A Treatise on Sheikh Umar Aliyyee Galamsiyyi

Written by: Afendi Muteki

The mosque depicted in this photo is found in my hometown. It was built originally by Sheikh Umar Aliyye Al-Harariyyi Al-Galamsiyyi who lived from about 1880 to 1950 and whom the elders of my town remember as a man of many virtues. He was a preacher, teacher, writer, poet, geographer, historian, humanitarian and traditional healer. He is credited for founding the first Islamic educational center of Gelemso town and the second mosque of the town (the first being that of Aw-Seid which is known only in oral history). His personal charisma and tangible achievements tell you the strength and brilliance of once mighty generation of Islamic scholars and thinkers of our country. On the whole, I definitely say he is one of the few influential persons in history of Galamso town.

Sheikh Umar Aliyye was born around 1880 in Mata-Mura village which is found on 15 kms south of Galamso. It is said that his long career as a religious scholar came to be true in a miraculous way. The elders of Galamso town say that Seikh Ali Jaamii Guutoo, the last Qaalluu (the highest religious priest) of the traditional Caffee Assembly of Oda Bultum and the first Muslim to hold that position, started to invoke Allah around the end of his life in order to get a reliable scholar whom he would assign as a heir to his religious career. One day, elders say, the mother of Sheikh Umar Galamsiyyi came to visit Sheikh Ali Jaamii to seek religious guidance on different matters. Then, she had the young Umar on her back that aged only about 3-5 months. Looking at her infant, the old Sheikh Ali Jaamii said “This boy seems the one we are looking for. He seems to be empowered by Allah to grow to an ideal heir who would continue what we have sown and would achieve our goal. May Allah enlighten him in all suefull knowledge. May Allah make him the one who will benefit the whole people”.  Allah heard Sheikh Ali’s prayer and made the then infant boy one of the instrumental figures in religious history of the whole of Harerghe Highlands.

Sheikh Umar attended most of his Islamic studies in Dawwee district of the former Wallo province. He returned back to Gelemso around 1915 with his favorite and long time friend called Sheikh Muhammad Harar (the tomb of this Sheikh is located at Ciroo/Asbe Teferi town). Sheikh Umar built his “Hadra” (religious compound) at Mata Mura, his birth place and started teaching the people of the area. When Italy invaded the country in 1936, he was promoted to the Qaadii of the former Carcar Awraja (today’s West Harerghe Zone). Some landlords of the area were dissatisfied at his promotion and burned down his “Hadra” killing many of his disciples. He left Mata Mura then and moved to Gelemso town where he built another “Hadra” and his mosque.

He worked as a Qadii of Carcar under the Italians. However, in doing so, he didn’t move in any way to revenge the burning of his Hadra and the killing of his disciples by the rebels. He rather shown an exemplary amnesty for those who attacked him and even, using his position as a Qaadii, he greatly supported the rebels who were fighting to expel out the Italian colonists. For example, when the Italians were going to punish the captured Ethiopian rebels by hanging them in public squares and market places, Sheikh Umar used to intervene, argue with the Italian military officials and convince them to change the death penalty to impressments. He also boldly argued with the Italians and convinced them to increase the wages they were paying to the laborers who were employed at a huge construction site located on 20 kms east of Gelemso. Further, Sheikh Umar Galamsiyyi succeeded to convince the Italians to allow those laborers a monthly work leave in the fasting Month of Ramadan (The laborers were known as “Kulii Faabaa”. The elderly people still call the construction site “Kinteerii”- derived from the Italian “cantiere” which was to mean “construction site” or “construction project”. The project was launched to build a new town which was assumed to be a living place for the Italian settlers planned to be brought in from Southern Italy. Now, the old site turned to a new town called “Waaccuu”).

When the Italians were ousted, the good things he did for Ethiopian prisoners of war during the five years occupation increased his merit in the site of the ruling monarchy, and Emperor Haile-Silasie invited him for an award of patriotism and an honorary title (like “Dajjazmach”, “Fitawrari” etc). But Sheikh Umar Aliyyee declined the invitation saying “We did good things not to please anybody but it is our duty to do so. And we expect our award only from Allah who created us”. Haile Silasie smiled at the response and left the award. But he gave two Gasha (80 acres) of land to Sheikh Umar and the latter accepted it. Throughout his life, the sheikh never used the land as a means to accumulate wealth by subjugating the poor tenants as many landowners of the time were doing; he used it just as an input to support his long career of educating the people. (The land was found in Daro Labu district, and it had a boundary with a famous plot owned by Ras Biruu Wolde- Gebriel, a son of Dajjazmach Wolde-Gebriel Abba Seytan and one of the ministers in the cabinet of Ras Teferi Mekkonen in 1920-1930s. Latter in this essay, you will read an interesting story about an incident occurred around this plot of land).

As a teacher of many disciples, Sheikh Umar Galamsiyyi played a vital role in institutionalizing the ordinary teaching and learning condition which was persistent in Harerghe prior to his time. Through his eloquent speeches, he increased the peoples’ awareness about the importance of education in building a civilized and determined society. He extended the scope of the subjects he taught from purely Islamic fields to other important fields like Geography, Hisaab (Aljebraa), History etc... In order to promote the disciples’ attendance in education, he constructed many houses that served as a residence of his students (most of those houses are still standing).

Many people had attended their education under the tutorship of Sheikh Umar Galamsiyyi. His famous students include Sheikh Bakrii Saphaloo (the inventor of the famous “Saphaloo Alphabet”), Sheikh Muhammad Xullaab (a long time Imam and chief Sheikh of Ciroo town), Mufti Muhammad Saalih (one of the first Oromos to graduate from Al-Azhar University), Sheikh Hassan Aannanoo, Haaji Umar Arboyyee (a well known Sheikh based at a place called Darakkuu), Haji Muhammad Khaliif ( a founder of a well-known religious center at Fal’aanaa town in East Harerghe) and many more. However, in my thought, the most astonishing student of Sheikh Umar Galamsiyyi was a man called “Vaska”.

Who was this Vaska? How could he become a disciple of Sheikh Umar? I will end my essay by sharing what was written once by Professor Girma Yohannes Eyyasu, a grandson of Lij Eyyasu Mikael and a member of the family who eye witnessed incidents that made up the story. The story is taken from an online e-mail correspondence done between a writer called Richard Shaltzer who mentioned in his book about a Russian boy called “Vaska”, and Professor Girma Yohannes Eyyasu who was asking the way he could get the books written by that writer. When Professor Girma wrote his first e-mail, Richard Shaltzer asked him about “Vaska”. Then, Professor Girma replied the following.

 “Dear Richard:

Yes, I heard a lot about Vaska; but people like my grandmother used to tell us about "Baska". The story is as follows; but, as I was reading your book of Bulatovich, I was not thinking about our "Baska the young black FERENJ"( Ferenj means White in Amharic).

Baska, told me my grandmother -was very well known at the court of Ras (and after 1914 King) Mikael of wollo(Father of Lij Iyassu -my Grandfather).King Mikael thought, the young man who spoke the language of the Ferenj, could help him as a translator and teacher for his children. Baska also learned Amharic at the court. King Mikael has also tried to get him a wife from the noble family of Wollo; but Baska rejected and told the king that he was a eunuch. King Mikael was sad about the young man and asked him who did that to him. Baska told the King that happend during his childhood to him and it was an officer of Cherencho the King of Kaffa.

Cherencho was in Prison at that time and King Mikael wanted to punish him for that, but his son Lij Iyassu who was in power at the time(1910-1916) did not accept the idea. After the battle of Segele (between the Shoans and King Mikael in 1916) and after King Mikael was captured by Teferi Makonen (late Haile Sellasie), Baska went to the Province of Hararghe with my grandmother in Cher-Cher district. My grandmother who is the daughter of Dejazmach Woldegebriel and elder sister of Ras Birru owned a very large Land and property there.

She told us that sometimes she was angry with him because he ate meat, eggs or drank milk on wendsdays fraidays which was a taboo to the Christians. At the age of 25 Baska wanted to be a Monk and go to monastery, but he thought he will not success. Baska finally started to write and read arabic, his teacher was Mohammad Ubadin an immigrant from Jemen and a close friend of my grandmother (because he bought a piece of land from her and as an importer he brought her some Pieces of clothes and perfumes).

But on one Friday in the month of may Baska came very late in the afternoon to my grandmother and told her that he came late because he was converted to Islam. My grandmother was near to heart attak as she heard that; she shouted and get mad, but Baska told her that he was not satisfied with his own life and want to serve only "the Almighty".

At the same day he collected his belongings and went to the town called Gelemso; which is about 65 or so Kms away and joined Shaik Umar Ali.

After 10 years my grandmother visited him at Gelemso. The story is interesting. My grandmother and the Shaik had a land dispute which lasted about seven years, before going to the higher court Baska solved the problem at once. He advised both in such a philosophical way that both gave the boarder piece of land to a very poor family who enjoyed it. This piece of land was named by the community as "Baska Land".

This is the story I remember and I think he died some times later and buried there. I have a very old book of our family from Wollo I will check whether the chronist recorded it.

Dr. Girma Iyassu “

(You can get the full story from this link http://www.samizdat.com/menelik.html )

Isn’t it interesting? I came across this story two years ago while I was browsing the internet. I became very eager to know the end of the story and asked members of the family of Sheikh Umar whether they have any knowledge about Vaska. Unfortunately, nobody knows him. The only thing they told me was the location of the vast land that belonged to Sheikh Umar (it was found in Daro Labu district as I said in the above section). I will try to investigate the story in detail and find out the final fate of Vaska. Insha Allah!!

Sheikh Umar Aliyye married four women throughout his life, and he had many offsprings including the hero called Mohammed Zakir (Meyraa). The biography of Sheikh Umar Aliyye was written by his student I aforementioned as Hajji Umar Arboyyee under a title “Jawahirul Zdahabil Ahmar Fi Manaqibil Ustazil Akbar Sheikh Umar Galamsiyyi”.

 Afendi Muteki

April 20, 2013

Harar

Notes:

1.      In the will of the Almighty (Allah), I planned to enlarge this short essay and include it in one of my future books titled “Gelemso: Its People, Its History and Its Heroes”. I need your feedback and corrections (especially I expected corrections and extra information from those who belong to the family of Sheikh Umar)

2.      I know that during his life time, Sheikh Umar Aliyye produced certain geographical maps, measuring tools, globes, astronomical sketches and tables etc… I will try to bring their photo if I can get any.