Mufti[1]
Abdul Ghani Azhari
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| Personal | |
| Born | 1922 (1922)
Poonch, Jammu and Kashmir, British India
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| Died | 19 January 2023(2023-01-19) (aged 100–101)
Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
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| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | Sunni |
| Movement | Deobandi |
| Alma mater |
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| Organization | |
| Founder of | Dar al-‘Ulum Nizamiyya Madinatul Islam |
Abdul Ghani Azhari (1922 – 19 January 2023), also known as Abdul Ghani Shah al-Shashi,[2] was an Indian Muslim scholar and historian who served as the head-professor of the University of Kashmir's Arabic department. He was an alumnus of Darul Uloom Deoband, Mazahir Uloom and the Al-Azhar University. He authored Qadim Tarikh-e-Gujjar, a book detailing the history of Gujjars.
Abdul Ghani Azhari was born in 1922 in Poonch, Jammu and Kashmir.[3] He received his education at Darul Uloom Deoband, Mazahir Uloom and the Al-Azhar University. He wrote his doctoral thesis on Al-Muslim entitled, Al Imam Al Muslim Wa Manhajuhu Fi Al Hadith Riwayatn wa Dirayatan.[3] He studied with Hussain Ahmed Madani, Ibrahim Balyawi, Izaz Ali Amrohi, Muhammad Tayyib Qasmi, and Syed Fakhruddin Ahmad, and his teachers at Mazahir Uloom included Muhammad Zakariyya Kandhlawi.[4] At the Azhar, he studied with scholars including Abdel-Halim Mahmoud.[4]
Azhari was a Kashmiri Gujjar and celebrated his Gujjar identity.[5] He established Dar al-‘Ulum Nizamiyya Madinatul Islam in Badshahibagh (nearby Saharanpur), to cater to the needs of the Gurjar children.[6] He also established religious seminaries in Kashmir, including Maktabah Anwar al Uloom, in Kokernag, and Darul Uloom Kawthariya near Dachigam National Park.[7] In 2003, he established Darul Uloom Shah Wali Allah in Donipawa, Brakpora, in Anantnag.[4] At the invitation of Shaikh Abdullah, Azhari served as a professor of Arabic at Madinatul Uloom in Hazratbal, Srinagar prior to joining the University of Kashmir.[8]
Azhari was seen as a senior religious scholar in Kashmir. He served as the head-professor in the Arabic department of the University of Kashmir.[9] He showed particular interest in the Qadiri orderofSufism and published works on the Naqshbandiyyah.[5] He died on 19 January 2023 in Saharanpur.[10] Salahuddin Tak, the current head-professor of the Arabic department at the University, described Azhari as "an eminent teacher, a great academician and an epitome of knowledge with high proficiency in religious science".[11]
Azhari's works include:[12][13]
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