A TRIBUTE

 

“Verily, Allah does not withhold knowledge by snatching it away from his servants, but rather he withholds knowledge by taking the souls of scholars… (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim)

 

It is with profound sadness that the Jamiatul Ulama South Africa (JUSA) received the news of the passing of Moulana Moosa bin Yousuf Mia, in the evening of Friday 28 February 2025. Inalillahi waina ilayhi rajiun. Moulana Moosa was a stalwart of our community and selfless ālim who was until his demise, an executive member of JUSA.

 

During his membership of the Ulama body, Moulana witnessed the growth of the organisation, starting with the founding of the first-ever branches of the Jamiatul Ulama Transvaal, in Lenasia as well as in Fordsburg. Along with other senior members, Moulana Moosa played a pivotal role in bringing the Ulama body to the current status of offering diversified services to the community.

 

At meetings, Moulana’s wisdom and experience would be brought to bear, calming any potential tensions with his perceptiveness. In a level-headed but assertive manner, he did not only point out risks associated with certain courses of action but would also suggest practical solutions to otherwise challenging situations. He would caution against trivial pursuits, always encouraging others in the room to focus on positive work that would make meaningful impact.

 

Earlier in his life in 1956, Moulana studied at Salt River in Cape Town for two years where his ustādh for hifdh was Imam Ismail Talip RA. He then went to the Waterval Islamic Institute where under his eventual father-in-law, Moulana Muhammad Mia RA, and Mufti Ibrahim Sanjalvi RA he commenced studies towards becoming an ālim. In 1966, he travelled overseas to India where he qualified as ālim at Deoband in 1968. Thereafter, together his parents, he joined Moulana Yusuf Binnori RA in Haj, in the company of whom they would return to South Africa.

 

Moulana Moosa attended Bukharī classes [simā’at] at Newtown in Pakistan between 1968 and 1969. The relationship with Moulana Yusuf Binnori RA deepened, spending time with him in Masjid-un-Nabawi Sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam and then accompanying him on travels to India, Pakistan and the Middle East. Moulana Moosa got married in 1969 and started working at the Waterval Islamic Institute as a teacher and examiner, under the auspices of the Jamiatul Ulama Transvaal.

 

When Moulana Yusuf RA was leaving South Africa after his visit in 1974, Moulana Moosa accompanied him as an aide. Before returning to Karachi, they travelled together on Khatme Nubuwwah programmes which took them to Spain, UK, Switzerland, France and Turkey. In Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Ali Harakan facilitated a meeting with King Faisal where Moulana Yusuf RA presented the spectre of heresy, as it was taking root in his home country. This meeting proved a turning point as the king would later influence policy against Qadianism in Pakistan.

 

Moulana Moosa was dedicated to the study and service to the Qur’ān. From Salt River where he first committed the Book of Allah to memory and went back to revise it, he would later revise his recitation and memorisation with different Qurrā during his stays in Karachi and Madina. For the rest of his life, he taught the Qur’ān and took keen interest in the establishment of elementary madāris for the learning of the Qur’ān. One of his lasting legacies is the pioneering work in the establishment of such junior madāris particularly in Malawi where he was one of the trustees of Namanolo Islamic Educational Trust (NIET). Co-founded by the Pretoria North Muslim Educational Trust, NIET currently has a network of hundred madāris which has been maintained since 1980, and have produced many indigenous Ulama of Malawi. The commitment to the teaching of the Qur’ān, was a noble undertaking Moulana Moosa never abandoned even after the diagnosis of his terminal illness, during 2024.

 

Humanitarian concerns kept Moulana Moosa linked with relief agencies providing aid whether on the continent or abroad. Marhūm was part of the delegation of South African Muslims to Kenya who delivered aid to famine-struck Somalia in 1992. He would remain engaged in such initiatives and was until the time of his passing, associated with the Africa Muslims Agency whose management would consult him for guidance. The generosity of his spirit, simplicity and foresight are attributes those who came into contact with him will sorely miss. We are poorer without him in our midst.

 

Moulana has left this temporal abode shortly after turning eighty, at his Rispark home, to the south of Johannesburg, where he stayed since 1997. We supplicate to Allah Ta’ālā to forgive Marhūm for his shortcomings, illuminate his resting place and admit his soul to the highest abode of Jannatul Firdaus. We extend our condolences to the deceased’s family, and ask Allah to grant them patience of bearing a sense of loss. May He be their Comforter as they mourn the passing of Moulana. (Āmīn)

 

Released by:

 

The Executive Committee
Jamiatul Ulama South Africa

 

04 Ramadan 1446/ 05 March 2025