Ahmad Sirhindi (1564–1624)
Born 1564 CE, died 1624 CE.
Imām Rabbānī Shāykh Aḥmad ibn 'Abd al-Ahad al-Fārūqī al-Sirhindī Mūjaddīd al-Alf al-Thanī or simply known as Ahmad Sirhindi (1564 – 1624/1625) was an Indian Islamic scholar, Hanafi jurist, and member of the Naqshbandī Sufi order who lived during the era of Mughal Empire. Ahmad Sirhindi opposed heterodox movements within the Mughal court such as Din-i Ilahi, in support of more orthodox forms of Islamic Law. His act of preserving and urging the practice of Islamic orthodoxy and challenging Akbar and later Jahangir by rejecting Din-i Ilahi has cemented his reputation among South Asian Muslims as a Mujaddid, or a "reviver". While early and modern South Asian scholarship credited him for contributing to conservative trends in Indian Islam, more recent works, such as Abul Hasan Ali Hasani Nadwi and commentaries from western scholars such as Ter Haar, Friedman, and Buehler, have pointed to Sirhindi's significant contributions to Sufi epistemology and practices.
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