Madrasatul Waizeen or Madrasatul Waezeen or Madrasat al-Wa'izin (College of Preachers), founded in 1919, is an old centre of

Twelver Shia Twelver Shi'ism (), also known as Imamism () or Ithna Ashari, is the largest branch of Shi'a Islam, comprising about 90% of all Shi'a Muslims. The term ''Twelver'' refers to its adherents' belief in twelve divinely ordained leaders, known as th ...

education in the city of

Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. Many of the clerics attend this school after they finish their graduate educations in other Shia seminaries to strengthen their oratory and preaching skills. It is well-known for the valuable manuscripts in its library.

Foundation and development

The seminary was founded on 19 May 1919 by Maharaja

Mohammad Ali Mohammad Khan Maharaja Bahadur, Maharaja Sir Mohammad Ali Mohammad Khan, Khan Bahadur, Order of the Star of India, KCSI, Order of the Indian Empire, KCIE (4 June 1878 – 23 March 1931) was the Raja of Mahmudabad, India, Mahmudabad from 28 June 1903 to ...

of Mahmudabad in memory of his younger brother Sahibzada Mohammad Ali Ahmad Khan Sahib. The Waqf-e-Madrasa-e-Ahmadiya of Mahmudabad was created by the Maharaja of Mahmudabad in 1919 by way of a registered ''

Waqf A (; , plural ), also called a (, plural or ), or ''mortmain'' property, is an Alienation (property law), inalienable charitable financial endowment, endowment under Sharia, Islamic law. It typically involves donating a building, plot ...

nama''. The Madrastul Waizeen was founded by the aforementioned ''Waqf'' in 1919. Shams-ul-Ulema

Ayatullah Ayatollah (, ; ; ) is an honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy. It came into widespread usage in the 20th century. Originally used as a title bestowed by popular/clerical acclaim for a small number of the most distinguished ' ...

Syed Najmul Hasan was involved in madrasa since the days of its founding.

First Board of Trustees

The first Board of Trustees of the Waqf and therefore the Madrasa was as follows: * Chairman: Maharaja Sir

, K.C.S.I., K.C.I.E., of Mahmudabad * Trustee: Najmul Millat

Syed Najmul Hasan * Trustee: Imam Jum'a of Mahmudabad * Trustee: Mian Sheikh Mohammad Sadiq Ali Khan Sahib of Mohammadpur-Bishanpur,

Barabanki District Barabanki district is one of the five districts of Ayodhya division in the central Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh, India. Barabanki city is the administrative headquarters of Barabanki district. Total area of Barabanki district is 3891.5 Sq.&n ...

, U.P. * Trustee: Syed Muzaffar Husain Sahib, Advocate, Qaziara, Sitapur,

Sitapur District Sitapur district is one of the Districts of Uttar Pradesh, districts which is situated in Uttar Pradesh States and territories of India, state of India, with Sitapur town as the district headquarters. Sitapur district is a part of Lucknow divis ...

, India The late Raja Mohammad Amir Ahmad Khan was the managing trustee from 1940 to 1944. Taj-ul-Ulama Maulana Syed Mohd Zaki (son of Shams-ul-Ulama Syed Mohammad and grandson of Shams-ul-Ulema

Syed Najmul Hasan) also served as the managing trustee. Maharajkumar Mohammad Amir Haider Khan of Mahmudabad was the managing trustee until his demise in 1991. The late Hujjatul Islam Maulana Mazahir Hussain a renowned 'Alim and scholar was a trustee of the Madrasa as the Imam-e-Jum'a of Mahmudabad,

, India.

Educational Program

Madrasatul Waizeen is considered a higher Shia religious education, where the students learn high levels of Shia studies, specially fiqh and usul al-fiqh, but also take some courses in preaching. The student of this seminary should pass a 3-year program of studying after which they should go for a journey of preaching for people in India or another country for two years, after which they would get the title of "wa'iz" (preacher). Learning foreign languages such as Arabic, English,

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 ...

, etc., are obligatory for the students of Madrasatul Waizeen. The students also take some courses about other religions and denominations so they would become able to engage in interfaith dialogue and preaching for people of other faiths. The Madrasa has an annual event on the last week of every December, when everyone who is in any way related to this seminary participates in a 3-day conference and reports about what they do around the world, and they are also informed about the activities of the seminary during the last year. The place of the conference is different time to time.

Library

The collections of the library of Madrasatul Waizeen include more than 20,000 books in print, and at least 1500 manuscripts. DR. Mohd. Taqi Ali Abidi, Asstt. Professor, Oriental Studies in Arabic & Persian,

University of Lucknow University of Lucknow (informally known as Lucknow University, and LU) is one of the oldest public state university based in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. LU's main campus is located at Badshah Bagh, University Road area of the city with a second ...

compiled a Catalogue of Persian, Urdu & Arabic Manuscripts in Library of Madrasatul Waizeen in 1989-1990.

Activitees and associated institutions

Field of operations of this Madrasa has not been confined to India, but its missionaries have worked in Zanzibar, Uganda, Mombasa, Darussalam, Singapore, Shanghai. During the late 1920s, the Madrasatul Waezeen started sending their missionaries to

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

. These missionaries were, specially trained for preaching and propagating the faith. They toured East Africa, visiting various Jamaats of Shia Ithna-Asheris and prepared a comprehensive report of their own activities. The nature of these visits was expeditious, protracted for a few months during which time some of them extended their visits to as far south as

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

, and northwards to

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

. The Madrasa has an associated institution in Mahmudabad, District Sitapur, India, known as Madrasa-e-Ahmadul Madaris. It is funded by the

Raja of Mahmudabad Raja of Mahmudabad is the title used by taluqdars of Mahmudabad Estate. The term may refer to following individuals: * Raja Sarfaraz Ali Khan, first use, previous taluqdars used title Nawab * Raja Musahib Ali Khan (d. 1810) * Raja Mohammad Nawab Ali ...

Former Principals

Former principals include: *Khateeb e Azam

Syed Sibte Hasan Naqvi Syed Sibte Hasan Naqvi (مولانا سيد سبط حسن نقوى) (d. 1935) was a Shia cleric from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. He was known by the title of ''Khatib-E-Azam'' (Great Orator). Family background His last name "Naqvi" indicates ...

* *Ayatullah Syed Abul Hasan Naqvi* * Allamah Adeel Akhtar Zaidi (from 1936 till his death in 1950) he served as the Second Principal of Madrasatul Waizeen, Lucknow *

Syed Rahat Hussain Rizvi Gopalpuri died in 1955 * Maulana Syed Ibne Hasan Nonaharvi (died on 25 March 1980) * Maulana Prof. Syed Shabihul Hasan Nonaharvi (died on 13 May 1998) * Maulana Syed Mohsin Rizvi Gopalpuri died in 2000 * Maulana

Syed Mohammad Waris Hasan Naqvi Syed Mohammad Waris Hasan Naqvi Nasirabadi (born 1932/33 died 11 May 2008) was a Shia Muslim cleric from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. Family background Syed Sibte Hasan Naqvi was father of Waris Hasan. His last name "Naqvi" indicates he is ...

(died on 11 May 2008) * Maulan
Mujtaba Ali Khan
''Adeebul Hindi Marhoom'' (vice-principal) * Maulana Urujul Hasan Meesum Honorary Principal of Madrasatul Waizeen, Lucknow

Notable alumni

Syed Hamidul Hasan Syed Hamid ul Hassan is a Shia scholar from Lucknow, India. He is also the current principal of Jamia Nazmia. Education He completed his education from Jamia Nazmia up to Mumtaz-ul-Afazil and was taught by Syed Ahmad Ali (son of Mohammad Abb ...

* Syed Ali Akhtar Rizvi *

Kaifi Azmi Kaifi Azmi (born Athar Husain Rizvi; 14 January 1919 – 10 May 2002) was an Indian Urdu poet. He is remembered as the one who brought Urdu literature to Indian motion pictures. Together with Pirzada Qasim, Jaun Elia and others he participa ...

Notable Publications

* The Holy Quran: A Translation with Commentary According to Shia Traditions and Principles. 2 vols. by A. F. Badshah Husain, 1936 *The Muslim review: an English monthly magazine of Madrasatul Waizeen. * Monthly Alwaiz, Lucknow

References

External links

* Waqf e Madrasa e Ahmadiyya, Mahmudabad, District Sitapur, U.P., India *U.P. Shi’a Central Waqf Board
The official website of Jamia Nazmia

The official website of Sultanul Madaris
{{coord missing, Uttar Pradesh Islamic universities and colleges in India Education in Lucknow