THE RAMADAN OF HAZRAT SHAH ABDUL QADIR RAIPURI

By Syaikhul Hadirh Hazrat Maulana Muhammad Zakariya Kandahlawi Rahimahullah

Many anecdotes concerning Maulana Shah Abdul Qadir Raipuri have already been mentioned in ‘AAP BETI’. The lifespan of Hazrat Shaikhul Islam and Maulana Raipuri happen to largely coincide with mine, and the favours of these two saintly men upon this humble soul are such that words cannot tell. Even today those who had seen them and enjoyed their company are not counted in hundreds but in thousands.

At the time when their biographies were being written, many friends insisted that I also pen down my thoughts and appreciation of them, but it so happened that my being so involved in teaching activities precluded me from doing so even after hard thinking. And now, when I am freed from such obligations, when thoughts and incidents about them and their lives come to end, tears involuntarily stream from my eyes.

Hazrat Shaikhul Islam never verbally commended that I should spend Ramadan in his company, but from certain signs of his, I got the impression that that was what he would have liked. Hazrat Raipuri, on the other hand, did not only request but actually insisted. But, unfortunately, until the time of his demise, I was unable to do so, because of my teaching and research obligations. Perhaps I have already stated in ‘AAP BETI’ that towards the end of his life the favours of Hazrat Raipuri upon me were so many, that when his death came, I was completely shattered and devastated. It was an extremely hard loss to bear.

There were times when after a day or two in his company, I sought permission to return for fear of causing harm to my lecturing on Sahih Bukhari. Then Hazrat on various occasions used to say:

“You are now worried and cry over your Bukhari lectures. So go ahead and teach. But when you are free from it one day, where will I be?”

Towards Shawwal 1374 H Hazrat Raipuri became very ill and had to be treated by doctors continuously. Hence, to facilitate his treatment, he was brought to stay in the Kangron Wali Cot," in Bahut. At the time it became my fixed routine for quite a while that after having taught Abu Dawood Shareef in the second hour in the afternoon to go straight to the bus stop. If the bus was ready to leave, I used to arrive in time to perform Asr salaah. But if there was a delay, I performed Asr at the masjid near the terminus and then departed. As I did this for quite a time, the drivers were quite acquainted with my routine and usually waited for me for about three to four minutes. I got off at Bahut, performed Asr salaah at the Kangron Wali Masjid and proceed to visit Hazrat Raipuri.

Through Allah’s grace the hearts of the drivers became so soft that on arrival at Bahut they drove so fast straight to the house where Hazrat lay (a few kilometres away) allowed me to get off and then on return, went to the terminus to let off the other passengers. These drivers were Muslims, Hindus as well as Sikhs. At times the other passengers used to complain loudly:

“Stop! We want to get off at Bahut!”

But it seemed as if the drivers never heard them. On having let me get off they said to the people:

“What will it be if you should arrive one or two minutes late. This poor Maulana has to walk a distance of one and a half miles from Bahut. Be a bit patient. (We merely do him a favour).

After arriving there in Bahut, I spent the night in Hazrat’s presence very early the next morning, after drinking a cup of tea, I took the first lorry back to Saharanpur. I have told this long story (which in fact has nothing to do with Ramadan) but, now, on remembering, tears once again stream from my eyes.