Fultali received his basic education from his own family. He was then taught by his distant cousin, Fatir Ali, at the Fultali Alia Madrasa, where he also studied the Qur'an with tajweed under Qari Syed Ali. In 1336 AH (1918 CE), Fultali became a student at the Rangauti Madrasa in Hailakandi at the request of its principal, Abdur Rashid, who was a student of Fultali's father. After successfully completing higher secondary examinations at Rangauti, Fultali enrolled into the Badarpur Senior Madrasa in Badarpur in 1338 AH (1920 CE) where he studied various Islamic sciences under his murshid Abu Yusuf Muhammad Yaqub Badarpuri. For higher education, Fultali then studied at the Rampur Alia Madrasah in Rampur State at the instruction of Badarpuri. He then enrolled into Matlaul Uloom Madrasah to specialise in Hadith studies under Khalillullah Rampuri and Wajihuddin Rampuri (student of Anwar Shah Kashmiri). He studied there for a few years and obtained first class, first position in the final Hadith exam in 1355 AH (1936 CE). He also attained degrees in tafsir and Islamic jurisprudence.[7]
The Madrasah-e-Darul Qirat Majidiah (now Darul Hadis Latifiah) was "one of the very first Islamic educational institutions in London".[9]
In 1940, Fultali founded the Darul Qirat Majidiah Trust and institutionalized his effort to teach the perfect recitation of the Quran. Now there are more than two thousand branches of the trust throughout the world engaged in educating people in the field of Tajweed.[6][10]
Abdun Nur Ali (1880-1963) of Gorkapon in Badarpur was a Mawlana who requested Abdul Latif Chowdhury Fultali to visit the mosque conjoined to Adam Khaki's shrine. In 1946, Fultali announced that he would be travelling to Badarpur to give a lesson on qira'at at Adam Khaki's mosque.[citation needed] Abd an-Nur Gorkaponi and his students purchased a horse for the scholar to ride on so the journey could be easier.[11] From 1946 to 1950, Fultali was a teacher at the Badarpur Senior Madrasa. He began teaching Qur'an with tajweed from his own home in 1950. As a result of riots in the 1950s, Fultali briefly migrated to Pakistan.[12] Fultali spent six years as a teacher of Hadith studies at the Gasbari Jamiul Uloom Kamil Madrasah. After that, he taught Sahih al-Bukhari, Sunan al-Nasa'i , Sunan ibn Majah, Sahih al-Tirmidhi, Sunan Abu Dawood, Al-Itqān, Nur al-Anwar, Al-Hidayah and Tafsir al-Jalalayn at the Satpur Alia Madrasa and Isamati Alia Madrasa respectively. He finally returned to Fultali Alia Madrasa, where he taught Hadith until his death.[10]
Fultali was the best known and most influential spiritual leader among the British Bangladeshi community. He was based in Bangladesh, but made well-attended visits to the United Kingdom.[14] Among these visits, he established Madrasah-e-Darul Qirat Majidiah in 1978, which has since vastly expanded in London. He was a founder of numerous organisations related to religion, culture and education and a patron to a number of humanitarian and charitable organisations such as Muslim Hands Bangladesh.[6][10][15]
Fultali married Begum Khadijah, the daughter of his pir Abu Yusuf Shah Muhammad Yaqub Badarpuri, in 1345 BS (1938 CE). He also married Mehrunnesa, the daughter of Muhammad Abdur Rashid Khan of Fultali. In total, he had seven sons and three daughters.[17] His seventh son, Husamuddin Chowdhury, is a member of the Jatiya Sangsad.
On Thursday 16 January 2008 at 2:10 am, Fultali died at his home in Subhanighat, Sylhet due to natural causes. His janazah (Islamic funeral) took place the day after his death following Asr prayer led by his eldest son. Reports in Bangladesh estimate that between 2 and 2.5 million attended his janazah. It is also estimated that further hundreds of thousands of people joined the janazah across the Indian border.[5][23][24][25]
An isaal-e-sawab and mahfil (gathering) is held on the anniversary of Allama Saheb Qiblah Fultali's death every year at his village in Fultali and many other places around the world by his students and followers. His grandson, Dr. Ahmad Hasan Chowdhury Shahan (assistant professor of Arabic at Dhaka University) was the editor of one memorial book, Allama Fultali Saheb Qiblah (Ra.) Smarak.[26]
Books
Al-Qawl as-Sadeed fi al-Qir’at wa at-Tajweed, a comprehensive guide to the rule of correct Qur'anic recitation and an addition of the book by his teacher Ahmed Abdullah al-Hejazi. Composed originally in Urdu, it has been translated in Bengali by his son Imaduddin Chowdhury Fultali and into English by Syed Ajmal Husayn Wasi.
At-Tanweer ala at-Tafsir, an in-depth elucidation of Surah Al-Baqarah.
Muntakhab-us Siyar, an Urdu biography of Prophet Muhammad in three volumes. Translated into Bengali by his son, Hussamuddin Chowdhury Fultali.
Anwar as-Salikeen, an Urdu work in the field of Tasawwuf, explaining the different stages of the path for the seeker, and elucidating on how to nurture oneself in preparation for the sacred path. Translated into Bengali by his son Imaduddin Chowdhury Fultali.
Al-Khutbah al-Ya’qubiyyah, a compilation of khutbahs (sermons) in Arabic, including the khutbah for the two ‘Eids (Islamic festivals) and the khutbah for Nikah (marriage). Named after his father-in-law, Hatim Ali Yaqub Badarpuri (d. 1958 CE).
Nala-e-Qalandar, an Urdu compilation of ode in veneration of the Prophet Muhammad and the Awliya.
Nek A'mal, a work in Bengali, elucidating on good actions and the rewards gained for action upon them.[27]
^ abSiddiqi, Bulbul (2018). Becoming 'Good Muslim': The Tablighi Jamaat in the UK and Bangladesh. Springer. p. 121. ISBN978-981-10-7235-2.
^Ahmed, Abdul-Azim; Ali, Mansur (2019). In Search of Sylhet – The Fultoli Tradition in Britain (Thesis). Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK, Cardiff: Cardiff University.
^Hamid, Sadek (2016). Sufis, Salafis and Islamists: The Contested Ground of British Islamic Activism. London & New York: I.B. Tauris & Co. Ltd. p. 74. ISBN978-1-78453-231-4.
