Yusuf Motala

Shaikh al-Hadith Yusuf ibn Suleman ibn Qasim Motala (born 25 November 1946) is an Indian Muslim scholar of Islam. One of the students and disciples of the late Shaikh al-Hadith Muhammad Zakariyya al-Kandhalwi,

Shaikh's father's family hails from Varethi, a village in the district of Surat, which is located in the state of Gujarat, India. Though their source of income was farming, his paternal grandfather, Qasim Motala, relinquished his land on a contract and adopted business as his source of income. Due to his premature death, Shaikh's father, Sulaiman ibn Qasim Motala, was raised in his mother's care. After reaching puberty, he started a business. His first marriage was into an honourable family of another village in the district of Surat called Hathuran. From that marriage, he had a son named Mohamed Ali. Unfortunately, this wife died within a few years, after which he married Shaikh's mother. Her family hailed from Kholwad, a village on the shores of the Tapisti River in the district of Surat. For unknown reasons, however, they shifted to the village of Nani Naroli. There, they adopted farming as their source of income. Shaikh was born at his maternal grandfather's house in Nani Naroli on the night of Monday, 25 November 1946.

Shaikh completed the recitation and memorisation of the Qur'an and studied Urdu at Madrasa Targhib al-Qur'an. In 1961, he enrolled at Jamea Hussainia, where he completed the first five years of the Alimia course. Thereafter, in 1966, Shaikh enrolled at Madhaahir al-Uloom. His classes commenced on 23 February 1966. He studied Mishkat al-Masabih under Shaikh al-Hadith Yunus Jaunpuri, Tafsir al-Jalalayn under Shaikh Muhammad Aqil, the third volume of Al-Hidayah under Mufti Yahya, and Mishkat al-Masabih for a second time under Shaikh al-Hadith Muhammad Zakariyya al-Kandhalwi.

In the following year, Shaikh studied Sahih al-Bukhari under Shaikh al-Hadith Muhammad Zakariyya al-Kandhalwi, Sunan Abu Da'ud, Sunan al-Nasa'i, and Muwatta Imam Malik under Shaikh Yunus Jaunpuri, Sahih Muslim and Sunan al-Tirmidhi under Shaikh Mudhaffar Husain, and Sharh Ma'aani al-Athar under Shaikh Asadullah.

Upon the instruction of Shaikh al-Hadith Maulana Muhammad Zakariyya al-Kandhalwi, Shaikh established Darul Uloom Al-Arabiyyah Al-Islamiyyah in Holcombe, Bury, Lancashire, in 1973. At present, he is the founder and patron of numerous Islamic institutes throughout the world and spiritual guide to thousands of Muslims all over the world. His students, who number thousands, are scattered across the world, occupied in the service of din in varying capacities. More than 75% of English-speaking Ulama in the UK are graduates of institutes founded by Shaikh, a number of whom are engaged in the reinforcement of community relations. Shaikh is a dedicated educationist and has devoted much of his life to establishing schools and colleges for the betterment of the Muslim community. His work has been praised by both the community as well as OFSTED.

• Darul Uloom Al-Arabiyyah Al-Islamiyyah, Bury (Boys)
• Madinatul Uloom Al Islamiya, Kidderminster (Boys)
• Jami'atul Imam Muhammad Zakariyya, Bradford (Girls)
• Madrasa Misbah al-Uloom, Bradford
• Markaz ul-Uloom, Blackburn (Boys and girls)
• Madrasa al-Imam Muhammad Zakariyya, Bolton
• Madrasa al-Imam Muhammad Zakariyya, Preston
• [Azhar Academy] London, United Kingdom
• Al Markazul Ilmi, Dewsbury, (Girls)