Tags: bohras bohra ethos
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He was a poor humble man from one of the richest communities of India the Bohras they built hospital; renovated shrines in Najaf Karbala did a lot of social work but at that time nobody thought of Mohomed bhai ..he used to deliver food tiffin's to students at schools on his rickety bicycle always a smile on his face during rain or shine ..He was very good to me as I gave him money and inquired about his health he lived at Bazar Road Bandra life was very tough after he became feeble and to old carry on his work ,,I bet those students who ate their home food delivered by him wont remember leave aside people from his community .
For me he was a role model there was also another old lady who did the same work of delivering tiffins to students during lunch break.
I miss him he used to sit below a building and stare at his withered away future and the irony is he was named after our hallowed one ..but fate is very cruel..even the imprints on the dust fade away...
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings;
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
— Percy Shelley's "Ozymandias" 1819 edition
Tags: obituary bohras mohomed bhai died unsung
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Raudat Tahera (Arabic: روضة طاهرة Rawḍatu Ṭāḥiratu) is the mausoleum of Syedna Taher Saifuddin and his son & successor Dr. Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, the 51st and 52nd Da'i al-Mutlaqs of the Dawoodi Bohra Ismaili Muslims.[1]
Syedna Taher Saifuddin RA led the Dawoodi Bohra community from 27 January 1915 to his death on 12 November 1965. He was succeeded by his son, Dr. Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin RA, who led the community from 12 November 1965 to his death, 17 January 2014.[2]
Contents [hide]
1Geography
2History
3Exterior features
4Interior features
5References
Geography[edit]
The white-marble Fatemi shrine is located in the midst of Bhendi Bazaar, a crowded area in central Mumbai.[3] It was constructed by Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin RA, and its architect was Yahya Merchant, who has also designed the Mazar-e-Quaid in Karachi, Pakistan.
History[edit]
Construction on Rawdat Tahera began on 10 December 1968, which coincided with the date of 21 Ramadan 1388 of the Fatimid Calendar, the death anniversary of Ali, and was inaugurated on 19 April 1975 by the Indian president Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed coinciding with the birthday celebrations of the 21st Fatimid Imam, aṭ-Ṭayyib Abī l-Qāṣim ibn al-Manṣūr, on 4 Rabi' al-thani 1395.[4]
Exterior features[edit]
The marble used in the mausoleum was quarried from the Chosira and Ulodi quarries of the Makrana quarries in Rajasthan, India, from where marble for Taj Mahal was quarried.
The mausoleum rests on 92 piles. The number 92 is significant in that it represents the Arabic isopsephical value of the name of Muhammad.
The complete structure weighs 5000 tons.
The mausoleum rises to a height of 108 feet (33 m), which is the Arabic isopsephical value of the word Ḥaqq.
The dome is 52 feet (16 m) high as its crowning feature.
A 12 feet (3.7 m) high gold finial stands sentinel over the dome.
There are four smaller domes, one at each corner of the central dome, each with a gold finial to match its larger prototype, and perfect the setting against the azure sky. The dome and cornice are inspirations from the Juyushi Mosque, Cairo.
The four walls of the mausoleum have a 4 feet (1.2 m) and 6 inches (15 cm) thick masonry wall, with 3 inches (7.6 cm) cladding on both sides, making its final thickness of 5 feet (1.5 m), which reflects the members of Ahl al-Bayt.
The outer walls are decorated with the names of the Ahl al-Bayt and the Fatimid Imams as well as the Duʿāt Mutlaqīn in the Kufic script.
The four entrance doors to the shrine have been specially designed to match the entrance gate of Aqmar Mosque in Cairo built by Imam-Caliph Manṣūr al-Āmir bi'Aḥkāmi l-Lāhi. The entrances are adorned with four silver doors of Fatimid style and lead to the sanctum sanctorum of the tomb. There are five arches above each of these four doors.
The entrance facing west is called Raudat Tahera
The entrance facing east is called Bab-e Hakimi, so named after his ancestor, Syedi Abdul Qadir Hakimuddin, whose mausoleum is in Burhanpur, Madhya Pradesh.
The entrance facing south is called Bab-e Zaini, so named after the 45th Da'i al-Mutlaq, Syedna Tayyab Zainuddin RA, his great-grandfather, whose tomb is in Surat.
The entrance facing north is called Bab-e Fakhri, so named after his ancestor, Syedi Fakhruddin Shaheed, whose mausoleum is in Galiyakot, Rajasthan.
Interior features[edit]
Crystal chandelier and inscription of the entire Quran
The inner height of the mausoleum is 80 feet (24 m) above the plinth, the age of the Syedna (AQ). Similarly there are 80 corniches all around the mausoleum.
The inner dimensions of the tomb are 51 x 51 feet (16 m), symbolizing that he was the 51st representative and Vicegerent of the Fatimid Imams.
In the center of the tomb is the grave of Syedna Taher Saifuddin, whose measurement is 28 square feet (2.6 m2). The number 28 indicates the young age at which he became the Dai al-Mutlaq.
Adjacent towards the right hand side of Syedna Taher Saifuddin's grave is, Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin's grave of equal measurement.
What gives the tomb a unique place of honour amongst all the monuments in the world, is the inscription of the entire Quran within its four walls. Upon the instructions of Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, the 772 page golden handwritten Quran from which Syedna Taher Saifuddin used to recite daily, was photocopied and transcribed onto an equal number, that is 772 marble slabs of 3x2 feet each and pasted in the inner walls of the Raudat. As such, the entire Quran is engraved on the inner walls of Raudat Tahera and makes it the only monument in the world to have a complete religious book engraved within its sanctum sanctorum.
The Quran begins from the right hand side of the western wall, continues on the southern wall, followed upon the eastern wall, and ends on left hand side of the northern wall.
On top, the structural shell consists of a dome 40 feet (12 m) in diameter with a height of 52 feet (16 m). The dome is a replica of Al Jamea Al Juyushi, Cairo.
The rosette at the apex of the dome has the same mudawwar design in the interior as that of the masjid Al Juyushi, with the Quranic proclamation "إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُمْسِكُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ أَن تَزُولَا ۚ وَلَئِن زَالَتَآ إِنْ أَمْسَكَهُمَا مِنْ أَحَدٍۢ مِّنۢ بَعْدِهِ", (Surah 35 Ayat 41) meaning "Allah holds the sky and earth together which none else can" along its periphery. The names of Mohammed and his successor Ali are embellished in Kufic script in the center.
Though it was not intended originally, but as the laying of the Quranic tablets within the walls continued, it became apparent that all the entrance doors to the tomb got adorned with a Bismillah.
All the 113 Bismillah in the Quran inscribed on the walls are studded with precious gem stones, such as rubies, diamonds, emeralds, corals etc. The Surat Al Fatiha and Surat Al Ikhlas are studded with rubies.
Surah Ya Sin, is the only surah to be encircled in a double lined box and can be found on the left side of the eastern wall.
Below the Quran, on the walls are the stanzas and verses quoted from the 49 Risalah sharifah, hundreds of Qasidas and munajaats written by Syedna Taher Saifuddin which reflect the Barakah of the Quran and the Ilm of Ale Mohammed. They demonstrate his interpretation of the scriptures, and which inspire the visitor, to a higher plane of thinking and nobler way of life, towards which Islam ultimately beckons.
Below the above verses, on the eve of the 100th Birthday Celebrations of Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin in 2011 (1432 Hijri), the 52 Stanza marasiyah of Fulkul Husaine be Karbala "فلك الحسين بكربلاء", was added as an inlay on the walls.
Between the columns on which Quraan is written and the above-mentioned writings, is an embossed marble engraving, which alternates after every two columns. The design of the engraving is the exact copy of the design used on the shield of Zulfiqar by the Fatimid on their monuments in Cairo.
A glittering crystal chandelier, suspended from the center of the dome, sheds its brilliance upon the tomb and seems to cast a divine light upon the hallowed precincts, while the four circular corner fittings and twenty four wall brackets lend their light to the radiance within the Mausoleum. The chandeliers are especially made on order and each pendetive is engraved with the Quranic verse "لا يمسه الا المطهرون" (Surah 56 Ayat 79) meaning "none but the pure shall hold the Holy Quran". It is claimed to be among the largest chandeliers in the world.
References[edit]
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Tags: bohras bohra ethos
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I know Mohomed bhai since I first came to Bandra Bazar Road 30 years back he used to supply tiffins to students from their homes at their school during lunch time.
In the rains he would take the meals on his broken down cycle.
Thanks came old age bad times diabetes and he was forced to give up his job.
Now he sits idle watching a blank space.
His Bohra society has forgotten him and the students whom he supplied lunch have forgotten him too.
Mumbai is insensitive heartless the Bohras richest Muslims in the world have turned their backs on this old retired Bohri danbawala..
He does not beg.
And God too has forsaken and forgotten him.
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Tags: bohras bohra ethos
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