Socio Religious Reform Movement in India: Ahmadiyya & Wahabi/Waliullah Impact

An Overview of Socio Religious Reform Movement

The Ahmadiyya Movement is a socio religious reform movement community that emerged in the late 19th century in India, founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. It represents a distinctive interpretation of Islam and promotes peaceful propagation of the faith.

The Wahabi or Waliullah Movement, on the other hand, traces its origins to the 18th century in India and is associated with Shah Waliullah Dehlawi. This socio religious reform movement advocates a strict and puritanical form of Sunni Islam, emphasizing the Quran and Hadith while opposing practices it views as innovations.

Both socio religious reform movements have had significant impacts on the religious landscape of South Asia and beyond, reflecting diverse interpretations and approaches to Islam.

Ahmadiyya Movement: Liberal Islam and Universal Values

The Ahmadiyya is a socio religious reform movement with origins in India, founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in 1889.
The socio religious reform movement was characterized by its devotion to liberal principles.
It positioned itself as a supporter of a Muslim Renaissance, embracing the principles of a universal religion for all of humanity and rejecting Jihad (holy war against non-Muslims).
The Ahmadiyya movement played a role in distributing Western-style liberal education among Indian Muslims.
The Ahmadiyya community is unique among socio religious reform movements in its belief that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was the Messiah who came to end religious conflicts, promote morality, peace, and justice.
The Ahmadiyya supported the separation of mosque and state, as well as human rights and tolerance.
Mysticism was a notable aspect of the socio religious reform movement, and this influenced their beliefs and practices.

Wahabi/Waliullah Movement: Reviving Authentic Islam in Response to Modernization

This socio religious reform movement, inspired by the teachings of Abdul Wahab of Arabia and the preachings of Shah Walliullah (1702-1763), was a reaction to Western influences and the decline that had affected Indian Muslims.
- It urged a return to the genuine essence of Islam.
- It sought to eliminate un-Islamic practices that were interfering with Muslim culture and aimed to restore the authentic form of socio religious reform movement that was present during the time of the Prophet in Arabia.

Objective – Restoring Islamic Simplicity Amidst Modernization

- The Wahabi socio religious reform movement was a response to the impact of modernization on Islam, with the goal of restoring the simplicity of the Islamic faith.
- This socio religious reform movement centered on the Quran and Hadis, Islamic teachings.
- Syed Ahmed initiated the socio religious reform movement with two core principles:
  - To restore the historical unity among the four schools of Muslim jurisprudence that had divided Indian Muslims.
  - Encouraging individuals to have a deep understanding of their religion, emphasizing personal comprehension of Islam rather than mindlessly following it.

Shah Walliullah – Uniting Muslims and Embracing Individual Conscience

He was the initial Indian Muslim leader in the 18th century to unite Muslims under the dual principles of the Wahhabi Movement:
- The importance of fostering unity among the four schools of Muslim jurisprudence, which had caused divisions among Indian Muslims.
- His goal was to incorporate the most favorable aspects of these four schools.
Acknowledgment of the significance of individual conscience in religion when confronted with conflicting interpretations derived from the Quran and Hadis.
The teachings of Waliullah gained increased popularity through the efforts of Shah Abdul Aziz and Syed Ahmed Barelvi, who also gave them a political dimension.

The British initially viewed Muslims as the primary instigators of the 1857 revolt.

However, they later realized that Muslims could be useful in countering nationalist socio religious reform movements by granting them concessions.

Intellectual Muslims, including Syed Ahmed Khan, welcomed this patronage to enhance Muslim progress through better education and employment opportunities.
Born into a respected Muslim family, he served as a loyal member of the British government’s judicial service.
Following his retirement in 1876, he joined the Imperial Legislative Council in 1878 and was knighted in 1888.
On Religion: Quranic Adaptability in Modern Science

- Syed Ahmed Khan aimed to reconcile Western scientific education with the Quran’s teachings, interpreting them in the context of contemporary rationalism and science.
- He maintained the Quran’s ultimate authority while advocating adaptability with the changing times, asserting that religious tenets were not immutable.
- He supported a critical approach, freedom of thought, and discouraged complete reliance on tradition or custom.
On Education: Education Reformer for Muslim Progress

- Syed Ahmed Khan was a devoted educationist.
- During his official tenure, he established schools in towns, facilitated book translations into Urdu, and founded the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College on the pattern of Oxford and Cambridge universities (later Aligarh Muslim University) in 1875.
- He argued that Muslims should prioritize education and employment to catch up with their Hindu counterparts, who had a head start.

On the Condition of Women: Championing Women’s Rights and Reforms

- Syed Ahmed Khan worked to improve the status of women through enhanced education, opposition to purdah and polygamy, advocacy for easier divorce, and condemnation of the piri and muridi systems.

On Hindu-Muslim Unity: Harmony in Diversity

- He believed in the fundamental unity of religions and preached the common interests of Hindus and Muslims.

On Politics: Muslim Leader on Political Restraint
- While actively participating in politics at that time could provoke government hostility toward Muslim masses, he opposed political involvement by Muslims.
Literary Work: Syed’s Magazine Legacy

- Syed’s progressive social ideas were disseminated through his magazine “Tahdhib-ul-Akhlaq” (Improvement of Manners and Morals).

The Movement: Bridging Islam with Modernity

- The Aligarh Movement represented a liberal, modern trend among Muslim intelligentsia centered around the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College in Aligarh.

Its objectives included: Modernizing Islam, Cultivating Identity

- Spreading modern education among Indian Muslims without compromising their commitment to Islam.
- Advocating social reforms related to issues such as purdah, polygamy, widow remarriage, women’s education, slavery, and divorce among Muslims.
- Followers of the movement embraced a liberal interpretation of the Quran and sought to harmonize Islam with modern liberal culture.
- They aimed to establish a distinct socio-cultural identity for Muslims along modern lines, and Aligarh became a hub for the religious and cultural revival of the Muslim community.

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