An interview with Sheikh Abdul Wakil Akhoondzada

Abstract

Diwan Journal: Dear Abdulwakil Akhundzada, thank you immensely for taking the time to visit the Hikmet Association. Could you please provide us with information about your name, pen name, father's name, place of birth, and year of birth?

Abdulwakil Akhundzada: Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah and his family and companions. I am grateful for the invitation to the Hikmet Association. May Allah grant health and well-being to all of you working in this institution. My name is Abdulwakil, and I am known by the pen name Akhundzada. My father's name is Molla Abdulresul Akhund; that is why I am called Akhundzada, as my father was an Akhund. An Akhund is someone who leads prayers in a mosque, has a lower academic level, does not wear a turban, and teaches children.

Diwan Journal: How did the term "Akhund" become widespread, and to which geography and language does it belong?

Abdulwakil Akhundzada: The terms Akhund, Molla, and Damla come from Transoxiana. In Transoxiana, a Damla referred to someone who had graduated. The term Molana comes from Pakistan.

Diwan Journal: ...