Why shouldn’t Adduans be very proud of our heritage, history, culture, and our alumni? Why shouldn’t we remember of our efforts to bring a landslide democracy to Maldives? Why shouldn’t we think of the hard work of our forefathers to gain their due respect and humanitarian rights from the central government? Do people even today think of us as separatists? Surely we’re not, for we fought for our rights and for our economical freedom. We fought for our children’s higher education. We never wanted anything more than this, though popular propaganda labeled us as separatists. We were forced to rebel, but the concerned authorities were clearly informed of the consequences. I will go into this issue at a later time.
After the death of well-known Maldivian Islamic scholar Sheikh Muhammadh Jamaaldhdheen (Vaadhoo Dhanna Kaleygefaanu) his teaching were started in Addu Atoll Meedhoo by his students. They were teaching Tawhid, Islamic Sharia, Hadhith, Aqidhah, Fiqh studies and also Islamic eschatology. This teaching was done for sake of Allah, and the service was free. This service was recognized by the Sultans. The judiciary system of the Maldives was mostly headed as Chief Justice by a scholar from Addu Atoll Meedhoo, or by a person who acquired their learning from there, either directly or indirectly.
Traditionally, as Mr. Abdullah Majid of Dhaharaage says, Meedhoo can be classified as a village university of the Maldives. It will not be boastful to say that Addu Atoll was the centre of learning. The nobility of Addu Atoll were given due respect from every level of the Sultanate. As a result of this learning, Addu Atoll was a rather free-thinking society in the Maldives and, culturally, more advanced than the rest of the country. We had a lot of well-known alumni all over Addu Atoll and Fuah Mulaku. Even today this is a proven fact and we should not try to hide such realities.
The last person who filled the post of Chief Justice of Maldives from Addu was Meedhoo Elhage Ali Didi. He served as Chief Justice of Maldives till his death in 1903. After him, no other person from Addu Atoll served in the capacity of a Chief Justice of Maldives. But during the time of Sultan Hassan Nooradheen, Sheikh Hussain Raha (Hussain Sharafudheen) was asked to accept the post of Chief Justice. But he rejected the offer saying he was not fit in health wise to take up the office. But later he told it was better to teach than to take a higher post. He built a school in Hithadhoo and considered a lot of students from Addu and nearby atolls. He was then appointed as the Atoll Chief of the three southern atolls. Although the historical school was their own property, the government forcefully took over the building after paying them off with a paltry amount of money. It was later sold on auction for Rf 2,000. The party who won the auction demolished the school.
The last famous chain scholar from Addu Meedhoo was Al-Allam Al-Sheikh al-Hafiz Ibrahim Thakurufaanu (Aisaabeegedharu Dhon Beiyya). Al-sheikh Hussain Salahuddin from Male’ Dharavandhooge was one of his students. Hussain Salahuddin became the Attorney General at the age of only 18 years. He severed as Chief Justice for a longer period and was the first Maldives Minister of Justice under the written constitution. Salahudhdheen is recognized as one of the most famous and influential writer of his time. He wrote fiction and poetry, collected Maldive idioms, and wrote numerous books on Islam. This is a reflection of his Meedhoo educational background. He then started a school in Male and its name was changed to Majeedhiyya school. Hussain Salahudhdheen took the role of teaching at the new school.
After the death of well-known Maldivian Islamic scholar Sheikh Muhammadh Jamaaldhdheen (Vaadhoo Dhanna Kaleygefaanu) his teaching were started in Addu Atoll Meedhoo by his students. They were teaching Tawhid, Islamic Sharia, Hadhith, Aqidhah, Fiqh studies and also Islamic eschatology. This teaching was done for sake of Allah, and the service was free. This service was recognized by the Sultans. The judiciary system of the Maldives was mostly headed as Chief Justice by a scholar from Addu Atoll Meedhoo, or by a person who acquired their learning from there, either directly or indirectly.
Traditionally, as Mr. Abdullah Majid of Dhaharaage says, Meedhoo can be classified as a village university of the Maldives. It will not be boastful to say that Addu Atoll was the centre of learning. The nobility of Addu Atoll were given due respect from every level of the Sultanate. As a result of this learning, Addu Atoll was a rather free-thinking society in the Maldives and, culturally, more advanced than the rest of the country. We had a lot of well-known alumni all over Addu Atoll and Fuah Mulaku. Even today this is a proven fact and we should not try to hide such realities.
The last person who filled the post of Chief Justice of Maldives from Addu was Meedhoo Elhage Ali Didi. He served as Chief Justice of Maldives till his death in 1903. After him, no other person from Addu Atoll served in the capacity of a Chief Justice of Maldives. But during the time of Sultan Hassan Nooradheen, Sheikh Hussain Raha (Hussain Sharafudheen) was asked to accept the post of Chief Justice. But he rejected the offer saying he was not fit in health wise to take up the office. But later he told it was better to teach than to take a higher post. He built a school in Hithadhoo and considered a lot of students from Addu and nearby atolls. He was then appointed as the Atoll Chief of the three southern atolls. Although the historical school was their own property, the government forcefully took over the building after paying them off with a paltry amount of money. It was later sold on auction for Rf 2,000. The party who won the auction demolished the school.
The last famous chain scholar from Addu Meedhoo was Al-Allam Al-Sheikh al-Hafiz Ibrahim Thakurufaanu (Aisaabeegedharu Dhon Beiyya). Al-sheikh Hussain Salahuddin from Male’ Dharavandhooge was one of his students. Hussain Salahuddin became the Attorney General at the age of only 18 years. He severed as Chief Justice for a longer period and was the first Maldives Minister of Justice under the written constitution. Salahudhdheen is recognized as one of the most famous and influential writer of his time. He wrote fiction and poetry, collected Maldive idioms, and wrote numerous books on Islam. This is a reflection of his Meedhoo educational background. He then started a school in Male and its name was changed to Majeedhiyya school. Hussain Salahudhdheen took the role of teaching at the new school.
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