The Demise of Mawlānā Muḥammad Sulṭān Zawq Nadwī (1357/1939 – 1446/2025) of Bangladesh
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
A few days ago, I received an email from Dr Muhammad Shahin Chaudhury of Chittagong, Bangladesh requesting me to pen some memoirs for a book that is being compiled on the life of Mawlānā Muḥammad Sulṭān Zawq (Dhawq) Nadwī (d. 1446/2025). This follows Mawlānā’s demise on 2 May 2025 (3 Dhū al-Qaʿdah 1446) at the age of 86 after having spent his life in the service of Islam. There is no doubt that much will be written on Mawlānā’s life by those who were fortunate to have spent time with him, and a cursory search on the internet shows that much has already been written in this regard. In November 2022, I met him at his residence in Chittagong and this was my only meeting with him. We sat for 20-30 minutes. I included this in my travelogue of Thursday 17 November 2022 which is reproduced here:
“At 8.30pm, we arrive at the residence of the 84-year-old Shaykh Muḥammad Sulṭān Zawq (Dhawq) Nadwī, a disciple of Shaykh Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī Nadwī (d. 1420/1999), in the Bahaddarhat area of the city. He founded the Jamia Darul Jamia Darul Ma’arif Al-Islamia upon the instruction of Shaykh Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAli Nadwī who had written to him after his visit to Bangladesh to setup an institute on the model of Nadwatul Ulama, combining religious and worldly sciences so that the challenges of the 21st century can be addressed adequately. The institute was thus established in 1985 and currently serves 1,600 students. Many of the alumni of the seminary have acquired doctorates from various countries.
Shaykh Muḥammad Sulṭān is a widely respected scholar. He warmly welcomes us and lays out food for us. He begins by praising and thanking our dear Abdur Rashid Bhai Geloo for all his assistance including when he visited the UK and for his support of hundreds of Darul Ulooms throughout the country. He gifts me an Urdu book providing insight into his life. I promise to send him my books tomorrow once the suitcase arrives.
Thereafter, I request Shaykh for Ijāzah in Ḥadīth. Shaykh very kindly reads the Musalsal bi al-Awwaliyyah, the Musalsal bi al-Maḥabbah and also the Musalsal bi al-Muṣāfaḥah. Thereafter, he also grants a written Ijāzah. Shaykh has Ijāzah from many scholars including Shaykh al-Ḥadīth Mawlānā Muḥammad Zakariyyā (d. 1402/1982), Ḥāfiẓ al-Ḥadīth Mawlānā Muḥammad ʿAbdullāh Darkhwāstī (d. 1415/1994), Shaykh ʿAbd al-Fattāḥ Abū Guddah (d. 1417/1997) and Qārī Muḥammad Ṭayyib Ṣāḥib (d. 1403/1983). However, his shortest chain is via Shaykh ʿUbaydullāh Amritsarī who narrates from Ḥakīm al-Ummah Mawlānā Ashraf ʿAlī Thānawī (d. 1362/1943) who narrates from Mawlānā Faḍlurraḥmān Ganjmurādābādī (d. 1313/1895) who narrates from Shāh ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz (d. 1239/1824). I am grateful to Allah Almighty for this opportunity and thereafter to my friend in London, Mawlānā Maḥfūẓ Aḥmad Sylhetī, who suggested I should meet him.
Before departing, I ask Shaykh for some advice. He says, ‘Ḥājī Imdādullāh said: The closest route to reach Allah is to provide religious benefit to His creation.’ May Allah prolong Shaykh’s life and grant him ʿĀfiyah.
We take leave from Shaykh and visit the neighbouring Jamia Darul Jamia Darul Ma’arif Al-Islamia.”
Mawlānā Raḥimahullāḥ was known for his mastery of the Arabic language and literature and his contribution to it is evidenced from his publications and articles. He would write poetry in Arabic, Persian and Urdu. He also authored a book on the life of Qārī Muḥammad Ṭayyib Ṣāḥib and also a brief book on the life Shaykh Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī Nadwī. He visited Afghanistan during the 1990s and authored a travelogue in Arabic and Bengali. He served as the president of the Qawmi Madrasa-based education board, Anjuman-e-Ittehadul Madaris Bangladesh, and was also a member of the International Union of Muslim Scholars. He also served as the president of the International League of Islamic Literature.
We pray to Allah Almighty to accept his life-long service and grant him an abode in Jannat al-Firdaws. Āmīn.
Yusuf Shabbir
26 Rajab 1447 / 16 January 2026
