A Pioneer of UK Mosques & Pious Scholar
“With a very heavy heart, we announce the passing away of our Murshid, Pir Syed Maroof Hussain Arif Qadri Naushahi. May Allah grant him the loftiest paradise.” A message from a mourning follower of Pir Sahib from Southfield Square Masjid opens the condolences section of the Masjid’s Facebook page. Fondly known as Pir Sahib by his disciples and admirers. The senior reporter of the Telegraph and Argus Rowan Newman wrote “Tributes have been flooding in for a man whose influence and guidance touched countless lives in Bradford”. The pioneer of the Masajid movement that he started in Bradford but quickly spread throughout the UK and Europe. Naz Shah MP (Bradford West) said he was an ‘instrumental leader’ whose efforts for the local community are ‘unmatched’. Zulfiqar Karim the former High Sheriff of West Yorkshire said “we are expecting more than 15,000 people at his funeral at the iconic Westgate Central Mosque, in the city centre area of Bradford on Friday at 7:15 pm”.
Background
Pir Sahib came to Bradford in 1961 as an economic migrant, he sought work in a mill in Oxenhope near Keighley. He worked night shifts and before going to work he would teach young men who wanted to learn the Quran and practice Islam. He dedicated his time and efforts to give to the thirsty. Afterwards, he worked in Smith Blumer’s mill in Queensbury. He lived at 18 Southfield Square and stayed in that terraced house all his life, a sign of his frugal and simple lifestyle.
Chaudry Khadim Hussain one of his early followers said, “To make his Islamic work formal he held a meeting in 1963 to establish an organisation, called Anjuman Tabligh-ul Islam, which was later renamed Jamiyat Tabligh-ul Islam (JTI). It was this organisation that was instrumental in establishing dozens of Mosques. One of his friends Babu Mistry Khadim asked Pir Sahib to open a Masjid in the Lumb Lane area of Bradford. So, in 1965 he bought a house at 68 Southfield Square and converted it to a Masjid”. Haji Liaquat a lifelong Lieutenant of Pir Sahib said “Then in 1970 he opened another Masjid on Browning Street. This mosque building project moved with a gust to become a movement of mosque building. So, people from other cities sought his support. He was generous with his time and resources and readily helped them to buy property to build a mosque. Mosques were established in Oldham, Sheffield, Preston, Nottingham, Derby and Halifax. Jamiyat Tabligh-ul-Islam manages 18 mosques and supplementary schools in Bradford alone.”
Pir Sahib’s work in Pakistan
Pir Sahib was born in Gujarat (Pakistan) in 1936 to a wonderful spiritual family of Nausha Gange Baksh. So, as early as 1968 he established a seminary and Masjid in Daulat Nagar in Gujarat. Soon after this in 1971 another religious school and Masjid in Chaksawari, Mirpur, which now extends over several acres. Pir Sahib was an Urdu poet and his poetry is published in two anthologies: Divan-e-Naushahi and Sauz-e-Naushahi.
His Pioneering work in the UK
- Pir Sahib was now an established and confident national Muslim leader in the UK and wanted to unite the Ahlu-Sunnah Wal Jamaat under one banner. So, he established the World Islamic Mission in 1972. In this endeavour, he was fully supported by Allama Arshad-ul Qadri, Shah Ahmed Noorani, Allama Abdul Sattar Khan Niazi, and Allama Arifullah Qadri. Bulwarks of Indo-Pak Sunni Muslims. The inaugural conference was held in St George’s Hall (Bradford) and witnessed by thousands of his supporters. As the convener of the World Islamic Mission, he selected Shah Ahmed Noorani as the President. Soon after he bought the building for the WIM’s college on Shear Bridge Road (Bradford). I have fond memories of spending time there as a student.
- He invited and helped settle numerous Imams and scholars from India and Pakistan. In the seventies there were hardly a handful of Imams and scholars, Pir Sahib the visionary realised his dream of educating the Muslims could not be fulfilled without scholars. Consequently, he sponsored, guided and helped many scholars and Imams to make the UK their home.
- His vision and dedication laid the foundations for a stronger, more connected Muslim community, fostering spiritual growth and unity.
- He was a man of books, his house is a library. He believed in the power of Islamic education. He knew its transformative effect; it nurtures goodness in the seeker. So, he was committed to it. He took every opportunity to make it available. So, in every masjid, he established a Quran school and a Madrassa, where thousands of children come to learn their Deen.
- He was concerned about the Muslims and the wider society. So, he had to engage with the statutory bodies to solve the issues of Halal food in schools, swimming costumes and Hijab. So in consultation with other Muslim leaders, he became the founding member of the Bradford Council for Mosques, in 1981. An organisation that has since flourished and spawned many imaginative civil society projects. The spokesperson for the Council for Mosques said: “It is with profound sorrow and deep regret that we announce the passing of Pir Syed Maroof Hussain Shah Arif Qadri Naushahi… he left behind a legacy that will be cherished and remembered by many.”
A Spiritual Guide and Teacher of Moral and Spiritual Values
When you see someone wearing a tall orange topi or a cap, assume he is a follower of Pir Maroof Sahib. Many saintly and pious souls were guided by him, Haji Liaquat his beloved disciple and Khalifa said, “Pir Sahib taught his mureeds to follow the Shariah and practice the Sunnah of our Master Muhammad (peace be upon him) nothing more or less”. So, they became devoted and good Muslims. Pir Sahib leaves behind two sons, Sahibzada Syed Ahsan Shah and Syed Hassan Shah. Today, not just his two sons and a pious widow mourn but thousands with them. I too mourn his demise, we will miss this pious, Sufi, saint, scholar and mentor. May Allah rest his soul in the peaceful gardens of Firdous. Ameen!
