Our Pious Predecessors

Abu Majid Muhammad Shahid Attari Madani

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic year. In the previous instalment of this magazine from 1438 – 1442 AH, we have learned about 72 noble Companions, awliyāʾ, and ulema who were born in this sacred month. Here are an additional 12:

The Noble Companions عَـلَيْهِمُ الرِّضْوَانْ:

1. The daughter of the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم, Sayyidatunā Ruqayyah رَضِیَ الـلّٰـهُ عَنْهَا was born 7 years before the proclamation of Prophethood, in the city of Makkah. The Beloved Prophet رَضِیَ الـلّٰـهُ عَنْهَا was 33 years of age at the time of her birth. She married Sayyidunā ʿUthmān al-Ghanī رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ and migrated to Abyssinia with him. The grandson of the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم, Sayyidunā ʿAbdullah ibn ʿUthmān رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ was born there before they migrated to Madina. She passed away in Madina on the Day of Badr, 17^th Ramadan, 2 AH. She was laid to rest in al-Baqīʿ.^{^[1]}

2. The esteemed Companion, Sayyidunā Kurz ibn Jābir al-Fihrī رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ was the chief of the Quraysh before Islam. He accepted Islam after the migration and led an expedition in Shawwal 6 AH. He was honourable, courageous, and a skilled horseman. On the Day of the Conquest of Makkah, he was separated from the army of Sayyidunā Khālid ibn al-Walīd رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ and was martyred by the disbelievers.^{^[2]}

The Awliyāʾ رَحِمَهُمُ الـلّٰـه:

3. Sayyid Gul Muhammad Ḥasanī Qādirī Tordherī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه is from the top-ranking saints of Islam. He was the spiritual heir of Rehamkār Bāba. His supplications were answered; he was a pillar for people of all walks of life; and he was empathic with people. Even at his shrine today (Tordher, Swabi, KPK), the ill find cure and the needs of people are fulfilled. He passed away on the 10^th of Ramadan, 1180 AH.^{^[3]}

4. Sayyidunā Khawaja Shah Muhammad Imam Ali Farooqi Chishti رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was a famous Wali of the Chishti and Qadiri Sufi order. He passed away on the 10^th of Ramadan 1282 AH and his shrine is in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.^{^[4]}

5. Sayyidunā Hājī Najm al-Dīn Fārūqī Shaykhawatī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was born in 1234 AH in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. He was born into the family of Khawāja Ḥamīd al-Dīn and he passed away on the 13^th of Ramadan 1287AH. His shrine is in Fatehpur (Shaykhawati, Rajasthan). He was the spiritual heir of Pīr Phatān, a seasoned scholar of the outer and inner sciences, and a skilled poet. He authored 11 books in Urdu and 8 in Persian. Manāqib al-Maḥbūbīn is from his well known works.^{^[5]}

6. Sayyidunā Khawāja Muhammad Fazal Shāh Waryamālī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was born in Chakwal into a sayyid family circa. 1265 AH. He passed away on the 22^nd of Ramadan, 1331 AH, in Waryamaal (Karila, Chakwal). His shrine is found there too. He had memorised the Quran and was a proficient qari and the spiritual heir of Shams al-ʿĀrifīn. He was a man of miracles and a respected Sufi guide.^{^[6]}

7. Sayyidunā Wārith ʿAlī Chishtī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was born in Sukho, near Gujar Khan, Rawalpindi, into a respected family in 1268 AH. It was there that he also passed away in Shaban or Ramadan in the year 1371 AH. He was pious and righteous; respected and loved by his people; an expert doctor; a poet in the Persian language; a Sufi and a spiritual heir of Shams al-ʿĀrifīn.^{^[7]}

The Scholars of Islam رَحِمَهُمُ الـلّٰـه:

8. Mawlānā ʿAbd al-Nabī Hāshimī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was born in Bhoi Ghaar (Hassan Abdal, Attock) into the knowledgeable and spiritual Hāshimī family in 1262 AH. He passed away on the 8^th of Ramadan 1311 AH and is buried in the Abaai cemetery (Pindashriki Bhoi Ghaar). He was the scholar of his time, a proficient writer, a poet, and a Sufi. His book Tadhkira al-Maḥbūb (Mawlana Muhammad Ali Makhdoi) is an indispensable source of information.^{^[8]}

9. The scholar of scholars and teacher of teachers, his eminence Hidāyat Allah Khan Jaunpurī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was born in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, India and passed away on the 1^st of Ramadan 1326AH in Jaunpur. He was laid to rest in Dargha Rashidabad. As the foremost student of the renowned martyr-scholar Fazl al-Haqq Khayrabadī, he mastered the rational and transmitted sciences and was hailed as a pioneer capable of gauging source texts to derive rules and principles. For over 40 years as the foremost teacher of Madrassa Hanafiya Jaunpur, he trained countless ulema including Mufti Amjad Ali Azami رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه and other towering figures.^{^[9]}

10. The great scholar from the family of Ghaus ul-A’zam, Shaykh Sayyid ʿAbd al-Fattāḥ Khaṭīb al-Dimashqī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was born in Damascus in 1277 AH. He was the Imam of Masjid Madrassah Fathi and the Khatib of Jami Masjid Sayyidunā ʿUmar. He was also the librarian of Daar-ul-Kutub al-Zaahiriyya. He passed away on the 26^th of Ramadan 1336 AH and is buried in the cemetery of Dahdaah.^{^[10]}

11. Mawlānā Sirāj al-Dīn Anjrawī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was born in Pai Khel, Mianwali, to a knowledgeable family. His parents passed away during his childhood and he was educated in Makhad Sharif. He was an excellent scholar, a Sufi, the teacher of teachers, an exceptional teacher at the Makhad Madrassa, a person of saintly miracles, and someone whose supplications were always accepted. He passed away on 29^th of Ramadan, 1336 AH, and his shrine is located in Anjra Afghan (Attock). He also delivered lessons on Bukhari for 7 years in Makkah.^{^[11]}

12. Mawlānā Pīr Maḥbūb Aḥmad Khayr Shah Jamātī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْـه was born in Amritsar (East Punjab, India). He was born into a Kashmiri family and passed away there on the 9^th of Ramadan 1338 AH. He was a scholar who practised what he preached, a powerful orator, and a skilled debater of Ahl al-Sunnah. He authored several books and was the spiritual heir of Amīr-e-Millat.^{^[12]}