Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani Siddiqi Al-Qadri R.A (1926-2003)
Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani Siddiqui
Rahmatullah 'alaih is regarded as a scholar, exemplary
leader, statesman, teacher and one of the chief corner
stones of Muslim unity in the second half of the twentieth
century. Wherever he traveled, he won the admiration of both
scholars and ordinary people because of his commitment to
the Sidiquian virtue of remaining truthful to the
original teachings of Islam and in being able to
differentiate between haq (truth) and batil
(falsehood) despite the circumstances he found himself
whether be it personal or in the matter of state or national
interest.
He was given the title of 'Qaid-e-Ahl Sunna' or Leader of
Sunni Muslims because he was the most capable and respected
leader of our time. His ideas and thoughts on the concept of
Islamic nationhood was so far ahead of its time, that it is
hard not to view him as one of the architects of what the
the modern Islamic state should be; that is, a progressive
Islamic culture which embraces the positive elements of
science, technology, efficiency and human dignity while
remaining committed to the core Islamic principles of
spirituality (tassawwuf) and moral value (akhlaq).
Maulana Noorani has always stated that Muslims societies can
be easily eroded if Islam is only interpreted at the literal
and superficial level or what he sometimes referred to as
external Islam.
Throughout his lifetime he displayed a consistency in thoughts and actions few can imagine. By this, he was able to win the trust and confidence of Muslims and people of other faiths around the world, both Arabs and non-Arabs, youths and his elder contemporaries. In essence, he was the quintessential Muslim leader of our time who managed to capture the imagination of the masses, young and old, male and female where ever he went .
His over-arching quality as a leader was his deep-rooted attachment and devotion to the last and noble Messenger of Allah - Prophet Muhammad Salalaahu 'alahi wa Sallam and the manner in which he exemplified the sunnah (prophetic traditions) was indeed refreshing and graceful at all times. One can say his charisma was in fact a manifestation of his love and emulation of the Prophet of Allah Salalaahu 'alahi wa Sallam. Akhlaq (beautiful morals) and aql (astute wisdom) were the hallmark of his Islamic character.
He was the son of Mubaligh-e-Azam Maulana Abdul Aleem Siddiqui RA. Being a descendant of Syedinna Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiqui RA, he bore the marks of his blessed forefathers which is, undoubtedly a living mu'ijizah (miracle) of Syedinna Rasoolulaah Salalaahu 'alahi wa Sallam derived from the event of al-Hijra.
He was born born in
is known to be addictive. His wife is from the holy city of
Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani was an
accomplished 'alim who mastered all four schools of
fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence) and followed the
madhab of Imam AbuHanifa both in practice and ijtihad
(reasoning). He was a visiting professor who taught al-fiqh
al-hanafiyya and 'aqida (belief) of Ahl Sunna wal Jamaah in
this office continuously for eleven years and worked for
unity of Muslim brotherhood amongst all Muslim nations.
Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani was an ardent lover and drank
deeply from the monumental writings of Imam Ahmad Raza Khan
RA, affectionately known as Ala Hazrat by the Sunni masses.
He and other 'ulama worked to bring to light
the importance of Ala Hazrat's contribution to Islam in the
twentieth century. He always maintained that had it not been
for the single-handed effort of Ala Hazrat RA, especially
for his twenty seven volumes of fatawa (Islamic
Rulings) in the form of Fatawa-Rizwiyya and his
tafsir Kanzul Iman, Sunni Islam as we know it today
could have disappeared. Not only has the contribution of Ala
Hazrat ensured that Hanafi Jurisprudence remained intact as
the legal framework for such countries such as Lebanon,
Turkey, Paksitan and India in the context of the twentieth
century, but also the body of knowledge he re-interpreted in
the revisionist context he found himself in, was used and is
still being used to counter the forces which are intent in
eradicatingth e spiritual dimension of Islam by an attempt
to re-writing the very history of Islam.
The contribution of Ala Hazrat RA, Maulana Noorani argued, effectively checked the tide of recently concocted ideologies in the form of Wahabism, Deobandism, and Qadianism. Maulana Noorani spent a good portion of his scholarly life promoting Ala Hazrat as the mujaddid (Muslim Reviver) of the 13th Islamic century. In particular, due to his leadership he was able to influence two generations of Muslim scholars to appreciate the full impact of Ala Hazrat's thoughts and writings.
Maulana Noorani RA will always be remembered to exemplify without pretence and awkwardness, the sunnah of the Holy Prophet SAW in both his inner and outer character.
He was thus able to demonstrate the relevance of the Prophetic traditions in the modern age. He displayed a rare form of unselfish purpose possessed by few leaders of his time. His very existence has been a pre-occupation with the issue of unity of Ummat-e-Muhammadiyya. He argued that the excellence of Muslims over other nations can only be based on the fact that the Muslim ummah has the perfect role model - Prophet Muhammad SAW. However, the status of the Muslim nation plummeted only because it allowed others to divide itself into tribes, secular ideologies and nationalities. He was convinced and proved on many occasions that, whenever Muslims leave aside their differences and united; Islam takes on a different dimension and becomes an unstoppable phenomenon with unimaginable potential.
Maulana Noorani maintained that Muslim unity is the essence of the Muslim struggle at both an individual and at the global level.His influence permeated higher seats of learning in every continent. He taught subjects ranging from economics to fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence) and from political science to tasawwuf. In his teachings, whether addressing scholars or laymen - the underlying reality of his reasoning wasalways guided by an undying and uncompromising love for the Holy Prophet SAW. Driven by such devotion to the Holy Prophet SAW he argued that leaders will try but they will not be able to establish "Nizam-e-Mustafa" or the 'Order of Mustafa SAW' without a true attachment to the Beloved Prophet SAW.
“A system of virtuous equality....
a political system of security and justice ....an
economic system of justice and provision .... a
spiritual system of meditative thinking and
inner reflection, and remembering Allah .... and a social
system
of brotherhood"
Undoubtedly, the zenith of Maulana
Noorani's Islamic political leadership and statesmanship was
his ability to overlook the differences which have kept the
ummah divided, to the benefit of non-Muslim powers. Due to
his impeccable style of leadership, he successfully united
five of the major religious parties in
“Islam becomes an unstoppable force when Muslims unite. No 'super-power' will be able to defeat it, if we can only understand this fundamental principle."
As a statesman Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani Siddiqui counseled leaders both Arabs and non-Arabs to foster greater co-operation between Muslim countries. He worked tirelessly toconnect Muslim leaders, visionaries and scientists in order to facilitate the expansion of Islamically motivated ventures at both the national and global levels. The greatest challenge, he believed, wasto harness the resources of Muslim nations to benefit Muslims worldwide.
Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani Siddiqui
held on the principle of democracy as the process for
Islamic nationhood. In so far that he was willing to pay a
personal price for this. He was jailed several times by a
number of political dictators for his outspoken stance
against illegitimate dictatorship regimes in
In terms of Islaimic spirituality, Maulana Shah Ahmad
Noorani Siddiqui received khilafat of the Qadiriyya
and Chistiyya sufi orders from his father Maulana Abdul
Aleem Siddiqui RA. He also received ijaza from other
tariqah including Naqshbandiyya, Shadhiliyya, Soharwardiyy
and Rifa'i. Through his travels worldwide for over
fifty-five years he initiated more than 600,000 mureeds
(spiritual disciples) to Tariqat-ul-Qadiriyya.
Amongst them we find today political leaders, Muslim
scholars, professionals, and hundreds of thousand ordinary
Muslims whose practice of Islam is based on following the
commands of Allah Subhanahu wa Tala through the endearing
love and attachment to Syed-ul-Alameen Muhammad-ur-Rasoolulaah
Salalaahu 'alahi wa Sallam, khulafa Rashideed, Syedinna
Ghawth-al-'Azam Shaikh Abdul Qadir Jilani RA and the
Awliya (pious saints of Islam).