A brief history of Naqshbandiya order in India
The Naqshbandiyya order was founded by Khwaja Bahauddin
Naqshband who was born in 720A.H /1318 A.D. in Qasr-e-'Arifan
two miles from Bukhara and died in 791 A.H./ 1389 A.D. and was
buried there. The word Naqshband Literally means an
embroiderer or printer on cloth and as applied to Bahauddin,
probably refers to his ancestral profession. Prior to the time of
Bahauddin the order was known by the name of Tariqa-Khawajgan in central Asia. Under Baha'uddin influence the order
focused on the practice of silent invocation (dhikr) and became
known as sober Sufi order.
The Indian Naqshbandiyyas traced their spiritual descent from
Khawaja Nasiruddin Ubaidullah Ahrar, a prominent successor of
Khawaja, Yaqub Charkhi. Khawaja Ahrar was born in Ramazan
806/1404, when he was 22 years dedicated himself to mystical
exercise. After that he met Khawja Yaqub and was initiated into
the Naqshbandiyya order by him. It was under Khw aja
'Ubaydullah Ahrar that the order adopted the doctrine of social
participation (Khalwat dar anjuman) which assured the Sufi
leaders should attempt to influence political figures since the
later held so much influence over the lives and well-being of
Muslims. By the end of sixteenth century the Naqshbandiyya alone o f the Sufi orders in India considered it not only
permissible but imperative to establish contact with rulers and to
influence their thoughts upon the politics.
Khwaja Baqi Billah Berang, 7th in succession from the founder of
the order came to India. He died in 1011 A.H. / 1603 A.D., and
his tomb is at Delhi. His father was both an 'alim and sufi and
his mother was a descendant of the family of Khwaja Ahrar.
Khwaja Baqi Billah went to Transoxiana to complete his education as an 'alim but rejected it for Sufism. He met many
Naqshbandi Saints there and spent some years to travel to
Lahore, Delhi, Kashmir and Samarqand in searching for a perfect
guide. He arrived in Delhi in 1008/1599. He avoided publicity
and initiated only very keen disciples.
But the most significant figure of this order was Shaikh Ahmad
Al-Farooqui Sirhindi who has played an important role in Muslim
thought and whose efforts introduced the order into the
subcontinent.His father, Shaikh Abdul Ah ad was a reputed
Sufi. Neither son or father had com e in touch with the
Naqshbandiyya order. In 1001 A.H ./1598-99 A.D., Shaikh
Ahmad was introduced to Baqi Billah and became his disciple.
After the death of his Pir, Shaikh Ahmad was acknowledged as
the head of that order.
The Mughal attachment to Naqshbandiyya order in India
persisted throughout the active life of the dynasty. A letter written in the late 17th century by Shaikh Kalimullah of Delhi, a
Shaikh of Chishti order, to a disciple who has been trying
successfully to influence the emperor Aurangzeb contains the following, "The emperor of Hindustan is a descendant of Amir
Timur and Amir Timur was spiritually attached to
Shah-i-Naqshband. These Turanian and all every one of them are
connected with the Naqshbandiyya order and they do not attach
value to any other silsilah or order.
The history of the Naqshbandiyya order would be of some interest
if it could be recovered, not merely it has played an important
part in Muslim thought, but also because it has had no little
influence on the political vicissitudes of India, Mesopotamia and
to some extant to Turkey.
Mughal and Naqshbandiya Sufi orders
A significant element of the Mughals inheritance as Timurids was
an attachment to the Naqshbandiyya Sufi order. In particular
this connection was personified in the figure of Khwaja
Ubaidullah Ahrar, who was instrumental in ensuring the
political position of the Timurids.
The Mughal Emperors considered themselves devotees of Central
Asia Naqshbandiyya Shaikhs, following in the step of Babur
whose Muslim name, Zahiruddin Muhammad had been given to
him at birth by politically powerful Khwaja Ubaydullah Ahrar.A highlight of Babur's Asian career in his youth when he was
called to Samarqand by Khwaja Ahrar's son, Khwaja Yahya, to
defend the city against Shaibani Khan's Uzbeks. Though he failed
to hold Samarqand on this and other occasions, Babur later
demonstrated his enduring attachment to Khwaja Ahrar by
setting his work of Risala-e- Walidiya to verse.
Another Ahrar's son, Muhammad Amir, was part of Babur's
entourage at Kabul and India. Babur's personal connection to
Khwaja Ahrar and his descendants represented at least an
element of Naqshbandiyya influence arriving in India at the
out-set of the Mughal period.
Timurid's relations with the saints of Naqshbandiyya order were warm and respectful, in keeping with the traditions of the
Timurids. Timur had built the tomb of Khwaja Ahmad Ata and
used to make respectful visit to it. His respectful treatment to
Khwaja Bahau'ddin Naqshband has been noted in the
Naqshbandiyya order. Babur's father, Umar Shaikh Mirza was a
disciple of Khwaja 'Ubaidullah Ahrar and Babur had great
respect for his successor, Khwaja Muhammad Qazi. After his
conquest of Hindustan some descendants of Khwaja Ubaidullah
Ahrar visited India perhaps to see a new land added to their
spiritual domain. Babur received them with warmth and
enthusiasm and offered valuable gifts to them.
Babur's descendants respected their family tradition of
attachment to the Naqshbandiyya saints. Humayun received with
great honour Khwaja Khwawand Muhammad a descendent of
Khwaja Ahrar. Kamran became a disciple of Khwaja Abdul Haqq,
brother's Khwaja Khwawand. Akbar accorded a welcome to
Khwaja Abdush Shahid, who visited India when he was over
seventy years of age.In the early years of Akbar's reign the
Naqshbandiyya influence returned to the Mughal court and
many Naqshbandiyya Sufis who migrated to Agra obtained high
posts in the civil and military administration, In general they
retained their Loyalty to the Emperor and even supported the
broadly-based policies which Akbar introduced.
Aurgangzeb was at first the devotee of Shaikh Ahmad after his
passing away around 1034/1625 as the age of sixty, Aurangzeb
centered his devoted attention on M'asum , one of Shaikh Ahmad's son. M'asurn gave active support to his disciple in the
war of succession during the later part of Shah Jahan's reign
M a'sum exercised historic influence on Aurangzeb.Hujjatu'llah the second son of Muhammad Ma'sum had also an
influence upon Aurangzeb.
A brief history of Chishtiya order in India
The Chishtiyya order was the first important sufi order to be
established in India. It played a significant part in the religious
and cultural history of the country from the beginning of the
th irteen th century . Chisht according to the H istory oj
Mashaikh-e-Chisht, is the name of two areas. The first one is
located in Khurasan (Iran) and the other one is between Uch and
Multan. The chishtiyya order is related to the Chistht of
Khurasan and Khwaja Abu Ishaq-e-Shami is the first sufi who
won fame as a chishti. He migrated from Asia minor and settled
at chisht in Khurasan and consequently called chishti. But it's said in another narrative when Khwaja Abu Ishaq-iShami came to Mumshad’Ali Dainuri's Khanqah as a disciple,
Dainuri after hearing his name told him "From today you will be
called chishti and the chishtian people will be guided through
you and every body comes to this order also will be called chishti
and sent him to chisht. Abu Ishaq was a disciple and
vicegerent of Dainuri. Possibly Abu Ishaq reached chisht some
time before 260 A.H. / 873-4 A.D., but he returned to Syria and
died in 329 A.H./940 A.D. at Akka.
The following four, who were spiritually descended from Abu Ishaq Chishti, ai'e regarded by Sufis to have been the great pillars of that order;
No contemporary record of Muinuddin's life and activities are available. Even the date of his birth and death are disputed. The two m ajor Chishti texts of the fourteenth (14th) century, Fawaid-ul-Fuad and Khairul Majalis don't refer to him at all. A Suhrawardi text Siyarul 'Arifin, compiled in India three hundred years after his death is the exclusive source which gives us Shaikh's hagiography details.
The following four, who were spiritually descended from Abu Ishaq Chishti, ai'e regarded by Sufis to have been the great pillars of that order;
- Khwaja Abu Ahmad (d.355 A.H./966 A.D .), he was a vicegerent of Abu Ishaq.
- Khwaja Abu Muhammad (d. 410 A.H. / 1020 A.D.), he was the son and successor of Abu Ahmad.
- Khwaja Abu Yusuf (d. 459 A.H. /1067 A.D.) he was Abu Ahmad's vicegerent.
- Khwaja Mawdud (d. 527 A.H./1133 A.D.) he was the son and successor of Abu Yusuf.
No contemporary record of Muinuddin's life and activities are available. Even the date of his birth and death are disputed. The two m ajor Chishti texts of the fourteenth (14th) century, Fawaid-ul-Fuad and Khairul Majalis don't refer to him at all. A Suhrawardi text Siyarul 'Arifin, compiled in India three hundred years after his death is the exclusive source which gives us Shaikh's hagiography details.
Hazrat Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti
Khwaja Muinuddin Hassan, son of Sayyid Ghiyas'uddin Hussain
was born on Sanjar, a town in Sis tan, at 536 A.H. / 1141 A.D. He
traced his descent of his mother's side from Imam Hassan and
his father’s side from Imam Hussain. His ancestors for several
generations were reputed to be mystics, for this reason his own
inclination to mysticism might be said to be hereditary. After the
death of his father when he was in fourteen year of age he
received as his share of inheritance a garden and a watermill.
When Khawaja Muinuddin was still young, his native place,
Sanjar was taken by Tartars and it had a deep impact on him
and probably intensified his feelings that the world was a place of
vanity. This impression more deeply was engraved upon his mind
by his contact with a majzub (ascetic), Shaikh Ibrahim Qanduzi.
It was due to him that Muinuddin owed his violent experience of
conversion where by he finally broke away from world and
adopted the life of a recluse.
Khwaja Muinuddin after his complete renunciation of the world
entered upon the life of a wandering herm it in search of a
spiritual guide. First he spent a couple of years in Samarqand to
complete his religious education. Then he went to Bukhara for
further study of the Quran under the guidance of Mulana
Hisamuddin Bukhari, a mystic and renowned exponent of the Muslim scriptures. Eventually he came to Harun, a town in the
province of Nishapur, where he was form ally initiated as a
disciple of Khwaja "Uthman Haruni", a famous saint of the
Chishtiyya order. After he had served his master for a longtime
he was appointed as his vicegerent and directed to go to India.
Some hagiographers mention that it was the Prophet Hazrat
Muhammad (P.B.U.H.) himself, who in a vision asked him to go
to India as his representative and convert the idolaters to the
faith of Islam.
Khwaja Muinuddin thus taking leave of his spiritual master
started out on his mission was to concluded at Ajmer finally in
India, in 560 A.H. / 1165 A.D. Khwaja Muinuddin died in 633
A.H. / 1236 A.D. His tomb in Ajmer is the place of pilgrimage
from every part of India.
The Chishtiya orders after Khawaja Muin Udeen,Khawaja Qutub uddin Bakhtiyar Kaki
The chief successor and heir to all the spiritual heritage ot
Muinuddin was Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki. He was born in 581
A.H. / 1186 A.D., at Aush a town in Farghan a (Modern
Uzbekistan). When he attained eighteen months of age his father
expired and his m other became totally responsible for the
breeding of his child. As he grew older he became increasingly
devoted to prayers and meditation.
Khwaja Qutubddin received his instruction in tasawwuf from
several teachers. In his time Baghdad was not only a centre ot
secular and religious bearing but also of mysticism. He studied
there under its most renowned teachers ch ief of whom was
Shihabuddin Suharwardi. The fame of Baghdad as the scene of
the activities of such noted saints of Shihabuddin Suharwardi
and Abdul Qadir jilani, had drawn Muinuddin there. When
Qutbuddin was studing in Baghdad he met Muinuddin in the
Abul Layth mosque and accepted his disciple ship.
Soon after Muinuddin had settled down at Amjer Qutbuddin left
Baghdad and made his way towards India. During his journey he
visited tombs and Shrines of the saints and met the living Sufis
of his time like Bahauddin Zakariya and Jalaluddin Tabraizi two leaders of the Suhrawardi order. When he entered into Delhi
Muinuddin appointed him as his vicegerent and permitted him to
stay there.
Qutbuddin is known by the two titles of "Bakhtiyar" and "Kaki"
which mean respectively "a friend of fortune" and "a man of
ca k es". The first name was given to him by his m aster
Muinuddin, About the other name has been related that once he
was sitting near the tank known as Shamsiyya in Delhi, some of
his friends desired to eat hot cakes. Khwaja Bakhtiyar plunged
his hand into the water of the tank and drew forth such cakes as
his friends desired and from that day he become as Kaki, other
stories also have been narrated about it which we avoid at this
juncture the word. Towards the close of his life he named his
disciple, Fariduddin as his successor. Khwaja Qutbuddin died in
602 A.H. / 1235 A.D, He was buried in Mehrauli at Delhi.
Hazrat Baba Fareed Uddin Masood Ganje-Shakar
Fariduddin Mas'ud Ganj-e-Shakar (Treasure of Sweets) who is
generally known as Baba Farid, was the chief successor of
Khwaja Bakhtiyar Kaki. It is said that he belonged to a noble and
ancient family of Kabul. During the Changez Khan's invasion his
grand father with his family took refuge in the Punjab. It was the
place where Fariduddin was born.
From his early childhood he was deeply religious. At the age of
seventeen years he came into contact Khwaja Qutbuddin in
Multan and became his disciple. Soon after having completed his
religious and secular studies under Baha'uddin Zakariya he
followed Qutbuddin to Delhi. There he served his master with
great zeal and fervour and led a life of severe austerity and piety.
Consequently his fame spread far and wide. But disliking
popularity and preferring solitude he left Delhi with his master’s
permission and went to reside at Hansi and after that to Ajodhya
where he stayed for a considerable time. The last sixteen years of
his life, however, were spent at Kathwai in Multan the scene of
his early life.
Baba Farid married in the old age. He had six sons and four
daughters. The eldest son Shaikh Badruddin Sulayman, later
became one of his vicegerent. His young daughter was married to
Ali Ahmad Saberi of Piran Kaliar, Baba Farid's nephew and one
of his chief successors. Baba Farid died at the age of 93, in 663 A.H. / 1265-6 A.D. and was buried at Pak Patan in Punjab.
The Farid section of the Chishtiya order gave rise two streams of
mystical teachings associated with two famous disciples of Baba
Farid, namely Nizamuddin Aulia of Delhi and 'Alauddin Ali
Ahmad Sabir of Piran Kaliar. These two sub-divisions are known
as Nizami and Sabri respectively.
Considering that Shaikh Muhibbullah belonged to Sabriyya order
an abstract history of this order and it's founder is presented
here.
Mughal And the Chishtiya Sufi Orders
Of all the Sufi orders operating in India, Chishtiyya was destined
to enjoy unparalleled spiritual influence and popular acclaim.
Although the Mughal emperors considered themselves devotees
of Naqshbandiyya order, Akbar was an exception to this
preference. Akbar's first loyalty was to the Indian Chishti sect,
Jahangir and Shah Jahan also occasionally extended patronage
to the Chishtis, mainly perhaps because of the popular appeal of
that order. In fact the immense devotion show by these three
Timurids emperors to the Shrine of Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti
further enhanced the great prestige enjoyed by the Chishtiyya.
During the reign of Akbar Shaikh 'Abdul Quddus Gangohi's
Khalifa, Shaikh Jalal, turned Thanesw ar into the m ajor
chishtiyya center in the whole subcontinent. Shaikh Salim and
his Khalifas managed to transform Fatahpur- Sikri and the Agra
reign in a similar way. By the end of the 17th century Delhi was
again a great Chishtiyya centre. During this period we have
witnessed the popularity and prestige of Muinuddin's shrine
reached new heights.In 909 A.H./1562 A.D., Akbar paid his
first visit to Ajmer. After any conquest he visited the shrine on
foot all the way. After birth of prince Salim again he traveled on
foot to Ajmer. During the next decade he went on pilgrimage the
shrine almost every year. It is note worthy that Akbar did not
choose to so identity himself with the Naqshbandis of Northern India despite his family's long association with that orthodox
central Asian order. Of course other Timurid emperors also
had devotion to the saints of Chishtiyya order and showed it on
different occasions. Babur personally paid his respect to the
Nizamuddin's shrine during his first visit to Delhi after the battle
of Panipat. Also after defeating Bahlul Lodi's grandson Ibrahim
Lodi, Babur visited the shrine of Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki to
pay his respect. The emperor's brother-in-law repaired the tomb
of Amir Khusro situated within the complex of shrine. He also
provided an inscribed marble slab next to the open-air grave.
References: (Details in Bibliography)
- Wajihuddin Ashraf, M.S, 1917, Nazir Ahmad, N.A, 117
- Foltz,1998, 95 & Ariya, 1365, 60-63
- Wajihuddin Ashraf, M.S, 1977-1980
- Ibid, 1985-1989 & Nazir Ahmad, Ibid, 122
- Foltz, ibid, 102-103 & Nazir Ahmad, Ibid, 123
- Rose, N.A., 275
- Aftab, 1364, 45 85 Kanbuh,1858, 19
- Singh, 1996, 124
- Nizami, Khaliq Ahmad, 1953, 135
- Muhammad Akram, M.S, & Alqvi Kirmani, 1978, 49, & Hadiyya Chishti, No. d. 50-55
- Rastogi, ibid, P II
- Farooqui, "The Early Chishti Sufis of India", N.A, P 2
- Wajihuddin Ashraf, Ibid, 23, & Alavi Kirmani, Ibid, 55, & Hadiyya Chishti, Ibid, 101-103
- Abul Fazl, 1989, 238
- Wajihuddin Ashraf, Ibid, 443-444 & Alavi Kirmani, Ibid, 56-58
- Ibid, 1077 & Abdul-Haq Muhaddith Dihlavi, Ibid, F 50 & Alavi Kirmani, Ibid, 68-74
- Abdurrahman Chishti, M.S. 268-269, Ikram, 1979, 72 & Vajihuddin Ashraf, Ibid, 1077 & Hadiyya Chishti, Ibid, 177-184
- Muhammad Akram, M.S., Nur-i-Dayyum & Vajihuddin Ashraf, Ibid. 1109-1110
- Rizvi, 1965, 269
- Richards, 1998, 31
- Alavi Kirmani, Ibid & Muhammad Akram, Ibid, & Hassani, P19
