قرآن و سنت میں "اسلام" کو "دین" کے طور پر متعارف کرایا گیا ہے:-۔
اِنَّ الدِّيۡنَ عِنۡدَ اللّٰهِ الۡاِسۡلَامُ
'اللہ کے نزدیک حقیقی دین صرف اسلام ہے!'
دین نام ہے اُس منظم، منضبط، جامع اور اکمل ضابطے کا جو انسانی زندگی کے انفرادی اور اجتماعی گوشوں کو اپنے مدار میں لاتا، اپنے رنگ میں رنگتا اور اپنی تعلیمات کے پیکر میں ڈھالتا ہے۔ کوئی بھی پہلو اُس کی دسترس سے باہر نہیں رہتا. اسلام اپنے پیروؤں اور ماننے والوں سے تقاضا کرتا ہے
اُدۡخُلُوۡا فِى السِّلۡمِ کَآفَّۃ
(داخل ہو جاؤ دین میں پورے کے پورے)"
چنانچہ:
شبان المسلمین بحمداللہ اُس تحریک کا نام ہے جو اِنہی اغراض و مقاصد کے بالفعل حصول کیلئے برپا کی گئی ہے اور جو پاکستان کو "سایۂ خدائے ذوالجلال" کے مصداق دورِ جدید کی بہترین، مثالی، اسلامی، شورائی، جمہوری اور فلاحی ریاست بنانے کی ہر ممکنہ کاوش و سعی کرے گی تا کہ ثُمَّ تَكُونُ خِلَافَةً عَلٰى مِنهَاجِ النُّبُوَّةٍ کا خواب شرمندۂ تعبیر ہو سکے، اِن شآء اللہ۔
ڈاکٹر علامہ محمد اقبالؒ
برِّ عظیمِ پاک و ہند میں اسلام کا تھوڑا سا بھی درد رکھنے یا ملکِ خداداد پاکستان کی تاریخ سے تھوڑی سی بھی واقفیت رکھنے والا شخص علامہ اقبال کی ہمہ جہت، ہمہ گیر اور انقلابی شخصیت سے ضرور متعارف ہوتا ہے۔ علامہ اقبال نے ایک طرف جہاں قومی جدوجہدِ آزادی کیلئے اپنا کردار ادا کیا وہیں اُن کی شخصیت کا سب سے اہم ترین پہلو اُن کی اسلام کی نشاۃِ ثانیہ کیلئے اپنے آپ کو وقف کرنا ہے۔ علامہ کی شاعری بقول خود اُن کےکہ "وربہ حرفم غیرِ قرآں مضمر است" قرآنِ مجید ہی کی ترجمانی پر مبنی ہیں۔ اور بقول ڈاکٹر اسرار احمدؒ "علامہ اقبال پچھلی صدی کے سب سے بڑے شارحِ قرآن تھے۔" اِس کے ساتھ ساتھ علامہ نے اپنی شاعری میں اسلام کے انقلابی فکر کو نهایت خوبصورتی اور جامعیت کے ساتھ پیش کیا۔ آپ نے اپنی شاعری کے ذریعے مسلمانوں میں ولولۂِ تازہ کی ایک ایسی روح پھونک دی جس نے مسلمانانِ ہند کیلئے آزادی کے سفر کو ممکن بنایا۔ یہ علامہ ہی کی شخصیت ہے کہ جس نے مولانا مودودیؒ کو حیدرآباد دکن سے پنجاب منتقل ہونے اور اسلام کی نشاۃِ ثانیہ کیلئے اپنا کردار ادا کرنے پر آمادہ کیا۔
ڈاکٹرمحمد رفیع الدّینؒ
Dr. Muahmmad Rafiuddin is known as the ‘interpreter of Iqbal’. He advanced the work of Iqbal via his publications. He converted Iqbal’s poetic works into research articles of the highest grade. Dr. Rafiuddin in his book ‘Ideology of the Future’ he proved via highly intellectual arguments the only ideology that will stand the test of times in the future will be Islam’s. He wrote numerous articles about the renaissance of Islam and also provided valuable services with his recommendations on the Islamic educational system in Pakistan. His writings included topics like the right view of history, the correct way of Islamic research, refuting anti-Islam philosophies, etc. He also wrote ‘Hikmat-e-Iqbal’, his masterpiece that explains Iqbal’s teaching and especially his thesis of ‘self’.
شیخ الہند مولانا محمود الحسنؒ
شیخ الہند مولانا محمود الحسنؒ ایک ایسی جامع شخصیت کے مالک تھے جن پر اہلِ سنت والجماعت کے تینوں مکاتبِ فکر (دیوبندی، بریلوی اور اہلِ حدیث) متفق تھے۔ آپ جمیعت علمائے ہند کے پہلے صدر تھے۔ انگریز کے خلاف تحریکِ آزادی کیلئے آپ کی نمایاں خدمات ہیں۔ اسی تحریکِ آزادی کیلئے آپ کی سربراہی میں ریشمی رومال تحریک بھی شروع کی گئی اور اسی سلسلے میں حج کیلئے دورانِ سفرِ حجاز آپ کی گرفتاری عمل میں آئی اور آپ نے اپنی پیرانہ سالی میں چار سال مالٹا میں جیل کاٹی۔ آپ قدیم علوم کا ایک حسین مرقّع تھے جن میں اسلاف کے کردار کی نمایاں جھلک نظر آتی تھی۔ آپ ہی کی نگاہِ عبقری نے مولانا ابوالکلام آزاد کو امام الہند ماننے کی تجویز پیش کی تھی لیکن بدقسمتی سے آپ کی اس تجویز پر عمل نہ ہو سکا۔شیخ الہندؒ نے قرآنِ مجید کا اردو زبان میں ترجمہ لکھا اور پہلے پانچ پاروں کے حواشی بھی تحریر کیے۔ آ پ کی یہ تفسیر بہت مقبول ہوئی جو آج تفسیرِ عثمانی کے نام سے جانی جاتی ہے۔ بقول ڈاکٹر اسرار احمدؒ آپ چودھویں صدی ہجری کے سب سے بڑے مجدّد بھی تھے۔
Shaykh al-Islam Allama Shabir Ahmed Usmani
Shaykh al-Islam Allama Shabir Ahmed Usmani had a scholarly and activist personality. He advanced the work of his pedagogue Maulana Mahmood ul Hassan and completed the annotations for the rest of the twenty five chapters. The translation of Qur’an completed by Shaykh al-Hind with annotations by Allama Shabir Ahmed Usmani is what is currently known as ‘Tafseer-e-Usmani’. He played a prominent role in the freedom movement. After the creation of Pakistan, Quaid-e-Azam assigned Allama the responsibility of hoisting the Pakistan flag officially in East Pakistan. Quaid-e-Azam’s funeral prayer was also led by the good Allama.
Maulana Hameed Uddin Farahi
Maulana Hameed Uddin Farahi was a purely scholarly personality. He was filled with love for the Qur’an. His scholarly contribution for the understanding and pondering on the Qur’an in the form of ‘Nizam ul Quran’ opened up new avenues of clarity of the Qur’an. Working on the reasoning aspect of Qur’an he laid the foundation of a new science of knowledge. He was a prodigious student of Allama Shibli Naumani. In his article ‘Islam and Pakistan’, Dr. Israr Ahmed writes that Maulana’s writings were very simple but well reasoned.
Maulana Amin Ahmad Islahi
Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi was a direct disciple of Allama Hameed Uddin Farahi. Continuing his pedagogue’s work, he wrote a masterpiece entitled “Principles of Qur’anic Studies” on the principles of the Qur’anic structure. Later, he also wrote a tafseer of the whole Qur’an under the title “Tadabbur-e-Quran” in the same style. The good Maulana was amongst the vanguard at Jamaat-e-Islami and he worked with Maulana Maududi as one. He was the only significant player in the Jamat after Maulana Maududi. He authored a masterpiece “Dawat-e-deen aur iss ka tareeq-e-kar” which details the principles, originations, order and gradual advancement of Da’wa and also the purification of the self and its methodology for the readers based purely on the principles given in the Qur’an. In his books, he also goes over the topics of Oneness of Allah and mingling others in Allah’s domain, which per Dr. Israr Ahmed can be considered as the foundation of Qur’anic theology. Other than that he left a treasure trove of scholarly and activist literature.
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
The personality of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was an amalgamation of diverse qualities. Initially he was impressed by Allama Iqbal’s thinking and raised the rallying cry for establishment of God’s law. For this purpose he established a former coalition called ‘Hizbullah’. Abul Kalam Azad was a direct disciple of Maulana Shibli Naumani. A special love and passion for the Qur’an was a trait of his personality. As Dr. Israr Ahmed puts it “Not only his interpretation of Surah Fatiha is a masterpiece of urdu literature, but also a beautiful reflection of the glory and beauty of the Holy Qur’an”. The good doctor also says there is no equivalent of Maulana’s research and investigation into some subjects of Surah Kahf. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad clearly explained the importance of setting up an Islamic system via his publications like ‘Al-Hilal’ and ‘Al-Balagh’. His rallying cry for the establishment of God’s law thundered throughout India and observing his political insight, foresight and his struggle for the same, the well established personality like Shaykh al-Hind Maulana Mahmood ul Hassan proposed to the Islamic scholars of India that they all pledge allegiance to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and accept him as their leader as that young man had reminded them of their forgotten lesson.
Maulana Syed Abul Ala Maududi
The whole life of Maulana Syed Abul Ala Maududi is a struggle for the dominance and establishment of the ‘deen’. Taking directions from the writings of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and his own thought, pondering and knowledge, at a very young age he came up with a masterpiece like ‘Al Jihad fil Islam’, in which he explained the original concept of Jihad and the struggle for dominance of ‘deen’. He laid the foundation of ‘Jamat-e-Islami’ for the same purpose based on the principles of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad’s ‘Hizbullah’. He also clarified the concept of Deen and the concept of Obligations of the deen. His other great contribution is that revolutionary ideology of Islam that existed in Iqbal’s poetry, the Maulana explained in sleek prose and per Dr. Israr Ahmed, the good Maulana deserved to be declared Social thinker based on the comprehensive way he explained the revolutionary ideology of Islam in his writings. Maulana Maudidi also wrote in detail on the issues of life in a movement. Maulana Maududi also wrote a masterpiece of a tafseer called “Tefhim-ul-Quran” that became especially popular in the college and university circles. The tafseer and his other publications played a major role in washing the inner faithlessness of not thousands but millions of westernized Muslims caused by the invasion of western civilizations in the earlier half of the last century.
Dr. Israr Ahmed
Dr. Israr Ahmed needs no introduction. He always mentioned he learned from the above eight. He said it is not that he was in complete agreement with them, but that he learned a lot from them and also had occasional disagreements with some of their teachings. Whether it be the revolutionary ideology of Islam or the intellectual discussion about genuine ‘im’an’, all encompassing concept of obligations to ‘deen’ or the difficult stages of organizing a jama’at, the love of Qur’an and its instruction or its subjects, structure and contemplation on its various aspects, in each those Dr. Israr Ahmed got the basic education of the various aspects of all these from these individuals directly or indirectly. Regarding Tafseer-e-Usmani, he used to say ‘through it, I am clinging to my predecessors’. That is why whenever we see the good doctor giving the lessons for Qur’an or the tour of the Qur’an in Ramadan, we see him doing it via Tafseer-e-Usmani. In our opinion, its important that we mention the contributions to deen that Dr. Israr Ahmed worked on in an organized manner;
اردو 
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