Wednesday, 26th Rabīʿ al-Ākhar
He (Syedna Mohammed BurhanuddinRA) rose amongst the Fatimi duʿāt mutlaqīn as a resplendent sun. His persona was immaculate and his soul sanctified. In the name of Allah, he set sail the ship of salvation as well as anchored it. With his radiance he revived souls and with his rivers (of knowledge) quenched hearts. The springs of kauthar surged and sprang forth from his tongue and his pen coming to rest in the sheets of radiant hearts and in the lines of illuminated pages. He was a leader amongst those leaders and guides who were worthy to lead the pious and the devout; those whose sincere love for their masters merits for them the essence of Allah’s words, ‘For those who have done good is the excellent (reward) and even more.’
His personage was the embodiment of the high heavens for his followers and purity in his love was the strongest shield from hellfire. He revived every obligatory deed and each sunna of Rasul Allah’ sharia and put an end to all oppression and discord. His master was the protector of all Mumineen, the imam of the pious and the sacred veil of Allah and this dāʿī of his, was his loftiest mantle. His master was the commander of the faithful, the representative of Allah on his earth, and this dāʿī of his, was his vicegerent who stood in his station. He was to his Maula, the imam of the pious, a tablet to its pen and he will be the intercessor for a Mumin on the Day of Judgement. He safeguarded the intricate secrets and sublime truths of the Commander of the Faithful and called towards Mohammed and his immaculate progeny with their command, permission, support and strength. He prayed for Mumineen and Muminaat all throughout his life and continues to do so after his departure to Allah’s honourable abode. He planned for and facilitated all that was good and revived diligently all that was beneficial. With utmost determination, resolve and thoroughness, he enlightened the pathway of guidance until the Day of Judgement. He elucidated the position of anā (lit. I) throughout his pure life, at the time of his seclusion, during which Mumineen were showered with a downpour of Allah’s mercy and following his ascension to the abode of Allah’s honour and happiness. And by doing so obliterated each and every envious adversary with the sword of his proof. He was the one who had raised and unfurled the banners of pure and sincere worship for 40 days upon the demise of his revered father, the solemn Dāʿī Syedna Taher Saifuddin. Due to which Allah uplifted the hearts of Mumineen with his radiance, opened their hearts for īmān and set their tongues free with wisdom, enabling them to remember their dāʿī each morning and evening. He drew near to his Maula, the imam of his age and came close to him and was as close as ‘the distance of two bow-lengths or even nearer,’ (53:9).
He was the solemn dāʿī, the one of eminent station, the one of perfect and complete glories, our sovereign, our beloved Maula and our support, our refuge and our shelter, Abu al-Qaidjohar Mohammed Burhanuddin. May Allah extend the life of the blessings of these 40 days and the existence of its truths till the day of qiyāmah.
Behold, indeed his absence is such a calamity that we cannot help but endlessly cry out in pain: Aah! Aah!-Aah! Without any fear of harm befalling us. Nay how can it be? Oh, How can it be! How unthinkable was this thought! Has the resplendent sun of the Fatimi Tayyibī duʿāt left us for the gardens of Heaven? Has the radiant sun of the noble singular duʿāt retreated to the abode of Allah: the One, the Eternal? Has the dāʿī of Imam Tayyib chosen seclusion on the day of Friday? Uniting himself with him. Is this really the departure of Mohammed, the trustworthy dāʿī of the imam? The one who shone brilliantly with his radiant light. Is this surely the setting of the guiding moon? The one who extolled the virtues of Mohammed, his progeny and his duʿāt in all his congregations and assemblies. What have the vicissitudes of time shown us? Whom have we lost? What is to be done? How have we been afflicted with that which has shattered our hearts and has left our eyes sore with tears. How cruel are the vagaries of time stripping us of our patience and making us drink what is more bitter than aloe.
Aah! Aah! Indeed he (Syedna Mohammad Burhanuddin) had performed the ziyārat of his father, Syedna Taher Saifuddin, on the eve of Milād al-Nabī with astounding glory; a downpour of divine light gushing from his sacred eyes. Mumineen gathered blessings by gazing at his luminous countenance, unaware that this was a glance of farewell. They did not know that their beloved Maula, who was to soon ascend towards the exalted heavens, was bestowing his final salaam upon them and entrusting them to Allah’s protection in the most befitting manner. He had worshipped Allah throughout his life, a worship of gratitude and especially on this final radiant Friday eve, reciting salawāt upon Mohammed, his progeny and his duʿāt and remembering the sovereign of martyrs Imam Husain with the best of remembrances. He had already foretold of his final journey towards the heavenly abode, during his visit to Karbala, where he beseeched the imam of his age, the descendent of Imam Husain and sought his munificence:
‘O My Maula! I always remember you,
I am forever grateful for your munificence,
always present at your behest,
thus, bid as you please, for it is for you to command.
I will continue to weep upon you, my Maula Husain!
My tafādī (sacrifice) for you is eternal, my Maula Husain!
My Maula! My Maula Husain!
I stand at your doorstep,
my life is pledged to your grief,
and with full conviction I know,
that I will drink handfuls of kauthar.
I will continue to weep upon you, my Maula Husain!
My tafādī (sacrifice) for you is eternal, my Maula Husain!
My Maula! My Maula Husain!
Strengthen my courage with your might,
with your aid, dispel my plight,
fulfill my desire with your grace,
and unite me with my beloved.
I will continue to weep upon you, my Maula Husain!
My tafādī (sacrifice) for you is eternal, my Maula Husain!
My Maula! My Maula Husain!
The sun did not dawn on Friday, the 16th of Rabiʿ al-Awwal, but the entire world was engulfed by relentless upheaval and turmoil, for the demise of the one who was a support in all affairs and upon whom all of us depended, drew near. Habits and routines were discarded and order became chaos as the morning sun set in the morning and the skies were split and laid asunder. Our revered and sanctified Maula closed his eyes, nay, but opened them in the sacred presence of his imam and showed Mumineen the dawn of the imam’s light in this night of seclusion through his radiant countenance.
Cries echoed throughout his lofty household and it was as if the day of qiyāmah had dawned. Voices rose in tears and in wail, to the extent that eyes became sore due to the flowing tears. When the faithful, be they near or far, heard about this heart-wrenching tragedy that left the innards in tatters, without the slightest of hesitation they rushed to Saifee Mahal and surrounded its gate. The tragic news had rendered them senseless, frightened and in pain, crying and wailing. Stricken by the fears of the Day of Resurrection, their peace shattered and hopes scattered. Unable to exercise any patience or restraint at all, for they were afflicted with a calamity that would bring upon them their end.
Thereafter, the ship descended from the sky of his noble chamber upon the earth and by the virtue of its radiant countenance, raised Mumineen towards the zenith of heaven, absolving them of their sins and wrongdoings. Devastated with grief, we performed his ghusl (ritual bath) on Saturday eve, fulfilling an obligatory act, in the very place where he had given ghusl to his revered father. Our sorrows doubled, yet, he eased our hardships with two pleasant circumstances. Despite this, our hearts were shattered and our tears were flowing. Then we laid the master of the throne upon his funeral bier. Oh! How did the judge of time give such a ruling! I have not forgotten and will never, the moment when we glanced at the radiant countenance of my beloved father for one last time. And at that time lament after lament rose from our hearts and tear after tear flowed from our eyes. With trembling hands, we took the funeral bier from Taheri Masjid on Saturday morning towards Mumineen who lifted it with tearful eyes. Indeed, we carried a majestic Mountain, how magnificent it was! Pain brought out of sheer love had gripped and taken away the breath of each Mumin and its severity had broken them. His bier was carried upon a crowd of shoulders, with shattered hearts and flowing eyes due to the catastrophe that had befallen them. Loud cries of lament and mourning rose from men and women, enough to melt away hearts, rather set them ablaze with the fire of grief. We then placed the funeral bier on the very spot where our beloved Maula used to board his vehicle. There government officials accorded it state honours. With cries and sobs of mourning all around, we carried the bier with heavy legs and heavier hearts reaching the gates of his residence, Saifee Mahal. Everyone cried out, ‘ Is our beloved Maula departing his qasr, never to return? Has he chosen Raudat Tahera as his abode?
The journey from Saifee Mahal to Ghurrat al-Masājid was one that history will never forget, nor will it forget the love of Mumineen for their Maula and their droves as they flocked towards him. Aah! Aah! How indeed we took him with our limbs trembling and unceasing grief. Until the bier reached Ghurrat al-Masājid, the grand masjid. We led zuhr and ʿasr in utmost grief and pain and then placed before the qibla the bier of Allah’s exalted dāʿī. We commenced the funeral prayers amongst the masses swaying like a surging ocean. In a tone of pain and grief, I first recited aloud verses from the Quran on the affliction of my benefactor: the forbearing, the resolute. In a voice that evoked my endless sorrow and anguish and prompted me to beat upon my heart with my hands. I prayed with them upon his sacred bier, surrounded by Mumineen and angels. I then brought my uncles, brothers and children close to me and embraced them in an embrace of solace and consolation. An embrace that left innards in tatters and eyes pouring with tears. Alas! We were rendered speechless, unable to exercise restraint and patience. How we cried profusely in those long embraces, on the loss of our beloved Maula. Mired in distress, we carried the radiant bier towards the white shrine of Raudat Tahera. As we crossed the bridge to the mausoleum, we witnessed an all-encompassing ocean of Mumineen, embarked upon the vessel of salvation, benefitting from its blessings and benedictions. However, we remained consumed in a darkness of grief, unaware if it was day or night. We lowered our beloved Maula in his grave, a garden of heaven, adjacent to the grave of his revered father, the solemn Dāʿī Syedna Taher Saifuddin. May Allah exalt their sacredness in the highest heavens.
Aah! Upon this tragedy, whose darkness has consumed the earth and the heavens. Indeed, By Allah we have not buried but a surging ocean or the resplendent sun, brilliant in its radiance. Then for a period of 40 days, we sat in congregations reciting the Quran in his honour. Mumineen in their thousands arrived from all over the world seeking the benediction of his blessed ziyārat and offering their condolences (to me). Surely, our beloved Maula was a spring of devotion and worship, thus Mumineen incessantly gifted him with offerings of their worship, during these days, between the two Milāds: the Milād of Imam al-Zamān, the Tayyib of this age and time and the Milād of his dāʿī, the one of lofty station. Following in the footsteps of Syedna Taher Saifuddin, we took the oath of allegiance on the day of Milād Imam al-Zamān in Mumbai and all other cities of īmān. And now this day has dawned upon us, we seek the permanence of its blessings and the perpetuation of its beneficence and good fortune.
O’ Mumineen do not ever forget this beloved dāʿī of yours. He was the one who taught you, cultured you, refined you and made you weep upon the sovereign of all martyrs, Imam Husain, whose grief is eternal. Always recite his sorrowful elegy and increase your yearning towards him by reciting these eloquent verses:
‘O son of our martyred imam,
most noble of all guardians and witnesses,
indeed our yearning has been long,
towards you; grace us with your mercy.
I will continue to weep upon you, my Maula Husain!
My tafādī (sacrifice) for you is eternal, my Maula Husain!
My Maula! My Maula Husain!
(Allah’s) salawāt upon Mohammed,
and his pure, solemn progeny,
similarly on Ahmed’s duʿāt mutlaqīn,
O My Creator, O My Sustainer.
I will continue to weep upon you, my Maula Husain!
My tafādī (sacrifice) for you is eternal, my Maula Husain!
My Maula! My Maula Husain!
May Allah increase his sanctity in heaven’s eternal chambers, and may He bless us with his intercessory grace and warmth.