi
5. Al-Habib Alawi ibn Abd-Allah bin Shihab
6. Al-Sayyid Hasan bin Abd-al-Bari al-Ahdal
7. Shaykh Fadhl bin Muhammad Ba-Fadhal
8. Al-Habib Abd-Allah bin Alawi al-Attas
9. Al-Habib Muhammad bin Salim bin Hafiz
10. Al-Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad
11. Al-Habib Abd-al-Qadir al-Saqqaf

From Syria:

1. Shaykh Abu-al-Yasar ibn Abidin, Mufti of Syria
2. Shaykh al-Sayyid al-Sharif Muhammad al-Makki al-Kattani, Mufti of the Malikis
3. Shaykh Muhammad As'ad al-Abaji, Mufti of the Shafi'is
4. Shaykh al-Sayyid Muhammad Salih al-Farfur
5. Shaykh Hasan Habannakah al-Maydani
6. Shaykh Abd-al-Aziz 'Uyun al-Sud al-Himsi
7. Shaykh Muhammad Sa'id al-Idlabi al-Rifa'i

From Egypt:

1. Shaykh al-Sayyid Muhammad al-Hafiz al-Tijani, Imam of Hadith in Egypt
2. Shaykh Hasanayn Muhammad Makhluf, Mufti of Egypt
3. Shaykh Salih al-Ja'fari, Imam of the Azhar
4. Shaykh Amin Mahmud Khattab al-Subki
5. Shaykh Muhammad al-'Aquri
6. Shaykh Hasan al-'Adawi
7. Shaykh al-Sayyid Muhammad Abu-al-'Uyun al-Khalwati
8. Shaykh Dr.Abd-al-Halim Mahmud, Rector of al-Azhar

From Levant (Morocco, Algeria, Libya and Tunisia):

1. Shaykh al-Sayyid al-Sharif Abd-al-Kabir al-Saqali al-Mahi
2. Al-Sharif Idris al-Sanusi, King of Libya
3. Shaykh Muhammad al-Tahir ibn 'Ashur, Imam of the Zaytunah, Tunis
4. Shaykh al-Tayyib al-Muhaji al-Jaza'iri
5. Shaykh al-Faruqi al-Rahhali al-Marrakashi
6. Shaykh al-Sayyid al-Sharif Muhammad al-Muntasir al-Kattani

From the Sudan:

1. Shaykh Yusuf Hamad al-Nil
2. Shaykh Muddassir Ibrahim
3. Shaykh Ibrahim Abu-al-Nur
4. Shaykh al-Tayyib Abu-Qinayah

From the Indo-Pak subcontinent:

1. Shaykh Abu-al-Wafa al-Afghani al-Hanafi,
2. Shaykh Abd-al-Mu'id Khan Hyderabadi
3. al-Imam al'Arif Billah Mustafa Rida Khan al-Barelawi, Mufti of India
4. Mufti Muhammad Shafi� al-Deobandi, Mufti of Pakistan
5. Mawlana Muhammad Zakariyyah al-Kandahlawi, Imam of Hadith
6. Mawlana Zafar Ahmad Thanawi
7. Shaykh al-Muhaddith Habib-al-Rahman al-�Azami
8. Sayyid Abu-al-Hasan Ali al-Nadawi

Obituary to al-Sayyid Muhammad bin Alawi al-Maliki</ref>

Works

Al-Maliki was a prolific writer and has produced close to one hundred books. He has written on a variety of religious, legal, social and historical topics and many of his books are considered^{[by whom?]} masterpieces on the subject and are prescribed textbooks in Islamic institutes around the world.

Selected works on various subjects

Aqidah

• Mafahim Yajib ‘an Tusahhah
• Manhaj al-Salaf fi Fahm al-Nusus
• Al-Tahzir min al-Takfir
• Huwa Allah
• Qul Hazihi Sabeeli
• Sharh ‘Aqidat al-‘Awam

Tafsir

• Zubdat al-Itqan fi ‘Ulum al-Qur’an
• Wa Huwa bi al-Ufuq al-‘A’la
• Al-Qawa‘id al-Asasiyyah fi ‘Ulum al-Quran
• Hawl Khasa’is al-Quran

Hadith

• Al-Manhal al-Latif fi Usul al-Hadith al-Sharif
• Al-Qawa‘id al-Asasiyyah fi ‘Ilm Mustalah al-Hadith
• Fadl al-Muwatta wa Inayat al-Ummah al-Islamiyyah bihi
• Anwar al-Masalik fi al-Muqaranah bayn Riwayat al-Muwatta lil-Imam Malik

Seerah

• Muhammad(Sall Allahu ‘Alayhi Wa Sallam) al-Insan al-Kamil
• ‘Urf al-T ‘arif bi al-Mawlid al-Sharif
• Al-Anwar al-Bahiyyah fi Isra wa M’iraj Khayr al-Bariyyah
• Al-Zakha’ir al-Muhammadiyyah^[2]
• Zikriyat wa Munasabat
• Al-Bushra fi Manaqib al-Sayyidah Khadijah al-Kubra

Usul

• Al-Qawa‘id al-Asasiyyah fi Usul al-Fiqh
• Sharh Manzumat al-Waraqat fi Usul al-Fiqh
• Mafhum al-Tatawwur wa al-Tajdid fi al-Shari‘ah al-Islamiyyah

Tasawwuf

• Shawariq al-Anwar min Ad‘iyat al-Sadah al-Akhyar
• Al-Mukhtar min Kalam al-Akhyar
• Al-Husun al-Mani‘ah
• Mukhtasar Shawariq al-Anwar

Miscellaneous

• Fi Rihab al-Bayt al-Haram (History of Mecca)
• Al-Mustashriqun Bayn al-Insaf wa al-‘Asabiyyah (Study of Orientalism)
• Nazrat al-Islam ila al-Riyadah (Sports in Islam)
• Al-Qudwah al-Hasanah fi Manhaj al-Da‘wah ila Allah (Methods of Dawah)
• Ma La ‘Aynun Ra’at (Description of Paradise)
• Nizam al-Usrah fi al-Islam (Islam and Family)
• Al-Muslimun Bayn al-Waqi‘ wa al-Tajribah (Contemporary Muslim world)
• Kashf al-Ghumma (Virtues of helping fellow Muslims)
• Al-Dawah al-Islahiyyah (Call for Reform)
• Fi Sabil al-Huda wa al-Rashad (Collection of speeches)
• Sharaf al-Ummah al-Islamiyyah (Superiority of the Muslim Ummah)
• Usul al-Tarbiyah al-Nabawiyyah (Prophetic methods of education)
• Nur al-Nibras fi Asanid al-Jadd al-Sayyid Abbas (Set of Grandfather’s Ijazahs)
• Al-‘Uqud al-Lu’luiyyah fi al-Asanid al-Alawiyyah (Set of father’s Ijazahs)
• Al-Tali‘ al-Sa‘id al-Muntakhab min al-Musalsalat wa al-Asanid (Set of Ijazahs)
• Al-‘Iqd al-Farid al-Mukhtasar min al-Athbah wa al-Asanid (Set of Ijazahs)

This is a selected list of the works the Sayyid has authored and published. There are many other publications that are not mentioned and many works that are still to be published. Many of the Sayyid’s works have been translated into foreign languages.

See also

• Arab people
• Maliki
• Sufism
• Islam in Saudi Arabia

References

External links

• Extract from “Notions That Must Be Corrected” by Shaykh Muhammad b. Alawi al-Maliki al-Hasani
• Getting to know the Sufis by Stephen Schwartz, The Weekly Standard
• Video of Shaikh Muhammad al-Maliki delivering a lecture in Arabic
• Video of Shaikh Muhammad al-Maliki at a mawlid gathering in Malaysia
• Video of Shaykh Muhammad Ibn 'Alawî Al Mâlikî's funeral
• The Prophets in Barzakh and the Hadith of Isra and Miraj Followed by the Immense Merits of Al-Sham - Online book by Shaikh Muhammad
• The path ahead, Macleans.ca
• Obituary by Shaykh Seraj Hendricks
• Obituary by Shafiq Morton
• Obituary on Islamica Magazine
• A defence of the Ash'ari school by Shaykh Muhammad ibn `Alawi al-Maliki

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