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Ahmed Raza Khan Barelvi

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Dargah Aala Hazrat
Ahmed Raza Khan
Born14 June 1856[1]
Died1921
EraModern era
RegionIndia
SchoolBarelvi
Main interests
Aqeedah, Fiqh, Tasawwuf

Ahmed Raza Khan Fazil-e-Barelvi (Urdu: احمد رضاخان, Hindi: इमाम अहमद रजा) was an Islamic scholar of the 19th century, whose works informed the Barelvi movement. Raza Khan wrote on numerous topics of religion, science, and philosopy. He is best known for his collection of fatwas entitled Fatawa Ridawiyya.

Early life

Ahmed Raza Khan was born on 14 June 1856 (1272 AH) in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh; his mother named him Amman Miyān.[2] Raza Khan used the appellation "Abdul Mustafa" (slave of Mustafa) prior to signing his name in correspondence.[3]

He studied Islamic sciences and completed a traditional dars-e nizami course under the supervision his father Naqī Áli Khān, from whom he learned "2111 subjects".[citation needed] Ahmed Raza Khan studied books of Urdu and Persian from Mirza Ghulam Qadir Beg brother of Ghulam Ahmed Qadyani. He also learned from Abdul Ali of Rampuri, and from his spiritual guides, Shah Al-i-Rasùl of Marehrah Sharif and Abul Husayn Nùri of Marehrah Sharif.

Beliefs

Ahmed Raza Khan promulgated several beliefs regarding the Islamic prophet Mohammed:

  • He is noor as well as bashar, that is, noori bashar[clarification needed]
  • He is haazir naazir (present in many places at the same time, as opposed to God, who is everywhere by definition)
  • God has granted him ilm-e-ghaib (the knowledge of the unseen)
  • God has made him mukhtaar kul (having the authority to do whatever he desired)

Quran and hadith studies

Ahmed Raza Khan translated the Quran into Urdu, which was first published in 1912 under the title of Kanz ul-Iman fi Tarjuma al-Qur’an. The original manuscript is preserved in the library of Idara Tahqiqat-i-Imam Ahmed Raza, Karachi, and an English translation of Kanzul Iman has also been published. Ahmed Raza Khan also wrote several books on the collection and compilation of hadiths.

Fatwas

Raza Khan's main work was Fatawa Ridawiyya which runs in 12 volumes of over 1000 pages each. The Raza Foundation under the leadership of Abdul Qayyum Hazarwi revised the work, translating all the Persian and Arabic sentences in Urdu, and published it in 30 volumes, running across 90,000 pages.

Religious research

Raza Khan investigated numerous religious questions:

  • In 1915 he wrote a treatise describing 160 types of water which are acceptable for wuzu (ablution), and 146 types of proscribed water.
  • He identified 181 acceptable and 130 unacceptable materials for tayammum (alternatives to water for ablution).
  • He was able to fill up the Naqsh-i-Murabba (a sixteen column quadrilateral) by 1152 methods.
  • He knew 800 names of Mohammed from books, and was able to gather 1400 more.
  • He invesitaged whether it was credible that Hussain was able to travel from Mecca to Kerbala on 3rd Zilhij and reach there on 2nd of Moharram. He investigated the types of horses, the loads they carried, the route of the caravan, the types of terrain, and other factors, and finally concluded that the caravan could feasibly have reached Kerbala by the 2nd.

Works in physics

Raza Khan opposed the belief in a heliocentric universe, instead stating that the sun and moon circulate around the Earth.[citation needed]

Works in economics

Raza through his book[which?] published in 1912, presented four points for the economic development of Muslims:

  • Barring the affairs wherein government is involved, Muslims should decide all their disputes mutually so that millions of rupees, which are being spent over litigations, may be saved.
  • The affluent Muslims of Bombay (Mumbai), Calcutta, Rangoon, Madras and Hyderabad should open banks for other poor Muslims.
  • Muslims should not purchase anything from anybody except Muslims.
  • The sciences of Islam should be propagated and publicized.

Antagonism towards Mirza Ghulam Ahmad and the Ahmadiyya branch

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian claimed to be the Mahdi (messiah) awaited by the Muslims. These claims proved to be extremely controversial among many in the Muslim community, and he was branded a heretic and apostate by many religious scholars of the time, including Ahmed Raza Khan. Ghulam Ahmad's claims are controversial to this day, but his Mahdi status is believed in by the Ahmadiyya branch of Islam.

When Ahmed Raza visited Mecca and Medina for pilgrimage in 1905, he prepared a draft document entitled Al Motamad Al Mustanad ("The Reliable Proofs") for presentation to the scholars of Mecca and Medina. Ahmed Raza Khan collected opinions of the ulama of Hejaz and compiled them in a Arabic language compendium with the title, Husam al Harmain ("The Sword of Two Sanctuaries"), a work containing 34 verdicts from 33 ulama (20 Meccan and 13 Medinese). The work concluded that Ghulam Ahmad's beliefs were blasphemous and tantamount to apostasy.[citation needed]

Secularism

During the period of the Indian Khilafat Movement, Gandhi was advised that he should meet with Raza Khan. When he was told that the Gandhi wished to meet and speak to him, Raza Khan said, "What would he speak about? Religion or worldly affairs? If it is worldly affairs, what can I partake in, for I have abstained from the world and have no interest in it."[4]

Opposition to heterodox practices

Raza Khan condemned many practices he saw as bid'at (forbidden innovations), such as:

Criticism

Raza Khan was criticized by many Islamic scholars[who?] for his beliefs and acts:

  • He issued fatwas against other Muslim religious group such as Deobandis and Wahabbis, accusing them of being disrespectful towards the prophet Muhammad. Deobandi and Salafi scholars believe that Ahmed Raza Khan has made these accusations due to his "exaggeration" in loving the prophet, which they claim violates hadith which proscribe deifying Mohammad.[10]
  • He supported the Sufi concept of caste system among Muslims, per portions of his Fatawa Ridawiyya. Many Muslim scholars[who?] consider this against basic Islamic principles.

    If a Untouchable Muslim becomes a alim, he is not equal to Syed, Sheikh, Pathan (surfah key kufu nahin[clarification needed]).

  • He advocated the practice of praying to deceased Muslims, which his opponents declared to be shirk (polytheism):

If you are embarrassed in your affairs, seek help from the inmates of the tombs.[11]

  • He pronounced takfir (apostasy) on many Islamic scholars for not agreeing him on religious issues.
  • He declared that the sub-continent is Dar-rul-Islam and jihad against British is not obligatory
  • He opposed the Khilafat Movement


See also

[1]

References

  1. ^ Hayat-e-Aala Hadhrat, vol.1 p.1
  2. ^ Ala Hadhrat by Bastawi, p.25
  3. ^ Man huwa Ahmed Rida by Shaja'at Ali al-Qadri, p.15
  4. ^ Al Mizaan P:335
  5. ^ Ahkame Shariat part1 page 33-34
  6. ^ malfoozat e Ahmed Raza(R.A.)part2 page116
  7. ^ ahkame shariat part3 page2-3
  8. ^ absanul-fatawa-Mufti-E-madersa-mazharul-islam 9
  9. ^ Risala e muharram or taziadari
  10. ^ Bukhari volume 4, Book 55 Hadith No 654: I heard the Prophet saying, "Do not exaggerate in praising me as the Christians praised the son of Mary, for I am only a Slave. So, call me the Slave of Allah and His Apostle."
  11. ^ Wal Ula, p.46

Sources

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