Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi (1564-1624)

Basic Biography

Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi is also referred to as “Mujajid Alif Sani”. He was born on 26th June 1564 in East Punjab during the era of Akbar. He died in 1624 during the era of Jehangir.

In his education journey, he studied Hadith, Tafseer and Philosophy. He was an Islamic Scholar and reformist. He started the first reform movement. The main purpose of this movement was to protect the identity of Muslims in the Sub-continent.

Also Read: Plato's Theory of Justice | Plato's Ideal State

Overview of the Situation of Society During His Time

People were engaged in unIslamic and fake practices. They were following Akbar’s made Deen-e-Elahi.
The overall political system was against Islam and Sunnah.
People believed in saints' miracles which led them towards misguided and fake practices.
The emperor also banned the practices of Islam and Sunnah.

Objectives of Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi

The first objective of Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi was to improve the political system of the Mughal Empire. As he said:

“Islam is a natural political system in every time and space. With that, the Muslims can strengthen their roots.”

The second objective of his movement was to protect the identity of Muslims.
The third main objective of his movement was to bring reforms in Sufism. He wanted to correct the false practices of Muslims and stop them from the unIslamic preachings.

Achievements of Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi

Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi has the following achievements:

Letters

He wrote over 80 letters to the Emperors of that time including Akbar and Jehangir. It was because he noticed that not only Muslims were engaged in false practices, but Hindus and Sikhs were putting checks and balances on the growth of Islam areas.

Furthermore, the Bhagti Movement mobilised Hindus towards towns and villages to check if people were influenced by Islam.

He also wrote letters to Molana Farid Khan and requested him to restore Islam in the Sub-continent.

The main objective of the letters was to make it clear that Muslims didn’t correct their practices. If they had a weak Islamic base then they could not develop a separate identity of their own.

Concept of Wahdat-ul-wajood

The concept of Wahdat-ul-wajood was very important. The Sufis of that time passed a concept called Wahdat-ul-wajood. The main points of Wahdat-ul-wajood are the following:

No difference between man and creator
Worship of creators means worship of God
The entire universe is the symbol of God

So people were lost after hearing such a philosophy and started wrong practices.

Wahdat-ul-shahood

In response to the concept of Wahdat-ul-wajood, Sheikh Ahmad Sirhindi established the Wahdat-ul-shahood concept. The main points are the following:

Man and God are different.
In this concept, he mentioned that man can never become a God.
Worship of humans is shirk
Follow the Quran and Sunnah

Efforts of Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi

He guided Muslims to practice Islam by giving teachings on praying, fasting and other Islamic practices.
He opposed Deen-e-Elahi
He wrote letters to Jehangir, where he targeted his administrative policies because they were unIslamic
He also proposed a political structure to the Emperor.
He criticized the word “Zille Ilahi” which Akbar used for himself. He tried to guide him by giving examples of Pious Caliphs. Suggested him to fear God.

Imprisonment of Shiekh Ahmed Sirhindi

Because of his letters, and his criticism he was kept away and imprisoned in the fort of Gwabor, but he remained confident.
When the governors of Jehangir in different provinces turned against Jehangir. Governors include, Mahbit Khan King of Khurasan and Toran attacked the fort and defeated Jehangir.
Mahibt Khan offered Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi to become the Emperor of the Sub-continent but ge refused.
After restoring Deen of Allah and Shariah, he died and was buried in Sirhind.

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