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INTRODUCTION
Hazrat 'Allama Maulana
Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih was, beyond doubt, one of most
prolific scholars of the latter half of twentieth century whose
contribution to Islam was mainly aimed at differentiating between
haq (truth) and batil (falsehood). Because of some of his
literary accomplishments he is thus considered as one of the leading
scholars of the Ahle Sunna wal Jam'aat of this age.
Hazrat 'Allama Maulana Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih worked
tirelessly to defend the pristine teachings of Islam by virtue if
his intellectual prowess and his literary skills. In his literary
masterpieces he has managed to explain so convincingly to both
scholars and to the Muslim masses, the errors of the heretical sects
within Islam. Such works include: "Tableeghi Jama'at", "Zer-o-Zabar",
"Lala Zar", "Zalzala", "Daawate Insaf" (A Call for Justice) and so
forth. After reading these concise books, one is immediately forced
to decide between truth and falsehood and to quickly cast aside the
mendacious and misguided ideas of the heretical sects of recent
times.
His knowledge was so vast that Hafiz-e-Millat 'Allama Abdul Azeez
Saheb Rahmatullah 'alaih, stated that when Hazrat 'Allama Maulana
Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih was studying under his supervision
at a young age, at the famous university of Al-Jamiatul Ashrafia, in
Mubarakpur, U.P. India; his natural ability as an original thinker
and his uncanny ability to instantaneously grasp the essence of a
new subject was so strikingly obvious, that if someone searched
deeply, one would be as forced to recognize that he possessed the
innate qualities of a brilliant and gifted scholar.
BIRTH AND GENEALOGY
Hazrat 'Allama Maulana Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih was
born in 1924, in a town "Sayyidpura", in the
district of Balya, U.P., India. His father, Maulana Abdul Latif, was
a humble, modest and a very pious scholar of Islam.
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
Hazrat 'Allama Maulana Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih
attained his basic and intermediate education under
the supervision of his learned father, 'Allama Maulana Abdul Latif.
Then, continuing these Islamic studies,
Hazrat 'Allama Maulana Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih enrolled at
Al-Jamiatul Ashrafia, where he studied
under the careful guidance and supervision of Huzoor Hafiz-e-Millat,
'Allama Shah Abdul Azeez Saheb Rahmatullah 'alaih.
Huzoor Hafiz-e-Millat's endeavours and striving for the
establishment of an Islamic University was so successful that in
1352 Hijri, a huge group of students enrolled, amongst them were
Hazrat Sharih Bukhari, 'Allama Maulana Mufti Sharif-ul-Haq
Rahmatullah 'alaih (The Annotator of the Bukhari), and also Hazrat 'Allama
Maulana Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih himself.
It was during the earlier stages of his childhood, when he was
attaining Islamic knowledge, that signs emerged of his
intellectuality and his discernment: Huzoor Hafiz-e-Millat, 'Allama
Shah Abdul Azeez Saheb Rahmatullah 'alaih used to always remember 'Allama
Arshad's educational childhood, with the following words:
"Throughout the whole of my life, I have not yet met anyone so
intellectual in understanding the Sahih Bukhari Shareef, as 'Allama
Arshadul Qadri."
In 1365 Hijri he graduated with the Honours, from Al-Jamiatul
Ashrafia. After this he moved to Madressa Islamia Shamsul Uloom,
Nagpur, India where he taught the future great scholars of Islam,
such as 'Allama Maulana Mufti Jalaluddin Ahmed Amjadi Rehmatullah 'alaih.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS
In 1950, he moved to Jamshedpur, India to propagate Islam and for a
continuous 5 years under the open sky, on the side of a bridge, he
taught his students, and despite many problems, he did not utter a
word of complaint, but kept steadfast on teaching and propagating
Islam. Until, after years of hard work, he established "Darul Uloom
Faiz-ul-Uloom", on a parcel of land purchased from the Tata company
at that time. He did not stop at this, but, by his full commitment
and his efforts, a technical institute department had also been set
up, where students from Bengal, Bihar, and all other parts of India,
arrived to gain knowledge.
In 1954, he gained great victory
over the famous deobandi debator, Molvi Abdul Latif Nu'mani, the
Shiekh-ul-Hadith of "Miftahul Uloom" in Mau, U.P., India. Hence, he
was given the title "Fateh Jamshedpur" or the 'Conqueror of
Jamshedpur'.
In 1972 Hazrat 'Allama Maulana Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih
performed his second hajj, in which he and other eminent scholars of
Ahle Sunna wal Jam'aat established the World Islamic Mission
or Al-Da'wat-ul-Islamiyyat-ul-A'lamiyyah. He was chosen to be
the first Secretary General of WIM with its head office located in
Bradford, England. He later spent time in the United Kingdom where
he worked tirelessly. As 'Allama Qamaruz-zaman Azmi of
Manchester-UK, his successor and the current Secretary General of WIM stated: 'Allama Arshadul Qadri's work in England was to lay the proper foundations
of Ahle Sunna wal Jam'aat which would give rise to an intellectually
sound and spirtually based Islam in Europe'.
DEMISE
On the 29th of April 2002,
Hazrat 'Allama Maulana Arshadul Qadri Rahmatullah 'alaih left this
worldly existence as a true lover of the Holy Prophet Sallahu
Ta'ala Alaihi wa sallam. Overall, this great scholar who has made
such an immense effort in the service of Islam, is indeed and will
continue to be for all Muslims a Beacon of Light, which has
enlightened countless numb and dull hearts and who has guided so
many to the Straight Path.
May Almighty Allah Jalla Jalalahu
reward him bountifully for his every effort. May Allah Jalla
Jalalahu sanctify his soul, and place him in the highest of heavens,
and may we gain benefit from the vast ocean of knowledge that he has
left behind. Ameen |
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