Syed Waheed Ashraf

Syed Waheed Ashraf is an Indian Sufi, scholar and poet of Persian and Urdu languages. He obtained his B.A., M.A. and PhD (1965) from Aligarh Muslim University. The topic of his PhD dissertation was 'A critical edition of Lataife Ashrafi'. After serving in many universities (Punjabi University at Patiala, M.S. University of Baroda, University of Madras) in India, he retired as Head, Department of Arabic, Persian and Urdu, University of Madras, India, in 1993. Conversant with over half a dozen languages (Pahlavi, Persian, Arabic, Urdu, English, Hindi, Gujarati), he writes in Urdu, Persian and English and has authored/edited/compiled over 35 books and numerous research articles. He is a recipient of several awards and honours from within India and abroad. He has focused on upholding and propagating the principles and practices of Sufism.

Syed Waheed Ashraf received his primary education from the village madrasa and middle school education in 1948 from a school in Baskhari, a small town 3 km from kichauchha sharieff. After that he studied at Mohd. Hasan Inter College in Jaunpur District to earn his high school certificate. After high school, he stopped his studies for seven years due to poor health. He then took and passed his intermediate exam, becoming a private candidate from the arts stream. Waheed Ashraf earned his undergraduate, post graduate and doctoral degrees (1965) from Aligarh Muslim University. His doctoral dissertation was titled 'A critical edition of Lataife Ashrafi'.

I. Books

Sufism and Islamic Studies

Books in Urdu

(1) 'HAYAT-E-SYED ASHRAF JAHANGIR SEMNANI' (Research work on the life of Syed Ashraf Jahangir Semnani) Book in URDU (1975).

(2) 'TASAUWWUF' (Sufism) Book in URDU (1988)

(3) 'TAFSĪR-E-ASHRAFI (Iradat)', Part I (Sufism in URDU)

(4) 'TAFSĪR-E-ASHRAFI ( Bayat)', Part II (Sufism in URDU)

(5) 'QĀAL-ALASHRAF' (Sufism-Book in URDU)

(6) 'QĀAL-USSUFIA' (Sufism-Book in URDU)

(7) 'ME’RĀJ SHARĪF' (Islamic Studies)Book in URDU (2003)

(8) 'ROZA' (Islamic Studies) Book in URDU (1996)

(9) 'MUMIN' (Islamic Studies-Rational Views on various aspects of Quran) Book in URDU (2003)

(10) 'HAJJE TAMATTU' (Islamic Studies) Book in URDU (2010)

(11) 'CHAND DUYAIN AUR MUKHTASAR AURADE ASHRAFIA' Book in URDU/ARABIC (2007)

Books in Persian

(12) 'JAWAHIRUS-SULŪK', (Sufism- Translated and Illustrated) in PERSIAN

(13) 'LATĀIF-E-ASHRAFI & MAKTUBĀT-E-ASHRAFI AS SOURCES OF HISTORY OF MEDIEVAL INDIA'under the scheme of Indian Council of Historical Research (History)in PERSIAN

(14) 'MUQADDEMA-E- LATĀIF-E-ASHRAFI' (Sufism) Book in PERSIAN, Published by Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda

(15) 'LATĀIF-E-ASHRAFI' PART I (EDITED & ANNOTATED-SUFISM) in PERSIAN (2010)

(16) 'LATĀIF-E-ASHRAFI' PART II (EDITED & ANNOTATED-SUFISM) in PERSIAN (2010)

(17) 'LATĀIF-E-ASHRAFI' PART III (EDITED & ANNOTATED-SUFISM) in PERSIAN (2010)

Lataife Ashrafi (Ashraf’s Subtle Insights): The complete name is Lataife Ashrafi Fi Bayane Tawaife Sufia, but popular by Lataife Ashrafi. This tome is a collection of discourses of Hazrat Syed Ashraf Jahangir Semnani recorded by his illustrious authorised disciple Hazrat Nizam Yemeni. This is an unparalleled most voluminous treatise on Sufism by Hazrat Syed Ashraf Jahangir or for that matter by any Indian Sufi. It is a compendious exposition on various issues from Islamic mysticism. The book also throws light on the political, cultural and literary history of India of that era. It has also been the source book of many books on Sufism. Nafhatul Uns, the famous book by Jami draws heavily from Lataife Ashrafi. The Lataife Ashrafi has been published twice; first in 1295H in one binding from Nasratul Matabih, Delhi and for second time in 1298H in two volumes from Nasratul Masabih, itself. Few translations in Urdu of the unedited book were also made here and there, which however cannot be relied upon in totality, as a fair translation demands a high level of proficiency in old Persian as well as expertise in doctrines of Sufism and Hermeneutics. A critical edition of this important text was long due. Finally, a Professor of Persian and a Sufi himself has critically edited, annotated and published the text in three volumes.
Books in English

(18) 'THE EXOTERIC AND ESOTERIC ASPECTS OF ISLAMIC PRAYERS' (Islamic Studies) in ENGLISH (2005)

Poetry 

Books in Urdu

(19) 'TAJALLIYĀT' (Poetry- Creative work) Book in URDU (1996)

(20) 'MUNĀJĀT' (Poetry- Creative work) Book in URDU (March 2002)

(21)'‘ĀYĀT' (Poetry-350 URDU Quatrains- Creative work)

(22)'SAUGHĀT' (Poetry 90 URDU Quatrains- Creative work)(2005)

(23) 'LAMAHĀT' (Poetry- Creative work) Book in URDU

Books in Persian

(24) 'RUBA’I- Part I' (Poetry −96 PERSIAN Quatrains-Creative work) (2010)

(25) 'RUBA’I- Part II' (Poetry-90 PERSIAN Quatrains-Creative work)

(26) 'DARYĀ BI QATRAH' (Poetry- Creative work) in PERSIAN (2009)

(27) 'FIDA' (Pupil of Mirza Ghalib) (Life and Work-Edited with critical study) 

(28) Afsar Maudoodi (Life and Work-Edited with critical study Co Authored with Malik Ram) Book in URDU (1983)

(29) 'MUTALAE AFSAR MAUDOODI' (Compilation of Articles read in a seminar on Afsar Maudoodi) Book in Urdu (2012)

(30) 'MUQADDEMA-E-RUBAI' (Literary Criticism) Book in URDU (2001)

(31) 'URDU ZABAN MEIN NA’AT GŪ’Ī KA FAN' (Literary Criticism) Book in URDU

(32) 'RŪH-E-MAHMOOD' (Poetry of Nawab Mahmood Madrasi-Edited) Book in URDU

(33) 'TAUZEEHĀT' (Critical studies in Urdu Literature) Book in URDU

(34) 'TAFHEEMĀT' (Critical studies in Persian Literature) Book in URDU

(35) 'QASĀID-E-ZAUQI VELLORI' (Persian poetry-Deciphered, Translated, Illustrated and Edited) in PERSIAN

(36) 'IRTIBĀT-O-INEKAAS' (Letters to the author from many renowned scholars of India and abroad) Book in URDU & ENGLISH

Books under preparation

1. 'KULLIYATE AFSAR MAUDOODI' (In Press)

2. TRANSLATION OF THE LATAIF-E-ASHRAFI
(This is a voluminous book on Sufism) in URDU.

Several reviews were written on the books of a number of scholars and poets which were published in their works.

II. Brief list of published articles

Published hundreds of research articles in reputed journals like Islamic Culture, Journal of Oriental Research Institute, Madras University, Danish, Qande Farsi, Indo Iranica, Ma'arif, Burhaan, Naq do Nazar, Ziyae Wajeeh etc.

Syed Waheed Ashraf (2003), Indo-Iranica, The Quarterly Organ of the Iran Society, Volume 56, March, June, Sept. & Dec. 2003, Numbers 1 to 4, 'THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC THOUGHTS OF HADRAT SAIYED ASHRAF 
JAHANGIR', IRAN SOCIETY, 12 DR. M. ISHAQUE ROAD, KOLKATA-700,016

Syed Waheed Ashraf (1982), Annals of Oriental Research, University of Madras, Volume 31, 'NATIONALISM IN URDU POETRY', Page 391

Syed Waheed Ashraf (1980), Annals of Oriental Research, University of Madras, Volume 30i, 'AN INTRODUCTION TO THE PERSIAN POETRY OF IQBAL', pp14

Awards and honours

Certificate of Honour from the President of India in recognition as an eminent scholar of Persian in 1995.

Gujarat Gaurav Puraskar from Urdu Sahitya Academy of Gujarat in 2005.

Cited in 'DATA OF EXPERTS IN ISLAMIC STUDIES' published by The Islamic Research Institute, Rabat, Morocco.

Cited first among the selected nineteen poets of the world by the Literary Organization,’ Poetry Letter of Argentina’in1991.

Cited in 'International Who is Who of Poets' published by the International Biographical Centre, Cambridge, 1992.

Cited in 'International Who is Who of Intellectuals', published by the International Biographical Centre, Cambridge in 1993.

A PhD awarded on the research work done on his Urdu Quatrains (Rubaiyaat) by Bihar University, Muzaffarpur. The PhD thesis titled 'Dr. Syed Waheed Ashraf Ki Rubai Nigari' by Dr. Azhar Alam under the guidance of Prof. F. A. Siddiqui, has been published with the financial assistance from the Fakhruddin Ali Memorial Committee, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh in 2002. The book contains 137 pages in Demi size.

Source : Wikipedia

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