Imam Ahmad Rida

Discussion in 'Biographical Notes' started by Aqdas, Apr 24, 2006.

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  1. Aqdas

    Aqdas Staff Member

    sorry i forogt to say it is by our beloved sidi abu Hasan on alaHazrat yahoo group.

    btw...if you go through the alaHazrat forum there are some great posts.
     
  2. Wadood

    Wadood Veteran

    jazakAllah khair for sharing

    Islam is so beautiful, its adherers are so beautiful, I find nothing like this faith or its people anywhere in the world. nor in the mountains of Hokaido, nor in the steppes of Altai, nor in the valleys of the Alps, nor in the jungles of Guatemala, nor in the deserts of northern Chile.

    The Ummah of RasulAllah salalaho 'alaihi wa aalihi wa salam is truly beyond every other creation.
     
  3. Aqdas

    Aqdas Staff Member

    a`ala Hazrat is imam ahlus sunnah, ash-shaykh aHmed riDa khan barelwi
    raHimahullah. (also pronounced as raza in urdu/persian). his
    ancestors were from qandahar, the ancient city in afghanistan which
    was in the news recently for a different reason.

    he was born in bareilly, a thriving city in northern india, in 1856
    in a prosperous and a religious family; a family of religious
    scholars as well.

    his father was the imam of his time, shaykh naqi `ali khan; a
    contemporary and friend of the legendary faDl ar Rasul badayuni.

    --

    imam riDa was a Hanafi jurist, arguably the best Hanafi jurist of his
    time. a wizard at languages - even his prose sounds like poetry.
    and his poetry is sheer magic. inshaaAllah, wa bi idhnillah we will
    post some of it here. his expertise in Hanafi fiqh was such that the
    chief mufti of aHnaf in makkah (of that time) said: 'if imam abu
    Hanifah raDiyallahu `anhu saw this work, he would be pleased. he
    would admit imam riDa in his circle of students'

    even his enemies acknowledged that when it came to fiqh, and
    particularly Hanafi fiqh - he had no equal.

    --

    he was also a peerless shaykh in the qadri order of his time. he has
    written copiously on almost every islamic subject most of which is
    printed as a collection in the 12 volume al `aTaaya an nabawiyyah fil
    fataawa ar riDawiyyah.

    he was a writer who incessantly came up with very creative ideas.
    for example, he had an uncanny ability to use the word with more than
    one meaning and howsoever you read it, the sentense would seem
    intelligible.

    ---

    as a jurist and the most prominent sunni scholar of his time, he
    refuted the deplorable fringe-group known as the wahabiya. most of
    his rigor was out of his love for the Rasul `alayhi afDalus Salatu
    was salam. he certainly was intolerant of the insolent insultors of
    Rasul `alayhi afDalus Salatu was salam.

    some sunnis tend to think that imam riDa is forgotten or that his
    antagonists, and the enemies of islam prevailed.

    rather, we should look at it in these terms:

    1. imam riDa as a man.
    2. imam riDa's mission.

    imam riDa as man might have been forgotten. suppose the liars
    prevail and succeed in tainting him. inshaaAllah they will see on
    the judgement day, that which is right and that astray.

    but imam riDa's mission succeeded. his mission was to stop the
    insolent few who spread falsehoods. his mission was to stop the self
    proclaimed 'saviors of religion' from printing shameless lies and
    slanders in the presence of awliya and anbiya. particularly the
    exalted Rasul `alayhiS Salatu was salam.

    and succeed he did. at first they tried to explain away their foul
    deeds; and now they are deleting those lines and hiding away from the
    public. that shows that they warn't right anyway.

    ---

    the apologies of the disciples of the erstwhile paradise dweller,
    clearly show that the insolent gang was ashamed, and knew that they
    were in the wrong. but owing to the love of this world they didn't
    admit it publicly.

    ---

    as a person, he was an exemplar sufi. he was full of zuhd, taqwa and
    war`a. he always chose the strictest and the most prohibitive ruling
    for himself, while his fatawa for the people were the most lenient
    ones. his love for RasulAllah Sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam and his
    blessed progeny was much more than can be described in words. his
    poetry was dedicated to the Prophet `alayhiSSalatu was salam and the
    beloved ones of Allah.

    he spent all of his life reading, writing, preaching and teaching.
    which he summed it up himself in the four verses, he wrote in persian:

    na mara nawsh zeh taHseeN, na mara neesh zeh ta`an
    na mara gosh ba madHe, na mara hosh dhamay!
    manam o kanj khamOli ke na ganjad dar way,
    juz man O chand kitabay O dawat O qalamay

    it isn't my object to flatter; neither plain criticize;
    i do not care for praise, nor do i heed ridicule.
    i am a dweller of that dark forlorn corner,
    wherefort is nothing with me, 'xcept for a few books, an inkpot and a
    pen..

    ---

    imam riDa passed away in 1921 on a friday, just while the adhaan was
    being called out for the friday prayer. raDiyallahu `anhu. as an
    admirer and a follower i can keep on praising him; but as we say, the
    sun doesn't need a lamp shown to it to explain its brightness nor its
    existence.

    we shall post from his works and you be the judge.

    was salam.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 19, 2017

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