A Brief Auto-Biography of Hadhrat
Mawlāna Alāuđīn Jamāl Rahmatullāhi
Allaih
My respected father was born in Afghanistan in the city of Kandahar. He is of the Jabbār Khayl tribe which is a branch of one the tribes of Ghalji known as the Sulayman Khayl clan. Long before Pakistan was formed, he moved to Chaman (which is in present-day Baluchistan on the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan) for his business of selling grapes. I was born there in 1943. Some time after Pakistan, was formed my father moved to Karachi for business; I was about seven or eight years old at that time.
My religious studies began in Dārul Uloom Nanak Wārah in Karachi. Its founder was the Grand Mufti of Pakistan Hadhrat Mufti Muhammad Shafi‘ (may Allah Ta’āla illuminate his grave). My first teacher at the Darul Uloom was Hadhrat Mawlāna Badi‘ uz Zamān Sahib (may Allah Ta’āla have mercy on him). When Darul Uloom Nānak Wārah moved to Sharafigut, I gained admission in Madrasah Arabiyyah Islāmiyyah in Newtown for my be- ginner-level books. This was the Madrasah es- tablished by Mawlāna Muhammad Yusuf Bin- nori (may Allah Ta’āla have mercy on him) and is now famously known as Jamiah al-Uloom al-Islāmiyyah Allāmah Muhammad Yusuf Binnori-Town. It was the first year the Madrasah was conducting beginner-level classes. Some of my Nānak Wārah classmates had also gained ad- mission. Among them was Mawlāna Habībullāh Mukhtār Sāhib (may Allah Ta’āla have mercy on him).
In my class Hāji Abdullah Sāhib, Mawlāna Khālid Khalil, Mawlāna Abrarul Haqq, Abdul Mu‘id the son of Mawlāna Abdur Rasheed Nu‘māni are all worth mentioning. The last one (Abdul Mu‘id) passed away in his youth and Haji Abdullāh passed away in Madinah Munawwarah and is buried in Jan- natul Baqi‘. Hadhrat Mufti Wali Hasan Sāhib and Mawlāna Badi‘ uz Zamān Sāhib (may Allāh Ta’āla have mercy on them both) also moved from Nānak Wārah. This was in the early years of the Madrasah; there was no classroom, the Masjid was unfinished, and all the classes from first year to Dawrah were taught in the Masjid. It was during this era that the last student of Hadhrat Shaykhul Hind Mawlāna Aziz Ghul Sāhib visited the Madrasah. His younger brother Mawlāna Nāfi‘ Ghul Sāhib (may Allah Ta’āla have mercy on him) was a teacher of Hadith at the Madrasah. Mawlāna Lutfullāh Sāhib Pishāwari (may Allāh Ta’āla have mercy on him) lived together with Hadhrat Mawlāna Yusuf Binnori (may Allāh Ta’āla have mercy on him) in the boarding. The elder broth- er of Mufti Ahmadur Rahmān Sāhib, Mawlāna ‘Ubaydurahmān Sahib (may Allāh Ta’āla have mercy on him) was the supervisor of the boarding.
During this time my academic journey was paused due to sickness. When Allah Ta’āla gave me the ability to once again continue my blessed studies, I was granted the good fortune of studying Sahih Bukhāri with Hadhrat Mawlāna Yusuf Binnori (may Allah Ta’āla illumi- nate his grave) in 1396 Hijri. And it was that same year, after being given the certificate of completion, that I began teaching in Baluchistan at the instruction of Hadhrat Mawlāna Binnori (may Allah Ta’āla have mercy on him). After teaching in various Madāris for some time, I was given the position of a professor at Madrasah Sawlatiyyah in Makkah Mukarramah, Saudi Arabia in 1404 Hijri. Then, in 1421 Hijri I began teaching at Darul Uloom Zakariyya in South Africa and till now reside there with my family.
While translating this book (al-Ikhtilaaf al-Aimmah wa al-Hadith al-Nabawi), my 21-year- old son Ahmad Makki—who came out second in the final Dawrah exam in 2005—passed away the night before the graduation Jalsah in a car accident along with his three friends: Ikram Saidi, Ibrahim Samit, and Yusuf Samit. The morning of the Jalsah there were four bodies in the courtyard of the Masjid.
His grave is in the hearts of the Aarifeen (pious)
Ahmad Alā’s honorary turban was placed on my head and I was given his certificate of completion.
To Allah belongs what He takes and what He bestows. Everything has an appointed time with Him. All praise be to Allah in every condition. To Allah we be long and to Him is our return.
In this orchard, spring and autumn lay together
This is such a time that a cup is in the hand and a janazah on the shoulder
May Allah forgive these four (martyrs) as well as the whole Ummah, and may He grant all Muslims the fortune of a good death.
Written by: Alauddin Jamal Afghani (may Allah forgive him)
23 Ramadan 1427 Hijri / 16 October 2006 C.E.