Shihab al-Din Mahmud bin Abdullah, known better as Mahmud al-Alusi, or by his title Abu al-Thana, was a very famous Hanafi jurist, mufassir and Hadith scholar of Iraq. He was born in 1803 AD/1217 H, to a family of Sunni Sayyids (descendants of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ). His lineage is traced back to Muhammad al-Jawad ibn Ali al-Ridha, and his family was formerly from the island of Alus, which is where his early ancestors fled to during the sack of Baghdad by the Ilkhanid Mongols. Mahmud al-Alusi was also said to be a member of the Naqshbandi tariqah, which means that he was one of its reformers such as; Ibrahim al-Kurani, the famous Athari-Sufi theologian, Muhammad Hayyat al-Sindhi, the teacher of Imam Muhammad bin Abdulwahhab and Muhammad Emin Ma Mingxin, a Chinese Sufi Muslim reformist.
After receiving his Ijazah, Mahmud al-Alusi became a religious teacher, teaching at his uncle's small Madrasah in Baghdad. However, his uncle was very negligent of the building, and the building was falling into disrepair. So, Mahmud al-Alusi transferred his students to the Madrasah of Al-Hajj Nu'man which was located in the district of Saba' Abkar north of Baghdad. He was accepted there as a teacher as well. Angered at the growing unpopularity of his school, Mahmud's uncle teamed up with some of the members of the Alusi family to take Mahmud down from his position at the Madrasah of Al-Hajj Nu'man, by spreading lies about him to the Mufti of Baghdad. When this did not work, Mahmud's uncle sent a representative to complain to the Ottoman Mamluk governor of Baghdad, Dawud Pasha. This representative told Dawud Pasha that Mahmud al-Alusi had insulted Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani. Fortunately, Dawud Pasha did not believe this, so no actions were taken against him and Mahmud retained his own position as a religious teacher.
Not all of the Alusis were against Mahmud al-Alusi, and one of his distant relatives, Al-Hajj Ameen al-Baji, offered him a teaching position at a new Madrasah as well as being the Imam of the adjoining mosque. Mahmud al-Alusi accepted the offer and he was paid handsomely by Al-Hajj Ameen. He remained a teacher at the Madrasah until a plague broke out in late 1831 AD/1246 H, after which he later became a teacher at the Madrasah of Sultan al-Awliya Shaykh Abdul Qadir al-Jilani. He also taught at several other Madrasahs in Iraq throughout his lifetime. Dawud Pasha also assigned Mahmud al-Alusi to be the official Secretariat of Fatwa, which meant he could approve Fatwa (religious rulings) from contemporary scholars.
In 1831 AD/1246 H, the Ottoman military general, Ali Ridha Pasha, invaded Baghdad and overthrew Dawud Pasha, becoming the new governor. Ali Ridha Pasha was one of the Bektashis, and he also had slight sympathies for the Rafidhah. Several scholars opposed Ali Ridha Pasha and openly expressed dislike towards him, one of these scholars was Mahmud al-Alusi. Angered, Ali Ridha Pasha arrested Mahmud al-Alusi and stripped him off his teaching privileges. However, in the same year, Ali Ridha Pasha later released Mahmud al-Alusi due to a lack of scholars (he had imprisoned most of them) and he reassigned Mahmud al-Alusi his teaching position at the Madrasah of Sultan al-Awliya in Baghdad.
In a meeting with the scholar, Ali Ridha Pasha was fascinated with his knowledge and intelligence. He felt that Mahmud al-Alusi was a very honourable man, so he assigned Mahmud al-Alusi to be the sole person to give out Fatwa. Two years later, religious questions were received from Iran by the scholars of Baghdad, and Mahmud al-Alusi was the one who gave the best answers. Ali Ridha Pasha rewarded him by successfully convincing the Ottoman Sultan of that time to award him one of the state’s highest honors. This contributed to the popularity of Mahmud al-Alusi, and many scholars came from various parts of the world to Baghdad to learn from him.
Mahmud al-Alusi wrote several books and works. One of his most famous works is Ruh al-Ma'ani. This is his Tafsir of the Holy Qur'an. Ruh al-Ma'ani was praised by Yusuf Banuri, one of the ulama from Darul Uloom Deoband. Muhammad Taqi Usmani, one of the Deobandis contemporary to our era, wrote that “no work on exegesis of Qur'an can do without help from this work.” (Ulumu'l Qur'an) Mahmud al-Alusi also wrote books on Jihad, his travels and poetry.
During the reign of Muhammad Nacib Pasha as governor of Baghdad, which started in 1847 AD/1263 H, Mahmud al-Alusi became unpopular with the new governor. Eventually, he was fired from his positions as well as revoked the ability to write and distribute Fatwa. Mahmud al-Alusi nearly fell into poverty and was forced to sell all his books and the furniture in his house. He then travelled to Turkey to relieve himself from the injustices and hardships that he faced. Mahmud al-Alusi met with the Shaykhul Islam of Turkey, Ahmet Arif Hikmet Bey Effendi. Shaykh Arif Hikmet was displeased at first upon meeting him due to the lies he had been told from the other Alusis a few years ago. However, he managed to understand Mahmud al-Alusi's condition and transferred him to the Royal Guest House of Istanbul. Mahmud al-Alusi them met with the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, who felt sympathetic for his sad condition. So, he referred the matter to the Sultan who ordered that he be given a yearly salary. Mahmud al-Alusi returned to Baghdad a year later. On the way there, he suffered a very bad illness, and the illness eventually made him bedridden. He passed away in 1854 AD/1270 H, and he was buried in the cemetery of Shaykh Ma'ruf al-Karkhi in the Karkh district of Baghdad.
Mahmud al-Alusi left behind several great works, such as the Ruh al-Ma'ani, but also a travel diary of his experience in Turkey and foreign lands. He had so many works, they are nearly uncountable. His legacy was carried on by his four sons, Abdullah, Ahmad, Nu'man and Mohammed. Through Abdullah, Mahmud al-Alusi had a grandson, Mahmud Shukri al-Alusi, who was a critic of Najdiyyah but a supporter of the ideas of Imam Muhammad bin Abdulwahhab. His grandson would also live to become the teacher of the famous historian, Muhammad Bahja al-Athari. Indeed, Mahmud al-Alusi was the ancestor of several righteous men who were also scholars.
May Allah have mercy on Mahmud al-Alusi and his family.
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