Mawlana Waliyunnabi Mujaddidi Naqshbandi (d.1903)

Mawlānā Shaykh Walī an-nabī Mujaddidī Naqshbandī Rāmpurī was one of the distinguished deputies of Shāh Ahmad Saʻīd Mujaddidī. He was a male descendant of the great Mujaddid Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindī (d.1034 AH).

Genealogy

1. Shaykh Walī an-Nabī was son of
2. Mawlānā Habīb an-Nabī (d.1261 AH), son of
3. Mawlānā Ḍiyā an-Nabī Mujaddidī (d. 1215 AH), son of
4. Shāh ʻInāyat an-Nabī Mujaddidī, son of
5. Shāh Sultān al-Mashāikh Mujaddidī, son of
6. Shaykh ʻAsmat-Allāh Mujaddidī, son of
7. Shaykh Muhammad Yaʻqūb Mujaddidī, son of
8. Shaykh Muhammad Saʻīd Fārūqī (d.1070 AH), son of
9. The Great Mujaddid Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindī Fārūqī (d.1034 AH)

Biography

He was born in Rāmpur, India, in 1244 AH.

At the age of four years and four months, he started his education by reciting the first Surah of the Quran, according to the tradition of Indian Muslims. When he was asked to recite Bismillah, he continued reciting the Quran until he finished three and half juz (juz = 30th part of the Quran). Later when he was asked how he recited this, he replied that he used to listen to other children reciting the Quran and memorized what he heard.

After memorizing the Holy Quran, he studied first at Rāmpur and later in Kolkata. To learn the spiritual path of the Naqshbandī Order, he went to Delhi and took initiation at the hands of Shāh Ahmad Saʻīd Mujaddidī, who was the resident shaykh at Khānqāh Mazhariyah. He lived in the company of his master for about three years, and was finally awarded deputyship.

He was completely disengaged with dunyā (material belongings) and lived a life full of piety and simplicity. He would go to masjid quite early and wait there for other people to arrive before starting the prayer. In the night, he would wake up at around one and would pray Tahajjud. Later in the life he lost his eyesight. Because he did not like to wake up his family members for help, he would often hit beds and other furniture while trying to get to pray. This led to visible signs of injuries in his lower legs.

For some time, he was the resident shaykh at Khānqāh Mazhariyah in Delhi. When Shaykh Abul-Khayr Mujaddidī took charge of the khānqāh, he left and settled permanently in Rāmpur.

Once Nawāb Hāmid Alī, the ruler of Rāmpur, asked him to write a talisman. He wrote one but asked the Nawāb to return it after the desired effect was achieved. However, Nawāb locked the talisman in a secure place. When the shaykh met him after the talisman had worked, he asked the Nawāb to return it, who refused. The shaykh only smiled but said nothing more. A few days later, when the Nawāb opened the safe to get the talisman, he was surprised to see that it wasn’t there.

Shaykh Walī an-Nabī died on 12 Rabīʻ ath-Thānī 1321 AH (July 1903) in Rāmpur, and was buried in his own property. His funeral was attended by a huge crowd, that included ministers and officials of the Rāmpur state.

He married twice and left two sons and a daughter. One of his spiritual deputies was Munshī Rashad ʻAlī Khān Naqshbandī.

References

1. Tazkirah Kāmilān-i Rāmpur (Urdu).