Mufti Fazl-i Subhān al-Qādirī on His Khairabādī Tutor

Remarkably, the man he discusses in this clip (full link at the bottom) was one of the last century's prominent Ma’quli (intellectual) scholars who promoted the Khairabādī tradition throughout Pakistan.

Before the British arrived in the Indian subcontinent, the region was renowned for its rich intellectual heritage and wealth. J.T. Sunderland writes in India in Bondage:

 "India was a far greater industrial and manufacturing nation than any in Europe or Asia. Her textile goods—the fine products of her looms, in cotton, wool, linen, and silk—were famous throughout the civilised world; so were her exquisite jewellery and her costly works in gold and silver, brass and copper, and steel; her pottery, porcelain, and pottery-ware; her beautiful products of the loom; her great architecture; her ships and shipbuilding; and her fine products in leather, glass, and other fields of artistic and skilled industry."

William Dalrymple, in The Last Mughal Emperor, actually downplays the rich heritage of scholarly intellectual pursuit when he states:

"The students at the madrasa were trained in philosophy, logic, and the sciences, and by the time they graduated, they would know as much about Aristotle and Plato as any graduate of Oxford."

It is true that an Oxford graduate would have certainly struggled to keep pace with the giants of the Nizāmī intellectual tradition, with their extensive glosses, commentaries, rigorous research, and new findings in the rational sciences.

However, due to British colonialism, significant changes inevitably emerged in India, particularly in the educational landscape. In response to these challenges, a branch of the Farangī Mahallīs from Khairabād (in the Sitapur district of Uttar Pradesh) came forward to uphold the tradition of Dars-i Nizāmī. Imam Fazl-i Haq Khairabādī – may Allah have mercy on him – is particularly renowned.

From the end of the eighteenth century, two major branches of Nizāmi pedagogy emerged. One was the Farangī Mahall family, through which Dars-i Nizāmī was preserved. The second branch emerged through the Khairabādīs. These two lineages' enduring impact and blessings can be seen in various institutions today.

Two main branches developed from the Khairabādī tradition in India and Pakistan. One is the Khairabādī Amjadī chain, which came through Hāfiz-i Millat (the founder of Jāmia Ashrafiyyah in Mubarakpur), and the second is the Khairabādī Bandiyālwī branch, associated with ‘Allāmah Yār Muḥammad Bandiyālwī and his distinguished student, ‘Allāmah ‘Atā Muḥammad Bandiyālwī, the teacher of our dear teacher.

𝐔𝐬𝐭𝐚̄𝐝𝐡 𝐚𝐥-𝐊𝐮𝐥𝐥, 𝐀𝐭𝐚̄ 𝐌𝐮𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐝 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐭𝐢̄ 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐲𝐚̄𝐥𝐰𝐢̄, 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐈𝐦𝐚𝐦 𝐅𝐚𝐳𝐥-𝐢 𝐇𝐚𝐪 𝐊𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐚̄𝐝𝐢̄ 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬. 𝐇𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐚 𝐍𝐢𝐳𝐚̄𝐦𝐮𝐝𝐝𝐢̄𝐧 𝐒𝐢𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐢̄, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐬-𝐢 𝐍𝐢𝐳𝐚̄𝐦𝐢̄, 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐬𝐢𝐱 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐀𝐥𝐥𝐚̄𝐦𝐚 𝐅𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐚̄𝐡 𝐚𝐥-𝐒𝐡𝐢̄𝐫𝐚̄𝐳𝐢̄ 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐚𝐥-𝐌𝐮𝐡𝐚𝐪𝐪𝐢𝐪 𝐉𝐚𝐥𝐚̄𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐝𝐢̄𝐧 𝐌𝐮𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐥-𝐒𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐢̄𝐪𝐢̄ 𝐚𝐥-𝐃𝐚𝐰𝐰𝐚̄𝐧𝐢̄ 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐈𝐦𝐚̄𝐦 ʿ𝐀𝐝̣𝐮𝐝 𝐚𝐥-𝐃𝐢̄𝐧 𝐚𝐥-𝐈̄𝐣𝐢̄ 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐬𝐢𝐱𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐈𝐦𝐚̄𝐦 𝐅𝐚𝐤𝐡𝐫 𝐚𝐝-𝐃𝐢̄𝐧 𝐑𝐚̄𝐳𝐢̄ 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲-𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐈𝐦𝐚̄𝐦 𝐀𝐛𝐮 𝐇𝐚̄𝐦𝐢𝐝 𝐚𝐥-𝐆𝐡𝐚𝐳𝐚𝐥𝐢̄ 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲-𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐦𝐚̄𝐦 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐡𝐥-𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐚𝐡 𝐀𝐛𝐮𝐥 𝐇𝐚𝐬𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐬𝐡’𝐚𝐫𝐢̄ 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲-𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬.

It is incumbent upon us to revive this lost tradition by establishing solid connections again with the scholars and texts of that period. By doing so, we can carry their research forward and continue that rich dialogue in a world that greatly needs answers to numerous issues.

For More Info on Muftī Fazl-i Subhān al-Qādirī: https://www.khairabadiinstitute.com/articlesblogs/short-biography-of-mufti-fazl-i-subhan-al-qadiri

Watch the Full PodCast Now from 12.00: https://youtube.com/watch?v=h3ObKn1Y5gY&t=2396s