Respecting our Teachers

The hadeeth kitabs which were taught in the madressa by other teachers were always accompanied by long lectures. Whenever I saw these lectures being held, my mouth used to water to attend. I sought my father's permission to be allowed to listen to these lessons held by someone else, but he always refused permission most emphatically and every time he used to say:

"You are unmannered. You only repsect me because of the shoes with which I beat you and you honour Hazrat [ie. Hazrat Khalid Mahmood Saharanpuri رحمة الله عليه] by heart."

This is reference to a specific incident to which he referred to on many occasions saying: "You do not even go on to the roof of Hazrat's house (out of respect for him) but you are prepared to climb on my head."

The story is this: My father's room was the western-most room of the library, which is now included into the library. The outside area of it was empty (as already mentioned in connection with the reading of Sharah Tahzeeb). When one wished to come along the stairs to my father's room, one had to walk over the roof of Hazrat's room. To come to his room instead of crossing over Hazrat's roof I climbed over the wall alongside his roof. Actually this was done for show because I am not even in possession of good manners upto this day. This is the reason why my fahter said: "You are unmannered. If you should act unmannerly to a falsafa or mantiq teacher, that knowledge will leave you and it will be a calamity for me. But if you should act unmannerly to any hadeeth teacher, this will be completely unbearable and unacceptable to me because you will then be deprived of the blessings of hadeeth."

In this he was right. I have not been able to show due respect to my Ustads and in spite of my ill-manners, my Ustads have treated me with great love, sympathy and goodwill. May Allah grant them all high ranks. Except for Hazrat Saheb, all the rest of my teachers treated me as an equal as if I was their contemporary or class-mate.

A most pertinent talk on this topic can also be found on the Sacredlearning website [see links] titled 'Debt to our Teachers'.

Dispute Over Pay (2)

Hazrat Thanwy was also one of the trustees and supervisors of the madressa. I told him and Maulana Zafar Ahmad Thanwy, the Mufti of Thanabavan with whom I was most informal, "If any application concerning my salary from the madressa should come to Hazrat Thanwy, please let it be rejected."

I do not kno what he told Hazrat Thanwy. A letter of application was sent to Hazrat Thanwy for one and a half years leave of absence. Mohtamim Saheb also wrote: "He has some salary left with us. Kindly give permission for it to be paid to him."

Hazrat Thanwy approved the leave of absence and with regard to the salary, he wrote: "If the salary had not been received by him, then why is the permission of the trustees required? If there is any other doubts regarding the salary, then please explain it so that we may ponder over it."

Another trustee was Maulana Aashiq Ilahi and I also told him: "You are also a trustee. That salary is not permissible for me. Disapprove it."

However, after Hazrat had approved it, Maulana Thanwy could still disapprove, but what right had any of Hazrat's attendents to do so? I had done all these contemptable things as I always do.First of all, Maulana Ashiq Ilahi debated the issue with me and when, like in the case of Nazim Saheb he could not convince me, he wrote on my application: "Leave of absence for one and a years is approved. And just as in the case of of his leave of absence his application regarding his salary should also be accepted, that is, that his salary should also be granted by the madressa."

When Hazrat saw Maulana Meeruty's [ie Maulana Aashiq Ilahi's] note, he knew I had also had a debate with him. Thereafter Hazrat told me with great sympathy: "Bazal is not my own work. It belongs to the madressa. If I should take you with me in service of the madressa, and apart from going and living there, I let your expenses come from the madressa, then what do you have to say?"

I replied: "Then I will say: That is permissible. I have no hesitation."

Hazrat said: "The salary of your's which is in the madressa will be less than what the madressa will now give you."

I replied: "That is true."

Hazrat said: "This is what you should understand."

Dispute Over Pay

Here Sheikhul Hadeeth رحمة الله عليه relates the argument that took place over his salary.

I said: "Hazrat, do not worry, arrangements will be made for my expenses. It will not be permissible for me to take that money." I have always been a bit forward in the presence of the elders.
Hazrat asked: "Why?"

I replied: "In those months when I did not take salary, I taught with the neyat of doing so without salary. Now I am not entitled to take it."

Hazrat asked: "Did you put any application to the madressa when you were hired? The madressa was the hirer. What right did you have of cancelling the contract of hire from your own side unilaterally until such a time that we accepted your application?"

I replied: "But Hazrat, this has nothing to do with a hiring contract. If a person of his own self does a job for the sake of Allah, what right has he afterwards of receiving renumeration?"

At that time, Hazrat Nazim Saheb was also seated there. He said to Hazrat, "Leave him, I will explain the matter to him."

Hazrat became happy and I also, because in Hazrat's presence I spoke with fear, while with Nazim Saheb an open and lively debate took place and in the end he told Hazrat: "He does not want to budge from his view."

Respecting Knowledge

In this excerpt, Sheikhul Hadeeth (rahmatullahi 'alayh) recalls the favours of another elder, Hazrat Shah Yaseen Naginwi (rahmatullahi 'alayh).

He is one of the most prominent Khalifahs of Hazrat Gangohi Saheb and I already mentioned about him in the introduction of Fazaa'il Durood (The virtues of Durood). Hazrat always attended Madressa Mazahirul Uloom's Annual Jalsa and stayed at my place for a week - upto ten days. From his outward appearance, saintliness was quite evident and he was very kind. He was fond of attending my classes and used to be so attentive as to be the very personification of the description in the Hadith:

"As if birds were sitting on their heads."

He used to sit with his eyes downcast, that I would envy his attentiveness and respect.

At my insistence, he used to sit near me. He showed me numerous favours but there is one of his Karaamat that I can recall and it is for this that I have written his name down.

One of my bad habits was this, that whenever I went to class, I carried a paan tin with me. In place of the normal spittoon I had a clay lota which was always kept in the Darul Hadith. During class, I used to eat paan. Once Hazrat Shah Yaseen Saheb told me: "I am not prohibiting the eating of paan, but please do not eat paan during class."

From that day onwards, for about forty years, I have never eaten paan during class. I was always particular about teaching Hadith while being in a state of wudhoo and cannot remember ever having taught without wudhoo. But since this request of Hazrat Shah Saheb, I have always made a special point of rinsing my mouth before going out to teach. I have always had the regret that he said that he was not prohibiting the eating of paan. If only he had said that, then I would have been saved from this calamity of paan eating.