Qasim Nanawtawi

Hujjat al-Islam
Qasimul-Uloom wal-Khairat[1]
Muhammad Qasim Nanawtawi
Personal
Born1832
Nanauta, Mughal Empire
Died15 April 1880(1880-04-15) (aged 47–48)
Deoband, British India
Resting placeMazar-e-Qasmi
ReligionIslam
ChildrenHafiz Muhammad Ahmad (son)
EraModern era
RegionIndian Subcontinent
DenominationSunni
JurisprudenceHanafi
CreedMaturidi[2]
Main interest(s)Aqidah, Tafsir, Tasawwuf, Hadith, Fiqh, Kifaya, Usul, Ma'aani, Mantiq, Falsafa,
Notable idea(s)Widow Re-marriage
OccupationIslamic scholar
RelativesSiddiqi family of Nanauta
Founder ofDarul Uloom Deoband, Jamia Qasmia Madrasa Shahi
Muslim leader
Influenced
Military career
Years of service1857
Battles/warsIndian War of Independence

Muhammad Qasim Nanawtawi (1832 – 15 April 1880) (Urdu: مولانا محمد قاسم نانوتوی) was an Indian Sunni Hanafi Maturidi Islamic Scholar, theologian and a Sufi who was one of the main founders of the Deobandi Movement, starting from the Darul Uloom Deoband.[3]

Name and lineage

His ism (given name) was Muhammad Qasim. His nasab (patronymic) is: Muhammad Qāsim ibn Asad Ali ibn Ghulam Shāh ibn Muhammad Bakhsh ibn Alāuddīn ibn Muhammad Fateh ibn Muhammad Mufti ibn Abd al-Samī[a] ibn Muhammad Hāshim[5][4]

The "nasab" meets Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr after 44 links.[6]

Early life and education

Nanautawi was born in 1832 (either in Sha'ban or Ramadan, 1248 AH) into the Siddiqi family of Nanauta, a town near Saharanpur, India.[7]

Nanautawi was schooled at Nanauta, where he memorized the Quran and learned calligraphy.[8] Aged nine, Nanautawi moved to Deoband where he studied at the madrasa of Karamat Hussain. The teacher at this "madrasa" was Mehtab Ali, the uncle of Mahmud Hasan Deobandi.[8] Under the instruction of Mehtab Ali, Nanautawi completed the primary books of Arabic grammar and syntax.[8]Thereafter, his mother sent him to Saharanpur, where his maternal grandfather Wajīhuddīn Wakīl, who was a poet of Urdu and Persian, lived.[8] Wakīl enrolled his grandson in the Persian class of Muḥammad Nawāz Sahāranpūri, under whom, Nanautawi, then aged twelve, completed Persian studies.[8]

In 1844, Nanautawi joined the Delhi College, where he studied with Mamluk Ali Nanautawi.[8] According to Asir Adrawi, "Nanautawi although was enrolled in the college, he would take private classes at his teachers home, instead of the college".[8] He studied the major books with Mamluk Ali, including "mantiq" and philosophy, and few other books with Mufti Sadruddīn.[8] According to Ashraf Ali Thanwi, "Mamluk Ali, the teacher of Rashid Ahmad Gangohi and Nanautawi was a government employee at Dār al-Baqā", in Delhi, which suggests that Nanautawi possibly studied there.[9] Manazir Ahsan Gilani has tried to reconcile the reports concerning Nanautawi's education at the college. He says that, the name of Nanautawi appeared in the official registry of the college in the first year and argues, "whatsoever it is, but it is not right that he gained education there, since the starting".[10] Nanautawi stayed in Delhi for around five or six years,[11] and graduated, aged seventeen.[12] Gīlāni says that, Nanautawi studied with Mamluk Ali Nanautawi, but not the syllabus of the college, rather studied at his home.[13] It is commonly accepted that Nanautawi did not appear in the college exams.[14]

Career

Academic career

After the completion of his education, Nanautavi became the editor of the press at Matbah-e-Ahmadi. During this period, at Ahmad Ali's insistence, he wrote a scholium on the last few portions of Sahihul Bukhari. Before the establishment of Darul Uloom Deoband, he taught Euclid for some time at the Chhatta Masjid. His lectures were delivered at the printing press. His teaching produced a group of accomplished Ulama, the example of which had not been seen since Shah Abdul Ghani's time.

In 1860, he performed Hajj and, on his return, he accepted a profession of collating books at Matbah-e-Mujtaba in Meerut. Nanautavi remained attached to this press until 1868. He performed Hajj for the second time and then accepted a job at Matbah-e-Hashimi in Meerut.

Polemical debates

On 8 May 1876, a "Fair for God-Consciousness" was held at Chandapur village, near Shahjahanpur (U. P.), under the auspices of the local Zamindar, Piyare Lal Kabir-panthi and Padre Knowles, and with the support and permission of the collector of Shahjahanpur, Robert George. Christians, Hindus, and Muslims were invited through posters to attend and prove the truthfulness of their respective religions. At the suggestion of Muhammad Munir Nanautavi and Maulvi Ilahi Bakhsh Rangin Bareillwi, Nanautavi, accompanied by numerous colleagues, also participated. All of these Ulama delivered speeches at the fair. Nanautavi repudiated the Doctrine of the Trinity, speaking in support of the Islamic conception of God. One newspaper wrote:

In the gathering of 8 May of the current year (1876), Muhammad Qasim gave a lecture and stated the merits of Islam. The Padre Sahib explained the Trinity in a strange manner, saying that in a line are found three attributes: length, breadth and depth, and thus Trinity is proven in every way. The said Maulawi Sahib confuted it promptly. Then, while the Padre Sahib and the Maulawi Sahib were debating regarding the speech, the meeting broke up, and in the vicinity and on all sides arose the outcry that the Muslims had won. Wherever a religious divine of Islam stood, thousands of men would gather around him. In the meeting of the first day, the Christians did not reply to the objections raised by the followers of Islam, while the Muslims replied the Christians word by word and won.

Political and revolutionary activities

He participated in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 in the Battle of Shamli between the British and the anti-colonialist ulema. The scholars were ultimately defeated at that battle.[15][3]

Establishment of Islamic schools

He established Darul Uloom Deoband in 1866 with the financial help and funding of the Muslim states within India and the rich individuals of the Muslim Indian community.[16][15]

He conformed to the Shari'a and worked to motivate other people to do so. It was through his work that a prominent madrasa was established in Deoband and a mosque was built in 1868. Through his efforts, Islamic schools were established at various other locations as well.[17]

His greatest achievement was the revival of an educational movement for the renaissance of religious sciences in India and the creation of guiding principles for the madaris (schools). Under his attention and supervision, madaris were established in areas such as Thanabhavan, Galautti, Kerana, Danapur, Meerut, and Muradabad. Most of them still exist, rendering educational and religious services in their vicinity. Funding of these religious schools initially was done by the rulers of the Muslim states and the rich individuals of the Muslim Indian community.[16][17]

Under Muhammad Qasim Nanautvi's guidance, these religious schools, at least in the beginning, remained distant from politics and devoted their services to providing only religious education to Muslim children. The curriculum at these schools was studying the Quran, Hadith, Islamic law, and logic.[16]

Jamia Qasmia Madrasa Shahi was established under his supervision.[18]

Death and legacy

Nanautavi died on 15 April 1880 at the age of 47. His grave is to the north of the Darul-Uloom. Since Qasim Nanautavi is buried there, the place is known as Qabrastan-e-Qasimi, where countless Deobandi scholars, students, and others are buried.[19] Well-known Muslim educationist of that time Syed Ahmad Khan had great respect for Nanautavi and wrote an emotional and long article on his death.[19]

He has been given the title of Hujjat al-Islam by his followers.[20][21]

Family

Nanautavi's son Hafiz Muhammad Ahmad was a Grand Mufti of Hyderabad State from 1922 to 1925[22][23] and served as the Vice Chancellor of Deoband seminary for thirty five years.[24]

Nanautawi's grandson Muhammad Tayyib Qasmi served as the Vice Chancellor of Deoband seminary for more than five decades and co-founded the All India Muslim Personal Law Board,[25] while Tayyib's son Muhammad Salim Qasmi founded the Darul Uloom Waqf seminary.[26] Salim's son Muhammad Sufyan Qasmi is the rector of Darul Uloom Waqf.[27]

Publications

  • Aab-i Hayat (commentary on the life of the prophet Muhammad[17][19]
  • Tahzir al-Nas[28]
  • Mubahisah Shahjahanpur[28][19]
  • Tasfiyat al-Aqa'id[28]
  • Tauseeq-ul-Kalam[19]
  • Sadaqat-i- Islam[29]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ At Abd al-Samī, the nasab of Nanautawi meets with that of Mamluk Ali Nanautawi.[4]

References

  1. ^ Muhammad Yousuf, Banuri. Nafhatul Anbar. Al-Majlis al-Ilmi. p. 258.
  2. ^ Bruckmayr, Philipp (2020). "Salafī Challenge and Māturīdī Response: Contemporary Disputes over the Legitimacy of Māturīdī kalām". Die Welt des Islams. 60 (2–3). Brill: 293–324. doi:10.1163/15700607-06023P06.
  3. ^ a b The Clash of Academic Civilizations on BRICS Business Magazine website Archived 19 July 2021 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 16 August 2018
  4. ^ a b Professor Nur al-Hasan Sherkoti. "Hadhrat Mawlāna Muhammad Yāqūb Nanautawi". In Deobandi, Nawaz (ed.). Sawaneh Ulama-e-Deoband (in Urdu). Vol. 2 (January 2000 ed.). Deoband: Nawaz Publications. pp. 90–214.
  5. ^ Gīlānī, Manāzir Ahsan. Sawānih Qāsmi [Biography of Qāsim] (in Urdu). Vol. 1. Deoband: Maktaba Darul Uloom Deoband. p. 113.
  6. ^ Adrawi, Nizāmuddīn Asīr. Maulānā Muḥammad Qāsim Nānautvī, ḥayāt aur kārnāme [Mawlāna Muhammad Qasim Nanautawi: Life and Works]] (in Urdu) (2015 ed.). p. 42.
  7. ^ Qasmi, Mohd. Azam (1988). Molana Mohd. Qasim Nanautvi's. Contribution to Islamic Thought With Special Reference to Al-Kalam (PDF) (PhD). p. 72. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Adrawi, Asīr. Mawlāna Muḥammad Qāsim Nanautawi: Hayāt awr Kārnāme [Mawlāna Muḥammad Qāsim Nanautawi: Life and works]. pp. 43–59.
  9. ^ Gilāni, Manāzir Ahsan. Sawāneh Qāsmi [Biography of Qāsim]. Vol. 1. p. 223.
  10. ^ Gilāni, Manāzir Ahsan. Sawāneh Qāsmi [Biography of Qāsim]. Vol. 1. p. 224.
  11. ^ Gilāni, Manāzir Ahsan. Sawāneh Qāsmi [Biography of Qāsim]. Vol. 1. p. 230.
  12. ^ Gilāni, Manāzir Ahsan. Sawāneh Qāsmi [Biography of Qāsim]. Vol. 1. p. 229.
  13. ^ Gilāni, Manāzir Ahsan. Sawāneh Qāsmi [Biography of Qāsim]. Vol. 1. pp. 226–227.
  14. ^ Abdur Rasheed Arshad. "Hadhrat Mawlāna Muhammad Qāsim Nanautawi". In Deobandi, Nawaz (ed.). Sawaneh Ulama-e-Deoband (in Urdu). Vol. 2 (January 2000 ed.). p. 12.
  15. ^ a b Maulana Nadeem-ul-Wajidi (18 February 2012). "Sir Syed and Maulana Qasim Nanotvi". TwoCircles.net website. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  16. ^ a b c Past present: Resentment in response (founders of Deoband Movement) Dawn (newspaper), Published 11 March 2012, Retrieved 4 March 2019
  17. ^ a b c Profile of Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi on haqislam.org website Retrieved 16 August 2018
  18. ^ Syed Mehboob Rizwi. Tarikh Darul Uloom Deoband [History of The Dar al-Ulum Deoband]. Vol. 1. Translated by Prof. Murtaz Hussain F. Quraishi. Deoband: Idara-e-Ehtemam, Dar al-Ulum Deoband. p. 361.
  19. ^ a b c d e Profile of Maula Mohammad Qasim Nanotvi on storyofpakistan.com website Retrieved 4 March 2019
  20. ^ "The Proof of Islam: Shaykh Qasim al-Nanotwi". 5 March 2013.
  21. ^ Asir Adrawi, Maulana Qasim Nanautawi Hayat awr Karnamy, Deoband: Shaykh al-Hind Academy
  22. ^ Adrawi, Asir. Tazkirah Mashahir-e-Hind: Karwan-e-Rafta (in Urdu) (1st, 1994 ed.). Deoband: Darul Muallifeen. p. 17.
  23. ^ Muhammad Miyan Deobandi. "Hafiz Muhammad Ahmad". Ulama-e-Haq awr Unke Mujahidana Kaarname (in Urdu). Vol. 1. Deoband: Faisal International. pp. 162–163.
  24. ^ Syed Mehboob Rizwi. Tārīkh Darul Uloom Deoband [History of The Dar al-Ulum Deoband]. Vol. 2. Translated by Prof. Murtaz Husain F. Quraishi (1981 ed.). Dar al-Ulum Deoband: Idara-e-Ehtemam. pp. 37–38, 170–174.
  25. ^ Noor Alam Khalil Amini. Pas-e-Marg-e-Zindah (in Urdu). Idara Ilm-o-Adab, Deoband. pp. 108–172.
  26. ^ Butt, John (2020). A Talib's Tale: The Life and Times of a Pashtoon Englishman (2020 ed.). Penguin Random House. p. 173. ISBN 9788184004397.
  27. ^ "A Condolence Meet of Hazrat Maulana Salim Qasmi and Mufti Abdullah Kapodri". Baseerat Online. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  28. ^ a b c Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi books on Archived link Retrieved 16 August 2018
  29. ^ Haq, Wali Ul; Ahmad, Dr Rashid (2020). "Critical review of the book "Sadaqat-i- Islam written by Maolana Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi". Al-Azhār. 6 (1). ISSN 2519-6707.

Further reading

This bibliography of Qasim Nanawtawi is a selected list of scholarly resources that are generally available. These resources are related to Nanawtawi, who was one of the main founders of the Deobandi movement. This list includes his biographies, theses written about him, and articles published about him in various journals, newspapers, encyclopedias, seminars, websites, and follows the APA style.

Encyclopedias

Biographies

  • Adrawi, Nizamuddin Asir. Maulana Muhammad Qasim Nanautvi, hayat aur karnamay [Mawlāna Muhammad Qasim Nanautawi: Life and Works] (in Urdu) (2015 ed.). Darul Uloom Deoband: Shaikhul Hind Academy.
  • Al-Afriqui, Abd Allah bin Muhammad (2013). Introducing Imam Muhammad Qasim al-Nanautwi (PDF). Johannesburg, South Africa: Imam Gangohi Academy of Research. OCLC 881388119.
  • Gilani, Manazir Ahsan (1980). Swaneh Qasmi (in Urdu). Lahore, Pakistan: Maktabah-yi Rahmaniyyah; Maktabah-yi Caragh-i Islam. OCLC 9894175.
  • Siddiqui, Atif Suhail (2016). Life and thoughts of Ḥujjat al-Islām Imām Muḥammad Qāsim al-Nānawtawī: founder of Darul Uloom Deoband. Deoband: Deoband Institute of Islamic Thought. ISBN 978-81-89857-66-0.

Theses

  • Ahmad, Wakeel (2012). Maulana Muhammad Qasim Nanutavi (RA) - Athar-W-Afkar (PhD thesis) (in Urdu). Pakistan: University of Sindh. Archived from the original on 25 October 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  • Hai, Ammar Abdul (2017). Unneeswin wa beeswin sadi ke Hindustan mein muslim mufakkirin ka tasawwur e talim Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, Mohd Qasim Nanautvi, Shibli Nomani, Abul Kalam Azad, Manazir Ahsan Geelani, Syed Abu al Ala Maududi, Khwaja Ghulam Sayyedain ke Hawale se (PhD thesis) (in Urdu). India: Department of Urdu, Jamia Millia Islamia. hdl:10603/313157. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  • Naeem, Fuad S. (2015). Interreligious Debates, Rational Theology, and the ʿUlamaʾ in the Public Sphere: Muḥammad Qāsim Nānautvī and the Making of Modern Islam in South Asia (PhD thesis). United States: Georgetown University. Archived from the original on 27 June 2023. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  • Qasmi, Mohd. Azam (1988). Molana Mohd. Qasim Nanautvi's. Contribution to Islamic Thought With Special Reference to Al-Kalam (PDF) (PhD thesis). Aligarh Muslim University. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 October 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  • Thanwi, Muhammad As'ad (2005). Maulana Muhammad Qasim Nadvi Ki Deeni O Ilmi Khidmat Ka Tahqiqi Mutala (PhD) (in Urdu). Pakistan: University of Karachi. Archived from the original on 30 August 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2023.

Journals

  • Ahmad Saed, Abdur Rahman (2014). "Al-Imam al-Nanotawi wa al-rad 'ala al-Hindak" (PDF). Islamic Literature Review (in Arabic). 1 (1). India: Deoband Institute of Islamic Thought. ISSN 2349-1795. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 June 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  • Bin Abdul Karim, Mujammal Haque (2014). "Ishamat al-Imam al-Nanotawi fi al-rudda 'ala shubuhat al-Hindakah" (PDF). Islamic Literature Review (in Arabic). 1 (1). India: Deoband Institute of Islamic Thought. ISSN 2349-1795. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 June 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  • Bin Hussain Ahmad, Muhammad Khalid (2014). "Al-Imam Muhammad Qasim Al-Nanotawi wa jihaduhu dafatah al-tabshir al-Masihiy fi al-Hind" (PDF). Islamic Literature Review (in Arabic). 1 (1). India: Deoband Institute of Islamic Thought. ISSN 2349-1795. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 June 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  • Bin Muhammad Younus, Muhammad Sajjad (2014). "Al-Imam al-Nanotawi kaban awal li 'ilm al-kalam al-jadid fi daw'i khidmatihi" (PDF). Islamic Literature Review (in Arabic). 1 (1). India: Deoband Institute of Islamic Thought. ISSN 2349-1795. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 June 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  • Haq, Wali Ul; Ahmad, Rashid (2020). "Critical review of the book Sadaqat-i-Islam written by Maolana Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi". Al-Azhār. 6 (1): 250–256. ISSN 2519-6707. Archived from the original on 13 October 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  • Mujaffarfuri, Mahtab Alam Qudusi (2014). "Al-Imam Muhammad Qasim al-Nanotwi Rahimahullah, wal-Raddu 'Ala al-Masihiyyin" (PDF). Islamic Literature Review (in Arabic). 1 (1). India: Deoband Institute of Islamic Thought. ISSN 2349-1795. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 June 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  • Yusuf, Umar; Ahmad, Usman (2023). "Studying the Muslim tradition of religion: a specific study of the services of Shaikh Qasim Nanotwi". Jihat Ul Islam (in Urdu). 16 (2): 233–255. doi:10.51506/jihat-ul-islam.v16i2.601 (inactive 31 January 2024). ISSN 2521-425X. Archived from the original on 27 June 2023. Retrieved 10 July 2023.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of January 2024 (link)
  • Siddiqui, Atif Suhail (2020). "Theological and Intellectual Roots in Deobandi Thoughts : A Paradigm from Muhammad Qāsim Nānawtawī's Discourses with Special Reference to his Ḥujjat al-Islām". American Journal of Islam and Society. 37 (1–2): 41–66. doi:10.35632/ajis.v37i1-2.703. ISSN 2690-3741. S2CID 234749292. Archived from the original on 15 June 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.

Newspapers

  • Haque, Muhammad Rabiul (9 August 2020). "Maulana Qasim Nanutawi, a fearless warrior against British aggression". Jugantor (in Bengali). Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 17 January 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2023.

Websites

  • "Maulana Mohammad Qasim Nanutvi". Story of Pakistan. 4 January 2006. Archived from the original on 27 June 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
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