The life and teachings of Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan

As cool breeze foretells rain, in the same way the arrival of the Lovers of Allah Ta’ala is also foretold. The personality of Hadhrat Muhaddith-e-Deccan was to clear vagueness, to spread the light of guidance, to guide those who desired proximity of Allah Ta’ala; so before his arrival as well, according to the law of Allah Ta’ala tidings were given.

The compiler of “Mawaaiz-e-Hasna” writes, “His mother said that even before the period of pregnancy, I was being given tidings of a virtuous son. .Before his birth, his elder brother had passed away in infancy. Because of this, his mother was very sad. During these days, a mystic came and said, “Daughter, don’t be sad! You are getting the return of what you have lost. Look at the sky! Your child can be seen coming.” She says that, “In my innocence and out of love of my deceased child, I thought that my dead son was being returned to me through the prayers of the mystic. The moment I looked at the sky, I saw a radiant lamp descending from the sky and entering my house. The radiance of it was such that till the limits of sight, the whole atmosphere became radiant and my eyes were dazzled by it.” After this the period of pregnancy started.

Consequently, the pride of the Muhaddithin (Hadith-Expert), Syed Abul Hasanaat Abdullah Shah Sahab Naqshbandi Mujaddidi Qadri (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) arrived as the personification of this glad tiding. He was born in Hyderabad on Friday, 10 Dhul Hijjah, in the year 1292 A.H. at 5 AM. By coincidence, in the same year Shaykh Ul Islam Hadhrat Imam Muhammad Anwarullah Farooqui., on 19 Dhul Hijjah, established Jamia Nizamia. The year of Muhaddith-e-Deccan’s birth portrays his relationship with the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam). “92” is the total of the letters of the name of the holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam). 12 is the date of the Prophet’s Milad. Also, it is the blessing of the Holy Prophet’s (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) name that his stay in this world was for 92 years, as he passed away into the presence of Allah Ta’ala on Thursday, 18 Rabe’ee Thani 1384 A.H. This also shows his relationship with the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam).

Muhaddith-e-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) spent every moment of his life in spreading the message of the knowledge of the Holy Quran and the Hadith through teaching, instruction, guidance, counseling, writing etc. and in serving the religion of Islam. He spent his days and nights in purifying the hearts and souls of his disciples.

For the guidance of the Ummah, he authored many important works, which dispel the darkness about beliefs and acts of Islam. They show the way to those who have lost it; they satisfy those who thirst for true knowledge. Reading his books imparts solace to the heart. Each and every phrase affects the heart and revivifies the soul. Among his books there is “Zujajatul Masabeeh,” a 5-volume collection of Hadith. This is a highly authoritative, valuable compilation of Hadith. The first volume is from The Book of Faith to the Book of Fasts. This has 2564 Traditions. The second volume starts from: ‘The excellence of the Holy Quran’ and ends with ‘The book of freeing (slaves), Chapter of oaths. This has 1255 Traditions. The third volume starts with The Book of retribution and ends with The Book of dreams. It has 1170 Traditions. The fourth volume starts with The Book of manners and ends with, ‘The book of trials. It has 1093 Traditions. The fifth volume starts with ‘The book of excellence of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and this volume ends with ‘Excellence of this Ummah.’ It has 552 Traditions. The five volumes have a total of 6634 Traditions.

Zujajatul Masabeeh is a masterpiece of Hadith literature. Its importance is still being realized and revealed.

By authoring Zujajatul Masabeeh, Hadhrat Muhaddith-e-Deccan has bestowed a favor not only on the Hanafi School of jurisprudence, but on the entire Ummah.

Apart from the ‘Ulama and the Shaykhs, even the common public derive benefit from this blessed book and use it to understand the issues of Shariah in a better manner.

On one hand he has performed this task for the scholars, on the other to lend stability stabilize the faith of the classes and the masses alike, he has authored many brief and detailed books in Urdu. Through these books, he has performed the miraculous task of reforming the exterior, correcting the faith and beliefs and advancement of the soul in such a manner that till today millions of hearts resonate with the remembrance of Allah Ta’ala and are immersed in the love of the Holy Prophet Hadhrat Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam).

Out of his books, some pearls are being presented here:

Advice to stay firm on the ‘Aqida of Ahle Sunnah:

Hadhrat Muhaddith-e-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) writes advising us to remain firm on the Aqida of the Ahle Sunnah in these words:

Translation: Hadhrat Imam Rabbani Shaykh Ahmed Sirhindi (May Allah be well pleased with him) says that it is necessary for the Salik (the one who traverses the spiritual path to Allah's closeness) to keep his/her Aqida in accordance with the Aqida of the delivered group (Firqatun Najiyah) Ahle Sunnah so that the blessings of the Aakhirah become your destiny. Following the wrong Aqida against Ahle Sunnah is a fatal poison, which takes you to eternal death and the wrath of Allah Ta’ala. There is still hope for those who are lax in following the rules of Islam (beamal), but there is no chance of forgiveness on defiling the Aqida. (Mawaaiz-e-Hasana, Vol Pg No: 306)
It has been mentioned in Hadith that some people will bring virtuous acts (nek a’amaal) to the extent of the mountain of Uhud, but because of wrong Aqida, all those acts will go waste the way sand is scattered by wind.

Advice to restrain from disrespect:

Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) set right the hearts and the sights of the people. He saved his disciples and lovers from those things which are obstacles in Suluk to those who set out on it. He instructed them to abstain from the blameworthy characteristics (sifaat radheela) and acquire lofty characteristics and to perform all kinds of virtuous acts. He says:

Translation: Son! Disrespecting and insulting somebody is not the mark of a Salik. A Salik should abstain from those things which spoil the heart. Disrespecting somebody pains the heart. Hadhrat Abdullah bin Mubarak (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) was once going somewhere with much pomp and grandeur. On the way a Syed (a descendant of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam)) met him and asked him: I am a Syed, but I see that you status is better than mine. Why is it so? Hadhrat Abdullah bin Mubarak (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) answered: This is because I acquired the legacy of your Illustrious Forefather, the King of the Prophets, Hadhrat Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) (that legacy is knowledge). And you have acquired the legacy of my misguided father. For this reason you status is low. That night he saw the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) in a dream.

The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) was angry and told him: You have insulted my son, which has pained Me a lot. Hadhrat Abdullah bin Mubarak (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) got up in a very disturbed state and started searching for the Syed. There the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) graced the dream of the Syed and told him: Son! If your actions were good, Abdullah could not have insulted you. The Syed also started searching for Hadhrat Abdullah (May Allah shower His Mercy on him). Both of them met each other, related each other’s dreams and repented. See! Insulting somebody is such a thing that it pains the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) too. (Mawaaiz-e-Hasana, Vol 1, Pg No: 109, 110)

To save oneself from the company and the books of the misguided groups

Our master Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) details the reasons for losing Iman at the time of death in his lecture. In it he mentions:

Translation: My friends! One of the reasons for losing Iman at the time of death is that nowadays there is a strange commotion. Somebody says something and somebody else something. Nobody cares for what the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said and what the Sahabah (May Allah be well pleased with them) said. Whoever feels like saying anything starts doing it. My friends! Do not get stuck in that wrong Aqida! Don’t read those books! Don’t sit with such people! If that Aqida comes you at the time of death, then you will regret it. In short when the reality of Aqida is revealed at the time of death, then at that time you will regret: If I had not held these Aqida, it would have been better. If death comes at such a time, then you will lose your Iman.

The favors which the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) bestowed on the Ummah

The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has bestowed many favors on the Ummah. In the same way, He (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has many rights on the Ummah. Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) mentions the 3 most important rights which the Ummah owes to the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam):

Translation: In short, looking at the favors which the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has bestowed on the Ummah, so many rights of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) are binding on the Ummah that till Qiyamah, the Ummah cannot ever fulfill the rights of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) . There are hundreds of rights of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) on the Ummah. Among them 3 are the most important. Leave alone all rights; even if the Ummah fulfils these 3 rights, it is more than enough:

1. To follow the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam)
2. To respect the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam)
3. To love the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam)

The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is Noor (radiance) through and through

In regard to this, Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) has authored a truly rejuvenating assertion in the light of the Holy Quran and the Hadith.

O Prophet! Truly We have sent thee as a Witness, a Bearer of Glad Tidings, and a Warner― (45) And as one who invites to Allah's (Grace) by His leave, and as a Lamp spreading Light.

Surah Ahzaab (33:46)
there hath come to you from Allah a (new) Light and a perspicuous Book.

Surah Al-Maida (5:15)
In the verses mentioned, the reason the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has been addressed as “NoorAllah” is that Noor is a means between the desired and the desirous. The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is the means between Allah Ta’ala and the worshippers of Allah Ta’ala. Allah Ta’ala has addressed Him as Noor of Allah Ta’ala as He (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is the perfect and absolute manifestation of the attributes of Allah Ta’ala.

The details: Even other Prophets were radiant with the Noor of Allah Ta’ala, but they were not perfect and absolute manifestations of the attributes of Allah Ta’ala. For this reason, their messages were for particular nations and particular times. The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is the perfect and absolute manifestation of the attributes of Allah Ta’ala, so here guidance was also absolute and it reached all the corners of the world. This is a shining proof that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is the perfect and absolute manifestation of all the attributes of Allah Ta’ala.

Allah Ta’ala says: With Our Noor, the skies and the earth is radiant, but no once could be the perfect manifestation of that Noor. If you want to see the perfect manifestation of Our Noor, then look at the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) . We have manifested Our Noor in its entirety in the bosom of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) . Understand this with this example, that there is a lamp which is kept in a niche and that lamp is all the more radiant because it is in a glass; and the lamp has olive oil in it.

The way the lamp’s light reaches its pinnacle by virtue of being in a niche and being covered by a glass, in the same way the Noor of Allah Ta’ala emerged in the bosom of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and reached its pinnacle. In clarifying this Allah Ta’ala says:

We have entered our Noor in its entirety in your bosom, because of which Your bosom got absolutely illumined and Sharh Sadr is done.

The Noor of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has no shadow:

A Noor does not have any shadow, since the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is Noor through and through, He (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has got no shadow. (See Khasais Kubra)

Through the Noor of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) hundreds of exteriors and interiors have been illuminated. Interiorly, all the Auliya and ‘Ulama and all the virtuous will be illuminated till the Qiyamah. Externally also many things have been illuminated. Have a look at some of them:

Hadith from Sahih Bukhari: Two Sahabah took leave from the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) after offering the Salaat of Isha. It was cloudy then and dark. The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) handed a twig of a date tree to one of them and that twig started shining and that illuminated the way. When both of them parted ways, the other Sahabah rubbed his stick on that stick and even his stick started shining. In this light, each one of them reached their house.

This is an example of things being illuminated externally through the Noor of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam).

The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) sent some Sahabah for the propagation of Islam. They entreated the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) for a sign of the truth of Islam. The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) placed his finger between the eyes of that Sahabi and his forehead started shining. The Sahabi joined his whip with the Noor and that whip too started shining. This is how the Noor of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is transferred from one to another. (Miladnama, Pg No: 130-132)

That the night of Milad is superior to Shab Qadr:

The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is the most superior of all. The night and the month in which He (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) came is superior to all. Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah Ta’ala shower His Mercy on him) writes about this:

Gentlemen! Shab Qadr is superior to all nights. Do you know why this status for this night? That is because angels descend in this night. So the night when the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) graced the world with His presence, how superior should that be! The night when the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) arrived is superior to Shab Qadr because Shab Qadr is mercy only for the Muslims. It benefits only Muslims. The night of Milad brings Mercy for the whole world. Shab Qadr has benefits the classes, but the night of Milad benefits the masses. For these reason, the night of Milad is superior to all other nights. Now you might be thinking that in Shab Qadr, the reward for praying is equal to the reward achievable in a 1000 months. So how can the night of Milad be superior to Shab Qadr.

My friends! Do you not see when the King is coming on rounds, all the employees are ordered to be more alert than the usual times; but on the day when kings are born, a general holiday is declared and robes of honor are freely distributed.

Friends! Shab Qadr is the day when you have to be more alert and the night of Milad is the day when the King is born, so it is a general holiday. Neither do you have to be awake for the whole night, nor do you have to fast in the day. (Miladnama, Pg No: 82, 83)

The knowledge of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam): Allah Ta’ala has granted His beloved Prophet the knowledge of what happened and what is to happen. Some people use this verse of the Holy Quran of Surah A’araaf and try to prove that the knowledge of the unseen and unknowable (ghaib) is not given to the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam).

Say: "I have no power over any good or harm to myself except as Allah willeth. If I had knowledge of the unseen, I should have multiplied all good, and no evil should have touched me: I am but a warner, and a bringer of glad tidings to those who have faith." Surah A’araaf (7:188)

Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) mentioned the same verse and said:

Translation: The knowledge of ghaib is of 2 kinds. One which Allah Ta’ala grants, because of which that knowledge is not given to mere mortals but only to the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) .

Once a Munafiq (hypocrite) came to the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and said: My camel is lost. The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi was sallam) said: Go and search in that place and you will find it. The hypocrite said: You talk about what is happening in the skies and you do not know where my camel is? The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said: Your camel is at that place tied to a tree. Go and take it.

If this is not Ilm Ghaib, then what is it? But his Ilm Ghaib is because of Allah's granting and if somebody says that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has Ilm Ghaib without Allah’s, then it is not correct and the above-mentioned verse negates that kind of Ilm Ghaib. If the Holy Prophet’s (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) blessed life is seen carefully, then we can realize what things were expressed through the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and this verse of Surah Jinn:

"He (alone) knows the Unseen, nor does He make any one acquainted with His Mysteries― (26) "Except an messenger whom He has chosen: and then He makes a band of watchers march before him and behind him,… Surah Jinn (72:26)

unambiguously proves that the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has the knowledge of Ilm Ghaib. Arguing about the Holy Prophet’s (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) Ilm Ghaib in spite of all this is searching for what is already available which is completely useless.

Those who look at the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) with their eyes and consider Him as somebody like themselves are not correct:

Translation of a couplet:
Abu Jahl, totally blind, when did he see Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam)? The face of Muhammad (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is what the Siddiq saw.

If they had seen the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) as Allah Ta’ala orders them to see, they would have realized the lofty status of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam)…(Mawaiz-e-Hasana) Research on life and death: Allah Ta’ala has ordained death for every living thing. As has been said:

Translation: Every souls will have to taste of death.

In this context, we will talk about the life of the Prophets and the martyrs. Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) says: Death (maut) is the name for transfer in that the soul (ruh) leaves its body and enters another body. This is just as if there are 2 cages and 1 bird. When the cages are opened and their entrances are joined, then the bird is transferred from one cage to the other. In the Barzakh, (the nether world), the world between this world and the Aakhirah), a body just like this earthly one has been prepared. The only difference is that this body is coarse (Katheef) and the body in Barzakh is fine (lateef). (Shahadatnama, Pg No: 56)

After explaining the concept of life and death, Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) writes about the eternal life of the martyrs and the bounties granted to them by Almighty Allah:

The way the martyrs progressed spiritually in their earthly bodies through virtuous acts, in the same way they keep progressing in their lateef bodies as well. They also have food etc. For this reason it is said that the martyrs are alive and that their life is not false, but they are really alive and all the signs of life are present in them.

Think not of those who are slain in Allah's way as dead. Nay they live finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord. (169) They rejoice in the Bounty provided by Allah: and with regard to those left behind, who have not yet joined them (in their bliss), the (martyrs) glory in the fact that on them is no fear, nor have they (cause to) grieve. Surah Al Imran (3:168)

They have the best of everything, they go wherever they want to. In the cocoon of green birds, they roam in the same way as we do nowadays in airplanes. (Shahadatnama, Pg No: 57)

There is no one like the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), presenting the proof of Hayatun nabi i.e. the life of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam):

After this Hadhrat Muhaddith-E-Deccan (May Allah shower His Mercy on him) mentions the life of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) after His passing away into the presence of Allah Ta’ala. He is guiding the whole Ummah generally and His Murideen especially to hold onto this Aqida as the safety of this world and the next is because of this only.

Translation: In the Barzakh, there is no body which is suitable for the blessed Ruh of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), because there is no parallel to the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), neither in this world, nor in Barzakh, nor in Aakhirah. When there is no body as fine as His in Barzakh, the blessed Ruh was returned to the its own matchless body. This very body of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) was shifted to the Barzakh. For this reason, this is termed as Hayatun nabi (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam). The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is resting in Barzakh with His own blessed body. As the souls of others and of martyrs are transferred to Barzakh in other bodies, the connections with the earthly body also break and others can marry their wives and their legacy will be distributed. The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is resting in Barzakh with His own body, the earthly connections have not been severed. For this reason, marrying the Ummahatul Momineen is forbidden and the legacy of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is not distributed. If this was done, then it would have been that a live person’s wife is married and that a live person’s wealth has been distributed. The blessed body of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) is much more fine than the bodies of Barzakh, so why does He (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) need any other body? As the Barzakh has no shadow, in the same way, the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) has no shadow.

The Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said: I see behind My back in the same way as I see in front of Me.

Have you ever seen a coarse body seeing behind its back in the same way as it sees in front? This is the fineness of the blessed body of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) that He sees behind His back in the same way as He sees in front. The fineness of His blessed body is proven through the incident of the Meraj as well. No coarse body could have gone where the fine body of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) went in Meraj.

Wherever a Muslim is, when he/she sends Salaam to the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam), then His blessed Ruh which is barzakh, immersed (Istighraaq) in the vision of the Lord Almighty, is relieved from its state to reply to the Salaam in the same way as it used to relieved in this earthly life from the Wahi.

This shows that Raddallahu alayy ruhi does not mean that the blessed Ruh leaves the body and enters the body at the time of Salaam, but it means that relief given to the Ruh from its state of Istighraaq. If it had meant the earlier explanation, then the Hadith would have been raddallhu ala jismi ruhi and not as stated. This was not stated, but it was said: My Ruh returns towards Me. It only means that I am relieved from that world to this world and I reply to the Salaam of the sender. (Shahadatnama, Pg No: 57-59)

 

Mufti Syed Ziauddin Naqshbandi Qadri

[Naib Shaykh Ul Fiqh, Jamia Nizamia,

Founder/Director, Abul Hasanaat Islamic Research Center]