Dr. M.A.M. Shukri: An Intellectual we lost 

By Prof. Dheen Mohamed

Tuesday 26th of the Holy month of Ramadan, which corresponds to 19th of May 2020 carried via social media the sad news of the demise of my dear friend Dr Shukri, Inna lillahi wa inna Ilaihi Raajiʻun. May Allah bless him, shower his mercy and forgiveness on him and make Jannat al-Firdaws his abode. 

 He was one of the few Muslim intellectuals of our motherland Sri Lanka who had worked throughout his life on documenting the history of Islam and Muslims in this country. He developed this interest very early in his career as a student of Arabic and Islamic Civilization at the University of Peradeniya under the patronage of his mentor Late Professor Akhtar Imam whom I had the privilege of being with in the last two days of his life in this world. 

When Dr. Shukri returned to Sri Lanka in late 70s or early 80s of the last century, after obtaining his Ph.D from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, he resuscitated his research in the history of Islam and Muslims in Sri Lanka with a new vigour. The training he received at Edinburgh and the experience he gained there through his countless encounters with scholars, all were utilized fittingly in his continuing research efforts. The outcome of this were the many newspaper articles, and papers published in research journals, and seminars conducted both in Tamil and English. 

The crowning of his endeavours was the scholarly seminar he organized and the volume he edited under the title ‘Muslims of Sri Lanka’ that contained the proceedings of that conference. This endeavour of Dr. Shukri makes him a true historical anthropologist as far as the area of Ceylon-Arab relations and history of Islam and Muslim in this land are concerned. 

Perfectly versed in Tamil, Sinhala, English and Arabic, Dr Shukri was able to guide and train hundreds of young researchers inside and outside the university, and this will remain one of his lasting legacies. Although I came into direct contact with Dr. Shukri in the mid-80s and my friendship with him continued from then on, my first encounter with him goes back to 1968 when, as a young boy of 12 years, I participated in an Arabic speech competition held by Sahitya Mandalaya. Dr Shukri was sitting beside his mentor Prof. Imam, both of whom were officiating as judges. As a lecturer of Islamic civilization he used to publish articles on many issues which I used to read. But I started taking him seriously and held him in high esteem and respect after he published an article in Tamil (most probably in the Tamil Daily Thinapathi) while he was at Edinburgh. It was about Mapillai Lebbe Aalim and his place in the modern history of Muslims of Sri Lanka. It was a very important and timely piece. 

That was the time when some Muslim writers formed what they called “Society of Muslim Progressive Writers” and adopted a modernistic approach to Islam. One of their launching points was the publication of a pamphlet that came down on Mapillai Lebbe Aalim as a symbol of backwardness. The man who came from South India, worked hard to create awareness among Muslims, promoted education among them and built Islamic institutions and takiyyas to spread knowledge and to help boost their social connectivity and activities among them; the man who translated several classics of Muslim Positive Law and produced many other works that helped Muslims to be guided in their practising of faith, suddenly became a preacher of superstitions and a symbol of darkness. The pamphlet created havoc among the Muslims of the country. Some Ulema raised their voices against these writers while others tried to enlighten the public about this great man’s services to Islam. This was the context of Dr. Shukri’s article which was very well received. 

Throughout his life Dr. Shukri had been an advocate of tradition. He was highly influenced by Mapillai Lebbe Aalim’s contributions. He admired his works and services, and highly regarded his intellectual and literary products. I think he also maintained a relationship of fondness and respect with Takiyya Shuaib Alim – another South Indian Sufi and scholar, who has been ranked as one of "The 500 Most Influential Muslims" from 2013 to date – until the end. It is pertinent to note that Takkiya Shuaib Alim is a grandson of Mapillai Lebbe Alim. One of the good things I personally admired in Dr. Shukri was that, although he went to the west for his higher studies he returned home –unlike many others – without being infected by the virus called “modernism”. 

Another aspect of Dr. Shukri that makes me very close to him is his unshaken faith in Sufism, the spiritual dimension of Islam. From his childhood, as I heard from him personally, he was very close to different Sufi circles and acknowledged their impact on him. It was not surprising then to see him choose the field of Tasawwuf as the area of his research at the University of Edinburgh. One of the great Sufi Masters of the 4th century Hijri/10th century CE,Abu Talib al-Makki, author of an extremely significant and renowned Sufi classic known as The Sustenance of Hearts was the topic of his research for his Ph.D. I recall once while waiting with him in Cairo, Egypt, he was telling me of the difficulties he had faced in the beginning in understanding al-Makki’s work and the effort he had to put in to complete his research successfully. He said this in the context of the situation of some young Muslims in Sri Lanka who, without proper training and necessary knowledge and without respect for the scholarly tradition, do not feel ashamed to come forth and issue definitive views on serious matters concerning religion and society, as some others from other cultures also often do. Although Dr. Shukri published a booklet on the Jihad of the Sufis, it is very unfortunate – I should say – that perhaps he could not find the appropriate environment to bring out his expertise in Sufi studies to the full as he would have wished to. 

I was fortunate to have met him after a gap of four or five years on my last visit to Colombo to participate in a Milad Celebration at the BMICH. He was also attending the function. We prayed Magrib together and exchanged views on many things. He called me the next day over the phone and enquired about my current research activities. He complimented me on my analysis of the term “Sabian” in the Qur’an and encouraged me to continue. He also reminded me with gratefulness of the book on Sufi aphorisms I had presented to him when he visited my home in Islamabad some twenty years ago, saying that the book was solace to his heart. I too wished him well and repeated my appreciation to him on the book he was finalizing about Sufism. This telephone encounter took place in the evening of January 12. We concluded by wishing each other and hoping to meet when I returned for my summer vacation during this Ramadan.

It was my sincere desire to meet him this time before I was to proceed to Akkaraipattu. But COVID-19 has forced nations to close the doors of travel and here I am receiving the news of his sad demise a couple of thousand miles away unable to do much more than pen my thoughts in remembrance. It is a great loss for the Muslims of Sri Lanka and others as well. I am sure that he will be remembered as an accomplished humble intellectual of our society and Sri Lanka. I can do little more than stretch out my hands beseeching our Merciful Lord, to welcome Shukri in the folds of His Unbound Mercy, Love and Forgiveness, overlook his shortcomings, grant him the intercession of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and bless him with the proximity of His Prophets and Friends. 

Ameen! 

( Dr. Dheen Mohamed is a Professor at Hamad bin Khalifa University, Qatar)