real meaning of sheikh and mullas

The one and only free public forum for Bohras. The focus of this forum is the reform movement, the Dawoodi Bohra faith and, of course, the corrupt priesthood. But the discussion is in no way restricted to the Bohras alone.
allush
Posts: 20
Joined: Wed Dec 07, 2011 2:52 pm

real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#1

Unread post by allush » Mon Jan 02, 2012 5:38 am

can anybody explain me why people use sheikh and mullas in their names. Can somebody explain me what exactly sheikh and mullas stood for? :? i heard that only royal people use this preffix in their name,only for royalty.

ghulam muhammed
Posts: 11653
Joined: Tue Oct 07, 2008 5:34 pm

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#2

Unread post by ghulam muhammed » Mon Jan 02, 2012 8:22 am

Sheikh:-
(1) A Man over 40 years old generally, or
(2) A Muslim who is a student of knowledge. Even a new Muslim can be called a Sheikh if he is diligent in seeking the knowledge of Islam based upon Quran and authentic Sunnah. He is a Sheikh to those he can teach.
(3) Usually a person is known as a Sheikh when they have completed their undergraduate university studies in Islamic studies and are trained in giving lectures.
http://www.islamic-dictionary.com/index ... kh&x=0&y=0

The above meaning is from an Islamic Dictionary and any sane person will confirm that the 'bohra' sheikhs nowhere meet the said criteria. The ONLY criteria for getting the self appointed title of sheikh for a bohra is LOADS OF MONEY, everything else is secondary and insignificant. Bohraism is a business which thrives on twisted interpretation of various Islamic terms, sunnahs, rituals and fard and the dai is a highly succesful businessman. Although it is not official but the actual interpretation of the word MOLA is MORE-LA which fits him perfectly.

Al Zulfiqar
Posts: 4618
Joined: Tue Mar 28, 2006 5:01 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#3

Unread post by Al Zulfiqar » Mon Jan 02, 2012 12:46 pm

allush wrote:
i heard that only royal people use this preffix in their name,only for royalty.
allush, you need to study your religion much more.

islam does not believe in "royalty", or "royals". in fact it came to abolish all man made differences in the scheme of things. it abolished slavery, it abolished gender inequality and gave women equality in rights with men, it abolished discrimination based on color or nationality, treated the rich and the poor as equals in the eyes of allah.

it is the only the last 2 syednas who have reverted to unislamic practices by placing themselves at a level where they consider themselves as blue-blooded royalty with divine status, treat their followers as slaves and demand and accept sajdas from them, take big sums of money to visit their homes or businesses and expect to be treated like maharajas.

they have deliberately obliterated the religious distinction previously valued by scholarly titles of sheikh and mulla and made it a sellable commodity. they have soiled and cheapened it by conferring it on persons of low character, immoral and unethical louts, many of whom would not be able lead prayers or even pray themselves! all the qualification reqd to buy these titles is money, no matter how sinfully it has been acquired. of course, at such times the ghaib na maalik is blind to their misdeeds and haramkhori!

allush
Posts: 20
Joined: Wed Dec 07, 2011 2:52 pm

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#4

Unread post by allush » Mon Jan 02, 2012 1:12 pm

brother in kuwait i heard that only royal people use this prefix with their name sheikh sabah,sheikh nassar,sheikh etc etc. I heard tha only royal people use this sheikh, and kuwait is islam country. So brother tel me truth what is meaning of real sheikh.

Al Zulfiqar
Posts: 4618
Joined: Tue Mar 28, 2006 5:01 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#5

Unread post by Al Zulfiqar » Mon Jan 02, 2012 2:58 pm

allush,

you are mixing up 2 different things.

among arabs, sheikh has a completely seperate meaning. it is usually taken to refer to the leader of a tribe, or a respected person of learning who distinguishes himself among his peers with his wisdom and behaviour.

this has no bearing in the bohra context, among whom the title of sheikh was usually awarded to a person of high learning at either our jamiya under the strict supervision of trained ustaads and who could conduct namaaz, nikaahs, misaqs, sadakallah, mayyat, and all other religious ceremonies, who could advise people on religious and worldly issues, such as marital discord, divorce, children's matters etc in the light of islam and our deen. mullas were religiously trained too and usually were entrusted with the responsibility of teaching bohra kids in deeniyat, reading and reciting the quran, being model sons and daughters and volunteering at the masjid and jamaatkhana and assisting the amil in clerical duties such as filling out forms for haj, nikah etc.

since bohras are not divided into tribes and are generally educated, the arab connotation of sheikh is irrelevant in our context. but as said earlier, the last 2 syednas have completely changed the definition and value of these titles and have perverted or bastardised their meaning, making them purely a materialistic symbol of wealth. this serves 2 ulterior motives, fills the illicit coffers of the clergy and brings recognition to the newly rich goons who bask in its refected glory, while the not-so-fortunate middle-class and poor bohras burn with envy and aspire to attain the ranks of these priviledged few.

DMY
Posts: 65
Joined: Sat Jun 04, 2011 10:25 pm

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#6

Unread post by DMY » Mon Jan 02, 2012 3:55 pm

Forget the meaning, check the rate card.

ghulam muhammed
Posts: 11653
Joined: Tue Oct 07, 2008 5:34 pm

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#7

Unread post by ghulam muhammed » Mon Jan 02, 2012 4:43 pm

A Bohra MULLA is one who can bribe the MORE-LA and his zaadas with lots of MOOLAH !! There is nothing Islamic about it as it has lost its religious significance.

humanbeing
Posts: 2195
Joined: Sun Nov 20, 2011 2:30 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#8

Unread post by humanbeing » Wed Jan 04, 2012 8:54 am

What advantage a bohra mumin gets by acquiring such titles at such extravagant cost ?

Muslim First
Posts: 6893
Joined: Tue Jun 19, 2001 4:01 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#9

Unread post by Muslim First » Wed Jan 04, 2012 9:47 am

humanbeing wrote:What advantage a bohra mumin gets by acquiring such titles at such extravagant cost ?
Gets to pray in front rows.

DMY
Posts: 65
Joined: Sat Jun 04, 2011 10:25 pm

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#10

Unread post by DMY » Wed Jan 04, 2012 10:37 am

humanbeing wrote:What advantage a bohra mumin gets by acquiring such titles at such extravagant cost ?
Preferntial space allotment during ramadan (only for maghrib isha'a prayers)
Preferntial seating during miqaats/muharram wa'az.
Right to lead darees and majlis at mumineen houses during ta'abudaat amals

There is more, i can remember only this at the moment.

Aymelek
Posts: 145
Joined: Wed May 11, 2011 3:14 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#11

Unread post by Aymelek » Wed Jan 04, 2012 2:06 pm

Right to host ziyafats...
Right to kadambosi...
Right to be the first in queue (or rather avoid queues)

JC
Posts: 1624
Joined: Wed Sep 29, 2004 4:01 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#12

Unread post by JC » Wed Jan 04, 2012 2:18 pm

Shaikhs and Mullas are glorified slaves ........ the Monitor Slaves .......... these are First Class Shudras among total Shudras ....... like top in Low Caste ones .....

These slaves are also bigger slaves, they are fat, full of flesh and blood, the Master enjoys more slaughtering them.

ghulam muhammed
Posts: 11653
Joined: Tue Oct 07, 2008 5:34 pm

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#13

Unread post by ghulam muhammed » Wed Jan 11, 2012 7:06 pm

humanbeing wrote:What advantage a bohra mumin gets by acquiring such titles at such extravagant cost ?
Bohras are 'bania' converts although they have lost the bania touch to a great extent, thanks to the 24x7 chest beating and the manipulative zaadas who are like earlier german jews specialised in exploiting and looting the poor german labourers. With whatever baniagiri that is left in the bohras, they use it sensibily at times and the 'shiekh' titles are a good example. It goes like this............... we find many sheikhs in countries like dubai because the title gives them free access to the treasury of 'qard-e-hasanah' which they use as seed capital for business and moreover they are required to pledge a minimum quantity of gold and at times even NO GOLD due to the said title.

A friend of mine from Canada was lobbying hard at badri/saifee mahal for a sheikh title and when I asked him the reason for doing so he came out with a very businesslike explanation.............. He told me that the going rate (at that time) was around Rs.52 lakhs which he would manage to bring it down and also pay the same in monthly instalments but the huge benefit that he would get would be an INITIAL interest-free loan from qard-e-hasanah of around Rs.One crore which would multiply gradually and which he would use it for his business as well as the monthly instalments needed to clear off his dues of Rs.52 lakhs promised to kothar for the shiekh title. This way he could manage to get the title virtually free of cost as he would be paying for the same from the amount taken from the zaadas themselves. So you see bohras are not so dumb :mrgreen:

humanbeing
Posts: 2195
Joined: Sun Nov 20, 2011 2:30 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#14

Unread post by humanbeing » Thu Jan 12, 2012 1:06 am

Hi GM !!

This makes sense ! So Kothar actually invests in the businesses of this Bohra Businessman, Also it’s a convenient tool to control the rich class amongst the community, which facilitiates their “Royal” Life style.

In my experience, I have always observed that Amils have formed a close friend circle in bohra business community. It’s a formal process, whenever a new amil is appointed in the area. The big shots of the city are invited to come and meet Amil and then public relations are increased. During such interactions, Amil then encourages businessmen to acquire titles appropriate to their income and “Khidmat” to the Daawat. For this Amil acts as an effective negotiating agent between Kothar and Businessman for an acceptable amount including his own brokerage (Salaam).

asad
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Dec 29, 2011 12:54 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#15

Unread post by asad » Thu Jan 12, 2012 7:35 am

In real meaning a Sheikh has got Hadiyat means he has been elevated in his "Hadd"(level) this was confined to only 12 "hadd" of Prophets and Imams but gradually whole concept has been washed down to mere titles. Their is a global directory of all sheikhs and is available for a "hadiya" at Jamiya counter. Just check out the numbers and you will be astonished to see small towns in India boasting upwards of 20-50 sheikhs. I have gone through the book and we can easily come to a conclusion that in plum places a sheikh is there on every 200-250 bohra houses and Mafsu or a mulla on every 75-100 houses. This can be a yardstick for Aamils to make more shiekhs and mullas in their city if they are lagging behind in numbers.

humanbeing
Posts: 2195
Joined: Sun Nov 20, 2011 2:30 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#16

Unread post by humanbeing » Thu Jan 12, 2012 8:43 am

Usually Sheikhs feel happy when they are addressed as “Miya Saab” !! and how commonly bohra mumins degrade word “Miya Bhai” what an Irony or Hypocrisy ?

bohra_manus
Posts: 229
Joined: Tue Nov 03, 2009 7:37 pm

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#17

Unread post by bohra_manus » Thu Jan 12, 2012 9:53 am

humanbeing wrote:Usually Sheikhs feel happy when they are addressed as “Miya Saab” !! and how commonly bohra mumins degrade word “Miya Bhai” what an Irony or Hypocrisy ?
What a difference a single word can make :D

Muslim First
Posts: 6893
Joined: Tue Jun 19, 2001 4:01 am

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#18

Unread post by Muslim First » Thu Jan 12, 2012 12:17 pm

asad wrote;
this was confined to only 12 "hadd" of Prophets and Imams
Can you quote authentic Ahidit or this is Ismaili Tawil?

ghulam muhammed
Posts: 11653
Joined: Tue Oct 07, 2008 5:34 pm

Re: real meaning of sheikh and mullas

#19

Unread post by ghulam muhammed » Thu Jan 12, 2012 7:10 pm

humanbeing wrote:For this Amil acts as an effective negotiating agent between Kothar and Businessman for an acceptable amount including his own brokerage (Salaam).
The amil is no fool to take all the pains, actually he gets a commission from the amount given to the zaadas just like how the amils get a 10% commission on wajebat collected by them.