Qazi Kalim Allah

Qazi Kalim Allah was an eminent legal scholar of Qur’an, Hadith, and the Hanafi school of Islamic law . As a master of all the branches of contemporary knowledge of Islam, he was an acknowledged authority on Muslim jurisprudence. Belonging to a pious family which had, since the 16th century, been prominent among the landed aristocracy of the Soon Valley,

He was born of famous qadi’s family of Naushera, Soon Valley. He belonged to Awan (Pakistan) tribe of ancient repute. His full name was Qazi Kalim Allah al Hashmi,al Alwi, al Hanafi. He was a descendant of Hazrat Ali Ibn Abi Talib, the fourth caliph of Islam from Al-Abbas ibn Ali.

In his ancestry we find great names. In the sixteenth century, his great ancestor was Muhammad Akbar Khan, a descendant of Ali ibn Abi Talib, and the head of this tribe. His name also is associated in the local legend with Aku Khan. In “History of Awan,” his descendants are listed separately. His elder son Muhammad Sarwar had two sons, Muhammad Bilal Ali Khan (in some record Bilawal Khan) the fore father of Qazi of Naushera, and Muhammad Media Khan, whose descendants are Great Maliks of Kund.

In the seventeenth century, the Tiwanas defeated a weak branch of Awans at Hadali, a Village 5 miles north from Mitha Tiwanas and south of Soon Valley. After this victory the Tiwanas Rajputs advanced northward towards Soon Valley, but Muhammad Sarwar Khan collected his levies, defeated Tiwanas army at south of the Soon valley hills having taken the city of Kund. After this defeat the road was block for Tiwanas to march north ward in the future. Muhammad Sarwar’s younger son Muhammad Media Khan descendants permanently settled at this more prosperous plain and open plateau south of the Soon Valley.

In the early seventeenth century appears Muhammad Himayat Ali, the elder son of Muhammad Bilal Ali, the head of the tribe of the Salt Range and a descendant of Ali ibn Talib, through the line of Al-Abbas ibn Ali in 29 number of the line, His name also is associated in the local legend with Aali Himat (in some record Himat Khan). He maintained his dominian in these mountainous region. In his time he was settled at Karora near present day city of Naushera.

Himayat Ali’s elder son Hashim Derya had two sons, Muhammad Saeed, the fore father of Qazi Kalim Allah, and Muhammad Shahbaz.

Khair Muhammad, the elder son of Muhammad Saeed, maintained his dominion under Abbas Khan, a Khattak, who held Pind Dadan Khan and the Salt Range for Ahmad Shah Abdali, while surrounding country towards south was managed by Malik Sarkharou Khan, likewise Sodhi, Khabeki, Kufri, Ochala were also included among the dominions of their respective Malik Awans chieftains.

The eldest of Khair Muhammad’s sons was Muhammad Khushal. He again had a son Muhammad Arif. From the death of Khair Muhammad, Naushera domestic history is a record of anarchy, warfare with other tribes and, division of land among the descendants of Muhammad Himayat Ali.

It so happened that while other descendants of Muhammad Himayat Ali.established themselves as Zamindar and engaged in warfare, the descendants of Muhammad Khushal became religious and sufis. They had forgotten the tough life of Zamindars and warfare of their ancestors, and learned the refinements of Sufism and fiqh, thus became “intermediaries between the Faithful and their God,”Muhammad Khushal had a son Muhammad Arif (died 1748). He was a pious and religious man. He had two sons Mian Muhammad (died 1788) and Fateh Muhammad. He gave his two sons excellent education of Quran, Hadith, and Fiqh, and appointed best teachers of the subject for his sons. The results of this excellent education produced two grand sons from both sons, and two religious leaders, the one strictly orthodox in the straight Hanafi Sunni way, and the other Sufi and Majzoob.

The first was Alim, and against the Sufism, miracles and all the practices resulting in undue homage to the tombs and graves of sufis and saints. He believed that Islam was corrupted by sufism, pantheism, theology (Kalam), philosophy and by all sorts of superstitious beliefs

The other was a sufi, a majzoob and since the Majzoob is someone who has reached the pinnacle of Sufism, the Sufis ascribe all sorts of powers to them, from helping others miraculously to knowing matters of the Unseen. Many miracles are attributed to him. He still figures in folk-lore as a saint.

The first was Qazi Kalim Allah, son of Mian Muhammad, and the second was Hafiz Noor Mustafa, the son of Fateh Muhammad. Both were grandsons of same person, Muhammad Arif.

In the meantime, after the final success of the Sikhs against Ahmad Shah in 1763, Ranjit Singh overran the whole Salt Range, because Awans Chiefs had favoured and assisted theKabul army which was investing Attock. In the beginning, the Sikhs were was repulsed with loss, and compelled to a retreat, but at last they subjugated Awans. The Awans like their neighbours, the Gakhars, the Janjua, the Khattar, the Ghebas resisted the Sikhs as long as they could, and like them, resisted in vain. The Awans on this occasion displayed gallantry, later on they offered allegiance, and secured their area between mountainous region of Salt Range. The Sikh allowed them the fourth of the revenue as lords of the soil,

Qazi Kalim Allah got his early religious education from his learned father Hazrat Mian Muhammad. He learned, Qur’an, Hadith, Fiqh from him and mastered the Arabic and Persian grammar. He also received excellent education of Hanafi school of law from a madrassa of Tala-geng.

From the famous book Munaqib-i-Sultani, a biography of Sultan Bahu, by Sultan Hamid, we found religious thought of Qazi Kalim Allah. The writer Sultan Hamid belonged to the sixth or seventh generation of Sultan Bahu’s lineage. Almost all biographers of Sulatn Bahu have derived their facts from Manaqib-i-Sultani. The book was originally published in Persian language, and was translated, later on in Urdu language. The writer of this book mentions the name of Qazi Kalim Allah as a great ‘Alim’ (scholar) of his time. It is stated by the author that when Hafiz Khair Muhammad of Anga, a great sufi, visited the tomb, the Astana Alia of Hazrat Sultan Bahu, he saw some miracle in the tomb and had a conversation with the Late Sufi Hazrat Sultan Bahu, who actually died in 1691, Qazi Kalim Allah refused to accept these miracles and the conversation with a deceased sufi. The author further states that when Hafiz Khair Muhammad was narrating the details of his visit to Qazi Kalim Allah, there was a Quran in the hand of the latter. When the first finished his story, Qazi Kalim Allah replied ”Hafiz Sahib, though I do not believe in these miracles, but as you are an honest and religious man, I write these miracles on the end pages of Quran.” So he wrote all these miracles as narrated by Hafiz Khair Muhammad.

To be continued.