Teachings of Hadrat Shah Waliyullah of Delhi

About the Book

The notable personality of Shah Waliyullah is well known to men of learning, for enough has been written on him in the Urdu language, but strangely enough no attempt was made to present his teachings to the English readership. The present is the first work in the English language.

The book covers, as its title indicates, his teachings. The author has made an earnest effort to see that no important item of his teachings is left out of mention.

Shah Waliyullah was an extraordinary genious who was graced and entrusted by the Divine Providence the reins to lead and guide for the future. Such a jab could only be performed by a person of the calibre of Shah Waliyullah, who was well- grounded in both the exoteric and esoteric sciences.

Preface

It was in the year 1939 that I went for Pilgrimage for the first time and had an opportunity to meet the late Maulana ‘Ubaidullah Sindhi in Mecca. He was pleased to see me, took me to his house and showed me some books of Shah Wallyullah and encouraged me to study his works. In the same year, after an exile of twenty years, he returned to his homeland where I used to meet him often on every occasion that I met him he impressed upon me the necessity and importance of Shah Waliyullah’s teachings and their propagation and encouraged me to make a research on him. Those were the days when I was working as a Lecturer in the D. J. Sindh College, Karachi.

As a result of Maulana repeated encouragement I began to collect Shah Sahib’s works from wherever I could have them easily, read them and took notes from them, but this course could not continue for long. Had this work, which I have been able to finish this time, been started earlier, it would have never assumed the form and shape in which it is at present before the readers. This is so because a man who does not possess command over the Arabic language and is Dot fairly aware of its literature cannot understand Shah Sahib fully. This work was, therefore, discontinued for a number of years.

In the year 1958 when I returned from my third Pilgrimage, the thought of doing research OD Shah Sahib suddenly occurred to my mind afresh and firmly settled therein. Consequently, the research work was first published by the Sind University in 1961, in the Sindhi language, and its Urdu version was published by Shah Waliyullah Academy in the year 1963. This is its English translation prepared by the author him- self. It is more or less a reproduction of, the Urdu version with minor changes and some useful additions here and there.

An earnest effort has been made to see that no important item of his teachings is left out of mention, but despite that the book does not claim to have given a detailed account of each and every aspect of the subject discussed in it. However, it can be justly asserted that it has paved the way for further inquiry, and it is hoped that the information supplied in the book will go-a long way to quench the thirst of those who are interested in the teachings of Shah Waliyul1ah.

The extraordinary personality of Shah Waliyul1ah is well known to the men of learning. Enough has been written on him in the Urdu language in particular, and the present work also is a step towards that direction. He has clearly mentioned the object he had in view in the “Muqaddimah” of Hujjatullah-ul-Balighah, his Magnum Opus. He says there that the modern age demands that the Shari’ah of the Holy Prophet should project itself with convincing arguments. In the same “Muqaddimah” he further states that the best science among all the sciences of the Shari’ ah is one which aims at unravelling the secrets underlying the injunctions of religion.

In referring to the same object he says, at some other place, that the existing conditions require a complete change of the old order, and for the fulfilment of that purpose he has been selected.’

His teachings unavoidably infuse into the readers the spirit of Jihad which, he emphasises, should be retained at all costs and for all times,”

This is the third edition in which a few useful additions have been made here and there.

Maulana ‘Ubaidullah Sindhi has been freely quoted in this book as he was found comparatively far superior to others in giving the correct exposition of Shah Waliyullah’s teachings and philosophy.

Contents