His Holiness Hazrat Prof. Dr. Syed Manal Shah Alquadri
Hazrat Professor Dr. Syed Manal Shah Alquadri is the 35th direct lineal descendant of the Holy Prophet of Islam Rahmat ul Lil Aalamin Hazrat Ahmad e Mujtaba Mohammad Mustafa (Peace be upon him) and 22nd descendant of the greatest saint of Islam His Holiness Syedena Hazrat Ghausul Azam (R.A). He was born on 2nd January 1945. His father His Holiness Hazrat Syed Shah Ghulam Mustafa Alquadri (R.A) commonly known as “Qutb e Bangala” was a great saint and religious leader of his age. His mother Hazrat Syeda Jariatul Moula Alquadri allies Syeda Kaniz Moula Alquadri was also a saintly lady. He was inducted in the spiritual world (became a murid) at very early age of seven by a great saint of Quadria Order of Bengal “Ghause- Zamana” Hazrat Syedena Syed Shah Irshad Ali Alquadri (R.A).
Hazrat Dr. Alquadri was a brilliant student from his child hood. Hazrat Maulana Yaqub Qadri, a renowned Mufti of Kolkata taught him Hadith, Tafsir, Fiqah and most difficult texts of Arabic and Persian. He also learnt Persian from his mother who was a great scholar of the subject and Arabic from his father who was a versatile scholar of Arabic.
Hazrat Dr. Alquadri passed almost all his examinations with great distinctions. He passed the M.A. Examination in Persian in the year 1964, stood First Class First and obtained Gold Medal from Calcutta University. In 1966 he appeared at M.A. in Arabic, and also stood First Class First and obtained Gold Medal. He has been awarded Ph.D degree for his monumental work entitled “Diwan-i-Baqiya Naqiya-i-Hazrat Amir Khusrau (Ba Tashih Wa Muqaddme Wa Sharh –i-Hal)” from Calcutta University. It is a critical edition of the fourth Diwan of Hazrat Amir Khusrau, the greatest Persian poet of India and the most loving disciple of great saint Mahboob e Ilahi Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia (R.A) of Delhi. Hazrat Dr. Alquadri joined as a whole time Lecturer in the Department of Arabic and Persian in 1966 in the University of Calcutta. Subsequently he was elevated to the post of Reader, Professor, Chair of Sir Asutosh Professor of Islamic Culture, Head of the Department of Arabic and Persian and also Dean of the faculty of Arts in this university and retired from here after serving his Alma Mater for 44 long years.
Hazrat Dr. Alquadri is a good orator. He visited Tehran, Isfahan, Shiraz, Samarqand, Bukhara, Tirmiz and Mashhad and delivered lectures. He also went to Tajikistan, Jordan, Baghdad, Najaf, Karbala, Dhaka etc. Moreover he visited Saudi Arab twice for performing Haj in 1999 and 2006.. He has attended a large number of national and international Seminars, conferences and public meetings and delivered speeches on various topics related to Islam and Islamic Studies. He became the Chairman of West Bengal Minorities Commission in 1996 and remained till1999. In 2005 the then President of India His Excellence Mr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam conferred upon him the ‘Presidential Award of Honour’ for his erudite scholarship in Persian and granted life time monetary support. In 2008 the Government of India appointed him as Ambassador of India to Tashkent, Uzbekistan. After completing his tenor, when he returned back to Kolkata the Hon’ble Chief Minister of West Bengal Smt. Mamta Banerjee appointed him as the Vice Chairman of West Bengal Urdu Academy of which she is the Chair person.
Hazrat Dr. Syed Manal Shah Alquadri is a famous religious leader of West Bengal. The Khilafat (Spiritual Robe) of Quadria, Chishtia, Fakhria, Sulaimania, Nizamia, Suhrawardai, Firdausia and Naqshbandia has been conferred upon him by three different religious personalities. He received the Khilafat (Spiritual Robe) of Slisila e Quadria, Razzaqia from his father “Qutb e Bangala” His Holiness Hazrat Syed Shah Ghulam Mustafa Alquadri (R.A), the 21st direct descendant of His Holiness Syedena Hazrat Ghausul Azam (R.A), before a mammoth gathering on 19th February 1985 at Annual Urs Sharif at Khankah Sharif, Miabazar Midnapore. The renowned saint His Holiness Hazrat Syed Pir Zamin Nizami (R.A), Sajjadanashin (Head Priest) of Dargah His Holiness Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia (R.A) of Delhi, finding all the qualities of perfect Sufi in Hazrat Dr. Alquadri, bestowed upon him the Khilafat and Ijazat of Chishtia, Nizamia, Fakhria, Sulaimania orders. Makhdumzada His Holiness Hazrat Imam Ahmed Sharafi (R.A), the direct descendant of famous saint of Bihar Sharif His Holiness Hazrat Makhdum e Jahan Shaikh Sharafuddin Ahmed Yahya Maneri (R.A), during his last visit to Calcutta, bestowed upon the Khalifat of Suhrawardia ,Firdausia silsila, stating that “perhaps this is my last visit to Calcutta, as I have no male descendant to carry the job of spreading the silslia, I am bestowing upon you this Niamat-e-Uzma which I received from generation to generation.” This was really the last visit of Makhdumzada as he left this world for heavenly abode after this.
Hazrat Dr. Alquadri has a large number of disciples and devotees in different parts of India and abroad. At present he is the Sajjadanashin (Head Priest) of Daira Sharif e Quadria (Kolkata) Khankah Sharif e Quadria (Piardanga) and Khankah Sharif e Quadria o Chishtia, (Midnapore). These Khankahs are great centres of sufism and spiritualism in West Bengal, India.
Being himself a sufi Hazrat Dr. Alquadri has been preaching, throughout his life, the teachings of Sufism which is love of Almighty, His Prophets, His saints, His creatures, universal peace, moral values and humanitarian aspects of life. He got constructed a beautiful mosque named “Masjid Sharif e Ghausul Azam” at Keshpur, West Midnapore. A madrasah named “Madrasah e Ghausia” has also been constructed by him near by the mosque. Poor and down trodden children are given here Islamic as well as general education.
Hazrat Dr. Alquadri is an eminent Islamic scholar having great proficiency in Arabic, Persian and Islamic Studies. He has to his credit many research books which are as follows:
What is Islamic Terrorism?-This book earned him worldwide reputation. In this book he has proven through the tenets of Islam and life of the Holy Prophet (S.A) that Islam has no connection with terrorism and it is only an absurd propaganda of Western world and media. It has been translated into Persian in Iran, into Uzbek in Uzbekistan, and a portion of it into Bengali in Bangladesh.
Islam and Taslima Nasreen– He has written this book refuting the baseless statements of Taslima Nasreen which she has attributed to the Holy Quran and Hadith.
The Greatest Saint, Syedena Hazrat Ghausul Azam– It is a research book on the life and works of the greatest saint of Islam, Syeda Hazrat Ghausul Azam (R.A) based on the original sources of Arabic and Persian biographical and historical works.
Syedona Ala Huzur (a great saint of Bengal)- Syedona Ala Huzur was one of the greatest saints of Bengal. He was also a great scholar of Arabic and Persian and Urdu. The book deals with the life, works and contribution of Syedona Ala Huzur.
He has also guided some Bengali writers by giving his valuable suggestions in writing religious books such as Hedayat er Poth (the path of guidance) by five different scholars, Amar Pir o Murshed (My Spiritual Guide) by Abdul Kader Mondal, Bab-e-Shariat (The Door of Shariat) by Syed Md. Iqbal Shah Alquadri, Gulistan e Quadria by Syed Md Iqbal Shah Alquadri and Azkar e Hasnain by Syed Md Iqbal Shah Alquadri.
Hazrat Dr. Alquadri is also a good poet of Urdu and Persian. He composed many poems, but most of those are unpublished. He is a great admirer of sufi poets such as Hafiz, Saadi and Amir Khusrau.
Genealogical table
Syedena Maulana Hazrat Ahmed e Mujtaba Muhammad Mustafa (PBUH)
(The greatest Prophet of Islam)
- Hazrat Syeda Fatima tuz Zahra (R.A) Syedena Hazrat Ali bin Abi
(married to) Talib (A.S
____________________________|_________________________________
- Hazrat Syed Imam Hassan (A.S) 2.Hazrat Syed Imam Hussain (A.S)
|____________________________
- Hazrat Syed Imam Hassan Musanna (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Abdullah Mahaz (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Musa Joon (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Abdullah Sani (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Musa Sani (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Dawood (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Muhammad (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Yahya Zahid (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Abdullah Jili (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Abu Saleh Musa Jangi Dost (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Abu Muhammad Mohiuddin Shaikh Abdul Qadir Jilani (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Abu Bakr Abdur Razzak Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Shamsuddin Abu Saleh Nasrul Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Ahmed Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Shahabuddin Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Badruddin Alquadri(R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Alauddin Alquadri(R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Qasimuddin Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Ahmed As- Sani Alquadri(R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Sharafuddin Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Ibrahim Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Abdul Jalil Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Ahmed As-Sales Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Hidayatullah Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Umar Mashuqullah Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Abdul Qadir Abdullah Al-Jili Alquadri (R.A)
________ _________________________|_____________________________
- Hazrat Syed Shah Zakir Hazrat Syed Shah Roushan Ali
Ali Alquadri (R.A) (own brother) Alquadri (R.A)
_______________________________|______________________________
Son of
29 Hazrat Syed Roushan Ali Alquadri (R.A)
is
30 Hazrat Syed Shah Tufail Ali Alquadri (R.A)
31 Hazrat Syed Shah Mehr Ali Alquadri (R.A)
__________________________________|_______________________________
32. Hazrat Syed Shah Murshed Ali 32. Hazrat Syed Shah Wali Alquadri (R.A) Murshed Alquadri (R.A)
- Hazrat Syed Shah Irshad 33. Hazrat Syed Shah Mohiuddin
Ali Alquadri (R.A) Haroon Rashid Alquadri (R.A)
|____________________________________________________________________|
34.Hazrat Syeda Jariatul Moula Alquadri (R.A) (Married to) 34.Hazrat Syed Shah Gholam Mustafa Alquadri(R.A)
Their son
35. Hazrat Syed Manal Shah Alquadri
.