Shaikh ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani (RAA)

Notable Students

A s a result of all this, a large band of religious scholars [‘ulama] became actively affiliated with him, and no one could ever count the number of people who enrolled as his students. Here is a list of some of the Shaikhs who established an affiliation with him, and who received instruction from him in the various branches of knowledge:

• Shaikh al-Imam al-Qudwa [the Exemplar] Abu ‘Amr ‘Uthman ibn Marzuq ibn Hamid ibn Salama al-Qurashi, who was a settler in Egypt.

Shaikh ‘Abd ar-Razzaq once said: “When my father (may Allah the Exalted bestow His mercy upon him) made the Pilgrimage [Hajj], in the year when I accompanied him, he got together at Arafat with the two Shaikhs, Ibn Marzuq and Abu Madyan. Each of these two received from my father the blessed gift of a tattered cloak [khirqa]. They sat in his presence and listened to some of the stories he had to tell.”

 

It was Shaikh Sa’d, the son of the above-mentioned ‘Uthman ibn Marzuq, who said: “My father (may Allah the Exalted bestow His mercy upon him) would often tell us:

‘Our Shaikh, Abd al-Qadir, said such-and-such, and such-and-such. I once saw our master, Shaikh ‘Abd al-Qadir, doing such-and-such, together with that learned Imam and Judge [Qadi], Abu Ya’la Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Farra’ al-Hanbali.'” It was ‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn al-Akhdar who said: “I once heard Abu Ya’la say: “I often sat in the company of Shaikh ‘Abd al-Qadir, and I was a proponent of what he sought to communicate.”

• Shaikh al-Faqih [the Jurist] Abu ‘l-Fath Nasr al-Manni.
• Shaikh Abu Muhammad Mahmud ibn ‘Uthman al-Baqqal.
• Shaikh al-Imam Abu Hafs ‘Umar ibn Abu Nasr ibn ‘Ali al-Ghazali.
• Shaikh Abu Muhammad al-Hasan al-Farisi [the Persian].
• Shaikh ‘Abdu’llah ibn Ahmad al-Khashshab.
• Shaikh al-Imam ‘Amr ‘Uthman, who was given honorific surname “The Shafi’i of His Age.”
• Shaikh Muhammad ibn al-Kizan.
• Shaikh al-Faqih [the Jurist] Raslan ibn ‘Abdi’llah ibn Sha’ban.
• Shaikh Muhammad ibn Qaid al-Awani.
• Shaikh ‘Abdu’llah ibn Sinan ar-Rudaini.
• Shaikh al-Hasan ibn ‘Abdi’llah ibn Rafi’ al-Ansari.
• Shaikh Talha ibn Muzaffar ibn Ghanim al-‘Athami.
• Shaikh Ahmad ibn Sa’d ibn Wahb ibn ‘Ali al-Harawi.
• Shaikh Muhammad ibn al-Azhar as-Sirafi.
• Shaikh Yahya ibn al-Baraka Mahfuz ad-Dibaql.
• Shaikh ‘Ali ibn Ahmad ibn Wahb al-Azjami.
• Shaikh Qadi ‘l-Qudah [the Chief justice] ‘Abd al-Malik ibn ‘Isa ibn Hirbas al-Mara’i, and his brother ‘Uthman, and his son ‘Abd ar-Rahman.
• Shaikh ‘Abdu’llah ibn Nasr ibn Hamza al-Bakri.
• Shaikh ‘Abd al-Jabbar ibn Abi ‘l-Fadl al-Qafasi.
• Shaikh ‘All ibn Abi Zahir al-Ansari.
• Shaikh ‘Abd al-Ghani ibn ‘Abd al-Wahid al-Maqdisi al-Hafiz [the Qur’an-memorizer].
• Shaikh al-Imam Muwaffaq ad-Din ‘Abdu’llah ibn Ahmad ibn Muhammad Qudama al-Maqdisi al-Hanbali.
• Shaikh Ibrahim ibn ‘Abd al-Wahid al-Maqdisi al-Hanbali.

It was Shaikh Shams ad-Din ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn ‘Umar al-Maqdisi who said:

“I once heard my paternal uncle, Shaikh Muwaffaq ad-Din, say: ‘I and al-Hafiz ‘Abd al-Ghani received the tattered cloak [khirqa] from the hand of the Shaikh al-Islam, Abd al-Qadir, both of us at the very same time. We studied jurisprudence [fiqh] under him, listened to his wise advice, and derived great benefit from his fellowship, although we only knew him for the last fifty nights of his life.'”

• Shaikh Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Bakhtiyar.
• Shaikh Abu Muhammad ‘Abdu’llah ibn Abi ‘l-Hasan al-Jibani.
• Shaikh Khalaf ibn ‘Abbas al-Misri.
• Shaikh ‘Abd al-Mun’im ibn Ali al-Harrani.
• Shaikh Ibrahim al-Haddad al-Yamani.
• Shaikh ‘Abdu’llah al-Asadi al-Yamani.
• Shaikh ‘Atif ibn Ziyad al-Yamani.
• Shaikh Umar ibn Ahmad al-Yamani al-Hajari.
• Shaikh Mudafi’ ibn Ahmad.
• Shaikh Ibrahim ibn Bisharat al-‘Adl.
• Shaikh Umar ibn Mas’ud al-Bazzaz, and his teacher, Mir ibn Muhammad al-Jilani.
• Shaikh ‘Abdu’llah al-Bata’ihi, the settler in Baalbek [Ba’labakk].
• Shaikh Makki ibn Abi Uthman as-Sa’di, and his sons Abd ar-Rahman and Salih.
• Shaikh Abdu’llah ibn al-Hasan ibn al-‘Akbari.
• Shaikh Abu ‘l-Qasim ibn Abi Bakr Ahmad, and his brothers Ahmad and Atiq.
• Shaikh ‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn Abi Nasr al-Junayidi.
• Shaikh Muhammad ibn Abi ‘l-Makarim al-Hujja al-Ya’qubi.
• Shaikh Abd al-Malik ibn Dayyal, and his son Abu ‘l-Faraj.
• Shaikh Abu Ahmad al-Fadila.
• Shaikh Abd ar-Rahman ibn Najm al-Khazraji.
• Shaikh Yahya at-Takrini.
• Shaikh Hilal ibn Umayya al-‘Adani.
• Shaikh Yusuf Muzaffar al-‘Aquli.
• Shaikh Ahmad ibn Ismail ibn Hamza.
• Shaikh ‘Abdu’llah ibn Ahmad ibn al-Mansuri Sadunat as-Sirifini.
• Shaikh Uthman al-Basiri.
• Shaikh Muhammad al-Wa’iz al-Khayyat.
• Shaikh Taj ad-Din ibn Batta.
• Shaikh ‘Umar ibn al-Madayini.
• Shaikh ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Baqa.
• Shaikh Muhammad an-Nakhkhal.
• Shaikh ‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn Kalaf.
• Shaikh ‘Abd al-Karim ibn Muhammad al-Misri.
• Shaikh ‘Abdu’llah ibn Muhammad ibn al-Walid.
• Shaikh ‘Abd al-Muhsin ibn ad-Duwaira.
• Shaikh Muhammad ibn Abi ‘l-Husain.
• Shaikh Dalif al-Huraimi.
• Shaikh Ahmad ibn ad-Dibaqi.
• Shaikh Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Mu’adhdhin [the Muezzin].
• Shaikh Yusuf ibn Hibatu ‘llah ad-Dimashqi.
• Shaikh Ahmad ibn Muti’.
• Shaikh ‘Ali ibn an-Nafis al-Ma’muni.
• Shaikh Muhammad ibn al-Laith ad-Darir.
• Shaikh ash-Sharif Ahmad ibn Mansur.
• Shaikh ‘Ali ibn Abi Bakr ibn Idris.
• Shaikh Muhammad ibn Nasra.
• Shaikh ‘Abd al-Latif ibn Muhammad al-Harrani.

There are many more besides these, but we cannot possibly mention them all by name in this summary account, for fear of prolonging it to the point of causing irritation and discomfort.

–Shaikh Muhammad Ibn Yahya at-Tadifi, Necklaces of Gems [Qala’id al-Jawahir], trans. Muhtar Holland (Ft. Lauderdale: Al-Baz Publishing, Inc., 1998), 18-21.