Sheikh Mohamadou Mourtada Mbacke
Sheikh Mohamadou Mourtada Mbacke
Shaykh Murtada Mbacke was born in 1921, during the time of Khadim-r-Rassũl house arrest in Diourbel. His mother Soxna Fat Tout Diop, daughter of Soxna Fatu Tacko Diop, originated from Dorega, Coki. He was only five years old when his illustrious father passed away in 1927. He grew up under the wing of his eldest brother, Shaykh Muhammadu Mustafa (1888-1945), the eldest son of Shaykh Ahmadu Bamba, and first caliph of the Muridiyya, who particularly watched him, grew up and took personally care of his intellectual and religious education. Thus, he spent his youth with his brother Mustafa who, in spite of his other siblings, displayed so much affection for the young Murtada and took him later to other masters where he completed his memorization of the Holy Quran. He was later sent to Mauritania where he begun to study classical religious sciences like Theology (Tawheed), Law (Fiq), Sufism (Tasawwuf), grammar, rhetoric etc.
After his return he reunited with his brother who frequently traveled with him within the country in order to further his experience and improve his skills regarding the handling of the communities’ affairs.
He had a strong personality and the firm determination to possess orthodox science in accordance to the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh). He was already displaying in his youth eminent qualities befitting only those endowed with sainthood. He was armed with an unquenchable thirst for spirituality and Love of the Lord. So he decided later on, after the death of his illustrious tutor, to retreat himself for a long time in the company of a handful disciples, quietly in the forest of Bambuck (former far East Senegal) to meditate and devote himself to harsh religious practices.
He only consented to return upon his brother’s request, Shaykh Muhammadu Basher, and to dedicate himself to what would become one of the largest projects in Muridiyya. Propagating the message of Islam around the world, educating and instructing Murid disciples disseminated around the world.
Shaykh Murtada has positively impacted the life of people in his entourage, through his ability to bear life’s harshness and always share with the needy, in spite of early difficulties he faced due to the scarcity of means. Thus he strictly learned to stand and overcome fatigue, illness that never prevented him from performing his duty, he would only rest in the achievement of his mission. Achievement of any project beneficial to Islam, building mosques and religious learning centers, convert non-Muslims to Islam, bring assistance to the poor and the needy.
This great scholar, who was perpetuating an exceptional spiritual legacy, largely invested himself in the education field by implementing throughout the country and in Senegalese communities around the world, schools to teach the Quran, religious and profane sciences where several generations of educated people in the country graduated from.
The Al-Azhar institution is nowadays the largest private school network of Senegal with hundreds of students, disseminated in the eleven regions of the country and abroad (Africa, Europe and the United States). Up to June 2006 the institution counted three hundred schools with more than 40.000 students, hundreds of teachers fully employed and paid with the little financial contribution from students, most of whom are in the tuition- free program of the institution. The noble objectives that geared the creation of the Al-Azhar institution are:
• Strengthen the authentic faith of Muslims, and ensure they receive good religious and intellectual training according to Shaykh Ahmadu Bamba’s project of society.
• Efficiently contribute to fight against ignorance and underdevelopment, unemployment, acculturation, delinquency plagues.
• Contribute to the national planning for training, educating and mutual assistance
These initiatives of Shaykh Murtada turned out to be more remarkable, and essential as they reflect and materialize, in a modern and prospective approach the place of choice that was given to the acquisition of knowledge in the teachings of Shaykh Ahmadu Bamba who never stopped from stressing its importance in many of his writings.
The work of Shaykh Muhammadu Murtada spread throughout the world thanks to his annual visits around the world to spread ad revivify the peaceful message of Islam. Restless missionary of the religion of Allah, he would travel from continent to continent inviting humanity to Islam and reminding the disciples the commandments of the Lord. The most remote areas of Senegal as well as the largest cities in the world welcomed him: Paris, Rome, Madrid, New York, Abidjan, and Johannesburg.
He has ignited or enlivened several murid community centers in areas where Islam was not always welcomed and where its image was often twisted. Shaykh Murtada was able to convince his official hosts with an alternative vision of a tolerant and forgiving religion to the point of converting a good deal to Islam. The Murid community, thus, became more respected and honored thanks to his actions, throughout the annual Shaykh Ahmadu Bamba day celebration, in several U.S. cities, and the Murid Cultural days at the United Nations headquarters.
Shaykh Murtada Mbacke first visit to the U.S in 1988, was very well acclaimed in the Murid community, that saw in his arrival the appeasing sign to many of the ordeals they were facing in their quest for a voice and authority who could mediate for their smooth integration in the American society,
That wish was materialized thanks to his gifted talent to captivate people’s attention and positively impact their thinking about the religion of Islam. In fact, Shaykh Murtada was introduced to the influential official representatives of the black community in Harlem, NYC, where is concentrated most members of the Murid community.
He then began to build a fraternal relationship that will lead to the proclamation of Shaykh Ahmadu Bamba Day in NY, followed by other ones in every city where there is a strong Murid community.
In so doing, Shaykh Murtada lifted high the peaceful and tolerant image of Islam within the African American Muslim communities and at the same time showed the cultural dimensions of the Muridiyya, the many aspects of which remained unknown to the average American citizen.
He has then reestablished the connection and abridged that waning bond which existed between African-American communities in the U.S. and other communities from the motherland Africa. Thus, he converted many African-American brothers and sisters from all walks of life to Islam. He reinvented a new way of return to the motherland for many African-American Muslim children, whose parents were eager to entrust their religious education to Shaykh Murtada, by sending them to Ndame (Touba) where the main Qur’anic schools of Shaykh Murtada are and the birth place of the Al-Azhar Institution.
Now several Murid community centers or Dahira (Tuubaa-Michigan, Tuubaa North-Carolina, Tuubaa-Chicago, Tuubaa-Montreal, Tuubaa-LA, and Tuubaa-Atlanta) just to name a few, have their Shaykh Ahmadu Bamba Day proclamation or are on the verge of being granted a proclamation.
Shaykh Murtada, who was totally cognizant of the divine mission to take the flag of Islam as far as he could, left behind him a huge spiritual and cultural heritage that is symbolized in the United States by the celebration of Shaykh Ahmadu Bamba Day in NYC. Such event is the largest Murid event abroad, for all fifty states are strongly represented. The event is marked by a parade on Adam Clayton Avenue, in Harlem, from 110th street to the municipal building at 125th street.
It is important to remind the essence or meaning behind such celebration: it is a way to show the spiritual dimensions of a peaceful and tolerant Islam as envisioned by the Qur’an and the cultural dimensions of Muridiyya.
Serigne Mame Mor, the actual caliph of the late Shaykh Murtada has taken the relief and together with the support of the whole murid community around the world is perpetuating the legacy left by his honorable late father, through annual visit-tours.
