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Hamiduddin Farahi (18 November 1863 – 11 November 1930) was an Indian
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
ic scholar known for his work on the concept of ''nazm'', or coherence, in the
Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...
. The modernist
Farahi school The Farahi school () is a school of thought that originated in the Indian subcontinent. It is named after Hamiduddin Farahi, a cousin and student of the Indian Sunni Hanafi scholar Shibli Nomani. Unlike other schools of thought, which focus mor ...
is named after him. He was instrumental in producing scholarly work on the theory that the verses of the Quran are interconnected in such a way that each
surah A ''surah'' (; ; ) is an Arabic word meaning 'chapter' in the Quran. There are 114 ''suwar'' in the Quran, each divided into ayah, verses (). The ''suwar'' are of unequal length; the shortest ''surah'' (al-Kawthar) has only three verses, while ...
, or chapter, of the Quran forms a coherent structure, having its own central theme, which he called ''umood''. He also started writing his own exegesis, or ''tafsir'' of the Quran which was left incomplete on his death in 1930. The ''muqaddimah'', or introduction to this is an important work on the theory of ''Nazm-ul-Quran''.


Early life and family

Farahi was born in ''Phariya'' (hence the name "Farahi"), a village in the district of
Azamgarh district Azamgarh district is one of the three districts of Azamgarh division in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Etymology The district is named after its headquarters town, Azamgarh. Azam, a son of Vikramajit, founded the town in 1665. Vikramajit ...
,
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...
, India. He was the son of Abdul Kareem Sheikh and Muqeema Bibi, and the brother of Rasheeduddin Sheikh. He was a cousin of the famous theologian and historian
Shibli Nomani Shibli Nomani (4 June 1857 – 18 November 1914) was an Indian Islamic scholar, poet, philosopher, historian, educational thinker, author, orator, reformer and critic of orientalists during the British Raj. He is regarded as the father of Urdu ...
, from whom he learned
Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
. He was taught
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 ...
from Maulvi Mehdi Husain of Chitara (Azamgarh). He travelled to
Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
to study
Arabic literature Arabic literature ( / ALA-LC: ''al-Adab al-‘Arabī'') is the writing, both as prose and poetry, produced by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for literature is ''Adab (Islam), Adab'', which comes from a meaning of etiquett ...
from Faizul Hasan Saharaupuri, who was considered a master at that time in this field. At the age of twenty-one, he was admitted to the
Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh Muslim University is a Collegiate university, collegiate, Central university (India), central, and Research university, research university located in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Kh ...
to study the modern disciplines of knowledge. He was recommended by
Syed Ahmad Khan Sir Syed Ahmad Khan (17 October 1817 – 27 March 1898), also spelled Sayyid Ahmad Khan, was an Indian Muslim Islamic modernist, reformer, philosopher, and educationist in nineteenth-century British Raj, British India. Though initially esp ...
, founder of
Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh Muslim University is a Collegiate university, collegiate, Central university (India), central, and Research university, research university located in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Kh ...
. Sir Syed wrote that he was sending someone who knew more Arabic and Persian than the professors of the college. While studying at the college, Farahi translated parts of ''At-Tabaqat-ul-Kubra'' of
ibn Shihab al-Zuhri Abū Bakr Muhammad ibn Muslim ibn Ubayd Allah ibn Abd Allah ibn Shihab al-Zuhri (; died 124 AH/741-2 CE), also referred to as Ibn Shihab or az-Zuhri, was a ''tabi'i'' Arab jurist and traditionist credited with pioneering the development of '' s� ...
(784 – 845 AD) into Persian. The translation was later included in the college syllabus. Farahi eventually graduated from MAO College.


Teaching career

After finishing his studies, Farahi taught Arabic at various institutions, including Sindh Madressatul Islam College, Karachi, (from 1897 to 1906),
Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College (, lit. "Science School for the Muslims of India") was founded in 1875 by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, initially as a primary school, with the intention of turning it to a college level institution. It was inspired by t ...
(MAO) and ''Darul Uloom'',
Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
. While at MAO, he learnt
Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...
from the German Orientalist and Professor of Arabic
Josef Horovitz Josef Horovitz (26 July 1874 – 5 February 1931) was a Jewish German orientalist. A son of Markus Horovitz (1844–1910), an Orthodox rabbi, Josef Horovitz studied with Eduard Sachau at the University of Berlin and was there since 1902 as a d ...
(1874 – 1931). During his stay in Hyderabad, Farahi conceived the idea of establishing a
university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...
where all religious and modern sciences would be taught in
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 ...
. The scheme he prepared for this purpose later materialised in the form of ''Jamiah Uthmaniyyah'' or
Osmania University Osmania University is a collegiate university, collegiate Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad, issued a ''firman'' calling f ...
,
Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
. He subsequently went to ''Sara-e-Mir'', a town in
Azamgarh Azamgarh is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the headquarters of Azamgarh division, which consists of Ballia, Mau and Azamgarh districts. Azamgarh is situated on the bank of Tamsa River (Tons). It is located east of the ...
, where he took charge of the ''
Madrasatul Islah Madrasatul Islah is a traditional Islamic institution of learning and a renowned center of oriental and Islamic studies at Sarai Mir in the Azamgarh district of Uttar Pradesh. It was started by Mawlana Muhammad Shafi in 1908 along with particip ...
'' (School for Reform), an institution based on the educational ideas of
Shibli Nomani Shibli Nomani (4 June 1857 – 18 November 1914) was an Indian Islamic scholar, poet, philosopher, historian, educational thinker, author, orator, reformer and critic of orientalists during the British Raj. He is regarded as the father of Urdu ...
and Farahi. Farahi had served as chief administrator of the school since its inception, but other engagements kept him away from becoming actively involved in its affairs. From 1925, when he came to Sara-e-Mir, to 1930, the year of his death, Farahi devoted most of his time and energy to managing the affairs of the ''Madrasa-tul-Islah'' and teaching there. A few students -
Amin Ahsan Islahi Amin Ahsan Islahi (; 1904 – 15 December 1997), was a Pakistani Islamic scholar best known for his Urdu exegesis of the Quran, '' Tadabbur-i-Quran'' ("Pondering on the Quran"), which he based on Hamiduddin Farahi's (1863 – 1930), id ...
was one of them — received special training from him and later became the bearer of his torch.


Theory of Quran

For almost fifty years, Farahi reflected over the
Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...
, which remained his chief interest and the focal point of all his writings. His greatest contribution in its study is his discovery of coherence in the Quran. He has achieved the impossible, remarked
Shibli Nomani Shibli Nomani (4 June 1857 – 18 November 1914) was an Indian Islamic scholar, poet, philosopher, historian, educational thinker, author, orator, reformer and critic of orientalists during the British Raj. He is regarded as the father of Urdu ...
while praising his student's grand achievement. It is considered a super human accomplishment, Farahi demonstrated to all the western critics that with a sound understanding of the Arabic language, one can appreciate the coherence in the Quran which is certainly not a haphazard collection of injunctions. By taking into consideration, the three constituents of nazm (coherence): order, proportion and unity, he proved that a single interpretation of the Quran was possible. This alone was a far-reaching consequence of the principle of Quranic nazm. Serious differences in the interpretation of the Quran which have given rise to the menace of religious sectarianism are actually the result of disregarding thematic and structural coherence in the arrangement and mutual relationship of various Quranic verses and paragraphs. Each sect has adopted its interpretation because isolating a verse from its context can associate multiple meanings to it. It is only the coherence of the Qur'an, which if considered leads to a definite and integrated understanding of the 'Divine Message'. It is only then that the Qur'an can be truly regarded as a Mizan (Balance of Justice) and a Furqan (Distinguisher of Good and Evil). It is only then that the Quranic verse: Hold fast to the Cable of Allah and be not divided’ (3:103), can become a manifest reality and the unity in the Muslim Ummah be achieved. Farahi went on to enunciate certain principles necessary to understand and interpret the Quran. The foremost among them was the principle of coherence. He was able to show that unless the Quran is understood through a holistic approach a lot of its treasure of wisdom remains hidden.


Recognition of his work

Several Islamic scholars of South Asia have acknowledged his contribution to Islamic thought and learning.
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 ...
wrote, "It has been generally accepted that in recent times, very few have reached the position Allama Farahi has been blessed with by the Almighty as far as deliberation on the Qur'an is concerned. He has spent the major portion of his life pondering on the meanings of this Book, and has written such a masterful commentary on the Qur'an that it is difficult to find its parallel even in the early period..." Shibli Nomani wrote, "It is generally believed that a talented person can in no way remain unknown to the world. Experience as well as history bear testimony to this. However, each rule has an exception. Maulvi Hameed Uddin ... is a good example of such an exception ... In this age, his treatise "Tafseer Nizaam-ul-Quran" is as essential and beneficial to Muslims as pure water is to the thirsty and exhausted."
Sulaiman Nadvi Sulaiman Nadvi (22 November 1884 – 22 November 1953) was a British Indian, and then Pakistani, Islamic scholar, historian and a writer, who co-authored '' Sirat-un-Nabi'' and wrote ''Khutbat-e-Madras''. He was a member of the founding commi ...
wrote, " ... The Ibn Taymiyya of this age has died on 11 November 1930 --- someone whose brilliance is very unlikely to be surpassed now and whose comprehensive command of oriental and occidental disciplines is a miracle of this era. A profound scholar of the Qur'an ... a unique personality ... an embodiment of piety ... an unfathomable sea of knowledge ... an institution within himself ... a literary genius ... a researcher of prodigious intellect ... It is a matter of great sorrow that such a brilliant personality graced the world and then perished, but the world could not recognize its grandeur ... "
Manazir Ahsan Gilani Manazir Ahsan Gilani (1 October 1892 – 5 June 1956) was an Indian Sunni Islamic scholar and former Dean of the Faculty of Theology at Osmania University. Some of his notable works include ''Tadwin-e-Hadith'', ''Muqaddama Tadwin-e-Fiqh'', ''Saw ...
wrote, " ... the revivalist movement launched by Shah Wali Ullah n the eighteenth century in recent years has drawn inspiration from "Tafseer Nizaam-ul-Qur'an" the work of a distinguished scholar, Maulana Hameed Uddin Farahi. Among other features of this commentary (i.e. relationship between the Qur'an and the Bible, and various literary discussions), its salient feature is the unprecedented attempt in it to bring out the coherence between the verses. It is this coherence which sometimes provides enough evidence that the Qur'an is a Divine Book."
Abdul Majid Daryabadi Abdul Majid Daryabadi (16 March 1892 – 6 January 1977) was an influential Ulama, Islamic scholar, Philosophy, philosopher, writer, critic, researcher, journalist, and Quranic exegete active in the Indian subcontinent during the 20th century. ...
wrote, "In this age, Allama Hameed Uddin Farahi is the most outstanding personality as far as Qur'anic Studies are concerned. He not only occupies a distinguished position among the scholars of recent times, but, in fact, has discovered some new principles for the interpretation of the Qur'an. The foremost among them is his philosophy of coherence in the Qur'an."
Javed Ahmad Ghamidi Javed Ahmad Ghamidi (born 7 April 1952) is a Pakistani Islamic scholar and philosopher who is the founder of Al-Mawrid Institute of Islamic Sciences and its sister organisation ''Danish Sara''. He is regarded as one of the most influential and ...
wrote, "The greatest favour that Imam Farahi has done to the Muslim ummah is that he has restored this status with utmost eminence. The manner in which he understood the Qur'an, the manner in which he taught how to teach it, the way in which he compiled its fields of knowledge and the extent to which he reached into the depths of its verses and explained who they address and how, and how the Qur'an elaborates on its decisions create the basis for a firm foundation for the establishment of the governance of the Qur'an: the final verdict; the balance through which it explains what is acceptable in religion and in the guidance from God, and what is unacceptable. I consider Imam Farahi to be one of God's signs for this world."


Works

Most of Farahi's work is in Arabic. Farahi's chief scholarly interest was the Quran, the focal point of all his writings. Most of his published works are in the form of notes that were later compiled by his followers such Maulana
Amin Ahsan Islahi Amin Ahsan Islahi (; 1904 – 15 December 1997), was a Pakistani Islamic scholar best known for his Urdu exegesis of the Quran, '' Tadabbur-i-Quran'' ("Pondering on the Quran"), which he based on Hamiduddin Farahi's (1863 – 1930), id ...
and Allama
Khalid Masud Allama Khalid Masud (16 December 1935 – 1 October 2003), was a Muslim scholar of Pakistan. He spent the major part of his life with Moulana Amin Ahsan Islahi. He conveyed ideas and thoughts of his teacher and Imam Farhi to general public. He ...
and others. Some of the books he wrote are: * ''Majmua' Tafseer--Farahi'' (Collection of Tafsir-e-Farahi) * Mufradat al Quran ("Vocabulary of the Quran") * Asalib al Quran ("Style of the Quran") * Jamhara-tul-Balaghah ("Manual of Quranic Rhetoric") * Im'an Fi Aqsam al-Qur'an (A Study of the Qur'anic Oaths) * ‘في من هو الذبيح’ (Fi man huwa al-Dhabih: Which of Abraham's son was Sacrificed?) * Nizam al-Qur'an (Coherence in the Qur'an), a commentary on the Qur'an, Introduction * Urdu translation of Last 40 Chapters of Quran * Complementing principles of interpretation


Death and legacy

Hamiduddin Farahi died on 11 November 1930 at
Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the states and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located south-east of Delhi; and about from the town of Vrindavan. In ancient ti ...
, UP, British India at age 66.


Further reading

* S M Mukarram Jahan. (2023) ''Iḥyā’ ‘Ulūm ad-Dīn - Rediscovering Maulana Hamiduddin Farahi and His Thought''. Adam Publishers & Distributors, New Delhi, .


See also

*
Amin Ahsan Islahi Amin Ahsan Islahi (; 1904 – 15 December 1997), was a Pakistani Islamic scholar best known for his Urdu exegesis of the Quran, '' Tadabbur-i-Quran'' ("Pondering on the Quran"), which he based on Hamiduddin Farahi's (1863 – 1930), id ...
*
Khalid Masud Allama Khalid Masud (16 December 1935 – 1 October 2003), was a Muslim scholar of Pakistan. He spent the major part of his life with Moulana Amin Ahsan Islahi. He conveyed ideas and thoughts of his teacher and Imam Farhi to general public. He ...
*
Javed Ahmed Ghamidi Javed Ahmad Ghamidi (born 7 April 1952) is a Pakistani Islamic scholar and philosopher who is the founder of Al-Mawrid Institute of Islamic Sciences and its sister organisation ''Danish Sara''. He is regarded as one of the most influential and ...
*
Tafhim-ul-Quran ''Tafhim-ul-Quran'' () is a 6-volume translation and commentary of the Qur'an by the Pakistani Islamist ideologue and activist Syed Abul Ala Maududi. Maududi began writing the book in 1942 and completed it in 1972. ''Tafhim'' is derived from t ...
*
Tadabbur-i-Qur'an ''Tadabbur-i-Qur'an'' () is a exegeses (''tafsir'') of the Qur'an by Amin Ahsan Islahi based on the concept of thematic and structural coherence, which was originally inspired by Allama Hamiduddin Farahi. The tafsir is extended over nine volumes ...
* Muntasir Mir


References


External links


A website dedicated to Hamiduddin FarahiExordium to the Coherence in the QuranA Study of the Quranic OathsEnglish Translation of Farahi's Muqaddimah - Tafsir Nizam-ul-QuranDarul Musannefeen Shibli AcademyWelcome to Madrasa-Islah saraimeer Azamgarh
at www.madrasaislah.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Farahi, Hamiduddin 1863 births 1930 deaths 19th-century Indian Muslims Aligarh Muslim University alumni University of Allahabad alumni 19th-century Muslim scholars of Islam People from Azamgarh district Quranic exegesis scholars 20th-century Muslim scholars of Islam