Historical Context of ‘Ilm

Historical Context of Pre-Deoband Shah Waliullah and Post Deoband Institutionalized ‘Ilm

Shah Waliullah Dehlawi lived in India at a time when Mughal rule was gradually being supplanted by the British. His academic contributions and literary works reflect a pedigree of scholarship that is quite unparallelled. In this lecture, Shaykh Amin briefly describes this ingenious eighteenth century polymath as an exemplar of what makes up an Alim. There are also insights into the relevance of Shah Waliullah’s life and works in the context of preserving Sunni Islam in the western world.

This talk was delivered in October 2019 at the 10th Annual ‘Ulama Retreat in Dallas, Texas.