Nesaruddin Ahmad (; 1873 – 31 January 1952) was a

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

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 ...

, spiritual reformer, educationist and writer. He was the main

disciple A disciple is a follower and student of a mentor, teacher, or other figure. It can refer to: Religion * Disciple (Christianity), a student of Jesus Christ * Twelve Apostles of Jesus, sometimes called the Twelve Disciples * Seventy disciples in t ...

Furfura Sharif Furfura Sharif (also known as Furfura, and Furfura Darbar Sharif) is a village in Jangipara community development block of Srirampore subdivision in Hooghly District in the state of West Bengal, India. It is a holy place for some Bengali Musli ...

's Mohammad Abu Bakr Siddique in

eastern Bengal East Bengal or Eastern Bengal may refer to: * the eastern part of Bengal, a historical term for a region in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent * Eastern Bengal and Assam, a province of India 1905–1912 * East Bengal, a province of the Do ...

. Ahmad was the inaugural Pir of Sarsina (), having founded the Sarsina Darbar Sharif and Darussunnat Kamil Madrasa in 1915, one of the largest Islamic institutions in

South Bengal South Bengal (/দক্ষিণ বাংলা) is a term used for the southern parts of Bengal including Southern Bangladesh and Southern West Bengal, state in India. The Bangladesh part denotes the Khulna Division, Faridpur Division and ...

and the first major alia madrasah after

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

. Ahmad was among the leading Islamic leaders in colonial Barisal, and his influence extended across

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

. The

Nesarabad Upazila Nesarabad, formerly called Swarupkati () is an upazila of Pirojpur District in Barisal, Bangladesh. Nesarabad is named after Nesaruddin Ahmad, the founder of Sarsina Darbar Sharif. At present, guava gardens, floating market and backwaters of Nesar ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

has been named after him.

Early life and family

Ahmad was born in 1873 to a

Bengali Muslim Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work./ref> are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ...

family of ''Akhunds'' in the village of Magura,

Firozpur Firozpur, (pronunciation: ɪroːzpʊr also known as Ferozepur, is a city on the banks of the Sutlej River in the Firozpur District of Punjab, India. After the Partition of India in 1947, it became a border town on the India–Pakistan bor ...

, then located under the

Backergunge District Backergunge, Backergunje, Bakarganj, or Bakerganj is a former district of British Bengal, East Pakistan and Bangladesh. It was the southernmost district of the Dacca Division. The district was located in the swampy lowlands of the vast river delta ...

of the

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal until 1937, later the Bengal Province, was the largest of all three presidencies of British India during Company rule in India, Company rule and later a Provinces o ...

. When he was twelve years old, his father, Sadruddin Akhund, decided to set off for the

Hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

pilgrimage to

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

. Akhund was a ''

murid In Sufism, a (Arabic ) is a novice committed to spiritual enlightenment by (traversing a path) under a spiritual guide, who may take the title , or . A or Sufi follower only becomes a when he makes a pledge () to a . The equivalent Pers ...

'' of Haji Saizuddin Miah of Bahadurpur. Before leaving, he married Ahmad to Sahera Khatun, the daughter of his neighbour Daliluddin Shiqdar. Ahmad's father died in

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

, being buried in

Jannat al-Mu'alla Jannat al-Mu'alla (), also known as the "Cemetery of Ma'la" ( ') and ''Al-Ḥajūn'' (), is a cemetery to the north of ''Al-Masjid Al-Haram'', and near the Mosque of the Jinn in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. It is the place where the Islamic prophet Mu ...

, and so Ahmad was raised by his mother, Zohra Begum, and paternal grandfather. His paternal grandfather, Zahiruddin Akhund, was a ''

munshi During the Mughal Empire, ''Munshi'' () came to be used as a respected title for persons who achieved mastery over language and politics in the Indian subcontinent. Use in Bengal The surname "Munshi" ( Bengali: মুন্সি) is used by bot ...

'' and disciple of

Haji Shariatullah Haji Shariatullah (; 17811840) was a prominent religious leader and Islamic scholar from Bengal in the eastern the subcontinent, subcontinent, who is best known as the founder of the Faraizi movement. In 1884, the Shariatpur District was formed a ...

of the Faraizi movement based in Mathbaria where he had a sizeable following. In 1905, Ahmad married the daughter of Abdul Wafi Chowdhury from

Kushla Kushla (Кушла) is a village in southern Bulgaria, Zlatograd municipality, Smolyan Province, located near the border with Greece. In the Ottoman times the town was called Ugurli in Turkish and Kotyli in Greek. In 1918 the village was part of the ...

, Gopalganj.

Education

Ahmad started his primary education at the local school in his village. His mother then sent him to

Madaripur Madaripur is a town in Dhaka division in south-central Bangladesh. It is the headquarters of Madaripur District. It is named for Shah Madar, a Sufi saint who spread Islam in the region. Demographics According to the 2022 Bangladesh census ...

as there were no notable ''

madrasa Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...

s'' in the greater Barisal region. Ahmad completed his ''dakhil'' qualification from Madaripur Primary Islamia Madrasa, and then completed his ''alim'' from Madrasah-i-Hammadiyyah in Armanitola,

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

. After that, he enrolled at the

Calcutta Alia Madrasa Aliah University (AU; , ) is a Public university, public State university (India), state university in New Town, West Bengal, India. Previously known as Mohammedan College of Calcutta, it was elevated to university in 2008. History The Aliah ...

and subsequently at Hooghly Madrasa where he completed his further religious studies. Whilst at Hooghly, Ahmad pledged

bay'ah ''Bayʿah'' (, "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. In Bedouin culture it was a procedure for choosing the leader of the trib ...

to Mohammad Abu Bakr Siddique of

in 1895.

Career

After receiving ''

khilafat A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of the entir ...

'' (spiritual succession) from his

murshid ''Murshid'' () is Arabic for "guide" or "teacher", derived from the root ''r-sh-d'', with the basic meaning of having integrity, being sensible, mature. Particularly in Sufism it refers to a Spiritual director, spiritual guide. The term is freque ...

Mohammad Abu Bakr Siddique, Ahmad returned to his village. He planned to leave for

but was affected by pox. As soon as he recovered in 1901, Ahmad boarded the ship to

along with his family and nephew Abdur Rashid. His wife, Sahera Khatun, and son, Shah Muhammad Muzahar, died in

. After returning to Bengal, Ahmad dedicated himself to propagating Islamic teachings. In 1905, he built a small library in his village which became the Qiratiyyah Madrasah in 1913. In 1918, he decided to transform the library into a madrasa modelled from Calcutta Alia Madrasa. Ahmad named the madrasa "''Sarsina Darussunnat Kamil Alia Madrasa''". From then on, the village of Magura got the name of Sarsina. He appointed Moulvi Mirza Ali of Idilpur as its head. Ahmad donated all of his property to act as the madrasa's

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 ...

in 1934. With the assistance of Prime Minister

A. K. Fazlul Huq Abul Kasem Fazlul Huq (26 October 1873 – 27 April 1962), popularly known as Sher-e-Bangla, was a Bengalis, Bengali lawyer and politician who served as the first and longest Prime Minister of Bengal, prime minister of Bengal during the Britis ...

, the madrasa became the second title madrasa of Bengal after Calcutta in 1938. Ahmad gave his support to

Maniruzzaman Islamabadi Munīruzzamān Khān Islāmābādī (; 1875-1950), also known by the epithet Biplobi Maulana (), was a Bengali philosopher, nationalist activist and journalist from Islamabad (now known as Chittagong) in Bengal Presidency, British India (present- ...

's plans in establishing a dedicated Islamic university in

Chittagong Chittagong ( ), officially Chattogram, (, ) (, or ) is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. The city is also the business capital of Bangladesh. It ...

Political involvement

Ahmad was a supporter of the

Pakistan Movement The Pakistan Movement was a religiopolitical and social movement that emerged in the early 20th century as part of a campaign that advocated the creation of an Islamic state in parts of what was then British Raj. It was rooted in the two-nation the ...

. He maintained good relations with

Shamsul Haque Faridpuri Shamsul Haque Faridpuri (; 189621 January 1969) was an Islamic scholar, educationist, and social reformer. He was the founding principal of Jamia Qurania Arabia Lalbagh. He also founded many other madrasas. Organisations that he initiated inclu ...

, who belonged to the

Deobandi movement The Deobandi movement or Deobandism is a revivalist movement within Sunni Islam that adheres to the Hanafi school of jurisprudence. It was formed in the late 19th century around the Darul Uloom Madrassa in Deoband, India, from which the name ...

. He favoured Faridpuri over

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), also known by the honorific Bangabandhu, was a Bangladeshi politician, revolutionary, statesman and activist who was the founding president of Bangladesh. As the leader of Bangl ...

in the Muslim League local elections. Ahmad sent a

telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas pi ...

Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 187611 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the inception of Pa ...

requesting that he admits

back into the

All-India Muslim League The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was a political party founded in 1906 in Dhaka, British India with the goal of securing Muslims, Muslim interests in South Asia. Although initially espousing a united India with interfaith unity, the Muslim L ...

to ensure the League's victory in Barisal. In 1946, Ahmad organised the All-India Ulama Conference held at Mohammad Ali Park,

. At the conference, Ahmad co-signed a petition with Abdul Hai Siddique in pamphlet form addressing Bengali Muslim voters in favour of Pakistan. During the

1947 Sylhet referendum The 1947 Sylhet referendum was held in Sylhet District of the Assam Province of British India to decide whether the district would remain in undivided Assam and therefore within the post-independence Dominion of India, or leave Assam for Ea ...

, he sent an eight-member team (including Azizur Rahman Qaid Nesarabadi) to

Sylhet Sylhet (; ) is a Metropolis, metropolitan city in the north eastern region of Bangladesh. It serves as the administrative center for both the Sylhet District and the Sylhet Division. The city is situated on the banks of the Surma River and, as o ...

under the leadership of his son

Abu Zafar Mohammad Saleh Abu Zafar Mohammad Saleh (; 1915 – 13 February 1990), popularly known as the Pir of Sarsina, was a Bangladeshi Islamic scholar. He was said to have contributed to the establishment of 3000 educational institutions. Saleh had also pushed for th ...

. After the independence of Pakistan, Ahmad focused on Islamic values within the government. An outline of 22 points was formulated at the All-Parties Ulama Conference in Sarsina. Ahmad presided the East Bengal Horooful Quran Conference in

Dacca Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

in August 1951, which supported

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 ...

as the national language of Pakistan and Bengali in Arabic script as the provincial language.

Bibliography

Ahmad was written many books relating to

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 ...

. He wrote articles for the fortnightly ''Tabligh'' magazine. Among them are: * (''Moslem Ratnahar'') * (''Furfura Pir Saheber Asiyatnama'') * (''Talim-e-Marefat'') * (''Tahqiq-e-Barzakh'') * (''Khelafat Andolan Paddhati'') * (''Samaj Unnati'') * (''Mawlanar Ukti'') * (''Subh-e-Sadeq'') * (''Radd-e-Badguman'') * (''Mazhab O Taqlid'') * (''Dari Gof Samasya O Haq Katha'') * (''Nurun Hedayet O Bedat Faqirer Dhoka Bhanjan'') * (''Fatwa-e-Siddiqi'') * (''Tariqul Islam'') * (''Nari O Parda'') * (''Jumar Akatya Dalil Prabhriti'') * (''Dari O Dhumpan'') * (''Hazrat Bayazid Bostami'') * (''Al-Haqiqah al-Marifah al-Rabbaniyyah'')

Death and legacy

Ahmad died on 31 January 1952 and was buried at the Sarsina Darbar Sharif. He was succeeded by his son,

, as the Pir of Sarsina. His other son, Azizur Rahman Qaid, founded the Nesarabad Darbar Sharif. In 1985, the Swarupkati Upazila was renamed to Nesarabad Upazila in honour of Ahmad. The annual gathering at Sarsina Darbar Sharif, which was started in 1891, continues to take place.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad, Nesaruddin 1952 deaths 1873 births 20th-century Bengalis 19th-century Bengalis Bengali Muslim scholars of Islam People from Pirojpur District Bengali-language writers Bengali writers Bangladeshi Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam Hanafis