14 September 2009

It is with great sadness we report the death of Maulana Ahmed-Said Musa Patel of Auckland, New Zealand on 8 September 2009.

Maulana Ahmed-Said Musa Patel was the first Imam (Muslim Religious Adviser) of New Zealand and served as the principle spiritual and religious adviser to the Islamic community here from 1960 to 1987. The first Imam of Ponsonby Mosque, the oldest in New Zealand. Maulana Patel was born on 16 January 1937 in Kaphleta, Gujarat, India. One year after completing his Aalim course (Study of Qur'an and Hadith) in India he accepted an invitation from the Muslim Community in New Zealand to serve as Imam and arrived in Auckland on 9 October 1960. His primary task was to teach Qur'an and Islamic Studies to the Muslim children of Auckland and to lead congregational prayers. As the New Zealand Muslim Association (NZMA) was unable to afford a regular salary, Maulana Patel worked full-time during his 27 years of service doing factory work. In 1963 he was part of a delegation to the City Council requesting a separate Muslim burial plot and in 1966 was authorised to conduct marriages pursuant to the Marriage Act 1955. In November 1978 he performed the Hajj.

On 30 April 1987 he suffered a serious stroke and retired as Imam and religious adviser. Maulana Patel died aged 72 and leaves behind his wife Rabia, daughter Nafisa and sons Azhar and Mohammed Afzal and was the beloved uncle of Abdul-Rahman Patel. May Allah SWT grant him Junnatal Firdous (paradise).

To read an article on Maulana Ahmed Said Patel published as part of the New Zealand's Muslim Pioneers series for Islam Awareness Week 2006 click here.