During his Eminence visit to the island of Mauritius in the year 2000, as the airplane was about to land, Hazrat Maulana Ibrahim Khushtar looked out the window, smiled and remarked to the disciple accompanying him, "Look! what Sayyiduna Abdul Qadir Jilani (may Allah be well pleased with him) has given me as a gift, the island of Mauritius."
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The various population movements of the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries have made Mauritius a unique blend of different races, cultures and religions. People of European, African, Indian and Chinese origins have created a multiracial society where the various cultures and traditions flourish in peace and harmony. The Indian immigrants, who were of both Hindu and Muslim faith, were to change rapidly the fabric of the society. They were later joined by a small number of petty Chinese traders.
His Eminence landed in Mauritius for the first time on 2nd January 1965 to work as Imam and lecturer (Khateeb) of the Jummah Mosque after having officiated at the Memon Hanafi Mosque, Colombo, Sri Lanka. His Eminence had at that time obtained his 3rd Khilafat and Ijazat [permission to admit disciples of one's own into a particular Sufi order or number of specified Sufi orders] in the Qadiri Razvi Nuri Mustafavia spiritual line from Mufti-e-Azam Hind, Maulana Mustafa Raza Khan Qadiri Razvi Nuri (may Allah be pleased with him) on 8th Shabaan 1384 in Bareilly Shareef, India.
Listed below are some of the
great projects, monuments of pride that His Eminence helped manage and direct in
Mauritius.
With a host of young, energetic and enthusiastic friends, he founded the Sunni Razvi Society, which was destined to become the leading socio-religious organization presently in Mauritius. He then created the Sunni Razvi Academy and re-started the practice of Halqa Zikr (zikr circle), which is now adopted island–wide. Through the establishment of the Sunni Razvi Society, His Eminence introduced with great zeal, the great genius and Islamic Revivalist, Imam Ahmed Raza Khan (may Allah be pleased with him), the Sultan of Saints, Shaikh Sayyiduna Abdul Qadir Jilani (may Allah be pleased with him) and other Friends of Almighty Allah.
He has worked wonders both pre-independent and
post-independent Mauritius. He has composed and sung the praise of this
country, especially when it became independent and when it reached the
status of the Republic. Ministers and laymen, poets and lovers have
expressed their appreciation of his poems rendered in so beautiful
lyrical forms. His anthems as a gift to the Nation do echo on the
mountains and over the valleys of this country.
Many famous personalities such as the then
Governor-general, Sir Leonard William and Sir Raman Osman, Former Prime
Minister of Mauritius, Dr. Sir Seewoosagu Ramgoolam, the Hon. A. Jugnauth,
Hon A. Pasooraman (Minister Of Education, Arts and Culture) and several
other statesmen of their time were friends of His Eminence. They even
looked to His Eminence for guidance on religious and non-religious matters as
well.
In 1972 Hazrat Maulana Ibrahim Khushtar departed Mauritius for Britain, and in his farewell message to the people of Mauritius he said, " On this moment of departure, I must earnestly appeal to you al to live in harmony and peace, to become torch-bearers of peace to this divided world or ours, and to work hard for the welfare of this picturesque country. Before ending I take this opportunity to express my warmest thanks to everyone, to the Editors, the MBC/TV, the Police, the different institutions and last but not least, the Government of Mauritius for their entire and precious co-operation extended to me in carrying out my religious mission successfully here."
Hazrat Maulana Ibrahim Khushtar's leitmotiv has always been to preach racial and
spiritual harmony amongst the various communities and diversified
religions in Mauritius. He is a patriot to the core and is respected by
other religious communities. As a poet, his poetry influenced through
mysticism has proved to be a fountain of knowledge for both the ascetic
and the aesthetic. As a religious leader, he has shown the mettle of his
pasture as someone unparalleled here in eloquence and the delivery of
the true Islamic message in our present era. His love for Mauritius
knows no bounds.
Prior to the arrival of His Eminence, the Holy Lives of such great Saints of Islam were engraved in the realm of the memory of but a few fervent seekers of Islam. The immediate task His Eminence was, therefore to animate the love of such Saints in the hearts of the Muslims so that they might be directed towards the path of spiritual attainments. Thus he began organizing continuous weekly Thursday Halqa Zikr at the Jummah Mosque. From the 2nd September 1965 to present date, more than 1130 Monday weekly Halqa Zikr's have been performed amidst a great number of participants.
The Qadiriyya Tariqa is well known for its Halqa Zikr (remembrance of Almighty Allah) to polish ones heart, to attain the love of the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessing be Upon Him), the love of His Companions (Sahaba), the love of the Saints (Awliya), the love of the descendants (Ahl-e Beyt) of the Holy Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) and to follow the sacred Islamic law (shariah).