Taher Saifuddin

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Dr. Syedna Taher Saifuddin was the fifty-first Dāˤī al-Mutlaq and led the Dawoodi Bohras community from 1915 to 1965. He was succeeded by his son, Dr. Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin.

He was born on 4 August 1888 (27th Zilqad 1305 Hijri) and at the age of twenty eight he succeeded to the throne of Dawat and led the Bohra community. Under his leadership, the Arabic learning academy Jamia Saifiyah in Surat, India saw a lot of growth and development. Also, the community saw renewed adherence to Islamic tenets and general development and progress. He contributed to the development of a lot of monuments of Islamic (in particular Shia-Islamic) importance the chief of them being the internal curtains of Kabaa and the Zarih of Ali bin Abi Talib and Imam Husain^{[citation needed]}. Several schools and the Saifee Hospital & Saifee Masjid in Mumbai were erected in his era^{[citation needed]}.

He was the chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University in India for four consecutive terms^{[citation needed]}. He was an accomplished writer and wrote several books and poetry pertaining to Islamic theology and the Fatimid Imams. He was known to teach twenty eight religious lessons (also known as Sabaq) in a day. He extended the then existing practice of giving religious sermons on Imam Husain as during the days of Muhurrum to nine days culminating on Ashura day. Several of his elegies on Imam Husain are recited by community members to this day.

He died at the age of eighty in Matheran, India on 12 November 1965 (19th Rajab 1385 Hijri) the Mausoleum Raudat Tahera in Mumbai is erected in his memory.