How Did Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha Become A Force To Reckon With In Nigeria’s Dawahscape?
In my opinion, here are the 5 main reasons his Dawah got wide acceptance:
1. Allah’s Rahmah
There is no iota of doubt that there is no success except by Allah’s permission. He grants success to whoever He wishes and elevates whoever He wishes. If Allah stands with you, no one can stand against you.
“Victory is only from Allah. Indeed, Allah is Mighty, All-Wise” [Anfal:10].
That Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha’s Dawah has reached the nooks and crannies of the world and continues to impact Muslims positively, trust me; it can only be Allah.
I’ve seen him overcome several battles, both internal and external. Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha once told us how some people planted a charm in his car. He was looking for something and decided to check under his car seat where he found the charm. Or is it the conspiracies of some hypocrites and the scheming of envious people that we want to talk about?
Allah has indeed been merciful to Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha and the mainstream acceptance can only be Allah’s doings.
2. Parents’ Prayers
If you’re conversant with the Eleha family, you would know that Shaykh Imran comes from a noble family of scholars. His father, Shaykh Abdul Majeed Eleha popularly known as Baba Eleha was an ‘Aabid (pious worshiper) and ‘Aalim (scholar).
Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha has narrated times without number how Allah answered his father’s request that Allah should make him an Alfa Sunnah (Sunnatic Scholar) and it is obvious that Allah accepted his prayer. According to Shaykh Imran, his father was well above 75 years old when he was born. Baba Eleha spent more than 100 years on earth.
One of the blessings Shaykh Imran enjoyed was that Baba Eleha spent his last years in Shaykh Imran’s house. Shaykh ensured Baba was well taken care of, as one of their female family members was placed in Baba’s quarters and took care of him until he returned to his Lord. We all know the blessing a child receives when he takes care of his aged parents.
Every morning, Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha would check on his father on the bed he was confined to. I once accompanied him on one of those visits and even though I couldn’t hear what Baba was saying, I knew he was praying for Shaykh because he was saying Aameen.
Prophet Muhammad [PBUH] say رضا الله فى رضا الوالدين.
“The pleasure of Allah is in the pleasure of the parents.”
Let me narrate another story to show that Baba Eleha’s prayer was a key factor in his son’s successful Dawah mission. Shaykh Daud Alfa Nla AbdulMajeed once attended the Aqeeqah of Imam AbdWaahid Eleha’s son. When he was now giving testimony of Allah’s favors in the lives of the Eleha family – the majority of them are scholars – and the impact of Baba Eleha, he said the reason why the Eleha family has become so blessed and prominent was the prayer of their father.
He now sang a waka that I will never forget…
It goes thus…
Awa kọ, Olohun nio Awa kọ Olohun ni
Baba wa lo s’adua fun wa Awa kọ Olohun ni
It is not by our doing, It is Allah’s doing It is not by our doing, It is Allah’s doing
Our father had prayed for us. It is not by our doing, It is Allah’s doing.
When Baba died, Shaykh was so devastated, although thankful for a life well-lived. You could feel it in his countenance. He was the only prominent child of Baba Eleha who was around when Baba died due to Shaykh Daud and Shaykh Luqman being far away in Hajj that year.
Shaykh Imran composed this prayer and we the Omo Kewu always recited it at every Waasi we went to around that time. It goes thus…
.
يا رب اغفر لشيخنا ### عبد المجيد بابا ايليخا
أنزل على قبره رضا ### متعه بالثلج والثناء
O Lord, forgive our Sheikh Abdul Majeed Baba Eleha
Send your pleasure to him in his grave and purify him with snow and praise.
People came from all over Nigeria to commiserate with Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha when Baba Eleha died. It was then I began to know how important and well connected Shaykh is (and by Allah, I am not even exaggerating).
3. Clarity of Purpose
Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha knew what he set out to do from the onset. He had a clear vision of what he wanted to achieve.
When he began planning to open Daaru Na’im schools, Shaykh shared his vision to make it an international school of high repute. Alhamdulillah, I was there when Daaru Na’im started and indeed I was among its first teachers although I only taught during the long holiday before resumption. Mallam Is’haq was the first head teacher. There was another brother by the name of AbdAzeez (popularly known as Albaanee). These two brothers were students of the then Barrister Sayi, now Hon Justice. Mallam AbdJaleel Olayinka, my elder sister’s friend, was also one of the early teachers. I watched how Daru Naim started from just a block of classrooms and grew into a gigantic edifice with buildings across 3 streets in Jemi Alade Estate. Alhamdulillah for the growth.
One day, Shaykh Imran Abdmajeed Eleha noticed that a student had stopped attending the holiday lesson which he told me to follow him to see the child’s parents. When we got there, the boy’s mother said she wasn’t sure about the school’s standard hence her decision to return him to his former school. Knowing what informed her decision, Shaykh then assured her that Daaru Na’im will never compromise on standard and that insha Allah, it was going to be amongst the best Islamic schools which made the woman have a change of mind and allowed her son to resume his lessons. True to his words and by Allah’s mercy, Daaru Na’im school has not only become one of the biggest Muslim schools in Lagos, the students have won several laurels confirming its standard.
I have always known Shaykh to raise the bars in everything he does. He doesn’t identify with mediocrity, and he believes that whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well.
4. Sound Knowledge and Effective Teaching Methods
There is no doubt Allah has blessed Shaykh Imran with beneficial knowledge and deep understanding of the Deen. Shaykh began his journey to Islamic education and scholarship from an early age, learning from his father and attending different Islamic schools within and outside Nigeria. I won’t want to bore you with his academic profile. His profile was read at the just concluded conference. Listen to it on Daaru Na’im’s Facebook page.
Shaykh Imran’s depth of knowledge is glaring even to the blind. Even his critics know that he is loaded. One Ustaz from Ilorin who had a fallout with Shaykh Imran over manhaj issues once confessed that “Shaykh Imran mọ kewu.” His erudition has never been in doubt, as his lectures are always well-researched and value-packed. His weekly Halqah sessions is always a delight to watch. Shaykh has a way of breaking down complex topics in a way that even a novice would understand. Also, Shaykh maintains an academic approach to Fiqh issues by presenting multiple views on a particular Mas’alah (issue) before mentioning his preferred option. This allows the listeners to understand the diverse views of scholars relating to an issue and making an informed decision.
Not only this, Allah has blessed him with eloquence and beautiful presentation. He’s someone you can refer to as صاحب الفصاحة والبلاغة (the eloquent one). At Daaru Na’im, I witnessed how people embraced the Sunnah because of the manner in which Shaykh presented the message. His methodology mimics that of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in the way he maintains a balance (Wasatiyyah). He follows Allah’s instructions by “calling people to the path of Allah with wisdom and beautiful preaching”.
I was gobsmacked by his erudition when I first met him. Like many Sunnah scholars, his library is filled with priceless volumes of books. One thing that amazes me is that for most of the books I’ve picked in his library, there’s always a sign that Shaykh has read it either by writing short notes or underlining a key area of interest.
Also, I am astonished by his profound knowledge of Usul and Tafseer. One day, Shaykh was advising two of his nephews who used to live with him on the need to take their Solat more seriously. Amongst many things that Shaykh said, he added the family of Eleha being known for their devotion to Islam so it behooves them to practice the religion of their forefathers. Shaykh supported his advice with a verse from Surah Maryam:
﴿ ۞ فَخَلَفَ مِن بَعْدِهِمْ خَلْفٌ أَضَاعُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَاتَّبَعُوا الشَّهَوَاتِ ۖ فَسَوْفَ يَلْقَوْنَ غَيًّا﴾
[ مريم: 59]
Then after them came successors who neglected prayer and followed desires. They will meet with destruction. [Mariam:59]
Shaykh decided to do the entire Tafsir of Surah Maryam in that sitting without making reference to any book of Tafseer. That instance created an indelible impression on me.
Additionally, Shaykh has a very sharp memory; his ability to recall past events and recite things he learnt decades ago is top-notch. I can go on and on recounting Shaykh’s depth of knowledge but I’m sure you must have seen a glimpse of this for yourself.
5. Devotion to Dawah
Over the years, Shaykh Imran has shown remarkable consistency in his Dawah. Apart from honoring lecture invites, Shaykh’s phone is always buzzing with phone calls of people who want to ask religious questions. His Ramadan is always overbooked and despite running a daily Ramadan Tafseer.
I once followed him to three different lectures one day and we still returned to Daaru Na’im for his evening Tafseer and “waasi ale” (night lecture). Even though his Benz wasn’t in a good condition at that time, he still made himself available whenever he received a Dawah invite. That was when I began to appreciate the importance of efficient mobility to Dawah.
The Annual Conference, amongst other Dawah activities, is the testament to Shaykh’s devotion to Dawah. One thing I know about Shaykh is his penchant for excellence. Shaykh Imran epitomizes the hadith of the Prophet that encourages Itqan (perfection). It is reported that Allah’s Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Verily, Allah loves that when any of you does a job, he should perfect it.”
Furthermore, Shaykh is a great coordinator and communicator who is adept at spotting talents, assembling teams and putting them to good use. There is no doubt that the just concluded conference was a product of meticulous planning and seamless delivery.
I first witnessed his excellent organizational skill at the first Daaru Na’im seminar (or was it the second one, I’m not sure) where Shaykh invited eminent scholars to do justice to the topics. The seminar was well-attended by students of prominent Madrasahs across many Nigerian states and the programmes panned out well. Alhamdulillahi, the last conference makes it the 15th of its kind and Daaru Na’im continues to break new grounds in the realm of Sunni Dawah. May Allah reward Shaykh and his entire team. Ameen.
Finally, I am indeed grateful for passing through Shaykh AbdulMajeed Eleha. He is indeed a special breed and I can say it boldly anywhere that I am very proud to have learnt directly from him (I am not a halqah student o, I was his classroom student). Even though I didn’t spend more than a year at Daaru Na’im, I took with me lifelong lessons that I keep applying till today.
May Allah in His infinite mercies continue to protect him and his family from evil people and their plots. May He continue to elevate him and expand his coast. May Allah bless him with a long life and a successful ending, and accept his efforts in the service of Islam as an act of Ibadah. Aameen.
If you have read up till this point. Thank you. May Allah reward you. Kindly say a word of prayer for my teacher.
Hafiz Akinde writes from United Kingdom (UK).
Read Also: Shaykh Imran AbdulMajeed Eleha As I Know Him – Part 1 By Hafiz Akinde
