THE
DEOBANDIS - RIGHTLY GUIDED SHAYKHS
THE PAGES APPEARING BELOW ABOUT THE DEOBANDIS
WERE ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON QURAN-E-HAKIM.COM, WHICH IS NOW, INSHA-ALLAH, BEING REBUILT.
IT WAS LAST PUBLISHED ON THAT SITE IN JULY 2024
AND ULTIMATELY MET THE SAME FATE AS ALL THE OTHER PAGES ON QURAN-E-HAKIM.COM WHEN I TOOK EVERYTHING DOWN TO TRY TO REBUILD THE SITE
USING WORDPRESS.
THE SITE MET WITH A GRIM FATE WHEN I DISCOVERED
THAT WORDPRESS WAS FAR MORE DEMANDING THAN I EXPECTED AND I AM NOW USING A
PROGRAM CALLED SITEJET BUILDER TO REBUILD QURAN-E-HAKIM.COM. IT IS FAR EASIER TO OPERATE.
BOTH QURAN-E-HAKIM.COM AND THIS SITE - QURAN-E-HAKIM.NET - ARE HOSTED BY WEBCENTRAL, WHICH I MIGHT ADD HAS
PROVED TO BE EXCELLENT OVER THE YEARS.
THE PAGE BELOW NEEDS TO BE REWRITTEN AND
EXPANDED AND PROVIDING MY HEALTH HOLDS UP, INSHA-ALLAH, I WILL TRY TO DO SO
SOON.
I ALSO WANT TO STRESS THAT I HAVE NOTHING BUT
RESPECT FOR THE DEOBANDIS. IT WAS ONE OF THEIR MURIDS (DISCIPLES) WHO TAUGHT ME
TO RECITE THE QUR'AN IN ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN. MAY ALLAH (Subhanahu wa
ta’ala - Glory be to Him, the Most High) SHOWER HIM AND HIS FAMILY WITH
BLESSINGS IN THIS LIFE AND THE NEXT FOR HIS MERCY.
ONLY ALLAH (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be
to Him, the Most High) KNOWS HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO BE A REVERT TO ISLAM AND TO
BE UTTERLY ALONE UPON THE EARTH EXCEPT FOR HIM.
- IAN C. CALDERWOOD: SATURDAY, 05 JULY 25:
LAKEMBA, NSW.
FURTHER NOTES ABOUT THIS POST
As I have explained above, these pages about the
Deobandis need to be rewritten and expanded. Insha-Allah I hope to do so
soon.
For the time being I will maintain what I have
written, providing readers appreciate that the text is not complete and needs
to be reviewed.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS PAGE HAS NOT BEEN PROOFED.
IF ANYONE NOTICES ANY MISTAKES, COULD THEY PLEASE CONTACT ME AT: ianccalderwood@gmail.com OR RING ME ON: 0437 611 146.
THE DEOBANDIS: RIGHTLY GUIDED
SHAYKHS WHO KNOW AND UNDERSTAND ISLAM
On the Contact page I recommend that anyone
seeking a fatwa can not only contact the Australian National Imams Council
(ANIC) www.anic.org.au, which is the peak Islamic body in
the country, but also islamqa.org .
On that page I stress that islamqa.org is a reputable site staffed by qualified Shaykhs, predominantly
from the Deobandi school of thought.
They are Hanafi scholars from the Chishti
Tariqah who follow the teachings of the Darul Uloom Deoband, www.darululoom-deoband.com, a strictly orthodox Islamic Sunni
madrasah, based in the town of Deoband in Uttar Pradesh, India.
I should explain that the Chishti Tariqah is a
Sufi order, or school if you wish, in Tasawwuf. The latter is commonly known in
the West as Sufism. There are several such orders in Islam as well as the
Chishti Tariqah, including the Naqshbandī Tarīqah and Qadiriyya
Tariqah.
There is an interesting introduction to the
topic on islamqa.org. It begins ‘My question is
regarding sufism,’ . . . The link is https://islamqa.org/?p=3496 .
There are several other links on the same site
which are invaluable. For example, one headed ‘Four questions about
tareeqah’ https://islamqa.org/?p=52051 makes the important point that
Tasawwuf, just like any discipline, can be hijacked by those seeking only to
serve their own interest – not Allah’s (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be to Him,
the Most High).
There are various transliterations of all the
Arabic names of the relevant schools such as the Chishti, Naqshbandī
and Qadiriyya – including the word Tariqah itself which basically means
the path or way – I loosely interpret it as school – but the path or way of the
votary or devotee if you wish - seeking Allah’s (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be
to Him, the Most High) love is more accurate.
I have quoted below the entry from the
Britannica about Tariqah Tariqa | History, Sufism, Meaning, & Facts |
Britannica. I believe it to be accurate, but if anyone finds any fault with it
please contact me on ianccalderwood@gmail.com . I do not want to perpetuate any misconceptions.
The only changes I have made to the quote are to
capitalise the word ‘haqq’ because it is one of Allah’s names (Subhanahu wa
ta’ala - Glory be to Him, the Most High) and to leave it in lower case could be
misunderstood. I have also added the Durood after the name of the Prophet
Muhammad (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him). If you fail to call down Allah’s blessings and peace upon him
after saying or hearing his name you risk being cursed.
“Tariqa, also spelled tariqah,
Arabic tarīqah, (“road,” “path,” or “way”), the Muslim spiritual path
toward direct knowledge (ma'rifah) of God or Reality (Haqq). In the 9th and
10th centuries, tariqa meant the spiritual path of individual Sufis (mystics).
After the 12th century, as communities of followers gathered around
sheikhs (or pīrs, “teachers”), tariqa came to designate the
sheikh's entire ritual system, which was followed by the community or
mystic order. Eventually tariqa came to mean the order itself.
“Each mystic order claimed a chain of spiritual
descent (silsilah) from the Prophet Muhammad (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam
- may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), established procedures for
initiation of members (murīd, ikhwān, dervish and fakir),and prescribed
disciplines. By following the path of a known “friend of God,” or Sufi
saint, under the guidance of his sheikh, the Sufi might himself achieve the
mystical state 'hal' of the friends of God(awliyāʾ Allāh, singular wālī
Allāh). Though sober teachers inveighed against excesses, the search for
spiritual ecstasy sometimes led to such practices as drug taking and wild
acrobatics, activities that earned for some of the orders the names whirling,
howling, and dancing dervishes. Dervish orders frequently established monasteries (ribat, khankah, zāwiyah, and tekke) in which laity as well as
members were invited to stay.
“First established in the 12th century, the
orders numbered in the hundreds by the mid-20th century, with a membership in
the millions. The greatest expansion of Sufi tariqas was in the central Islamic
countries, where they played a vital role in the religious life of
the Muslim community. Orders also exist in West Africa, eastern Europe,
India, and Central and Far Eastern Asia.” - Britannica.
I do not describe myself as a Sufi because I do
not have a Shaykh from any of the Tasawwuf orders.
If you hit the link for Darul
Uloom Deoband it will open on the home page in English. The site
offers wide-ranging advice for those seeking guidance.
The Deobandis are not a cult and to the best of
my knowledge do not espouse any heretical beliefs. Obviously, Allah (Subhanahu
wa ta’ala - Glory be to Him, the Most High) knows best, but as far as I am
aware they adhere strictly to the traditional teachings of Islam, including the
Sunnah.
As Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be to
Him, the Most High) well knows I have the deepest of respect for these Shaykhs
and follow them in most matters pertaining to Islam.
MA'ARIFUL QUR'AN
One of those I admire greatly is the late
Maulana Mufti Muhammad Shafi (Rahmatullah Alayhi – May the mercy of Allah be
upon him), the former Grand Mufti of Pakistan. Mufti Muhammad Shafi was
the author of an excellent Tafsir called Ma'ariful Qur'an which is available in
English in an eight-volume set.
His Tafsir holds pride of place upon my
bookshelves, along with the English translations of other noble works such as
Tafsir Ibn Kathir.
It is available from Darussalam Islamic
Bookstore in Lakemba, Sydney, and their store in Coburg, Melbourne.
Mufti Muhammad Shafi’s son, Mufti Muhammad Taqi
Usmani, is still alive and lives in Karachi. He has his own website. It
is muftitaqiusmani.com.
He has authored several books, including Radiant
Prayers, which I have found invaluable over the years. Some of his books
are available from the Darussalam Bookstore in Lakemba, Sydney.
He also supervised the English translation of
his father’s Tafsir, Ma’ariful Qur’an, and made some footnotes to clarify
certain issues.
Another Deobandi Shaykh of note is Shabbir Ahmad
Usmani, the author of Tafsir-Usmani. Originally written in Urdu, it is very
popular among the Muslims of the Sub-continent and is available in English in a
three-volume set.
Probably one of the most renowned of the
Deobandi Shaykhs, someone who is well known among many reverts in the West, is
Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanvi.
He wrote a book in Urdu called Bahishti Zewar
which was an excellent handbook of Hanafi Fiqh – the rules relating to the
practice of Islam. Even though the Shaykh died in 1943 Bahishti Zewar is still
widely used on the Sub-continent today.
It has been translated into English several
times – not always as eloquently as one would wish.
The title is commonly translated in English as
Heavenly Ornaments. I use a copy translated by Maulana Muhammad Mahomedy,
published by Zam Zam Publishers, who are based in Urdu Bazar, Karachi,
Pakistan. My copy is the second edition published in February 2005.
It is the best translation I have found so far
and would recommend it, especially if you are new to Islam. However, you may
have trouble finding a copy in Australia. I bought mine years ago in Melbourne
but have never seen a copy since.
The copyright is held by Madrasah Arabia Islamic
in South Africa, so they may have authorized other printings since mine was
published.
Zam Zam Publishers have a website so you may be
able to contact them to see if they know of any Australian distributors. The
address is zamzampublishers.com.pk .
Following my reversion to Islam in
1983 in Melbourne as a Sunni Muslim who follows the Hanafi school, I lived
in Pakistan for more than five years from April 1985 to September 1990 under my
Muslim name, Yahya Abdullah. Please note that for personal reasons I no longer
use my Muslim name. As such if you write to me please address me as Ian.
Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be to
Him, the Most High) in His infinite Wisdom and Mercy guided me rightly about
how I should practise Islam and by His leave I used to sit in Islamabad, at a
mosque in Aabpara, with the murids (disciples) of Deobandi Shaykhs from the
Chishti Tariqah and also murids from the Qadiriyya Tariqah.
QUR’AN LESSONS
It was one of the Deobandi murids from the
Chishti Tariqah who taught me to recite Qur'an. May Allah (Subhanahu
wa ta’ala - Glory be to Him, the Most High) bless him and his family in this
life and the next for his righteous conduct. A pious man whom I believe had
only the best of intentions.
I liked the Pakistanis – the ordinary
people – the Shaykhs and the murids. They were good, righteous people and I was
shown compassion and understanding by many.
I recall with nothing but affection the Imam at
the mosque in Aabpara. His name was Ghulam Rasool. He showed true brotherly
spirit in that he allowed me to live in the mosque on several occasions. May
Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be to Him, the Most High) reward him and his
family in this life and the next for his piety, his mercy.
It isn't easy, when you are alone upon the
earth, with nobody but Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be to Him, the Most
High) as your only Friend, Helper and Protector, to make such a journey.
For further details about my stay in Pakistan,
please see my page headed ‘Living in Pakistan’.
FALSE BELIEFS
In recommending islamqa.org I want to draw attention to an issue that can perplex and mislead
reverts to Islam.
Aside from the Deobandis there are other Muslims
on the Sub-continent some of whom are alleged to hold questionable beliefs. In
commenting below about them I have chosen my words carefully. It is dangerous
to generalise and in so doing innocent people can be defamed.
However, it has been alleged that some Muslims
hold heretical beliefs.
Those beliefs include claims that the Prophet
Muhammad (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him) is Alimul Ghaib.
Alimul Ghaib means one who has complete
knowledge of the unseen. To make such a claim about Rasoolullah0 (sall-Allahu
alayhi wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is wrong.
It is not correct and can lead to disbelief.
Only Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be
to Him, the Most High) and Allah alone, has compete knowledge of the unseen.
For a refutation of the claim that Rasoolullah
(sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) has complete knowledge of the unseen see islamqa.org [https://islamqa.org/?p=53911.
As well as clicking on the above link, a complete
copy of the full text of the Shaykhs comments refuting such claims can be read
on my page entitled ‘islamqa org texts 2’.
It is also alleged that some people claim that
Rasoolullah (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) is Haadhir-Naadhir.
The words Haadhir-Naadhir mean one who is
Omnipresent – one who is present everywhere at the same time.
To claim that Rasoolullah (sall-Allahu alayhi
wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is Omnipresent is
wrong. It is not correct and can lead to disbelief.
Only Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be
to Him, the Most High) and Allah alone, is Omnipresent.
Once again, for a refutation of the claim that
Rasoolullah (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) is present everywhere at the same time see islamqa.org [https://islamqa.org/?p=53911.
As well as clicking on the above link, a
complete copy of the full text of the Shaykhs comments refuting such claims can
be read on my page entitled ‘islamqa org texts 2’.
Allegations have also been made that some people
believe that Rasoolullah (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may the blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) is made of Nur – light. In other words that he is
not a human being.
If those claims are correct then it must be
stressed that the Prophet Muhammad (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may the
blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is a human being, just like the rest
of us.
Rasoolullah (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may
the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is not made of light, but it is
true that he is a light for mankind in the sense that he is a guide for
mankind, who lights the way to true beliefs and righteousness.
The claim that Rasoolullah (sall-Allahu alayhi
wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is made of light
– that he is not a human being – is refuted by Islamqa.org.
See https://islamqa.org/?p=136267 . A complete, unedited copy
of the answer by the Shaykh is available on my page ‘islamqa org texts 3’.
Other allegations have been made that some
people believe they are allowed to call upon Rasoolullah (sall-Allahu alayhi
wa-sallam - may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) – in short to
invoke him as an intermediary with Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be
to Him, the Most High).
Once again, if those allegations are correct
then it must be emphasised that such beliefs are wrong. In praying, seeking
Allah’s Love, Mercy, Kindness and Forgiveness, His Guidance, His Help – for
whatever reason - one can only call upon Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be
to Him, the Most High), and Allah alone and nobody else but Allah.
To do otherwise is to court disaster. Unless
Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be to Him, the Most High) shows such a
person mercy and forgiveness they run the risk of Jahannam – Hell.
Having said that, it is important to note that
the matter of calling upon Rasoolullah (sall-Allahu alayhi wa-sallam - may the
blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) needs clarification.
If you read islamqa.org https://islamqa.org/?p=53911 you will see that at the end of
the answer the Shaykh notes:
“Durood containing the words Yaa Rasoolullah can
be read if the person does not have the belief that Nabi (SAW) is present and
he is listening when he is reading it. When Durood is read, the belief that the
Angels will convey it to Nabi (SAW) on behalf the person should be kept.
(Fataawaa Haqqaniyyah Vol. 1, Page 162,163).”
The full text can be viewed on my
page ‘islamqa org texts 2’.
I again want to stress that I cannot give my own
opinion about the teachings of Islam. It is strictly forbidden in Islam for any
unqualified person to give their own opinion about the religion. If a person
does so then, unless Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala - Glory be to Him, the Most
High) forgives them, they run the risk of being punished.
As I have stated previously I can only refer
anyone interested in Islam to authoritative sources. Insha'Allah, I will
attempt at all times to do so.
One of the reasons why I have set out above my
unqualified support for the Deobandis and islamqa.org is that I think it is only fair to readers that they know I rely
heavily on the Deobandi school of thought for guidance.
Even though I do quote from other reputable
sources I try to always be cautious and ensure that whoever I recommend is
following the teachings of Islam.
Allah (Subhanahu wa ta'ala) knows best.
Ian C. Calderwood:
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Newcastle, NSW. 22 December 2021 but then
deleted awaiting rewrite.
RESTORED at LAKEMBA, NSW, 11 February 23 with
changes then taken down for editing.
RESTORED at LAKEMBA, NSW, 14 July 23 to quran-e-hakim.com without change except to correct spelling of starlit
and add words ‘as a Sunni Muslim’.
This page needs to be expanded and rewritten,
but I am too sick and weak to do so at present.
Ian C. Calderwood 14 July 23.
EDITED ON 10 OCTOBER 23 AT LAKEMBA, NSW, BY IAN
C. CALDERWOOD
AMENDED ON 11 OCTOBER 23 AT LAKEMBA, NSW, BY IAN
C. CALDERWOOD
FURTHER CHANGES 13 OCTOBER 23
RESTORED BUT NOT EDITED 18 FEBRUARY 24 BY IAN C.
CALDERWOOD
WEBCOPY 22 APR 24 1ST
WEBCOPY 22 APR 24 2ND CUT TEXT
WEBCOPY 26 APR 24 1ST
WEBCOPY 26 APR 24 2ND MINOR CUT
WEBCOPY MINOR AMENDMENTS 12 JULY 24
WEBCOPY DELETED 15 JULY 24
WEBCOPY RESTORED TO QURAN-E-HAKIM.COM ON 17 JULY 24 BUT ULTIMATELY TAKEN DOWN WHEN I
ATTEMPTED TO REBUILD THE SITE USING WORDPRESS.
WEBCOPY QURAN-E-HAKIM.NET 05 JULY 25 - 1
WEBCOPY QURAN-E-HAKIM.NET 05 JULY 25 – 2
WEBCOPY 29
OCT 25 DELETED. SERIOUSLY ILL. CONTEMPLATING CLOSING WEBSITES
WEBCOPY 03
NOV 25 RESTORED
WEBCOPY 30 DEC 25 AMENDED
