مولوی عبید اللہ اور ان کی تصنیف ”تحفۃ الہند“ کا مطالعہ

A Study of Maulavī‘ Ubaid Allāh’s Tuḥfat al-Hind

Abstract

Maulavī ‘Ubaid Allāh, sometimes known as Pandit Maulavī, was born in a Hindu family and was brought up as a Pandit. During the course of his education, he became disillusioned with his faith. He started studying other faiths and held discussions with Christian missionaries and Muslim ‘ulamā’. Finally, he became convinced that Islam was the truest among all the religions. After his conversion to Islam, he wrote Tuḥfat al-Hind, which polemically compares Islam with Hinduism. Needless to say, the book asserts the supremacy of Islam over other religions, in general, and Hinduism, in particular. Due to its content and simple Urdu prose, the book gained significant popularity among Urdu readers in its time. This article explores the life and times of Maulavī ‘Ubaid Allāh, introduces the contents of his Tuḥfat al-Hind, and finally assesses the impact of his work on the religious lives of Muslims of the subcontinent.