Malik ul-'Ulama Qazi Shihab ud-din Daulatābādi was one of the renowned and towering personalities among the Sufis of Jaunpur. His forefa...
Malik ul-'Ulama Qazi Shihab ud-din Daulatābādi was one of the renowned and towering personalities among the Sufis of Jaunpur.
His forefathers were originally from Ghazni. He was born and brought up at Daulatabādad in the Deccan, but his education was completed in Dehli under the learned teacher Qazi Abdul-Muqtadir Dehlvi R.A., the grandfather of the famous Sufi saint, Khwaja Abū'l Fath Sonbaris Chishti R.A. of Jaunpur.
Qāzī Shihāb ud-din was extremely intelligent and had an excellent memory His mental powers greatly impressed his teachers, he was so interested in his education that he became accomplished in all esoteric as well as exoteric subjects at quite an early age.
He was also a disciple of Maulānā Khwajgi in whose suite he traveled while fleeing from Taimür's hordes from Delhi. Maulanā Khwajgi went to Kālpi, but QāzI Shihab ud-din was invited to Jaunpur by Sultan Ibrahim Shah Sharqi, who appointed him to the post of Chief Qāzi of Jaunpur. The Sultan presented him with a silver chair. His Durbar (Royal Court) also honored him with the title of Qazi ul Qazzah, He earned here a very high reputation which soon spread to the whole of India, and even to Persia and Arabia. Many of his contemporaries, chief among them the sons of Maulānā Ahmad Thānesri, grew jealous of him because of his eminence, Qāzī Shihāb ud-din wrote about his trouble with his revered Pir, Maulānā Khwājgi at Kālpi, who in reply quotes two couplets of Shaikh Saadi RA
ایں پیش آنکہ آید شنائ تو
واجب بر اھل مشرق و مغرب دعائ تو
اے در بقائ عمر تو نفع جہانیاں
باقی نماز آنکہ نخواھد بقائ تو
He also had issues with Sadr Jahan Sayyid Ajmal of Jaunpür where he (Qāzi Shihāb ud-din) pleaded for the superiority of an 'Alim (learned scholars) against the one who belonged to the Prophet's family. But later on, taking a hint from a dream in which he saw the holy Prophet in an angry mood, he wrote the Manaqib al-Sadāt in a mood of repentance, extolling the members of the Prophet's family and claiming for them a privileged position.
QazI Shihāb ud-din was also a notable saint. He had received spiritual guidance from his Pir Maulānā Khwajgi, and also from Makhdum Ashraf Jahāngir Samnāni and he gave him the title of Malikul Ulma and Khilafat to him. He adhered strictly to the laws of Shari'a. He had some unpleasant discussions with Shah Madār, who, though a saint of great spiritual powers, was not particularly mindful of the strict laws of Shari'a. Thereafter the two were not on good terms.
The Qazi was famous as a teacher. Sultan Ibrahim built a special mosque and a madrasa where the Qāzi taught hundreds of students. Many of them spread the knowledge of Islamic learning far and wide. The Qazi was a poet too and composed a Diwan (Collection of poetry) by the name of Jami'ul Sanāi'. He was also a prolific writer. He wrote Sharh-i-Kafiya, i.e., the commentary on the well-known Arabic grammar of Jalaluddin Abū 'Usman bin 'Umar better known as Ibn ul-Hājib (a. 648/1248), also known as Sharh-in-Hindi. This book is unique in its style and became famous in his lifetime." Another important book of his was Kitâb-i-Arshad(on syntax). Other important books and treatises of his were "Badi 'ul-Mizan", (a treatise on the science of eloquence). Risalah-I-Ibrahim Shahi, (a treatise on jurisprudence dedicated to his patron), Manaqib-i-Sādāt, Usool-i-Baizāwi (on jurisprudence), Taqseem-I-'Ullūm (a treatise explaining different subjects and consisting of seven chapters), Sharh - (commentary) on the Qasidah of Banati Sa'd - Qasidah in praise of the Prophet by Ka'b ibn Yahya, Persian language, Usool I Ibrahim Shahi ( in Arabic where he discussed all the problem under Sharia) and Bahr I Mawaaj (an Exegesis of Holy Quran in Persia)
perhaps the first commentary on the Holy Quran in India. He also wrote some other treatises and booklets both in Arabic and Persian on religious problems, as well as letters and memoirs in these languages. All these books were written in a clear yet ornate style and some of them have been included in the syllabus of madrasas for many centuries.
His tomb, where his. the wife was also buried and stands near the gate of Atala Masjid which was leveled by Britishers in 1840 and converted into Mission High School now this place lies inside the courtyard of present Raja Shri Krishn Dutt Degree College of #Jaunpur.
By Muhibullah khan
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