Sayyid Sa‘eed Akhtar Rizvi ( ur, سيد سعيد اختر رضوي) (1927–2002) was an Indian born, Twelver Shī‘ah scholar, who promoted

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

in East Africa. He was given authorizations ( ar, اجازة) by fourteen

Grand Ayatullah Marji ( ar, مرجع, transliteration: ''marjiʿ''; plural: ''marājiʿ''), literally meaning "source to follow" or "religious reference", is a title given to the highest level of Twelver Shia authority, a Grand Ayatollah with the authority giv ...

s for riwayah, Qazawah, and Umur-e-Hasbiyah.

Biography

Rizvi was born in Ushri, Saran district, Bihar state, India, in 1927. His father was Sayyid Abul Hassan Rizvi and who was also a Hakim (Yunani medicine doctor) and a religious scholar. He had five sons and two daughters. His second eldest son, Sayyid Muhammad Rizvi, lives in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He is the

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 the Islamic Shia Ithna‘asheri Jamaat (ISIJ) of Toronto. He spoke and wrote in Urdu, English, Arabic, Persian,

Swahili Swahili may refer to: * Swahili language, a Bantu language official in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda and widely spoken in the African Great Lakes * Swahili people, an ethnic group in East Africa * Swahili culture Swahili culture is the culture of ...

and was also familiar with Hindi and Gujarati. In 1959 he was appointed the Islamic scholar ( ar,

'alim 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 ...

, script=Latn) for Lindi, Tanzania. In 1962, he conceived a plan for propagating Islam. His plan was proposed and approved at the triennial Conference of the Supreme Council of Africa Federation of K.S.I Jamaats of Africa in Tanga in 1964. and became the

Bilal Muslim Mission The Bilal Muslim Mission is an international Shi'a twelver organization, established in East Africa on December 25, 1964 through the efforts of Sayyid Saeed Akhtar Rizvi, Hussein Nasser Walji and other dedicated volunteers. The organization is n ...

. Rizvi was transferred from Arusha to

Dar es Salaam Dar es Salaam (; from ar, دَار السَّلَام, Dâr es-Selâm, lit=Abode of Peace) or commonly known as Dar, is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over s ...

in mid-eastern Tanzania and Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania was officially registered in 1968. The Bilal Muslim Mission of Kenya was founded in 1971. Through his mission he introduced correspondence courses in Islamic studies in English and Swahili. He traveled and lectured to university students in Africa, Europe, Canada and United States. His funeral was held in

with two scouts holding black flags in the cortege to the burial site. Officials and Scholars from several countries were present. The

Islamic funeral Funerals and funeral prayers in Islam ( ar, جنازة, Janazah) follow fairly specific rites, though they are subject to regional interpretation and variation in custom. In all cases, however, sharia (Islamic religious law) calls for burial ...

prayer (Salat al-Mayyit) was given by his son, Muhammad Rizvi. Rizvi authored over 140 books, some of them having been translated into many languages.Daya Munir ( 29 June 2002
Passing Away of Alama as-Sayyid Akhtar al-Rizvi
Victory News Magazine The Bilal Muslim Mission had been able to accomplished at lot in its objective of spreading the true teaching of Islam, through the hard work of its dedicated founders. This was achieved with very limited means and resources. Main source of spreading the true faith was person to person or through correspondence and publication of books and its dissemination. People from Guyana in South America to Poland in Europe and from Malaysia to West Africa benefitted and embraced the true Islam.

Bibliography

As author

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *A History of the Shi’a People
Al-Maarif FoundationHaja ya Dini.
Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania
Understanding Karbala
Ansariyan Publications - Qum
Slavery
- From Islamic and Christian Perspectives. Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania
Alcohol
WOFIS
Completion of Argument
Ansariyan Publication, Qum

As translator

As editor

* * * The Light.

- Bi Monthly English Magazine first started in 1963
Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania

Journal articles

* * * * * * *

References

External links

Biography Playandlearn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rizvi, Sa'id Akhtar 1927 births 2002 deaths People from Saran district Shia scholars of Islam Indian Shia Muslims Muslim missionaries Indian emigrants to Tanzania