Jhulelal Khwaja Khizir" or "Sheikh Tahit" Khidr

12:23 AM | BY ZeroDivide EDIT


Shah Hussain Marwandi or Shah Usman Marwandi[1](1143-44 to1333-34), popularly known as Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (Sindhi: لعل شھباز قلندر‎), was a Sufiphilosopher-poet of present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan. He was called Lal ("ruby-colored") after his usual red attire and Shahbaz to denote a noble and divine spirit and Qalandar as he was a wandering holy man.

Jhulelal is believed by Sindhi Hindus to be an incarnation of Varuna.[29] They celebrate the festival of Cheti Chand in his honor. The festival marks the arrival of spring and harvest, but in Sindhi community it also marks the mythical birth of Uderolal in year 1007, after they prayed to Hindu god Varuna to save them from the persecution by tyrannical Muslim ruler named Mirkhshah.[30][31][32]Uderolal morphed into a warrior and old man who preached and reprimanded Mirkhshah that Muslims and Hindus deserve the same religious freedoms. He, as Jhulelal,[32] became the champion of the people in Sindh, from both religions. Among his SufiMuslim followers, Jhulelal is known as "Khwaja Khizir" or "Sheikh Tahit". The Hindu Sindhi, according to this legend, celebrate the new year as Uderolal's birthday.

Dama Dam Mast Qalandar | Translation of Sufi Qawwali

 16  12:45 PM

O laal meri pat rakhio bala jhoole laalan, Sindri da Sehvan da, sakhi Shabaaz kalandar, Dama dam mast Qalandar, Ali dam dam de andar.

O the red robed, may I always have your benign protection, Jhulelal (as he was affectionately called). O master, friend and Sire of Sindh and Sehwan (or Serwan), The red robed God-intoxicated Qalandar, The Lord in every breath of mine, glory be to you.

Chaar charaag tere baran hamesha, Panjwa mein baaran aayi bala jhoole laalan O panjwa mein baaran, O panjwa mein baaran aayi bala jhoole laalan, Sindri da Sehvan da, sakhi Shabaaz Qalandar, Dama dam mast Qalandar, Ali dam dam de andar.

Your shrine is always lighted with four lamps, And here I come to light a fifth lamp in your honor. Here I come with fifth O master, friend and Sire of Sindh and Sehwan (or Serwan), The red robed God-intoxicated Qalandar, The Lord in every breath of mine, glory be to you.

Hind Sind (some also sing Ghanan ghanan) peera teri naubat vaaje, Naal vaje ghadiyaal bala jhoole laalan, O naal vaje, O naal vaje ghadiyaal bala jhoole laalan.

Let your heroic name ring out in Hind & Sindh (or lets the gongs bell loud), Let the gong ring loud for your glory day and night by the people (ghadiyaal - watchman, symbolism of night).

Har dam peera teri khair hove, Naam-e-ali beda paar laga jhoole laalan, O naam-e-ali, O naam-e-ali beda paar laga jhoole laalan, Sindri da sehvan da sakhi Shabaaz Qalandar, Dama dam mast Qalandar, Ali dam dam de andar.

O Lord, may you prevail everytime, everywhere, I pray of your well being, In the name of Ali, I pray to you to help my boat cross in safety (in the river of life).

This song, one of the most famous qawwali, is written and sung in the honor of Sufi mystic saint 'Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar' (Usman Marvandhi) - may God sanctify his station. Every word of his name used in the qawwali has a meaning - he was known as Hazrat (holiness), Lal (he wore red robes, also mothers fondly call their kids as Lal in Punjab and nearby region), Shahbaz (Shah - King and Baz - Falcon, king of falcons and in Iranian mythology represent godly figure who led them to victory, divine spirit), and finally Qalandar (a qalandari - a sufi saint, poet, mystic, noble man). He settled in Serwan (Sindh, now in Pakistan) and tried bringing peace between Hindus and Muslims. Hindus regard him as divine reincarnate, avatar as well. Still today many Punjabi singers, singing in his praise. He is also fondly called as Jhulelal.

+ Some picture of his holy shrine located in Sindh, Pakistan can be viewed via flickr.

Early Sufi

10:22 AM | BY ZeroDivide EDIT
Sufyan ath-Thawri ibn Said
Born716
Died778 (aged 61–62)/161 hijri
EraIslamic golden age
RegionMuslim scholar
SchoolIslam
The Eight Ascetics
This box: 
Sufyan ath-Thawri ibn Said (Arabic: سفيان بن سعيد الثوري‎) (716–778) was a tabi'i Islamic scholar, Hafiz and jurist, founder of the Thawri madhhab.[1] He was also a hadith compiler, of whom a great number of anecdotes are recorded.

Biography[edit]

Imam Sufyan ath-Thawri was born in Kufa, Iraq, and in his youth supported the Shi'ites against the dying Umayyad caliphate. By 748 he had moved to Basra, "where he met ['Abdallah] ibn 'Awn and Ayyub [al-Sakhtiyani]. He then abandoned his Shi'i view."[2] It is said that the Umayyads offered him high office positions but that he consistently declined.[3]He even refused to give to the Caliphs moral and religious advice and when asked why, he responded "When the sea overflows, who can dam it up?".[4] He was also quoted to have said to a friend of his "Beware of the rulers, of drawing close to and associating with them. Do not be deceived by being told that you can drive inequity away. All this is the deceit of the devil, which the wicked qurra' have taken as a ladder [to self promotion]."[5]
Ath-Thawri's jurisprudential thought (usul al-fiqh), after his move to Basra, became more closely aligned to that of the Umayyads and of al-Awza'i.[1] He is reported to have regarded the jihad as an obligation only as a defensive war.[6]
Ath-Thawri was one of the 'Eight Ascetics,' who included (usual list) Amir ibn Abd al-Qays, Abu Muslim al-Khawlani, Uways al-Qarani, al-Rabi ibn Khuthaym, al-Aswad ibn Yazid, Masruq ibn al-Ajda', and Hasan al-Basri.
He spent the last year of his life hiding after a dispute between him and the caliph al-Mahdi. On his death the Thawri madhhab was taken up by his students, including Yahya al-Qattan.[1] His school did not survive, but his juridical thought and especially hadith transmission are highly regarded in Islam, and have influenced all the major schools.

Works[edit]

Of his books, perhaps best known is his Tafsir of the Qur'an, one of the earliest in the genre. An Indian MSS purports to preserve it up to Q. 52:13, as published by Imtiyâz ʿAlî ʿArshî in 1965; also Tabari's tafsir quotes extensively from the whole text. He also preserved the books of his Umayyad predecessors.[7]

Hasan Al-Basri (Arabic: الحسن بن أبي الحسن البصري‎; full name: Al-Hasan ibn Abi-l-Hasan al-Basri), (642–728), was a well-known Muslim preacher, theologian, and scholar of Islamwho was born in 642 from Persian[1][2] parents. Brought up in the house of the prophet Muhammad's wife Umm Salama, Hasan met many companions of Muhammad including, it is said, seventy of the warriors who fought in the Battle of Badr. As can be seen in the spiritual chains (silsilah) of most Sufi orders, he was a renowned follower of Ali ibn Abi Talib. Hasan grew up to become one of the most prominent figures of his generation, being famous for his piety and condemnation of worldliness. When he died on Friday, 5 Rajab 110 AH, at the age of 89, the entire population of Basra attended his funeral, so that for the first time in the history of Basra the city's Jami' Masjid remained empty at the hour of the'Asr prayer.[3] Hasan quickly became an exemplar for other saints in the area and his personality made a deep impression upon his contemporaries.[4]

Biography[edit]

Hasan's father, Peroz, was made a prisoner at the town of Maysan in Iraq. He was later brought to Medina, where he met Khayra, who was to be Hasan's mother. According to tradition, Hasan was born in Medina in 642 C.E.[5] He grew up in and around the area but later, after the Battle of Siffin, decided to move to Basra. As a young man, Hasan took part in the conquests and campaigns in eastern Iran, but he became famous after denouncing arrogance and sin to take up life as a pious Muslim in Basra.
Hasan's sermons played an integral part in confirming his status as one of the most notable scholars of the era. In his sermons, Hasan warned his fellow citizens of the dangers of committing sin and commanded them to regulate their whole life in a more pious manner. These sermons, of which only fragments have been preserved, are considered to be among the outstanding examples of early Arabic prose.[6] Some scholars have remarked upon the vivid images that Hasan developed in his sermons and it is because of this that anthologists grouped Hasan's sermons with the speeches of political leaders as models of style and some of his sermons have even found their way into the early Arab dictionaries.[citation needed]
Historical documents do not record much from Hasan's early years. One of the earliest instances concerning Hasan is his conversion. Hasan was a jewel merchant and was called Hasan of the Pearls. Attar narrates that he traded with Byzantium and with the Caesar. On one occasion, going to Byzantium, Hasan called on the prime minister and conversed with him for a while, after which Hasan and the minister mounted a horse and set off to reach a mysterious desert. It was at this desert, after witnessing a vision involving an army, some philosophers, a group of sages, and some fair maidens that Hasan converted, devoting himself to all manner of devotions and austerities, "such that no man in his time could exceed that discipline".[7]
Attar, in his Memorial of the Saints, narrates that Hasan had a neighbour named Simeon who was a fire-worshipper. When Simeon fell ill and was nearing death, Hasan visited the aged man and warned him to "fear God" and told him to finish his life by asking for forgiveness. Simeon answered that he had been a fire-worshipper for over seventy years, but Hasan remained persistent and told him to end his life by accepting the belief in God. Simeon, with much weeping, accepted and told Hasan, “When I die, bid them wash me, then commit me to the earth with your own hands, and place this document in my hand. This document will be my proof.” Feeling guilt at forcing someone to convert, Hasan fell asleep much distressed. That night, Hasan witnessed a miraculous dream: he saw Simeon "glowing like a candle; on his head a crown, robed in fine raiment, he was walking with a smile in the garden of Paradise." Hasan was struck with awe and asked Simeon of his fate, to which Simeon thanked Hasan for his warning and gave him back the paper with the declaration of faith. When Hasan awoke, he saw the parchment in his hand and began to contemplate, thanking the Lord for His mercy and asking for forgiveness.[8]
Hasan did not take sides in Ibn al-Zubair's revolt.[9] In 700 CE he joined the camp of Ibn al-Ash'ath during his revolt,[10][11] Hasan is not known to have supported any Caliph after Abu Bakr,[12] but he was on decent terms with Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz. After the revolt Hasan became a teacher in Basra and founded a school there. Among his many followers were Amr Ibn Ubayd (d.761) and Wasil ibn Ata(d.749), the founder of the Mu'tazilites – which name derives from Arabic verb i'tizàl ("to part from", "to separate from"), Wasil ibn Ata having broken all relations with his former Master.[13] Among Hasan's juristic students were the Imam Ayyub al-Sakhtiyani and also Humayd.[14] Hasan's other companions included fellow saint Farqad as-Sabakhi, an Armenian Christian convert to Islam.[15]
Under the reign of Caliph 'Abd al-Malik and his governor in Iraq al-Hajjaj, Hasan came to oppose the inherited caliphate of the Umayyads(r. 660–750).[16] Hasan held to a doctrine of human free will but did not reject predestination, as rejection of predestination constitutes disbelief in Islam. Hasan was a great supporter of asceticism in the time of its first development. Hasan was also held in high regard by the Sufis for his asceticism,[17] though he predated Sufism as a self-aware movement.[18] Many writers testified to the purity of his life and to his excelling in the virtues of Muhammad's own companions.[19]

Shams-i-Tabrīzī

7:36 PM | BY ZeroDivide EDIT
Shams-i-Tabrīzī (Persian: شمس تبریزی‎) or 'Shams al-Din Mohammad' (1185–1248) was a Persian[1] Muslim,[2] who is credited as the spiritual instructor of Mewlānā Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Balkhi, also known as Rumi and is referenced with great reverence in Rumi’s poetic collection, in particular Diwan-i Shams-i Tabrīzī (The Works of Shams of Tabriz). Tradition holds that Shams taught Rumi in seclusion in Konya for a period of forty days, before fleeing for Damascus. The tomb of Shams-i Tabrīzī was recently nominated to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Life of Shams Tabrīzī[edit]

According to Sipah Salar, a devotee and intimate friend of Rumi who spent forty days with him, Shams was the son of the 'Imam Ala al-Din'. In a work entitled Manāqib al-‘arifīn (Eulogies of the Gnostics), 'Aflaki' names a certain ‘Ali as the father of Shams-i Tabrīzī and his grandfather as Malikdad. Apparently basing his calculations on Haji Bektash Veli's Maqālāt (Conversations), Aflaki suggests that Shams arrived in Konya at the age of sixty years. However, various scholars have questioned Aflaki’s reliability.[3]
Shams received his education in Tabriz and was a disciple of 'Baba Kamal al-Din Jumdi'. Before meeting Rumi, he apparently traveled from place to place weaving baskets and selling girdles for a living.[4] Despite his occupation as a weaver, Shams received the epithet of “the embroiderer” (zarduz) in various biographical accounts including that of the Persian historian 'Dawlatshah'. This however, is not the occupation listed by Haji Bektash Veli in the ”Maqālat” and was rather the epithet given to the Ismaili Imam Shams al-din Muhammad, who worked as an embroiderer while living in anonymity in Tabriz. The transference of the epithet to the biography of Rumi’s mentor suggests that this Imam’s biography must have been known to Shams-i Tabrīzī’s biographers. The specificities of how this transference occurred, however, are not yet known.[5]

Junayd (Junaid) of Baghdad

7:30 PM | BY ZeroDivide EDIT
Junayd (Junaid) of Baghdad (Persian: جنید بغدادی‎) was one of the most famous of the early Persian[1][2] Muslim mystics, or Sufis, ofIslam and is a central figure in the golden chain of many Sufi orders. Junayd taught in Baghdad throughout his spiritual lifetime and was an important figure in the development of central Sufi doctrine. Junayd, like Hasan of Basra before him, was widely revered by his students and disciples as well as quoted by other mystics. Because of his importance in Sufi theology, Junayd was often referred to as the "Sultan".[3]

Teachings[edit]

Junaid’s contributions to Sufism are many. His basic ideas deal a progression that leads one to “annihilate” oneself (fana) so as to be in a closer union with the Divine. People need to “relinquish natural desires, to wipe out human attributes, to discard selfish motives, to cultivate spiritual qualities, to devote oneself to true knowledge, to do what is best in the context of eternity, to wish good for the entire community, to be truly faithful to God, and to follow the Prophet in the matters of the Shari’a”.[4] This starts with the practice of renunciation (zuhd) and continues with withdrawal from society, intensive concentration on devotion (ibadat) & remembrance (dhikr) of God, sincerity (ikhlas), and contemplation (muraqaba) respectively; contemplation produces fana.[4] This type of “semantic struggle “ recreates the experience of trial (bala) that is key in Junaid’s writings.[5] This enables people to enter into the state of fana. Junaid divides up the state of fana into three parts: “1) the passing away from one’s attributes through the effort of constantly opposing one’s ego-self (nafs); 2) passing away from one’s sense of accomplishment, that is, passing away from ‘one’s share of the sweet deserts and pleasures of obedience’; and 3) passing away from the vision of the reality ‘of your ecstasies as the sign of the real overpowers you’”.[5] All of these stages help one to achieve fana. Once that has been attained, a person is in the state of remaining, or baqa. It is through the stage of baqa that one is able to find God – or rather, have God find him / her. Reaching baqa is not an easy thing to do though; getting through the three stages requires strict discipline and patience. There is even debate amongst scholars as to whether or not the third stage is even possible to reach. Junaid helped establish the “sober” school of Sufi thought, which meant that he was very logical and scholarly about his definitions of various virtues, Tawhid, etc. Sober Sufism is characterized by people who “experience fana [and] do not subsist in that state of selfless absorption in God but find themselves returned to their senses by God. Such returnees from the experience of selflessness are thus reconstituted as renewed selves,” just like an intoxicated person sobering up.[6] For example, Junaid is quoted as saying, “The water takes on the color of the cup.” While this might seem rather confusing at first, ‘Abd al-Hakeem Carney explains it best: “When the water is understood here to refer to the Light of Divine self-disclosure, we are led to the important concept of ‘capacity,’ whereby the Divine epiphany is received by the heart of any person according to that person’s particular receptive capacity and will be ‘colored’ by that person’s nature”.[7] As one can see, such a simple phrase holds such deep meaning; it brings the reader back to a deeper understanding of God through a more thoughtful metaphor.

Bahlul (sufi)

7:01 PM | BY ZeroDivide EDIT
It is related that the Sufi Master, Shaykh Junayd Abul Qasim Baghdadi, once went for a walk outside of Baghdad, his disciples following him. The Shaykh then asked them how Bahlul was. They answered, “He is a crazy person, what do you need from him?”
“Bring me to him because I have a need for him,” he said.
The students searched for Bahlul, whose reputation was that of a mad mystic, and found him in the desert. They took Shaykh Junayd to him. When Shaykh Junayd went near Bahlul, he saw Bahlul lying in a state of agitation, with a brick under his head for a pillow.
The Shaykh greeted him with the salutation of peace.
Bahlul answered with peace, and asked, “Who are you?”
“I am Junayd Baghdadi.”
Bahlul asked, “Are you Abul Qasim?”
“Yes!” replied the Shaykh.
“Are you the same Shaykh Baghdadi who gives people spiritual instructions?”
“Yes!”
Then Bahlul asked, “Do you even know how to eat?”
“Yes!” answered Junayd. “I say Bismillah (In the Name of Allah). I eat what is in front of me, I take small bites, put them in the right side of my mouth, and slowly chew. I don’t stare at others’ bites. I remember Allah while eating. For whatever morsel I eat, I say Alhamdulillah(Praise be to Allah). I wash my hands before and after eating.”
Bahul stood up and shook the dirt of his garment on the Shaykh, and said, “You want to be the spiritual teacher of the world but you don’t even know how to eat.” Saying this, he walked away.
The Shaykh’s students said, “O Shaykh! He is a crazy person. Let him be”
Junayd replied, “He is a madman who is spiritually intelligent in his words. Listen to the correct statements from him.”
Saying this he went after Bahlul, saying, “I have a need for Bahlul.”
When Bahlul reached a deserted building he sat down. Junayd came near him.
Bahlul asked, “Who are you?”
“Shaykh Baghdadi who doesn’t even know how to eat.”
“You don’t know how to eat, but do you know how to talk?”
“Yes.”
“How do you talk?”

Sahl al-Tustari

7:00 PM | BY ZeroDivide EDIT
Sahl al-Tustari (Persian: سهل شوشتری‎) or al-Tustari, born Abu Muhammed Sahl ibn 'Abd Allah (c818 C.E. (203 AH) - c896 C.E. (283 AH)), was a Persian Muslim scholarand early classical Sufi mystic.[1] He founded the Salimiyah Muslim theological school, which was named after his disciple Muhammad ibn Salim.[2]
Tustari is most famous for his controversial claim that "I am the Proof of God for the created beings and I am a proof for the saints (awliya) of my time"[1] and for his well-known Tafsir, a commentary on and interpretation of the Qur'an.

Biography[edit]

Sahl Al-Tustari was born in the fortress town of Tustar (Arabic) or Shushtar (Persian) in Khūzestān Province in what is now southwestern Iran.[1]
From an early age he led an ascetic life with frequent fasting and study of the Qur'an and Hadith, the oral traditions, of the Prophet Muhammad. He practised repentance (tawbah) and, above all, constant remembrance of God (dhikr). This eventually culminated in a direct and intimate rapport with God with whom he considered himself a special friend and one of the spiritual elect.[1]
Tustari was under the direction of the Sufi saint Dhul-Nun al-Misri for a time, and Tustari in his turn was one of the Sufi mystic and later martyr Mansur Al-Hallaj's early teachers.[3] In these early days when the Sufis were becoming established mostly in Baghdad (the capital of modern Iraq), the most notable Sufis of the time elsewhere were: Tustari in southwestern Iran, Al-Tirmidhi in Central Asia and the Malamatiyya or "People of Blame".[4]
An Islamic scholar who commented on and interpreted the Qur'an, Tustari maintained that the Qur'an "contained several levels of meaning", which included the outer or zahir and the inner or batin. Another key idea that he unravelled was the meaning of the Prohet Muhammad's saying "I am He and He is I, save that I am I, and He is He", explaining it "as a mystery of union and realization at the center of the Saint's personality, called the sirr ('the secret'), or the heart, where existence joins Being."[5] Tustari also "was the first to put" the Sufi exercise of remembrance of God, Dhikr, "on a firm theoretical basis."[6]
[Tustari] maintained that ultimately [...] it became clear to the recollector that the true agent of recollection was not the believer engaged in recollection but God Himself, who commemorated Himself in the heart of the believer. This realisation of God's control over the heart led the believer to the state of complete trust in the Divine.[1]

Bayazid Bastami

6:59 PM | BY ZeroDivide EDIT
Bayazid Bastami (Persian: بايزيد بسطامى‎; also known as Abu Yazid Bistami or Tayfur Abu Yazid al-Bustami, (804-874 or 877/8[2] CE) was a Persian[3] sufi. He was born in Bastam, Greater Iran.

Background[edit]

The name Bastami means "from Bastam". Bayazid's grandfather was a Zoroastrian who converted to Islam.[4] His grandfather had three sons, Adam, Tayfur and 'Ali. All of them were ascetics. Bayazid was born to Tayfur. Not much is known of his childhood, but Bayazid spent most of his time in isolation in his house and the mosque. Although he remained in isolation, he did not isolate himself from the Sufi realm. He welcomed people into his house to discuss Islam. Bayazid also led a life of asceticism and renounced all worldly pleasures in order to be one with Allah The Exalted. Ultimately, this led Bayazid to a state of "self anhiliation", which, according to many Sufi orders, is the only state a person could be in order to attain union with God.
Bayazid Tomb
Bayazid's Mosque
Carving of Bayazid's Mosque
Bayazid's Mosque
Bayazid's Mosque

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