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Excerpts from
THE WAY OF BANI 'ALAWI
bin 'Alawi bin Hasan al-'Attas
Naf'anAllahu Bih
Translated by: Dr. Mostafa al-Badawi
We are fortunate to have in our possession the kitab (book) titled Al-'Ilm un-Nabraas fi't Tanbeeh 'alaa Minhaaj i'l Akyaas by Tahir al-Anfaas al-Habib 'Abdallah bin 'Alawi bin Hasan al-'Attas, which has been translated as The Way of Bani 'Alawi by Dr. Mostafa al-Badawi. First the noble descent and lineage of the Bani 'Alawi is explained after which excerpts from the book are presented so that we can learn about the lives of the Awliya Allah or Friends of Allah.
Descent And Lineage
The Bani 'Alawi are the ashraaf sadat (noble descendants) of our beloved Prophet Muhammad Mustafa Sallallahu 'alaihi wa Sallam. They trace their ancestry to Imam 'Ali Al-'Uraydi, son of Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq, son of Imam Muhammad al-Baqir, son of Imam 'Ali Zainul 'Abideen, son of Imam Husain, son of Sayyidina 'Ali and Sayyidatina Fatima az-Zahra, the blessed daughter of our Beloved Prophet Muhammad Mustafa Sallallahu 'alaihi wa Sallam.
Our Beloved Prophet Sallallahu 'alaihi wa Sallam is Khaatam-un-Nabiyyeen (the last of the Prophets, 'alayhimussalam).
Sayyidina 'Ali Rady Allahu 'Anhu is the Gate of Knowledge.
Sayyidatina Fatima az-Zahra Rady Allahu 'Anha is the leader of the women in Paradise.
Sayyidina Imam Husain Rady Allahu 'Anhu is the leader of the martyrs.
Imam 'Ali Zainul 'Abideen is As-Sajjaad, the pride of all worshippers of Allah.
Imam Muhammad al-Baqir is a sea of knowledge.
Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq is Imam u'l Muslimeen of his time.
Imam 'Ali al-'Uraydi was the blessed son of Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq. He was born in Madina. After his father passed away, he left Madina for the town of Al-'Urayd where he became the shaykh of all Bani Hashem and the Naqib (prefect) of the descendants of the noble Prophet, Sallallahu 'alaihi wa Sallam. He was a man of great knowledge, a transmitter of Hadith Shareef (the blessed Prophetic Sayings), and he has been quoted in a large number of books written by the famous 'ulama of his and subsequent ages.
He had a son named Imam Muhammad who was also born in Madina. After his father passed away, he left for Basra in Iraq where he became the Naqib of the Ahl-u'l Bayt (the blessed Household of our Beloved Prophet Sallallahu 'alaihi wa Sallam). He was a man of great learning who preferred isolation and was known for his zuhd (abstinence).
Imam Muhammad ibn 'Ali al-'Uraydi had a son named Imam 'Isa. He was also a great 'alim (learned scholar) and 'arif (spiritual master) who was known as al-Naqib because he shouldered the responsibility of this position in Basra.
Imam 'Isa bin Muhammad had a son named Imam Ahmad who was born in Basra. Tabari, the famous 'alim and historian, held him in great esteem and gave him immense respect. He kept the company of Bishr ibn Al-Harith among others. He performed Hajj in 318 A.H. and migrated to Hadramaut in that year where he called people to Allah. He was given the title Al-Muhajjir (the Emigrant) primarily because he had travelled the path to Allah and secondarily because he had emigrated from Iraq to Hadramaut where his descendants became the illustrious 'Alawi sadat. He passed away in 345 A.H.
His grandson who also became a great Imam was the first one to be named 'Alawi from whom the name Bani 'Alawi is derived. Thus all the 'Alawis of Hadramaut, India, Hijaz, Africa, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar (formerly Burma), and the rest of the world relate to Imam 'Alawi bin 'Ubaidullah bin Ahmad bin 'Isa Al-Muhajjir who traces his ancestry directly to Rasulullah Sallallahu 'alaihi wa Sallam.
Naf'anAllahu bihim, may Allah Sub'hanahu wa Ta'ala make us spiritually benefit from them all, Aameen.
What follow are excerpts from the book.