Re: Answer to Modernism
There are 7 specific books, which clarify the status of the Ulama of Deoband to be pious Sunni Muslims, and ultimately demolish all Barelvi allegations and slanders. The first being the work: Al-Muhannad ala'l Mufannad (also known as al-Tasdeeqat li-Dafa al-Talbeesat), and is usually known commonly as: Aqeeda Ulama Ahl-e-Sunnat Deoband, by the great scholar and Muhaddith that Rida Khan called an unbeliever, and he is, Maulana Khalil Ahmad al-Sahranpuri (d. 1346 AH). This book contains some 26 questions asked by the Ulama of Hijaz to the Ulama of Deoband with regard to questions that could be used to detect if the Deobandi Ulama that Rida Khan declared unbelievers were in essence what he claimed! The answers proved conclusively that the Ulama of Deoband were Sunni's, not Wahhabi's, and far from the label of unbelief pronounced by Rida Khan, and his followers up until this day. This book contains a great number of certificatory letters and signatures by the Ulama of Hijaz, al-Azhar and Shaam.
A host of Indian subcontinent Ulama also endorsed this book. We shall list all the names shortly with the dates they actually signed their declarations in favour of all the Deobandi Ulama that Rida Khan made takfeer of. Al-Muhannad ala'l Mufannad was written originally in Arabic, unlike Rida Khan who based his false and exaggerated allegations based on his own Arabic translations of the misinterpreted quotes from the four Deobandi Ulama - who all wrote their works under examination in Urdu only. Since hardly any of the Ulama of Makkah and Madinah knew any Urdu they could not check the claims made by Rida Khan from the works of the Deobandi Ulama, but had to rely on Rida Khan's own Arabic translations. This was the first way of misinterpreting and in reality deceiving the Ulama of Hijaz.
It would have been more scholarly and honest if Rida Khan actually went and approached the 4 Deobandi Ulama who were all alive in his own time, and asked them personally what they meant by their statements, that he, Rida Khan, seems to have clearly misunderstood. If one was to ask oneself why Rida Khan failed to take on this path, one can only entertain one conclusion. Namely, he was out to get his contemporaries who were very popular and especially so in eradicating innovations and superstitions currently prevailing in India during British colonialist rule. Ahmad Rida Khan and his followers had realised that the Ulama of Deoband had succeeded in founding a great Madrasah under the Dars-e-Nizami syllabus to produce scholars for all India since 1867. At that time Rida Khan was just 11 years of age but he and his ilk had realised that the Ulama of Deoband in the tradition of Shah Waliullah of Delhi, had managed to produce a large following, a great number of educated scholars, and a number of scholarly works.
All of this was not in the interest of the Barelvi's who had failed to match the scholarship, and even establish a proper Madrasah to create Ulama in the same grandeur and rank as Darul Ulum Deoband. Even today hardly anyone talks about a famous Madrasa in the hometown of Rida Khan, known as Bareilly. Whatever they have today in the name of a Madrasah is far less known than Darul Ulum Deoband in all India or the rest of the world. So, it seemed natural for Rida Khan and his cohorts to knit-pick on any issue which could cause his young movement to blossom; especially since he supported a number of practices which were initially alien to the first three pious generations of Islam (Salaf us-Salihin). He knew very well that the Ulama of Deoband were mounting a campaign to return to following strict Sunni Islam, which was as close as possible to the practice of the Salaf, as interpreted by the great Imam, Abu Hanifah, rahmatullah alayhi.
With this begrudging and impudent attitude, Rida Khan mounted a campaign against all of his contemporaries from all the Sunni factions, which opposed his ideology. He mounted his campaign heavily on the Ulama of Nadwa in Lucknow, the Wahhabi's who labelled themselves as Ahl-e-Hadith, and most heavily against the most successful group, the Ulama of Deoband, who were and continue to defend the true teachings of the Qur'an and Sunnah, and fight the baseless innovations which were current in his time and unfortunately so still in our times. Prior to his writing his Husam al-Haramayn, Rida Khan was virtually unknown as a major scholar of Islam in comparison to his contemporaries.
The second of the books in refutation of Rida Khan, was a direct reply to his Husam al-Haramayn, and this was written by his contemporary Deobandi Ulama which included: Shaykh Khalil Ahmad al-Sahranpuri, al-Sayyid Husayn Ahmad al-Madani, and Shaykh Muhammad Manzur Nu'mani. The title of this work was: Aqaid Ulama-e-Deoband aur Husamul-Haramayn ka mukammil Jawab. This book also contained the signatures of some 14 Ulama from Makkah and Madinah, in reply and direct opposition to Rida Khan. The names will be presented below
The third of the books in reply to Rida Khan was Ghayatul Ma'mul by the Mufti of the Shafi'is in Madinah, Sayyid Ahmad al-Barzanji. Note, he is scholar number 11 of the Madinan Ulama in the Barelvi list above. The scholars who condemned Rida Khan in this book will be listed below. One should ask oneself why this Mufti who was initially a signatory to Husam al-Haramayn later refuted Rida Khan?!
The fourth and fifth booklet were actually written by Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanawi himself, after he was asked some questions regarding the allegations made by Rida Khan against his Hifz al-Iman. The titles of these 2 works are: Bastul-Banan li-Kaffil-Lisan an Kitabi Hifz al-Iman, written in the year 1329 AH in reply to questions put to him by Maulana al-Sayyid Murtada Hasan from Chandpur; and the second work was entitled: Tagyeerul-Unwaan fi Ba'di Ibaaraati Hifz al-Iman, written in the year 1342 AH, in answer to another question put to him.
The sixth work was a book entitled: Al-Sahm al-Ghayb fi kabd Ahlul Rayb by al-Shaykh al-Sayyid Muhammad Anwar Shah al-Kashmiri (d. 1352 AH). This work was mentioned by the late Shaykh Abdal Fattah Abu Ghudda in his editing of Shaykh al-Kashmiri's book: al-Tasreeh bima Tawatur fi nuzul al-Masih (p. 30). It was written in Persian and Shaykh Abdal Fattah mentioned that it was written specifically against the Barelvi's (Shaykh Abdal Fattah did not show any respect to the Barelvi's or their leader, Rida Khan on that page). Shaykh Abdal Fattah declared Shaykh al-Kashmiri to be the Imam of His Age (Imam al-Asr).
The seventh work was written by Shaykh al-Sayyid Husayn Ahmad al-Madani in 3 volumes and it is entitled: al-Shihab al-Thaqib ala'l Mustariq al-Kadhib. This is the most extensive reply in the time of Rida Khan. Note, all the scholars who replied to Rida Khan from amongst the Deobandi Ulama were living contemporaries of Rida Khan.
These are seven titles known to myself in refutation of Rida Khan in his life time, and with all these facts taken into consideration, one can only conclude that Barelvi's who spread rumours and hyperbole against the Ulama of Deoband, are either plain ignorant of these works which are all in print even today, or they have been lying against all Muslims, be they Barelvi or not. And, success comes from Allah and delusion from the Shaytan. All the above titles with another 18 more titles have been fully listed with the names of their authors and their publishers in another article, Alhamdulillah.