Mawlana Abdur Rahim (; 2 March 1918 – 1 October 1987) was a Bangladeshi

Islamic scholar In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

, South Asian politician and the first promoter of

Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami is the largest Islamist political party in Bangladesh. The origin of the party can be traced back to the original faction founded by Sayyid Abul A'la Maududi in 1941. The predecessor of Jamaat which is known as Jam ...

. He translated several books written by prominent Islamic scholars such as

Abul A'la Maududi Abul A'la al-Maududi (; – ) was an Islamic scholar, Islamist ideologue, Muslim philosopher, jurist, historian, journalist, activist, and scholar active in British India and later, following the partition, in Pakistan. Described by Wilfred C ...

and

Yusuf al-Qaradawi Yusuf al-Qaradawi (; or ''Yusuf al-Qardawi''; 9 September 1926 – 26 September 2022) was an Egyptian Islamic scholar based in Doha, Qatar, and chairman of the International Union of Muslim Scholars. His influences included Ibn Taymiyya, Ibn ...

into Bengali and he wrote widely on the fundamentals of Islam in both

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

and Bengali.

Early life

Mohammad Abdur Rahim was born in the village of Shialkathi into a prominent family of

Pirojpur District Pirojpur District () is a district in south-western Bangladesh. It is a part of Barisal Division. ফিরোজ সরদার ১৭০০ সালে এ অঞ্চলের গভীর বন জঙ্গল কেটে মানু ...

in Bangladesh. His clan was descended from Sheikh Baijeed, a

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 ...

Dervish Dervish, Darvesh, or Darwīsh (from ) in Islam can refer broadly to members of a Sufi fraternity (''tariqah''), or more narrowly to a religious mendicant, who chose or accepted material poverty. The latter usage is found particularly in Persi ...

. His father was Haji Khabiruddin and mother Aklimunnessa. He was fourth among the twelve children in the family. Prominent among his brothers was his eldest brother A. T. M Abdul Wahid, a graduate from Alia Madrasa of Calcutta and a well known literary figure. Two of his brothers, M. A Karim and M. A Sattar, are also well-known writers.

Education

After completing first four years of education at the village mosque beside his home, he was admitted into the Sharshina Aliya Madrasa in 1934. In 1938, Abdur Rahim graduated with merit from the Sharsina Aliya Madrassah, after which he was admitted into Aliya Madrasa of Calcutta (now the Aliah University) where he passed his ''Fazil'' and ''Kamil'' exams in 1940 and 1942, respectively.

Role in Jamaat-e-Islami

Abdur Rahim used to receive the magazine ''Tarjamanul Qur'an'', edited by

, when he was a student at the Aliya Madrasa. Deeply influenced by this magazine and other writings of Syed Abul A'la Maududi, Abdur Rahim participated in the All-Indian conference of Jamaat-e-Islami held in

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

in 1946, at which he became acquainted with many of the leaders of the Jamaat. He subsequently joined the organization during the 1946–47 session. Abdur Rahim was one of four people who started to work in Dhaka to establish Jamaat-e-Islami in Bangladesh. The others were Rafi Ahmed Indori, Khurshid Ahmed Bhat and Qari Jalil Ashrafi Nadwi. In 1955, Abdur Rahim was elected Ameer of East Pakistan Jamaat-e-Islami. In 1970, he became Nayeb-e-Ameer (vice chairman or vice president) of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan, while

Ghulam Azam Ghulam Azam (7 November 192223 October 2014) was Bangladeshi politician and writer who served as Ameer of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, ameer of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. He was vocal in gaining support for Operation Searchlight, a crackdown o ...

was elected the new Ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami East Pakistan Branch. Abdur Rahim was the first elected leader of

. During the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...

of 1971, he refused to join the

East Pakistan Central Peace Committee East Pakistan Central Peace Committee was one of several committees formed in East Pakistan in 1971 to aid efforts of Pakistani forces during the Bangladesh War of Independence. Nurul Amin, as a leader of Pakistan Democratic Party, led the for ...

and asked Maulana Mawdudi not to support the Pakistani military regime. Abdur Rahim was stranded in Pakistan after the outbreak of the war and was only able to return to Bangladesh in 1974. During the period 1971 to 1975, Jamaat was banned from being involved with politics in Bangladesh. In 1979, Jamaat was allowed to participate in politics. Abdur Rahim was instrumental in bringing various Islamic political parties together under the banner of the

Islamic Democratic League The Islamic Democratic League was a Bangladeshi political organisation. History The Islamic Democratic League was established in 1976 by Abdur Rahim and Siddique Ahmad. The party had former members of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. Following the I ...

(IDL), which won 20 seats in the parliamentary elections held on 18 February 1979.

Books

Abdur Rahim wrote many books in his lifetime. Some of his books include: # ''Al-Qurane’r Aloke Unnoto Jiboner Adorsho'' he Ideal of An Improved Way of Life in the Light of the Holy Quran, 1980# ''Ajker Chintadhara'' (The Trends of Today's Thinking, 1980) #'' Hadith Sharif (3 volumes)'' # ''Hadith Shongkoloner Itihash'' # ''Pashchatto Shobbhotar Darshonik Bhitti'' (the Philosophical Basis of the West's civilization, 1984) # ''Al-Quraner Nobuuet O Risalat'' 984# ''Al-Quraner Aloke Shirk O Towheed''

983 Year 983 ( CMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – Diet of Verona: Emperor Otto II (the Red) declares war against the Byzantine Empire and the Emirate of Sicily ...

# ''Al-Quraner Rashtro O Shorkar''

988 Year 988 ( CMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Fall – Emperor Basil II, supported by a contingent of 6,000 Varangians (the future Varangian Guard), organiz ...

# ''Islamer Zakat Bidhan'' (1982–86)- translation of book by Yusuf Al Qaradawi # ''Bingsho Shotabdir Jahliyat'' (1982–1986) - translation of book by Sayyid Qutb # ''Tafheemul Quran'', 19 volumes- translation of book by Maududi # ''Sunnat O Bidaat''

Death

On 29 September 1987, Abdur Rahim became ill and was admitted to a hospital on 30 September. Abdur Rahim died on 1 October 1987 in Dhaka.

References

External links

{{Islam in South Asia 1918 births 1987 deaths Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan politicians Bangladeshi politicians People from Pirojpur District Bangladeshi Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam 20th-century Bengalis Pakistani scholars Bengali Muslim scholars of Islam Bangladeshi people of Iranian descent Jamaat