Abdul Latif Chowdhury ( bn, আব্দুল লতিফ চৌধুরী; 25 May 1913 – 16 January 2008), widely known as Saheb Qiblah Fultali, was a Bangladeshi Sufi

Islamic scholar In Islam, the ''ulama'' (; ar, علماء ', singular ', "scholar", literally "the learned ones", also spelled ''ulema''; feminine: ''alimah'' ingularand ''aalimath'' lural are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious ...

and theologian who is the founder of the Fultali movement.

Early life and background

Abdul Latif Chowdhury was born into a noble

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 ...

Sufi family in the village of Fultali, Zakiganj,

Sylhet Division Sylhet Division ( bn, সিলেট বিভাগ) is the northeastern division of Bangladesh. It is bordered by the Indian states of Meghalaya, Assam and Tripura to the north, east and south respectively, and by the Bangladeshi divisions ...

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William and later Bengal Province, was a subdivision of the British Empire in India. At the height of its territorial jurisdiction, it covered large parts of what is now South Asia and ...

(now

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. His lineage is the following: Abdul Latif Chowdhury, son of Abdul Majid Chowdhury, son of Shāh Muhammad Hiron, son of Shāh Muhammad Dānish, son of Shāh Muhammad Sadeq, son of Shāh Muhammad Elāhi Bakhsh, son of Shah Muhammad Alā Bakhsh. Ala Bakhsh was a descendant of Shāh Kamāl Yemenī, a later companion of Shāh Jalāl, According to Fultali's biographers, Bakhsh contributed to

Ahmad Sirhindi Aḥmad al-Fārūqī as-Sirhindī (1564-1624) was a South Asian Islamic scholar from Punjab, Hanafi jurist, and member of the Naqshbandī Sufi order. He has been described by some followers as a Mujaddid, meaning a “reviver", for his work i ...

's opposition movement against the

Mughal emperor The Mughal emperors ( fa, , Pādishāhān) were the supreme heads of state of the Mughal Empire on the Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the modern countries of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The Mughal rulers styled t ...

Akbar's theological opinions such as the

Din-i Ilahi The Dīn-i-Ilāhī ( fa, , ), known during its time as Tawḥīd-i-Ilāhī ("Divine Monotheism", ) or Divine Faith, was a new syncretic religion or spiritual leadership program propounded by the Mughal emperor Akbar in 1582, intending to merge ...

Education

Fultali received his basic education from his own family. He was taught by his cousin, Fatir Ali, while studying at primary school. He was then admitted to Fultali Alia Madrasah, where he studied

qirat In Islam, ''Qirāah'', (pl. ''Qirāāt''; ar, قراءات , lit= recitations or readings) are different linguistic, lexical, phonetic, morphological and syntactical forms permitted with reciting the holy book of Islam, the Quran. Differ ...

and

tajweed In the context of the recitation of the Quran, ''tajwīd'' ( ar, تجويد ', , 'elocution') is a set of rules for the correct pronunciation of the letters with all their qualities and applying the various traditional methods of recitation (''Q ...

. In 1336 AH (1918 CE), Fultali enrolled in Rangauti Madrasah and studied there, successfully completing higher secondary education. In 1338 AH (1920 CE), he enrolled into the Badarpur Senior Madrasah in

Karimganj Karimganj is a city in the Karimganj District of the Indian state of Assam. It is the administrative headquarters of the district. Karimganj city is located at . The area of Karimganj city is 16.09 km2. It has an average elevation of 13 ...

. For higher education, he studied Fanunnat at Rampur Alia Madrasah in

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

and studied various

Islamic sciences The Islamic sciences ( ar, علوم الدين, ʿulūm al-dīn, lit=the sciences of religion) are a set of traditionally defined religious sciences practiced by Islamic scholars ( ), aimed at the construction and interpretation of Islamic relig ...

. He then enrolled into Matlaul Ulum Madrasah to specialise in

Hadith Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approva ...

. He studied there for a few years and obtained first class, first position in the final Hadith exam in 1355 AH (1936 CE). He also attained degrees in

Tafsir 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

Fiqh ''Fiqh'' (; ar, فقه ) is Islamic jurisprudence. Muhammad-> Companions-> Followers-> Fiqh. The commands and prohibitions chosen by God were revealed through the agency of the Prophet in both the Quran and the Sunnah (words, deeds, and ...

. By 1355 AH (1936 CE), Fultali studied and obtained

ijazah An ''ijazah'' ( ar, الإِجازَة, "permission", "authorization", "license"; plural: ''ijazahs'' or ''ijazat'') is a license authorizing its holder to transmit a certain text or subject, which is issued by someone already possessing such au ...

for Hadith after achieving outstanding results in the faculty of Hadith, he obtained first class honours. He also acquired masters in Ilm-e-Tafsir and Ilm-e-Fiqh. By the age of 18, Fultali had

in the four principal

tariqah A tariqa (or ''tariqah''; ar, طريقة ') is a school or order of Sufism, or specifically a concept for the mystical teaching and spiritual practices of such an order with the aim of seeking '' haqiqa'', which translates as "ultimate truth". ...

s from his spiritual master Shah Muhammad Yaqub Badarpuri, who was a disciple of Hafiz Ahmad Jaunpuri. Fultali also studied the

Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , s ...

with

Tajwid In the context of the recitation of the Quran, ''tajwīd'' ( ar, تجويد ', , ' elocution') is a set of rules for the correct pronunciation of the letters with all their qualities and applying the various traditional methods of recitation (' ...

(recitation) in

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow ...

Career

In 1940, Fultali founded the Darul Qirat Majidiah Trust and institutionalized his effort to teach the perfect recitation of the Quran. Now there are more than two thousand branches of the trust throughout the world engaged in educating people in the field of Tajweed. As a result of riots in the

1950s The 1950s (pronounced nineteen-fifties; commonly abbreviated as the "Fifties" or the " '50s") (among other variants) was a decade that began on January 1, 1950, and ended on December 31, 1959. Throughout the decade, the world continued its re ...

, Fultali briefly migrated to

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

. Abdun Nur Ali (1880-1963) of Gorkapon in Badarpur was a Mawlana who requested Abdul Latif Chowdhury Fultali to visit the mosque conjoined to Adam Khaki's shrine. In 1946, Fultali announced that he would be travelling to Badarpur to give a lesson on

qira'at In Islam, ''Qirāah'', (pl. ''Qirāāt''; ar, قراءات , lit= recitations or readings) are different linguistic, lexical, phonetic, morphological and syntactical forms permitted with reciting the holy book of Islam, the Quran. Differ ...

at Adam Khaki's mosque. Abd an-Nur Gorkaponi and his students purchased a horse for the scholar to ride on so the journey could be easier. Afterwards he joined the then Satpur Alia Madrasah and Isamati Alia Madrashah as a Muhaddith and taught Hadith. Fultali was the best known and most influential spiritual leader among the

British Bangladeshi British Bangladeshis ( bn, বিলাতী বাংলাদেশী, Bilatī Bangladeshī) are people of Bangladeshi origin who have attained citizenship in the United Kingdom, through immigration and historical naturalisation. The term c ...

community. He was based in Bangladesh, but made well-attended visits to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Among these visits, In 1978, he established Madrasah-e-Darul Qirat Majidiah UK, which has since vastly expanded (now known as

Darul Hadis Latifiah Darul Hadis Latifiah ( ar, دار الحديث لطيفية), formerly known as Madrasah-e-Darul Qirat Majidiah ( ar, المدرسة دار القراءات المجيدية), is an 11–20 boys, Islamic, private school and sixth form in Bethna ...

) in London. He was a founder of numerous organisations related to religion, culture and education and a patron to a number of humanitarian and charitable organisations.

Organisations

*Darul Qirat Majidiah Fultali Trust *Anjumane Al Islah, Bangladesh *Anjumane Al Islah, United Kingdom *Anjumane Al Islah, United States *Bangladesh Anjuman-e-Talamiz-e-Islamia *Anjuman-e-Madaris-e-Arabia *

*Darul Qirat Majidiah, United Kingdom *Latifiah Qurra Society, United States *Latifiah Qurra Society, United Kingdom *Latifiah Qari Society, Bangladesh *Latifiah Yatim Khana, Bangladesh *Ulama Society, United Kingdom *Al Islah Youth Forum, United Kingdom *Darul Hadis Latifiah North West United Kingdom

Death

On Thursday 16 January 2008 at 2:10 am, Fultali died at his home in Subhanighat, Sylhet due to natural causes. His janazah (Islamic funeral) took place the day after his death following Asr prayer led by his eldest son. Reports in Bangladesh estimate that between 2 and 2.5 million attended his janazah. It is also estimated that further hundreds of thousands of people joined the janazah across the Indian border. An

urs Urs (from ''‘Urs'') or ''Urus'' (literal meaning wedding), is the death anniversary of a Sufi saint, usually held at the saint's dargah (shrine or tomb). In most Sufi orders such as Naqshbandiyyah, Suhrawardiyya, Chishtiyya, Qadiriyya, etc ...

and

mehfil Mehfil (also spelled ''mahfil'') is a formal venue where indoor recreational activities such as poetry ( mushaira), singing, music, and dance are entertained in parts of the Indian subcontinent. It is part of Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb culture. His ...

(gathering) is held on the anniversary of Allama Saheb Qiblah Fultali's death every year at his village in Fultali and many other places around the world by his students and followers.

Books

*''Al-Qawl as-Sadeed fi al-Qir’at wa at-Tajweed'', a comprehensive guide to the rule of correct Qur'anic recitation. Composed originally in Urdu, it has been translated in Bengali and English. *''At-Tanweer ala at-Tafsir'', an in-depth elucidation of Surah Al-Baqarah. *''Muntakhab-us Siyar'', the biography of Prophet Muhammad in three volumes. *''Anwar as-Salikeen'', an Urdu work in the field of

Tasawwuf Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

, explaining the different stages of the path for the seeker, and elucidating on how to nurture oneself in preparation for the sacred path. *''Shajara-e-Tayyibah'', the names of the spiritual masters of the Tariqahs

Chisti The Chishtī Order ( fa, ''chishtī'') is a tariqa, an order or school within the mystic Sufi tradition of Sunni Islam. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. It began with Abu Ishaq Shami in Chisht, a ...

Qadiri The Qadiriyya (), also transliterated Qādirīyah, ''Qadri'', ''Qadriya'', ''Kadri'', ''Elkadri'', ''Elkadry'', ''Aladray'', ''Alkadrie'', ''Adray'', ''Kadray'', ''Kadiri'', ''Qadiri'', ''Quadri'' or ''Qadri'' are members of the Sunni Qadiri ta ...

, Naqshbandi and

Mujaddid A ''mujaddid'' ( ar, مجدد), is an Islamic term for one who brings "renewal" ( ar, تجديد, translit=tajdid, label=none) to the religion. According to the popular Muslim tradition, it refers to a person who appears at the turn of every ...

iyya. *''Al-Khutbah al-Ya’qubiyyah'', a compilation of

khutbah ''Khutbah'' ( ar, خطبة ''khuṭbah'', tr, hutbe) serves as the primary formal occasion for public preaching in the Islamic tradition. Such sermons occur regularly, as prescribed by the teachings of all legal schools. The Islamic traditio ...

s (sermons) in Arabic, including the khutbah for the two ‘ Eids (Islamic festivals) and the khutbah for

Nikah In Islam, nikah is a contract between two people. Both the groom and the bride are to consent to the marriage of their own free wills. A formal, binding contract – verbal or on paper – is considered integral to a religiously valid Islam ...

(marriage). Named after his father-in-law, Hatim Ali Yaqub Badarpuri (d. 1958 CE). *''Nala-e-Qalandar'', an Urdu compilation of ode in veneration of the Prophet Muhammad and the Awliya. *''Nek A'mal'', a work in Bengali, elucidating on good actions and the rewards gained for action upon them.

References

External links

Mujahid Islam Bulbul, Biography of Allama Saheb Qibla Fultali (R.A.)

Allamah Fultali Sahib Qiblah
''Ahl-e Muhabba''. 17 January 2010
Bangladeshi diaspora in the UK
*
Darul Qirat Majidia Fultali trust

Salam Media UK

Shahjalal Mosque & Islamic Centre, Manchester

Latifiah Northwest, UK

Darul Hadis Latifiah, UK

Hazrat Shahjalal Darussunna Yakubia Kamil (M.A) Madrasah

Parwana , National Bangla Monthly
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fultali, Saheb Qiblah Bangladeshi Sufis Bangladeshi Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam 1913 births 2008 deaths Bangladeshi non-fiction writers 20th-century Muslim theologians Sunni imams People from Zakiganj Upazila People of British India People of East Pakistan 20th-century Bangladeshi writers 20th-century imams 21st-century imams 20th-century non-fiction writers 20th-century Bengalis 21st-century Bengalis Bangladeshi people of Arab descent Bengali Muslim scholars of Islam