Alahazrat Imam-Ahle Sunnat, Mujaddid-e-Deen o Millat Maulana Shah Ahmed Raza Khan Fazil-e-Barelvi (Rahmatullahalai)

Mawlana Ahmed Raza Khan
radi Allahu Ta'ala anhu ,
popularly known as "Alahazrat"
in the Islamic world, was born at
Bareilly (India) in 1272/1856.
His father Mawlana Naqi Ali Khan
(d. 1297/1880) and grandfather
Mawlana Raza Ali Khan (d.
1282/1866) were celebrated
theologians recognized as such
by academic circles of the entire
subcontinent. Due to the
extraordinary intelligence
bestowed upon him by Almighty
Allah, Alahazrat (radi Allahu anhu)
completed his Islamic education
at the very young age of 13
years, 10 months and 5 days.
Mawlana Ahmed Raza Khan was
well versed in more than fifty
branches of learning pertaining
to Ancient Sciences, Modern
Sciences, Current Sciences and
Oriental Learnings and left
contributions in all these
academic disciplines.
In 1294/1877 he went with his
father to visit Shah Al-e-Rasul (d.
1297/1879). He was admitted to
the Qadiriyya Order and was
permitted to enrole and train
neophytes. He had similar
authority in thirteen other
orders. In 1295/1878 he went
with his father for the first
pilgrimage and got diplomas
from famous Arab scholars at
Mecca. In 1323/1905 he
proceeded for his second
pilgrimage. During his stay at
Mecca and Madina he won the
respect of noted scholars who
visited him and received from
him diplomas and Fatawa.
On 14th Sha'ban 1286/1869
he started issuing Fatawa and
gave verdicts on Muslim
jurisprudence. At that time he
was only a boy of less than 14
years old. Afterwards he
attained such eminence in this
field that the scholars of the
Indo-Pak subcontinent and also
of the Islamic World
acknowledged him as a great
Jurist. He had full command over
Muslim Jurisprudence. Dr.
Muhammad Iqbal highly praised
his scholarship and command
over Muslim Jurisprudence
saying :
"Such a genius and intelligent
jurist did not emerge."
Though he was well versed in
scores of branches of
knowledge yet in the later years
he restricted his interest in the
following branches of religious
learnings :
To support and defend the
Holy Prophet (.SA.S)
To uproot the innovations
prevalent in Muslim society.
To issue Fatawa according to
the Hanafi school of
jurisprudence.
He reviewed and
revolutionized the Muslim
Society, especially the
Muslims of Indo-Pak Sub-
continent , that is why the Arab
scholars like Shaykh Isma'il bin
Khalil and Shaykh Musa Ali Shami
commended him as the
Revivalist of the 14th Century
A.H. Lean and thin yet he
possessed a gigantic personality.
He left a profound influence over
his epoch. None among his
contemporaries was so powerful
as to influence the majority of
Muslim population of Indo-Pak
Sub-continent all alone from East
to West and from North to
South. Ahmed Raza Khan infused
the zeal of preaching and
missionary work to his Caliphs,
disciples, and pupils.
Although he did not take any
active part yet he paved the way
for freedom with his brilliant
philosophy based on the Holy
Quran and Hadith. He was against
Hindu-Muslim Unity. This was the
basic idea that can rightly be
called the foundation of Pakistan.
In 1920, when the Islamia
College, Lahore, was entangled in
non-co-operation movement,
with the suggestion of Dr.
Muhammad Iqbal (the Poet of the
East) and the Members of
Anjuman-e-Himayat al-Islam,
Prof. Hakim Ali the Vice Principal
of Islamia College, presented an
Istifta before Ahmed Raza Khan.
He was seriously ill at that
critical juncture but he gave his
verdict undauntedly which was
published as a treatise with the
title of "Al-Muhadjdja-al-
Mu'tamina". This treatise can be
called a precious and valuable
document for freedom fighters.
It paved the way and changed
the ideas of the great
politicians like Dr. Muhammad
Iqbal and Qua'id-e-A'zam
Mohammad Ali Jinnah.
His caliphs, disciples and pupils
took active part in freedom
movement. In 1946/1366 an ideal
Sunni conference was held at
Benares (India). Hundreds and
thousands 'Ulemas (followers of
Ahmed Raza Khan) from all over
Indo-Pak Sub-continent attended
this conference. A resolution was
unanimously passed in favor of
Pakistan and thenceforward his
caliphs, disciples and followers
expanded and enhanced their
political activities all over Indo-
Pak Sub-continent. Historians of
the world especially of Indo-Pak
Sub-continent should draw their
attention to this most
significant aspect of freedom
movement.
The love of Holy Prophet (S.A.S.) is
the summum bonum of Islamic
politics and has played important
role in the history of Muslim
World. Ahmed Raza Khan was the
torchbearer of this love in the
Indo-Pak Sub-continent. The only
Motto of his life was the "love
of the Holy Prophet" (S.A.S.)
and he could leave no stone
unturned in defending this love.
Throughout his life and in all his
works he maintained this Motto
and in this respect he could not
compromise with any.
Ahmad Raza Khan was a poet of
high caliber. He adopted Naat,
the most difficult of all the
branches of poetry, but all the
same he reached at the highest
pinnacles. His mental and spiritual
qualities elevated his poetry and
made it highly ecstatic, lucid and
profusely rich with rhetoric. The
first impression that one
gathers from his poetry is that
of his devout love for the Holy
Prophet of Islam and secondly
one is struck by his vastness of
knowledge, sublimity of thought
and excellence of expression. It
is regretted that the Urdu
literature has been the target of
sectarianism, that is why he was
deliberately neglected in Urdu
literature by the latter
historians and biographers. And
even today the scholars hesitate
to appreciate his poetry with
open heart due to sectarian bias.
Ahmed Raza Khan was a
genius writer. He started
writing from his early age. He
wrote numerous books and
treatises in Arabic, Persian, and
Urdu on diversified topics. There
are estimated more than 1000
on more than 50 branches of
knowledge. His books and
treatises are lying unpublished at
Bareilly. Very few have been
published yet. The most
voluminous work is the
collection of Verdicts i.e.
Fatawa-e-Ridawiyya. In
1324/1904 , he had completed
its 7 volumes, which afterwards
increased upto 12 volumes of
26x20/8 size each volume
containing more than 1000
pages.
When Shaykh Ismail Khalil, the
Curator of Library at Mecca read
the specimen of these Fatawa
(Verdicts) he was puffed up with
joy and said:
By God if Abu Hanifa Nu'man
would have gone through these
Fatawa undoubtedly it could have
been his heart's delight and
granted its writer among his
pupils.
Even the antagonists of Ahmed
Raza Khan referred to these
Fatawa. For instance, the great
Mufti of his opposite camp
Mawlvi Kifayat Allah (d.
1372/1952), consulted and
ratiocinated these Fatwa and
admitted that Mawlana Ahmed
Raza Khan had full command
over the subtleties of Muslim
Jurisprudence.
The second important work,
which Ahmad Raza Khan
contributed towards religious
knowledge, is the translation of
the Holy Quran in Urdu
language. Many people have
translated the Holy Quran into
the Urdu language, but the
translation of the Holy Quran
presented by AlaHazrat (radi
Allahu anhu) - called
" Kanzul Imaan" is proven to be
the most unique translation in
the Urdu language. In his
translation one sees that
AlaHazrat (radi Allahu anhu) used
only those words in his
translation that are worthy for
the Attributes and Qualities of
Almighty Allah and of His beloved
Rasool (sallal laahu alaihi
wasallam).It is said that the
translation of the Holy Quran by
AlaHazrat (radi Allahu anhu) is not
merely a literal translation, but is
also the commentary of the Holy
Quran.
AlaHazrat (radi Allahu anhu) was
well versed in the ancient and
modern branches of sciences.
After observing his insight in
science and mathematics ,Dr. Sir
Ziauddin Ahmed remarked that
Ahmed Raza richly deserved the
Nobel Prize. Ahmad Raza has
studied and criticized the views
of Newton, Einstein and Galileo
Galilee and has presented his
researches before the modern
world. His books Mu'een Mubeen,
Nuzule Ayaat-e-Quran , Fauz-e-
mubeen, and Al
kalimatulmulhima, are concerned
with such research. One of his
famous books, Fauze mubeen
dar rade harkate Zameen,
using the Holy Quran as its
guidelines, proves that the earth
is not rotating but is stationary.
He also proves that the entire
Universe is revolving around the
earth. Modern theories believe
that the earth is rotating on its
axis and that all the planets,
including the earth, are revolving
around the sun. AlaHazrat (radi
Allahu anhu) also disproved these
theories. The Holy Qur'an is the
Book of guidance as well as the
Book of wisdom. In the epoch
when the subdued Muslim
intellectuals were trying to prove
the scientific theories to be
correct by making far fetched
interpretations of the Qur'anic
verses and were viewing the
Qur'an in the light of science, it
was only Imam Ahmed Raza who
advised the world to view
science in the light of The Holy
Qur'an.
On Friday 25th Safar
1340/1921 , he left this
mundane world for heaven. His
mausoleum is situated at
Bareilly (U.P., India) His death
anniversary is commemorated
all over Indo-Pakistan Sub-
continent on 24th and 25th
Safar, and special issues of
newspapers and periodicals are
published.
May Almighty Allah shower his
choicest blessings upon the
Mazaar-e-Anwar of this great
Saint of Islam.