6.

MAULANA MUHAMMED ILYAS

AND HIS KHULAFA

6.MAULANA MUHAMMED ILYAS

AND HIS KHULAFAH
1 Familv Back~round
In the last decade of the 19the century.there lived a

Bururg (saint) named Maulana Muhamrned Ismail, in a building

known as Chausth Kharnba (64 Pillared) near the famous tomb of
Harrat Nizarnuddin Aauliya of Delhi. Maulana Mahamrned lsmail
belonged to jhinjana, a small of district of Muzaffarnagar U . p . He
was married to a lady of the family of Mufti llahi Bakhsh Khandhalvi.He therefore, often visited Kandhla,which became a second
home for him.'
Maulana lsrnail's family was a branch of Siddiqui Stiaikh
clan in Jhinjhana. The clan was known for its religiousness. When
one stud~esthe pedigree of Maulana Muhammed lsrnail and Muft~
Ilahi Bakhsh, one finds out that their sixth pedigree ancestors were
common. Maulana Abul Hasan Nadvi, in his book, 'Maulana llyas
Aur Unki Deeni Da'awat,' has noted the following pedigree of

Maulana Muhamrned Ismail',' which he received from Maulana

Muhamrned Zakariya:
"Maulana Muhammed Ismail, son of
Ghulam Hussain, son of Hakirn Karim
Bakhsh, son of Hakin (I;hulam Mohiuddin,

son of Maulvi Muhamrned Sajid, son of

Maulvi Muhammed Faiz, son of Maulvi
Muhjarnrned Sharif, son of Maulvi
Muhammed Ashraf, son of Shaikh Jamal
Muhammed Shah, son of Shaikh Babban
Shah, son of

Shaikh Bahauddin Shah,

son of Shaikh Muharnmed Fazil who was

son of Shaikh Qutab Shah.")

Mufti llahi Bakhsh, father-in-law of Maulana Ismail, was

one of the foremost pupils of Hazrat Shah Abdul Aziz, son of the
famous scholar and Muhaddith Shah Waliullah of Delhi; he was a
Mufti, a writer, a debator, a critic of Arabic, Persian and Urdu and
Hakim (Physician, practicing Unani Medicine) of high stature, He
authored about forty books, out ot which Takmila of Mathnavi of
Maulana Rum is well-renowned. He was also pledged at the hands
of Shah Abdul Aziz. In spite of the fact that he himself was a Shaikh,
he pledged himself, later on, at the hands of Sayyed Ahrnad
Shahid, who was more than thirty years younger lo h i m He died
in 1245 A.H. at the age of eighty three years. HIS progeny
produced a number of scholars like Maulvi Abul Hasan (known for
his famous work Sahar-e- Haqiqah), Maulvi Akbar and Hakirn
Maulvi Ibrahim:'

Maulana Muhammed Ismail, (i.e. father of Maulana

Muhammed Ilyas). was a pious man who always liked to teach
religion and to worship in solitude. He always engaged himself in
spiritual exercise and in serving the wayfarers. He used to wait for
the thirsty labourers and would himself draw the water from the
well for them. Once, he is said to have requested Maulana Rashid
Ahmad Gangohi to make him his disciple. At this Maulana
Gangohi told him that he did not require it because he himself had
achieved perfection in Suluk. He was extremely popular among
the Delhites. Even the mutually antagonistic religious groups had
equal faith in him.4
Maulana Muhammed lsmail's second marriage was
solemnized in 1285 A.H. with grand-daughter (maternal) of
Maulana Muzaffar Hussain K a n d h l ~ iwho
, ~ was a nephew of Mufti
llahi Bakhsh Kandhlvi. Maulana Muzaffar Hussain was a learned
and pious person. He was one of the disciples of the renowned
Shaikh Shah Muhammed lshaque of Delhi, and was the Khalifah
of Shah Muhammad Yaqub. He had also seen Sayyed Ahmad
Shahid.
Maulana Muhammed lsmail always liked to offer prayers
(Salat) with Jama'at (congregation). As he lived in the outsk~rtsof
the city, there was hardly any person to give him company in the
Salat with Jama'at. He,therefore, was always looking for some

Muslims, who happened to pass from there. Once, he asked few

Musljm wayfarers their purpose of journey; they replied that they
had come for labour. He inquired what renumeration they would
get. When they told him the amount, he suggested to them that
he could provide the same if they stayed with him. They accepted
his offer."
Maulana Muhammed lsmail started teaching these
labourers of Mewat, who became the first students of the Madrasa
of Banglawali Masjid. This contact paved the way for his regular
connection with Mewat, which ultimately culminated into the great
Tablighi Movement initiated by his son Maulana Ilyas.'
Maulana Muhammed lsrnail died in 1315A.H. His funeral
was attended by a very big crowd which exceeded thousands of
persons. Maulana lsmail was s l l ~ i v e dby three sons : Maulana
Muhammed, who was born from his first wife, while the second
son Maulana Muhammed Yahya and t h e third son Maulana
Muhammed llyas were from his second wifeR
His maternal grandfather's family at Kandhla was known
for its religiosity, even the ladies of the house kept thernseives
involved in different religious exercises. The people of family were
gerlerally well- versed in the studies of the Quran and Hadith.
Maulana llyas's grandmother Bibi Ummat-ur Rahman,
popularly known as Ummibi was a lady of piety. Once lblaulana llyas

himself remarked that he saw the resemblance of her Salat only

in that of Maulana Rashid Ahrnad Gangohi."
Maulana llyas's mother Safiya herself was a Hafiz. She
used to recite more than one Ouran daily in the month of
Ramadhan. Her routine exercises included recitation of Darud five
thousand times, Ism-e-dhaf (Allah,Allah) five thousand times
Bismi1lai~-ur-RahmannirRaheem one thousand nine hundred
t~mes, Ya hayyu ya Qayyr~rr~
two hundred times. Hasbunallahi
naim a1 Wakil five hundred times, a/-humdu-lil-/ah two hundred
times, Allahu Akbar two hundred times etc..")

2. Place of Birth
Kandhla is a small town of district Muzaffarnagar situated
between Rampur Maniharan and Shamli. Its historical background
has not been recorded in detail, but its famous cal of scholars are
said to be a Buzurg Maulana Muhammed Hakim Ashraf, who had
settled there during the reign of Emperor Shah Jahan. He was an
eminent scholar, a popular physician and a man of great piety. His
generation produced a large number of Ulama Muftis. Mashaikh,
Faqihs, poets and writers. I '
Describing about the specialities of Kandhla and its
people, Maulana Zakariya writes:
"This town of district Ml~zaffarnagarwas

a part of the area between the two rivers

(Ganga and Jamuna). This area was
considered to be the center of Shari'afhand
Tariqah in the 19th century and its
reputation continues till now. This area
included some parts of Delhi and the
districts of Muzaffanagar, Meerut and
Saharanpur. In the west of this area runs
the Yamuna and in the east flows the
Ganga. The great role of this area in the
field of Shariat and Tasawwuf began with
family of Shah Waliullah and its influence
spread through the Jama'at-e81mdadi(i.e.
the disciples of the great Sufi saint Haji
lmdudullah Muhajir Makki........" I 7

3 . H r j h and Education
Maulana Muhammed llyas was born in 1303 A.H. His
tarikhi name was Akhtar llyas. He passed his early childhood in his
maternal grand father's house at Kandhla as well as with his father
at Nizamuddin.'.'

Maulana llyas studied the Uuran and the primary books

of religion in his early childhood from his father and Maulana

lbrahim Kandhlavi. It was customary for every child in his family to

memorize the Quran.. He also did the same. Maulana Muhammed
Yahya is quoted as saying in Tazkirat-ul-Khalil that Ummi bi (i.e.
the grandmother of Maulana Ilyas) often used to say:
"Akhatar! Your body smells of the Sahaba
and 1 often feel as if the faces of Sahaba
are moving alongwith you."

'"

Even Maulana mahmoood Hasan, the Shaikh-ul- t lind

made a similar remark about him when he said:"When I see Maulvi
Ilyas, it reminds me of Sahaba.""
Maulana Muhammed llyas had thought of spreading
religion fro his very childhood. The atmosphere prevalent in the
family and regular contacts with Ulama and Sufi is had strengthened
this resolve. His childhood friend Rais ul-Islam Kandhlavl, has told
that once, Maulana llyas came to Maktab with a stick in his hand
and said to him.
"

Let us start for Jihad against the

berlamaazis ( those who d o not offer

Namaaz) " "'

In Shawwal.1311 A.H. Maulana Muhammed Yayha went

to Gangoh and stayed there under the guidance of Maulana

Rashid Ahmad Gangohi Maulana llyas was not receiving regular

education at that time. Maulana Yahya, therefore suggested his
father to send Maulana llyas alongwith him. Thus, Maulana llyas
shifted to Gangoh in 1314 A.H. and started studies under his elder
brother. Gangoh had already become a

center of lslam~c

educational activities. Maulana llyas often used to sit in the

gatherings at Maulana Rashid's house. Maulana llyas passed
next ten years in Gangoh and left it after the death of Maulana
Gangohi in 1323 A.H."
Maulana Yayha's continuous illness disturbed the studies
of Maulana Muhammed llyas. Maulana Muhammed llyas however
renewed his efforts to complete his studies in 1326 A.H., when
he joined the class of Maulana Mahmood Hasan at Deoband. He
learned Tirmidhi and Bukhari from him. He then completed the
Uaurah-e-Hadifh under Maulana Yayha.ln

4& Service

aMazahir-e-Uloom

In Shawwal 1328 A.H., a large caravan left Saharanpur for

performing Hajj; this included many senior Mudamsin of Mazahire-Uloom. This created a vacuum which was filled with the
appointment of new teachers. Maulana Muhammed llyas was
among the newly appointed ones. After the return of Mudarrisin
from Hajj, while others resigned from their jobs, Maulana

Muhammed llyas continued. His salary was fixed at Rs. 131- per
month. During this period, Maulana usually taught such books
which he had not studied as he had to work very hard to get himself
prepared for the lecture. He continued his job at Mazahir-e-Uloom
for eight years after that he shifted to Delhi.'"
During this period, three important events took place: On
6th Dhee Qaad 1330 A.H. he first married with daughter of his
maternal Uncle Maulvi Rauf-al Hasan. Maulana Muhammed, his
eldest brother recited the sermon of the nikah, which was
attended among others by Maulana Thanavi who gave an important
lecture in that ceremony. This lecture has been published many
times under the title of Fawaid-a/ Sohbat (significance of

omp pan ion ship).^^

Maulana llyas went for his Hajj alongwith Maulana
Mahmood Hasan and Maulana Khalil Ahmad in 1333 A.H. Maulana
llyas was struck with the tragedy of his brother and teacher
Maulana Muhammed Yayha's death in 1334 A.H. This tragedy
was extraordinary for him because, not only, was Maulana
Muhammed Yayha his brother but he has also passed several
years under his guidance."'

B. His Migration

to B a ~ t i J&amud@

Maulana Muhamrned. the eldest brother of Maulana

llyas was looking after the Madrasa founded by Maulana lsmail at

Nizamuddin at New Delhi. In this Madras, primary lessons of Deen
were given to children; the majority of the children were from
Mewat. The people of Delhi and Mewat had immense faith in him.
Maulana Muhamrned died on 25th Rabi-ul Thani 1336 A.H.7'
After the burial of Maulana Muharnmed, at which time a
huge crowd was present, the well-wishers of the Madrasa Banglow
Wali Masjid as well as those of the family of Maulana lsmail
gathered and insisted upon IVlaulana Muhammed to shift to
Nizamuddin. They also assured him of liberal economic assistance
for the Madrasa. Maulana llyas agreed in principle but told them
that the final decision would depend on the permission of Hazrat
Saharanpuri (Maulana Khal~lAhmad).'"
Having come back to Saharanpur after a few days.
Maulana described the whole situation to Maulana Khalil. Maulana
not only gave him permission but also advised him to take one year
leave from Madrasa Mazahir-e-Uloom. He told him that when he
felt satisfied with his stay at Madrasa Nizamuddin and decided to
live there permanently, he could send his resignation to the
authorities of Madrasa Mazahir-e-Uloom. Maulana llyas passed
the following application to the Mohtamim,
"

After Salaam Masnun, I beg to state that

after the death of Maulvi Muhammed, I

wish to stay for sometime at Nizamuddin

to look after the Madrasa there, because
the well-wishers of Deen as well as my
own well-wishers are insisting upon me for
that. Seeing the excellent effects of my
father's and brother's efforts to educate
the illiterate villagers and ignorant people,
I also ate villagers and ignorant people, I
also feel inclined to stay there for sometime
so that I may also contribute to this virtuous
task. I therefore, request you to grant me
leave for one year .... . ."'l

Maulana llyas had not yet left Saharanpur, when he felt

severely ill. He reached Kandhla where his condition further
deteriorated. At one time, his relatives gave all hopes of his
survival. But soon he showed signs of improvement and he
recovered completely within a few days. He then left Kandhla for
Niramudd~n.'~
At that time Nizamuddin was a lonely place where human

beings were hardly visible. Nizamuddin was surrounded on all

sides by forest. The only building there was a mosque attached
to houses. In south of th~slived some people. In the Madrasa

attached to the mosque there lived some poor students most of

whom were from Mewat. Madrasa had no regular source then.
Maulana used to say to the students that, if they could not face this
situation, they could go home, but the students had become so
much spiritually inclined to learn Deeri that they would refuse to
leave j'''
Maulana Ali Mian quotes HajiAbdur Rahman, a colleague
of Maulana llyas that, once in his absence, he with the financial help
from some Delhites, got a few small rooms constructed. When
Maulana returned, he was extremely angry telling that the real
objective was education and not the building. Haji Abdur Rahman
described on incident when he accepted some money for Madrasa
from a business man seeking Maulana's blessings, Maulana llyas
became restless and persuaded him to return that money."

C. The

Initiation of
Mewat

IS

Educational Activities . in

Mewat

an area in south of Delhi where lived the Mews

since ancient times. This area includes parts of Gurgaon, now in

Haryana, district Alwar, Bharatpur and Mathura. The Mew
community is said to have originated from the original non-Aryan
inhabitants of India. Their history, therefore, is older than the
Rajputs of the Aryan

ancestry. The Khanzaadas of Mewat.

however are said to Rajputs According to Abul Hasan Nadvr,

whenever there is a description of Khanzaadas, Aina-e-Akbari,"'

describes that many Rajputs converted to lslam, and were
afterwards also called Mews. During the earliest Muslim rule,
Mews had become the cause of trouble for the inhabitants of Delhi
as they indulged in looting. Ghayasuddin Balban starled an
operation against them killing a large nurnber of Mews. The forest
areas near Delhi were converted into agricultural lands. The
Mews, however, regrouped themselves and struggled hard for
their survival They succeeded in establishing a state in Mewat.
One of the Khanzadas Lakhanpal who had full control of Mewat
embraced lslam in the reign of Ferozshah. It is not clear from the
history when the Mews in general converted to lslam. But Islamic
character was largely lacking in them. Maulana Nadvi has quoted
from the gazettier of Alvar published in 1876:
"

All Mews are neo-Muslims, but only in

name. The gods of their villages are the

same which are of Hindu Zarnindars.
They celebrate many Hindu festivals .......
As they observe Eid and Shab-e-Baraat,
so they do Janamashtami, Dussehra and
Dlwali. They take the services of Brahman

Pandits for fixing the date of marriage.....

Thev often add Singh to their name like

Hindus ,...When they build or dig a new

well, the first thing they do to build a
chabutara in the name of Beruji or
Hanuman ....... They do not know much
about Islam. Hardly a few of them know
the Kalima, still fewer offer Salat.... The
condition is somewhat better in parts of
Alvar, where there are Madrasas and
Mosques.....The marriage ceremonies
are performed by Brahmans but the Nikah
is recited by the Quazi. The males put on

Dhoti like Hindus. In the fifty two villages

of Mews there are only eight mosques.
They have places of worship similar to
their Hindu neighbours for example Panch
Peeera. Baisa, Chand. Khairadev, etc..
Khairadev is in the name of a Mahadevifor
whom animal

sacrifices are made. On

the day of Shab-e-baraat, the banner of

Sayyed Salar Masud Ghazi is worshipped
in evely Mew Village."'"

Maulana Abul Hasan Nadvi quotes from another gazetter

which is of Gurgaon published in 1910:

"

Mews are still carefree type of Muslims

who take part in most of the ceremonies

of their Hindu neighbours, especially, in
those ceremonies which are associated
with entertaining celebrations. Their
principle of life is to enjoy the customs of
both communities but not to follow the
laws of any of them..... Sornetimes back,
religious education was started in Mewat.
Now some Mews keep fasts; mosques
are being constructed. People have started
offering Namaaz and Mew Muslim women
have started putting on shalwars and

pyjamas instead of Ghagraas. These are

the signs of religious a ~ a k e n i n g . ' ' ~ ~

Similarly Bharatpur Gazettier says:

of Mews are the mixture of
"The c~~stoms
the H~nduand Muslim customs. They
circumcise the children, solemnize the~r
marriage w~thN~kah,bury their deads, go
to the rnazaar of Masud G h a z ~ 11)

Behraich . . . . . . . . . but do never go for Hajj.

They celebrate Holi and Diwali, do never
marry in the same 'gofra', do not give
share and property to their daughters;their
names are mixed..... They all are illiterate;
some of them are singers, who are given
big amounts ..... They also use intoxicants,
their beliefs are feeble, they have improved
now, still they are notorious for stealing
COWS

and oxen?'

Despite all these shortcomings, Mews had a number of

qualities. They were brave; though out of ignorance their bravery
had taken the shape of robbery and fighting. They had selfrespect, simplicity, determination and courage. This is why they
were not affected by heretical onslaughts."'
Before the arrival of Maulana Ilyas, the links with Mewatis
were established by his father Maulana Muhammed Ismail, who
si~cceededin winning over their confidence and faith. When they
came to know that the place which had fallen vacant after the death
of Maulana Muhammed has been filled with by his brother, they
again started coming to Nizarn~ddin.:'~
Maulana lsmail and Maulana Muhammed had made

efforts to teach the children of Mewat in Madrasa of Nizamuddin.

Maulana llyas planned to extend it and he thought it necessary that
Madrasas should be established in Mewat itself ;this would in his
scheme of reform widen the circle of religious people."-i4
The people of Mewat had been inviting him regularly to
visit Mewat. Maulana llyas, however, did not want to pay an
ordinary visit in wich the mun'ds hold nice lunches and dinners for
their Shaikhs. Maulana put a condition before them that he could
go there only if they promised to establish a Madrasa there. The
Mewatis considered it a very hard condition because they were not
habitual of getting their children admitted into schools. They
thought that it would badly affect their economic condition as
young lads were involved in other works. They, therefore, hesitated in promising that. Without getting this

condition fulfilled,

however, Maulana would not pay visit to Mewat. They insisted

upon him many times, but he refused; then a Mewati promised to
help him in starting the Madrasa and Maulana llyas gave his
appr~val.~"
Maulana llyas's visit to Mewat, therefore, opened the
way for the beginning of the f~rstMakfab there. He told the Mewatis
that their only concern was to bring the children and he himself
would arrange for the salaries of the teachers. On this tour
Maulana succeeded in establishing as many as ten Maktabs. The

movement grew rapidly and soon hundreds of Maktabs were

established in M e ~ a t . ~ "

5. Beqinning of Tablighi Movement

Soon, however, Maulana llyas realized that mere
establishment of Maktabs was not enough. First, the education in
these Maktabs was not complete. Secondly, after completing their
education, they merged again in the general ignorance of the
people. The number of students was too small to influence large
population. Thirdly, the Maktabs were addressing only the children,
and the adult continued to indulge in immoral and wrongful
activities. At the same time it was not possible to educate the whole
population in these Madrasas. Apart from these, the people there
were fighting each other and, whenever. Maulana llyas visited
Mewat, he was approached by the belligerent parties for justice.
Maulana llyas judged these cases equitably and this had made
him popular among them.:lr
An important event occured in Rabi ul-Awwal 1344 A.H.
Maulana Khalil Ahrnad, the renowned Buzurg and head Mudarris
of Madrasa Mazahir-e-Uloom visited Mewat alongwith some other
Ulama. A very large crowd gathered to meet them and large
number of people pledged at the hands of Maulana Khali1.38
In the same year Maulana llyas went for H a j in the

company of Maulana Khalil Ahmad. During his stay at Madina, he

felt as if he had been ordered by Allah to start the Tablighi
Movement. He became restless because he considered himself
to be unworthy of the huge task. He discussed this with a Buzurg
who consoled him saying that one who had inspired his heart
would also get the task done by him. His anxiety vanished and he
returned from Madina to Kandhla in Rabi-ul-Thani. 1345 A.H.39
Immediately after returning to Nizamuddin, Maulana
llyas started Tablighi Gasht, which was the name given to a small
tour or march with the purpose of meeting people and explaining
to them the purpose of their life and the obligations and boundations
of Deen over them.4u
An Ijtamah, the name given in Tablighi Movement to the
gatherings of people for hearing the sermons was organized at
Noh. Maulana llyas requested the gathering to form some parties
of Tabligh. A party was thus organized after every month, which
would tour a specified village for eight days. It was decided that
the tour would culminate on the next Friday at the Sonepat (district
Gugoan), where, after the Juma prayer, programme for the next
week would be decided. Thus the next Juma prayer was planned
to be offered at Tawdu and the next one at Nagina (Firozpur). Such
programmes continued for many year^.^'
In 1351, Maulana llyas went for his third Ha;;. After

returning from there, he decided to speed up the work He now

toured Mewat with a big party consisting of more than hundred
companions. This tour lasted a month. Another tour of the same
period was then completed. During these tours, Maulana used to
divide his companions into several groups and would send them
into different villages for GashL4'
Maulana Muhammed llyas knew that it was not feasible
for the villagers to learn religion on regular basis. He therefore,
persuaded them for joining short tours and help in spreading the
message of God. Once they joined the tour, they would feel
themselves to be the part and parcel of the Movement and this
would help them in learning Deen.43
During these tours, Maulana Muhammed llyas arranged
for their training through recitation of the Quran and reading 01
books on Sahabak way of life. But to involve people in a movement
which required leaving their homes and children was not an easy
task. Furthermore, there was a fear of these wayfarers to be
hooted down by the people of the areas visited by them. Maulana
llyas knew that the district of Muzaffarnagar and Saharanpur had
comparatively more religious environment than any other place in
the country. He, therefore, planned that the groups of Mewatis
should be persuaded to tour these places where there were more
chances of their being received with enthusiasm. Maulana llyas

arranged the first tour of Mewatis to his own native place Kandhla.
Initially, most of the people refused to go but Maulana used all
possible ways to convince them and, ultimately, succeeded in
forming a party of ten persons.44
The people of Kandhla welcomed them with the warmth
of their hearts. After this ,another party of ten to eleven persons
was selected to visit Raipur, the town of the great Sufi Buzurg
Maulana Abdul Qadir and Maulana Abdul Rahman Raipur~.~!)
The Tablighi Movement had thus made a successful
beginning; it was now time to consolidate and organize it so it
became a permanent Movement. Maulana llyas got a map of all
the tehsils and villages drawn; a register was kept to record the
performances of all Muballighs (persons engaged in the Tabligh).
The number and the strength of the towns visited grew steadily.
From every Jalsa emerged new parties to join the M~vement.~"
The volunteers joining the Tablighi Movement had been
increasing. The Movement had in fact blossomed into a revolution.
The old customs based on false beliefs started dying down. Every
village now had several Mosques.The state of Mewat which had
only a few Mosques had now thousands of them. Hundreds of
Maktabs and Madrasas had been established. A large number of
Ulama and Huffaz were produced, keeping beard became common,
the practice of usury disappeared, alcoholism which was previously

part of the normal life, now became a rare habit. There was an
extraordinary fall in the incidence of crime. The marriages now
became simple affairs, devoid of unnecessary c ~ s t o r n s . ~ '

6. Consolidation of Work in Mewat and its Spread

Outside Mewat
Maulana llyas went for Hajj in 1356 A.H. after returning,
he involved himself in TablighiMovement with renewed enthusiasm.
The Mewati parties increased their visits to the towns and
qasbahs of Uttar Pradesh. Now many parties started visiting
Mohallas of Delhi. New parties began to be formed in Mohallas.
Weekly gashts were organised. Maulana llyas had realized that
the religious atmosphere in the cities was also getting polluted.
The masses had gone away from Deen. Even in the elites, the
religious influence was getting reduced to sorne scattered groups.
He feared that if the cities were not involved in Tablighi Movement,
these also would become the centers of ignorance, desbeliefs and
worldliness. Furthermore, he felt that the Muslims of the cities had
made Deen difficult to follow. They considered it impossible to
follow Deen in their routine worldly affairs. In a letter to Miari
Muhamnied lsa of Ferozpur Namak, Maulana llyas wrote:
"The meaning of the world as one
understands commonly is very wrong. To

busy oneself in financial activities is not

the world. God curses the world and God
cannot ask his creatures to follow what is
accursed. What is done in order to follow
the injunctions of God and what is done
within the boundaries of halal and haram.
is Deen. And to involve in activities in
violation of the boundaries set by God and
for self-interest is what is called D ~ n i y a . ' ' ~ ~

The masses used to think that it was impossible to

understand Deen without taking admission in Madrasas. it was
not feasible for most of them to join Madrasa as to complete the
course there required many years. Maulana Ilyas, therefore.
decided that the common Muslims should be invited to take part
in short programs. For this purpose, Maulana first organised long
stay of Mewaties in the mosques of Delhi. Initially, they faced stiff
resistance. But the conditions soon eased.""
Maulana Muhammed llyas saw an important role of

Ullama belong~ngto big institutions in Tablighi Movement. He,

however, thought that mere lectures by them would not be
enough. They should themselves conie on the streets and knock
at the doors of the common people. He described his feelings in

a letter to Maulana Zakariya.

"For a long time I have been thinking that
unless the religious scholars themselves
visited the cities and villages and knocked
at the doors themselves, the Tablighi
Movement cannot reach its zenith ..... It
would be nice if the students were trained
in their student life for "Amr bil Maruf wa
nahi anil rnunkar" (enjoin good deeds and
forbid evils), under the supervision of the
teachers, otherwise these studies would
go waste.

Maulana Muhammed llyas directed the Mewatis now to

visit the centres of religious education namely, Deoband,
Saharanpur, Raipur and Thana Bhawan. Initially, there was some
reluctance on part of the teachers of these Madrasas on the
ground that it could adversely affect the studies of the students;
soon their doubts disappeared. In fact they started getting
impressed by the achievements of the Tablighi parties. Maulana
Ashraf Ali Thanvi himself had certain misgivings about the
Movement. He thought that. when learned scholars faced
resistance on the path of Deen, how could the uneducated

7ablighis succeed. His misgivings however were soon replaced

by the appreciation of the work.5'
Though the Tablighi work was making a steady progress,
Maulana Muhammed llyas himself was not satisfied. He was
particularly worried about the lack of interest shown by the
educated Muslims including the Ulama. Maulana Ali Mian describes
five main reasons for this lack of interest: first, that was a period
of turmoil and a number of political Movements were in full swing.
Therefore, the people found it hard to join the silent and peaceful
Tablighi Movement; secondly, people knew very little about the
Movement; thirdly, the word Tabligh itself was a big hindrance in
understanding the full implications and facts of the Movement.
People regarded it only a superficial Movement. Fourthly, the
persons inviting the scholars to this Tahrik were themselves
members and they often indulged in such discussions as complicated the meaning of Tabligh. The new-comers, therefore, found it
hard to understand it. Fifth, when people saw the simple Mewatis,
they could not get a good impression about Maulana Ilays, whom
they considered a Shaikh of "ordinary uneducated M e ~ a t i s " . " ~
Maulana Muhammed llyas was ever contemplating upon
the ways to remove the weaknesses of the Tabligh programme
and to improve it so that it could spread rapidly. Maulana's heart
was overwhelmed with emotions. He knew the importance of

Saharanpur in the matter of Islamic studies; he now directed the

Tablighiparties to visit the district of Saharanpur and Muzaffarnagar.
He himself toured the areas adjacent to Kandhla alongwith Shaikh
ul-Hadith, Maulana Zakariya in Jamadi us-Thani in 1356 A.H. In
1359 A.H., it was decided that the Mewati parties should keep on
going to Saharanpur without any break.""
By 1360, the fame of Maulana llyas and his Tablighi
Movement had spread far and wide. Many articles were written on
its success. A team from Dar-ul-Uloom, Nadvat- ul-Ulama. Lucknow
went to meet Maulana Muhammed llyas and to study the facts of
Da'wat in Mewat.

s4

Maulana llyas now decided to organize the work in the

capital. He nominated Hafiz Maqbul Hasan as Amir of all the
Tablighi parties of Delhi. It was decided that the activists should
stay on the night of Friday at Nizarnuddin so that they could
coordinate their efforts. All Tablighi parties were also directed to
gather at the Jama Masjid on the last Wednesday of every month
Maulana llyas h~mselftook part and delivered sermons in these
gatherings. A large number of people, particularly the educated
class of Delhi had started joining the gatherings at the Jama
Masjid. The businessmen in particular helped the IWovement with
their financial assistance. They would often carry food to Mewat
in vans. The religiosity in these businessmen increased

considerably. There was a time when they would not even keep
a bearded man as servant in their shops; now they started keeping
beards themselves. Previously, they considered it a great loss to
take leave from their business activities for the purpose of Deen.
They regarded Gasht as a mean work Now they considered it a
grace of God if they spared some time for Deen.']"
Meanwhile, Jalsas continued to be organised in different
parts of Mewat. A Jalsa was organised every month at a selected
place and a big Jalsa was held every year at the Madrasa of Noh.
These Jalsas were attended by the Tablighi parties from Delhi, the
businessmen, the people staying at Nizamuddin and Mudarrisin
of Mazahir-e-Uloom Deoband, Nadvat-ul-Ulama Lucknow,
Madrasa Fatehpuri, Delhi. The popularity of Maulana llyas had
grown so much in Mewat that the people gathered in big numbers
to have a glimpse of him and to have a hand shake with him,
Though many speeches were delivered in the Jalsas the main aim
was to form new parties for visiting different areas. The success
of a Jalsa was measured not by the size of crowd nor by the
number of speeches but by the number of parties that were formed
there The people of Noh served the guests w~thgreat love and
affection. They used to meet every visitor as if he were a b ~ g
Buzurg or Sha~kh""

A h~storicalJalsa was organ~sedon 8th,9th and 10th

Dhee-Qaad of 1360 A.H. (1941 A.D.) at Noh. Mewat did never

witness before a gathering like that which attracted twenty five
thousand people. Maulana Husain Ahmad Madani led the Juma
prayer The number of the Namaazis was so high that even the
roads were full. After the Salat, the Jalsa began. A large number
of people came from distant places to attend the Jalsa. These
included eminent personalities like Khan Bahadur Haji Rashid
Ahmad, Wajiuddin and the former Cabinet Minister Muhammed
Shafi Quraishi."'
The Tahlighi parties had started going to a number of
other cities. They toured Khurja, Aligarh, Agra, Bulandshar,
Meerut, Panipat. Sonipat, Karnal, Rohtak etc. In 1362 A.H., a party
visited Karachi on the invitation of Haji Abdul Jabbar and Haji
Abdus Sattar. This opened the way of work in Sindh. Many parties
were formed in different Mohallas of Karachi. In the month of
Rajab! the same year Maulana llyas led a party of Delhi and Mewat
to Lucknow. They stayed there for several days and eminent
scholars like Maulana Ehteshamul Hasan, Maulana Zakariya,
Maulana Manzur Nomani. Maulana Abdul Haq Madani and
Maulana Sulaiman Nadvi, took part in the deliberation^.^^

7. Style of Teaching
Several writers including Maulana Abul Hasan Nadvi and

Maulana Zakariya have commented on the style of teaching of

Maulana Ilyas.Maulana Abul Hasan Nadvi says that, whenever he
gave lessons on Hadith, he would first do Wudu (ablution) followed
by two Raka'ats of Nafil. He used to say that the rights of Hadith
were even more, that was minimal respect due to the sayings of
the Prophet. Maulana llyas would never talk to anybody while he
was engaged in teaching Hadith; even if a man of high status
came, he would not leave teaching to turn his attention toward him;
instead he would keep in his attention towards students. He
worked very hard with the students. Sometimes he would teach
as many as eighty students different lessons simultaneously.
Such was his craze for teaching that he could finish the lesson of
Mustadrak Hakim even before the morning prayer.!'"
Maulana Zakariya says that Maulana llyas had a distinctive
style of teaching. He concentrated on his own studies. He would
lay special stress on language and grammar. He did not always
bind himself to the syllabus;he would sometimes teach others
books if he thought that these would help the student^."^'
Maulana Zakariya has also described how he himself
studied Hadith from Maulana 1lyas.When he along with a colleague
would got Maulana Ilyas, he would sit with his eyes closed
Maulana Zakariya and his friends would open a book and put it irl
front of h ~ mThey
.
would start reading themselves. Maulana would

only listen and would interrupt at slightest mistake. When, however

there was the big mistake, he would close the book which signaled
the end of the class.61

8. Performance of Haiis
Pilgrimages lo Hijaz played an important role in the
religious career of Maulana Muhammed.llyas. He performed his
first Hajj in 1333 A.H. When he came to know about the intention
of Maulana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri and Maulana Mahmood
Hasan to go for the Hajj that year, he turned restless. He felt as
if I the world would become dark in the absence of these
personalities. He wanted to accompany them, but for that he
required permission from his relatives. His sister offered to give
him

her ornaments for this purpose. Then he sought the

permission of his mother and brother. Lastly, he wrote a letter to

Maulana Kahlil to give him the permission .He permitted him
saying that rather than selling the jewelry of his sister, he should
preferably take the money from his relatives. While Maulana Khalil
Ahmad boarded the first ship, he went by the second ship along
with Maulana Mahmood Hasan. He left India in Shawwal 1333
A.H. and returned in Rabi-ul-7-hani and rejoined the Madrasa
Mazahir-e-Uloom as Mudarris.".'
Maulana llyas performed his second Hajj after he had

already started Tabligh movement. Till then, however, it was limited

to establish Madrasa in deferent areas of Mewat. A large number
of students were taking Islamic education in those Madrasas but
Maulana himself had started feeling dissatisfaction over it. He was
pondering over the idea of reaching the masses and bringing
them closer to Islam. In Shawwal1344 A.H., he left India alongwith
Maulana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri; before leaving Bombay, he
also passed some timeat Hyderabad. In Hijaz when his companions
were ready to depart from Madina, they found Maulana llyas in a
strange condition of restlessness and anxiety. He was not ready
to leave Madina. His companions discussed the matter with
Maulana Khalil Ahmad. He advised them not to persuade Maulana
llyas but to either wait for him or go without him. They preferred
to stay and wait. Maulana llyas has been quoted as saying that,
during his stay at Madina, he felt the inspiration to start the Tablighi
Movement. He felt as if a Divine voice told him that he had to do
an important task. This made him restless. He asked an Arif about
it, who told him not to worry because if it was the Divine will; he will
be helped by the God himself in accomplishing that task. Maulana
llyas now felt pretty comfortable and decided to return. He stayed
in Harmaeen ( Mecca & Madina) for a period of five months and
returned to Kandhla on 13th Rabi-ul- Than;, 1345 A.H. Soon he
started the Tablighi Gasht."j

His third H a j came in 1351 A.1-l. The journey began soon

after the appearance of the moon of Ramadhan. He offered
Taravih at the station of Delhi and then boarded the train destined
to Karachi. He was accompanied by Maulana Ehtasham ulHasan. On 2nd. Muharram 1352 A.H., he reached Madina from
Mecca and returned to India on 2nd. Jamadi-ul Awwal. Describing
about this Hajj, Maulana Ehtasham ul-Hasan wrote in a letter to
Maulana Zakariya:
"Most of his time passes i r ~Haram. 'There
is regular discussion among the people
about the Tablighi Movement and Maulana
himself misses no opportunity to say a few
words about the importance of Tabl~gh."~~

Maulana llyas felt more satisfied now and after returning

he found himself in greater strength to resume the work.
The success of Tablighi Movement had generated a
desire at the holiest centres of Islam to start the work there as well
because the Meccans and Madinites were the right people to
welcome it and then to spread it throughout the world. This desire
reached its peak in 1356A.H. and he started for Hajjon 11th DheeQaad. He left with his son, Maulvi Muhammed Yusuf, Maulvi lnam
ul-Hasan, Maulvi Noor Muhammed, Haji Abdur Rahman, Maulvi

Idris, Maulvi Jamil, Mutawalli Tufail Ahniad, Maulvi Zahirul Hasan

and Master Mahmood Hasan. Before his departure, he nominated
Maulvi Sayyed Raza Hasan, Maulvi Maqbul Hasan and Maulvi
Muhammed Zakariya to look after the affairs of the Tabligh
Movement in his absence. There was a constant discussion about
the Tabligh and the manasik of Ha;; in the ship. In Jeddah, he
invited important personalities to his chamber and gave speech
about the aims of Tabligh. They appreciated the efforts off
Maulana Ilyas. In Mecca he did not find time to discuss about the

Tabligh with the people but in Meena he had several rounds of

discussions with the pilgrims and he also addressed a gathering.
After the formalities of Hajj were over, he discussed the matter with
Indians living there. They opposed the idea. He then had a talk with
Maulana Shafiuddin, who was a Khalifah of Haji lmdadullah
Muhajir Makki and had migrated from India to Mecca. He
appreciated his stand and hoped for its success with the assistance
of God. He also had a chance to speak at a party at the house of
Muhammed Saeed Basalaama Makki, who had many reservations
about Maulana's remarks.""
Maulana llyas also meet a party of Hajjs belonging to
Bahrain. They promised to start the work in their country. There
he had a rneeting with some Indian businessmen living in Hijaz.
Initially, they were reluctant but then they agreed on the condition

that the permission of the Sultan of Hijaz should be sought. It was

resolved that the aims and objectives of Tabligh would be written
down in Arabic and would be sent to the Sultan. After a lapse of
two weeks, Maulana Ilyas, alongwith Maulana Haji Abdullah
Dehlvi, Abdul Rahman Mazhar, Shaikh ul-Mufawafin and Maulana
Ehtashamul Hasan met the Sultan. He gave them a warm
welcome when they told him about the Tabligh; he gave a long
speech on Tawhid, Oneness of God, Sunnah and Shariat. Next
day the Sultan departed from Riyadh.

""

Maulana Ehtashumul Hasan noted in brief the aims and

objectives of Tabligh and submitted it to Head Qazi Shaikh ulIslam Abdullah bin Hasan. He recommended the matter for the
final approval to the NaibAmir Faisal. Maulana's friends meanwhile
kept themselves busy meeting the people and convincing them
about the importance of Tabligh. Once it happened that Maulana
llyas was discussing something with his friends; a man come to
the door and addressed them saying,
"Keep doing your work. If you know the
reward for the work being done hy you,
you will not be able to tolerate." "'
Saying this he went and Maulana llyas continued his
discussions.
On 25th of Safar, Maulana llyas left Mecca for Madina

and started convincing people about Tabligh there. He alongwith

Maulvi Sayyad Mahrnood and Maulvi Ehtashamul Hasan paid a
visit to the Amir of Madina, who admired their endeavor^.^^
While staying in Hijaz, Maulana llyas kept himself informed
about the happenings in Mewat and Delhi through letters. After
fifteen days of his stay at Madina, he decided to return to India."'

9. The Last Davs of His Life

Maulana Muhammed llyas always lived with health
problems. The extraordinary burden of the work had caused
further deterioration in his physical condition. In November 1943,
A.D. he developed dysentery from which he never fully recovered.
Describing about his condition Abdul Jabbar, a friend of him wrote
in a letter:
"By the grace of God, Maulana is feeling
better now, but the weakness persists.
Despite the instructions by Hakim not to
speak, he does not stop that; he says that
it is better to die speaking for the Tabligh

than improving health silently. He also

says that the Ulama are not paying due
attention to the work. Even if they have to
take debt for its work they should not

worry. Allah will provide them sufficiency.

He says that his disease

IS

a gift and he

thought that people would come to him at

last now to inquire about his health, but
they do not come. He is witnessing the
benefits of this. When he said this in front
of me, I just can't tell you hls ~ondition.""~

When a party from Lucknow visited Delhi in Moharram

1363 A.H. (January 1944 A.D.), they saw that Maulana llyas had
become considerably weak but he still led the prayers himself, and
gave speech as often as before. But , when he wanted to rise from
sitting, he required the help of others lblaulana Muharnmed Yusuf
Kashmiri was also present. Maulana llyas was making strenuous
efforts to convince the Ulama about the significance and greatness of the Tabligh work. He was pleading before them that Da'wat
was in fact the~rduty and they alone were worthy of that onerous
task. He would also be extremely humble saying that he was like
a man who saw fire somewhere and started calling people to
extinguish that. But the extinguishers were others and not he,
while on one hand he would try to convlnce Ulama, on the other,
he would appeal to the people of Delh~,the activists of Tabligh to
benefit from their knowledge and ideas. Maulana's efforts showed

results. Many Jalsas were organised in which the Ulama including

Mufti Kifaitullah, Maulana Abdul Hasan, Maulana lmran Khan and
several others participated."
One of the aims of Da'wat was to bring different classes
of people close and to reduce differences among them so that they
made combined and co-ordinated efforts in Islam. In one of the
Jalsas at Mewat in which mainly the Ulama were invited. Maulana
Abul Hasan Ali Nadvi spoke on the necessity of continuous link
between the Ulama and the masses. He told them that if the Ulama
failed to develop proper links with the masses, they would become
a minority of untouchables in the society. He irregularly meeting
with the Ulama and the respect in their hearts for him increased
con~iderably.~~
By March 1944 A.D. Maulana Muhammed llyas became
too weak to lead the prayers. He, however, still offered Salat with
Jama'at. It was at this time that Maulana Hafiz Hashim Jan
Mujaddid visited him. Maulana llyas felt very happy at his arrival.
It was followed by the visit of Maulana Sayyed Abdul Ali, brother
of Maulana Nadvi. Maulana directed the organizers of Tabligh to
utilize the opportunity and to use the two vis~torsfor the Tabligl,
work at Delhi."
On Maulana llyas's request the Ulama of Madrasas
gathered there. These included Maulana Tayyab, the late Mohtamim

of

Dar-ul-Uloom Deoband, Maulana Mufti Kifaitullan, Maulana

Shafi, the Mohtamim of Madrasa Abdur-Rab Delhi, Maulana

Lateef, the nazirn of Madrasa Mazahir-e Uloom. Maulana Aijaz Ali
and Shaikh-ul- Hadith Maulana Muhammed Zakariya; Maulana
Abdul Qadir Raipuri also visited R a i p ~ r . ' ~
Meanwhile, a Jarna'at was sent to Peshawar, where they
successfully introduced the work. This was followed by the arrival
of a party from there to New Delhi. The visitors included Mr.
Arshad, Maulana Ahsanullah Nadvi and Mr. Abdul Qudoos.
Describing his observations and impressions, Arshad Sahab
writes:
".......Ona cot Hazrat (Maulana llyas) was
sitting with the help of pillows ..... his face
was full of glow and his body was nothing
but bones....... While taking food Maulana
spoke thus
1) Hakim Sahab! I do consider it an
obligation under Shari'at to follow your
instructions. Is it not that I can no more
benefit from standing in Namaaz.

2) 0 brothers !Allah loves all His bondsmen

even those who do not believe in Him... . . . .
To serve the believers is the real slavery of

God. To humble ourselves for the honour

of the believers is the foremost objective
of our tahrik ......

After that, he came out

with the help of a stick and two assistants

and spoke thus:

1) 0 brothers ! We have gone astray from

the path of the Prophet; toachieve political
power or government cannot be the aim of
Muslims. But if one gets power as a result
of treading the path of the Prophethe
should not avoid it ........

2) Remember that, by describing the

shortcomings of Muslims, these cannot
be alleviated. Instead one should
enumerate whatever small virtues they
have. This will automatically remove their
~hortcomings.~~
After Salaf Hazrat again addressed
them:
"See, you have not come for occupying
the post, do not let your time be wasted.
Always

keep

yourself

busy

in

remembrance and learning....... .On 13th

April 1944 A.D., Hazrat said after tea. As

earlier prophets brought Shariat, likewise
our master brought Shariat. The evangel
of Hazrat lsa did not cancel the Taurah;
there were only some injunctions. But the
Quran brought by the Prophet canceled all
previous Books........

The distinctive

feature of our Prophet is the way of

Tabligh. Before Prophet the Prophethood

was to continue, but after him it ended. So
now the responsibility came on his
followers .... ."lfi

At the time of Asr, it started ra~ning;the programme of

Tabligh was postponed; Hazrart came out and angrily asked why
the Gasht was not done. He described the sacrifices of the
Mewatis. He then asked a poor Mewati to come near him and said
"When I asked him for the first time to do

Tablrgh, he asked what Tabl~ghwas. I

asked him to teach Kalima to the people.
He said that he himself did not know the

kal~ma.I told him to say the same to the

people and tell them not to repeat the

mistake committed by him and to learn the

Kalima from someone."

People were impressed by his speech and started for the Gasht.
By Allah's grace, the rain also stopped.""
Maulana Nadvi has then reproduced some description
provided by al-Furqan, a journal edited by Maulana Manzur
Naumani,
"In the last week of April, Maulana Sayyed
Ataullah Shah Bilkhari came for inquiring
his health. Two days before, Maulana had
a severe attack that had greatly increased
the weakness. When he came to know
about Shah Saheb's arrival, he said to me
that he had to have conversation with
Shah Sahab. And I should bring my ear
near his mouth so that I can speak loudly
to Shah Sahab whatever he whispered in
my ear. But when Shah Sahab came in
after a few minutes, Maulana gained
strength and then spoke continuously for
half an hour

When he had an attack

and regained consciousness, he rec~ted

thrice this verse of Quran-

to help the

believers is their right on us. Then he

called me and said: Maulvi Sahab, this is
Allah's promise that his task will be
accomplished with his help. But the
condition is that there should be complete
faith in His promise of help and one should
not let his efforts decrease^

7 I1

After a few moments of deep

silence, he uttered thus:
Would the Ulama had taken the control of
the work and then he could depart. It was
a strange sight; the more the condition of
Hazrat deteriorated, the more sentimental
he became about the Tabli(gh. Throughout
his illness he was either worried about the
revival of Deen. or was praying for the
Prophet or was giving instructions about
the work

.Maulana did not tolerate

talking on anyothersubject-

.When

somebody inquired about his health, he

sad.

"Health and disease go alongwith man;

well-being and ill-being -there is nothing in
them. The real well-being is that one does
the task for which he has been sent to the
world and the soul of the Prophet feels
,"PI

On 23rd June, a party left for Noh under Maulana

Muharnrned Yusuf. It included Maulana Zafar, Maulana Muharnrned
Manzur, Maulana Muharnrned Zakariya, Maulvi Arnir Ahrnad,
Professor Abdul Mughani, Maulvi Sayyed Azizur Rahrnan and
others. The Jalsa at Noh was extraordinary successful. But the
people missed there Maulana Muharnrned llyas who had been the
founding spirit behind the whole Movement. Maulana Muharnrned
llyas had now realized that the time of his departure from the world
was very near. He, therefore, requested Maulana Zafar Ahrnad
Thanavi, Maular~aMuharnrned Manzur and many others not to
go.nn
Maulana's condition was deteriorating rapidly. Dr.
Shaukatullah Ansari had diagnosed his illness as Tuberculosis. Dr
Lateef differed m
i diagnosis describing it as Chronic Arnoebisis.
but his treatment failed. While he was fighting the last battle of life,
the work began by him had gained in strength and health

considerably."' Jama'ats and Jalsas were being organised in

rapidly increasing number of cities and qasbas.Maulana llyas was
still in complete command of the whole Movement. While lying on
the bed, he gave necessary instructions and knew about the
progress of the work. Whenever somebody told him that some
speaker was delivering a lengthy speech, he used to send a
message to cut it s h o t m
On the night of 13th July, he inquired what the next day
was. It was to be Thursday. He then inquired if his clothes had any
unclean patch. On having being replied in negative, he felt c
comfortable.He offered lsha (prayers) with Jarna'at but had to
leave it incomplete due to bowel disturbance. Then he offered
Salat in his own room, and then inquired Maulvi lnamul Hasan
about a Du'a and recited it. At 12 O'clock, he felt restless; the
doctor gave the tablet. 'Throughout the night he kept on saying
Allahu Akbar. In the late night he called Maulvi Muhammed Yusuf
and said to him: "Yusuf ! come, meet me. I am going." Within few
hours before the Adhan (call to prayer) of Fajr prayer, his soul left
his body. In the morning the people, amidst tears, appointed
Maulana Muhammed Yusuf as his successor. The Ulama gave
him the bath. The news had spread throughout the city and the
people had gathered in a large number there at Nizamuddin. The
narnaaz of Janaza was offered after Zuhr. By this time a sea of

people had reached there. Shaikh-ul- Hadith Maulana Muhammed

Zakariya led the prayers, after which he was buried in the south
eastern corner of the Mosque on the sides of his father and
brother's grave^.^"
Maulana Muhammed llyas was survived by a son Maulana
Muhammed Yusuf and a daughter, who was married to Shaikh-

ul-Hadith Maulana Z a k a r i ~ a . ~ "

10. His Morals and Personal Qualities

11) His Faith And Self- Accountability
Maulana Muhammed llyas had extraordinary faith in
Allah, which was reflected in every single act of his life. Selfaccountability was also very prominent in has thinking. Maulana
Abul Hasan Nadvi has quoted several excerpts from his letters to
stress this quality of him:
"The secret of religion is faith alongwith
self-accountability . . . .

Whatever

instructions we received about any act, to

have faith in them and to believe in themsi ;

the hidden faith."H5

"Sometimes one becomes very glad on

his small achievements or seeing others'

mistakes; one would always try to avoid

misuriderstandings

The real

success is to endeavor and not to wait for

the results. The real reward, for good
deeds is sawab and that is linked only with
involvement in religious task. It has nothing
to do with the results in the world.""

The whole Tablighi Movemerit of Maulana Muhammed

llyas was to please God, to follow the Prophet, to guide people
towards welfare and to make efforts for the success in the
Hereafter. Maulana thought that the life was short and the best
way to pass it was to invite people towards the path of welfare. He
thought,
"Even if a person offers prayers throughout
the night and recites one Quran daily and
gives lakhs of rupees in alms, he can not
become equal in reward to one who has
invited thousands of people towards the
duties of the religion."

He even suggested to his friends and religious scholars

of high reputation to become the source of ~mprovementin others'

lives. Maulana Ali Mian writes about h ~ mthat:

"his every action, every interest and
participation in every activity was aimed
for the benefit of Deen. It was for this that
he discussed and spoke and participated
in different functions and it was also due
to this that he became pleased or
displeased. Anything which is devoid of
this, he had no interest or link with that. It
was his attitude even in the smallest of the
routine affairs."

According to Maulana Manzur Nomani, he would not

perhaps drink and would not offer a cup of tea to anybody without
purpo~e.~'

(ii) Attentiveness
Maulana llyas had reduced all his attentions and efforts
for one aim, which was to invite the people to the path (Deen). He
had written to Shaikh ul-Hadith that it was his desire to keep his
mind, thought, t ~ m eand energies involved in nothing but the same
work. He felt that the soul of the Prophet was in pain on account
of the wrongdoings of the people and it was his duty to lessen that

pain. He used to say that while that activities of others were also
important for him, the whole center of attention should be the task
assigned to him by God. He did not even like to listen or talk
anything which was not inconsistent with the Tabligh. Whenever.
he was in a gathering or attended a function, he always thought
for an opportunity to convey his message to the people present
there. Once, he was attending a marriage ceremony; suddenly he
stood up and started addressing the gathering:
"Today it is the day of happiness in your
life. 'This day you try to please even the
lowest class. Even a sweeper is pleased
by you through gifts;does it behave you
that while you please even a sweeper, you
don't worry about pleasing the P r ~ p h e t . " ~ "

After that he told people about the real aim of life and
Invited them to join the Movement.
Once a marriage was to be solemnized in Maulana
liyas's own family. On this occasion, he sent the following Invitation
"In this period, I regard the gatherings for
such

ceremonies

as a proof of Muslims'

lack of concern (for their real aim). But

because senior scholars and mashaikh

are expected to attend the ceremony, I do

request you to grace to occasion in order
to get the benefits of both the worlds and
so that I may also have an opportunity to
introduce my Tablighi Programme."""

Maulana llyas did not like to waste any time.Once an old

envelope was found. A few minutes passed in reading and
studying it. Then, he came to know that it had already been read.
At this Maulana told a person to destroy it so that it would not waste

his time again. He regarded time as the greatest wealth of man.

It should, therefore, be spent with outmost care and no part of it

should be wasted in useless a c t i v i t i e ~ . ~ ~

(iii) Extraordinarv Struqqle

There are a large number of people in the world who write
or speak for Deen, but there are few who do the real labour.
Maulana llyas is distinguishable from others in that. He did not just
sit in a mosque or Madrasa to disseminate the knowledge of
Deen. But he went to the people to involve them in the matters of
Deen. Once he wrote to Maulana Zakariya :
"It is sincerest desire in my heart that you
pray stead~lyfor me that the movernent

initiated by me remains in action in its

entirety;its action is not made dirty by the
abundance of speech. but speech and
addresses are used only to help the
a~tiori."~'

lnspite of his illness and continuous weakness, he

worked extremely hard to establish the Tablighi Movement and
made extensive tours to every corner of Mewat and other parts of
the country. Sometimes he would walk more than twenty miles on
foot, would take food against his choice and sometimes would not
even take meal for two days. He traveled through jungles and hill
in the peak of the summers and winters and in the night and in the
day !'?
Once it happened that in the hills of Kaltajpur, while he
along with his companions was traveling in a bullock-cart, it turned
upside down. Before his companions could complain, he remarked:
'Friends, in your whole life this is the first day when you have faced
an uphill task simjlar to that at Hira. Tell me, how many times, the
Prophet faced this. We should feel ashamed of lack of effort in our
life.'Hearing this none complained and the journey was continued.
Maulana Manzur Nomani writes :
"Though physically he was lean and thin.

but he produced such a hard work for the

great cause as is impossible to imagine.
If anybody is shown the entire beauties of

Paradise and the frightening conditions

of the hell and it is said to him that if he
does a given task, he would get the
Paradise and if he doesn't do that he
would be thrown into the hell, even then his
efforts would not in all probabilities match
those of Maulana Muhammed Ilyas,
especially during his last days,"gd

Maulana considered labour as an inseparable part of

human nature. If a man would not labour for Deen, he would do
for the world. This can be visualized everywhere in the present
world. Once he said to a companion who had developed fever :
"In this era, when people are dying for the bread, is it not much
remarkable to get fever, while doing efforts for Deen."""
Once Maulana Abul Hasan Nadvi fell ill, while traveling for Tabligh
Maulana llyas wrote to him :
"I wish to congratulate you that in the
midst of fourteenth century, laboring in the
path of God became the cause of your

(iv) His concern for the Deee

There was a extraordinary natural concern in the heart
of Maulana llyas for Deen. The diminishing influence of Deen and
the increasing influence of Kufr always kept him restless-his
sensitive heart and mind and his awakened spirit and conscience!"'
Once Maulana Ali Mian alongwith Maulana llyas passing by the
Red Fort asked if he had ever seen the Red Fort. He replied,
"To go to see the Red Fort is an act of shamelessness for me.
I have seen it only in my childhood." Whenever he passed by a
place of grandeur he would ask his companions to recite Qunute-Nazila because it could affect the /man adversely. Maulana also
disliked the examinations of the government Universities because
they linked the man not to Allah and his Deen but to the world and
its materiali~m."~'
Maulana llyas always emphasized that the Shariat should
be followed in all spheres of lives. He wrote in a letter to Maulana
Abdul Lateef. the Nazim of Mazahir -e-Uloom :
"More emphasis should be laid on that the
people hold their panchayats, its business
and all its decision according to
Shariat.Without this their following of Islam

would be defective. Sometimes disrespect

of Shari'ah or lack of concern for it may
endanger the faith and one may commit
kufr ( d i ~ b e l i e f ) " . ~ ~

In the same letter Maulana llyas spoke at the overreaction

of Muslims over love-marriages. He felt concern over an incident
in which a man and woman of Noh married with mutual consent
and left their village fearing the wrath of the people. But within a
few days the people traced them out and killed the man and burnt
him with the kerosene oil. Maulana stressed that what was
permissible in Shariat, how could the people react so angrily over
it. Their action was no less than Kufr..""

(v) Sobriety And Decency

Maulana llyas was a man of extraordinary intelligence.
Yet, he was decent and dignified in nature. He hardly, if ever, lost
control over his nerves, despite the fact that it was very hard for
them to hear or see anything in violation of his objectives. Once
it happened that in a journey his companions were continuously
doing indecent acts. Maulana llyas saw all this, but said in the
end , "Do you think my anger is so cheap, that I would be angry
with you."1n"

Maulana Ali Mian quotes from Munshi Muhammed Ahmad

that once Maulana llyas was staying in a mosque of Gulawti. A
Jama'at came back after Gasht and brought a lad with them. They
told Maulana llyas that he laughed at the members of the party and
did not offer Namaaz even once

Maulana heard their complaint

at which the lad again laughed loudly. Maulana kept his hand on
his chin and said: "May Allah keep you laughing and then advised
him for Namaaz in a very simple but effective manner ; the lad
immediately agreed and entered the mosque alongwith them."'"'
Maulana Ali Nadvi quotes another interesting incident told by
Maulana Ehtashamul Hasan Kandhlavi. Once on a tour for the
purpose of Tabligh, Maulana llyas put his hand on a person. He
blew into rage and said that if Maulana did not remove his hand
(from his shoulder) he would hit him with lathi (stick).Maulana at
once caught his feet saying that, "you did not mention about the
feet." Hearing that, his anger vanished and his attitude towards
Tabligh softened

'",'

(vii) Respectinq Others' Riqhts

Not only Maulana Muhammed llyas was concerned for
the rights of Muslirns in general but he also showed full regard for
the rights of the educated class, the religious scholars and the
important personalltles. Maulana Abdul Hasan Nadvi regards the

quality of recognizing others rights in relation to their positions as

a difficult art and according to him Maulana llyas was past master
at it. Maualan llyas thought taht half of Suluk and Tasawwuf was
inherent in recognising the rights and to act according to them.
He regarded it as one of the obligations in Deen.lo:'.
Maulana gave due respect not only to Muslims but also
to the Non-Muslims. During his journeys, he would never act in
violation of others rights. Once a companion occupied more place
than required in a train Maulana lmmediatelly ask him to confine
himself to his own seat so that others could also sit. Once he was
offering Namaaz in a train, a companion of him started stopping
others from moving in front of him. Maulana told him not to do so
saying that those were the rights of the people. On another
occasion it happen that due to extraordinary rush of travellers
could not buy the ticket and sit in the train hoping that the
TT.E(Travelling Ticket Examiner) but give the one . When the
ticket collector came he meet some sarcastic remarks. Maulana
got engraged and scolded the T.T.E, when he left Maulana lnamul
Hasan said to Maulana llyas that it was his right. Maulana
immediately realised his mistake and when he returned he went
to the TTE and oppol~gised.'~'~

\$H
' is

Nature pnd Behaviour

Maulana llyas had a different view of good nature and

behaviour than what is normally understood.ln his view, behaviour

cannot be nice unless it is in accordance with the Sunnah . Thus
when once a British officer was being praised for hid excellent
nature and behaviour, Maulana whispered to Maulana Ali Nadvi."Do
the disbelievers have decency of behaviour?"'")
Maulana llyas's behaviour with Muslims was always at its
best. Even on ordinary Muslim was great in his eyes. He also
suggested the same to a friend in a letter saying that,"rehearse
to regard the Muslims as great, even if they are of lower
category."'('"
Maulana llyas showed extraordinary regard for the
guests especially if they were recognized scholars or educated
persons. He would arrange the best possible food for them and
would make them sit at a place of eminence. If he was sitting on
floor, he would put a piece of cloth under his guests. This practice
was so common that every visitor felt being given a special honour.lo7
-Wr+

11. Tasawwuf
A. A Sufi Of New Dimensions

Tasawwuf, in the case of Maulana Muhammed llyas

achieves altogether a different status as compared to that with the

other Ulama of his genre. While, the others revealed mainly in
academic work, he believed in field work and in developing
spiritual relations through the streets. He traveled through buses
and trains and rode the buffalo-carts to knock at the doors of the
ignorant Muslims. To him, the real Tasawwuf was to bring the
people closer to Allah by involving them in the activities of Da'wat
and Tabligh.
The considerable portion of the childhood of Maulana
llyas passed in Gangoh which then was the residence of Maulana
Gangoh, whose popularity amongst Muslims was extremely high.
Gangoh had, therefore, became a center of scholars, learned
people and Gnostics. Maulana Muhamrned Ilyas, thus

received

the company of Maulana Gangohi and his spiritual disciples, very

early in his life. It was this atmosphere of spirituality that influenced
his mind and heart. Normally Maulana Gangohi did not pledge
children and students, but Maulana Muharnmed llyas was not an
ordinary student. He had something extraordinary in his ways and
Maulana Gangohi gave him the honour of pledging him when he
approached him for Bai't. Such was the love of Maulana Rashid
in the heart of Maulana Muhammed Ilyas, as would awaken him
in the nights to have a glimpse of his master. Maulana llyas has
been quoted as saying that when he used to do Dhikr, he felt sort

of burden on his heart. When he mentioned his condition to

Maulana Gangohi, he said that Maulana Muhammed Qasim had
made similar complaint to Haji Sahab (Haji Irndadullah) and Haji
Sahab forecast the hope that Allah would make him do some
extraordinary work. '("'
Maulana Muhammed llyas had reached Gangoh in 1314
A.H. and stayed there till 1325 A.H. when Maulana Gangohi
expired; at that time Maulana Muhammed llyas was twenty years
old. Thus, Maulana Muhamrned llyas passed 9 -10 years in the
company of his spiritual guide. At the time of Maulana Gangohi's
death, Maulana Muhammed llyas was present by him and was
continuously reciting Surah Yasin. According to his own
assessment it was one of the two biggest tragedies of his whole
life, the other being the death of his father.lO"
After Maulana Gangohi's death, Maulana Muhammed
llyas had no reason to stay at Gangoh. First he went to Deoband
and learned Trimidhi and Bukhari from Maulana Mahmood
Hasan

He requested him to pledge him but Shaikh-ul-Hind

advised him to hold hands of Maulana Khalil Ahmad. Thus, he

got pledged at the hands of Maulana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri
Maulana Gangohi's demise had brought noticeable changes in
Maulana Maulana Muhammed Ilyas. He had started remaining
calm and silent and was mostly engrossed in meditation.

IMaulana Muhammed Zakariya describes that Maulana Muhamed

llyas would hardly speak to anybody throughout the day. Instead
he would sit calmly behind the grave of Hazrat Shah Abdul
Quddoos. He uded to offer several Navafil. The extraordinary
labour and lack of concern for food had made him considerably
weak. This weakness continued throughout his life.""
Maulana Muhammed llyas had good relations with other
Khulafah of Hazrat Gangohi as well inclulding Shah Abdur Rahim
Raipuri, Maulana Mahmood Hasan, Maulana Ashraf Thanavi; in
particular he had extreme attachment with Maulana Asharf."'
Maulana Muhammed llyas was a man of action. He
always had intense desire in his heart to make struggle (Jihad) for
the sake of religion. He, therefore took Bai't -e-Jihad (pledge for
struggle)

"?

at the hands of Maulana Mahmood Hasan.

Maulana Muhammed llyas fully kept his pledgeof struggle

throughout his life. He did not confine himself to a chamber of
Madrasa but involved himself in the real field work. He regarded
Dhikr and Shughl as important things but the real Tasawwuf in his
eyes was to make sacrifices in the path of Allah.'IJ
The renowned scholar and author of the history of
Chishti Saints (Tarikh-e-Mashaikh-e-Chisht),Professor Khaliq
Ahrnad Nizami writes:
"The efforts of two Shaikhs (saints) in the

end of 19th century and begining of 20th

century are worth mentioning in the field
of the reform of inner-self (Batini-lslah).One
of them, Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanvi, was
a Khalifah of Haji lmdadullah Sahab. He
did the reformation in various aspects of
Muslims' lives for more than half a century
sitting in the corner of an old Masjid of an
ancient town (1.e Thana Bhawan). But the
movement of Maulana Thanvi could not
achieve such depth and vastness as did
the religious movement (Deeni Tahreek)
of Maulana Muhammed Ilyas. Mallana
Muhammed llyas was a murid (spiritual
disciple) of Maulana Rashid Ahmad
Gangohi. The example of foresight and
the feeling (for Muslim cause) which were
bestowed on him by Allah, can hardly be
noticed in any other Shaikh. No Shaikh
(saint) adpoted the reformative principles
of Chishitya order in the way as did
Maulana Muhammed I l y a ~ . ' ' ~ ~ ~ ~

The learned professor khaliq Ahmad further writes:

"There is nothing as effective for the
reform and training of man as is the
change of environment. The Mashaikh of
Chishtiya order believed that a large
number of the inclinations, thoughts and
feelings are due to the impact of the outer
environment (and society) on man. If it is
changed suitably, many evils get alleviated. It is mentioned in Fawaid a/-Fawad
that once during a discussion on Sohbaf
(company or association),

Hazrat

Mahboob llahi said, 'The impact of the

company is the highest.' He often inquired
his disciples about their associations. One
day he asked Amir Hasan Sanjari,
whose company do you sit mostly

.'

'in

Then

he advised him." sit in the company of the

lovers (of God) and pass (your days) in the
sorrow of love(of God)."":'"

Professor khaliq Ahmad Nizami also writes:

"Shah Kalimullah Dehlvi and Shah

Muhammed Sulairnan Tonsavi stressed

greatly

the

need to change the

environment. They believed that all the

efforts to reform the "Hidden Self' without
changing the environment

remain

futile ........ Shah Kalimullah regularly wrote

letters to his disciples and inquired from
them

about

the change in their

environments. They were directed not do

have a companion who had no interest in
their religious struggle. Shah Sulaiman
Tonsavi, in order to explain the adverse
effects of bad company, used to quote a
statement from Awarif ul-Ma'arif "There
is a snake. Whomsoever it sees gets
burnt." When even the effects of animals
are so strong one cannot imagine the
effects of bad men's ~ompany.""'~

6.

His

I d e o b

1) Action And Self Assessment

Maulana llyas believed that the

biggest proof of one's faith in Allah is one's

action and deeds and his eagerness for

continuous self-assessment. Thus

Maulana said: "Actions have no value in

themselves

They become valuable only

after their consistency with the command

of Allah which links the doer with Supreme
Being. The stronger the cause of link with
that being and the more the actions have
sincerity of heart and effort, the more
valuable will be the action^.""^

On another occasion, he said in a letter :

"For a moment, the truth of consistency
of his action with the command of God is
that the pressure of faith in the command
and its greatness should be such as
suppresses excitement, for excellent is
the creation of human nature. If there is
excitement, ~t means there is love for self
and when the excitement is due to the
command of God, its greatness and the
feeling of the need to obey it, it is love of
Faith,""!,

Describing about lbadat and Dhikr he days:

"

The clear guidelines which came to us

about lbadaat and Azkar should always be

in sight. One should have firm belief in the
promises made for them ........The main
thing is endeavoring to have full faith in
those promises . Faith is linked with heart
and, therefore, faith is the heart of lbadaaf.
One can hope for spirituality through the
same faith."""

Once a man wrote to him about his not enjoying the work
of Deen. He answered that the real thing is not enjoying or not
enjoying but to follow the commands of Allah and the Prophet after
understanding them properly. To obey an order and to follow a
command are the real big
Maulana Abul Hasan Nadv~says
"

the whole Tahreek of Maulana Mu-

hammed llyas was based on fa~thand selfassessment i.e to please Allah with the
help of these (faith and self-assessment),
to imitate the Prophet

to call people

towards goodness and welfare which

provides continuous reward and to make

arrangements for success in Hereafter."""

Here are some excerpts from Maulana Muhammed

Ilyas's letters which prove that the whole Tahreek of Tabligh was
spiritually motivated:
" Tabligh is related with heart and spirit ....

.The aim of roaming for this work is to

imitate the prophets and their leader Muhammed (S.A.W) and to please God . . . . .
.when oneinvolves himself in inviting others
towards goodness and then busies himself
in Namaaz, Quran and Dhikr, he should
regard each one of them as a treasure of
Hereafter ....... If one does raise a step in
this path of Tabligh he should consider it
only a Divine grace on him and should not
forget giving thanks to
"The steadiness in religious works is
achieved only when one always has in
front of his eyes, the sight of the Day of
Judgment. One should regard such
actlons as would be beneficial on the

judgment Day as his treasure

. . . . . . . The

more this imagination will be strengthened

the rnore will Allah provide the sweetness
of the real faith and the more imagination
one feels, the sweetness will increase in
his heart."17"
"

The efforts for making Kalimal-a1 Allah

and the propagation of Deen should be

purely for the pleasure of the Master and
one should have full faith in the rewards of
Hereafter

Which will be achieved only

through actions in the present ~ o r l d . " ' ~ '

Maulana Muhammed llyas tried to instill the belief in the

hearts of his followers in Tabligh that they were doing this for their
own benefit in the Hereafter. If they were inviting others by way of
extraordinary struggle, they should not be proud of this because
this is for their own betterment in the Hereafter.'?'?
Maulana Muhammed llyas regarded inviting people
towards goodness as more important work than offering nafils
and fasts and g~vinglakhs of rupees in alms. Because if a man
becomes the agent of improvement of the lives of the hundreds
of men, whatever they do, he will also benefit from those actions.

Even though, as individual, he may strive hard in recitations and

remembrances, the benefit of those is only for his own self. But if
he invites others to follow the right path, he helps others and,
therefore, will also become a beneficiary in their good works.".'

(ii) Restlessness For the Deen

Maulana Muhammed llyas always remained anxious and
restless for the cause of the Way of God. His concern for the
people was such as would make him get up and he would start
pacing the room. Sometimes in his conversation, excitement
would reach its peak and his tongue would not keep up with his
emotions. Commenting on this Maulana Nadvi says: "Seeing his
condition one can understand, why the messengers of God were
labeled mad or lunatic by the ignorant people."'?"
Though Tablighi movement had made a commendable
beginning and was making a steady progress, yet this would not
satisfy Maulana Muhammed Ilyas. He wanted the whole world,
particularly the born-Muslims to follow the path of God. He thought
that it was his duty to invite each and every one of them to Deen
and was therefore , skeptical about his achievements. This made
him fearful of God. In a letter to Abul Hasan Ali, he says :
"The burden of duty which God has given
me , in comparison to that, I find nothing

in my efforts, my concern and my call; so

if he accepts my efforts, it believes His

Graciousness and if the real justice is
done, I am not worthy of escaping (His
~rath)."'~!'

(iii) Love For

Once Maulana Muhammed llyas has defined lshq (love)
i.e.the love of Allah, as a condition in which as all the tastes and
interests of a man which are normally distributed in several places
become centred at one place. . And Maulana Muhammed llyas's
life itself was one of the best examples of lshq which was for his
cause and his cause was in fact not his cause but the cause of
Allah. His soul was immersed in the love of Deen. He felt in it the
same satisfaction which a common man feels in food and other
worldly enjoyments. Once he had written to a follower: "This work
of Tabligh is indeed food for soul. Allah has made yourself benefit
from this food. So,now even a temporary shortage or deficiency
of this would cause anxiety. It is, therefore advisable not to worry
about this."""
Maulana Nadvi says that even if his addressee could not
have been a lover in the sense described in the letter, this implied
on Mal~lanaMuhammed llyas himself.

It can be argued thal lshq is the essence of Tasawwuf In case

of Maulana Muhammed llyas it achieved its most sublime form, for
his lshq was not withoul action. He transformed it into each and
every activity of his life. He would anxiously wait for the arrival of
the Tabligh Jama'at, as the lover waits for his beloved once he
wrote: " The Tablighi party which is to derive lraveling through the
bank of Jamuna. I am waiting for it as the one wait for the moon
of E I ~ . " ' ~ '

iv)-A True Follower of The Sunnah

Maulana Muharnmed llyas was a true follower of Sunnah
of the prophet. There are few examples comparable to him in this
regard. This extraordinary emphasis on Sunnah continued
throughout his life and when his last day came to compile the
Ahadith and character and events of the prophet's life and to
propagate them to the best of his ability.178 Such was his
eagerness to imitate the prophet as made him desirous of doing
acts resembling those of the prophet. Thus, when his death was
approaching fast, he would come to the mosque for Salat with the
help of two attendants resembling the condition of the prophet
before his death.

v) Dhikr And llrn

Dhikr in the commonly understood sense of Tasawwuf,
means remembrance of the name of God by tongue or by heart
repeatedly. For example Dhikr Nafli Asbaat means repetition of
"there is no God but one God" several times in solitude. Almost
all the Gnostics have given emphasis on Dhikr as part of the
training of their disciples. But Maulana Muhammed llyas was no
ordinary Sufi or Arif His lrfan and Tasawwuf were linked with
action in the field. Dhikr, therefore too assumed a special
meaning in his Tahreek of Da'wat . In Maulana's view Dhikr of the
kind that usually the Sufis promote is suitable only for those who
have already gained sufficient knowledge about Deen. Maulana
did not oppose this type of Dhikr

but he gave a more

comprehensive definition of it. Dhikr; it was no more limited to

mentioning of a particularly word or phrase by the tongue . Dhikr
was in fact for fulfilling the duties in the routine world affairs in
accordance with

commands of God and his Prophet. Thus.

Dhikr is not something related with just an individual. It can

encompass the whole social life. Maulana thought that it was
necessary to associate Dhikr by tongue with the struggle for
establishment of Deen. 'The prophet and his companions proved
in their lives the same. Here are few excerpts from his letter which
give an insight of his ideas:

"You continue Tabligh alongwith Dhikr and

invocations. Keeping in mind that it is an
easy way and good source of proximity
and pleasure of God. Give the same
lessons to others, for Dhikr and du'a are
the wheel and spirit of Tabligh"

I.'"

"In your solitude, help yourself busy in

Da'wat ilal Haq (invitation towards the

Truth). When you are amidst people. Do

not be like a tired man. Allah loves a man
full of a ~ t i v i t y . ' ' ~ ~ '

In the

same

way

Maulana

Muhammed llyas had a dynamic concept

of llm. He disliked the efforts of confining
knowledge to Madrasa or to the books.
The Madrasa and the books can be
expected to benefit only a minor section of
people. The need on the other hand was
to dispense knowledge in the whole society.
Only then the society might come out of
Ignorance and enter into as arena of
c~vilizatlon.To learn and teach the books

in the Madrasa was in his eyes a static

job.. The words of the books are static.
From something static, dynamicity cannot
be achieved because it is against the laws
of nature. A big part of Deen is related with
the extremities of the body. This can be
achieved through the movements of arms
and legs. Once he said: "Every part of
human body is reserved for a specific
action. Eyes are for seeing. It cannot be
compelled to hear. Heart is for feeling.
What heart feels is organised by the brain.
The brain is governed by the heart and the
heart feels the effects of environment.
What the brain forms and organizes id
knowledge B u t t h e brain w i l l gain
knowledge property. This feeling cannot
be generated in the company of the books.
This will come only as a result of action. I
do not say that the Madrasas should be
closed but they are not suitable for initial
learning. They would only be for specialized
~ t u d i e s . " '(Quoted
"~
from the travelogue

368

of Mr. Arshad by Maulana Ali Mian)

vi) Abandoninq of The World Not Necessary

A large number of Islamic Ulama, Fuqaha and sufia
tended to denounce the world, for they regarded it as something
against Dee/,. They showed contempt for the routine activities
of life like engagement in business persuits. They also thought
that if someone wants to achieve in the field of Deen, he should
keep himself aloof from the outside world. Some Sufis in the past
had given undue emphasis on the undesirability of engagement
in routin worldly affairs. The Ulama and the Urafa of the ninteenth
and twentieth centuries had also confined themselves to the
Madrasa and Khanqahs. Maulana llyas had a different Philosophy
which was based on the study of the life of the Prophet and his
companions. The routin affairs are also a part of Deen if done in
accordance with in the bonds of God. He, therefore, organised
his Tahrik in a way that it did not disturb the business and other
persuits of common men. He did no1 want them to abandon thei~
works but expected from them such adjustments as would give
them some time for involvment in the path of Tabligh. He also
ensured that what ever time the people spare for Deenshould be
utilized in the best possible way. He part~cularlytried to teach
them etiquettes of eating, drinking, sleeping, dealing and other

affairs of life."'

C. His

Views

and

Sayinqs on Various Aspects of

Tasawwuf and Da'wat

Before studying his views, it will be worthwhile here to
quote an interesting experience of Maulana Manzoor Nomani,
who did not have a particular high impression of Maulana llays in
his initial contacts with him:
"The fact is that despite having immense
regard for thegreat SufiSaint like Mujaddid
Alaf Thani, Shah Waliullah, Sayyed Ahmad
Shaheed, Shah lsmail Shaheed and
Maulana Rashid Ahmad Gangohi, I was
not fully satisfied with the ideology of
Tasawwuf.

Instead

had

serious

doubts ........ In the end of 1361 A.H. and

the beginning of 1362 A.H. I had an
opportunity to pass one week in the
company of a Buzurg in whose piety I had
great faith. One day I expressed my views
before him about Tasawwufand its peculiar
exercises and actions not for my own
satisfaction but out of arrogance to reform

the Shaikh. But instead he adopted a

strange kind of treatment the detail of
which is too long to be described here.
The result of that treatment was that
within two or three days all of my doubts
were removed and I came to know that all
those suspicions and doubts were the
result of my own misconception

... . . . When

I was about to leave his company, he

advised me to keep in touch with Hazrat

Dehlvi

--

that Shaikh called Maulana

Muhammed llyas as Hazrat Dehlvi. I said

to him that I had met him several times and
gave him due respect, but I could not be
impressed much by him. Hearing this the

Shaikh spoke very high of Maulana

Muhammed llyas and said that, while
Allah kept special relationship with many
of His slaves simultaneously, but His
extraordinary relationship was with only
very few and in his view Hazrat Dehlvi was
the only person at that time to have that
special relationship with Allah."""

i) The Aim of a s a w w u f

Maulana Muhammed llyas said:

"The main aim of Tar~qahis that one
develops natural taste for the commands
of God and distaste for His dislikes. This
is actual aim of Tariqah, the rest including
special types of rernemberance, actions
and exercises--- all are the means to
achieve that aim. Many have now started
to regard these means as the real aim,
though many of these methods are bid'at.
In anyway, because these things are only
means and not the aim, it is necessary to
amend them keeping in view, the
requirements of the time and conditions.
But the things which are special by Shariat
will remain obligatory in every period."':"'

ii) What Is lstaghna (Contentment)

"Some religious scholars and pious men
have serious misconception about
Istaghna. They think that the meaning of
lstaghna is to keep away from the rich and

wealthy and to avoid mixing with them.

But the real purpose of lstaghna is that we
should not meet them with the aim of
demanding wealth from them and we
should not mix with them in love of money.
If one meets them or mixes with them for
the religious purposes, it is not in
contradiction to Istaghna, but it is in fact
necessary."l:"'
iii)a. Ikhlas--The Essence of Suluk
"Thiis has been declared by Quran and

Hadith with extraordinary emphasis that

Deen is easy. Therefore, the thing which
is more easy should be easier to achieve.

Thus, because the reform of intention and

its purity, which is to please Allah is
extremely necessary and is in truth the
soul of all the affairs of Deen; it is, therefore,
very easy to attam. This purity of intention
for the pleasure of Allah is the essence of

Suluk and Tariqah. B u t it should be

remembered that every thing is easy only
when it is done according to its principles

and in a specified way. If it is done with the

wrong method, even easy task becomes
difficult. The mistake committed by the
people is that they regard following the
rules difficult and avoid them though
nothing can be done successfully in the
world without following a specified set of
rules and procedure. When the plane, the
ship, the boat, the train, the bus

all are

driven according to rules, even a dish of

food and chapafti are cooked according
to a set procedure (then why not the
requirements of Deen be practiced in
accordance with their rules).':"

iii) b- Satan Disturbs Purity of Intention

"When a slave of Allah wants to raise a
step in the direction of a good deed, Satan
resists him and puts hurdles and difficulties
in his ways. If these hurdles fail to stop him
and that man starts the work, then Satan
makes another effort by spoiling his
intention or wanls to share his good deeds

in other ways. He would do it sornetinies

arousing in him a desire for show and
fame and sometimes by mixing other
objectives in his purity of intention which is
to please Allah. Sometime Satan succeeds
in his efforts. Those involved in Deen.
therefore, should always beware of these
dangers and should guard their heart
against these Satanic inspirations and
should always keep assessing their
motives with good intention. When some
other purpose will be mixed with that of the
pleasure of Allah, it will not be acceptable
to Allah."'vi

iv) Faraiz are More Important than Navafil (Desirable Deeds)

"The status of Farz is above Nafil. It
should be understood that the aim of Nafil
is to accomplish Farz or to make up
weaknesses in doing Farz. Thus. Faraiz
are primary importance and navafil are
secondary and subordinate to them. But
there are people who are unmindful of

Faraiz and remain too much busy in

Navafil. For example you know that Da'wat
ilal Khair (invitation towards welfare), Amr
bil Ma'arijf (enjoining of good deeds) and
Nahi anil Munkar (stopping from doing

bad deeds)

all these three departments

of Tabligh are important Farab. But how

many are there who perform this Farz. In
contrast there are more number of persons
involved in the nafils of Dhikr and other
exercises.

v) Knowledqe For Self-Assessment

"The first and foremost demand of

knowledge is that one should keep an
account of his affairs should understand
his duties and his weaknesses and should
remain involved in performing his duties.
Instead if he takes others into account on
the basis of knowledge and counts the
weaknesses of others. it is pride and
haughtiness which is fatal for the
Iearned."14"

vi) Peace And Satisfaction

"This is an absolute rule that every man
gets satisfaction in achieving what he
loves, for example, if a person loves costly
foods and cloths, he cannot achieve peace
of mind and satisfaction without having
those things. But one who loves to sit on
a mat, to sleep on a jute mat, to wear
simple dress and toeat simple food, he will
feel more comfort and satisfaction in those
things. So those who love the imitation of
the simplicity in the life of the Prophet and
they start feeling happiness and comfort
in them. 'They are really blesse by Allah.
For Allah has linked their happiness with
such things as are cheap in price and can
be easily purchsed even by the poorest. If
Allah had linked our happiness with the
costly and precious objects that can be
had only by the rich, we would perhaps
remained restless throughout our life."'"'

v ~ i )Do Not Keep Wealth

" We

have been commanded that

whatever wealth we are given in the world,

we should not save it out of misery, but
should continue to spend. But the condition
is that it should not be spent unnecessarily
and unsystamatically, that is it should be
spent only in a way described by Allah."'"

(viii) The Importance Of Attendinq The Guests Propee

"

Ahadith say that one (who believes in

Allah and Hereafter) should entertain the

guests properly. One of the ways to respect
the guests is to arrange for them what
they like and if one has guests who have
come only for the sake of Allah, their rights
becorne more."'"'

ix) The Reality of Dhkr

"

The reality of Dhikr is that a man in

whatever condition he is should keep a

watch on his affairs in accordance with the
commands of Allah and I exhort my friends

for the same 011ikr."'~~

x) Allah Is Omnipresent
"

All know and believe that Allah is not

hidden but everything is His witness. How

unfortunate is man that despite the
presence of God they are engaged in
activities other than for His pleasure. Just
think how much this thing will invite Allah's
wrath and displeasure -- , to lbe involved
in Allah means to help His Deen and to
follow His commands

and good

character of the Prophet. Do you know

that the Prophet faced great difficulties in
propagating the Kalima that is in preparing
human beings for the service of Allah."145

xi)Cife Is a Prison
"

Ahadith say that the world is a prison for

the believers and a paradise for the

disbelievers. We have not been sent in
this world to fulfill our desires. So this
world becomes Paradise for men. Instead

we have been sent to fight these desires

and to follow the commands of Allah for a
faithful this world is a p r i ~ o n . " ' ~ '

xii) KnKede, Action And Rememberance

"

Ilrn (knowledge) should produced Arnal

(action) and from Arnalshould be produced

Dhikr (rememberance). In that case only
knowledge is the real knowledge and the
action is the real action. If knowledge does
not result in action it is nothing but gloom
and

if

action

does

not

produce

rememberance of God in heart it is hollow;

and rememberance without knowledge is
the cause of t r ~ u b l e . " ' ~ '

x i i ~ )Rememberance - A Fort Aqainst Satan

"

The rememberance of God is a fort of

defence against the evil designs of Satans.

So, the worse the atmosphere in which
one goes for Tabligh the more one should
involve in Dhikr to defend oneself from the
evils of Satan, jlriris and r ~ i e n . " ' ~ ~

xiv) Defference between

. the Aim and the Promised
"The aim and the target in the matters of
Deen should only be the pleasure of God

and the reward in Hereafter.. The rewards

and benefits that have been promised in
the world, for example, peace, rest and
respect in life. These are not aim but the
promised blessing^."'^!'

xv) Tonque: The Distinction of Man

"

The distinction of human being over

other creatures is due to his tongue. 'The

desirable thing was that this distinction
should have remained confined only to
goodness but unfortunately his tongue
excels others in badness also. When a
m a n uses his tongue correctly and
performs with its help the duties of Deen
his status rises over that of angels and
when he rnisuses it, he becomes lower in
status than pig and dog."'^'"

Saheb. It was from among them that the Khalifah was to be

choosen. It was only to be a single Khalifah because many Khalifas
would have disturbed the control over Tablighi Movement. After
much deliberations and discussions Maulana Muhammed Yusuf
was choosen for the important position.'!"'

Notes:

1 Maularia Ah11IiasanAli Nadv~.HazaratMaulanallyas Aur llrlke Deen Da'wal. Kutuhklianal

F ~ l l q a n ,uchnow.
I
1960A.D.p. 33
l a 3 MaulanaAbdulHasanAliNadvi, Opcit .p. 34.
4 . MaulariaAbdul HasanAliNadv!. Op, cd;p.36.

5 MaulanaAbul Hasan Ali Nadvi, 0p.crl..p.37.

6-RMaulana Abrl HasaliAliNadvi .Opcil. pp.37~38.
!I Alldur KnshldArsIiad, BeesBode Musabrrrart, (,.581

10 Maulana Abrll Hasan AliNadv~.O l ~ c i l.p. 41

11 Mut~n~nrnedZakarrya.
Stlanalwaa lanqal ka Talazurr~,
k a u b kl~arialsliaalululoorii.

Sotiaranpul 1986 A d , p,34

12 MatdanaMutiarnmedZakanya Op crl p 34

11 Oarr Arrzln Rahrnari. Sawarrelr Hazralp.p.300

14 MaulariaM~~tia~iirnadThan~
has an^. Hayal-e~Khalil,
p. 599

15 MaulariaMahmoodHasan.Op crl ., p,42.

11, MadariaAbdd HasanAliNadv~,Op.crlp.43

17 OariAizurHiitiman.Op.crf., p.31
18 MaulatiaMahmodHasan.Op.cit.. p,M
19 MaulanaMuhamrnedShahid,Op.cif val 11. p . l 7 6
20 MaulanaAbulHasanAliNadv~.Op c11. p 5 2 ~
2 1 MaulariaAbul HasanNadvi. Opcil .p.52
77 Muit Aozur Rahrnan, p.31
23 Maulana AbulHasanAliNadvi. Op cit , p.56
24 Maularia Abul Hasan Ali Nadvr , Op.cr1 pp57 58.

25 MaulatiaMahmoadHasan. Op cr1;p. 120

Xi Mrltt~AnzurRahman.Op.crt.pp.30-33
27 Maulana Abd Hasan Ali Nadvi, 0p.crf .p,6O
78 Maularia Ahul IiasanAli Nadvi. Op cil. pp, 60-67
29 Pleaserefertothe GarftierofAllwar 186'7
30 ['lease refer lo the GazaVierolGurgorr, 1910
31 Maulana Ahul IiasariAliNadvi. Op crf . p p 67-60

37 Ah<lurRasti~dArshad.
Bees Bade Musalrr~an,p5R7
33 Maul;>naAhul IiasanAI~Nadv.
Op crl p 10

34 MaulanaMatirrioodHasan, 0pc:rl .p, 125

91. M;~clariaAh~rlHasanAI~Nadvr.
<)p crl . p p I 1 7 7
p. 585
31, Maulana Abul Hasan Arshad. Bees Bade Musalmar~,

37 f.4aulanaAbul tiasariAli Nadv~.Op crl pp. 75-76

.jtJ

4 1 Maulana All111 HasanAI! Nadvr , Op crt , p. 7'1~78

42

l ~ l t ? ; ~refer
u . lo FAaulariaMuha~nrnedSIialu~l,
Tafrktbe Mazahir

4 i 4 / FA;ir~lnnoAbulHasanNadvi,
O ~ , I ~ . RO-89
PII
4ii

i.l,i~rldriaAt~ulHasanAl~Nadv~.
Op ol p p 51'1 100

49 Abdur l i a s h ~ Arstiaci,
d
HeesRatle Musalmarr pp. 587 600
50 Maulana AbulHasan All Nadv~,Op crl.. p. 107.
51 MallanaAbll HasarlAliNadw Opcit.p.108
52 Mallana Abdur Rashid BeesBade Musalman, pp, 589-602.
53 MallanaMatimoodHasar~Op c i t p . 150.
54 Maulana Abul tiasan AliNadv! Opcit, p. 116.
55 AbduRashidArshad, Opcrt.,pp,600-605.
56 Maulann Abul Hasan All Nadv~Opcit p, 122
57. Maulana AbulHasan Al~Nadvi.Op crt, p.124.
58. Please relerlo MalrlariaMatniood tiasari
59. MaulanaMahmoodHasan Opcil. p.163
60. MaulanaMut~amrnedZakariya,
Aal~Brtr.Voll.1 1, No.6,p. 32
61MaulanaMahmoodZakariyaOp cil.Voll11.No 6.p.78

62. MallanaMuhammedThariHasar~i,Hayal-e-Klralrl.p.1 12

fi3 MallanaMahmoodHasan Wasf-e-Shaiktr.pp.126-130

64. Maularia Abul Hasari AII Nadvi. Opcit , p, 79
65 Maulana AbulHasan Ali Nadvr. O\).crt pp9197.
66. MaulanaAbul HasanAl~
Nadvi, Opcil , p.93.
67-69 Maulana AbulHasanAliNadvi, Opcrt., 94.
70. MaulanaAbllHasanNadvi Opcit. pp 131-132,

7 1. MaulanaAbul HAsanAJiNadvi.Op.cit., pp.132- 133~

72. Maulana Abul HasanAliNadvi Op.cit.,.p.l36.
73. please refer lo Aap 3111
74. MaulanaMahmoodHasan Opcit. .pl39.
75 MaulanaAbulHasanNadvi0p.cit.pp. 144-145
76. Maulana Abul Hasan Ali Nadvi, Op.cit , pp, 145146
77. MallanaAbll HasanAliNadvi.Op.cit. p.147.
78. Maularia Abul HAsanAli Nadvi. Opcrl p.149.
79. Maulana Abll HasanNadvi Op.cit..pp, 150-151
80MaulanaAbul Hasan AliNadvi Op.cif.,p, 156
81 Maulana Abol HasariAlr Nadvi. 011.cit .p,l66
82 Abdur RashrdArshad, Bees Bade Musalman. p.585
83 Mull1Az~rlrrRatinian. Sawar~eh
Hazralli. pp. 9 2 9 6
84 MaulanaAbul H a s a n N ~
Nadvi. O l ~ c rp.170.
l
85 Maular~aAbulHasariAli
Nadv~.011ot .p, 173
011cil .p.174
86 Maular~;iAt~ulHnsar~AI~Na~lvi
87 Maulana Abul HasanAli Nadvi, Op.cil p.180
88 MaularisAbul HasariAliNadvi Op.cit.,p.l85 187
All Nadvi Op.cit.,pp.l871811
89 MaulariaAhul Hasar~
90 Pleasert;lor lo Aap Brtr
511! I 2 M a ~ r l a Abul
~ ~ aHasan AliNadvi. Op crl. 198

'33 Maulnrin Abul Hasan ALI Nadvi Opcil. pp. 7 0 0 %O 1

94 95 M;rlrl;rriaAbul HasanNadvi Op cit.p.203
96 Maul;ir~;~At>~d
I leisan Ali Nadvi. Op cit .p,70!)

97 Ma~rlariaAtx~Itlasarr
Al~Nadv~
.Up r:rl ,p. 210
98 9 9 Maldana A b l l HasanAlr Nadvi Op c11,p203
100 MaulanaAbtdHasal~AliNadvi.Op cil 2 1 4 ~
101 MaulanaAbd Hasa~iAliNadv~
,Op crl.p.215.
102 -103MaulanaAbulHasariAliNadu1.Op ci1.p. 216
104-106 MaulanaAbd Hasan Ali N a h r i Ol1.crl.,pp.217-219
107 MaulanaAbd HasariAliNadv~.Op.cil..p.221

108. MaulanaAbd HasariAliNadv~.O l ~ c i l p.45.

109 Pleaserefer to Aap t(dr
1 1 0 112. MaulariaMalrnoodllas;lri. 011crl ,p,173
113. MaulanaAbul HasanAliN;~dv~,
Up crl..p,50
113a. (Prol )Nlzami, KhalrlAtir~iall.7wtkhMasharkl1-e~<;/11(.
NactvaIdMuw~irwltr:t~.
L)nIt~,lYS3.
pp.233 8 234
11:iti Fawaidul-Fawad,p.22.ahqu~ted
by: pr0f.K.A.Nlmrni. Jankh Maslrarkli-e-(:lrrshI,pp.7fi3264.
1 13c Noli'ul Sahkeerr,p,52asc~uoted
by K A Nizarni. Tarrkh Maslrark1r~-Cl~rsl~t.pp.
263~264.
114-115 MaulanaAbtlHasarlAIrNadvr. Op.cil.p.174

116-117MaulanaAbdHasanAliNadvi. Op.cil..,p.l75.
1 18-119 Madana Abul Hasar~Ali
Nadvi. Op.ci1, p. 176.
120-121.MaulanaAbdHasanAI1Nahri.Op cil. p , 177
127. MaulanaAbdHasar~AliNadvi.
0p.crf.p.178.
123. MaulanaAbulHasanAliNadvi.O>pcfl.p.179.
124. MaulanaAbd HasanAl~
Nadv~,
Op cif . p , 193.
125 MaulanaAbulHasanNedvi ,Op.cif.,p.l94.
126. Maularra A h l HasanNadvi , Op.cif..p.l89.
127. MaulanaAbd HasanAI~
Nadv~.Op of.,p. 190
1 2 8 1 2 9 MaulanaAbulHasnriAliNadvi Op cil..p. 21 2,
130-131MaulanaAbll Hasan Al~Nahri,Op.cif.pp.269-271
132 MaulanaAbd Hasan Ali Nadu~,Opcil , p.773
133 Maulana Abul Hasan AI~Nadvl.Op cil.,p. 275
134. Maulana Marlzoor N o n ~ a r iMalhrzaf
~.
Hazrat Maularra Mr~liarrrrrrcdllycrs,Ida1a-eIstiaat Deeniyat March 1 9 9 l , p p , 5 - 6 .
135 MaulanaMuhamrnedNorna~.Op.crf..l5-16.
13(iMaulnnaManzoor Norn;lnl. Op cil 16-17
137.MaulanaManzoor Norrid~ri.Ol).cil
p . 14-15.
138 MaulanaManzoor Norn;ro~,Op cif.pp.17 1 8
139 MaulanaMaruoor Nori~aiir.Op.cdp p , 1 6 17.

140. MaulamMan7oorNorna111.
Opcil pp,1920
141 MadanaManzoor Noni,lri~.Opc11,pp,21-22.
142.MaulanaMarizoor Norn;i~n.Ol~
crl .p11.22
143. MaulanaMa~izoorNomarr~.01, crl .ki.23.
144 MaulanaMarizoor Nornaru. 011o f . . f ~ ~ ~ . 9 t i 2 7
145 MaulanaManzoor N~~nr;rrw.Op
cil .p1),28-29
14(j MaularlaManzoor N o ~ n a r i ~ .cil
O l,1>[1.72~23.
~