CHAPTER - 1 | RELIGIOUS REFORMERS | O LEVELS PAKISTAN STUDIES | HISTORY (2059 / 1) | (CLASS NOTES FOR REVISION)

                        RELIGIOUS THINKERS

 

SHAH WALI ULLAH

 Why he wished to revive Islam In the subcontinent?

  

·         He believed that most of the problems of Muslims was due to their incomplete Knowledge and understanding of the Holy Quran. As the Holy Quran is in Arabic whereas common Muslims knew Persian. He wanted that the Quranic teachings be made accessible to the common people so they may act on them

·         The Muslim community was divided into sects, such as Sunni and Shia. Thus they were vulnerable to attacks on their religion. SWU wanted them to put aside their differences o that a more united and strong community could be created.

·        Many Unislmaic practices had enterest Islam due to constant interaction with Hindus and other no Muslim communities. Thus they had forgotten the moral andspiritual principles of Islam. Hence SWU wished to revive Islam to purify the Islamic Society.

 SERVICES:

  ·         Translation of Quran into Persian, the local language, despite opposition of the ulemas. So it was easier for common Muslims to act on Islamic teachings. Thus Islam was revived among the locals. This also paved way for his sons to translate it into Urdu, making it available to even more people.

·         Also treid to stop the Muslims dividing into sects. Studied the differences between Sunni and Shia objectively and wrote an account of the first four caliphs in a way acceptable to both groups. Thus treid to reconcile between them to unite the Muslims.

·         Wrote 51 books on different aspects of Islam like Fiqh and HAdis. Significant among them were the Hujjatullah ul Baligha and Izalat ul Akhfa. This helped Muslim understand Islamic principles and act on them.

·         Also taught at the Madrassa Rahimiya for many years. Important as it paved for the youth to familiarize themselves with the fundamental principles and glorious past of Islam hence inducing solidarity and pride in them regarding their religion.

·         Tried to unite the Muslims against the Marathas and Sikhs so Islam could be protected and revived. It was he who invited Ahmed shah Durrani from Persia. He defeated the Marathas and the Muslims were saved from no Muslim tyranny.

·         Revived Islam in the prevalent economic system by stressing on social justice, equilibirium. He made laborers and craftsmen more aware by stressing that they should be paid justly and urged traders and business to adapt a fair Islamic system of trading thus eliminating sense of corruption in Business activities.

 

HAJI SHARIAT ULLAH

Why he wished to revive Islam in the subcontinent?

·         Believed that Muslims of the sub continent were leading miserable lives because they had started following Hindu practices due to their interaction with them. Thus they started the Faraizi Movement to purify the Islamic society.

·         Muslims in Bengal were surprised by the Hindu landlords. HSU wanted to end this tyranny. Thus he started the Faraizi Movement to create a sense of Jihad in muslims so that they could fight for their rights.

·         Muslims had forgotten the basic principles of Islam and did not practice religious obligations i.e Faraizi prayer and fasting. Thus he started the Faraizi movement to insist upon them to follow the pillars of Islam

SERVICES:

 

·     He began his reform movement known as the “Faraizi Movement” started as a reaction to the anti Islamic policies of British and Hinds. The movement insisted upon the fulfilment of Fariaz i.e one’s religious obligations imposed by God and His Prophets. His followers came to be known as the “fairizis” on account of their insistence of the fulfillment of one’s duties. As a result many Muslims declared themselves to the performance of their duties and became staunch Muslims.

·     Brought the Muslim peasantry together against the cruel exploitation by the Hindu Zamindars, infused a spirit amongst the Peasants who got together to direct Jihad against the then religious and social oppression to fight for their rights.

·    This confidence and awakening of the Bengalis from their slumber prepared the grounds for future works of his successors like Titu Mir and Dadu mian.

·     Worked towards elimination of Hind customs that had crept into Muslim society due to their continuous interaction. Significant as he attempted to purify the lives of Muslims so that they could not only distinguish Islamic practices and rituals but also follow the true Islam.

  

SYED AHMED SHAHEED BARELVI

 Why he launched the Jihad movement against Sikhs of Punjab.

·         The Sikh rulers of Punjab were not letting the Muslims practice their religious freely and even the Azaan was banned. This angered SASB and he launched the Jihad movement against the Sikhs for Muslim religious freedom.

·         He launched it against the two main anti Muslim forces, British in Bengal and Sikhs in Punjab. He was aware that British were hard to defeat as a superpower, and thus hard to defeat. Therefore he launched the Jihad against the Siks first as they were a relativel weaker force and he thus was more likely to win against the

·         SASB knew that Punjab was surrounded by Muslim tribes, which encouraged him to fight against the Sikhs as these could help him

 

SERVICES:

·         Launched the Jihad Movement against the Sikhs in Punjab as they were not letting the Muslims practice their religion freely. He gathered an army and launched war on them. Although the Mujahedeen were later defeated, this shows his commitment to liberate Muslims from oppressive rulers and grant them their due rights.

·         This movement not only infused a great deal of determination and moral courage but also had influence on future generations, inspiring them. It was like a forerunner for the Pakistan Movement.

·         It Unified Muslims together of different regions, created awareness among of them regarding their political, religious and cultural rights. It was also the first movement meant to free Muslims from tyranny rather than place a ruler in power.

REASONS FOR THE MOVEMENT’S FAILURE

·         SASB was not well trained in military tactics. Most of the fighters were teachers, or spiritual leaders. This made it difficult for the Mujahideen forces to fight against the Sikhs and come up with clever strategies to defeat them. On the other hand, the Sikhs were tough and well trained under Ranjit, who was a strong military ruler

·         The Muslim army was disunited. The Muslims were of many different backgrounds. Soldiers often mistrusted each other and were reluctant to agree with one another. As a result, due to internal conflicts there wasn’t always full support from everybody. Which weakened the Muslim forces

·         The Pathans did not tolerate being in an army that they weren’t ruining themselves.

·         They weren’t ready to compromise which strained their relations with other Muslims.

·         This weakened the Muslim forces as there was less support from pathan tribes.

·         SASB imposed taxes on locals to bear military costs, but local people were pissed off since they had never payed such a tax and were thus resented SASB. As a result, SASB lost support of the local people which further weakened his forces.

·         He thus lost money from taxes and his funds became limited and thus not all the military costs could be afforded. They could not improve upon/buy more needed military equipment.

·         Moreover, SASB’s army was not as sincere to him. There were attempts by Yar Muhamad Khan to assassinate SASB. He thus had to tackle with internal threats as well as external ones. Thus, his attention was diverted from his main goal, which was to defeat the Sikhs. Yar Muhammad’s army betrayed him in battle in Akora, weakened his fighting and causing his defeat.

·         When SASB was moving to Balakot, traitors informed Sikhs of the Muslim’s route. Thus, the Sikhs prepared themselves and strengthened their forces which made it easier for them to defeat the Muslims. So, when they launched their surprise attack at Balakot, the Muslims were unprepared for this unexpected attack, and were defeated. >Sikhs outnumbered the Muslims in this battle. The weaker Mujahideen lost, and SASB was killed, effectively ending the movement.