Muhammad Sheikh is a renowned scholar and author of many influential books that readers find appealing to read. He is the founder of one of the most renowned propagation institutes in Canada named IIPC.
Family Background:
Mohammad Shaikh was born on 6th of October, 1952 in the city of Karachi, Pakistan to a renowned Aligarh Muslim University Graduate Ghulam Nizamuddin. Shaikh’s mother Tameez Jehan Begam also belonged to a renowned Muslim family of ancient Delhi.
Shaikh’s grandfather named Ghulam Fareed-Uddin was the chief of Police and honorary Captain of Delhi who was a keen supporter of Muhammad Ali Jinnah (the founder of Pakistan). His younger brother Mohammad Abid served in the Pakistan Army and retired as a Captain in the thirteenth Punjab infantry.
Early Life & Education:
Muhammad Shaikh got his early education from Islamia College Karachi. He received his early Islamic education under the wistful eyes of his father and also from his teacher, named Maulana Hafiz Qari Abdul Haq (Late), from whom he learned to read the Qur’an as a child at Alfalah Masjid situated at PECHS, Karachi.
Biography
After the early Islamic education, Muhammad Shaikh joined his family’s traditional occupation and served in the uniformed services. He was then commissioned in the national police and participated in the Indo-Pak war of 1971. After that, he decided to seek a civilian job, and he joined the merchant navy as a second officer. During his services, he traveled to many countries and met several Christian missionaries who asked if he had read The Holy Quran and when he replied in affirmative. They told him to tell something from the book.
Turning Point in Life
Eventually, on 19th December 1986, some criminals loaded with arms attacked his office in Karachi a struggle, soon ensued and one of the men from the group tried to shoot him and pulled the trigger, but miraculously Shaikh was not hit. This led him to make a covenant with the Almighty that if his life is spared, he will dedicate it to His cause. After that incident, he decided to learn the Holy Quran fearlessly. Also, the spiritual experiences gained during the Hajj (religious expedition to Mecca every year) and dialogues with Christian missionaries while on sea voyages encouraged him to learn his faith and understand religious teachings in more detail.
Association with Sheikh Ahmed Deedat
In 1988, Muhammad Shaikh managed a brief association with the late Ahmed Deedat, South African scholar of comparative religion and founder of the International Islamic Propagation Center (IIPC). At the start, he was the main distributor of Deedat’s videos all over Pakistan and inspired people by giving the lecture on comparative religion. In 1988, Mohammad Shaikh was selected by Deedat to undergo training on Da’wah and comparative religion at the IIPC in Durban, South Africa where he was joined by Scholars from around the world. IIPC Canada’s website has all the details.
When he started to learn this teaching, he noticed that his surroundings started to change. His friends, colleagues, and family members did not like what he was trying to convey. However, Muhammad Shaikh was determined to follow the destined path and was willing to give all the sacrifices this journey required. He did not ever lose his patience and continued the task on hand.
Opposition from Extremists and Assassination Attempt
In 2005, another armed intrusion took place, and assassinators broke into the IIPC building in Karachi and fired gunshots at Mohammad Shaikh from a very close range. Fortunately, his brother urgently rushed him to the hospital, and an immediate surgery eventually saved his life. In the same year, after recovery Muhammad Shaikh performed Hajj with his family and after the great expedition, he was not threatened by the opposition and started giving his lectures again to the audience, all over the world through the Internet.
Mission of Dawah
Mohammad Shaikh always strived to give preference and promotion to the Holy Qur’an as the center point of Islamic beliefs and the principle text for governing the everyday life of a Muslim. His presence for the religious preaching is throughout the year, though he has come under physical attack in the past and faces opposition from the extremists of strife-ridden Pakistan and anti-Islamic forces.
Honorable Credentials
The 500 Most Influential Muslims 2012 Book has acknowledged works of Mohammad Shaikh by including his name in the book for the third consecutive year since 2010, under Category “Preachers & Spiritual Guides”. Preachers confide on charisma to encourage millions of people through multimedia while a spiritual guide teaches them through live study circles and individualized directives to their disciples.
The 500 Most Influential Muslims 2011 Book: Mohammad Shaikh has been acknowledged as one of the most influential Muslims from across the world by The 500 Most Influential Muslims 2011 Book for the second time in a row since 2010 under Category “Preachers & Spiritual Guides”.
The 500 Most Influential Muslims 2010 Book: Mohammad Shaikh has been recognized as one of the most influential Muslims from across the world. This recognition has helped him in securing the Runners-Up position in the book. This honor has been bestowed upon Mohammad Shaikh on account of his life-long dedication to religion.
Ranked 4th Most Influential Muslim in the World on a public poll by Reuters in 2009: Reuters conducted an independent online poll on its blog named Faith-world in 2009 to find out “Who are The Most Influential Muslims in the world for the year 2010, and Muhammad Shaikh was ranked fourth in the list of influential Muslims”.