Shah Waliullah (1703 to 1762)

This handout covers the life, beliefs and work of Shah Waliullah, the first of the three religious reformers studied in the syllabus, and assesses his importance in the revival of Islam in the subcontinent. It belongs to Section 1: the cultural and historical background to the Pakistan Movement.

Key dates

Date	Event
1703	Born in Delhi, in the last years of Aurangzeb's reign
1707	Death of Aurangzeb; the decline of the Mughal Empire speeds up
About 1718	His father, Shah Abdur Rahim, dies; Shah Waliullah begins teaching at the Madrassa Rahimiya
1724	Travels to Arabia for Hajj and further study
1732	Returns to Delhi and begins his main work of teaching and writing
1739	Nadir Shah sacks Delhi
1761	Ahmad Shah Abdali defeats the Marathas at the Third Battle of Panipat
1762	Shah Waliullah dies in Delhi

Background and early life

Shah Waliullah was born in Delhi in 1703. His real name was Qutb-ud-Din Ahmad; he became known as Shah Waliullah because of his piety. His father, Shah Abdur Rahim, was a respected scholar who had founded the Madrassa Rahimiya in Delhi. Shah Waliullah was educated there and, after his father's death, began to teach at the madrassa while still a young man.

In 1724 he went to Arabia to perform Hajj and stayed to study under well-known scholars in Makkah and Madina, including Sheikh Abu Tahir bin Ibrahim. He returned to Delhi in 1732, convinced that he must work to reform the Muslim community of India.

He lived at a time of rapid decline. Aurangzeb died when he was four years old. During his lifetime the Mughal emperors lost real power, Nadir Shah looted Delhi, and the Marathas and Sikhs grew strong. Muslims who had ruled India for centuries now felt threatened and unsure of their future.

His beliefs: what had gone wrong?

Shah Waliullah believed that the political decline of the Muslims was the result of their religious and moral decline. His main ideas were as follows.

1. Muslims did not understand the Quran. The Quran is in Arabic, which very few Indian Muslims could read with understanding. Most people depended on others to tell them what Islam taught. Without direct knowledge of the Quran, they could not follow its teachings properly.
2. Un-Islamic practices had crept in. After centuries of living alongside other religions, many Muslims had taken up customs and beliefs that were not part of Islam. He wanted a return to the pure teachings of the Quran and Sunnah.
3. Muslims were divided. Sunnis and Shias, and different groups of scholars, quarrelled with one another. He believed these divisions weakened the community and that Muslims should concentrate on the basic principles they shared.
4. Islam must guide the whole of life. He taught that Islam was not only about worship. Its principles should also shape economic, social and political life. He criticised rulers and nobles for their luxury, and called for justice, fair wages and honesty in trade.
5. Muslims needed protection. He believed that reform would not be possible if Muslims were crushed by non-Muslim powers, so Muslim political power had to be defended.

His work

Translation of the Quran into Persian

His best known work was the translation of the Quran from Arabic into Persian. Persian was the language of the court and of educated Muslims in India, so many more people could now read and understand the Quran for themselves. Some ulema criticised the translation at the time, but it was soon accepted. Later, two of his sons, Shah Abdul Qadir and Shah Rafi-ud-Din, translated the Quran into Urdu, which took its message to ordinary people.

Books

Shah Waliullah wrote 51 books in Persian and Arabic. The most famous are:

• Hujjatullah-al-Baligha: his major work, which explains the reasoning and wisdom behind the teachings of Islam and shows how they apply to society, government and economic life.
• Izalat-al-Khifa: an account of the first four caliphs, written in a way that he hoped would be acceptable to both Sunnis and Shias and so reduce the tension between them.

He also wrote on Hadith, on Islamic law and on the principles of understanding the Quran. In matters of law he tried to find a balanced position between the different schools of thought so that scholars could work together.

Teaching at the Madrassa Rahimiya

For about thirty years after his return he taught at the Madrassa Rahimiya. He trained a generation of scholars who carried his ideas to other parts of India. After his death his sons, led by Shah Abdul Aziz, continued the work of the madrassa.

The letter to Ahmad Shah Abdali

Shah Waliullah saw the Marathas as the greatest danger to Muslim power in northern India. He first wrote to Muslim nobles, urging them to unite and defend the empire, but they were too weak or too divided to act alone. He then wrote to Ahmad Shah Abdali, the ruler of Afghanistan, asking him to come to the aid of the Muslims of India.

Abdali joined forces with local Muslim leaders and defeated the Marathas at the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761. The victory ended the Maratha attempt to dominate northern India. However, Abdali went back to Afghanistan and the Mughal rulers did not use the opportunity to rebuild their strength.

Results of his work

• The Quran became understandable to educated Muslims, and later, through the Urdu translations, to a much wider public.
• A group of scholars trained in his ideas continued the reform of Muslim religious life.
• His writings gave Muslims a clear explanation of their decline and a programme for recovery based on the Quran and Sunnah.
• The Maratha threat was checked in 1761.
• His ideas inspired later movements. Syed Ahmad Shaheed Barelvi studied at the Madrassa Rahimiya under Shah Abdul Aziz before starting the Jihad Movement.

How important was Shah Waliullah?

Reasons for seeing his work as very important.

• He was the first Muslim thinker in India to analyse the reasons for Muslim decline and to say that the answer lay in a return to true Islam.
• The Persian translation removed a barrier between Muslims and the Quran. It opened the way for the Urdu translations.
• He worked for unity between Sunnis and Shias and between scholars of different schools, at a time when division was a serious weakness.
• His 51 books and the Madrassa Rahimiya meant that his influence lasted long after his death. Because of this, he is often seen as the starting point of the Muslim revival that eventually led to the Pakistan Movement.

Limits to his success.

• His writings were in Persian and Arabic, so in his own lifetime they reached scholars and the educated, not the mass of ordinary Muslims.
• He did not stop the decline of the Mughal Empire. The rulers and nobles did not act on his advice.
• Panipat checked the Marathas, but it did not restore Muslim power. The British had already won control of Bengal at Plassey in 1757, and the Sikhs were growing stronger in the Punjab.
• He did not create a mass movement. That was left to those who came after him.

Judgement. In the short term Shah Waliullah's success was limited, because he could not reverse the political decline of the Muslims. In the long term his work was of great importance. He gave Muslims access to the Quran, an explanation of their problems and a body of trained scholars, and the later reformers built on these foundations. His religious work was more lasting than his political efforts.

Key terms and people

• Madrassa Rahimiya: the religious school in Delhi founded by his father, where he studied and taught.
• Shah Abdur Rahim: his father, a scholar and founder of the madrassa.
• Hujjatullah-al-Baligha: his most important book, on the wisdom behind Islamic teachings.
• Izalat-al-Khifa: his book on the early caliphs, aimed at reducing Sunni and Shia differences.
• Shah Abdul Aziz: his eldest son, who led the madrassa after him.
• Shah Abdul Qadir and Shah Rafi-ud-Din: his sons who translated the Quran into Urdu.
• Ahmad Shah Abdali: Afghan ruler who defeated the Marathas at Panipat in 1761.
• Sunnah: the practice and example of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him).

Exam practice

1. Describe the achievements of Shah Waliullah in the field of religion. [4]
2. Why did Shah Waliullah think it was necessary to revive Islam in the subcontinent? [7]
3. "The translation of the Quran into Persian was the most important contribution of Shah Waliullah to the revival of Islam." How far do you agree? Explain your answer. [14]

Outline answers

Question 1 (4 marks): He translated the Quran into Persian. He wrote 51 books, including Hujjatullah-al-Baligha and Izalat-al-Khifa. He taught at the Madrassa Rahimiya in Delhi and trained many scholars. He worked to reduce differences between Sunnis and Shias.

Question 2 (7 marks): Three explained reasons. (1) The Mughal Empire was declining and Muslims were threatened by the Marathas and others; he believed this was caused by a weakening of faith. (2) Most Muslims could not understand the Quran in Arabic, so they did not know the real teachings of Islam and had adopted un-Islamic practices. (3) Muslims were divided into sects and groups, which made them weak; he wanted them to unite around the basic principles of Islam.

Question 3 (14 marks): Agree: the translation let educated Muslims understand the Quran directly; it led to the Urdu translations by his sons; understanding the Quran was the basis of all his other reforms. Other contributions: his books, which explained Islam as a guide to all areas of life; his efforts for Sunni and Shia unity; his teaching at the Madrassa Rahimiya, which produced later leaders; his letter to Abdali, which led to the defeat of the Marathas in 1761. Judgement: the translation was probably his most lasting single contribution, but it worked together with his writing and teaching; the invitation to Abdali had the least lasting effect.