Abdul Qadir Al-Jilani is one of those scholars and geniuses who came to this earth to give light to humanity and guide them to the true path. He practiced Islam and conveyed its message to all Muslims after having himself drunk deeply from the hearts of humanity. The place where he lived and chose for the spread of his message has become one of the blessed lands on this earth, and has since been turned into a holy Centre of visits by his followers and well-wishers.
It is tough to correctly evaluate his personality because several of his followers have described his life and personality. Some have painted him as one of the greatest Sufis, rather than the greatest Sufi, and have alleged that he performed several unheard-of karamat, or miracles, while others have described him as one of the greatest ulama, that scholars, of Islam. From a neutral point of view, we can say he was a great reformer, a great idealist, a great scholar, a great preacher of Islam, and a great Sufi. His unbounded scholarship of Islam was so great that the great Moorish scholar and philosopher, Ibn al-Arabi, gave him the title of Qutb, that is, the focal point of Islam.
In the sixth century AH, Muslim civilization, under the lavish rule of the Abbasid Caliphate, was going under, and the Muslims in general were losing their attachment to religion. There was real moral bankruptcy, and the people were indulging in luxury and the pleasure of this life. However, in the background, there was a reign of corruption, a reign of injustice, and a world of indiscipline. People were steeped in irreligious activities, and there was hardly any regard for moral scruples. From the Caliph to the common man, all had gone away from religion.
Under this extreme decline of morality, Abdul Qadir Al-Jilani used to stand up boldly to address the people to remind them of their moral responsibility. The Caliph, the qadis, the governors, the public, the merchants, the ulama’- all sections of people were the target of his addresses or khutbahs. He would criticize their defects and shortcomings very boldly and would suggest the measures and remedies of the Qur’an and sunnah. At first, his voice was hardly heard, and his audience was very small, about ten or fifteen people. But gradually, over time, his audience became sixty to seventy thousand people. They would listen to him with all their hearts and minds and would drink deep from the fountain of his scholarly lectures.
This distinguished and ever-respected scholar, Sayyid Abu Muhammad Abdul Qadir, was born in Persia in the Province of Jilan in the year 1077. He was called Al-Jilani after the name of his birthplace. His father, Abu Salih, was a very religious person and a great ‘alim. Abu Salih was a descendant of Sayyidatuna Fatimah al-Zahra (radhiyAllahu'anha) - the Chief of the Women of Paradise, and the beloved daughter of the Final Messenger, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) through her son, Sayyiduna Hasan (radhiyAllahu Anh), and his wife was descended from her other son, Sayyiduna Husayn (radhiyAllahu Anh).
From his boyhood, Abdul Qadir was calm, quiet, thoughtful, and a keen seeker of knowledge. In his childhood, he studied Arabic and Persian in the local madrasa. When he was eighteen, he was sent to Baghdad to study the Qur’an, hadith, fiqh, theology, logic, history, and philosophy in the famous Nizamiyya Madrasa of Baghdad. When he was setting out for Baghdad, his mother gave him forty gold coins and hid them by sewing them into his undergarment. On the way, his caravan was attacked by bandits. When they asked him if he had anything, he showed them his forty gold coins hidden in his undergarment. The bandit leader rebuked him for having admitted this. At this, Abdul Qadir replied that his mother had asked him, when she bade him farewell, never to tell a lie, even at the risk of his life. Having heard this, the bandit leader was greatly moved, and he, along with all the other bandits, accepted Islam and vowed to live an honest life.
Having reached Baghdad, Abdul Qadir Al-Jilani started swimming in the ocean of knowledge of the Qur’an, hadith, fiqh, and other related subjects. Soon, he showed his genius as an excellent student by dint of his sharp memory and deep understanding. But he was more attracted to the spiritual side of learning, and Sufism made its full impact on him. Side by side with his studies in the Nizamiyya madrasa, he freely mixed with all the renowned Sufis of his time in Baghdad. In this way, he got very closely acquainted with the famous Sufi of Baghdad, Hammad, who accepted him as one of his favorite disciples.
He dedicated himself to attaining the depths of Sufism through his constant devotion and association with the Sufis. After his studies were over, he preferred to live in loneliness away from the public and to meditate on his Lord. He took on a strict life of abstinence and austerity and used to spend his nights in prayer and meditation. He would complete one reading of the Qur’an, almost every night, by keeping himself awake; and it is said that with one wudhu’ (ablution), he used to perform the Isha’ and Fajr prayers. Then he left Baghdad and went to a lonely desert where he spent twenty-five years in meditation and self-purification. At that time, he had the look of an ascetic, unworldly man. The goal of this long course of Self-purification was to know his Lord, and he was successful in his quest. (To be continued)
M. Atiqul Haque
