Grand AyatollahSyed Ali Naqi Naqvi Nasirabadi (December 26, 1905 – May 18, 1988) (26 Rajab 1323 AH – 1 Shawal 1408 AH), also known as Naqqan Sahib,[1] was a Twelver Shia Marja, poet, writer, jurist and Quranic interpreter. His notable Urdu works include Shaheed-e-Insaniyat and Tareekh-e-Islam. He also wrote a translation and commentary of the Quran, in addition to dozens of books in Arabic.
As a promenant scholar of Shia Islam, he authored more than 100 books and 1000 short works.[2]
Early life and education
Naqvi was born in 1905 in Lucknow, British India. When he was around 3 or 4, in 1327 Hijri, his father Syed Abul Hasan Naqvi (Mumtaz al-ulama) took him and their family to Iraq. His 'Bismillah' at the age of seven occurred in Rauza-e-Imam Ali in Najaf, Iraq. In Iraq, at 7, Ali Naqvi's formal education began with Arabic and Persian grammar and basic learning of the Qur’an.
In 1914, the family returned to India, and he continued his religious education under the supervision of his father. Later, he attended the Sultan al-Madaris seminary. He also studied Arabic literature with Mufti Muhammad ‘Ali. He passed the exam for certification as a religious scholar (alim) from Allahabad University in 1923 and soon he gained certifications from Nazamiyyah College and Sultan al-Madaris. Furthermore, he was awarded a degree in literature (Fazil-e adab) in 1925.
In 1927, Ali Naqvi departed for the seminaries of Iraq. During his stay there, he studied Islamic jurisprudence and Islamic theology (Kalam). Before his journey to Iraq, he had already written and published four books. While studying in Iraq Ali Naqvi, he wrote a few works in Arabic. Those books were Rooh Aladab Sharah Alamiyatal Arab, Albait Al Mamoor Fi Emaratal Qubur, Faryaad e Musalmanane Aalam, and Altawae Haj Per Sharaee Nuqtae Nazar Se Bahas.
His first book published in Arabic was in Najaf during his days as a student and was the first ever book to be written against Wahhabis, called "Kashf annaqab ann aqaaed Abdul Wahab Najdi". His second book in Arabic was in defence of the act of "Matam, by the name of "Aqalatalaashir fi eqamatalshaaer".
In 1932 Naqvi returned to India and in 1933 he was appointed a professor in the Oriental College Department of Lucknow University, where he taught Arabic and Persian for over two decades.
In 1959, Aligarh Muslim University invited him to take up the position of Reader in the theology (diniyat) department—which as yet did not have teaching faculty. The department also created two parallel streams of Sunni and Shi’i theology and Ali Naqvi began to oversee the affairs of the Shi’i branch.
From 1967 to 1969 Naqvi was the dean of Shi’i theology. He retired from the university in 1972.
From 1972 to 1975 Naqvi was given a research professorship through the University Grants Commission (UGC) and he stayed permanently in Aligarh.
Zindah-i javid ka matam Lucknow: Sarfaraz Qawmi Press, 1935.
Controversy
He was opposed by some members of the Shia community for sections in the book Shaheed-e-insaniyat which mentioned the presence of water in the tents of Husayn ibn Ali during the Battle of Karbala and also threw doubt the martyrdom of Ali Asghar by the arrow of Hurmula.
Shaheed-e-insaniyat was internally published by Idaar-e-Yaadgar-e-Husaini which had 300 members. Their purpose was to review, compile, edit and finally present a book on Karbala which could be acceptable to an international inter-sect readers group. The book was written in 1942 (1361 AH) by a team formed by all the Ulemas of all religion. Contributions from many of these men were then compiled in a book form by Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Naqi Naqvi.
Initially 500 copies were printed for review by the members of the mentioned organization, who were asked to review and comment on the text. This draft version was released to the public, leading to the controversy. Naqvi was blamed, as the public thought he was the sole author of the draft.
Family
He brought up his four brothers after the death of his father at a very early age. All of them were scholars of Shia Islam.
Maulana Syed Abdul Hasan Naqvi (1940-2001), Lucknow, India
Maulana Syed Murtaza Naqvi (1927-1994), Lucknow, India
Maulana Syed Kazim Naqvi (1934-2018), Chairman, Dean of the Faculty of Theology, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India
His son, Professor Syed Ali Mohammad Naqavi was the Dean of the Faculty of Theology at Aligarh Muslim University, a position previously held by his uncle. Naqavi currently heads the Dara Shikoh Interfaith Center of Aligarh Muslim University. He has published at least 34 books on various topics.[3]
