Muḥammad Junaid, popularly known as Junaid Babunagari ( bn, জুনায়েদ বাবুনগরী; 8 October 1953 – 19 August 2021), was a Bangladeshi
Deobandi
Deobandi is a revivalist movement within Sunni Islam, adhering to the Hanafi school of law,
formed in the late 19th century around the Darul Uloom Madrassa in Deoband, India, from which the name derives,
by Muhammad Qasim Nanautavi, R ...
Islamic scholar, educator, writer, researcher, Islamic speaker and spiritual figure. He was the Amir of
Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh
Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh ( bn, হেফাজতে ইসলাম বাংলাদেশ) is an Islamic Advocacy group of madrassah teachers and students. In 2013, it submitted to the government of Bangladesh a 13-point charter, which inc ...
, Shaykhul Hadith of
Darul Uloom Hathazari Madrasa, vice-president of
Befaqul Madarisil Arabia Bangladesh
Befaqul Madarisil Arabia Bangladesh ( bn, বেফাকুল মাদারিসিল আরাবিয়া বাংলাদেশ, ar, وفاق المدارس العربية بنغلاديش) is the largest Qawmi madrasa education b ...
, Chairman of Chittagong Noorani Talimul Quran Board and Editor-in-Chief of ''Monthly Mueenul Islam''.
Early life and family
Muhammad Junaid was born on 8 October 1953, in the village of Babunagar in
Fatikchhari Thana,
Chittagong District
Chittagong District, renamed the Chattogram District, is a district located in the south-eastern region of Bangladesh. It is a part of the Chattogram Division. The port city of Chattogram, which is the second largest city in Bangladesh, is ...
,
East Bengal
ur,
, common_name = East Bengal
, status = Province of the Dominion of Pakistan
, p1 = Bengal Presidency
, flag_p1 = Flag of British Bengal.svg
, s1 = East ...
,
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
(now Bangladesh).
He belonged to a
Bengali Muslim
Bengali Muslims ( bn, বাঙালি মুসলমান; ) are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising about two-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the sec ...
family of theologians and
Qadi
A qāḍī ( ar, قاضي, Qāḍī; otherwise transliterated as qazi, cadi, kadi, or kazi) is the magistrate or judge of a '' sharīʿa'' court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and mino ...
s hailing from the village of Dhurung. His father, Muhammad Abul Hasan, was a scholar of
Quranic exegesis
Tafsir ( ar, تفسير, tafsīr ) refers to exegesis, usually of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' ( ar, مُفسّر; plural: ar, مفسّرون, mufassirūn). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, in ...
and senior professor at
Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam
Al-Jāmiʿah al-Ahliyyah Dār al-ʿUlūm Muʿīn al-Islām ( ar, الجامعة الأهلية دار العلوم معين الإسلام), popularly known as the Hāṭhazārī Madrasa ( bn, হাটহাজারী মাদ্রাসা) ...
in
Hathazari
Hathazari ( bn, হাটহাজারী) is an upazila of Chattogram District in Chattogram Division, Bangladesh.
Geography
Hathazari is located at . It has 52,594 households and a total area of 251.28 km2. The main river is Halda River ...
.
[ Junaid's lineage is as follows: Muḥammad Junaid ibn Muḥammad Abū al-Ḥasan ibn Nadhīr Aḥmad ibn Shākir ʿAlī ibn Ghulām Nabī ibn Kahūlan ibn Muʿīn ad-Dīn al-Qāḍī ibn ʿAyn ad-Dīn al-Qāḍī. His mother, Fatimah Khatun, was the daughter of ]Harun Babunagari
Harun Babunagari (; 1902–1986; often referred to as Buzurgo Saheb) was a Bangladeshis, Bangladeshi Deobandi Islamic scholar, Sufism, Sufi and an exegete of the Quran. He was the founder and first Principal of Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Ba ...
, founder of Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Babunagar
Al-Jāmiʿah al-Islāmiyyah ʿAzīz al-ʿUlūm Bābūnagar ( ar, الجامعة الإسلامية عزيز العلوم بابونغر), better known simply as Babunagar Madrasah ( bn, বাবুনগর মাদ্রাসা), is one of the ...
. His mother's paternal grandfather, Sufi Azizur Rahman
Ṣūfī ʿAzīzur Raḥmān ( bn, সুফি আজিজুর রহমান; 1862—1922) was a Muslim theologian, teacher and reformer. After being influenced by Abdul Wahid Bengali in his student life, he became associated with the sprea ...
, was one of the founders of the Hathazari madrasa and a descendant of Caliph Abu Bakr
Abu Bakr Abdallah ibn Uthman Abi Quhafa (; – 23 August 634) was the senior companion and was, through his daughter Aisha, a father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, as well as the first caliph of Islam. He is known with the honor ...
.
Junaid had three brothers and two sisters. Two of his younger brothers are Shuaib Babunagari, Ustadh of Babunagar Madrasa, and Zubair Babunagari, Muhaddith of Sultanpur Madrasa in Raozan
Raozan,gohira ( bn, রাউজান) is an upazila of Chattogram District, in Chattogram Division, Bangladesh. It was established in 1947.
Geography
Raozan has 45,777 households and a total area of 246.58 km2.
The two main rivers ...
. His sister, Rashidah, is married to Bengali author Abu Jafar Shahadat, former imam
Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...
of Jamiatul Falah Mosque. His other sister, Mahmuda Khatun, is married to Mawlana Zakariyyah, principal of a madrasa in Madarsha.
Education
At the age of five, he entered Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Babunagar
Al-Jāmiʿah al-Islāmiyyah ʿAzīz al-ʿUlūm Bābūnagar ( ar, الجامعة الإسلامية عزيز العلوم بابونغر), better known simply as Babunagar Madrasah ( bn, বাবুনগর মাদ্রাসা), is one of the ...
where he completed his hifz
Hafiz (; ar, حافظ, ḥāfiẓ, pl. ''ḥuffāẓ'' , f. ''ḥāfiẓa'' ), literally meaning "memorizer", depending on the context, is a term used by Muslims for someone who has completely memorized the Quran. Hafiza is the female equiva ...
and basic Islamic and primary studies. After reading the entire Quran off by heart to Azharul Islam Dharmapuri, Babunagari proceeded to study at the Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam
Al-Jāmiʿah al-Ahliyyah Dār al-ʿUlūm Muʿīn al-Islām ( ar, الجامعة الأهلية دار العلوم معين الإسلام), popularly known as the Hāṭhazārī Madrasa ( bn, হাটহাজারী মাদ্রাসা) ...
in Hathazari
Hathazari ( bn, হাটহাজারী) is an upazila of Chattogram District in Chattogram Division, Bangladesh.
Geography
Hathazari is located at . It has 52,594 households and a total area of 251.28 km2. The main river is Halda River ...
in 1966. In 1976, he completed his Masters in Hadith studies
Hadith studies ( ar, علم الحديث ''ʻilm al-ḥadīth'' "science of hadith", also science of hadith, or science of hadith criticism or hadith criticism)
consists of several religious scholarly disciplines used by Muslim scholars in th ...
at the madrasa where he was also first place in the examinations.
Babunagari was then admitted to the Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia
Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia ( ur, , ''Jāmi‘ah ‘Ulūm-i Islāmīyah'' / , ''Jāmi‘atul-‘Ulūmul-Islāmīyah'') is an Islamic University in Banoori Town, Karachi, Pakistan. The university continues the tradition of the Darul Uloom system i ...
in Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
, Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. He studied advanced Hadith studies for four years under Yusuf Banuri. His thesis was titled ''Sīrah al-Imām ad-Dārimī wa at-Tarīkh bi-Shaykhihī'' (Biography of Imam Darimi and the history of his teachers) in 1978.
Career
Returning to Bangladesh in 1978, he began teaching at Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Babunagar
Al-Jāmiʿah al-Islāmiyyah ʿAzīz al-ʿUlūm Bābūnagar ( ar, الجامعة الإسلامية عزيز العلوم بابونغر), better known simply as Babunagar Madrasah ( bn, বাবুনগর মাদ্রাসা), is one of the ...
and moved a few year later to Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam
Al-Jāmiʿah al-Ahliyyah Dār al-ʿUlūm Muʿīn al-Islām ( ar, الجامعة الأهلية دار العلوم معين الإسلام), popularly known as the Hāṭhazārī Madrasa ( bn, হাটহাজারী মাদ্রাসা) ...
in Hathazari
Hathazari ( bn, হাটহাজারী) is an upazila of Chattogram District in Chattogram Division, Bangladesh.
Geography
Hathazari is located at . It has 52,594 households and a total area of 251.28 km2. The main river is Halda River ...
. When Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh
Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh ( bn, হেফাজতে ইসলাম বাংলাদেশ) is an Islamic Advocacy group of madrassah teachers and students. In 2013, it submitted to the government of Bangladesh a 13-point charter, which inc ...
was formed in 2010, he became its secretary general.
He was briefly imprisoned in the aftermath of the 2013 Shapla Square protests.
On 15 November 2020, Babunagari was elected the new Amir of Hefajat-e-Islam Bangladesh, replacing the group's founder, Shah Ahmad Shafi
Shah Ahmad Shafi ( bn, শাহ আহমদ শফী) (1916 – 18 September 2020) was a Bangladeshi Sunni Islamic scholar, the chief of Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, Rector of Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam Hathazari and also the c ...
, who had died two month earlier.
Works
He has written and edited about 30 books in Arabic, Urdu and Bengali, including:
* ''Shab-e Baraat Between Excess and Rejection (বাড়াবাড়ি ছাড়াছাড়ির কবলে শবে বরাত)''
* ''Ruling on Beard in Islam (ইসলামে দাড়ির বিধান)''
* ''Tawheed and Shirk: Type and Nature (তাওহীদ ও শিরক প্রকার ও প্রকৃতি)''
* ''Muqaddimatul Ilm: Tafseer, Hadith, Fiqh, Fatwa (মুকাদ্দিমাতুল ইলম : তাফসীর হাদীস ফিকাহ ফতোয়া)''
The following books are compiled and edited by the direct supervision and guidance of Babunagari:
* ''Islam vs Contemporary Doctrine (ইসলাম বনাম সমকালীন মতবাদ)''
* ''Common Fake Hadith: A Theoretical Analysis (প্রচলিত জাল হাদীস: একটি তাত্ত্বিক আলোচনা)''
Babunagari has written one of the prefaces to ''Al-Kitab al-Budoor al-Mudiyyah fi Tarajim al-Hanafiyyah'' by Mawlana Hifzur Rahman al-Kumillai.
Death and legacy
After suffering from various diseases of old age including heart disease, kidney and diabetes for a long time, Junaid Babunagari died of a stroke at the age of 67 on 19 August 2021 at CSCR Hospital in Chittagong, Bangladesh. His funeral, held in Hathazari on the grounds of the madrassa where he used to teach, was attended by tens of thousands of people.
Junaid Babunagari left behind a wife, one son (Muhammad Salman Babunagari) and five daughters.
See also
* Shah Ahmad Shafi
Shah Ahmad Shafi ( bn, শাহ আহমদ শফী) (1916 – 18 September 2020) was a Bangladeshi Sunni Islamic scholar, the chief of Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, Rector of Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam Hathazari and also the c ...
* Mamunul Haque
Maʾmūn al-Ḥaqq ibn ʿAzīz al-Ḥaqq ibn Irshād ʿAlī ad-Dākawī ( ar, مأمون الحق بن عزيز الحق بن إرشاد علي الداكوي; born November 1973), or simply Mamunul Haque ( bn, মামুনুল হক), is a ...
* Nur Hossain Kasemi
* Mizanur Rahman Sayed
Mizanur Rahman Sayed ( bn, মিজানুর রহমান সাঈদ) is a Bangladeshi Islamic scholar. He was one of the five scholars selected by Islamic Foundation Bangladesh as Fatwa interpreters.
Education
Rahman attended Al-Jamia ...
* Fazlul Hoque Amini
Faḍl al-Ḥaqq ibn Wājid ad-Dīn al-Amīnī ( ar, فضل الحق بن واجد الدين الأميني; 194512 December 2012), or simply Fazlul Hoque Amini ( bn, ফজলুল হক আমিনী) was an Islamic scholar and politician ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Babunagari, Junaid
Deobandis
20th-century Muslim scholars of Islam
Bangladeshi Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam
1953 births
2021 deaths
People from Fatikchhari Upazila
Darul Uloom Hathazari Alumni
Jamia Uloom-ul-Islamia alumni
20th-century Bengalis
21st-century Bengalis
Bangladeshi people of Arab descent
People with diabetes
Shaikhul Hadith of Darul Uloom Hathazari
Bengali Muslim scholars of Islam
Bangladeshi Arabic writers
21st-century Arabic writers