How important was Shah Wali Ullah in the spread of Islam in the Sub-Continent before 1850? Explain your answer. [14]
Answers
Answer:
this correct answer is 1856
Answer:
The death of Aurangzeb, in the 18th century, started the political chaos which later culminated in the disintegration of the Muslim power in the subcontinent. This political disintegration which was the result of spiritual confusion encompassed the socio-economic spheres also. The time and situation were ripe for reformers and revivers to emerge to purge the Muslim society of these trends. Consequently, an era of religious regeneration began with the emergence of Shah Waliullah Muhadis Delhvi(1703-1762), a great Muslim reformist.
His most valuable service to the cause of Islamic learning was his translation of the Holy Qur’an into Persian, the literary language of the subcontinent of those times. As a vast majority of people did not speak Arabic the Qur’an had not been widely studied before, now it could be understood by a large majority of Muslims. This he thought would reform human nature and correct their injurious beliefs.
In addition to translating the Qur’an, Shah Waliullah wrote fifty-one books in both Arabic and Persian on mysticism and other branches of Islamic learning. “Hujjat-Ullah-il-Balighah” is one of his outstanding works which deal with such aspects of Islam that are common among Muslim countries. He wrote “Izalat-al-Akhifa” and “Khilafat-al-Khulafa” to remove the misunderstanding between Shias and Sunnis which had become acute in those days.
His activities were not only confined to spiritual and intellectual spheres only. Endowed with keen political insight, he observed with anguish the breaking of the Muslim power in the subcontinent and wrote to leading political dignitaries like Nizam ul Mulk and Najibuddaula to stop the rot which had set in the political field. It was on account of his call that Ahmed Shah Abdali appeared on the field of the third battle of Panipat in 1761 and put an end to Maratha’s domination and paved a way for the revival of Islam in India.
Shah Waliullah was followed in his noble mission by his son Shah Abdul Aziz and his disciple Syed Ahmed Shaheed Barelvi(1786-1831). Syed Ahmed unlike his predecessors chose the course of vigorous two-pronged struggle aimed at the purification of the Muslim society and the annihilation of British power in India. His approach to freedom was based on armed struggle (Jihad) and confrontation against foreign and non-Muslim forces.