Imam Ali Shah (sufi saint)

Last updated


Sayyid Imam Ali Shah
Hazrat Imam Ali Shah Sahib.jpg
The mausoleum of Ali Shah in Punjab, now present-day India
Qayyum ul Alam
Born1798
Rattar Chhattar
Died1865
Rattar Chhattar
Major shrine Makan Sharif, Rattar Chattar
Feast Urs commemoration, 12th Shawwal
Influences Abdul Qadir Gilani, Bahauddin Naqshband, Hazrat Ishaan, Imam Rabbani
Influenced Sayyid Mir Fazlullah Agha and his descendants

Abu al Barakat Sayyid Imam Ali Shah (1798-1865) was a senior Indian Sufi Saint. He was of the Qadiri Naqshbandi Sufi Order. He is from Rattar Chhattar a village in Punjab that is called "the noble sanctuary" (Makan Sharif) in his honor. In the Qadiri Naqshbandi Sufi Order he is venerated as the "Crown of the scholars" (Taj ul Arifeen) and "For whom Allah sustains the world" (Qayyum ul Alam).

Contents

Early life

Ali Shah was born in Rattan Chattar to the Sufi Saint Sayyid Hussain Shah as member of a Naqvi Sayyid family whose genealogy traces back to Muhammad in the 35th generation through Ali al-Hadi's son Sayyid Jafar al Zaki. Sayyid Hussain Shah was known as a revered ascetic and died when Ali Shah was young. He then lived with his maternal grandparents together with his mother and brother. Ali Shah was educated in Islamic Law (Fiqh) and Medicine and attended lectures in philosophy ( Kalam ) and Metaphysics (Sufism) at the Shrine of Fariduddin Ganjshakar together with his teacher Mawlana Jan Muhammad Chishti and his uncle. After graduating as a certified scholar, Ali Shah served as his uncle's representative. [1] [2]

Career

When his uncle passed away two years after his graduation, Ali Shah participated in missionary activities. He founded a center called "mansion of holiness" (Dar ul Aqdas) where he centered his missionary activities. He was known for integrating philanthropic solutions like nutrition supply as well as establishing a center of Naqshbandi education in which 300 disciples could be instructed. Sources say that 300 goats had to be slaughtered in order to meet the daily demands of visitors and disciples, which reached one hundred thousand followers. His followers were mostly from South and Central Asia. [3] [4]

British Indian investigators mention Ali Shah's popularity and that disciples were "flocking in bands" in order to pay tribute to him. He was described in their reports as a welcoming personality. [5]

Teachings

Ali Shah is considered an inheritor of Muhammad and is said to emphasize the central importance of noble behavior (Adab) in Sufism. [6]

Legacy

Imam Ali Shah is venerated by the people of Rattan Chattar as their village's patron saint. Village inhabitants refer to Imam Ali Shah's blessings on the occasion of the lack of casualties during the Indo-Pakistani border skirmirshes in the 70s. [7] He is considered by his followers to be the Mujaddid of the 13th lunar century alongside Imam Ali Shah's companion Sayyid Mir Jan, who acted as contemporary Imam of the Naqshbandiyya. [8] [9]

His descendants include Mir Mazhar ul Qayyum Shah as well as Sayyid Mahfooz Hussein Shah. They furthered Imam Ali Shah's legacy. [10]

His tomb is situated near the Ravi river in the Batala and is considered by Gazetters as an "eye-filling" cultural heritage sight. [11]

Related Research Articles

<i>Sayyid</i> Nobility title in the Islamic world

Sayyid is an honorific title of Hasanids and Husaynids Muslims, recognized as descendants of the Islamic prophet's companion, Ali through his grandsons, Hasan and Husayn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naqshbandi</span> Sufi mystic order in Sunni Islam

The Naqshbandi order is a Sufi order of Sunni Islam named after Baha al-Din Naqshband. They trace their silsila to Prophet Muhammad through the first caliph Abu Bakr by the way of Ja'far al-Sadiq. The Naqshbandi Sufi order is most distinguished from other Sunni schools by the high level of importance they assign to the sharia, highlighted by major Naqshbandi scholars such as Ahmad Sirhindi and Shah Waliullah Dehlawi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qadiriyya</span> Sufi order founded by Abdul Qadir Gilani

The Qadiriyya or the Qadiri order is a Sunni Sufi order (Tariqa) founded by Abdul Qadir Gilani, who was a Hanbali scholar from Gilan, Iran. The symbol of the order is the rose. A rose of green and white cloth, with a star in the middle, is traditionally worn in the cap of Qadiri dervishes. Robes of black felt are customarily worn as well. The names of God are prescribed as chants for repetition, or Dhikr, by initiates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mirza Mazhar Jan-e-Janaan</span>

Mirzā Mazhar Jān-i Jānān, also known by his laqab Shamsuddīn Habībullāh, was a renowned Hanafi Maturidi Naqshbandī Sufi poet of Delhi, distinguished as one of the "four pillars of Urdu poetry." He was also known to his contemporaries as the sunnītarāsh, "Sunnicizer", for his absolute, unflinching commitment to and imitation of the Sunnah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naqvi</span> Sayyid clan

The Naqvis are people found predominantly in Iran, Iraq, and the South Asian countries. They claim descent from the Imam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Qadiriyya wa Naqshbandiyya</span> Amalgamation of two Sufi orders

Qadiriyya wa Naqshbandiyya is a Sufi order which is a synthesis of the Qadiri and Naqshbandi orders of Sufism. The Qadiriyya wa Naqshbandiyya Sufi order traces back through its chain of succession to Muhammad, through the Hanbali Islamic scholar Abdul Qadir Gilani and the Hanafi Islamic scholar Shah Baha al-Din Naqshband, combining both of their Sufi orders. The order has a major presence in three countries, namely Pakistan, India, and Indonesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haji Dost Muhammad Qandhari</span>

Khwaja Haji Dost Muhammad Qandhari was an Afghan Sufi master in the Naqshbandi tradition in the 19th century (1801–1868).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ghulam Ali Dehlavi</span>

Shah Abdullah alias Shah Ghulam Ali Dehlavi was a Sufi Shaykh in Delhi during the early 19th century. He was a master of the Naqshbandi tradition His father wanted to make him a disciple of Qādri,.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shah Inayat Shaheed</span> Sindhi Sufi saint and revolutionary (c. 1655–1718)

Shah Inayatullah, popularly known as Sufi Shah Inayat Shaheed, Shah Shaheed or Shah Inayat of Jhok, was a 17th-century Sindhi Sufi saint and revolutionary from Jhok. He was the first socialist and agricultural reformist of Sindh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sayyid Mir Jan</span> Sufi saint

Ghawth SayyidMir Jan Shah Saheb ibn Hasan Naqshbandi Ishaani was a Sunni saint from Kabul and contemporary supreme leader of the Naqshbandi Tariqa and Naqshbandi Ishaani Sub-Tariqa as the 7th hereditary successor of his ancestor Hazrat Ishaan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamaat Ali Shah</span> Religious leader (1834-1951)

Pir Syed Jamaat Ali Shah was a Pakistani author, Islamic scholar and Sufi saint of the Naqshbandi Order. He presided over the All India Sunni Conference and led the Movement for Shaheed Ganj Mosque. He was a contemporary of Ahmed Raza Khan Barelvi, the founder of Barelvi movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hazrat Ishaan</span> Sufi saint from Bokhara (1563–1642)

Hazrat Ishaan Mahmud bin Sharif bin Zia bin Muhammad bin Tajuddin bin Hussein bin Zahra binte Bahauddin Naqshband was an influential Sunni saint from Bukhara, Uzbekistan and hereditary supreme leader of his ancestor Bahauddin Naqshband's Sufi Order, the Naqshbandiyya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sultan Mohammad Khan</span> Regent of Kabul from 1823 to 1826

Sultan Mohammad Khan, also known as Ghazi Sardar Sultan Mohammad Talaei, and known by his epithet, Sultan Mohammad Khan the Golden was an Afghan chief minister and regent. He was a powerful brother of Emir Dost Mohammad Khan, the eventual ruler of Afghanistan who seized control of Kabul from him. Prior to and during the reign of Dost Mohammad Khan, Sultan Muhammad Khan Telai was chief minister and governor of various regions of Afghanistan, including Kabul, Peshawar and Kohat. He was the first of the Musahiban, a Mohammadzai dynasty that began with him and ruled Afghanistan for more than 150 years, in various forms such as emir, king or president from 1823 to 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sayyid Mahmud Agha</span> Sufi saint

Mir Sayyid Mahmud Agha, officially known as Sayyid ul Sadaat Mir Sayyid Mahmud Saheb Agha ibn Mir Hasan Naqshbandi al-Hasani wal-Husseini was a Sufi saint of South Asia. He was the brother of Sayyid Mir Jan and acted under him as Grand Master of the Naqshbandi Sufi order. Together with his brother, he preached the legacy of their ancestor Hazrat Ishaan.

Sayyid Ali al-Akbar ibn al-Hasan was a Sunni Muslim saint, and according to some historians of genealogy the second son of Imam Hasan al-Askari, the eleventh Imam in Shia Islam. He was also the brother of the twelfth Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi. His existence was hidden because of contemporary political conflicts with the political leadership of the Abbasids, reaching its peak at that time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moinuddin Hadi Naqshband</span> Sufi saint

Sayyid ul-Sadaat Sayyid Moinuddin Hadi Naqshband al-Hasani wal-Husseini, known as "Hazrat Naqshband Saheb", was a Sunni Muslim wali (saint) from Bukhara and direct descendant of Muhammad, through his father Hazrat Ishaan who was a seventh generation descendant of Bahauddin Naqshband. Moinuddin Naqshband succeeded his father in leading the Silsile Aliyya Naqshbandiyya.

Sayyid Mir Fazlullah bin Sayyid Mir Hasan Naqshbandi was a Sunni Saint and Mir and the highest Qadi and Grand Mufti of the Emirate of Afghanistan.

Mir Sayyid Hasan ibn Azimullah was an Emir of a group of Sunni Sayyids of Khorasan, following the Sayyid ul Sadatiyya heritage. His descendants were confirmed as Emirs of the Afghan Sayyids and custodians of the Hazrat Ali Shrine by the Muhammadzai Royal Dynasty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sayyid Alauddin Atar</span> Sufi saint

Khwaja Sayyid Mir Alauddin ibn Muhammad Attar, was a Sufi Saint from Bukhara and Qutb of the Naqshbandi Sufi order. He was a descendant of Muhammad and son in law of his master and predecessor Khwaja Bahauddin Naqshband.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sayyid Kastir Gul</span> Saint

Sayyid Kastir Gul (1573–1653) was an Islamic jurist and Sufi saint who is revered among Afghans and Pakistanis. He is the patriarch of the Kakakhel tribe.

References

  1. Daira Muhammad Abad in Hazrat Sayyid Imam Ali Shah, Naqshbandi Makan Sharifi Institute, Rattan Chattar
  2. Prof. Munawar Hussein in "Imam Ali Shah", Al-Mazhar Institute
  3. Daira Muhammad Abad in Hazrat Sayyid Imam Ali Shah, Naqshbandi Makan Sharifi Institute, Rattan Chattar
  4. Prof. Munawar Hussein in "Imam Ali Shah", Al-Mazhar Institute
  5. Church missionary intelligencer 1850-1864, Oxford university, p. 172
  6. Buehler, p. 148
  7. Singh in Indian Tribune
  8. Daira Muhammad Abad in Hazrat Sayyid Imam Ali Shah, Naqshbandi Makan Sharifi Institute, Rattan Chattar
  9. Tazkare Khwanadane Hazrat Eshan(genealogy of the family of Hazrat Eshan)(by author and investigator:Muhammad Yasin Qasvari Naqshbandi company:Edara Talimat Naqshbandiyya Lahore) p.432 ff.
  10. Sadaat Hussein Naqvi in Makansharif post
  11. Gurdaspur Gazette, p.63, published by the Sang-e-Meel publication agency in 1892 and archieved in the University of Chicago