The Bilal Muslim Mission is an international Shi'a twelver organization, established in East Africa on December 25, 1964[1] through the efforts of Sayyid Saeed Akhtar Rizvi, Hussein Nasser Walji and other dedicated volunteers.[2] The organization is named after Bilal ibn Ribah, the famous Ethiopian Sahabi.

History

When the organization was established, there were hardly any Shi'a communities of native African origin in the Sub-Saharan Africa. Now, there are several.

The website of their Tanzania branch writes:

When past Chairman Ebrahim Hussein Sheriff went to see Ayatullah Uzama Seyid Muhsin Al-Hakim A.M. in early Sixtys: Ayatullah asked Haji Ebrahim “How long are you people in East Africa?” to which Haji-Ebrahim replied “About a hundred years.” “How many Africans have accepted Mazhabe Haq?” Was the next question. To which the reply was “none”. Immediately Agha asked Haji Ebrahim that “Will these people not complain on Youmal Hashr that you knew the right path, yet you did not show them?” Allamah Sayyid Saeed Akhtar Rizvi conceived a plan in 1962, for propagating Islam.[3] His plan was proposed and approved at the triennial Conference of the Supreme Council of Africa Federation of K.S.I Jamaats of Africa in Tanga in 1964.[3] and became the Bilal Muslim Mission.[3] BILAL MUSLIM MISSION OF TANZANIA was established in 1968 and a sister organization BILAL MUSLIM MISSION OF KENYA was incorporated in 1971 and Allamah Sayyid Saeed Akhtar Rizvi became Chief Missionary.[4]

They are now part of the World Federation of KSI Muslim Communities, an international umbrella organization[1] that was formed in the 1976, after 1500 Shi'a twelver families emigrated from East Africa to the United Kingdom and Canada.[5]

The carried out missionary efforts aimed at both non-Muslims and Sunni Muslims, and their efforts intensified after the Iranian Revolution.[6]

In the late 1970s, the Bilal Muslim Mission and World Organization for Islamic Services had sent many books to America, by July 1977, about 5,770 books and booklets had been mailed out.[7]

The Bilal Muslim Mission had been able to accomplished at lot in its objective of spreading the true teaching of Islam, through the hard work of its dedicated founders. This was achieved with very limited means and resources. Main source of spreading the true faith was person to person or through correspondence and publication of books and its dissemination. People from Guyana in South America to Poland in Europe and from Malaysia to West Africa benefitted and embraced the true Islam.[8]

At present, 2017, the Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania a still trying to get its rhythm since the void left by the death of Allama Sayyid Saeed Aktar Rizvi.

The Bilal Muslim Mission is recognized by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs.[9]

Member organizations

Publications

Bi-monthly magazines:

  • Sauti ya Bilal (The Voice of Bilal) to cater for the Swahili readers,[4] since 1965.[2]
  • 'The light' which has global readership,[4] since March, 1963.[2] This magazines also spawned a book named “Muhammad is the Last Prophet”.[10]

Books: The Mission has more than 108 (57 English, 51 Swahili) books written on a wide range of Islamic topics.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 "World Federation of KSI Muslim Communities". Archived from the original on 2006-04-29.
  2. 1 2 3 "victory news magazine". Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  3. 1 2 3 "- Victory News Magazine - Passing Away of Alama as-Sayyid Akhtar al-Rizvi". www.victorynewsmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "darulmuslimeen.org". Archived from the original on 2007-07-16. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  5. ↑ Mapping Women, Making Politics: feminist perspectives on political geography By Linda J. Peake, read online on Google Books
  6. ↑ Islam and Politics in Kenya By Arye Oded, online on Google Books
  7. ↑ Larry Poston, Islamic Da’wah in the West, (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), 128-129. on du.edu Archived 2006-09-22 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ↑ "About Us – Bilal Muslim Mission". www.bilaltz.org. Archived from the original on 10 May 2018. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  9. ↑ "moia.gov.in". Archived from the original on 2006-12-17. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  10. ↑ "dartabligh.org: Global Bookstore". Archived from the original on 2007-10-19. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  11. ↑ Music and its Effects, read online on Google Books
  12. ↑ Bilal Muslim Mission
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