[CA] Tablighi Jamaat

Tablighi Jamaat, literally, it means a society for spreading the faith. It is a conservative Muslim organisation. It is a Sunni Islamic missionary movement. The aim is to reach out to ordinary Muslims and revive their faith, particularly in matters of ritual, dress, and personal behaviour. It has significant base in various countries including Bangladesh, Pakistan, United States, Britain, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.

It was launched by prominent Islamic scholar Maulana Muhammad Ilyas Khandhalaw in 1926 in Mewat (Haryana). Its roots lie in the Deobandi version of the Hanafi school of jurisprudence. Maulana Ilyaz trained several young men from Deoband and Saharanpur and sent them to Mewat, where the Tablighi Jamaat established a network of madrasas and Mosque.

Tablighi Jamaat is based on six principles:

·       Kalimah, an article of faith in which the Tabligh accepts that there is no God but Allah and that Prophet Muhammad is his messenger.

·       Salaat, or prayer five times daily.

·       Ilm and dhikr, the knowledge and remembrance of Allah conducted in sessions in which the congregation listens to preaching by the imam, performs prayers, recites the Quran and reads the Hadith; the congregation also uses these sessions to dine together, thus fostering a sense of community and identity.

·       Ikram-i-Muslim, the treatment of fellow Muslims with honour.

·       Ikhlas-i-niyat, or sincerity of intention.

·       Dawat-o-tabligh, or proselytisaton.

It is estimated that the organisation has somewhere between 70-80 million followers across the world, which makes it the biggest Muslim movement in the world. In fact, outside of the Hajj, it is believed that its annual meetings in countries, including Pakistan, Bangladesh and India, bring together the largest congregations of Muslims.