Sultan Ahmad Nanupuri

Imām al-ʿĀrifīn Shah Sultan Ahmad Nanupuri
সুলতান আহমদ নানুপুরী
Personal
Born	Shah Sultan Ahmad 26 June 1914 Dharmapur, Chittagong District, Bengal Province
Died	16 August 1997(1997-08-16) (aged 83) Al-Jamiah Al-Islamiah Obaidia Nanupur, Bangladesh
Religion	Islam
Spouse	Momena Khatun
Children	2
Denomination	Sunni
Jurisprudence	Hanafi
Movement	Deobandi
Alma mater	Darul Uloom Deoband
Muslim leader
Teacher	Muhammad Faizullah Hussain Ahmed Madani Izaz Ali Amrohi
Disciple of	Hussain Ahmed Madani Azizul Haq
show Disciples
show Students Abdur Rahman Chatgami Muhibbullah Babunagari Sultan Zauq Nadvi
Principal of Al-Jamiah Al-Islamiah Obaidia Nanupur
In office 1958–1995
Succeeded by

Shah Sultan Ahmad Nanupuri (Bengali: শাহ সুলতান আহমদ নানুপুরী; 26 June 1914 – 16 August 1997), also known by his daak naam Badshah, was a Bangladeshi Islamic scholar, teacher and author. He established numerous madrasas in Bangladesh and was the founding principal of Al-Jamiah Al-Islamiah Obaidia Nanupur for seventeen years.

Early life and family[]

Shah Sultan Ahmad was born on 26 June 1914, to a Bengali Muslim family in the village of Dharmapur, located under the Fatikchhari subdivision of the Bengal Province's Chittagong District.^[1] His father, Fazlur Rahman, worked in Rangoon, British Burma and his mother, Umdah Khatun, was a housewife. His grandfather's great-grandfather, Akbar Shah, migrated from Arabia to Bengal via Afghanistan for dawah and permanently settled there. Among Fazlur Rahman's children, it was only him that did not die during childhood. When he was roughly two and a half years old, his mother died as a result of a cholera outbreak.^[2][3]

Education[]

Sultan Ahmad's education began at a local maktab ran by Ubaydul Haq Mianji. When he reached the age of five, he joined the Garzania Primary School. After his father's instruction, he later joined the in Nanupur Kalu Munshirhat. There he began studying from Yazdaham to Jamate Shashum under the likes of Lal Miyan,^[1] Obaydul Hoque and Muhammad Faizullah.^[4]

In his final year, his father died. After completing his studies, his stepmother advised him to join the in the city of Chittagong. Ahmad stayed there for a few months but did not enjoy the curriculum, and so returned home. Being influenced by his former teachers, he intended to re-enrol from Jamate Shashum at the Darul Uloom Deoband. He therefore travelled to Saharanpur in Hindustan to complete his studies in Deoband. He also briefly studied at the nearby Mazahir Uloom, before graduating (MA) from the faculty of Hadith studies at Darul Uloom Deoband and beginning his philosophy course. Among his teachers were Hussain Ahmad Madani, Izaz Ali Amrohi, , , and .^[4][5]

Career[]

Sultan Ahmad became known as the Nanupuri Huzur from his long residence in Nanupur, particularly Al-Jamiah Al-Islamiah Obaidia Nanupur madrasa.

Sultan Ahmad Nanupuri reciting a Persian poem by Hafez.

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During his studies in Deoband, Nanupuri served as an imam at the Deoband Central Mosque. After graduating and returning to Bengal, he sent a letter to join the faculty at the in Nazirhat Bazar and was accepted to teach there. The erstwhile principal of the madrasa, Nur Ahmad, later employed Zafar Ahmad Usmani too. Usmani was a supporter of the All-India Muslim League, whilst Nanupuri strongly believed that religious institutions like the madrasa should be free from political influence. Nanupuri subsequently left and became a teacher at Al-Jamiatul Islamiah Azizul Uloom Babunagar for 15 years. Azizul Haq later instructed Nanupuri to become the acting principal, and later the founding principal of Al-Jamiah Al-Islamiah Obaidia Nanupur in 1961. He served in Nanupur for seventeen years in total, and then gave up the role to .^[6] Among his notable students were Abdur Rahman Chatgami, Muhibbullah Babunagari and Sultan Zauq Nadvi.^[7]

Among the other madrasas that he established are and . He was also the founder of the "Ar-Rashid" monthly magazine.^[4]

Personal life[]

Islam in Bangladesh
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v

During his education in Deoband, Nanupuri spent seven years under Hussain Ahmad Madani, pledging bay'ah to Madani on 18 November 1944. However, after the Partition of India in 1947, Nanupuri was unable to maintain a close relationship with Madani, and could not meet with Ashraf Ali Thanwi either as he was ill. Madani responded to Nanupuri in a letter giving him permission to master under a different Sufi scholar. Nanupuri then became a murid of Azizul Haq of Patiya, and received khilafah (spiritual succession) from him after 15 years.^[8]

Nanupuri first completed Hajj with his pir, Azizul Haq. In 1967, a businessman named Niamat Ali Sawdagar funded Nanupuri for Hajj. His third hajj took place in 1970, alongside and Abdur Rahman Chatgami. His fourth and last hajj was in 1991, alongside Mufti Said Ahmad (founder of Jamia Sultania Lalpol) and Afsar Ahmad (Qari of Nanupur Madrasa).^[4]

On 21 January 1945, Nanupuri married Momena Khatun, the first daughter of Munshi Abdul Khaliq. They had four sons and six daughters, although two sons died at an early stage. His son, , is also an Islamic scholar and the principal of .^[9]

Death and legacy[]

Nanupuri died on 16 August 1997 in his own room at Al-Jamiah Al-Islamiah Obaidia Nanupur, after being ill for three years. The next day, led his janaza at the Nanupur Madrasa courtyard. Nanupuri's elder son was unable to participate as he was in the United Arab Emirates at the time and so when he returned, Nanupuri's younger son led a second funeral prayer. After the prayer, Nanupuri was buried in the Maqbara-e-Sultania.^[5]

Nanupuri's leading khalifah (spiritual successor) established a madrasa in Feni named after him as . He also wrote a biography on his teacher titled "Shah Sultan Ahmad Nanupuri's life and teachings" which was published by the Hakimul Ulama Foundation Bangladesh.^[8] also wrote a biography on Nanupuri, and wrote an eleven-volume Urdu biography titled "Marif-e-Sultan". Abdus Salam Chatgami later edited the work and published it in two volumes.^[10][11] His disciples have founded numerous institutions and organisations in his name such as the Allama Shah Sultan Ahmad Foundation Bangladesh, and his speeches have been collected and published. In 2018, began publishing a seasonal magazine named after him as the Samayiki As-Sultan.^[9] Among his other biographies are:

1. Hayat-e-Nanupuri Rah. (1999) - Professor Munawwar
2. Nanupuri Rah. Er Jibon O Dorshon (2000) - Imdadullah Nanupuri
3. Fuyuz-e-Sultani (2005) - Mawlana Rafiq
4. Kemon Chilen Nanupuri (2008) - Mahmudul Hasan
5. Mawayez-e-Sultan (2008) - Mufti Moinuddin (Chief Mufti of Basundhara Madrasa)
6. Malfuzat-e-Nanupuri

References[]