Maulana Muhammad Ishaq, a research scholar.
- Javed Ahmed Ghamidi
[Hassan Ilyas] A few days ago during a conversation
you mentioned Maulana Muhammad Ishaq Sahab
whose residence was in Faisalabad
and now he has passed away from this world
so many friends commented that they were surprised to find out that
you were aware of his personality and his thoughts,
it was usually only through Youtube that people got to know him
so please tell me in brief
if you listened to him then what were your impressions
about his personality and knowledge
what is your view of Maulana Muhammad Ishaq Sahab Faisalabadi?
[Javed Ahmed Ghamidi] You keep asking me very sensitive questions
and especially about different personalities
I would request you to exempt questions on people who are alive
that is, it is safer to talk about people who have passed away
otherwise this world is not so kind
the second thing is that
during that time when you asked questions about some other elders
so while talking about Dr. Israr Ahmed Sahib
I said that he was a very good teacher
you might remember!
and a few people expressed their views about that
and they said that why was it denied he had a status of a research scholar?
so firstly, I would like to say that
(and then I can answer your question briefly)
please understand this thing properly
that there are many levels of knowledge
there are many people in our society who are pioneers in some field of knowledge
those who discover new worlds in knowledge
I had once told during a conversation
that presenting Deen as a totality in the form of an interpretation,
is a very huge and extraordinary work
the status that Ghazali has acquired in this
or the status of Ibn Tyamiyyah and Ibn Qayyim
the status of Shah Waliullah
or for instance the status of Maulana Syed Abul A'la Al-Maududi
or of Imam Farahi
these people are not of ordinary status
nor are they born everyday
this is a completely a different nature of knowledge
it is similar to how we have Einstein and Newton or Galileo in science
recently a wheel-chair bound scientist passed away from this world
(Stephen Hawking)
so the people of such status
they should never be used for comparison
they are beyond compare
and they are Allah's signs whenever they are born
which does not mean that what they say is always right
rather they introduce a new direction in knowledge
even if they arrive at a wrong conclusion
they reach that conclusion in such an extraordinary manner
that it becomes the means to arrive at many right conclusions
and it happens in every field of knowledge
for instance, people study economics
in the same way people study social sciences
you will find such extraordinary people everywhere
therefore, you should completely set their matter aside
they are born once in a century and then they leave this world
and after this there are scholars with varying levels of knowledge
so in that we should keep this thing in mind
there are some people whose style is such that
they will read things very carefully and understand them
they will develop a coherent narrative in it and describe it an excellent manner
and in this way as a superior teacher
they become instructors of a subject
Dr Israr Sahab's status was also this
[Hassan] It is possible that the pioneer
might not be able to communicate in that manner
[Ghamidi] That is, it is possible that Einstein could not describe his opinion
in a manner in which it can be described by those people
so this is not an ordinary thing
in the same way
some people are research oriented
that is, whatever knowledge they gather
or what they come across
so they carry out research
their study will be very elaborate
they will look at every single thing
and only then do they form their opinion
which can be right as well as wrong
so their temperament is research oriented
there are further more levels in this research oriented nature as well
so the elder whom you mentioned
Maulana Ishaq Sahab
He was a research oriented scholar
there is no doubt about that
that is, it is true
that he is very well read
whenever I have listened to him
I have always felt that the expanse of his study is enviable
and not only this
but especially in issues of differences
these disgreements that take place
and the different opinions that arise there
in that
sometimes in an extraordinary way
he is in the position to comment on every thing
What is the Barelvi stance?
What was the Deobandi position?
What are the things that they have said?
What has been the opinion of that person?
What is the stance of the Sufis?
so a very important thing about him is
that he is a very well read person
His mind is research oriented
there is no doubt in that
this does not mean that it is necessary to make forgone conclusions
that his every research would be correct
his mind is research oriented
and in this regard I believe that he should be held in high esteem
every person should gain knowledge from him
and all of his services
that is, his contribution in rooting out bida'at (innovation)
he contributed in rectifying some issues
he cautioned people against their wrong beliefs
he enhanced people's knowledge on certain things
we should be greatly thankful for all of these things
his methods of research
the way he views the Quran
the way he views some narrative traditions
the way he views the knowledge of Muslims
you already know that I hold very different views on these subjects
and I hold such different views in almost all matters
but in my heart I have boundless respect for him
I honor him greatly
and even if I have to disagree with him on some occasion
then Inshallah, I would do so with respect and honor