My Unsung Hero: Abedi Banu Begum (Bi Amma)
My Unsung Hero: Abedi Banu Begum (Bi Amma)
My Unsung Hero: Abedi Banu Begum (Bi Amma)
FA14-BSE-117
MY UNSUNG HERO
Abedi Banu Begum [Bi Amma]
MY UNSUNG HERO
BI
for the unity and community of the Muslim Ummah. She changed her famous sons in
popularity and leadership I and the famous Urdu couplet:
Boli Amma Mohammad Ali Ki
Jaan Beta Khilafat Pay De Do"
became household words and were sung in every nook and comer of the Sub-continent
by all sections of people regardless of caste, creed or sect..
When her eldest son, Nawazish Ali, died, people came to give her sympathies over the
sad death of her son. They found her bearing the heartbreak with model strength. She
said to them:
"We should all submit to the Will of Allah. Allah hath power over all things.
Whatever He has entrusted to us, He has power to take it back when He pleases.
Our life and death are indeed in His hands."
When 'Bi-Amma' went for Hajj, she caught hold of the 'Ghilaf' (cover) of the Kaaba, and
made the following dua:
O Allah! By Thy Grace my children have now grown upon. I beseech Thee to
make them true Muslims.
Although she did not have any formal education, she was deeply convinced of the
advantages of acquiring modem education for the Muslims of the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent she educated her sons at Aligarh and Oxford; for that she pawned her jeweler
to pay for her son's education. Of the three living sons, two earned great fame. The
youngest son, Muhammad Ali, acquired excellent qualities of head and heart. He was
extremely daring and no one could hold him in awe. The whole world recognized the
superiority of his activities. While on the subject, consider one interesting and model
dialogue: One gentleman praised Maulana Muhammad Ali in the presence of his mother
and said:
"It is your untiring effort and tender care that has shaped him (Maulana
Muhammad Ali) to such towering eminence and capability."
Bi-Amma replied,
"You are wrong. The fact is, all this is the result of the Grace of Allah on us. Allah
endows with honour whom He pleases and brings low whom He pleases."
Under the British Occupation, some Muslims became seduced by the Westernized way
of life. To these people 'Bi-Amma' warned:
"Countrymen! Give up the way of life of these foreigners. Stick to the traditional
way of life of your ancestors. Serve not these foreigners, nor accept honors from
them because these people are very crafty and fraudulent."
Both the brothers fought against the British throughout their lives and worked to prevent
the British from destroying the Khilafah. When Englishmen used to arrest and imprison
them, 'Bi-Amma' used to be overwhelmed with excitement. She used to go to the jail
and tell her sons:
"My sons! Hold fast to Islam with all your might. Never mind even if your life is
sacrificed in the cause of Islam."
While her sons were still in jail this bold and respected mother kept alive the fervor for
the Khilafat Movement. She visited the country, spoke large gatherings of people, which
gathered to hear her and urged them to follow the footsteps of her great sons in their
struggle for the unity and community of the Muslim Ummah. She replaced her
memorable sons in admiration and leadership and the famous Urdu verse:
"Boli Amma Muhammad Ali Ki, Jaan Baita Khilafat Pay De Do"
("The mother of Muhammad Ali said, give your life for Khilafah my son") became
household words and were sung in every nook and corner of the Sub-continent by all
sections of people irrespective of caste or creed.
After the elimination of the Khilafah in March 1924, Bi Amma, did not survive for long
and died on November 13, 1924. Her death was a great loss to the Ummah, but Muslim
women who had come out to work with Bi Amma were to become a political force to
calculate with. After the end of the Khilafat Movement Bi Amma, however, did not
survive for long and died on November 13, 1924. Her death was a great loss to the
Muslim Nation, but Muslim women who had come out to work with Bi Amma were to
become a political force to estimate with and their activities were a necessary overture
to their active influence in the imminent hysterical political struggle of the Indo-Pakistan
sub- continent. Their activities were a necessary prelude to their active participation in
the struggle to establish Pakistan in the name of Islam. It is their legacy which has
spawned a generation of good women today, who nurture their children upon Islam from
their lap, propelling the Muslims of today to demand Shariah as the law of Pakistan and
call openly and widely for the return of the Khilafah.
This was 'Bi-Amma', the mother of the two illustrious sons of India, Maulana Shaukat Ali
and Maulana Muhammad Ali Johar. May Allah shower His excellent bounties on all
three of them!
Ameen!