Dear Editor,

Allow me to express my sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Hajji Hyderali of Logwood, who was recently placed to rest after eighty-five years of tireless toil. A son of the soil, his love for his navel-string burial site returned him frequently from his new domicile in North America, and now the same soil has received him with thousands of Guyanese hailing what a brave soul and loving heart we just lost.

This father of many wonderful children was a popular name among Guyanese as he plied his trade of tailoring and textiles across Guyana. I remember him bringing his morning bag to the bank and I was always greeted with a smile; I know how proud he was for me as a student of his madrasa who went on to higher studies.

His dedication to politics was one that revelled in the idea that there is no racism in religion and as a nation we must live as one, so when we walked the streets of Golden Grove in the early ’90s, seeking to resurrect the masjid there, all came out to greet, hug and lend a helping hand. Today the mosque by the seaside sings a happy prayer for a servant who left love as the legacy of his religion, not schism.

Like most learned men, the realities of theological differences do not always sit well, and this Imam of imams did not refrain from defending his staunch beliefs in traditionalism. Nevertheless, he embraced his comrades on the opposite side with respect. In Toronto he was seen as the emblem of a charismatic, tolerant leader, whose works continued to be of benefit far and wide. In New York he was no different, and the many people he touched have swelled the seas with tears and the oceans with grief. A rest is well deserved, not in the bowels of the soil but in Heavenly bliss.

May the leaders, businessmen, fathers and spiritual enthusiasts take a page out of his many chronicles, that when it’s all over what remains is the passion that you loved with, even if it was for seemingly lesser things!

One saying of the Prophet that resonates from his classes is, whosoever treads the path of knowledge, God facilitates his way to Paradise.

May his loved ones receive solace and inspiration to continue.

Yours faithfully,
Habeeb Alli