Muhammad Faizullah

Muḥammad Fayḍ Allāh ibn Hidāyat ʿAlī al-Islāmābādī (Arabic: محمد فيض الله بن هداية علي الإسلام آبادي, 1890–1976), popularly known as Mufti Faizullah (Bengali: মুফতি ফয়জুল্লাহ), was a Bangladeshi Deobandi Islamic scholar, mufti, poet, educator and a reformer. He was among early students to study at the Darul Uloom Hathazari. He was an alumnus of Darul Uloom Deoband and later served as the Chief Mufti of the Darul Uloom Hathazari. He established Mekhal Madrasa following in the style of Ashab-e Suffah. He authored over 100 books in Arabic, Persian and Urdu.^{[2][3][4][5][6]}

Grand Mufti Mufti Faizullah
Personal details
Born	1890 Hathazari, Chittagong, British Raj
Died	1976(1976-00-00) (aged 85–86)
Nationality	British Raj (1890–1947) Pakistan (1947–1971) Bangladesh (1971–1976)
Alma mater	Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam Darul Uloom Deoband
Personal
Denomination	Sunni
Jurisprudence	Hanafi
Movement	Deobandi
Main interest(s)	Hadith Fiqh
Notable work(s)	Jamia Islamia Hamius-Sunnah
Teachers	Abdul Hamid Madarshahi Anwar Shah Kashmiri Azizur Rahman Usmani
Senior posting
Disciples Harun Babunagari, Azizul Haq, Shah Ahmad Shafi, Izharul Islam
Students Ashraf Ali Bishwanathi^[1] Sultan Ahmad Nanupuri Shah Ahmad Shafi
Arabic name
Personal (Ism)	Muḥammad Fayḍ Allāh محمد فيض الله
Patronymic (Nasab)	ibn Hidāyat ʿAlī بن هداية علي
Epithet (Laqab)	al-Muftī al-Aʿẓam المفتي الأعظم
Toponymic (Nisba)	al-Islāmābādī الإسلام آبادي al-Maykhalī الميخلي

Early life and education

Faizullah was born in 1890 to a Bengali Muslim family in the village of Mekhal in Hathazari, Chittagong district.^[7] His father, Hedayet Ali, was a munshi, while his mother, Rahimunnesa, was a housewife.^[8] He received his initial education at Darul Uloom Hathazari and was among its early students, studying under the likes of Abdul Hamid Madarshahi. In 1330 AH (1912 CE), he set off for Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, where he received higher education for two and a half years under Mahmud Hasan Deobandi, Anwar Shah Kashmiri and Aziz-ul-Rahman Usmani. He specialised in Hadith studies.^[7]

Career

He was appointed a teacher at the Darul Uloom Hathazari in 1915, and subsequently became its Chief Mufti. He established Hami as-Sunnah Mekhal Madrasa following in the style of Ashab-e-Suffah in 1934.^[7] He was involved in the management of this madrasa until his death in 1976.^[7][9] He was awarded the title of "Mufti Azam" for his experience in issuing fatwas.^[7]

Literary works

Faizullah authored about 100 books in Arabic, Persian and Urdu.^[10] He majorly focused on Aqidah and Fiqh in his writings. He extensively wrote on controversial matters for educational purposes of the Muslim community.^[11] Under the instruction of Abdul Hamid Madarshahi, Faizullah compiled the explanation of Ka'b ibn Zuhayr's Bānat Suʿād qasida into Persian. His books include:^[12]

Arabic

• فيض الكلام (Fayḍ al-Kalām)
• هداية العباد (Hidāyah al-ʿIbād)
• رافع الإشكالات (Rāfiʿ al-Ishkālāt)
• تعليم المبتدئ (Taʿlīm al-Mubtadi)
• إظهار المنكرات (Iẓhār al-Munkarāt)
• توجيه البيان (Tawjīh al-Bayān)
• إزالة الخبط (Izālah al-Khabaṭ)
• ترغيب الأمة إلى تحسين النية (Targhīb al-Ummah ilā Taḥsīn an-Niyyah)
• إظهار الاختلال في مسئلة الهلال (Iẓhār al-Ikhtilāl fī Mas'alah al-Hilāl)
• القول السديد في حكم الأهوال والمواعيظ (Al-Qawl al-Sadīd fī Ḥukm al-Ahwāl wa al-Mawāʿīẓ)
• الفلاح فيما يتعلق بالنكاح (Al-Falāḥ fīmā yataʿallaq bin-Nikāḥ)

Persian

• بند نامه خاکی (Band Nāmah-e-Khākī)
• مثنوي خاکی (Masnavī-e-Khākī)
• إرشاد الأمة (Ershād al-Ummah)
• منظومات مختصرة (Manẓūmāt-e-Mukhtasarah)
• قند خاکی (Qand-e-Khākī)
• مثنوي دلپذیر (Masnavī-e-Dilpazīr)
• الفيصلة الجارية في أوقاف المدارس (Al-Faysalah Al-Jāriyah fī Awqāf al-Madāris)
• حفظ الإيمان (Ḥifẓ al-Īmān)
• منكرات القبور (Munkarāt al-Qubūr)
• دفع الوساوس في أوقاف المدارس (Dafʿ al-Wasāwis fī Awqāf al-Madāris)
• الحق الصريح في مسلك الصحيح (Al-Ḥaq as-Ṣarīh fī Maslak as-Ṣaḥīḥ)
• دفع الإعتساف في أحكام الاعتكاف (Dafʿ al-Iʿtisāf fī Aḥkām al-Iʿtikāf)
• إظهار خيال (Iẓhār-e-Khayāl)
• شومي معاصي (Shūmī Maʿāṣī)
• الرسالة المنظومة على فطرة النيجرية (Al-Risālah al-Manẓūmah ʿalā Fiṭrah an-Nījariyyah)

Urdu

• شرح بوستان (Sharh-e-Būstān)
• شرح گلستان (Sharh-e-Gulistān)
• حاشية عطار (Hāshiyat-e-ʿAṭṭār)

Death

Faizullah died in 1396 AH (1976 CE) and was buried in front of his home in Mekhal.^[12]

References

1. Alam, Morshed (2014). হাদীস শাস্ত্র চর্চায় বাংলাদেশের মুহাদ্দিসগণের অবদান [Contribution of Muhaddis of Bangladesh in the development of Hadith Studies] (Thesis) (in Bengali). Bangladesh: University of Dhaka. pp. 144–145.
2. Alam, Morshed (2014). হাদিস শাস্ত্র চর্চায় বাংলাদেশের মুহাদ্দিসগণের অবদান [Contribution of Muhaddith of Bangladesh in the field of Hadith literature] (Thesis) (in Bengali). Bangladesh: Department of Islamic Studies, University of Dhaka. pp. 80–81.
3. Sarwar, Golam (2014). বাংলা ভাষায় ফিকহ চর্চা (১৯৪৭-২০০৬): স্বরূপ ও বৈশিষ্ঠ্য বিচার [Practice of Fiqh in Bengali (1947-2006): Judgment of form and features] (Thesis) (in Bengali). Bangladesh: University of Dhaka. pp. 119–120.
4. Sayed, Dr. Ahsan (2006). বাংলাদেশে হাদিস চর্চা উৎপত্তি ও ক্রমবিকাশ [Origin and development of Hadith literature in Bangladesh] (in Bengali) (1 ed.). Dhaka: Adorn Publications. pp. 202–203. ISBN 9789842005602.
5. Kasemi, Mazharul Islam Osman (2015). বিখ্যাত ১০০ ওলামা-মাশায়েখের ছাত্রজীবন [Student Life Of 100 Famous Scholars] (in Bengali). Bangladesh: Baad Comprint and Publications. pp. 94–96.
6. Harun, Mizan (2018). رجال صنعوا التاريخ وخدموا الإسلام والعلم في بنغلاديش للشاملة [Men Who Shaped History And Served Islamic Science In Bangladesh: A Comprehensive Perspective] (in Arabic). Dhaka: Darul Bayan. pp. 139–146.
7. Nijampuri, Ashraf Ali (2013). The Hundred (100 Great Scholars from Bangladesh) (1st ed.). Hathazari, Chittagong: Salman Publication. pp. 85–90. ISBN 978-112009250-2. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
8. Arafat, Nasim (2022). মুফতিয়ে আযম মাওলানা ফয়জুল্লাহ রহ. [Mufti-e Azam Maulana Faizullah Rah.] (in Bengali) (1st ed.). Dhaka: Maktabatul Huda Al Islamia. p. 30.
9. Uddin, Muhammad Jasim (2016). ফিকহ শাস্ত্রে মুফতি মুহাম্মদ ফয়জুল্লাহর অবদান : একটি পর্যালােচনা [Contribution of Mufti Muhammad Faizullah to Fiqh: A Review] (PhD) (in Bengali). Dhaka: University of Dhaka. pp. 208–212. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
10. Abu Musa Mohammad Arif Billah (2012). "Faizullah, Mufti". In Sirajul Islam; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN 984-32-0576-6. OCLC 52727562. OL 30677644M. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
11. Islam, Sirajul (1997). History of Bangladesh, 1704-1971: Social and cultural history. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. p. 398. ISBN 9789845123372. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
12. al-Kumillai, Muhammad Hifzur Rahman (2018). كتاب البدور المضية في تراجم الحنفية (in Arabic). Cairo, Egypt: Dar al-Salih.