A’la Hadrat’s expertise in mathematics

Dear Islamic brothers! A’la Hadrat’s intellect and understanding and utmost desire for Islamic knowledge was such that he رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه made his contribution to approximately fifty branches of knowledge and wrote very valuable books. He رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه had a good command in every science. He رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه had such excellence in ‘Ilm-e-Tawqeet (science of calculating the time) that he would set his clock merely by looking at the sun during the daytime and with the help of the stars during the night. The time he رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه would set            was always accurate and never differed by even a single minute. (Similarly), A’la Hadrat رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه was second to none in the mathematics.

(Tazkirah Imam Ahmad Raza, pp. 6)

He رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه has said: No teacher taught me mathematics. I learnt 4 rules – addition, subtraction, multiplication and division because we need them in the rulings of inheritance. I had just begun the commentary of ‘Chaghmeeni’  (a book on mathematics) when my respectable father said, ‘Why are you spending your time in this. You will acquire these branches of knowledge yourself by the Beloved Prophet صَلَّى اللهُ تَعَالٰى عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم.’ (Faizan A’la Hadrat, pp. 550)

An interesting incidence of his expertise in mathematics is being narrated. The vice chancellor of ‘Ali Garh University, who possessed foreign degrees and awards in mathematics, visited A’la Hadrat رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه to seek the solution to a complex mathematical equation. A’la Hadrat رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه asked him to express his problem. He replied, ‘This is not something that I can state so easily.’ A’la Hadrat said, ‘Say something.’ The vice chancellor explained the problem and A’la Hadrat immediately produced a brilliant answer, thus solving the equation.

Being extremely surprised, the vice chancellor said, ‘I was planning to visit Germany to find its solution. By chance, our professor of Islamic studies, Maulana Sayyid Sulayman Ashraf Sahib guided me to you. It seems as if you were looking into a book for the solution to the same problem.’

He went back delighted and satisfied. He became so impressed by the grand personality of A’la Hadrat رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه that he grew a beard and became regular in offering Salah and observing fasts. (Faizan A’la Hadrat, pp. 550)