Shaykh Nāsir Uddīn Albānī, a great scholar of Hadīth of
present times died a couple of months ago. The following email which describes
his life and works was received on 5-10-99. (Editor)
Assalāmu Alaykum
The eyes are shedding tears and the heart is grieved, And
we will not say except what pleases our Lord, Indeed we are grieved by your
separation’. (Sahīh Bukhārī)
It is with deep sorrow that we inform of the passing away
of a great soul, Shaykh Albānī. May Allah bestow his mercy and forgiveness to
him. He died on the 2nd October after ‘Asr time,. He left behind a legacy of
decades of cleansing the Hadīth from falsehoods.
Words cannot express the sadness that the heart is filled
with. As if the world is a strange planet where we no longer belong. He was one
whose knowledge, sincerity and honesty gave us some comfort in this place;
someone whom we could depend on for the knowledge of our religion; verily, he
has departed from the company of the men of this earth to the company of the men
of the Hereafter.
He was one of the few scholars who could truly be called a
Muhaddith. Allah had gifted him with a comprehensive understanding of Islam. He
strove hard to revive the Sunnah. His life from his youth to his old age was
dedicated to the Da‘wah of this religion in order that the Muslims may practice
their religion like the Companions of the Prophet (sws) and avoid deviations. He
wrote numerous books to this end which are well known among the students of
Islam. May Allah reward him for all his efforts and give him the company of the
prophets, the truthful, the martyrs and the pious.
The Shaykh was born in the city of Ashkodera, then the
capital of Albania in the year 1914 AD to a poor family. His father Nūh Najjātī
Albānī had completed Sharī‘ah studies in Istanbul and returned a scholar to
Albania. After Albania was taken over by atheism the family migrated to
Damascus. In Damascus, Albānī completed his initial education and was then
taught the Qur’ān, Tajwīd, sciences of the Arabic language, Fiqh of the
Hanafites and other disciplines by various Shaykhs and friends of his father.
He also learnt from his father the art of clock and watch
repair -- and became highly skilled in it. He later became famous for it and
earned his living through it. He began to specialize in the field of Hadīth and
its related sciences by the age of 20 -- being influenced by articles in Al-Manār
magazine. He began to work in this by field by transcribing Irāqī’s monumental
Al-Mughnī and adding notes to it. He delved further into the field of Hadīth and
its various sciences despite discouragement from his father. Furthermore, the
books he needed were not to be found in his father’s library which was composed
mainly of various works of the Hanafite Fiqh -- and since he could not afford
many of the books he required, he would borrow them from the famous library of
Damascus ‘Al-Maktabah al-Zāhiriyyah’ and sometimes even from book sellers.
He became engrossed with the science of Hadīth to the
extent that he would sometimes close up his shop and remain in the library for
up to twelve hours -- breaking off his work only for prayer - he would not even
leave to eat, but would take two light snacks with him. Eventually the library
authorities granted him a special room to himself for his study and his own key
for access to the library before normal opening time. Often he would remain at
work from early morning until after ‘Ishā. During this time he produced many
useful works -- many of which are still yet to be printed.
The Shaykh’s study of Hadīth of Allah’s Messenger (sws) had
a great effect on him and resulted in his turning away from the blind following
of his former school of thought and instead to accept and act upon the Book and
the Sunnah -- with the understanding of the pious predecessors. As a result, he
was sometimes at variance with some of the local Shaykhs who blindly followed
the Hanafites, and likewise with the local Sufi imams and innovators who began
to oppose him and incite the common people against him by calling him a,
‘Wahhābī deviant’. He was however, encouraged by some of the noble Shaykhs of
Damascus who urged him to continue. The Shaykh therefore faced much opposition
in his efforts to promote Tawhīd and the Sunnah but he bore this with patience
and perseverance.
After sometime, he started giving two weekly classes
attended by enthusiastic students and university teachers - in which he taught
various books of ‘Aqīdah, Fiqh, Usūl and Hadīth sciences. He also began to
organize monthly journeys for Da‘wah to the various cities of Syria and then
Jordan. After a number of his works appeared in print, the Shaykh was chosen to
teach Hadīth in the new University in Madīnah, Saudi Arabia, for three years
from 1381 to 1383 AH -- where he was also a member of the University board.
After this, he returned to his former studies and work in ‘Maktabatah Al-Zāhiriyyah’
leaving his shop in the hands of one of his brothers.
He visited various countries for Da‘wah and lectures -
amongst them Qatar, Egypt, Kuwait, the Emirates, Spain and England. He was
forced to emigrate a number of times moving from Syria to Jordan, then Syria
again, then Beirut, then the Emirates, then again to Ammaan, Jordan where he
resided upon his death.
His works - mainly in the field of Hadīth and its sciences
number over 100. His students are many and include many Shaykhs of the present
day.
Regards
Fawaz
fawaz@nettaxi.com
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