Sadr Shuyukh Hadhrat Syed Shah Tahir Razwi (May Allah shower His mercy on him)

Syed Shah Tahir Razwi Qadri (May Allah shower His mercy on him) was the Sadr Ush Shuyukh i.e. the chancellor of Jamia Nizamia.  Here is a short life sketch of his life.

 

His Birth

 

Hadhrat Syed Shah Tahir Razwi Qadri (May Allah shower His mercy on him) was born on March 17, 1930.  He was born in a family, which was known and respected for their knowledge, piety and spirituality. His father was Hadhrat Ibrahim Adeeb (May Allah shower His mercy on him) who has written a number of works covering as diverse a range of topics as Tasawwuf, classical Arabic poetry, philology, Tafseer and many more.  The famous orientalist, D.S. Margoliouth said: My tour of India would have been wasted if I had not met Ibrahim Adeeb.

 

His education

 

He was enrolled into Jamia Nizamia, Hyderabad, from where he gradually he passed through all the stages of Maulvi, Alim, Fazil and graduated with a Kamil in Tafseer (Arabic).  He also did his MA (Arabic) from Osmania University, Hyderabad.

 

His teachers

 

His teachers were all models of sincerity, selflessness and masters of both the normative and the spiritual sciences.  His teachers took great care in passing the knowledge of Islam to him.  His first teacher was his father, Hadhrat Ibrahim Adeeb Radhawi (May Allah shower His mercy on him).  Others include: Hadhrat Syed Shah Mufti Muhammad Makhdoom Hussaini Qadri Chishti, Hadhrat Abul Wafa Afghani, Mufti Abdul Hameed, Mufti Makhdoom Baig (May Allah shower His mercy on all of them) and others.

 

Ba’yah

 

Hadhrat Syed Shah Tahir Razwi Qadri was a disciple of his father and also received his Khilafat (authorization to pass on the teachings to others) from him.  He has permissions in all the 4 great spiritual orders of Islam, viz. Qadri, Chishti, Naqshbandi and Suharwardi.  He actually subjected himself to rigorous spiritual exercises (Mujahidaat).  There are countless disciples of his in India and abroad.

 

As a teacher

 

Hadhrat Syed Shah Tahir Razwi Qadri is one of those rare people whose abilities have been acknowledged by the scholars and laymen alike.  He started teaching in Jamia Nizamia, where he had studied for years.  Due to his extraordinary capabilities, he was soon made Shaykh Ul Adab, Arabic, i.e. Dean of the Department of Arabic.

 

As Sadr Ush Shuyukh

 

He was then appointed as Vice Chancellor of Jamia Nizamia.  During his tenure there, Jamia Nizamia crossed many milestones in its march of progress.  Right from punctuality to teaching methods to syllabus to expertise in Arabic to love for the founder of Jamia Nizamia, Hadhrat Shaykh Ul Islam Imam Muhammad Anwarullah Farooqui (May Allah shower His mercy on him), he made many positive changes.  He would encourage the students to study the works of Hadhrat Shaykh Ul Islam.  He made many positive changes in the examination system as well.  The number of students greatly increased in his tenure and hundreds graduated as Moulvi, Alim, Fazil, Kamil.

 

His services in Lateefiyah Arabic College

 

Hadhrat Abdur Razzaq Shah Qadri (May Allah shower His mercy on him) had founded Lateefiyah Arabic College to encourage and promote education among Muslims.  Here the medium of education is oriental languages and it is affiliated to Osmania University.  Hadhrat Syed Shah Tahir Razwi Qadri (May Allah shower His mercy on him) taught there for many many years and innumerable students benefited from him.  He taught here for approximately 50 years and retired.

 

His lessons and lectures on the Holy Quran

 

Among his favors on the Ummah were his services on the spiritual front, working to guide the Ummah for 50 years.  Among his other engagements, the Dars of Holy Quran, i.e. lessons of Holy Quran held primary importance.  He had a great affinity for the Holy Quran and its sciences.  He gave the Dars in Masjid Afzal Gunj for 13 years.  His style of giving the lesson was that in very simple language, he would cover the most difficult-to-explain concepts in a very simple way.  He was equally adept in Fiqh, Tafseer, history, theology (Kalam).  In his weekly address at Masjid Afzal Gunj, in 10 years, he finished only the 1st Para (Alif Lam Meem)

 

Every Friday, he would give a lesson in Tafseer before the Friday Salaat in Masjid Regimental, Secunderabad and once a week also in Masjid Amrullah Shah Sahab, after Zuhr, he would expound the Tafseer.

 

He would describe the meanings of the Holy Quran in Little Star High School, Razzaqpura before Salaat Ul Asr.

 

Every Sunday, after Isha, he would explain the meanings of the Holy Quran at Masjid Qadriyya, Syed Ali Guda.

 

Every second Sunday of the lunar month, he would organize and oversee a session of Dhikr and Tasawwuf in his house at Muradnagar.

 

He has addressed thousands of Milad Un Nabi and Seerat Un Nabi sessions in fifty years.

 

Haj and visiting the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam)

 

He performed Haj twice, once in 1981 along with the family and second time in 1992, on the invitation of the Government of Saudi Arabia.

 

His guidance of various societies

 

Apart from all this, he also was attached to various societies, etc., which work for the betterment of the Ummah in some way and also guided the Muslims in that manner.  He was the Ameer of the Imarat Shariah Andhra Pradesh.  He was also the chief patron of Kul Hind Bazm Anwaar-e-Ihsaan, under whose auspices weekly sessions of Dhikr, Tasawwuf, etc. and yearly conferences were organized and research papers were also published through this organization.

 

He was also the secretary for Majlis Ulema Deccan.  Under his presidentship, the sessions of Ruyat-e-Hilal committee were held.

 

Recognition by the President of India

 

For his scholarly efforts and prowess, he was chosen for the President’s Award by the Government of India.  He was given this award in a glittering ceremony on November 2, 1996.

 

His writings

 

He has written many books, some of which have been published and some are ready for publishing.  His published books are:

 

Qaal Aur Haal – A treatise dealing with Tasawwuf.

 

Haqaaiq Wa Daqaaiq – A treatise on Tasawwuf.

 

Al Qasida Hamziyya – Arabic poetry.

 

Asrar-e-Istighfaar – A treatise on repentance (Istighfaar)

 

Apart from this, he has edited many of the papers written by his illustrious father and published them as Rasaail Ibraheemiya.

 

His passing away

 

He was an illustrious star in the galaxy of Islamic scholars in general and in particular, of India and Jamia Nizamia.  He passed away in the early hours of 27th Ramadhan Ul Mubarak.  His funeral was attended by one and all and innumerable people turned out to get a last glimpse of him and to pay him their last respects.  May Allah increase his stature evermore.  Aameen.