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The 'Deobandi' (Urdu: دیو بندی ''devbandī'') is an Sunni Islamic revivalist movement which started in South Asia and has more recently spread to other countries, such as Afghanistan, South Africa and the United Kingdom. Deobandis follow the fiqh of Abu Hanifa and are regarded as a part of the Ahlus Sunnah wal-Jamaa'h. They follow Abu Mansur Maturidi's thought in Aqeedah and Ilm ul Kalaam i.e refuting criticism of Islam made using Greek logic. Deobandi thought is characterised by a strict adherence to the Sunnah (the tradition of Muhammad) and an emphasis on Sharia. The Deobandis are associated with the Sufi Tariqahs of the Naqshabandiyyah, Chishtiyyah, Qadiriyyah and Suhrawardiyyah. The name derives from Deoband, India, where the madrassa Darul Uloom Deoband is situated.

Contents

Tenets

History

Opposition by Barelwis

Present

See also

Notes

References

External links

Tenets

Deobandi thought is characterised by a strict adherence to the Sunnah and an emphasis on Sharīˤa. It has five main principles, which are:
#''Tawħīd'': (Monotheism) of God; no one shares His attributes.
#''Sunna'': Following the 'methodology' of the Mohammed Sahab.
#''Ħubbus-Sahāba'': Following the 'metholdogy' of Mohammed Sahab's companions.
#''Taqlīd wal-Ittibā'': Giving preference to the jurisprudence of one of the earliest jurists of Islam over that of later jurists.
#''Jihād fī Sabīlil-Lāh'': Doing Jihād.

History

The Deobandi movement developed as a reaction to the British colonialism in India, whom they believed to be corrupting Islam. Fearing this, a group of Indians ˤUlāmā led by Maulana Qasim Nanautavi founded an Islamic seminary known as Darul Uloom ''Waqf'' Deoband (seeDarul Uloom Deoband) The Urdu word "''Waqf''" refers to a social trust. It is here that the Islamic revivalist and anti-British ideology of the Deobandis began to develop. Gradually, their influence, through organisations such as Jamiat Ulema-e Hind and Tableeghi Jamaat, began to spread and hundreds of Madrassas and Darul Ulooms affiliated to Deoband sprouted. Notable Deobandi seminaries include Nadwatu l-Ulama (Lucknow) and Darul Uloom Karachi (Karachi, Pakistan).
Some of the early Deobandi scholars included Maulana Qasim Nanotwi, Maulana Rasheed Ahmad Gangohi, Maulana Husain Ahmed Madani, Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi, Allama Anwar Shah Kashmiri, Mufti Kifayat Ullah Dahlavi, Maulana Ilyas Khandhelawi and Mawlana Ubaidullah Sindhi, Maulana Muḥammad Zakarīyā al-Kandahlawī, as well as Maulana Rahmatullah Kairanvi, the famous polemicist who emigrated to Arabia after the 1857 war, who was also associated with Deoband.

Opposition by Barelwis

The Barelvis oppose Deobandis for their opposition to several practices which are common in the Indian subcontinent, like the celebration of Mawlid an-Nabi. Deobandis claim these practices were never practised by the Sahaba and are considered to be bid'ah. The Barelvis are more receptive to Sufism in India. Some Barelvis make takfir (declaring fellow Muslims as non-Muslims) on Deobandis and also accuse them of being Wahhabis. This rivalry and antagonism increased during British rule in India, when Ahmad Raza Khan was passing pro-British fatawa i.e. don't fight against the British, they are our rulers, while the Ulama linked to the Madrassa Darul Uloom Deoband where passing fatawa for the people and Islam and against the British Imperialist powers i.e. It is haram to join the British army. However this rivalry and antagonism has declined in recent decades because the above accusations have been proven a hoax and slander against the Ulama of Deoband and now generally consider each other to be part of Ahlu s-Sunnat wa l-Jāmaˤa [1]

Present

Prominent Deobandi scholars today include Maulana Saalim Qasmi, Mufti Taqi Uthmani, Mufti Ebrahim Desai, Mufti Rafi Uthmani (Grand Mufti of Pakistan) , and Maulana Tariq Jamil.
=== The Taliban===
The Taliban are said to follow the teachings of the Deoband school, although some scholars, like Ahmed Rashid, claim they follow a simplistic version of the school's teachings.^[1]
=== The Tablighi Jamaat===
Some famous people who propagate Islam by joining the Tablighi Jamaat (a movement started by a student of the Islamic University, Deoband, Maulana Muhammad Ilyas) are Pakistani cricketers Shahid Afridi, Inzamam ul Haq, Mohammad Yousuf (a recent revert/convert), Saqlain Mushtaq and many others. Also, former Pakistani cricketers including Saeed Anwar and Salim Malik. A very famous pop star Junaid Jamshaid is also a visible personality, propagating Islam to the masses amongst many others.
=== In the United Kingdom ===
About 600 of Britain's nearly 1,400 mosques are run by Deobandi-affiliated clerics, and 17 of the country's 26 Islamic seminaries follow Deobandi teachings, producing about 80 percent of all domestically trained Muslim clerics.^[2]

See also

★ Ahl-e-Hadeeth

Notes

1. Rashid, Ahmed ''Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia'' (2001)
2. 'Times Online' September 7, 2007.

References

★ The Ulama in Contemporary Islam: Custodians of Change, , Muhammad Qasim, Zaman, Princeton University Press, , ISBN 0691096805

External links

★ Ulama e Deoband online - Multimedia

★ Deen ki Kuttab

★ Masalak e Ulama e Deoband - Multimedia

★ Dar ul Uloom Deoband

★ Hadhrat Deobandi Rahimahullah

★ al-Balaagh Magazine Canada