Memories (Episode 19-a)

Our respected father (may Allah have mercy on him) was so overjoyed at the completion of the Dawrat al-ḤHadith of us two brothers that he organized a meal on this occasion and called it a walimah. In addition to family members, close associates were also invited. Later, during the madrasa’s Annual Gathering, our dastar bandi[1] also took place. Since, by that time, it had not yet been decided as to what we would do after completing Dawrat al-Ḥadith, I composed a poem bidding farewell to Dar al-ʿUlum. Some of its verses are as follows:

سلام اے میرے گلشن، علم و فن کے پاک گہوارے
ہدایت کے فلک پر علم کے تابندہ سیارے
تری آغوش شفقت سے نکل کر جا رہا ہوں میں
مرے قلب و جگر بے چین ہیں، گھبرا رہا ہوں میں
چلا جاؤں گا میں ان علم کی دلکش فضاؤں سے
تری ان روح پرور اور کیف افزوں ہواؤں سے
جہاں پر عمر کے میں نے سہانے دن گزارے ہیں
جہاں کے پھول تو ہیں پھول، مجھ کو خار پیارے ہیں
جہاں کا ذرہ ذرہ واقف اسرار الفت ہے
جہاں کا ایک اک گوشہ مرے خوابوں کی جنت ہے
جہاں آ کر میں آسی اپنی ہستی بھول جاتا ہوں
خدا کی نعمتوں میں خود پرستی بھول جاتا ہوں
مگر اے میرے گلشن! تو نہ ہو اندوہگیں اتنا
ہماری اس جدائی پر ملول اتنا، حزیں اتنا
سبق تو نے پڑھایا ہے ہمیں عزم اور ہمت کا
صداقت کا، شجاعت کا، امانت کا، عدالت کا
نہ بھٹکیں جس سے ہم تو نے ہمیں وہ رہ دکھائی ہے
تری تعلیم ہی تو ہم پر بنکر نور چھائی ہے
خدا توفیق دے، اس سے ہمیں زائل نہ دیکھے گا
اور اپنی کوششوں کو ہم پہ لا حاصل نہ دیکھے گا
امنگیں ہیں ہمارے دل میں اب کچھ کام کرنے کی
ترے پیغام کو مشہور کرنے، عام کرنے کی
چمن میں باغباں کے بھیس میں صیاد بیٹھے ہیں
نہیں ہے کوہکن کوئی، مگر فرہاد بیٹھے ہیں
بسے، پھولے پھلے تُو، اور جہاں میں جگمگاۓ تُو
بہاروں کے حسیں جھرمٹ میں رہکر مسکراۓ تُو

Translation:

Greetings, O my garden! Sacred cradle of knowledge and art
The radiant star of knowledge on the celestial canopy of guidance
From your compassionate embrace, I am departing
My heart and soul are restless, I am growing anxious
I will depart from these captivating breezes of knowledge
From these soul-nourishing and uplifting winds of yours
From the place where I spent beautiful days of my life
Where even the thorns, let alone the flowers, are dear to me
Where every atom is acquainted with the secrets of love
Where every corner is the paradise of my dreams
Where, upon entering, O Asi![2] I would forget my own being
Where, engulfed in Allah’s blessings, I would forget self-admiration
But, O my garden! Do not grieve so much
At this parting of ours, so dejected, so mournful
It is you who taught us determination and courage
Truthfulness, bravery, trustworthiness, justice
You showed us a path so we would never stray from it
It is your very teachings that have engulfed us as a radiant light
May Allah grant us the ability! You shall never see us bereft of them
And you shall never see your efforts gone to waste upon us
There are aspirations in our hearts now to do some work
To spread your message, to make it known far and wide
Many a hunter lurks in the garden, guised as a gardener
None a mountain digger, yet each pretending to be Farhad
May you flourish and blossom, grow and shine across the world
May you, amidst the beautiful spring, always keep smiling

After Dawrat al-Ḥadith

Both of us brothers returned to our house at Lasbela House after completing Dawrat al-Ḥadith. Until then, it was not clear what we would do next. One suggestion was that we should be sent to al-Azhar University for further education and to attain mastery over the Arabic language. Due to my young age, my respected mother (may Allah have mercy on her) was not agreeable to sending me to Egypt, but she was somewhat willing to bear this in the case of my elder brother (may Allah grant him a long life). Thus, many people insisted that he be sent to al-Azhar. A second opinion was that we should begin teaching at Dar al-ʿUlum itself. A third opinion was that, in order to serve the Din in accordance with the demands of the current times, we should also study English. A fourth opinion was that we should receive training in Fatwa under the care of our respected father (may Allah have mercy on him).

Our respected father (may Allah have mercy on him) was not fully convinced about sending us to Egypt, because “al-Azhar” was no longer the “al-Azhar” of old, and considerable changes had occurred to its environment. Perhaps our respected father also performed Istikhara, as a result of which the decision was made not to send us there. The final decision he made was for us to teach two lessons at Dar al-ʿUlum daily, and to spend the remaining time receiving training in Fatwa. Until then, there was no department of Takhassus (Specialization) in Dar al-ʿUlum. It was decided that the department of Takhassus in Fatwa would be established from the next year. Meanwhile, I also had a keen desire to learn English so that I could serve the Din through it in whatever way I could. To this end, I requested my elder brother Mawlana Muhammad Wali Razi (may Allah grant him a long life) to teach me English during the holidays of Ramadan and Shaʿban. Allah Most High has blessed him with extraordinary intelligence and exceptional teaching skills. He felt that rather than teaching me through the medium of a Reader-type book, it would be more suitable to cover a substantial portion of English grammar within the two months. He correctly judged that since I had studied Arabic morphology and grammar in detail, it would be easy for me to understand and apply the rules of English grammar.

He thus began teaching me English tenses without relying on any textbook, which I not only easily grasped but also gained practice in using. In this way, I began understanding the basic structure of English sentences.

Commencement of Teaching and Specialization

When the month of Shawwal (1379 AH) arrived, I completed seventeen years of my life, and having finished my formal studies, I entered practical life. Over the next ten years, my engagements revolved around four main areas: teaching, Fatwa, writing, and learning English.

Beginning of Teaching

It had been decided that the year after completing the Dars-e-Nizami curriculum, we were to spend two hours teaching and the remaining time in undergoing training in issuing fatawa. Thus, for the first time, I was given the opportunity to teach two classes in Dar al-ʿUlum as a teacher. I was assigned “ʿArabi Ka Muʿallim” and “Tariqah Jadidah” to teach to Year One students. I did not mind this teaching responsibility. I had already taught a student “ʿArabi Ka Muʿallim” during the year of my study of Hidaya, the amusing story of which I have narrated before. Thus, as far as teaching itself was concerned, I had no issue. However, my appearance at the time was such that even my beard had not yet grown. And when I considered my age and thin, slight frame, the idea of entering the classroom as a teacher felt like a trial. To make matters more daunting, the class I was assigned to teach included a good number of students who were older than me, with one or two of them having sizable beards. I felt somewhat embarrassed to enter the classroom on my own, so I requested my beloved teacher Hadhrat Mawlana Sahban Mahmud (may Allah have mercy on him) to take me to the class. He agreed and even conducted the first lesson himself. I began teaching the class thereafter. To mask my young age and slight build to some extent, I would wear a Sherwani[3] even in summer, and would walk in to the classroom with an air of self-assumed dignity. I would also speak in a slightly raised voice, hoping to preserve at least some of the stature of a teacher. When I first entered the classroom unaccompanied, I noticed faint smiles on the faces of some of the bearded students, as if their expressions were saying: “Oh! So this is the teacher under whom we must now become students!”.

But it was purely by the grace and favour of Allah the Glorious and Most High that, within just a few days, all the students became comfortable with me, and the sensitivity of my young age gradually faded from their hearts. So much so that they even began to tolerate my strictness when I wanted to get them to do some work. Among the students of that batch whom I still remember, Mawlana Abdul Samad Irani (may Allah keep him safe) is especially worth a mention, because he would achieve outstanding results in all exams, and by the grace and favour of Allah Most High, is regarded among the senior scholars of Iran today. Besides him, Mawlana Abdul Qayyum Gilgiti, as far as I can recall, ranked first in every examination, and later worked in Umm Al-Qura University in Makkah Mukarramah as a researcher for a long time. He produced numerous research-related works there and is now working in Maktaba al-Haram al-Makki as a bahith (researcher).

[1] Translator: Dastar Bandi is an occasion which marks the completion of the Darse Nizami. Teachers and elders also tie a turban around the graduating student’s head during this ceremony.

[2] Translator: Asi is the poetic alias used by the respected author, so it refers to himself

[3] Translator: Sherwani: A knee-length coat that buttons up to the neck, traditionally worn as formal attire by men in South Asia.

…………….(Continued)…………….