A Brief Biography of Hafiz-e-Millat
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hafiz-e-Millat rahimahullah is a personality of whom the
whole ummah can be proud. His efforts are so extensive
that by concentrating on only one of them, it becomes clear
how tirelessly he worked for Islām and Muslims. One of his
specialities is that he seemed so absorbed with his followers
that each one of them will claim that hafiz-e-Millat
rahimahullah was more beneficent upon them than anyone
else. Each of his admirers will argue that he loved them
most or was most kind to them. Each devotee can give
ar examples from their lives whereby they could provide
evidence for their strong relationship with Hāfiz-e-Millat
rahimahullah. His manner of dealing and talking with people
was such that everyone would claim that he held them in
high regard.
Birth
hafiz-e-Millat rahimahullah was born in Bhojpūr, in
Murādābād (Uttar Pradesh), on a Monday in the year 1312
AH/1894 AD. He was born into a poor but respected
household. His father, hafiz Ghulām Nūr, was god-fearing,
pious, religious and a follower of the Sunnah. He named his
son after Shāh Abdul Aziz Muhaddith Dihlawi. His name is
Abdul Ázīz; kunya Abu’l Fayd and well known titles are Ustād
al-Úlama, Jalălat al-Ilm and Hāfiz-e-Millat.
He completed his education at the hands of Şadr al-Shariáh
Mawlānā Amjad Ali Aadhami [author of Bahār-e-Shariát) and
graduated from Dār al-Úlūm Manzar al-Islām in 1351 AH. He
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was granted Khilafah and ljāzah by Mawlānā Sayyid Áli
Db Husain Ashrafi Miyan and Şadr al-Shariáh álaihi’r rahmah
wa’r ridwān.
Education and training
He received his initial education from his father and in a
local school in Bhujpūr. He completed his memorisation of
the Holy Qurāán under the guidance of his father. After
receiving preliminary education in Urdu and Persian from
Abdul Majīd in Bhojpūr, he enrolled at Jāmia Naſīmiyah in
Murādābād and stayed there for 3 years. During his stay, he
reached the study of Sharh Jāmi and Qutbi when his thirst
for knowledge reached a pinnacle. He was searching for a
em new teacher and coincidentally, his search led him to Şadr
al-Shariáh Mawlānā Shah Mufti Muhammad Amjad Ali
Aádhami rahimahullah [author of Bahār-e-Shariát). He
arrived at Madrasa Muſīniyah, Ajmer in 1342 AH with a few
classmates including:
• Mawlānā Chulām līlānī Merthi
• Mawlānā Qādi Shams al-Dīn Jaunpūri
• Mawlānā Qārī Asad al-Ĥaq
. Hafiz Zamir Husain
Their applications were accepted. The teaching of various
books was shared by the teachers. Usūl al-Shāshi was
taught by Şadr al-Shariáh during spare time and this
continued till studies finished. Utmost effort and hard work
was hafiz-e-Millat’s motto and he completed the whole
Dars-e-Nizāmi syllabus. His exam was taken by the author
of Hāshiya Umūr-e-Áāmmah, Mawlānā Fazl-e-Haq Rāmpūri.
which included a written and verbal test. Hafiz-e-Millat
answered the questions with such brilliance that the
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examiner closed the book and stated that he would not
examine him any further as his competence had reached a
zenith.
He completed his studies of hadīth in Ajmer Sharif at the
hands of Şadr al-Shariáh but due to some reasons, his
graduation ceremony did not take place. He received his
certificate of graduation (sanad-e-farāghat] in Bareilly
Sharif in 1351 AH.
Oath of Allegiance [Bay’at]
Hafiz-e-Millat became swore the oath of allegiance on the
blessed hands of Sheikh al-Masha’ikh in the time of his
educational career in Dar al-‘Ulum ‘Uthmaniyyah, Ajmer
Sharif.
Hafiz-e-Millat blessed al-Jami’a al-Ashrafia by becoming its
head teacher in Shawwal 1351. Hadrat Shaykh al-Masha’ikh
would come annually to Mubarakpur. Once, during Hafiz-e-
Millat’s stay at Mubarakpur, Hadrat Shaykh al-Masha’ikh
arrived and wanted to make him the Accredited successor,
by blessing him with Khilafat.
However, Hafiz-e-Millat’s unprecedented humbleness and
piety requested: “I do not possess any capability and
aptitude… I am not worthy of receiving Khilafat from you?!”
In answer to this, Hadrat Sheikh al-Masha’ikh stated these
words of great esteem and honour for Hafiz-e-Millat: It is
not a condition for a pious and a true man (like you) to be
‘capable of being given Khilafat.
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Services
During the month of Sha’bān in 1352 AH, Şadr al-Shariáh
rahimahullah summoned Hāfiz-e-Millat to Bareilly Sharif
and said that because he (şadr al-Shariáh] had spent so
much time away from his home district of Aádhamgarh, it
has become corrupted. Hence, he wanted Hafiz-e-Millat to
take up a teaching post at Madrasa Ashrafīya Mişbāḥ al-
Úlūm. Hāfiz-e-Millat replied that he wished not to work,
Şadr al-Shariáh replied, “When did I ask you to work? You
will not be working; rather, you will be serving the religion.
Do not look at what you will get.” The student accepted the
instruction of his benevolent teacher. History is witness
that Hafiz-e-Millat accepted a monthly salary of Rs.35
whereas he was offered Rs.100 in Agra and Rs.500 in
Calcutta
On 29th Shawwāl, 1353 AH [14th January, 1934 CE] he was
appointed as the head teacher at Madrasa Ashrafiya Mişbáñ
al-Úlūm. Pupils were taught up to Färsi, Nahw Mir and Panj
Ganj. The total budget of the madrasa was Rs.2757,14 āna, 9
pāi.
His Students
Hafiz-e-Millat had numerous students who were fortunate
to have quenched their thirst for the Sacred knowledge
from the vast ocean of knowledge which Hafiz-e-Millat
possessed. From amongst his students, some of the most
distinguished personalities who have earned much honour,
respect and prominence throughout the globe are:
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• Hadrat Allama Maulana ‘Abd al-Rauf Balyawi
• “Bahr al-‘Ulum” Hadrat Allama Maulana Mufti ‘Abd al-Mannan
Aa’zmi
• “Faqih-e-‘Asr” “Sharih-e-Bukhari” Hadrat Allama Mufti
Muhammad Sharif al-Haque
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Qari Muhammad Uthman Aa’zmi
Hadrat Allama Maulana Qari Muhammad Yahya Mubarakpuri
• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana Muhammad Shafi’i Aa’zmi
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Sayyid Hamid Ashraf Kichauchvi
• Hadrat Allama Maulana “Badr-e-Millat”, Mufti Badr al-Din
Ahmed Razvi
“Shaykh al-Qur’an” Hadrat Allama ‘Abdullah Khan ‘Azizi
• Hadrat ‘Allama Mohammad Ahmed Misbahi Aa’zmi
• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana Iftikhar Ahmed Qadri
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Sayyid Kumail Ashraf Baskhari
• Hadrat Allama Maulana ‘Abd al-Shakur Giyawi
• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana Sayyid Maqsud Ashraf Ja’isi
• Hadrat ‘Allama Dr. Shakil Ahmed Aa’zmi – M.A.
Hadrat Allama Maulana Sayyid Muhammad Husaini Ra’ichori
• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana Warith Jamal Bastawi
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Anwar ‘Ali Bastawi
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Sayyid Mujtaba Ashraf Kichauchavi
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Shah Siraj al-Huda Giyawi
“Shaykh ul Islam” Hadrat Allama Maulana Sayyid Madani
Kichauchavi
.
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Mushahid Raza Pili Bhiti
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Wajih al-Din Pili Bhit
• “Muhaddith-e-Kabir”. Hadrat Allama Mufti Ziya ul-Mustafa
Qadri
• “Aziz-e-Millat” Hadrat Allama ‘Abd al-Hafiz (son of Hudur
Hafiz-e-Millat)
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Sayyid Rukn al-Din Asdaq
• “Ra’is al-Qalam” Hadrat Allama Arshadul-Qadiri
• “Lisan al-‘Asr” Hadrat Allama Qamruz Zaman Khan Azmi
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• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana Muhammad Kamil Sehsarami
• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana ‘Abd al-Mubin No’mani
• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana Zafar ‘Ali No’mani (Pakistan)
• Hadrat ‘Allama Qari Muslihud-Din (Pakistan)
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Khalil Ashraf (Pakistan)
• Hadrat Allama ‘Allama Qari Raza al-Mustafa (Pakistan)
• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana Jalal al-Din Ahmed (Baghdad – ‘Iraq)
• Hadrat Allama Maulana ‘Abd al-Karim (Turkey)
Hadrat Allama Maulana Muhammad Jaysh (Nepal)
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Muhammad Badrul Qadri (Holland]
Hadrat Allama Maulana Mumtaz Ahmed (U.K.)
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Qari Muhammad Isma’il Misbahi (U.K.)
• Hadrat Allama Maulana ‘Abd al-Ghaffar (Bangladesh)
• Hadrat Allama Maulana Muhammad Mehbub Khudabakhsh
(Africa)
• Hadrat ‘Allama Maulana ‘Abd al-Hamid (Dubai – U.A.E.)
.
The Ashrafiya Movement
From being an empty madrasa, the words QālAllah and
Qalar Rasūl soon began to reverberate around it. Students
began to flock from far and wide and in a short period,
Indian and international students came to participate in the
lessons of Hafiz-e-Millat.
Eleven months later in Shawwal 1353 AH, the foundation of
Dār al-úlūm Ashrafīya Mişbāḥ al-úlūm was laid under his
instruction. The first brick was laid jointly by Mawlānā
Sayyid Ali Husain Ashrafi Miyan and Şadr al-Shariáh álaihi’r
rahmah wa’r ridwān. Soon, this building reached capacity.
Therefore, a plot of land outside Mubārakpūr was purchased
for this institute of knowledge and in May 1972 [Rabi’ al-
Awwal 1392 AH), the inauguration ceremony of al-Jāmiatu’l
Ashrafīya was celebrated and work began swiftly. Only a
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year in, teaching began at the new site. It was fāfiz-e-
Millat’s greatest wish that instead of serving just India, the
institute should serve the whole world. He wanted it to
challenge mischief and innovations world over and sought
to establish an institute that would be comprehensive to
cater for all Islamic needs.
Hafiz-e-Millat once said that it is his desire that his madrasa
will cater for branches of Islamic knowledge and sciences
regardless but he also wants graduates to have such a
stnaing grounding in Arabic and even English language and be
of such a high competency that they could perform their
duties of tabligh and spreading knowledge in any part of the
world.
Literary works
Apart from services rendered in building Islamic institutes,
written works were also amongst his efforts. Many a time
he would exclaim that in the beginning, he wrote extensively
but due to engagements in teaching, he had little time left
for writing. Nevertheless, he still managed to produce the
following works:
Máārif-e-hadith
Irshad al-Quráān
al-Irshad
Anbā’ al-Ghayb
al-Mişbāḥ al-Jadīd
Firqa-e-Nājiya
Fatāwā Ázīzīya
Aashiya Sharh Mishkāt
.
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Apart from this, the launch of the monthly Ashrafiya is his
major contribution to literature. The periodical is still in
circulation. The number of students that he has left are so
many that there are more of them are serving in
educational establishments around the world than anyone
else’s students.
Demise
On Monday, 1st Jamādi al-Akhir, 1396 AH (31st May 1976], he
gave his lesson of Şahih al-Bukhāri. He taught from Kitāb al-
Janāyiz and lectured on the topic of death. During the
lecture, he mentioned that today is Monday and this is the
day that RasūlAllāh şallAllāhu álaihi wasallam was born and
the day he demised. On the night of 31st May, 1976 at
11:55pm, this mountain of knowledge left this world. Innā
lillāhi wa inna ilayhi rajiúūn.
His life was a shining book of the Shariáh by following which
people learned the rules of life and the mode of living. The
pages of this book are golden and so brilliant that they
outweigh volumes that talk about miracles and inspirations.
In 1976, he performed Hajj without having a photograph
taken due to his compliance with the Sharīáh. He spent
eleven days in Madina Munawwara and was blessed in the
court of the beloved with inward and outward branches of
knowledge during this short period. Performing Hajj without
a photograph is nothing less than a miracle.
al-Jamiat al-Ashrafiya
It is not just an institute; rather it is major university of the
subcontinent. It is a flag bearer of truth, a memoir of the
akābir scholars, a guardian of the Hanafi madhhab and the
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teaching of Imām Ahmad Razã, the heartbeat of millions of
Muslims, the shield of Islām, an unsheathed sword against
the enemies of Islām, the life mission of Hāfiz-e-Millat, his
final wish and the result of 40 years of his sacrifices and
those of the Muslims of Mubārakpūr and an Islamic fortress
that will produce scholars who will wave the flag of Islām in
the face of falsehood till the final day.
al-Jāmiat al-Ashrafiya has made Mubārakpūr into a unique
centre of knowledge. Every year, a team of Huffaz, Qurrā’
and scholars leaves here as an army that is ready for the
opponents of Islām. This magnificent university is another
name for hāfiz-e-Millat’s sincerity. This torch of knowledge
and science is indeed a Mişbāḥ al-Úlūm and in 1972, it was
renamed al-Jamiat al-Ashrafiya after being known as Dār al-
Úlūm Ahle Sunnat Madrasa Ashrafīya Mişbāḥ al-úlūm.
Graduates of the institute are spread far and wide from Asia
to Europe serving the religion. The monthly Ashrafiya is
published regularly and punctually and is representative of
the culture of the Jāmia. Graduates affiliated with al-Jāmiat
al-Ashrafiya attach Mişbāħi to their names to introduce
themselves.
al-Jamiat al-Ashrafiya has become synonymous with its
founder and benefactor, Hafiz-e-Millat, such that benefiting
it is the same as benefiting knowledge, its progression is the
nations progression, promoting it is promotion of the
teachings of Aálā Hazrat, loving it is love for Hāfiz-e-Millat
and helping it is aiding the Muslim ummah. Hence, come,
move forward and support this centre of Islamic learning by
contributing and calling upon others to do the same.
[Translated from the Monthly Ashrafiya, Mubarakpur. July
2007]
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