Founder, TIC
Spiritual Leader of TIC
Vintage Photo, c. 1970s
📜 Historical Background
Shiite Islam was viewed as a new religion for many years by mainly Sunni Muslim Community in Tanzania, until the year 1964 when Marhum Maulana Akhtar Rizvi, under Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania, pioneered successful tabligh programs to native Muslims, towards original Islam, as taught by the Ahlulbait (a.s) of our Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.w).
📖 Tabligh Work
The late Maulana Akhtar Rizvi published many simplified educative books on basic Shiaism, including popular monthly Magazines in Swahili and English, titled “Sauti ya Bilal” and “The Light” respectively, for many years. He also formulated a basic correspondence course on Shiaism, which was aimed at ordinary Muslims. However, the Iranian Monthly Magazine: Sauti ya Umma, also attracted local Muslims to understand Shiaism and reduced prejudices against Shias.
🏫 Bilal Hauza
Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania also conducted a four year course in various disciplines at their Temeke Hauza in Dar Es Salaam. Graduates could not be fully utilized except for a few of them who were dispatched to Bilal Centres in Tanzania.
🕌 Converts to Shiaism
All these tabligh efforts eventually produced converts to Shiaism. As the number of indigenous shias increased, we were faced with spiritual challenges because amid the mainly local Sunni Muslim Community, to embrace new faith in Islam, was looked upon as a social stigma with ridicules. Most of us were isolated and even denied joining prayers in local Mosques.
🤝 Social Integration
On the other hand, we could not integrate easily with our brother Khoja Shias in their few Mosques, because of our different cultures and historical factors. Some few converts were discouraged when they failed to obtain spiritual services and solidarity as they used to enjoy before.
⚠️ Bilal Is Not Ours
All these factors and more prompted some of our veteran elders and Shaykhs to review our relations with Bilal Muslim Mission of Tanzania – which was mistakenly viewed as caretaker for indigenous Shias. The constitution of Bilal Muslim Mission indicated that it is a waqfu under Khoja Shia Ithna’asheri Jamaat, and therefore indigenous shias have no say in it according to the Bilal Muslim Mission Constitution. Furthermore, Bilal Muslim Mission has no provision for membership for indigenous Shias and therefore we cannot raise our concerns in it but likewise, Khoja Ithna’asheri Jamaat Constitution does not accommodate indigenous shias as members of such community.
📈 Increased Indigenous Shias
Amid all these challenges, the number of indigenous converts to Shiaism increased rapidly as local Shaykhs also opened and registered their privately owned Shia Institutions / Hauzas.
🧩 Scattered Shias
Our veteran elders and Sheikhs finally decided to act quickly to arrest the negative impact of scattered indigenous shias countrywide. They agreed to form a legal community in which we shall be free to propagate and practice our new faith in our own native and cultural environment, although such community will be open to all shias regardless of their racial backgrounds.
🏷️ The Name
The first suggestion on the name of our Community was: Tanzania African Ithna’ashari Community (T.A.I.C) but it was considered to reflect racism which is against Islam, and therefore it was finally agreed to change it to Tanzania Ithna’ashariyyah Community (T.I.C).