Badre Alam Merathi (Urdu: بدر عالم میرٹھی; 1898 – 29 October 1965) was a mid-twentieth-century hadith scholar and poet originally from Meerut, initially migrated to Pakistan and eventually settled in Medina. Best known as the interpreter of Anwar Shah Kashmiri's teachings, he was a disciple of both Kashmiri and Shabbir Ahmad Usmani.[1] Educated at Mazahir Uloom and Darul Uloom Deoband, he taught at both institutions and Jamia Islamia Talimuddin. During his tenure at Jamia Islamia Talimuddin, he compiled Fayd al-Bari, a four-volume Arabic commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari, published in Cairo with financial support from Jamiatul Ulama Transvaal, considered a masterpiece in hadith commentary.[1] He was also associated with Nadwatul Musannifeen and authored Tarjuman al-Sunnah, a 4-volume hadith explanation designed for contemporary needs, widely acknowledged in academic circles.[2] In his final years, he focused on teaching hadith in Prophet's Mosque, where many South Africans pledged allegiance to him, expanding his spiritual influence in South Africa.[3]
Life sketch
Badre Alam was born in 1898 in a Sayyid family in the Budaun district of Uttar Pradesh.[4] His father, Tahur Ali, served as a police officer.[2] He received his initial education at an English school in Aligarh, and influenced by a sermon of Ashraf Ali Thanwi at the age of eleven, he developed an inclination towards Islamic studies.[5] Despite initial resistance from his father, he pursued religious education at Mazahir Uloom.[2]
After Dabhel, he moved to Bahawalnagar, Punjab, established Jam'ul Uloom, and stayed for a year there. He then came to Delhi and became associated with Nadwatul Musannifeen in 1943.[11] After the partition of India in 1947, he migrated to Karachi, Pakistan, and, under the patronage of Shabbir Ahmad Usmani founded Jamia Islamia at Tando Allahyar.[12] Following Pakistan's formation, he actively participated in the formulation of an Islamic constitution.[13]
After residing for four years in Pakistan, he migrated to Medina.[14]Abd al-Fattah Abu Ghudda met him in Medina, benefited from him,[15] and later narrated hadiths from him.[16]
Known as Qutb al-Aarifeen,[17] he received Sufi teachings from Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri, associated with Aziz-ul-Rahman Usmani, and ultimately received spiritual succession from Muhammad Ishaq Merathi.[18] He died on 29 October 1965, in Prophet's Mosque, and was laid to rest in Al-Baqi Cemetery.[19] His influence extended to Pakistan, India, South Africa, and the Middle East.[20]
Literary works
He scrutinized the intricacies of the Quran and hadith, expressing an understanding of Arabic literature and poetry.[21] His literary works touched various religious subjects. Apart from Fayd al-Bari and Tarjuman al-Sunnah, he authored the three-volume Jawahir al-Hikam, addressing contemporary social issues and the implementation of Islamic law in 1965, translated into French and Gujarati.[22][6] His annotations for Fayd al-Bari, published as Al-Badr Al-Sari.[23] He wrote an abstract of Rashid Ahmad Gangohi's book Zubdat-ul-Manāsik under the title Khulasa Zubdat-ul-Manāsik, a guide on Hajj issues.[24] One of his books on the descent of Jesus is called Nuzool-e-ʿĪsā, and he has written a booklet in the same series called Awaz-e-Haq.[24] During his time in Pakistan, he translated Ali al-Qari's Al-Hizb al-Azam and wrote some poetry.[6]
^Azami, Fazlur Rahman (1999). Tareekh e Jamia Islamia Dabhel [History of Jamia Islamia Dabhel] (in Urdu). Multan, Pakistan: Idara Tālīfāt e Ashrafia. p. 189, 192.
^Merathi, Badre Alam (1968). "Musannif Ki Hayāt-e-Mubāraka Ki Ek Halki Si Jhalak: Aaftab Ahmad" [A brief glimpse of the author's life, by Aaftab Ahmad]. Tarjuman al-Sunnah (in Urdu). Vol. 4. Lahore: Idara-e-Islāmiyyāt. p. 19.
^Amini, Noor Alam Khalil (May 2010). Pas-e-Marg Zinda [People who are still alive after death] (in Urdu) (3rd ed.). Deoband: Idara Ilm o Adab. p. 365. Archived from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
^Mubarakpuri, Arif Jameel (2021). Mausoo'a Ulama-u- Deoband [The Encyclopedia of Deobandi Scholars] (in Arabic) (1st ed.). Deoband: Shaikhul Hind Academy. p. 347.