Bohra celebrate 96th birthday of Da’i al-Mutlaq Syedna Burhanuddin

The town of al-Hutaib in the Haraz mountains, a holy place for members of the Bohra Daowoodi sect, hosts a special borthday.

More than 20,000 people belonging to the Bohra Daowoodi sect flocked to Yemen this week from different parts of the world to celebrate the 96th birthday of their sultan, Dr. Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin. The sultan’s birthday was celebrated in the al-Hutaib village in the Haraz district, some 130 kilometers to the west of Sana’a, on May 7, 2007. The Bohra followers from different parts of the world come to Yemen every year as pilgrims to visit their religious shrines in Haraz Mountains and in Hamdan district. 

These special shrines include the shrines of Syedna Hatim Ibrahim in al-Hutaib village in Haraz and the tomb of one of the founders of the sect, Alsayed al-Hatimi in Ghayl Hamdan village, 35 kilometers northwest of Sana’a. The remembrance of the martyrdom of Hadhrat Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Mohammed, is an essential part of every Bohra community activity.  Every year, the head of the community, Dr. Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, delivers religious discourses for nine days during the days of Ashura and these are attended by a large number of community members. Dawoodi Bohra are a subsect of Ismaili Shia Islam, and are based in India.

Their spiritual leader is Dr Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin.  He is known as the Da’i al-Mutlaq and is the 52nd Da’i in an unbroken chain of Da’iyyin. Bohras believe that the 21st Imam, Tayyab Abul-Qasim, a direct descendant of Muhammad via his daughter Fatimatu z-Zahra (Fatima), went into seclusion and established the offices of the Da’i al-Mutlaq, Matheoon and Mukasir. The Da’i al-Mutlaq is the Imam’s representative, with full authority to govern the Dawoodi Bohra community in all matters both spiritual and temporal.

During the Imam’s seclusion, the Da’i al-Mutlaq is appointed by his predecessor in office. The Madhun and Mukasir are in turn appointed by the Da’i al-Mutlaq. A fundamental belief of the Dawoodi Bohras is that the presence of the secluded Imam is guaranteed by the presence of the Da’i al-Mutlaq  Burhanuddin and thousands of Bohras took part in the main celebration, called al-Hutaib al-Mubarak, or “the blessed Hutaib” on May 6. It begins with the Bohras receiving their Imam, and then they go all together to visit the Ziyarat of Syedna Hatim bin Ibrahim’s shrine in al-Hutaib.  Syedna Hatim bin Ibrahim was one of the founders of the Bohra Dawoodi sect in Yemen and across the world. 

Celebrations to honor the birthday of Burhanuddin take place ever year in al-Hutaib, said al-Ezzi al-Harazi, a Yemeni businessman belonging to the Bohra sect. The center of the Bohra is located here, in the heart of the Haraz Mountains.  “Thousands of Bohra men and women come from different parts of the world, mainly from India, to take part in the celebrations of the birthday of Burhanuddin and in the other religious celebrations of the sect,” said  al-Ezzi.  Burhanuddin arrived in Yemen last Wednesday, May 3, 2007 to take part in the celebrations of the Bohra in Yemen and to conduct talks with Yemeni high-ranking officials over the Islamic issues that concern all Muslims across the world.  

The Bohra celebrations this year ware preceded by intense security preparations to avoid any terrorist attacks. The  Prince Taha Saifuldeen, son of Syedna Burhanudeen, arrived in Yemen on April 29 and held talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Dr. Rashad al-Alimi to discuss security issues and make sure their events would be celebrated safely.  The Tourist City complex in Sana’a, which comprises more than 80 buildings, was reported to be fully reserved to accommodate the followers of the Bohra sect who came to Yemen to participate in this event.    Also, several hotels and even houses were booked for lodging them in Sana’a and in Haraz district.   Unlike other Islamic sects, the Bohra sect allows its women to go to the mosques, and take part in the prayers. Several Bohra women were noticed praying in the Grand Mosque of the Old City of Sana’a last Sunday. 

“It is true that Islam ordered women and men to pray in the mosques, but the Hadiths (the prophet Mohammed’s teachings) say that the best place for woman to pray is her house, so I wonder why the Bohra insist to take women to pray in the mosque?” said Mohammed Muthana of Sana’a, who has been praying all his prayers in the Grand Mosque regularly.   Burhanuddin has appointed Syedi Khuzaima Qutbuddin as his Matheoon, the person that officiates at weddings and makes contracts, and Syedi Husain Husamuddin as his Mukasir, a representative of the Imam when he is absent.  Al-Hurra al-Malika of Yemen was appointed the first Da’i in Yemen in the middle of the 12th century A.D.

The Fatimid Da’wat (state) was to remain headquartered in Yemen, India and Pakistan (Sindh) under the leadership of the Da’i al-Mutlaq.  After acute persecution from the Sunni majority in Yemen, the Da’wat shifted to India, and some followers also relocated. However, a large population of Dawoodi Bohras remained in Yemen, and some 200,000 remain today in Haraz, Sana’a and Hamdan.  Some Bohras’ ancestors were converts from Hinduism to Islam in Gujarat, India. Their conversion was the result of the work of some Fatimid missionaries from Egypt and Yemen, which took place before the seclusion of the 21st Fatimid Imam, sometime during the caliphate of Imam al-Mustansir.
 
The converted were largely from the Hindu higher castes, many of whom were engaged in trade and commerce. Later, indigenous converts undertook missionary activities in other regions, such as the areas that today constitute Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra in India.  The word Bohra itself is derived from the Gujarati word Vehwahar, which is interpreted as “trading.” Even today, the community engages mostly in business and trade.  The Yemeni Bohra followers or what the Yemeni people usually call the Makarimah, are mostly businessmen and are well known for their cooperation with each other. 

“We notice that the people from Haraz in the market of Bab al-Salam in Sana’a (the Makarimah) really support anyone among them to start his own business and stand with him until he can make a real successful business,” said Sadiq Mahdi, a trader of clothes in the Bab al-Salam market. “Even their orphans usually receive support from their Sultan until they grow up. Then they are usually given a reasonable sum of money to start their own business,” said Mahdi. 

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