Dr. Recep Şentürk is a senior Turkish social scientist, specializing in the sociology of religion and civilization studies. In this talk, he speaks about his mentor and teacher, the late Indian hadith scholar, Shaykh Mustafa Azami (محمد مصطفٰی أعظمی). Born in 1930, Mustafa Azami graduated from Darul Uloom Deoband, before heading to Al-Azhar, and then to Cambridge for his Ph.D. He held academic positions around the world, touring and lecturing widely. In 1980, he received the King Faisal International Prize for Islamic Studies. A lifelong seeker of knowledge, a giant amongst modern scholars, Shaykh Azami received recognition within his lifetime, his books continue to be used as standard references across the world. Dr. Recep shared a warm relationship with him, a relationship that spanned well over two decades. In this talk, he fondly remembers his hoca (teacher), recounting his services and experiences, and the advices he shared with his students.

Translated from the Turkish by Saad Razi Shaikh

Today, I’ll be talking about one of the most important people in my life, the late Dr. Mustafa Azami, may Allah have abundant mercy upon him. He was one of the major influences in my life. The relationship with Mustafa Azami may not show on my CV, but it was the most important contribution in my education. In fact, the relationship with him was equal to three faculties worth of education, the things I learned from him, it would not be possible to learn from anyone else. Allah granted me the opportunity to work with the best professors both in academia, and outside it, to benefit from both their knowledge (ʿilm) and character (akhlāq), to learn adab from their company.

From the time I was a student in the Theology faculty, I knew Mustafa Hoca from his works. Later, I went to the USA and began to work in the field of hadith studies. In the Sociology faculty, the teachers were non-Muslims; and so, I began to wonder. Even before I had decided to work on hadith, I was worried. The subject, I intended to do was “network analysis” using computers and mathematical models. What if the results didn’t turn out right? What if news would come out that a Columbia researcher has found hadith transmission to be not trustworthy? What would I do? A huge worry was plaguing my mind. Should I or should I not undertake such a research project? I did not wish to score a “self-goal” and unknowingly cause harm to the study of hadith.

Introduction to Mustafa Azami Hoca

In the end, Allah brought the thought to my heart. The ayah came to me: It is We who have sent down the Quran and We will protect it. Without hadith, the Quran cannot be understood. Therefore, it can be indirectly inferred that the promise to preserve the Quran also includes the promise to preserve hadith. For without hadith, neither the true meaning of Quran can be understood, nor can it be followed. Allah, who has promised to preserve it, ensures that there will no lacunae in the hadith transmissions. Therefore, the analysis I proposed to do, will insha Allah would turn out alright. My heart at ease, I began to work on the topic.

However, while collecting data, analyzing it, a thought came to my mind: that I’m working with non-Muslim professors who do not have ijāzah. If only there was a Muslim scholar, a true muḥaddith having ijāzah, if he could see my work, he could tell me if I’m on the right path or not. This thought kept coming to me, and I prayed to Allah to send such a scholar to me.

One day, a friend in upstate New York called, informing me that a two-day workshop with Shaykh Mustafa Azami was being organized. He would be coming from Colorado, where he was staying at that time. During the two-day workshop, he would be sharing with the participants knowledge and experiences related to the field of hadith studies. My friend asked me, would I be interested in attending this workshop? I said: “Of course!” This was what I had prayed for!

I went to the workshop. Over the two days, I met Mustafa Hoca and explained to him my thesis topic. He asked me to share what I had written so far, accordingly he would notify him regarding his thoughts on it. When the workshop concluded, Hoca was supposed to fly back to Colorado via the JFK airport. He told me that there is a car that will drop me to the airport. If you wish, you can come along. Consequently, for four hours in the car, we spent time together. Hoca gave his time to me. That was a big opportunity for me. All the questions I had in my head, I asked.

The traffic being less, we reached the airport early. Because there was a lot of time remaining for the flight, I proposed that we could go to my house. He accepted, alhamdulillah, and came to our house. At that time, my wife had gone to Turkey, I was the only one living in the house. Before leaving for Turkey, she had created a huge batch of yogurt. There was no other food at home. What was there to offer to the guest? I offered the yogurt, along with some omelette I made. Hoca liked it a lot, specifically the yogurt, because it was home-made. It was natural. He said: “Even we should make it like this.” I said: “I don’t know how this is made. If I learn it, I’ll notify you!”

Alhamdulillah, I managed to spend another 4-5 hours with Hoca there. I said: “Ya Allah, how much can I thank You for this? I wanted a hadith scholar to see my work, and You sent him to my home!” However much I could have planned, something like this, a huge scholar like Mustafa Azami would not have come. Such a configuration, such a possibility would not have come to be. Allah made it possible. What a huge honor it was!

Soon, it was time for Hoca’s flight. Three days later, he called me. He had read my work; he was pleased with the work I was doing. He wished that I should teach him about it. This showed both Hoca’s curiosity, as also his humility. How open he was to learning, and how humble he was!

Consequently, this relationship with Hoca, which began in 1995, continued up to his death.  

Mustafa Azami’s Services

At that time, Hoca was engaged in producing a CD set of hadith, a digital database of hadith. He told me the story behind it. Once when he was a visiting scholar at Harvard, a meeting was organized by some Orientalist scholars, who were planning to produce a digital database of hadith and trying to see how reliable they were and show the results to the world. Immediately upon hearing this, Hoca decided he needed to roll back their plan. He decided to undertake the project himself, to create a digital database of hadith. Later, he published this in a journal, announcing his plans. The earlier group upon hearing this, decided to drop their plans as it was already being done. And thus, he obstructed the Orientalist group’s plan on the hadith literature. He was a true mujāhid, one of the biggest I’ve seen in my life.

Later, he spent a million dollars on this project, because this was the era where just the first computers had started to come out. It was a very expensive undertaking. The money he had received from the King Faisal Prize, he spent most of it on this project.

Visit to Turkey

When Mustafa Hoca came to Turkey, he honored us by staying at our home. He stayed for about a week, alhamdulillah. During this time, I again got the chance to ask him questions. I also got the opportunity to know him better. I noticed that he didn’t sleep on the bed. I was very surprised, that such a person doesn’t sleep on the bed but prefers to sleep on the hard floor.

At that time, I was working at the Center for Islamic Studies (ISAM). Friends from ISAM wished to meet Hoca. I therefore invited them to my house one day.

While speaking to us, Hoca told us that when he was student at Al-Azhar, he once went to get some milk. On the wall of the milk seller’s shop, it was written with calligraphy: “The one who cheats, he is not from one of us.” This is taken from a hadith. But the milk seller was adding water to the milk in front of this hadith on his wall. Everyone laughed upon hearing this. But Hoca added, “You all too, when you reach the class five minutes late, when you do not prepare well, when you waste time in empty talk during the class, you too fall to the level of the man adulterating milk with water.” Everyone was taken back upon hearing this. A pin drop silence followed. Till today, I’ve not forgotten those words. I try to fulfill the rights of the class lesson in its true sense. I remind myself that whenever I go late to class, or if I don’t prepare myself well, I fall to the level of the man mixing milk with water.

The Shirt and the CD

During that period, Hoca was working towards research on the history of the Quranic text. He had taken a break from working on hadith for working on the Quran, the reason being that the Orientalists had begun to attack the Quran. On this topic, he produced books and articles, as there was no Muslim producing these. While writing one of those books, he required access to an old copy of the Quran, which was present in one of the libraries in Istanbul. However, he was not given the copy. The library proposed that if he required the book, a digital copy of it via a CD could be arranged. To do so, a scanning machine would be required, which would cost 3,500 pounds. Hoca agreed and paid. When in the evening we met, and he told me how much he had paid, I was shocked, how could you pay 3500 pounds for a CD?

Later, Hoca needed a shirt because the shirts he brought with him got dirty.  I told him we can go to the market or shopping malls, there are nice brands over there. He said no, he doesn’t want any of those. From where would he then buy the shirt, I asked him. He said, there are shirts being sold by the roadside, I’ll buy from there. I said: “No, we cannot let you buy such shirts. You are our teacher. You are a world-renowned scholar.” Then he told something I’ll never forget: “Look, Recep, you think Hoca gives 3500 for a CD, but doesn’t wish to spend money on a shirt. By Allah, the money given for that CD is little, and three liras for the shirt is too much.”

Giving Hadith Lessons

Later, Hoca returned to the USA. In knowing him, being with him, I was better able to understand the hadith sciences. Unfortunately, during the Republican period, the chain of the hadith isnād in Turkey had been ruptured because of the strict bans and restrictions imposed on Islamic education by the authoritarian governments during that time. I felt this was a disgrace for us. I dropped an email to Hoca, inviting him to Istanbul, to revive the chain of the hadith isnād in Turkey, to give hadith lessons and ijāzah. Hoca replied that he was ill and that he was caught up in a lot of work. I replied to him, that if you don’t come, the breakdown of the hadith isnād in Turkey will continue, and everyone here will stay under the influence of the Orientalists’ works. You won’t have the right to complain about it then. He replied, “I’m coming with my family.”

He came to Turkey. We arranged for his accommodation in Üsküdar. From the fajr prayer onwards up to nine ‘o’clock, Hoca used to teach hadith from al-Kutub al-Sittah. We invited seekers of knowledge, newly graduated Ph.D. students, assistant professors, and so on for the hadith lessons. Every morning, between seven to nine, Hoca would give lessons. At the end of the course, Hoca gave an ijāzah certificate to all the participants. Alhamdulillah, this was a beautiful memory.

From one of the participants, there was Muhammad Emin Er Hoca. When he had heard that a scholar from India had come, that he was giving hadith lessons, so he decided to participate as well. He was over one hundred years old, but he came all the way from Ankara to Istanbul for these hadith lessons. Mustafa Hoca gave him an ijāzah as well. This shows how much the elderly scholars valued knowledge, how the scholars had mutual respect for each other, and how humble they were.

Later, we invited Hoca again for a conference. Before dropping him to the airport, we decided to have food at a famous restaurant. We thought Hoca would like it, it was a restaurant located in a beautiful historical madrasah. We went there, booked a special spot, and ordered food. But Hoca was not eating. We thought he didn’t like the food, so we ordered again, but he again didn’t eat. Again, we ordered, and again he didn’t eat. I whispered in his ear, “Hocam, you must be hungry. You have a long trip. Why are you not eating?” He said, “In a waqf madrasah, a restaurant was created. This food won’t go down my throat.”

It was as if we were knocked over. How unaware we were! Could a restaurant be opened in a madrasa? Secondly, in a waqf properly, could trade be done? How wrong it was. But back then, we were unaware. We were thinking how good the place was, how historical the restaurant setting was. I was ashamed of myself. How could I be so unaware, so neglectful. But this is what the company of elders does. It opens one’s eyes. Of course, Hoca didn’t want to embarrass us, which is why he didn’t say anything, but he couldn’t eat anything either. This was a memorable experience with Hoca.  

On his Education: Deoband, Azhar and Cambridge

Hoca graduated from Deoband, an institution which was founded for the preservation of Islam, and to protect it against the attacks of non-Muslims. Debate was a strong element of it. And Deoband has a strong tradition for the preservation of the religion. When I went to Deoband, I was very surprised, at the gates: on one side was the isnād of ʿilm, and on the other side the isnād of the Naqshbandi ṭarīqah. Both the chains (silsilahs) appear prominently on the gates. What message is that conveying? It is conveying that this is our tradition. We come from this tradition.

Al-Azhar is of course different from Deoband. Unlike Deoband, it is in a Muslim-majority country. Of course, in Egypt there were other ideologies at play. During his time there, Hoca had seen them closely. The experience in Egypt widened his horizons.

Later, he left for Cambridge for his Ph.D. Here, he learned about academia in the West. His thesis supervisor was Arthur John Arberry, one of the most prominent Orientalists in the world. He worked under him. All of these experiences widened his horizons. They became a means to better understand the world. Without taking into consideration these three elements, his perspective, his works, wouldn’t have come to fruition.    

His Advices

He gave me two pieces of advice. Firstly, to always keep reading Riyād al-Ṣāliḥīn. I’ve been reading it now continuously for the past twenty years, just recently finishing reading it again. Secondly, to keep reading Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, to finish reading both Riyāḍ al-Ṣāliḥīn and Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī at least once a year.

Once he was asked: “What can we learn from the Orientalists?” He said: “Learn nothing from the Orientalists. Rather, the Orientalists should learn from you. The people who call your Prophet ﷺ a liar, the people who consider the Book you believe in to be fabricated (naʿūdhu bilLāh!), what can you learn of the religion from them?”

Someone asked him: “How can the Orientalists be refuted?” He advised us not to spend our time refuting the Orientalists. He said that he had spent all his life refuting them, but their objective was not to find the truth, rather to create wrong comments. After you work on displacing the doubts created by them, they’re not going to apologize and mend their ways. Rather, they’ll manufacture a new falsehood. And so, your life will pass in cleaning up the dirt created by them. You should instead work on putting forward the truth. This was the advice he gave us.  

May Allah have mercy upon our teacher Mustafa Azami. He spent his life in the service of the Quran and Hadith. He put his life in the way of Allah. He was from the awliyā of Allah, a man filled with the love of the Prophet ﷺ. He was a noble man, a champion of Islam. He wasn’t just successful in academia, but also in service, in struggle in the path of Allah.

He followed news in Turkey. He would often call me regarding the latest news, trying to understand what was going on. If an earthquake happened, a party won the election, relations with other countries changed, he would wish to know about it. He took an active interest in all of the Muslim world, all of the ummah of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was like his family. He used to follow all of their news closely.

May Allah have mercy upon him. May what we’ve learned from him, we be able to pass to those after him.