Nesaruddin Ahmad | |
|---|---|
নেছারউদ্দীন আহমদ | |
 Nesaruddin Ahmad, Pir of Sarsina | |
| Personal life | |
| Born | 1873 |
| Died | January 31, 1952(1952-01-31) (aged 78–79) |
| Resting place | Sarsina Darbar Sharif graveyard |
| Children | Abu Zafar Mohammad Saleh |
| Education | Calcutta Alia Madrasa Hooghly Madrasah |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | Sunni |
| Jurisprudence | Hanafi |
| Tariqa | Furfura(Chishti-Qadri-Naqshbandi(Mujaddidi)) |
| Creed | Maturidi |
| Muslim leader | |
| Disciple of | Mohammad Abu Bakr Siddique |
Influenced by | |
| 1stPir of Sarsina | |
| Succeeded by | Abu Zafar Mohammad Saleh |
| Naib-e-Sadar of Jamiat-e-Ulama Bangla o Assam[2] | |
| Arabic name | |
| Personal (Ism) | Nithār ad-Dīn Aḥmad نثار الدين أحمد |
| Patronymic (Nasab) | ibn Ṣadr ad-Dīn ibn Ẓahīr ad-Dīn بن صدر الدين بن ظهير الدين |
| Epithet (Laqab) | Shôrśinar Pīr Ṣāḥeb Qiblah শর্ষিণার পীর সাহেব কেবলা[3] |
| Toponymic (Nisba) | Ākhūnd آخوند al-Barīsālī البريسالي |
| Islam in Bangladesh |
|---|
 |
Ideology/schools of thought |
Nesaruddin Ahmad (Bengali:নেছারউদ্দীন আহমদ; 1873 – 31 January 1952) was aBengaliIslamic scholar, spiritual reformer, educationist and writer. He was the maindisciple ofFurfura Sharif'sMohammad Abu Bakr Siddique ineastern Bengal.[4] Ahmad was the inauguralPir of Sarsina (Bengali:শর্ষিণার পীর), having founded the Sarsina Darbar Sharif andDarussunnat Kamil Madrasa in 1915,[5] one of the largest Islamic institutions inSouth Bengal and the first majoralia madrasah afterCalcutta.[6] Ahmad was among the leading Islamic leaders in colonial Barisal,[7][8] and his influence extended acrossBengal.[9] TheNesarabad Upazila ofBangladesh has been named after him.[10]
Ahmad was born in 1873 to aBengali Muslim family ofAkhunds in the village ofMagura,Firozpur, then located under theBackergunge District of theBengal Presidency. When he was twelve years old, his father, Sadruddin Akhund, decided to set off for theHajj pilgrimage toArabia. Akhund was amurid of Haji Saizuddin Miah of Bahadurpur. Before leaving, he married Ahmad to Sahera Khatun, the daughter of his neighbour Daliluddin Shiqdar. Ahmad's father died inMecca, being buried inJannat al-Mu'alla, and so Ahmad was raised by his mother, Zohra Begum, and paternal grandfather.[11] His paternal grandfather, Zahiruddin Akhund, was amunshi and disciple ofHaji Shariatullah of theFaraizi movement based inMathbaria where he had a sizeable following.[12]
In 1905, Ahmad married the daughter of Abdul Wafi Chowdhury fromKushla,Gopalganj.[13]
Ahmad started his primary education at the local school in his village. His mother then sent him toMadaripur as there were no notablemadrasas in thegreater Barisal region. Ahmad completed hisdakhil qualification from Madaripur Primary Islamia Madrasa, and then completed hisalim from Madrasah-i-Hammadiyyah inArmanitola,Dhaka. After that, he enrolled at theCalcutta Alia Madrasa and subsequently atHooghly Madrasa where he completed his further religious studies. Whilst at Hooghly, Ahmad pledgedbay'ah toMohammad Abu Bakr Siddique ofFurfura Sharif in 1895.[14]
After receivingkhilafat (spiritual succession) from hismurshid Mohammad Abu Bakr Siddique, Ahmad returned to his village.[15] He planned to leave forHajj but was affected by pox. As soon as he recovered in 1901, Ahmad boarded the ship toArabia along with his family and nephew Abdur Rashid. His wife, Sahera Khatun, and son, Shah Muhammad Muzahar, died inMecca. After returning to Bengal, Ahmad dedicated himself to propagating Islamic teachings. In 1905, he built a small library in his village which became the Qiratiyyah Madrasah in 1913. In 1918, he decided to transform the library into a madrasa modelled from Calcutta Alia Madrasa. Ahmad named the madrasa "Sarsina Darussunnat Kamil Alia Madrasa".[16] From then on, the village of Magura got the name of Sarsina. He appointed Moulvi Mirza Ali of Idilpur as its head. Ahmad donated all of his property to act as the madrasa'swaqf in 1934. With the assistance of Prime MinisterA. K. Fazlul Huq, the madrasa became the second title madrasa of Bengal after Calcutta in 1938.[17]
Ahmad gave his support toManiruzzaman Islamabadi's plans in establishing a dedicatedIslamic university inChittagong.[18]
Ahmad was a supporter of thePakistan Movement. He maintained good relations withShamsul Haque Faridpuri, who belonged to theDeobandi movement.[19] He favoured Faridpuri overSheikh Mujibur Rahman in the Muslim League local elections.[20] Ahmad sent atelegram toMuhammad Ali Jinnah requesting that he admitsA. K. Fazlul Huq back into theAll-India Muslim League to ensure the League's victory in Barisal.[9] In 1946, Ahmad organised the All-India Ulama Conference held at Mohammad Ali Park,Calcutta. At the conference, Ahmad co-signed a petition withAbdul Hai Siddique in pamphlet form addressing Bengali Muslim voters in favour of Pakistan.[21] During the1947 Sylhet referendum, he sent an eight-member team (including Azizur Rahman Qaid Nesarabadi) toSylhet under the leadership of his sonAbu Zafar Mohammad Saleh.[22][23]
After the independence of Pakistan, Ahmad focused on Islamic values within the government. An outline of 22 points was formulated at the All-Parties Ulama Conference in Sarsina.[11] Ahmad presided the East Bengal Horooful Quran Conference inDacca in August 1951, which supportedUrdu as the national language of Pakistan andBengali in Arabic script as the provincial language.[24][25]
Ahmad was written many books relating toIslam.[26] He wrote articles for the fortnightlyTabligh magazine. Among them are:
Ahmad died on 31 January 1952 and was buried at the Sarsina Darbar Sharif.[11] He was succeeded by his son,Abu Zafar Mohammad Saleh, as the Pir of Sarsina. His other son, Azizur Rahman Qaid, founded the Nesarabad Darbar Sharif.[6] In 1985, theSwarupkati Upazila was renamed to Nesarabad Upazila in honour of Ahmad.[10] The annual gathering at Sarsina Darbar Sharif, which was started in 1891, continues to take place.[27]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link){{cite journal}}:Missing or empty|title= (help){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)