Chapter 8: My Father’s Migration to Madeenah

Chapter 8: My Father’s Migration to Madeenah

My father’s effective management skills, when residing in Tanda, allowed our land to be released from its mortgage and to be then divided amongst the shared owners. There was a profitable income from our share of land. It also meant that different family celebrations such as the aqeeqas, circumcisions and weddings were catered for without the need to borrow money. The basic salary and the ownership of a small amount of land enabled him to meet the daily expenses, educational fees and celebrations of our large family. My father’s management skills also meant that we sufficed without the need to seek external financial aid. In any case, in his role as a school headmaster, the opportunity did not arise to seek external aid; and secondly my father was very religious and was completely opposed to prohibited forms of income outlined by shari’at. Under closer observation; his circumstances were nothing short of being miraculous. The continued savings from his income made it viable to finance and host large family celebrations.

The Nikah of my eldest brother and also that of my second brother took place in 1305 Hijri (188/1888 C.E) -The baraat (wedding procession) of the eldest brother travelled the distance of six kaws (a measure of distance variously from 1.25 to 3 miles) to the village of Shehzadpur and my second brother was married into the family of my maternal uncle Tafaddhul Hussayn Sahib Marhoom. A large amount of money was spent on jewellery, clothing, the guests and the waleemah etc. The cost was covered by the money that had been saved over time. Thereafter, in 1312 Hijri (1894/1895 C.E.), my marriage took place in Katalpur (which situated in Atraulia in the Azamgarh District) and many expenses had to be borne. Although the conditions of the time seem basic by the standards of income we have today; it was considered a comfortable and a blissful lifestyle compared to the conditions my parents (marhoom) had faced in their early childhood and in their youth.

My eldest brother (marhoom) began his employment in teaching in Sahawar and Bulandshahr and my second brother, Saeed Ahmad’s (marhoom) and my expenditure was covered by Darul-Uloom Deoband, yet my father sent one rupee to help cover our additional expenses on a monthly basis . Sometimes we found ourselves in a situation of debt largely because of our own foolishness and we were severely reproached for it. Furthermore, we had to cover the cost of travel for our annual holidays from Deoband to our home and this is the reason why we went home only after a two year period had passed.

At the time, my father’s future vision was to develop plantations for all the children and extend our house, but it was fated that in on the 22^nd of Rabiul Awwal; 1313 Hijri (August/ September 1895 C.E.), my parents’ peer and murshid; Hadhrat Moulana Fadhlur Rahman Ganj Muradabadi (Quddus Sirruhul Azeez) passed away at the age 105 years. It is true that every Mureed will have formed a connection and developed love to some degree for his murshid, however my parents, and in particular, my father had an extremely deep love for his murshid. My father had remained in his khidmat for a very long time and was blessed with dhikr-wa-shugal, istifada-e-batini (spiritual benefits) and the completion of the manazile-sulook. Moulana’s (marhoom) special favour and attention had always remained on him. For a long while he remained grief-stricken; he wrote very many Qasa’id (poems) expressing his separation from his murshid and many of them were written in powerful words in the language of bahakha (referred to in Hindi as birog: separation or separated lover). During the prevailing period, my brother Sayyed Ahmad wrote a letter to my father stating: ’Miah, (that is what we used to call our father) India has no longer become a place for living and we should move to Madinah Munawwarah. The concern of developing the plantations is a waste.’ 

My brother’s words greatly affected my father like a burning match in liquid spirit: His reading of the letter, enflamed the fire of love for the beloved Prophet Sallahu Alayhi Wasallam. Thereafter he constantly remained in deep thought and developed the idea that he should migrate to Madinah with the whole family. He started thinking about strategies of how it could be achieved; it was not a simple task for a family of eleven or twelve to relocate to Madinah. People explained to my father that he should go himself and perform Hajj and Ziyyarah, yet he was persistent in his viewpoint. The in-laws of his sons placed a lot of pressure on him and then he replied,’ Take with you the divorce of your daughters if you want as I will be taking my sons with me’. He told his daughter-in-laws; ‘Whoever does not want to relocate should request for a divorce from their husbands, yet all of you should know and should be reminded how it is considered a detested practice in the Indian tradition and within our society.’ 

I expressed to my father that I had still to complete some books on Adab (Arabic literature) and Hay’at (Astronomy) and that he should commence his migration and that I would join him after one or two years. He replied, ‘Complete them in Madinah Munawwarah’. My wife was brought up by her maternal uncle, Shaykh Kifayatullah Marhoom Katalpuri because her father had passed away much earlier on. Shaykh Kifayatullah was her guardian at the time of marriage and had worked for the Government in Balrampur. He was residing in Lucknow at the time and was working for the Lucknow Government. He tried to prevent me from leaving and he spoke to my father himself and said, ‘I am present in Lucknow, I will keep Husayn Ahmad here with me and I will send him to Hakeem Abdul Azeez Sahib (marhoom) to study medicine. Leave him here.’ My father replied, ‘Should I mount Husayn Ahmad on a donkey after having mounted him on a horse? He has been given an education in Uloome Deeniyah and what education can there be more worthy than that?’

Friends, relatives and others tried to explain matters to him but in the words of the poet;

The one who is sick with love, May Allah’s mercy be,

The sickness only grew worse with every attempted medicine.

His passion and love was further heightened nearing the time of his migration to Hijaz. It was known that there were many difficulties meted out by the Government at the time (which will be discussed later).Someone mentioned the difficulties sustained because of the quarantines placed in Allahabad and advised him not to make intention to go that year. He replied, ‘If it was said unto me that you will be mounted at the mouth of the cannon and it will be blasted so that you will reach Madinah Munawwarah. I’m ready for that as well’. In our household, apart from my brother Saeed Ahmad Sahib (marhoom), no one was of the same thinking as my father on this matter. My eldest brother observed my father’s strong will and complained to Hadhrat Gangohi (Quddus Sirruhu); he replied, ’It is not a problem, you take leave as well.’ My brother then added ’Hadhrat, I have not yet completed my spiritual education and I want to pursue it.’ Hadhrat replied, ‘Go for now and then later on take leave from them and return here.’

Consequently, my father’s passion and yearning kept growing and he started thinking of how to sell the land he had owned so he could leave. This process took a long-time and it was only after much effort, a rich man from Tanda called Rajah Ali Hussayn purchased all the owned plantations in Al-Haddadpur and Jarawanpur at the price of approximately three thousand rupees. He also wanted to sell our homeland but he could not find anyone who was ready to pay even half or a third of its price and thus it was not sold. We finally left India during the end days of Shabaan 1316 Hijri (1898/1899 C.E.).

Chapter 9: http://qalamee.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/chapter-9-brief-insight-into-my-fathers.html

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