Muhammad Zakariya Kandhlawi | |
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| Title | Shaykh al-Hadith[1] Qutb al-Aqtab Barakat al-`Asr |
| Personal life | |
| Born | Muhammad Zakariya (1898-02-02)2 February 1898 |
| Died | 24 May 1982(1982-05-24) (aged 84) |
| Resting place | Jannat-ul-Baqi |
| Nationality |  British Indian (1898-1947) Indian (1947-1982) Saudi Arabian (1976-1982) |
| Main interest(s) | Hadith studies,Sufism |
| Notable work(s) | Awjaz al-Masalik Al-Abwab wa at-Tarajim Faza'il series Khasa'il-i Nabawi |
| Alma mater | Mazahir Uloom Saharanpur |
| Occupation | Islamic scholar,Sufi shaykh, Author, Teacher |
| Relatives | Salman Mazahiri (son-in-law) |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | Muslim |
| Jurisprudence | Hanafi |
| Tariqa | Chishti (Sabiri-Imdadi) |
| Muslim leader | |
| Disciple of | Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri (Grantedkhilafah) |
Students | |
Influenced by
| |
Influenced | |
| Part ofa series on the |
| Deobandi movement |
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| Ideology and influences |
| Founders and key figures |
|
| Notable institutions |
| Centres (markaz) of Tablighi Jamaat |
| Associated organizations |
| Deobandi jihadism |
| Deobandi jihadism: |
Muḥammad Zakarīyā ibn Muḥammad Yaḥyá Ṣiddīqī Kāndhlawī Sahāranpūrī Muhājir Madanī (Muḥammad Zakarīyā ibn Muḥammad Yaḥyá aṣ-Ṣiddīqī al-Kāndahlawī as-Sahāranfūrī al-Madanī; 2 February 1898 – 24 May 1982) was aSunniHanafiHadith scholar of theDeobandi school of Islamic thought inIndia, popularly known as a "Hazrat Shaykh al-Hadith" and an influential ideologue ofTablighi Jamaat, the missionary and reform movement founded by his uncleMaulana Muhammad Ilyas. His notable works areAwjaz al-Masalik, an Arabic commentary in six volumes on Imam Malik'sMuwatta, andKhasa'il-i Nabawi, an Urdu translation and commentary on Imam at-Tirmidhi'sShama'il.[2]
Hisism (given name) was Muhammad Zakariya. Hisnasab (patronymic) is as follows: Muḥammad Zakarīyā ibn Muḥammad Yaḥyá ibn Muḥammad Ismā‘īl ibn G͟hulām Ḥusain ibnḤakīm Karīm Bak͟hsh ibn Ḥakīm G͟hulām Muḥīyuddīn ibnMaulawī Muḥammad Sājid ibn ibn Maulawī Muḥammad Faiz̤ ibn Maulawī Muḥammad Sharīf ibn Maulawī Muḥammad Ashraf ibn Shaik͟h Jamāl Muḥammad Shāh ibn Shaik͟h Bāban Shāh ibn Shaik͟h Bahā’uddīn Shāh ibn Maulawī Shaik͟h Muḥammad ibn Shaik͟h Muḥammad Fāz̤il ibn Shaik͟h Quṭb Shāh.[3]
His name is usually mentioned with one or morenisbahs (attributive adjectives). He wasKandhlawi (ofKandhla) by origin, thenGangohi (ofGangoh), thenSaharanpuri (ofSaharanpur), then Madani (ofMedina).[4] Muhajir Madani indicates hishijrah (immigration) to the Islamic holy city of Medina. By lineage he wasSiddiqi, denoting descent fromAbu Bakr.[citation needed]
Muhammad Zakariya was born at 11 pm on Thursday, 11Ramadan 1315AH (Wednesday, 2 February 1898)[note 1] in the house of his mother's step-grandmother, Maryam, in the town ofKandhla in the present-day state ofUttar Pradesh,India.[5][6][7][8] He was born to a family of Islamic scholars that traced their ancestry toAbu Bakr as-Siddiq, a companion of the Islamic prophet,Muhammad.[9]
Zakariya's father, Muhammad Yahya Kandhlawi was a student and disciple ofRashid Ahmad Gangohi.[7][8][9] Born in 1287 AH (1870/1871), he received his early education from his father and later studied hadith under Maulana Gangohi and MaulanaKhalil Ahmad Saharanpuri. He would routinely recite the entire Qur'an daily.[7] After completingdawrah of hadith with Maulana Gangohi, Yahya stayed with him in Gangoh.[6][7] Maulana Yahya's father, Maulana Muhammad Ismail Jhanjhanawi died twenty days after the birth of Zakariya, who would be Yahya's only son.[5][7][8]
In 1318 AH (1900), at the age of two, Zakariya moved to Gangoh, where his father lived with Maulana Gangohi.[6] In Gangoh, Zakariya was one of eighty students who studied in his father's madrasah.[7] His education began with Hakim `Abd ar-Rahman of Muzaffarnagar, a pious doctor, with whom he studiedQa`idah Baghdadi, a common primer for learningArabic script.[6][9] He then beganhifz (memorizing the Qur'an) with his father, who required students to revise their daily lesson 100 times.[6] Afterhifz, books studied includedBahishti Zewar,Hamasah, the first volume ofHidayah, and other books in Urdu and Persian.[6][7] The introductory books of Persian were taught by his uncle,Muhammad Ilyas, while the books of Arabic grammar (sarf andnahw) were taught by his father.[6]
In Gangoh, Zakariya saw many times his father's shaykh,Rashid Ahmad Gangohi, with whom he had an affectionate fatherly relationship.[5][6][9] Gangohi died on 8 Jumada ath-Thani 1323 AH (11 August 1905), when Zakariya was seven.[5]
In Rajab 1328 AH (July 1910), at the age of 12, Muhammad Zakariya traveled with his father toSaharanpur to attendMazahir Uloom Saharanpur, where his father had moved to teach hadith at the request ofKhalil Ahmad Saharanpuri.[6] Zakariya began studying texts on Arabic grammar, morphology, literature, and logic.[6][9] Texts studied with his father includedSarf-i Mir,Panj Ganj,Fusul-i Akbari,Kafiyah,Qasidah Burdah,Qasidah Banat Su`ad, as well the 30thjuz' of the Qur'an and a collection of 40 hadith.[10] His teachers in the rational sciences were Maulana `Abd al-Wahid Sanbhali and Maulana `Abd al-Latif, thenazim (director) of the madrasah.[6]
The year 1333 AH (1914/1915) was Zakariya's final year of studies, known in theDars-i Nizami curriculum asdawrah of hadith, and involving intensive study of hadith. Zakariya was strictly observant in never missing a lesson and always studying withwudu (ablution). He studied thesix major hadith collections under his father, with the exception ofSunan ibn Majah, which he studied with Maulana Thabit `Ali.[6] When his father was teaching him, Zakariya was treated differently from the other students. For example, he writes that when studying the hadith collectionMishkat al-Masabih, he was not allowed to refer toMazhar-i Haq, its Urdu translation and commentary. Another rule in his studies was that he had to state whether or not a hadith was consistent with Hanafifiqh, and, if not, support the position taken by the Hanafi school.[7] Zakariya completed his studies and graduated in 1333 (1915).
In 1333 AH (1915), Zakariya gavebay'ah (oath of allegiance to aSufi shaykh) at the hand ofKhalil Ahmad Saharanpuri before the latter left forHijaz.[6][11]
On 10 Dhu al-Qi'dah 1334 (September 1916), when Zakariya was 18, his father died.[7]
Maulana Saharanpuri returned to India at about the same time. In 1334 (1916) he requested Zakariya to studySahih al-Bukhari andJami` at-Tirmidhi a second time with him.[6] He then selected Zakariya to assist him in writingBadhl al-Majhud, a commentary onSunan Abi Dawud.
After completing his academic studies, Muhammad Zakariya was appointed as a teacher at Mazahir Uloom on 1 Muharram 1335 AH (c. 29 October 1916).[4][6][9][12] At the age of 18, he was one of the youngest members of the staff.[8][9] He was initially assigned to teach books on Arabic grammar, morphology, and literature, as well as some primary texts ofIslamic jurisprudence. He later advanced to teaching books of hadith and otherdaurah books.
The initial books he was assigned were‘Ilm aṣ-ṣīghah,Mi’at ‘āmil manẓum,Sharḥ mi’at ‘āmil,Khulāṣah naḥw mīr,Nafḥat al-yaman,Munyat al-muṣallī, *Uṣūl ash-Shāshī, andQāla aqūl. The next term, from Shawwal 1335 AH (1917), he taughtMirqāt,Qudūrī,Sharḥ Tahdhīb,Kāfiyah,Nūr al-iḍāḥ,Uṣūl ash-Shāshī,Sharḥ Jāmī,Baḥth fa‘l,Baḥth ism,‘Ajab al-‘ujāb, andNafḥat al-yaman. In Shawwal 1336 AH (1918) there was further promotion; he was given higher books includingMaqāmāt,Sab‘ah mu‘allaqah,Quṭbī,Mīr Qutbī, andKanz ad-daqā’iq. In Shawwal 1337 AH (1919) he was givenḤamāsah andHidāyah awwalīn.[6][12] At the end of term in Shaban 1338 AH (1920), Zakariya traveled with Khalil Ahmad to theHejaz and performed his firstHajj. He returned to Saharanpur in Safar 1339 AH (1920).[4][12]
The books Zakariya taught in each of the next few years are not recorded in detail, but he writes that he was givenQuṭbī,Mīr Qutbī,Tahdhīb, andSharḥ Tahdhīb nearly every year, as the more senior teachers disliked teachingmantiq (logic). He also taughtHidāyah awwalīn a total of three times, andNūr al-anwār followed byHusāmī three times.[12]
Beginning in 1341 AH (1923), he was given books of hadith to teach. On the instruction of Maulana Khalil Ahmad, in Rajab 1341 AH (1923) three sections ofSahih al-Bukhari were transferred to Zakariya from Maulana Abdul Latif, the madrasah'snazim (administrator/principal). In the next three terms, from Shawwal 1341 to Shaban 1344 AH (1923–1926), he taughtMishkat al-Masabih.[4][6][8][9][12] In Shawwal 1344 AH (1926) he traveled once again to the Hejaz, this time staying there for over a year. After performing Hajj, he arrived inMedina in Muharram 1345 AH (1926).[4][12] During his stay there he taughtSunan Abu Dawud at Madrasah al-`Ulum ash-Shar`iyah.[9][12]
Upon Zakariya's return to Saharanpur in Safar 1346 AH (1927),Sunan Abu Dawud was transferred to him from Maulana Abdul Latif. In this year he also taughtSunan an-Nasa'i,Muwatta Malik in the transmission ofash-Shaybani, and parts 12 to 16 ofSahih al-Bukhari. AfterEid al-Adha the first volume of Sahih al-Bukhari was transferred to Zakariya, while the second volume remained with Maulana Abdul Latif.[6][9][12] From Safar 1346 AH onward Zakariya also taughtJami' at-Tirmidhi,Sahih Muslim, and otherdaurah books when teachers were unavailable due to sickness or travel.[12]
In 1373 AH (1954) Maulana Abdul Latif was unavailable due to travel, so Zakariya was given both volumes ofBukhari to teach in addition to his usual assignment ofAbu Dawud. The same arrangement was made in 1374 AH (1955) when Abdul Latif was ill. In 1375 AH (1956), after the death of Maulana Abdul Latif,Sunan Abu Dawud was transferred to Maulana As'adullah, andSahih al-Bukhari was transferred to Maulana Zakariya.[6][12]
Zakariya continued to teach until 1388 AH (1968), when he developed cataracts in his eyes - a defect in his vision. In total, he taught half ofSahih al-Bukhari 25 times, the complete work 16 times, andSunan Abi Dawud 30 times.
Syrian scholarAbd al-Fattah Abu Ghudda, in a letter he wrote to Shaykh Zakariyya, states:[13][14]
To his eminence, the shaykh, the magnificent imām, the jurist, the ḥadīth master, the
outstanding noble scholar, the fragrance of India and the Ḥijāz, the tongue of thepeople of reality and metaphor, our master and our blessing, Shaykh MuḥammadZakariyyā - may his lofty shadow be lengthened and his precious life be blessed.Āmīn.
From the needy slave, your admirer, ʿAbd al-Fattāḥ Abū Ghuddah.
Muhammad Zakariyya al-Kandhlawi also supported theTablighi Jamaat movement inIndia andPakistan. His written essays, based on hadith, are required reading for people of Tablighi Jamaat.[15]
Muhammad Zakariya fell ill on Sunday 16 May 1982 in the city ofMedina, Saudi Arabia. His condition deteriorated a week later resulting in serious breathing problems on Monday 24 May 1982. The shaykh's body was prepared for burial through washing before the Sunset prayers and burial took place after the night prayer (Isha) on the same day.
The funeral prayers were led by the Imam of the Prophet's Mosque, Shaykh Abdullah al-Zahim, and the body was taken for burial in the nearbyJannatul Baqi graveyard. Muhammad Zakariya's wish was to be buried close to the Prophet's family members (ahl al-bayt) and as per his wish, his grave was dug just outside their enclosure.[16]
In 1333 AH (1914 or 1915 CE), Muhammad Zakariya gavebay'ah at the hands ofKhalil Ahmad Saharanpuri, taking him as hisspiritual guide.
During his second journey to Hijaz with Khalil Ahmad, his sheikh conferred upon himkhilafah in foursilsilas (Chistiyya,Suhrawardiyya,Qadiriyya andNaqshbandiyya).[1]
Muhammad Zakariya married twice. He first married the daughter of Shaikh Ra'uf ul Hasan inKandhla. She bore him eight children: three sons and five daughters. She died on the 5th of Dhu l-Hijja, 1355 AH (16 FEB 1937). He then married his first cousin, the daughter of Muhammad Ilyas, in 1356 AH (1938 A.D.). She bore him three children: one son and two daughters.[citation needed]
His notable students includeMuhammad Yunus Jaunpuri andYusuf Motala and Molana Mazhar Alam whileMufti Taqi Usmani has authorization in Hadith from Hazrat Shaikh.[17]
Muhammad Zakariya authored works both in Arabic and Urdu. A number of them treat specialized subjects intended for scholars and the rest have been written for the general public.
His first written work was a three-volume commentary ofAlfiyah Ibn Malik, which he wrote as a student when he was only thirteen.
His work,Fadha'il-e-Qur'an has been translated into eleven languages,Fadha'il-e-Ramadan into twelve languages, andFadha'il-e-Salaah into fifteen languages.
According to Wali ad-Din Nadwi, Muhammad Zakariya wrote 4 books ontafsir andtajwid, 44 books on hadith and its related sciences, 6 books onfiqh and its related sciences, 24 historical and biographical books, 4 books onaqidah, 12 books onzuhd (abstinence) andriqaq (heart-softening accounts), 3 books on Arabic grammar and logic, and 6 books on modern-day groups and movements.
According to Muhammad Shahid Saharanpuri (Muhammad Zakariya's maternal grandson), his written works amount to 103, of which 42 have been published and 61 remain unpublished. He wrote 2 books on tafsir, 60 books on hadith, 4 books on fiqh and usul al-fiqh, 22 books on tarikh and sirah, 2 books on tajwid and qira'ah, 3 books on Arabic grammar, classical logic, and geometry, 3 books on suluk and ihsan, 4 books in defense of Islam, and 3 books on miscellaneous subjects.[18]
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