Muhammad Masihullah Khan Sherwani Jalalabadi (Urdu: محمد مسیح الله خان شیروانی جلال آبادی; 1911/1912 – 13 November 1992) was an Indian Deobandi Islamic scholar known as an authority in Sufism. He was among the senior authorised disciples of Ashraf Ali Thanwi, who gave him the title Masīh al-Ummah (transl. Comforter of the Ummah).[1]
Muhammad Masihullah Khan محمد مسیح الله خان | |
|---|---|
| Title | Maulana, Masih al-Ummah |
| Personal | |
| Born | 1911/1912 Barla, Aligarh District, United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, British India (now Uttar Pradesh, India) |
| Died | 13 November 1992 (aged 79–81) |
| Resting place | Jalalabad |
| Religion | Islam |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Denomination | Sunni Islam |
| Jurisprudence | Hanafi |
| Creed | Maturidi |
| Movement | Deobandi |
| Main interest(s) | Sufism |
| Notable work(s) | The Path to Perfection, Shariat-o-Tasawwuf |
| Alma mater | Darul Uloom Deoband |
| Tariqa | Chishtiya-Sabiriya-Imdadiya |
| Occupation | Islamic scholar, Sufi shaykh |
| Muslim leader | |
| Disciple of | Ashraf Ali Thanwi |
Influenced by | |
Influenced | |
Early life and education
editMuhammad Masihullah Khan was born in 1329 or 1330 AH (1911/1912) in Sarai Barla, a village in the Aligarh district of Uttar Pradesh, India.[2][3][4] His family was of the Sherwani tribe, a Sayyid tribe of Pathans. His father's name was Saeed Khan.[4]
He was known for piety in his youth, and he often sat in the company of scholars and Sufis.[4] He developed a close companionship with Muhammad Ilyas Kandhalvi, who introduced him to the books and lectures of Ashraf Ali Thanwi.[5][2]
He received his early and secondary education in Barla, Aligarh, and enrolled in Darul Uloom Deoband in 1347 AH (1929 AD)[6] and graduated from there in 1349 AH (1931 AD).[4][7] He continued there for another two years after graduation, spending time on Islamic logic and philosophy.[8]
His teachers at Deoband Seminary included Husain Ahmad Madani, Izaz Ali Amrohi, Asghar Hussain Deobandi, Ibrahim Balyawi, Rasool Khan Hazarvi, and Murtaza Hasan Chandpuri.[9]
He was an authorised disciple of Ashraf Ali Thanwi in Sufism. During his student days, he pledged allegiance to Thanwi, and in 1351 AH, Thanwi gave him permission to pledge allegiance.[4][10][11]
Career
editIn 1357 AH (1938/1939 AD), Thanwi sent him as a teacher in a madrasa (an Islamic school) named Madrasa Miftahul Uloom in Jalalabad, Muzaffarnagar (now Jalalabad, Shamli). At that time, this madrasa was only established as a school. But within a few years, due to the hard work of Masihullah, this madrasa started to be counted among the big Islamic seminars in India.[4][12]
Literary works
editDeath
editMasihullah died on Friday, November 13, 1992 AD (Jumada I 17, 1413 AH), and was buried the same day after the Friday prayer.[15] The funeral prayer was led by Mufti Inayatullah, and his funeral was attended by over 250,000 people. He was buried in the cemetery next to the madrasa.[2][16]
References
editCitations
edit- ^ Kaleem, Mohd (2017). Contribution of Old boys of Darul uloom Deoband in Hadith Literature (PhD) (in Urdu). India: Department of Sunni Theology, Aligarh Muslim University. pp. 249–253. hdl:10603/364028. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
- ^ a b c "Maulana Masihullah Khan Sherwani". White Thread Press. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
- ^ Qasmi, Muhammadullah (October 2020). Darul Uloom Deoband Ki Jame O Mukhtasar Tareekh (in Urdu) (3rd ed.). India: Shaikh-Ul-Hind Academy. pp. 732–733. OCLC 1345466013.
- ^ a b c d e f Rizwi, Syed Mehboob (1980). History of Dar al Ulum Deoband. Vol. 2. Translated by Murtaz Hussain F Qureshi (1st ed.). Darul Uloom Deoband: Idara-e-Ehtemam. pp. 119–120.
- ^ Allahabadi 2005, pp. 30, 47–48.
- ^ Allahabadi 2005, pp. 30–33, 39.
- ^ Bukhari, Akbar Shah (1999). Akabir-i-Ulama-i-Deoband (PDF) (in Urdu). Lahore, Pakistan: Idara Islamiah. pp. 306–308.
- ^ a b Mubarakpuri, Arif Jameel (2021). Mausoo'a Ulama-u- Deoband [The Encyclopedia of Deobandi Scholars] (in Arabic) (1st ed.). Deoband: Shaikhul Hind Academy. p. 456.
- ^ Allahabadi 2005, pp. 40–41.
- ^ Allahabadi 2005, pp. 52–57.
- ^ Saeed, Ahmad (25 May 1975). Bazm e Ashraf Ke Chiragh (in Urdu). Lahore: Al Ashraf Matboo'āt. pp. 35–36.
- ^ Allahabadi 2005, pp. 72–79.
- ^ Muhammad Masihullah Khan. Shariat-o-Tasawwuf (in Urdu). Maktaba Fakharia Khanquah Imdadia, Gilat Bazar, Varanasi Cantt, Uttar Pradesh.
- ^ Khan, Dr Mamnun (22 April 2019). Being British Muslims: Beyond Ethnocentric Religion and Identity Politics. UK: AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1-7283-8266-1.
- ^ Allahabadi 2005, p. 152.
- ^ Bukhari, Akbar Shah (2001). Tadhkira Auliyā e Deoband (in Urdu). Urdu Bazar, Lahore: Rahmania Book Depot. pp. 632–634.
Bibliography
edit- Allahabadi, Ghayasuddin (February 2005). Sawāneh-e-Masīhu al-Ummat [Biography of "Masīh al-Ummah"] (in Urdu). Jalalabad, Shamli: Department of Broadcasting, Jamia Miftahul Uloom.
Further reading
edit- Ingram, Brannon D. (2011). "Masihullah Khan: Imprinting Thanawi on South African Deoband". Deobandis Abroad: Sufism, Ethics and Polemics in a Global Islamic Movement (PhD thesis). United States: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. pp. 125–134. doi:10.17615/vp8r-8f57.
- Hansa, Abdul Kader; Mangera, Ismail (January 2014). Hadhrat Maulana Maseehullah Khan Sherwani (1st ed.). Isipingo Beach, South Africa: Jamiatul Ulama.