A Profile of Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri

Dated: 26 July 2009

Brief introduction of Shaykh-ul-Islam, some of his achievements, works and chains of authority

A man of manifold and staggering achievements, Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri is the founding leader of Minhaj-ul-Qur’an International (MQI), an organization with branches and centres in more than 90 countries around the globe, working for the promotion of peace and harmony between communities and the revival of spiritual endeavour based on the true teachings of Islam. Shaykh-ul-Islam is a scholar of extraordinary proportions and an intellectual leader for all seasons. He is a living model of profound classical knowledge, intellectual enlightenment, practical wisdom, pure spirituality, love, harmony and humanism. He is well known for his ardent endeavour to strengthen bonds among people, by bringing them together through tolerance, dialogue, integration and education. He successfully bridges the past with his image of the future and finds convincing solutions for contemporary problems. He has been teaching Hadith, Tafsir, Fiqh, Theology, Sufism, Seerah, Islamic philosophy and many other rational and traditional sciences to thousands of people, including Ulema, scholars, Shuyukh, students, intellectuals and academics in the east and the west.

Shaykh-ul-Islam was born on February 19, 1951 in the historical city of Jhang, Pakistan, and is the son of the great spiritualist and intellectual of his time ash-Shaykh Dr Farida’d-Din al-Qadri. He was educated from the young age in both the Islamic and secular sciences simultaneously. Although he had already started his religious education under his father two years earlier, his formal classical education was initiated in Madina at the age of 12, in Madrasa al-‘Ulum ash-Shar‘iyya, which was situated in the blessed house of Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, the first residence of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) after his migration. By the time he had received a First Class Honours Degree from the University of the Punjab in 1970, he had also completed his Classical Islamic Studies, having spent over ten years under the tutelage of his father and other eminent Shuyukh of his time and achieving an unparalleled understanding of the classical shari‘a sciences and Arabic language. He earned his MA in Islamic Studies in 1972 with the University of the Punjab Gold Medal, achieved his LLB in 1974 and began to practise as a lawyer in the district courts of Jhang. He moved to Lahore in 1978 and joined the University of the Punjab as a lecturer in law and then gained his PhD in Islamic Law. He was also a member of the Syndicate, Senate and Academic Council of the University of the Punjab, which are the highest executive, administrative and academic bodies of the University.

In a short span of time, he emerged as the country’s leading Islamic jurist and scholar and revivalist of the Islamic ideology. He was appointed as a Jurist Consult (legal adviser) on Islamic law for the Supreme Court and the Federal Shari‘a Court of Pakistan and also worked as a specialist adviser on Islamic curricula for the Federal Ministry of Education of Pakistan at various times between 1983 and 1987. In the 1980s, a number of historical judgments in the legal and constitutional history of Pakistan were passed by the Federal Shariʻa Court and the Appellate Shariʻa Bench, Supreme Court of Pakistan as a result of Shaykh-ul-Islam’s juristic arguments, documented in the Pakistan Legal Decisions (PLDs) and Pakistan Legal Judgments (PLJs).

He is also a former Professor of Islamic Law at the University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan, and the youngest person ever to have been awarded a professorship in the history of the University. Shaykh-ul-Islam has also previously held the position of the Head of the Department for LLM in Islamic Legislation.

Shaykh-ul-Islam founded Minhaj-ul-Qur’an in 1981 and established its headquarters in Lahore. In less than 30 years, Minhaj-ul-Qur’an has expanded and spread over more than 90 countries around the world; and in terms of its comprehensive and all-encompassing sphere of activities, educational, social, cultural and spiritual, Minhaj-ul-Qur’an is probably one of the largest non-governmental organizations in the world.

Shaykh-ul-Islam is founder and Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Minhaj University Lahore which is chartered by Government and is imparting higher education to thousands of students in the faculties of basic, modern, social, management and religious sciences. He is the founder of Minhaj Education Society which has established more than 570 schools and colleges in Pakistan. He is also the founding Chairman of Minhaj Welfare Foundation, a humanitarian and social welfare organization working globally. He is the founding leader of different forums of Minhaj-ul-Qur’an including Minhaj-ul-Qur’an Ullama Council, Minhaj-ul-Qur’an Women League, Minhaj Youth League, Mustafavi Students Movements and Muslim Christian Dialogue Forum.

The Works of Shaykh-ul-Islam

Shaykh-ul-Islam is a prolific author and researcher. He has authored around 1000 books out of which 400 books are already published, and the rest of them are yet to be published. An unrivalled orator and speaker, he has delivered over 5000 lectures (in Urdu, English and Arabic), on a wide range of subjects, which are available on cassette, CD, DVD formats as well as online.

The following represents a selection of his printed works:

Works on Qur’anic Tafsir (in number totaling 80 works) include:

Irfan al-Qur’an (the Meanings of the Qur’an — Urdu and English versions)
Tafsir Minhaj al-Qur’an (al-Futuhat al-Madaniyya — 14 volumes U.P.)
Tafsir Sura al-Fatiha (partly published, totaling 7 volumes), the largest available publication on this subject.
Kashf al-Ghita ʻan Maʻrifat al-Aqsam li-l-Mustafa (Tafsir in Arabic on the excellence of the Holy Prophet — blessings and peace be upon him).
Tasmiyya al-Qur’an (a voluminous book on the meanings of Bism Allah)
Manahij al-‘Irfan fi Lafz al-Qur’an (a voluminous book on the meanings of the word Qur’an)
Meaning of Ayat al-Kursi (a voluminous book)
Development of Human Personality in the Light of Sura al-Fatiha
Islamic Philosophy of Human Life
No Coercion in Religion
al-ʻIrfan fi Fadaʼil wa Adab al-Qurʼan (recitation of the Qur’an; virtues and manners)
Islamic Concept of Human Nature
Qur’anic Philosophy of Da‘wa

And many others

Works on Hadith compilation and the science of Hadith (in number totaling 100 works):

Jami‘ as-Sunna fi ma Yahtaj Ilayhi Akhir al-Umma (a comprehensive compilation of 25,000 ahadith, totaling 20 volumes U.P.)
al-Minhaj as-Sawiyy min al-Hadith an-Nabawiyy (4 volumes — collection of 5,000 ahadith compiled on the pattern and style of al-Imam an-Nawawi’s Riyad as-Salihin and al-Khatib at-Tabrizi’s Mishkat al-Masabih relevant to the modern age). Its abridged version Mukhtasar Al-Minhaj as-Sawiyy was published with compliments and tributes of Shaykh al-Azhar as-Sayyid Dr Muhammad Tantawi, a renowned Muhaddith of Egypt, ash-Shaykh Dr Ahmad ‘Umar Hashim, Ex-Vice Chancellor of Jami‘a al-Azhar, Cairo, and Grand Mufti of Egypt ash-Shaykh Dr ‘Ali Jumu‘a and others.
al-‘Ata fi Ma‘rifat al-Mustafa (4 volumes — collection of 5,000 ahadith on the subjects of the excellence, habits, morals, specialties and miracles of the Holy Prophet — blessings and peace be upon him — on the pattern and style of ash-Shifa of al-Qadi ‘Iyad U.P.)
Hidayat al-Umma ‘ala Minhaj al-Qur’an wa’s-Sunna (2 volumes — another collection of 2,200 ahadith)
Prophetic Virtues & Miracles
Al-Wafa fi Rahmat an-Nabi al-Mustafa
Al-Makana al-‘Aliyya fi’l-Khasa’is an-Nabawiyya
Al-Mizat an-Nabawiyya fi’l-Khasa’is ad-Dunwiyya
Al-‘Azama an-Nabawiyya fi’l-Khasa’is al-Barzakhiyya
Al-Futuhat an-Nabawiyya fi’l-Khasa’is al-Ukhrawiyya
Al-Jawahir an-Naqiyya fi ash-Shuma’il an-Nabawiyya
Al-Matalib as-Saniyya fi’l-‘Adat an-Nabawiyya
Al-Minahat as-Samadiyya fi’l-Ikhtiyarat an-Nabawiyya
Al-Imtiyazat an-Nabawiyya fi’l-‘Ulum al-Ghaybiyya
Al-Fawz al-Jali fi at-Tawassul bi’n-Nabi
Ash-Sharaf al-‘Ali fi at-Tabarruk bi’n-Nabi
an-Nur al-Mubin fi Hayat an-Nabi al-Amin
Al-Minhal as-Safi fi Ziyarat Qabr an-Nabi
Ghayat as-Sifa fi Husn Jasad al-Mustafa
Al-‘Asal an-Naqi fi Asma’ an-Nabi
an-Najaba fi Manaqib as-Sahaba wa’l-Qaraba (virtues of the Companions and the Family of the Holy Prophet [blessings and peace be upon him])
Rawdat as-Salikin fi Manaqib al-Awliya’ wa’s-Salihin (Virtues of the Friends of Allah and the Pious)
Ahsan ’s-Sana’a fi Ithbat ash-Shafa’a (Intercession)
Rahat al-Qulub fi Madhi ’n-Nabiyyi al-Mahbub (Hymn of the Holy Prophet [blessings and peace be upon him])
Kashf al-Asrar fi Mahabbat al-Mawjudat li-Sayyid al-Abrar
al-Badra’t-Tamam ‘ala Sahib’id-Dunuww wa’l-Maqam (virtues of Greetings and Salutations on the Holy Prophet [blessings and peace be upon him])
Ahsana’s-Subul fi Manaqib al-Anbiya’ wa’r-Rusul (virtues of the Prophets and Messengers)
as-Sayf al-Jali ‘ala Munkir Wilayat ‘Ali
al-Qawl al-Mu‘tabar fi’l-Imam al-Muntazar
al-Qawl al-Qawiyy fi Sama‘ al-Hasan ‘an ‘Ali (a book on the science of Hadith in Arabic language. It establishes the fact that al-Hasan of Busra met ‘Ali and heard him narrate traditions.)
al-Kanz ath-Thamin fi Fadilat adh-Dhikr wa’dh-Dhakirin (Pearls of Remembrance)
al-Khutba as-Sadida fi Usul al-Hadith wa Furu‘ al-‘Aqida (a brief textbook on the science of Hadith in the Arabic language)
al-‘Abdiyya fi’l-Hadrat as-Samadiyya (Rights of Allah on His Slaves)
Al-Marwiyyat as-Sulamiyya min al-Ahadith an-Nabawiyya
Al-Marwiyyat al-Qushayriyya min al-Ahadith an-Nabawiyya
Al-Marwiyyat as-Suhrawardiyya min al-Ahadith an-Nabawiyya
Marwiyyat ash-Shaykh al-Akbar min Ahadith an-Nabi al-Athar
al-Lubab fi’l-Huquq wa’l-Adab (Rights and Manners)
Righteous Character & Excellence of Social Interaction
An-Najah fi A‘mal al-Birr wa as-Sadaqa wa as-Salah
Ad-Da‘wat wa’l-Adhkar min Sunna an-Nabi al-Mukhtar
al-Futuhat fi’l-Adhkar ba‘d as-Salawat
Al-Manahil as-Safiyya fi Sharaf al-Umma al-Muhammadiyya
Imam Abu Hanifa: Imam al-A’imma fi’l-Hadith (4 volumes)

And many others

Works on Islamic ‘Aqida (in number totaling 100 works) include:

Majmu‘at al-‘Aqa’id (25 volumes — an unprecedented compendium on Islamic Faith and Theology)
Kitab at-Tawhid (a detailed treatise on the concept of the unity of Allah running into 2 volumes)
Kitab ar-Risala (2 volumes — a detailed treatise on the excellence of Prophethood and highly esteemed station of the Holy Prophet — blessings and peace be upon him)
Kitab as-Sunna (2 volumes — a comprehensive treatise on the authority, science and compilation of hadith and sunna)
Makanat ar-Risala wa’s-Sunna
Kitab al-Bid‘a (a comprehensive work on the concept of “innovations” in Islam)
Kitab al-Iman (Basic Tenets of Faith)
Kitab al-Islam (Pillars of Islam)
Kitab al-Ihsan (Book on Spiritual Excellence)
Kitab az-Ziyara (Book on Visiting the Graves)
Kitab al-Baraka (Book on Blessings)
Kitab ash-Shafa‘a (Book on Intercession)
Kitab at-Tawassul (Book on Intermediation)
at-Ta‘zim wa’l-‘Ibada (Reverence and Worship)
al-Wasa’it ash-Shar‘iyya (Lawful Means and Linkages)
Reverence of Prophethood
Finality of Prophethood
al-Mawlid an-Nabawiyy ([blessings and peace be upon him)] Celebration of Mawlid] The largest ever written work on this subject, consisting of approximately 850 pages)
‘Ilm al-Ghayb (Book on the Knowledge of the Unseen)
Ascension of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him)
Love and Reverence of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him)
The Central Point of Iman
Prisoners of the Beauty of Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him)

And many others

Works on the Biography (Sira) of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) and his virtuous characteristics:

Sirat ar-Rasul (collection of 14 volumes, the largest collection ever written in the Urdu language)
Muqaddima as-Sira (2 volumes — an unprecedented work in Islamic history on the pattern of Muqaddima Ibn Khaldun)
Khasa’is al-Mustafa (Holy Prophet’s Exclusive Virtues)
Shama’il al-Mustafa (Holy Prophet’s Personal Characteristics and Habits)
Asma’ al-Mustafa (Meanings and Interpretation of the Holy Prophet’s Names)
Dala’il al-Barakat (2500 styles of greetings and salutations on the Holy Prophet — blessings and peace be upon him — a masterpiece of Arabic literature, written in the style of the well-read Dala’il al-Khayrat of Imam Jazuli)
Political Aspect of the Prophet’s Sira
Economic Aspect of the Prophet’s Sira
Administrative Aspect of the Prophet’s Sira
Constitutional Aspect of the Prophet’s Sira
Scientific Aspect of the Prophet’s Sira
Cultural Aspect of the Prophet’s Sira
Historical Aspect of the Prophet’s Sira
Aspect of Human Rights in the Prophet’s Sira
Aspect of Peace and Integration in the Prophet’s Sira
Diplomatic Relations in the Prophet’s Sira
Relations to Non-Muslims in the Prophet’s Sira
Revolutionary Struggle in the Prophet’s Sira
Qur’an on the Characteristics of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him)

And many others

Works on Islamic Law and Jurisprudence (Fiqh and Usul al-Fiqh) totaling around 60 works:

Islamic Penal System and Philosophy (Shaykh-ul-Islam’s doctoral thesis)
Islamic Concept of Law
Salient Characteristics of Islamic Law
Islamic Concept of Crime
A Comparative Study of Islamic and Western Concepts of Law
Islam and Criminality
Legal Character of Islamic Punishments
al-Hukm ash-Shar‘i (a book on Usul al-Fiqh [Islamic jurisprudence])
Sources of Islamic Law
Philosophy of Ijtihad and the Modern World
Ijtihad — Meaning, Kinds and Scope
Jurisprudential Methodology of Islamic Research
Islamic Concept of State
Qur’anic Basis of Constitutional Theory
Concept of Jail and Imprisonment in Islam
Difference between the Text and its Exegesis

And many others

Works on Islamic Political and Economic Systems:

The Constitution of Madina (a detailed exposition of the first ever written constitution in human history)
Khilafa and Democracy (a voluminous work on the subject of Islamic Political System U.P.)
Islamic Economic System, its Origin and Development
Qawa‘id al-Iqtisad fi’l-Islam ([Arabic] Principles of Islamic Economics)
Qur’anic Philosophy of Change (2 volumes)
Islamic Economy and Interest-free Banking
Qur’anic Philosophy of Rise and Fall of the Nations
Islam — a Religion of Balance and Moderation
Nizam Mustafa: a Message and Struggle for Change
Objectives of the Raising of Prophets (blessings and peace be upon them)

And many others

Works on Tasawwuf and Spirituality; around 50 works on Islamic Science of Mysticism and Spiritualism:

Kitab al-Ihsan
Reality of Tasawwuf
Practical Code of Spirituality
Obedience to Allah
Pearls of Remembrance of Allah
Love of Allah
Wariness of Allah
The Beauty of Pious Deeds
The Beauty of Spiritual States
The Beauty of Good Morals
Purification of Heart and Soul
Corruption of the Heart and its Cure
Our Real Homeland
Sin and Repentance
Qur’anic Categorization of People
Deeds and Spiritual Intoxication
Life — a War between Good and Evil
Morality of Prophets (blessings and peace be upon them)
The Awliya’: Companies and Narrations
al-Fuyudat al-Muhammadiyya

And many others

Works on Human Rights and Modern Sciences:

Human Rights in Islam
Islam on the Rights of Women
Islam on the Rights of Children
Islam on the Rights of Senior Citizens
Islam on the Rights of Non-Muslims
Islam on the Rights of the Disabled
Islam and Science
Qur’an on Creation and Evolution of Man
Qur’an on Creation and Expansion of the Universe
Islam on Prevention of Heart Diseases
Spiritualism and Magnetism
Issues of the Modern Age and their Solutions

And many others

Miscellaneous Works:

Islam in Various Perspectives
How to end Extremism and Sectarianism?
Our Religious Downfall and its Trifold Defence Strategy
Multidimensional Attack on Iman
The Real Concept of Jihad
Jihad: a Charity
Islamic Concept of Knowledge
True Knowledge: a Creative or an Interpretative Phenomenon
Reformable Aspects of Religious and Secular Sciences
The Real Base of Piety

And many others

Fatwa on Suicide Bombings and Terrorism:

Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri issued a historic fatwa, or Islamic decree, on the vital matter of suicide bombings and terrorist attacks carried out in the name of Islam. It is regarded as a significant and historic step, the first time that such an explicit and unequivocal decree against the perpetrators of terror has been broadcast so widely. The original fatwa has been written in Urdu, and amounts to 600 pages of research and references from the Qur’an, Hadith, opinions of the Companions (of the Prophet), and the widely accepted classical texts of Islamic scholarship. The comprehensiveness and extent of the original work is meant to leave no doubt, and no stone unturned, in order to remove any possible justification for the suicide attacks that the perpetrators or their supporters may offer. Indeed, Shaykh-ul-Islam went that crucial step forward and announced categorically that suicide bombings and attacks against civilian targets were not only condemned by Islam, but rendered the perpetrators totally out of the fold of Islam, in other words, to be unbelievers. Furthermore, in what is unprecedented in recent Islamic scholarship, this work draws out scriptural, historical, and classical scholarly references highlighting the obligations of Governments of Islamic nations to deal decisively to root out terrorist elements from society. This historic work has been translated into major languages of the world.

Shaykh-ul-Islam’s Chains of Authority

His Eminence Shaykh-ul-Islam, Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri has received a large number of authorities (asanid) and permissions (ijazat) for the transmission of knowledge of hadith, tafsir, fiqh, tasawwuf and other classical Islamic sciences from numerous great pillars of the Muslim world, widely acknowledged as the fountains of Islamic knowledge in the last century back to the classical scholars and great Imams of hadith of the past up to the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him). He has more than 300 Chains of Authority contained in two of his own thabats (reference books on his chains of authority):

al-Jawahir al-Bahira fi’l Asanid at-Tahira
as-Subul al-Wahabiyya fi’l-Asanid adh-Dhahabiyya

The following are some examples of his links to the renowned classical scholars via only one teacher:

He is linked to al-Imam Yusuf ibn Isma‘il an-Nabhani directly via only one teacher, his student ash-Shaykh Husayn ibn Ahmad al-‘Usayran (Lebanon).
He is linked to al-Imam Imdad Allah al-Muhajir al-Makki via only one teacher, his vicegerent ash-Shaykh as-Sayyid ‘Abd al-Ma‘bud al-Jilani al-Madani (who died at the age of 165 years).
Shaykh-ul-Islam is linked to Imam al-Hind ash-Shah Ahmad Rida Khan via only one teacher through three different routes:

ash-Shaykh al-Mu‘ammar Diya’ud-Din Ahmad al-Qadiri al-Madani
ash-Shaykh as-Sayyid Abu’l-Barakat Ahmad al-Qadiri Alwari
ash-Shaykh al-Mu‘ammar as-Sayyid ‘Abd al-Ma‘bud al-Jilani al-Madani

Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri has gathered together the various fields of classical Islamic knowledge, especially the knowledge, and authorities of hadith, from famous centres of Islamic learning across the globe: