Muslim Deviant Thought And Reform Efforts By Muslim Scholars In Mughal Era

Abstract

The Sufi Muslims spread Islam throughout the subcontinent, guiding every section of the society towards the true teachings of Islam and also presenting the best practical examples of Islamic teachings. However, in the last period of the Delhi Sultans, there was a proliferation of counterfeit Sufis who generally became a source of error and disbelief in the society. Although at the beginning of the Mughal period, the Qadri and the Chishtia orders were spread all over the subcontinent, many hoax Sufis began making a profound impact here during this period too. This later emerged in the form of various movements and orders like the Mughal emperor Akbar, during his reign, introduced the divine religion or Din-e-Ilahi for various reasons. Madariya, Mahdia, Roshniya, Zakaria, Jalalia and Kak were some other noteworthy misleading movements and orders of that time which caused a large number of Muslims to go astray. This article contains a brief historical overview of the movements and orders of those deviant Muslim Sufis and a brief account of the important efforts of religious scholars who spent their lives in reforming the deviant religious ideas and misguidance.