Imdadullah Muhajir Makki (1817 – 1899) was an Indian Muslim Sufi

scholar A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researc ...

of the

Chishti The Chishtī Order ( fa, ''chishtī'') is a tariqa, an order or school within the mystic Sufi tradition of Sunni Islam. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. It began with Abu Ishaq Shami in Chisht, a ...

Sufi order. His disciples include Muhammad Qasim Nanautawi,

Rashid Ahmad Gangohi Rashīd Aḥmad ibn Hidāyat Aḥmad Ayyūbī Anṣārī Gangohī (182611 August 1905) ( ur, ) was an Indian Deobandi Islamic scholar, a leading figure of the Deobandi jurist and scholar of hadith. His lineage reaches back to Abu Ayyub al-Ans ...

, and

Ashraf Ali Thanwi Ashraf Ali Thanwi (often referred as Hakim al-Ummat and Mujaddid e Millet; 19 September 1863 – 20 July 1943) was a late-nineteenth and twentieth-century Sunni scholar, jurist, thinker, reformist and the revival of classical sufi thought from ...

. In the

Indian Rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

, he led the Muslims in Thana Bhawan to fight against

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

Early life

Imdadullah Muhaajir Makki was born in

Nanauta Nanauta is a town and a nagar panchayat (municipality) in Saharanpur district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Uttar Pradesh. Nanauta is located on Saharanpur Delhi Highway. It is from Saharanpur city. It is from Shamli ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

in 1817. His father Muhammad Amīn named him Imdad Hussain. However, Shah Muhammad Ishaq gave him the name of Imdādullah. Aged seven, Imdādullah lost his mother who wrote her will that none shall touch her kid after her, and kept Imdādullah more beloved to her in those seven years; this became a hurdle that no one took care of Imdādullah's education. He then started memorizing the

Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , s ...

on his own but failed to do so. Aged 16, he traveled to

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

with

Mamluk Ali Nanautawi Mamluk Ali Nanautawi (also written as Mamluk al-Ali Nanautawi) (1789–7 October 1851) was an Indian Sunni Muslim scholar who served as the Head Teacher of Arabic language at the Zakir Husain Delhi College. His notable students include Muhammad Q ...

to seek education.

Religious work and travels

At the age of eighteen, his ''

bay'at ''Bayʿah'' ( ar, بَيْعَة, "Pledge of allegiance"), in Islamic terminology, is an oath of allegiance to a leader. It is known to have been practiced by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. ''Bayʿah'' is sometimes taken under a written pact gi ...

'' was accepted by Nasiruddin Naqshbandi. Later he went to study under Mianji (Noor Mohammad Jhanjhanvi), as an initiate of the Chishti-Sabiri Sufi order, but after Mianji's death he temporarily became a semi-recluse. After wandering in the wilderness for six months he was overcome by a strong urge to travel to

Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the second-holiest city in Islam, and the capital of the ...

. On 7 December 1845, he arrived at Banares. From there, he departed for

Ottoman Arabia The Ottoman era in the history of Arabia lasted from 1517 to 1918. Ottoman degree of control over these lands varied over the four centuries with the fluctuating strength or weakness of the Empire's central authority. History Early period In t ...

for Hajj and pilgrimage of the tomb of shrine of

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...

. After the completion of his hajj, Imadadullah remained with Ishaq Muhajir Makki and others. Shah informed him that, after his pilgrimage to

, he should return to India. Sayyid Qudratullah Banarasi Makki sent several of his ''

murids In Sufism, a ''murīd'' (Arabic مُرِيد 'one who seeks') is a novice committed to spiritual enlightenment by ''sulūk'' (traversing a path) under a spiritual guide, who may take the title murshid, '' pir'' or ''shaykh''. A ''sālik'' or Su ...

'' to accompany him to Medina.

Freedom struggle against the British

Thana Bhawan Thana Bhawan is a small town in Shamli district (formerly part of Muzaffarnagar district) in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. District Shamli is a newly constructed district. Before becoming a new district, it came under district Muzaffarnag ...

, the local Sunnis declared Imdadullah their leader. In May 1857 the

Battle of Shamli Battle of Shamli or Battle of Thana Bhawan was fought on 10 May 1857 between the forces of Imdadullah Muhajir Makki and the East India Company, in the series of Rebellion of 1857. On 10 May 1857, local Muslims under the leadership of Imdadullah ...

took place between the forces of Imdadullah and the British.

Disciples

Disciples include: * Ahmad Hasan Amrohi * Asghar Hussain Deobandi *

* Muhammad Qasim Nanautawi *

* Muhammad Yaqub Nanautawi *

Mahmud Hasan Deobandi Mahmud Hasan Deobandi (also known as Shaykh al-Hind; 1851–1920) was an Indian Muslim scholar and an activist of the Indian independence movement, who co-founded the Jamia Millia Islamia university and launched the Silk Letter Movement for t ...

* Imam Muhammad Anwaarullah Farooqui * Sayyid Muhammad Abid *

Najib Ali Choudhury Najib Ali Choudhury ( bn, নজিব আলী চৌধুরী) was a 19th-century Bengalis, Bengali Islamic scholar and teacher. He was notable for his founding of the Madinatul Uloom Bagbari, the first madrasa in the Barak Valley region. ...

Marriages

Imdadullah married for the first time at the age of 48. After the death of his first wife, he married a blind widow. Because she was blind, she could not manage all household work, so she requested him to take another wife so all household work. Imdadullah then married for the third time. None of his three wives bore him children.

Literary works

His books include: *''Faisla Haft Masala'' *''Kulliyat-e-Imdadiya'' *''Hashiya Mathnavi Moulana Rumi'': This is an annotation in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

on the ''Mathnawi-i Ma’nawi'' by Rumi. During Imadadullah's lifetime, only two parts could be printed. The remainder was printed after his death. *''Ghiza-e-Ruh'' (The Nourishment of the Soul): Imadadullah wrote this book in 1264 AH. Mianji ''Noor Mohammad Jhanjhanvi'' is also discussed. It consists of 1600 verses of poetry. *''Ikleelul Quran'' (Tafseer Quran in Arabi). First Published in

Bahraich Bahraich is a city and a municipal board in Bahraich district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Located on the Saryu River, a tributary of the Ghaghara river, Bahraich is north-east of Lucknow, the state capital. The districts of Bar ...

by Taj Offcet Press formerly Aqeel Press NazirPura

*''Jihad-e-Akbar'' (The Greater Jihad): He composed this book in 1268 AH. It is a poetic work in

that he translated it into

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

. He wrote this ''kitab'' in

Makkah Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow v ...

in 1282 AH on the request of Hafiz Muhammad Yusuf, the son of Hafiz Muhammad Zamin.

Death

Imdadullah died at

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow ...

in 1899. He was buried in the Jannat al-Mu'alla cemetery besides the grave of

Rahmatullah Kairanwi Rahmatullah Kairanawi (also known as Rahmatullah Kairanawi Al-Hindi; 1818–1891) was a Sunni Muslim scholar and author who is best known for his work, '' Izhar ul-Haqq''. Background Kairanawi was born in Kairana, Muzaffarnagar in 1818. He is a ...

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Makki, Imdadullah Muhaajir Hanafis Maturidis 1817 births 1899 deaths Chishti Order Indian Sunni Muslims 19th-century Muslim scholars of Islam People of British India Burials at Jannat al-Mu'alla