MEDITATION TIMES

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A PRODUCTION OF www.taoshobuddhameditations.com
Published by: www.taoshobuddhameditations.com
Country of Origin: Trinidad & Tobago, West Indies.
Chief Editor/Graphics Layout & Design: Swami Anand Neelambar
Editorial Team: Swami Anand Neelambar, Taoshobuddha
International Contributors: Hadhrat Maulawi Jalaluddin Ahmad Ar-Rowi, Lars Jensen
Assistant Contributors: Ma Prem Sutra, Swami Dhyan Yatri, Sufi Lakshmi Sahai

For Queries, Comments, and Suggestions and to submit

In This Issue Contributions, you can email the following persons:

Taoshobuddha: mailtaoshobuddha@gmail.com
 Editorial
Swami AnandNeelambaravatar411@gmail.com
 Message from the Sheikh
 The Sufi Path You can also visit
 Introduction to Sufism www.youtube.com\taoshobuddha9
 What is Sufism? www.scribd.com\taoshobuddha
 Shah Bahauddin Naqshband
www.scribd.com\avatar411
 Naqshbandi Tariqat
taoshobuddha library at
 Muhammad Al-Baqi Billah www.DocStoc.com/Taoshobuddha

 Sheikh Ahmad Al-Faruqi As Sirhindi E books: www.EBookMall.Com/Taoshobuddha

 Shamsuddin Habibullah Mirza Mazhar Mir
Jane Jana Also you can check the blog at
 Naqshbandi Tariqat Hindu and other http://bodhidharmameditation.blogspot.com/

influences http://www.taoshobuddhameditations.myeweb.net/

 The dawn of Hindu Sufi http://meditationtimes.myeweb.net/

 Celebrating a great Soul – by Lars Jensen

 Links to talks of Taoshobuddha on the Sufi
Path
The Sufi Path
Inner Transformation
 MEDITATION TIMES
Published by Taoshobuddha Meditations
Trinidad, West indies
EDITORIAL
The world of the Sufi is magical, mysterious,
melodious, marvellous, methodological and
most of all mystical. A Sufi cannot be found
unless he reveals himself.
Religion has three phases – the first is
Shariat – the outer core of ritual and rules;
the second is Haqiquat – the inner core of
truth and realization; and third is Tariquat –
the methods, disciplines and techniques to
attain realization
Sufism is the inner core of the spiritual quest.
The dregs and dross are removed and pure
love remains. The Sufi approach is one of awe
and wonder at the marvels of the Creator
Who is dissolved in His Creation. One cannot
come to appreciate Sufism without being
transformed by the very desire to know what
Sufism is. To know the Sufi way is to become
a Sufi by the very process of knowing. But
Sufi is about love – not knowing, at least not
intellectual knowing.
The Sufi path is riddled with mysterious
parables and mystical insights into very
ordinary things. When one begins to inquire
who is a Sufi then the lamp of knowing is lit.
When this flame becomes a burning passion
that cannot be quelled until the heart dances
with ecstasy at the mere thought of the
Beloved, only then the search is over.
A Sufi is mad. Mad for the Beloved. Mad
because he has left the arms of world to
embrace the open sky without a thought for
tomorrow.
A Sufi is a moth that dies in the enamouring
flames of dissolution. He must not only see
the Beloved, he must die in the presence.
Only such a death reveals what is truly worth
living.
A Sufi is one who has died for the world and
is reborn into the paradise of heaven on earth.
Where a Sufi lives that place is the mythical
firdous. Only now is it not a myth. It is a living
reality. To even meet a Sufi by passing chance
is a gift from Allah. Only he who has reached
the last stages of spiritual evolution will get
such a grace.
This issue of Meditation Times is about the
Sufi Way, the Sufi Path.
Sufis are interested in the transformation of
consciousness. Their main focus is how to get
the sincere aspirant to renounce his old ways
and embrace a method that will draw his
awareness to an inner calling. This is done
very mysteriously and mystically, in such a
way that the aspirant does not know when
the old way has dropped and the new way is
adopted. He feels a pull from within and an
irresistible urge to follow this Sufi Master. He
has fallen in love with the Sufi. This love is
what will carry him to the firdous of his inner
being.
Such is the mysterious Sufi Path. A path of
pure love, a way of transformation from lead
to gold.
 ‫الطريق الصوفي‬
God created the physical universe to manifest Himself

So that the treasure of His wisdom may be revealed

He said, ‘I was a hidden treasure.’

Listen! Listen attentively!

In the same way you must not let your spiritual

Reality be submerged…

Instead must manifest your spirit in action!!!

RUMI MASNAVI IV: 3028-29

SUFISM is the path of Love!

It is the path of Trust!
Trust your Love!
Trust your being!
A new meaning will certainly arise in life.
Life will be a benediction.
This is my Certitude or Yakeen.
This is Sufism.
 ‫ن ق ش ب ندي‬ Taoshobuddha ‫يخ‬ ‫ال ش‬

…So too my own existence has given me the authority to speak on any path or any master to speak
on. I am the consciousness that contains all that has happened and all that is yet to happen in this
cosmos. All Sheikhs are in me and I am in all Sheikhs. In fact I am cosmic. This alone gives me the
authority to reflect all that is being reflected. It matters not if I am speaking a Buddha, or a Jesus,
or a Mohammed. It is out of the compassion for the erring humanity that I simply overflow. My
own being has given me the authority for such overflows.

Become silent and in silence

move towards non existence
and when you become non-existent,
you will be all praise!!

DIVAN-I-SHAMS 2628

Whenever a religion is alive it is because of Sufism. Sufism simply means a love affair with God.
The UNKNOWN AND THE UNKNOWABLE! It is an affair with the ultimate!
A love affair with the whole or TAO, or that which is the very pulse of the existence!
It means that one is ready to dissolve into the whole. In fact you are ready to invite the whole to come into
your heart. It knows no formality. Then it does not matter what is your path because you are so engrossed in
your love affair with God that you have no time for tasubi.
A
nd what I am going to make available to
you – a little taste. And once you have
tasted even a drop of the nectar called
Sufism you will become thirstier for more. And
this thirst will go on getting deeper and deeper.
For the first time you will start feeling a great
appetite for God in you.
There is a life force or energy that flows through
the matter envelopment. Under the law of
evolution and the descent of light, a
consciousness journeys through various stages
in matter. When this consciousness manifests
subjectively a new life is said to have been born.
And when, at the end of the journey of
consciousness through this mind and matter
vehicle, life energy reaches to the realm of No
Mind, it is SATORI – the first glimpse of that
which is. Thus begins the journey into the realm
of the BEYOND.
In the journey of consciousness this process
continues without a break till eternity lasts. But
because of ignorance and attachment you miss
this solemn opportunity of TRANSCENDENCE. Be
aware of this each finite moment of life. And be
established in your BLISSFUL EXISTENCE —
EVER SERENE AND TRANQUIL.
The matter decomposes but CONSCIOUSNESS
that is, remains. NEVER TAKES BIRTH AND
NEVER DIES! It always is.
During the recent few years, in the process of
evolution, there prevailed a consciousness that
envisioned truth only from one plane as partial
and thus created some upheaval causing pain
and suffering at various levels. It was essential so
that existing impressions of past actions could be
exhausted and each is put on the path of
evolution.
Under these circumstances it became imperative
for me, to look into the divine plan of such
consciousness and the process of growth. Guided
by my essential nature it was essential to
observe my role under these circumstances.
Certain decisions were made which will reveal
themselves in the course of time. One important
aspect was to start preparing to fold my works in
the present manifestation. Not much time is
ahead! And the wheel of time is moving too
swiftly. It knows not place, person, or thing. It
has been moving and shall go on forever without
a break. As a result I have started detaching
myself more and more from the world and its
duality. This withdrawal is essential so that I can
work from behind in my CAUSAL form. For this
reason, all the writings that manifested from
time to time need to be organized and presented
to maintain its authenticity.
Through this issue I am bringing insight into the
Sufi Path in India with particular reference to
Hindu influence and the Naqshbandi Tariqat. The
first part is in your hand. In the second part I will
discuss the growth of Hindu influence and the
continuation of Tariqat in post Naqshbandi era
in Indian Sub - Continent.
And I am extremely happy that:

Today the Naqshbandi Order is the foremost Sufi order in the world and is experiencing an
unprecedented period of growth, not only in its traditional heartlands of Central Asia, Turkey, the
Middle East and South Asia, but in nations of the Western world, particularly the United States and
Great Britain. In this regard I pay my regards and love for many Sheikhs who are working towards
such revelations.
 yh sc hE ik bhut kfvI hE my #s sakI kI

r<g la@gI gr sasae< me< %tr jane dae

Yeh sach hai ki bahut kadvi hai mai is saaqui ki

Rang layegi gar sanson mein utar aane do!!

YES INDEED THE MYSTICAL WINE OF THIS BREWER IS BITTER

ALLOW IT TO ENTER WITHIN
CERTAINLY IT WILL TRANSFORM YOU!!

ijNdgI rahe gm se inkl ja@gI

T
he Sufi path is the unique way to journey
from fana to baka. The uniqueness of the
path is the union between Tasawwuf and
tawwzjoh. Tasawwuf is the connected with the
inner core of the Holy Prophet and tawwzjoh is
the energy field of the sheikh through which the
saliq attains to the nisbet of Allah Subhan wa
Taala via the rasool – Holy Prophet.
Tasawwuf is the very essence of Sufism and that
of man’s existence. Yet still quite often these two
words are used as synonym. Evolving out of
Islam it has now become the part of the inner life
of every aspirant. Islam centers around four
pillars – Shariat, Hadith, Tariqat, and
Tasawwuf. Of these Shariat and Hadith form
the part of the outer body of the religion? And
Tariqat and Tasawwuf form the inner core of
The Holy Prophet. Both, Tariqat and Tasawwuf
are connected to the nisbet of the Holy Prophet.
Tariqat teaches you the way to nisbet. And
Tasawwuf prepares you for inner serenity, and
for the continuation of the way of nisbet. In its
essence tariqat and Tasawwuf are part of each
one of you. Tariqat prepares you along the way
and Tasawwuf preserves your awareness or
nisbet.
terI duinya hI yKsr bdl ja@gI.
%nke kdmae me< #s bar sr tae Huka
%nkI cZme< krm i)r mcl ja@gI.
Zindagi rahe gam se inkal jayegi
Teri duinya hi yaksar badal jayagi
Unke kadmo men is bar sar tae jhuka
Unki chashme karam fir machal jayegi!!!
Life will certainly evolve out of the path of despair
Your world will definitely undergo transformation
Place your conditionings, thoughts and
Understanding too at Thy feet
Certainly His vision and grace will begin to flow!!!
Sufism is the way of transformation. It is better
to call this doctrine as Sufi Tariqat. It revolves
around the Sheikh. Sheikh is the encyclopedia
for transformation. He is the living book from the
library of the existence. He may look like you!
Walk like you! And talk like you as well! But he is
different in many ways from you. As far as his
awareness, his understanding of the cosmic
phenomena or nisbet to Allah Subhan wa
Taa’la is concerned he is totally different from
you. The more you open the pages the more
mysteries of the unknown will unfold. And then
journey becomes easier. Let me take you through
this living scripture page by page:
TASAWWUF:
Tasawwuf is the beginning or the introduction
to this methodology. The aspect of the Shariat
that relates to Amaal-e-Baatini or esoteric
states of the heart is called Tasawwuf and
Suluk. And, the aspect of the Shariat that relates
to Amaal-e-Zaahiri or exoteric or physical acts
is called Fiqh. Tasawwuf deals with Tahzeeb-e-
Akhlaaq or the way to adorn life and living while
it aims at the attainment of Bliss. The Bliss or
surur is attained through the total
understanding of the Shariat, and then
subsequently living by it.
Tasawwuf in fact is the rooh or soul and state of
perfection of the Deen or life beyond. Its function
is to purify the Batin or the heart or the qulb of
the aspirant from the lowly bestial attributes of
lust, calamities of the tongue, anger, malice,
jealousy, love of the world, love for fame,
niggardliness, greed, ostentation, vanity,
deception, etc. At the same time Tasawwuf aims
to adorn the heart with the attributes of
repentance, perseverance, gratefulness, love of
Allah, hope, abstention, Tauheed, trust, love
sincerity, truth, meditation, reckoning,
contemplation, etc. In this way, attention
towards Allah the Unknown and Unknowable is
inculcated in man. This is in fact the purpose of
life.
Tasawwuf or Tariqat therefore does not, at all
negate Deen and Shariat. On the contrary it is
incumbent for every seeker to become a Sufi or
one who follows the path of Tasawwuf. Without
Tasawwuf, a Muslim cannot truly be described
as a perfect Muslim. And also without Tasawwuf
the seeker cannot begin inward journey.
Farz or duty is incumbent upon every Seeker to
rectify his esoteric acts. Numerous Quranic
Aayat and innumerable Hadith narration
explicitly indicate its significance. However, most
people with superficial understanding neglect
these because of their subservience to lowly
desires. Remember Quran and the Hadith are
explicit regarding the significance of zuhd,
Tawwjoh, Ikhlaaq, Sabr, Shukr, Hubb-e-Ilahi,
Tawakkul, Tasleem, etc., while at the same time
they emphasize the acquisition of these noble
attributes? And, who is not aware that the Quran
and Hadith condemn the opposites of these
noble qualities, viz., Hubb-e dunya, takabbur,
Riyaa, Hasad, etc., and has warned against
these? What doubt is there in the fact that the
noble qualities have been commanded and the
contrary has been prohibited? This is the actual
meaning of reforming the esoteric acts. This is
the primary purpose of Tariqat. It being Farz is
undoubtedly an established fact.
 My heart is like a scroll
That extends without end to eternity
Inscribed from first to last
Do not leave me!

RUMI: DIVAN-I SHAMS 23493

After the departure of the Beloved Prophet Muhammad from this world in 632 C.E., those who were
close to him passed on his teachings to the sincere seekers of the next generation, who in turn
became the perfected guides, or Sheikhs, for the generation after them. This process has continued
down to our present time by the Mercy of Allah. In this way, every authentic Sufi guide has a chain of
Masters who leads directly back to the Beloved Prophet Muhammad. Such a chain of Masters is
known in Sufism as a “Silsila” or a “Shajarah”.

imla jae maEka tae raek dU<ga mh;r ihsab tera

pF<Uga muhBbt ke vae ksIde sun ke h<s prega Aajab tera

IF I EVER GET THE OPPORTUNITY,

CERTAINLY I WILL STOP THY DAY OF JUDGMENT! WHY?

I WILL RECITE THOSE COUPLETS OF THY LOVINGNESS AND GRACE.

LISTENING TO WHICH YOUR ANGER SHALL VANISH!!

IT happened once. There was a conference of the the second line, which meant:
learned ones. Somehow a master happened to
I will sing the glories of Thy Love! Also I will
reach there. In that conference he read a couplet.
chant Thy magnanimity! I will overflow
He recited the first line, which meant, “If I ever
glories of Thy compassion! I have lived those
get the opportunity, certainly I will stop the day
moments. Listening to these words Thy anger
of judgment.” It was customary belief among the
will certainly vanish. Such is my certitude. My
people then that on the Day of Judgment Allah
trust! This is my love! This is my being. This is
will punish all those who have deviated from the
my presence.
path. Listening to these words everyone in the
congregation got very angry. But then a silence No one could escape this energy field! All those
descended. Everyone got quiet when he recited who had gathered there now drowned within the
mystical energy field of this master. No word!
Just an indrawn mystical stillness and
tranquility! A stillness that is alive! A stillness
that is pulsating! A state of meditativeness
descended. Everyone got quiet because it was
TRUTH echoing. It was Love overflowing. Both
truth and love are synonymous. And when
Truth manifests itself there can be no better
song! No better melody! It was the song of the
being! The pulse of cosmos! The very essence of
the master!
This is Sufism. The path of Love! It is the path of
Trust! Trust your Love! Trust your being! A new
meaning will certainly arise in life. Life will be a
benediction. This is my Certitude or Yakeen.
Sufism evolved as the inner kernel of Islam. It is
the fragrance of the Holy prophet. If Islam is
alive today it is because of the Sufi path. And
shall continue erelong, as long as human heart is
alive with love!
Sufism evolved in the deserts of the Middle East.
Inflicted by intense heat and the dearth of
greenery it flourished amidst the desert of life. It
evolved within the inner sanctum of the masters,
YA ILAHI TA ABAD KAYAM RAHE YAH SILSILA!
Yaa #lahI ta Abd kaym rhe yh islisla,
MAY THIS PATH OF TRANSFORMATION OF HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS CONTINUE TILL ETERNITY!
AMEN….
After the departure of the Beloved Prophet
Muhammad from this world in 632 C.E., those
who were close to him passed on his teachings to
the sincere seekers of the next generation, who
in turn became the perfected guides, or Sheikhs,
for the generation after them. This process has
continued down to our present time by the
Mercy of Allah. In this way, every authentic Sufi
guide has a chain of Masters who leads directly
back to the Beloved Prophet Muhammad. Such a
chain of Masters is known in Sufism as a “Silsila”
the Sufi masters. The breath of the cosmos, the
inner light of the Holy Prophet, the soil of trust,
and the waters of the separation with the whole,
all provided a congenial environment for the
growth of this eternal tree of mysticism as SUFI
PATH. Later the awareness, intuition, and trust
of the various masters of the following Orders
nourished and nurtured the path with their love
as the energy field and their understanding
through various upheavals of life and living.
1. Chishti Order (India) (1143-1223 AD),
2. Suhrawardi Order (India) (1234-1335
AD),
3. Mevlevi Order (Turkey) (1273),
4. Qadriya Order (Iraq) (1430-1517 AD),
5. Naqshbandi Order (Afghanistan and
India) (d.1642 AD),
6. Nimatullahi Sufi Order (Iran) (at the end
of the 14th century AD),
7. Shattari Order (India) (d.1485 AD)
This process still continues unabated in the
name of an ecstatic Naqshbandi master
Sayyidina Abul Qasim Gurgani who chants
erelong:
or a “Shajarah”.
Often, one of the Sheikhs may be so prominent,
or become so well-known, that his students will
identify themselves by saying they follow the
way of such-and-such a Sheikh. The Arabic word
for way is ‘tariqah’. (Plural: ‘turuq’).
So for example, students of the great Sheikh,
Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani, and his successors down
to the present day are said to follow the Qadriya
tariqah. Similarly, Bahauddin Naqshband gave
his name to the Naqshbandiya tariqah.
Khawaja Muin al-din Hasan Chishti gave his
name to the Chistiyya tariqah. Abul Hasan
Shadhili gave his name to the Shadhili tariqah.
Ahmad Faruqi Sirhindi gave Mujaddid to the
Mujaddidi tariqah. Sultan Makhdoom Ashraf
Jahangir gave his name to the Ashraf ya
tariqah. Mirza Mazhar Mir Jane Jana gave his
name to Mazaharia tariqah. Sheikh Ahmad
Faruqi and Mirza Mazhar Mir Jane Jana
belonged to the tradition of Bahauddin
Naqshband. As a result the path thus originated
came to be known as Naqshbandiya Mujaddadi-
Mazaharia.
In the English language, each of these ‘tariqah’ is
known as a ‘Sufi Order’. Ultimately, all of these
orders lead directly back to the Beloved Prophet
Muhammad. And thus continues the path and the
process of transformation.
 Your free will, your power to choose good or evil,
Is increased by the inspirations of the angel
And the promptings of the devil!
The angel and the devil presenting
The opposing choices in us,
Force us to exercise our free will
This is a faculty within us!

RUMI MASNAVI VI: 2985, 3004-5

I teach religiousness. Religion beyond religion! Just pure religiousness! Every Buddha, be he a Jesus,
a Mohammad, an Al Hillaj, a Kabir, a Nanak, or a Lau Tzu has to face the same situation. Such
people live in a state beyond mind. And you live within the four walls of your mind, thinking and,
memory. He is bringing to you the unsay-able, the inexpressible, the unknowable, and the
indefinable. This is absurd. He is bound be in conflict. Because if he is not in conflict then he is not a
Buddha!

Many years ago when I first began talks on Sufi
Path in a congregation of the learned ones
(ulmas), my Hindu name brought conflict. A
learned Mohammedan came to me and asked:
‘You are not a Muslim; also you do not come from
that faith. So what gives you the authority to
speak on Sufism?’
This situation still continues. I assumed a name
that has no religious semblance. Then came the
conflict of the genes, my looks! This conflict still
continues. Such is case from the times
immemorial. Prophets and masters come and go
but human ignorance lingers on. This is what
Sufis call betassubi – narrowness or spiritual
intolerance and indolence. This will continue until
there is total transformation of human
consciousness.
I told the person:
Muslim in you. Is your blood, or bones, or flesh or
anything else? Do you breathe Muslim air, or
drink Muslim water. What really makes you a
Muslim, or a Hindu, or a Christian? Remember it
is your mind. It is your conditionings obviously
that make you a Hindu, a Muslim, or a Christian or
a Sikh. A flower knows no religion. Its only
religion is its religiousness. The very quality of
the being! An ecstatic Jesus says God is Love. Love
is phenomena of heart or qulb. And Love cannot
be Hindu, or Muslim or Christian. Jesus also says I
am the ‘saltiness’ in salt. Masters come and go but
human imbecility continues. I am a Sufi to the
very core of my being. Mohammad is the cause of
my being, my essence. And all that I am speaking
to you does not come out of the mind. It is
something beyond mind. And that which is
beyond mind comes through inner connection.
Sufis call this inner connection nisbat. And nisbat
is a phenomenon of qulb as it flows through qulb
alone.”

“I am not a Muslim. It is true indeed. In fact, I do I teach religiousness. Religion beyond religion!
not belong to any religion. Just introspect what is Just pure religiousness! Every Buddha, be he a
Jesus, a Mohammad, an Al Hillaj, a Kabir, a Nanak,
or a Lau Tzu has to face the same situation. Such
people live in a state beyond mind. And you live
within the four walls of your mind, thinking and,
memory. He is bringing to you the unsay-able, the
inexpressible, the unknowable, and the
indefinable. This is absurd. He is bound be in
conflict. Because if he is not in conflict then he is
not a Buddha! I have to face the same situation.
He also wanted to know:
“What gives me the right to speak on Sufism?”
I responded:
“What authority has sun or breeze, or water gave
to a flower to blossom. In fact it is the very being
of the flower that gives it the authority to
blossom. And once the flower has assumed the
will to evolve the existence comes from all side to
help in the process of blossoming. So too my own
existence has given me the authority to speak on
any path or any master to speak on. I am the
consciousness that contains all that has happened
and all that is yet to happen in this cosmos. All
Buddhas are in me and I am in all Buddhas. In fact
I am cosmic. This alone gives me the authority to
reflect all that is being reflected. It matters not if I
am speaking a Buddha, or a Jesus, or a
Mohammed. It is out of the compassion for the
erring humanity that I simply overflow. My own
being has given me the authority for such
overflows.”
A Sufi need not be a Mohammedan. A Sufi can
exist anywhere, in any form. Sufism is the
essential core of all religions. It has nothing to do
with Islam in particular. Sufism can exist without
Islam. However, Islam cannot exist without
Sufism. Only with Sufism does any religion
become alive. Sufism is the very essence, the very
being, the rooh or the soul of the Holy Prophet.
Sufism is the fragrance of Mohammad. Just as
Bhagwad Gita is the fragrance of Krishna! Just as
Ramcharit Manas is the fragrance of Tulsidas! Or
just as Japji is the very fragrance of Nanak. Or just
as Talmud is the fragrance of Balshem. So it is the
being of Mohammad that echoes through Sufism.
Sufism is the breath of Mohammad. Sufism is
tariqat – the way to attain to oneness with God
just as it happened to the Holy Prophet.
Whenever a religion is alive it is because of
Sufism. Sufism simply means a love affair with
God. The UNKNOWN AND THE UNKNOWABLE! It
is an affair with the ultimate! A love affair with
the whole or TAO, or that which is the very pulse
of the existence! It means that one is ready to
dissolve into the whole. In fact you are ready to
invite the whole to come into your heart. It knows
no formality.
It is not confined by any dogma, doctrine, creed or
church. Christ is a Sufi. So is Mohammed. Krishna
is a Sufi. So is Buddha. In fact all the masters and
incarnations are Sufis. No more philosophies. This
is the first thing I would like you to remember.
Sufism is the innermost core of all religions. Zen,
Hassidism etc. are just names of the same
happening. These are only different names of the
same ultimate relationship with God. The
relationship is dangerous.
It is dangerous because the closer you come to
God, the more and more you evaporate. And when
you have come really close you are no more. This
is really dangerous because it is in a way suicidal.
But this suicide is beautiful. To die in God is the
only way to live really. You die as you are. Only
then you are reborn. Until you die! Until you die
voluntarily into love, you continue to live a mere
superfluous existence. You live simply as
mediocre. You vegetate. You do not have any
meaning. No poetry arises in your heart, no
dance, no celebration and no song. You continue
to grope in darkness. You stumble in utter dark
caves. You live at the lowest ebb. There is no
overflow of bliss or ecstasy.
That overflow happens only when you are not.
Your very presence is the hindrance. Because that
presence is nothing else but ego! Sufism is the art
of removing the hindrance between you and you,
between the self and the self, between the part
and the whole. Sufism is the methodology to
dissolve the vanity of ego.
A few things about this word 'Sufi'. An ancient
Persian dictionary gives the definition of the word
in a very unique way. It goes in rhyme: SUFI
CHIST - SUFI, SUFIST. WHO IS A SUFI? The
dictionary answers A SUFI IS A SUFI. What a
strange but a beautiful way to define a SUFI and
the path. The phenomenon that we call Sufi is
indefinable. ‘A Sufi is a Sufi.’ It says nothing and
yet it says everything. It says that the Sufi cannot
be defined. There is no other word to define the
entire phenomena. There is no other synonym!
Also there is no possibility to define it
linguistically. There is no other indefinable
phenomenon. You can live it and you can know it,
you can be it! However, through the mind, or the
intellect, it is not possible. You can be a Sufi. And
that is the only way to know what Sufism is. You
can taste the reality yourself, it is available. You
need not go into a dictionary, you can go into
existence. If you are not ready to have a bite of
Sufism you can at least taste it.
And that is what I am going to make available to
you – a little taste. And once you have tasted even
a drop of the nectar called Sufism you will
become thirstier for more. And this thirst will go
on getting deeper and deeper. For the first time
you will start feeling a great appetite for God in
you.
These talks cannot explain to you what is Sufism.
Because these are not the talks of a philosopher! I
am not a theologian either. And I am not really
talking on Sufism, I will be talking Sufism. I am
here to give you a taste of Sufism. If you are
ready! Ready to go into this adventure, and then
you will attain the very taste of it. It is something
that will start happening in your heart. It is
something like a bud opening. You will start
feeling a certain sensation in the heart. It is as if
something is becoming alert, awake, and alive
there. It is as if the heart has been asleep for long
and now it is the first glimpse of the morning. And
thus you will have the taste.
Sufism is a special kind of magic, a rare kind of
magic. It can be transferred only from a master to
the disciple, not from a book. It is ilme seena or
knowledge of the heart. It cannot be transferred
by scriptures. No way can this be communicated
through the mind. It is also just like Zen – a
transmission beyond words. It is a wordless
communion. Nothing is spoken, yet still
everything is heard. The Sufis have a special word
for it, they call it silsila. What Hindus call
parampara Sufis call as silsila? Silsila means a
transfer from one heart to another heart. From
one person to another person! It is a very, very
personal religion.
Sufism is the transmission beyond communion. It
is like that happen from a lit candle to the unlit
one. Nothing is visible yet still something
happens. And the closer the unlit candle comes to
the lit one something jumps and lights the unlit
one. This is transmission without lamp. A
communication without word! Nay you cannot
call this as communication! Because it is not
communication! Instead it is communion! The
disciple remains within the energy field of the
master beyond time and space in a state of
continuum. This he does through trust, love for
the master, and introspection on the words of the
master. Thus he goes beyond time and space. This
is Sufi way. Nobody is doing anything. Yet still the
rare magic is happening – the transformation
from baser to the subtle!
You cannot have it without being related to an
enlightened Master. There is no other way. You
can read all the literature that exists on Sufism
and you will be lost in a desert of words. Unless
you find a guide! Unless you fall in love with a
guide, you will not have the taste of the
miraculous. I am ready to take you on this inner
journey. This can happen only if you are
courageous and adventurous. Only courageous
people get attracted towards the real. The real is
not for cowards, and for your so-called religious
people.
Remember this place is not for so-called God-
fearing people either. In fact this place is for the
God loving people. Love knows no fear. Love is
the disappearance of fear. Just like when light is
darkness can no more be. And such a person has a
totally different quality. A God-fearing person can
never move into the deeper realms of religion.
Certainly he cannot move to his inner realm
because of his fear. You will start feeling a certain
sensation in the heart. And this sensation is such
that if something is becoming alert, awake there;
as if the heart has been asleep for long and now it
is the first glimpse of the morning. And it is in
such wakefulness you will have the taste of the
miraculous. Know this the Sufi way. Sufi way can
happen once you are open to love and its deeper
realms. Then it matters not what is your outer
garb. I invite you for such an experience.
This place is for those whom I call God loving
persons. And they have a totally different quality.
A God-fearing person never moves into the
deeper realms of religion, he cannot because of
his fear. People who come to me are God loving.
When I say ‘God loving’ I mean they are in search.
They want to know. They want to be. They want
to attain to inner oneness. They want to explode
their blissfulness. And they want to know
authentically. They do not want to have borrowed
knowledge about it. They want to have a taste.
They want to encounter, they want to face God.
They want to look into his eyes.
But before you can become capable of looking
into the eyes of God, you will have to become
capable of looking into the eyes of a Master. From
there you take off. The journey begins. Master is
the one who looks like you. He talks and walks
like you. Yet still there is something of the
beyond. He is soaked in God. He is overflowing
the blissfulness. And in that state whatever he
says transforms you. It is the miracle of the
unknown. Beyond time and space- a continuum! I
am making myself available to you. Sufism is just
an excuse. I will not be talking about Sufism. I will
be talking Sufism itself. The word ‘Sufism’ is also
beautiful. It has many orientations and all are
beautiful. And I would not like to emphasize any
one specific orientation. A few people choose one
orientation. While others choose another!
However my understanding is that all those
orientations are beautiful and have something
special to say. I accept them all. Each orientation
speaks of the inner state of the one who is
expressing this.
One old Naqshbandi Master, Abul Hassan
Kharqani, has said, ‘Sufism was once a reality
without a name and now Sufism is a name
without reality.’
For many centuries Sufism existed without a
name. It existed as reality only. That is why I say
Jesus was a Sufi! So was Mohammed! So was
Mahabir! And so was Krishna! Anyone who has
come to know God! Come to be God! Is indeed a
Sufi! Why do I say so? Try to understand the word
‘Sufi’ and it will become clear to you. The word
‘Sufi’ is a new coinage. It is of a German origin. It
emerged out of German scholarship. Is not more
than one hundred and fifty years old? In Arabic
the word is tasawwuf. But both come from a root
‘suf’ which means wool.
It seems very strange. Why should wool become
the symbol of Sufism? The scholars go on saying
that it is because Sufis used to wear woollen
robes. That is true. But why! Nobody has
answered it. Why should they be wearing woollen
robes? Mohammed says in the Quran that even
Moses was wearing a woollen robe when he
encountered God. When God spoke to him he was
entirely in a woollen robe. But why! There is a
deep symbolism in it. The symbolism is that wool
is the garb of the animals and a Sufi has to
become as innocent as an animal. The Sufi has to
attain to a primal innocence. He has to drop all
kinds of civilization! He has to drop all kinds of
cultures. He has to drop all conditionings. And
thus has to become again innocent like an animal.
Then the symbol becomes tremendously
significant.
When man becomes animal he does not fall back
as is normally conceived. Instead he goes higher.
When man becomes animal he is not just an
animal. That is not possible. You have not
regressed. You cannot fall back. When a man
becomes an animal he becomes a saint. His
becoming an animal is his conscious choice. He
remains conscious but his consciousness is no
more burdened by any conditioning. He is no
more a Hindu and no more a Mohammedan and
no more a Christian. He is in tune with existence
as deeply as any animal. He has dropped all kinds
of philosophies. No more conceptualizations in
his mind. Mind is without any content. He is, but
he is no more in the mind. To be like innocent
animals is the very meaning of woollen robe. He
is no more in the duality of what is good and what
is bad. Only then the highest good the Absolute
Good arises! This is ‘summum bonum’ the ultimate
good!
When you know this is good and that is bad, and
you choose good against bad. And you remain
divided. This is duality. When you choose, there
is repression. When you say, ‘I will do this! This
has to be done. This should be done’, this
becomes an ‘ought’. Then naturally you have to
repress. You have to repress that which you have
condemned as bad. And the repressed part
remains inside you and goes on poisoning your
system. And sooner or later it will assert. Sooner
or later it will take revenge. When it explodes! It
will surface even without your knowing. You will
go mad.
Hence all civilized people are always on the verge
of madness. This earth is a big madhouse. A few
have already become mad. While a few are
potentially ready. The difference between you
and the mad people is not of quality! It is only of
quantity! The difference is only of degree. Maybe
they have gone beyond the hundred degrees and
you are just lingering somewhere near nineties.
And any moment any situation can push you
beyond the boundary. Don't you see it? Can’t you
observe your mind? Can’t you see the madness
that goes on and on inside? It is continuously
there. Waiting for the opportunity to explode!
To me, to be an animal means to be innocent.
Innocence is spontaneous and natural. It knows
no morality or immorality. To be an animal is not
a condemnation. A saint is more like animals than
like you. The difference between a master and
you is his innocence and spontaneity. That is why
he is more like an animal than like the so called
human beings. The human beings are not natural
beings. They are very unnatural! They are
artificial, plastic like. Their whole life is a life of
deception. If you touch somebody’s face you will
never touch his face, you touch only his mask. And
remember, your hand is also not true. It has a
glove on it. Even lovers do not touch each other.
Even in love you are not innocent. Even in love
you are not without masks. But when you want to
love God you have to be without masks. You have
to drop all deceptions. You have to be
authentically whatsoever you are. You have to be
choice less. Be whatsoever you are. In that primal
innocence God descends. So the reasons Idrish
Shah finds to condemn the definition that ‘Sufi’
comes from ‘suf’ are exactly the reasons I approve
it.
You avoid it. You get occupied in a thousand and
one things just to avoid it. You do not look at it.
You want to forget about it. It is too scary and
frightening. But it is there – and whether you
avoid it or not it goes on growing. It is
continuously accumulating momentum. It can
come to the peak any time. Any small thing can
trigger it. When you choose, you have to repress.
The animal does not choose. Whatsoever is
actually is. The animal simply accepts it. Its
acceptance is total. It knows no choice. So does a
Sufi.
A Sufi knows no choice. He is choicelessly aware.
Whatsoever happens he accepts it as a gift, as a
God-given thing. Who is he to choose? He does
not trust his mind. Instead he trusts in the
universal mind that is why when you come across
a Sufi you will see such animal innocence in his
eyes and in his being. There is an expression of
such freedom, such joy, as only animals know! Or
trees or rocks or stars manifest! Idrish Shah has
condemned the definition of ‘Sufi’ from ‘suf’ –
wool – on exactly the same grounds as I am
approving of it. He says that Sufis are so alert
about symbols how can they choose wool as a
symbol? The wool represents the animal and
Idrish Shah says Sufis cannot choose the animal
as a symbol. They are the people of God – why
should they choose the animal? He seems very
logical, and he may appeal to many people.
But on exactly the same grounds I approve the
definition. It needs deeper insight into the whole
phenomena that is Sufism. You need to know the
very essence of Sufism. You have to be a Sufi to
know this. You have to be in the ocean like a fish
to know what is ocean. You have to dive deep in
the womb of the ocean to explore the inner
treasures of the unknown. You have never known
such treasures. This is the rare experience. Sufism
is such rare experience. Idrish Shah has done
tremendous work in creating a Sufi character in
Mulla Nauruddin. Through this character he has
hit human ignorance and unconsciousness. I love
him for this. But I do not accept when he says
about the symbol of animal as the symbol for
Sufism. Animal symbolizes innocence. So is a Sufi.
This is the reason Sufis have chosen this symbol.
It is a natural and spontaneous choice.
I have heard that once a dog bit a man in Sufi
garb. AT this the man hit the dog with a stick.
Then the dog went the city chief to lodge the
complaint against the man who had hit him with
the stick. The chief who is called quazi called the
two parties together. He listened to the plaintiff
and the defender. Now it was the time for the
judgment. The dog bit the man and then the man
hit the dog with his stick. The chief said this
squares the situation. Surprised the chief asked
the dog why was he complaining when he bit the
man first. Because you bit the man and this is the
reason that the man hit you back. The case is
squared now. There is no case then. But then the
chief got surprised when the dog said that his
complained was not against the man who hit him.
The dog said when I saw this man in a sufa garb I
bit him to test if he is really a Sufi –the innocent
one. But this man is a deceit in a Sufi garb. A Sufi
is bound to be an innocent one. Sufi is the one
who cannot harm anyone. My complaint is that
this man is deceiving as a Sufi. Such was the time
when no one could deceive in a Sufi garb. And
now what is happening?
I do not know if this happened really. But the
parable gives a very important message. Such is
Sufi Way. That is how we go on living. All our
religion is just like that - just verbal. It does not
penetrate into your being. And you know that
whatsoever you say you do exactly the opposite
of it. You think one thing, say another, and do
something else. You are a trinity, you are not one.
And all those three persons are going in three
different directions. You are a crowd. And this is
the cause of your misery. The animal is one. This
is the cause of the blissfulness of the animal. The
animal has nothing whatsoever to be happy
about. He has not a big palace to live in. He has no
TV, no radio and all that you consider
entertainment. He has nothing and yet you will
find great peace, silence, joy, celebration. Why?
One thing is there: the animal is not a chooser.
The Sufi is not a chooser. Choose and you deceive;
choose and you start going false; choose and you
become plastic.
I have heard: A man was going to attend a
Halloween party dressed in the costume of the
Devil. On his way it began to rain, so he darted
into a church where a revival meeting was in
progress. At the sight of his Devil’s costume,
people began to scatter through the doors and
windows. Somehow one lady got her coat sleeve
caught on the arm of one of the seats and as the
man came closer she pleaded, ‘Satan, I have been
a member of this church for twenty years, yet still
I have really been on your side all the time. So
please excuse me.’ But such is the situation of all
so called ladies and of all gentlemen.
We only pay lip service to God. And in reality we
are surrendered to the Devil. The Devil is deeper
because the Devil has been repressed. Whenever
something is repressed it goes deeper into your
being; you become only a hypocrite on the
surface. By asserting the symbol of the animal
Sufis declare, ‘We are simple people. We do not
know what is good and what is bad. We know
only God, and whatsoever happens is his gift. We
accept it. We are not doers on our own accord.’
This is the first meaning of the word ‘Sufi’.
There is another possibility. The word ‘Sufi’ can
be derived from ‘sufa’! It implies purity,
cleanliness, and purification. That too is good.
When you live a life of choicelessness a natural
purity comes. But remember, this purity has
nothing of morality in it. It does not mean pure in
the sense of being good. It means pure in the
sense of being divine! Not in the sense of being
good either. Pure simply means pure of all ideas,
good and bad both. Purity is transcendence. One
has no idea at all of purity! No prejudices
whatsoever! One trusts life so utterly that one
need not have any ideas. And when there is no
idea then one can live without ideas. When ideas
are there in the mind they create impurity! Ideas
create wounds. When you are too full of ideas,
you are too full of dirt. All ideas are dirty. Yes,
even the idea of God is a dirty idea. Because ideas
are dirty. For a Sufi, God is not an idea. Instead it
is his lived reality. It is not somewhere sitting on a
throne high in the heavens as is conceived by
your religious people. No! It is here now. It is all
over the place. It is everywhere. God is just a
name for the totality of existence. Totality! Just
Totality!
Purity means a mind without contents! Just a
mechanism! Never be misguided by the word
‘purity’. It does not mean a man who has a good
character. It does not mean a man who behaves
according to the Ten Commandments. It does not
mean a man who is respected by the society as a
good man. It does not mean a man who regularly
goes to the temple or a church or chants
scriptures.
A Sufi has never been respected by the society. A
Sufi lives such a rebellious life that the society has
almost always been murdering Sufis. Crucifying
them! Because the Sufi makes you aware of your
falsity! He becomes a constant sermon against all
that is artificial. He reminds you of your ugliness.
He is a reminder against your inner inhumanity to
human beings! Against your masks! Against all
that you are and represent. A Sufi becomes a
constant pain in the neck to the so-called society
and to the so-called respectable people.
I have heard. It happened that once Abu Yazid, a
Sufi mystic, was praying. These are just parables.
In no ways these have any historical semblance!
It is said God spoke to Abu Yazid and said, ‘Yazid,
now you have become one of my chosen people.
Should I declare it to the world?’ Abu Yazid
laughed. He said, ‘Yes, you can – if you want me to
be crucified. Declare!’
You declared about Al-Hillaj Mansur! You made
him declare “A’nal Haq…” and what happened
then? They crucified him. Whenever you declare
that somebody has attained, people crucify him
immediately. They do not love you. The world
cannot tolerate your people. So if you want me to
be crucified, declare. And it is said that God never
declared about Abu Yazid. He kept quiet. This has
always been so.
Someone asked al-Hillaj Mansur, the greatest
mystic ever, ‘What is the ultimate in Sufi
experience?’ Al-Hillaj said, ‘Come tomorrow!
Tomorrow you will come to know what the
ultimate in Sufi experience is.’ Nobody knew what
was going to happen the next day. The man asked,
‘Why not today?’ Al-Hillaj said, ‘You just wait. It is
going to happen tomorrow - the ultimate in
Sufism.’ And the next day he was crucified. And
when he was crucified he shouted loudly for his
friend who had asked the question. He said,
‘Where are you hiding in the crowd? Now come
on and see the ultimate in Sufism. This is what it
is.’ If you start living in God you become
intolerable to the so-called society, to your so
called family. Because family is the by product of
the society! The society lives in hypocrisy. So is
the family. None can tolerate truth. Truth has to
be crucified. A society! A family can love the
Church but it cannot love Christ. It can love the
Vatican pope but it cannot love Jesus. When Jesus
is gone then it is good. Then you can go on
worshipping him. When Mansur is gone you can
go on talking about him. But when he is there he
is a fire. Only those who are ready to be
consumed by the fire will be ready to fall in love
with Mansur. Remember both society and family
are false. They exist only in your dictionaries and
the mind. In reality you never come across
anything like family and the society. All you see is
people. A person can be transformed. He is living
phenomena. No society! No family can ever be
transformed. Both are nonexistent. And anything
that is nonexistent can never be transformed.
‘Sufa’ means purity. Purity in the sense that there
is no content in the mind anymore! Mind has
disappeared. There is no mind, no thinking, and
no thought. It is a state of Satori, or Samadhi.
There is another possibility and that too is
beautiful. And I accept all these possibilities. The
third possibility comes from another word, ‘sufia’.
The word means: chosen as a friend by God. Sufis
say that you cannot search for God unless he has
already chosen you. How can you search for God?
You talk as if you have already known God. You
can search only for that you have already known?
You can never know the unknown. And god is
both UNKNOWN and UNKNOWABLE. All
initiative is from the side of God. He is searching
for you. God desires for you. He goes on groping
for you. He goes on calling 'Where are you?' When
he chooses somebody only then do you start
choosing him. You may not know it. Because
when he chooses, how can you know?
The same is true about a Master. You think that
you choose a Master? All Holy Nonsense! Just
nonsense! It is always the Master who chooses
you. The very idea that you choose the Master is
egoistic. How can you choose the Master? How
will you know in the first place who the Master is?
How will you decide? What criterions have you
got? You cannot choose a Master. Instead the
Master chooses you. A master goes on choosing
many who are not yet even alert about it. But they
have started moving the moment a master
chooses. They think they are searching for a
Master. They think they are seekers. And it is
natural. It can be forgiven. But they have been
chosen by somebody. And so is the ultimate case
with God. God chooses first. Then you start feeling
a hunger for him. And it is only Sufis who have
told it. No other tradition has said so clearly that
man cannot choose God! It is God who chooses
man. It is a blessing. Even to feel a thirst for God is
a great blessing. You should feel happy that you
have been chosen. You should be happy that God
has already called you. The first call is always
heard in the deep unconscious. This you cannot
figure it out. You do not what it is. From where it
is coming! You feel it as if it is coming from within
you. It is not coming from you.
Man cannot take the initiative. How can man take
the initiative? Man is so impotent! Man is so
helpless. Man cannot start the journey on his own
unless he is pulled! Unless some magnetic force
starts pulling him towards some Unknown goal!
You can choose only that which you know. How
can you choose God? You can take the initiative
for worldly things, because you know them. You
can have an idea of how to purchase a beautiful
house or how to have this woman as your wife or
this man as your husband or how to have more
money, more power, and more prestige. All such
things you can choose! How can you choose God?
You have not even had a glimpse, not even in your
dreams. How can you choose something so utterly
unknown to you? But you are not unknown to
God. So He can choose you. Whenever he
chooses, a great desire arises in you to find him.
That is an indication that he has chosen you. You
have become a Sufi - chosen as a friend by God.
That is also beautiful.
The fourth possibility comes from the Greek word
‘Sufiya’. ‘Sufiya’ means wisdom. Wisdom is not
synonymous with knowledge. Knowledge is
through scriptures, through others. It is
borrowed. Wisdom arises in your own being. You
are a light unto yourself. Wisdom means that you
know! And when you know there is no question
to believe. Knowledge is belief. Somebody says
‘God is’ and you believe. You believe the man;
hence you believe whatever he is saying must be
truth. Jesus says ‘God is’ and you believe. I say
‘God is’ and you believe. This is knowledge. You
love me, you trust me, and you start believing. But
it is all knowledge. And a man becomes a Sufi only
when he has known. When he himself has known!
When he himself has touched the reality! When
he himself has seen the face of God! Then he
becomes a Sufi. He has become wise. He is no
more just knowledgeable, it is his own experience
now.
Only this much for now!
 ‘Spiritual Knowledge is like water, it takes the color and shape of the cup. Allah's Knowledge is so
great, that however much we take, it is like a drop of a huge ocean. It like a vast garden, however
much we have cut it is as if we had cut but one flower.’

‘To reach the Secrets of Oneness is sometimes possible, but to reach the Secrets of Spiritual
Knowledge (marifat) is extremely difficult.’

MUSOLEUM HADTHRATH SHAH BAHAUDDIN NAQSHBAND

T
he Sufi path or tariqat began from the other additions were made but its original design
Noor of Allah Subhanhu Taala via His remained.
Prophet, Hadhrat Sayyidina Wa Maulana
Muhammad Mustafa Rasulullah Sallallahu Ta'ala Of the Naqshbandiyah Tariqah Shah
'Alaihi Wa Alihi Wa Ashabihi Wa Barik Wa Naqshband said,
Sallam! In the beginning this Tariqa was called
“Siddiqiya” because of Hazrat Abu Bakr Our Way is very rare and very precious. It is the
Siddiqui. With the advent of Shah Bahauddin curwati-l-wuthqa -‘Firm Handhold’. It is the way

Naqshaband however it came to be known as the
Naqshbandiyya Tariqah. And from then
onwards this remains as Naqshbandiyah
Tariqah. However with the passage of time many
of remaining firm and steadfast in the footsteps
of the Prophet and of his Companions. They
brought me to this Way from the door of Favors,
because at its beginning and at its end, I
witnessed nothing but the Favors of God. In this
Way great doors of Heavenly Knowledge will be
opened up to the seeker who follows in the
footsteps of the Prophet.
To follow the Sunnah of the Prophet is the most
important means by which the door will be
opened to you. He said, ‘Whoever is not coming
to our Way, his religion is in danger.’ He was
asked, ‘How does someone come to Your Way?’
He replied, ‘By following the Sunnah of the
Prophet.’
He said, ‘We have carried in this Way
humiliation, and in return Allah has blessed us
with His Honor.’
Some people said about him that he was
sometimes arrogant. He said, ‘We are proud
because of Him, because He is our Lord, giving us
His Support!’
Bahauddin said,
‘To reach the Secrets of Oneness is sometimes
possible, but to reach the Secrets of Spiritual
Knowledge (marifat) is extremely difficult.’
He continued,
‘Spiritual Knowledge is like water, it takes the
color and shape of the cup. Allah's Knowledge is
so great, that however much we take, it is like a
drop of a huge ocean. It like a vast garden,
however much we have cut it is as if we had cut
but one flower.’
The Naqshbandi Sufi order, as I have mentioned
earlier traces its lineage back to Hazrat Ali,
Hazrat Abu Bakr and other masters or the
central figures in early Islam derives its name in
the present form from that of a 14th century
Central Asian mystic named Bahauddin al-
Naqshbandi.
Born in 1318 AD, in the village Qasr-i-Hinduvan
(later renamed Qasr-i Arifan) near Bukhara,
Bahauddin experienced profound visionary
revelations in his youth. Became a brilliant
Islamic scholar before the age of twenty! He
made the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca three times
and became a greatly venerated holy man during
his life time. Visitors from across Central Asia
came to Bukhara to see the sage, seek his advice,
and receive teachings in the school he had
established.
Following his death in 1389, Sheikh Bahauddin
al-Naqshbandi was buried adjacent to his school,
directly upon the site of an ancient pagan temple.
The Naqshbandi Sufi order is one of the
oldest living traditional Sufi orders. The early
members of the order rejected outward shows of
religious expression and concentrated upon the
inner spiritual life while engaged in the affairs of
the world.
With followers throughout Central Asia, Turkey,
Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, the Naqshbandi
Sufis, as both travelling merchants and mystics,
played a major role in the introduction of NOOR
of Allah across Asia. Believing that piety is better
expressed by social activity than retreat from the
world, the Naqshbandi masters often became
actively involved in politics. By the 15th century
they had become the dominant Sufi order in
much of Central Asia and actively influenced
politics from China to India to the Middle East.
Today the Naqshbandi Order is the foremost Sufi
order in the world and is experiencing an
unprecedented period of growth, not only in its
traditional heartlands of Central Asia, Turkey,
the Middle East and South Asia, but in nations of
the Western world, particularly the United States
and Great Britain.
It was from Hazrat Amir Kulal that Bahauddin
received his fundamental training on the path
and whose company he kept for many years. Still
more significant, however, was the instruction
Bahauddin received in the method of silent dhikr
from the Ruhaniya of Abdul Khaliq Gijadwani
(Ruhaniya refers to an initiation dispensed by
the spiritual being of a departed preceptor).
Although he was a spiritual descendant of Abdul
Khaliq, Amir Kulal practiced vocal dhikr, and
after Bahauddin received instruction in silent
dhikr (dhikr khafi), he would absent himself
from Amir Kulal's circle of followers whenever
they engaged in dhikr of the tongue. This
separation of Bahauddin from Amir Kulal's circle
may be thought of as marking the final
crystallization of the Naqshbandiya, with silent
dhikr, received from Abdul Khaliq Gijadwani and
ultimately inherited from Hazrat Abu Bakr. This
later established as normative for the order.
hm ouda OvahI vhm duinyaye dU< yI< Oyal AStae
Mauhal AStae junU<
Once you are ready to thread along the inner
journey one has to severe all relations with the
outer and more so with lower emotion. It was
considered all such connections are
impediments along the path. This was the belief
then. It was Azizan Ali Ramatini who made
certain changes in the technique. And thus made
the path easier for the aspirants! It was he who
said that from now onwards the master also has
certain responsibility in this process of
transformation. Earlier it was the aspirant who
has to do all efforts in this process. But from now
onwards 80% is the responsibility of the disciple
and the remaining 20% is the responsibility of
the master. But this could not be brought into
practice until later.
It was only Bahauddin Naqshband who brought
this into practice. He broke the tradition of
khanquah - the commune or ashram. He used to
initiate people even during the travels, and also
en mass. Even those who have no inner
preparation, Bahauddin used to initiate them.
Something like this never happened before.
While visiting the sick he used to give them a
technique to practice. To these he used to give
the most intricate techniques, which were
forbidden up to now. This surprised even his
disciples in the inner circles - the khalifas. They
all felt these state they attained with so much
efforts. And now the master is sharing these with
all and sundry without any reservation.
Had Bahauddin not made such changes in the
system the humanity would have remained
deprived of this inner treasure? Another
Naqshbandi master Sufi Raghuber Dayal said
man attains much through service to God
through the creation. And greatest service is that
of time. Devote your time in the service of the
Eternal. Because of all such changes in the
system this came to be known as
Naqshbandiyah. Along with any technique or
dhikr Bahauddin used to inscribe certain
impressions on the heart of the person that
worked like hypnosis. And now the person
cannot think of anything else. This is called
inscriptions. And these work very deep in the
human heart. This made his master Hazrat Amir
Kulal says that you are Naqshbandi now - one
who makes impressions.
 In Post Naqshbandi Era
God created the physical universe to manifest Himself
So that the treasure of His wisdom may be revealed
F
rom Bahauddin Naqshband, the silsillah
branches into several sub-orders. And not
only had this silsilah traveled to Indian Sub
Continent in preparation for the second
millennium and the advent of Sheikh Ahmad Al
Farooqui. Each of these sub-orders claims to be
the only authentic Naqshbandi path. One of the
most important and widespread is the
Naqshbandi-Mujaddadi branch founded by
Sheikh Ahmad Sirhindi. The chain between
Bahauddin Naqshbandi and Ahmad Sirhindi
continues as here under:
1. Khwaja Alauddin al-Bukhari al-Attar
2. Khwaja Yaqub al-Charkhi
3. Khwaja Ubaydullah al-Ahrar
4. Muhammad Az-Zahid
5. Darwish Muhammad
6. Khawaja al-Amkanaqi
7. Muhammad al-Baqi Billah
8. Ahmad Sirhindi Mujaddid Alf-thani
Sub-orders:
There is no single authority for the Naqshbandi
order today. Rather, there are numerous sub-
orders which operate in autonomy. Among them
are the Sardaria, Owaisiah, Haqqani, Aslamiya,
Hijazi, Mujarradiya and Tauheedia branches.
Hazrat Shah Wali Ullah has stated in his book ‘Al
He said, ‘I was a hidden treasure.’
Listen! Listen attentively!
In the same way you must not let your spiritual
Reality be submerged…
Instead must manifest your spirit in action!!!
RUMI MASNAVI IV: 3028-29
Intibah Fi Salasil e Awliya Allah’ that the most
effective of all is the Naqshbandia Owaisiah.
Naqshbandi Tahiri:
In Pakistan, Naqshbandi Order is mostly
prevalent under this branch. Previously known
as Ghaffari branch, the Naqshbandi Tahiri
order belongs to a famous Sheikh of Pakistan,
Sheikh Muhammad Tahir Abbasi Naqshbandi
Mujaddidi, who is more famous with the name
Sajjan Saeen. The headquater of this branch is at
Dargah Allahabad, near Kandiaro, in the province
of Sindh. This order is prevalent in all provinces
of Pakistan, and many other countries such as
U.K, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, USA, etc.
Sheikh Muhammad Tahir Abbasi belongs to the
previously known as Ghaffari branch of
Naqshbandi order; His lineage goes back to
Sheikh Fazal Ali Qureshi, the great Naqshbandi
Sheikh of Twentieth Century.
Naqshbandi Owaisiah:
Naqshbandi Order has another famous branch
called Naqshbandi Owaisiah Order. The method
of spiritual instruction is quite close to
Mujaddidya order. However, there are two main
differences. First Naqshbandi Owaisiah order
uses the ‘Pas Infas’ method of dhikr. Secondly,
the method of spiritual instruction is ‘Owaisee’,
which means that the Sheikh can impart spiritual
instruction regardless of physical distance and
even difference of time period. Seekers of
Naqshbandi Owaisiah can obtain spiritual
blessing from their Sheikh regardless of their
location in the world. Owaisiah connection is
also useful in obtaining spiritual blessings from
Sufis of the Past. Naqshbandi Owaisiah Order is
based in Pakistan and its modern founder was
Sheikh Allah Yar Khan.
Current sheikh is Maulana Muhammad Akram
Awan. Headquarters for this sect is Dar-ul-irfan,
Minara, and Chakwal, Pakistan. The Owaisiah
Order employs a similar method of dhikr but
acquires the Prophetic blessings in the manner
of Khawajah Owais Qarni, who received this
beneficence from the holy Prophet without a
formal physical meeting. The dhikr employed by
the Naqshbandi is ‘dhikr-e Khafi Qulbi’ or
remembrance of Allah’s Name within the heart
and the method is termed ‘Pas Anfas’, which in
Persian means guarding every breath. By far the
greatest singular distinction of the Naqshbandi
Owaisiah Order is the honor of Spiritual Bayat or
Oath of Allegiance directly at the blessed hands
of the holy Prophet Muhammad.
The Reviver Sheikh
century. Anybody who visited him was duly
rewarded with a share of spiritual bliss
commensurate with his/her sincerity and
capacity. Sheikh Allah Yar Khan’s mission
produced men and women of deep spiritual
vision and eminence.
Naqshbandi-Haqqani
Golden Chain
The Golden Chain is a lineage of Khalidiyya-
Naqshbandiyya. Its followers claim that it passes
from Iraq under Sheikh Khalid al-Baghdadi to
Daghestan, where it remained through seven
generations of Sufi masters, to finally return to
the Middle East in Damascus with the emigration
of Sharafuddin ad-Daghestani and his disciple
Abdullah al-Fa'iz ad-Daghestani, and then to
Cyprus under Sheikh Nazim al-Qubrusi, leader of
the Naqshbandi-Haqqani order worldwide. He
was born in Larnaca, Cyprus, on the 23rd of April
1922, Sunday, the 26th of Shacban, 1340 H. His
lineage from his father's side traces its roots to
Sayiddina Abdul Qadir Jilani, founder of the
Qadiri Order. His lineage from his mother goes
back to Sayiddina Jalaluddin Rumi, founder of
the Mevlevi Order. He is Hassani-Hussaini,
related to the Prophet through the lineages of his
grandfathers to the Family of the Prophet. From
his father's side he received the Qadiri Tariqat.
From his mother's, side he received the Mevlevi
Tariqat.

During his childhood in Cyprus he sat with his

Sheikh Allah Yar Khan was born in Chakrala, a
grandfather, who was a Sheykh of the Qadiri
remote village of Mianwali District of Pakistan, in
Tariqat, to learn its discipline and its spirituality.
1904. He completed his religious education in
Extraordinary signs appeared early in him. His
1934. The same year, he met Sheikh ‘Abdul
conduct was perfect. He never fought nor argued
Rahim, who took him to the shrine of Sheikh
with anyone. He was always smiling and patient.
Allah Deen Madni. By Divine Will his spiritual
His grandfather from his father's side and his
connection was immediately established with
grandfather from his mother's side trained him
the saint of the 10th century Hijra (sixteenth
for the spiritual path.
century CE) and he started receiving spiritual
grace. His sublime education in Sufism, signifying
progressive spiritual growth and advancement, Tauheedia Naqshbandi:
continued for about twenty-five years, after
which he was directed to undertake the In 1955 Hazarat Kawajah Abdul Hakeem Ansari
propagation of Prophetic blessings - a noble along with his only khaliph Hazarat Abdul Sattar
mission that he accomplished with singular zeal Khan accompanied by Kawajah Sattar's wife and
and dedication for a period spanning half a daughter founded a new branch of the
Naqshbandia Mujadidiah Order. He named it
'Tauheediah', with a focus on unity or Tauheed,
truthfulness and love and making it more
practical for modern Westernized society aiming
towards unification of ummah... and
development of humanity. It has a base in
Lahore, and disciples throughout the world.
Naqshbandi-Mujaddadi-wa
Mazaharia:
This is an important branch of Naqshbandia
silsillah. It establishes a connection between
Shah Bahauddinn the original designer, Sheikh
Ahmad al Farooki Mujaddadi Alif Thani, one who
set the trends of the second millennium, and
Hazrat Mazhar Mir Jane Jana who gave a new
direction to the path. This sub – order has Hindu
influence with the advent of Naqshbandi Sheikh
Ram Chandra ( Lala Ji), about who a forecast was
made by a Sheikh of this order 100 years ago.
The following is the golden chain of sheikhs from
Sheikh al Ahmad Mujadaddi Alif Thani:
1. Khawaja Muhammad Masoom
2. Sheikh Safuddin
3. Sayidiana Noor Mohammad Badayuni
4. Hazrat Mazhar Mir Jana Jana
5. Sayiaddina Naim Ullah Shah
Baihraichi
6. Sayiaddina Hazrat Shah Murad Ullah
7. Khawaja Abulhasan Nasirabadi
8. Hazrat Maulwi Ahmad Ali Khan
9. Hazrat Maulana Fazl Ahmad Khan
10. Hazrat Maulwi Shah Abdul Ghani
Khan
11. Sufi Hazrat Ramchandra
12. Sufi Hazrat Raghuber Dayal
13. Sufi Hazrat Brij Mohan Lal
14. Sufi Hazrat Onkar Nath
When a master is alive there is light and
fragrance. And after the master is no more the
organization begins by the vested interest who
are only interested in politicizing the silsillah.
Almost everyone begins striving for his own
shop. Thus many sub orders mushroom along
with the genuine ones. Some still maintain
connection with the main source. Such people do
not care for inner development and
transformation. Their main emphasis is on
business like activities functioning out of ego.
These sub orders look more real than the real
itself. However there is no fragrance of
transformation. Organization is very easy. But to
bring about transformation is an altogether
different process.
What is more important is bringing inner
transformation. And when the lamp of
awareness or noor is lit within its light is bound
to spread in the outer world. And thus evolves
the way of transformation. This happens
spontaneously.
Whenever in deep silence, a flowering happens
one knows that the beauty and the fragrance of
this flower are not going to last forever.
Whatever happens to the flower is momentary;
bees gather around the flower and begin to
experience its beauty, fragrance, aliveness,
presence, and its fragility.
This is the experience in the end, of all those who
are thirsty of something emanating from deep
within the flowering of the Being; and the flower
continues to share its presence, its being, its
silence, and its wholeness. The flower need not
make any publicity. Once inner flowering has
happened its beauty and the fragrance will
engulf the atmosphere. Those who are near such
flowering, begin to experience their own inner
flowering. This is the Secret of the Golden Flower
of a Zen master, Lu Tzu. Such is the milieu.
Out of this flowering, a commune is born. A
Buddhafield! Commune refers to a deep union
between Meditation and Love. An oasis in the
desert of the world! In such an environment of
deep lovingness, one grows in awareness,
understanding, and meditation. For this one
need not make any effort. Just allow the
flowering to happen. And the rest happens on its
own accord.
Communication between heads was replaced by
the communion of hearts! Whenever so many
hearts open, many flowers blossom! Fragrance is
released. This fragrance that surrounds a
Buddha is the fragrance or the energy of the
Being or the Noor of Allah. We may call this as
Buddhafield.
If someone has attained this flowering or the
Noor has descended within, a commune is bound
to happen. No one can prevent this. This is the
law of the existence. All those who are thirsty,
will start moving towards the flowering of this
Buddha. Just like, when a flower blossoms, the
magnetic pull of the fragrance attracts many
bees – only bees! No dog will ever be attracted to
this magnetic pull of a flower. Or when the lamp
is lit moths begin to dance around the lamp. A
Buddha and a commune exist only for those who
have the sensitivity, the perception, the
availability, the search, and the openness. Many
will pass but will go on missing the Master and
the commune.
When many individuals with openness and a
deep search within, are completely dissolved and
merged into one another, what is created there is
a Buddhafield, a Sangha, a sanctuary of the
master. Individuals with complex diverse
potentials gather around the Buddha. Everyone
works wholeheartedly in his or her own way
without any dictatorship or leadership. Through
the Buddha or the Enlightened One, Godliness
starts overflowing and consciousness creates a
commune or Buddhafield.
In the absence of this inner flowering pseudo
masters mushroom. Prompted by ego and ego-
centric desires many open their own shop after
the master is no more. In many cases after the
master is no more this happens. This is what
happens in most of the cases. And this is the
reason for so many sub-orders.
The post Naqshbandi era flows through the
Volume 3 of Leaves from a Sufi Heart, by
Sheikh Taoshobuddha and beyond as well.
Only this much for now!
 MAY ALLAH SANCTIFY HIS SOUL

The intellect has two forms.

The first is acquired, learned from the books and teachers, By reflections and memorizing,
through logic and the sciences.
In this way your intellectual powes increase,
But the more knowledge you acquire,
The more you are burdened.
The second form of intellect is a gift from God.
Its fountainhead is thye very heart of human soul.
But the water of divine knowledge bubbles up- from the spirit into intellect. It is clear and
sparkling and can never become stagnant or dull.

RUMI MASNAVI IV: 1960-5

ALlah Agr TaaE)Ik n de #Nsan ke bs ka kam nhI<

)Ejane muhBbt Aam hE #r)ane muhBbt Aam nhI

Allah agar taufik na de insan ke bas ke kaam nahi

Faizane muhabbat aam he irfane muhbbat aam nahin!!

If Allah does not make you capable

Remember it is not in the hands of finiteness of man
Ordinary love is common
But that leads to duality and conflict
Eternal love or love divine is not common!!
Only an enchanted heart is filled with this energy –
The sublime and sanctified!!!

K
hawaja Baqi Billah was the originator and
pioneer of the Naqshbandia Order in the
Indian sub-continent. His name was Razi-
ud-Din Muhammad Baqi but he was commonly
known as Khwaja Baqi Billah. His father Qazi
Abdul Salam Khilgi, Samarkandi Qureshi was a
famous scholar and saint of Kabul. KHAWAJA
BAQI BILLAH was born at Kabul in 971A.H or
1563A.D. His lineage reaches Khawaja Ubaid
Ullah Ahrar through his maternal grandfather.
His grandmother came of a Syed family. Hazrat
Baqi Billah was admitted to the school of
Khawaja Saad at five to learn the Holy Quran. He
learnt by heart when he was eight years old.
After getting elementary education, he went to
Maulana Sadiq Hilvahi a famous scholar when he
was of 30 years.
Serenity or saintliness radiated from his face
from the very early childhood. He preferred
solitude and simple life. He went to Mavara-un-
Nahr, which was considered as the centre of
Muslim saints at that time. There he met a large
number of Sufis and Saint from whom he
gathered a lot of spiritual knowledge. Firstly, he
attended Khawaja Ubaid a spiritual khaliph of
Maulana Lutf Ullah but he was not satisfied. Then
he stayed with Hazrat Sheikh Samarkandi who
prayed for him but even in his company he did
not get the fulfillment or what his inner quest
was. Thereafter, he attended the company of
Hazrat Amir Abdullah Balkhi from whom he felt
somewhat peaceful.
During the period of learning, he was going
through a book on Sufism. Suddenly, he saw that
the place was illuminated with light. He saw that
Khawaja Shah Bahauddin Nashband was
standing before him and showering spiritual
favour on him. After this incident, his heart was
filled with the love of Allah and the Holy Prophet
Sallalaho Alyhe Wasalam. He wandered from
Central Asia to India in search. He traveled to
Lahore and Multan on foot. Once, when he was
offering prayers in a mosque at Lahore, a terrible
voice rose from his heart. All the people in the
mosque felt terrified. Hazrat Khawaja left the
mosque immediately after completing his
prayers. One of his devotees narrated that, once,
when Hazrat Khawaja was leading prayers, he
was looking to Qibla as well as to the people
behind. After the prayers Hazrat Khawaja
advised his murids not to reveal this secret to
anyone else.
Hazrat Khawaja Baqi Billah was blessed with
great spiritual qualities because of his extra-
ordinary love for and obedience to the Holy
Prophet Sallalaho Alyhe Wasalam. Once he
related that a painful voice came out of the holy
heart of the Holy Prophet Sallalaho Alyhe
Wasalam while he was offering the prayers. He
could see before him and behind simultaneously.
Hazrat Khawaja Baqi Billah once travelled to
Mavara-ur-Nahr. On his way, he dreamt that
Hazrat Khawaja Amkanqi was calling him and
waiting for him anxiously. He left this worldly
life behind and sought spiritual knowledge from
the Master of the century. He kept company with
masters and saints, until he himself became an
ocean of intellect and a saint of spirituality. He
travelled continuously until he reached the city
of Samarqand. There he connected himself to the
Master of his time, Khwaja al-Amkanaqi (q). He
received from him the Way of the Naqshbandi
Order. In a very short time he received what
most seekers require a lifetime to receive. He
was elevated also through the spiritual care of
Ubaidullah al-Ahrar (q). His honor became
known everywhere. His sheikh, Khawaja
Amkangi blessed him with his Khilafat and
authorized him to take followers and to train
them in the conduct of the Order. He ordered
him to go back to India in preparation of the new
millaneum. However he went to India in the first
instance on personal business. There he was
attracted to an attraction from God’s attraction.
The Sheikh predicted, ‘You are going to have a
follower who will be like the sun.’ This
prediction was for Imam Rabbani Ahmad al-
Faruqi (q).
Baqui Billah expressed his inability do such a
difficult task. However Khawaja Amkangi
insisted and ordered him to get guidance from
‘istikharah’ (prayer for getting judgment from
Allah), Baqui Billah performed ‘istikhara’. In a
dream he saw a parrot sitting on the branch of a
tree. He thought that if the parrot sat on his
hand, he would consider this journey lucky one.
No sooner did this thought flashed across his
mind, than the parrot flew towards him and
perched on his hand. Hazrat Baqi Billah put his
saliva into its beak whereas the parrot put sugar
into his mouth. This was the indication next
morning Hazrat Baqi Billah related the whole
dream to his guide, who said that he should act
in the light of the istkhara.
So, the Sheikh ordered him to leave for India
immediately. Under the instructions of his
Sheikh, he travelled to India and stayed at
Lahore for a year. Here a lot of scholars and
nobles of the city met him and got spiritual
blessings from him. Then he proceeded to Delhi
and stayed at Qilla Ferozabad. It was a beautiful
place situated on the bank of River Jamuna. He
set up his dwelling in a mosque over there.
Hazrat Khwaja Baqi Billah strengthened the
Naqshbandi Order in the Indian sub-continent.
His contacts with the nobility of the Mughal
Empire proved useful for the reformation of the
Muslims of India. He took bold steps and played
a heroic role to stop the prevailing religion Din-i-
Ilahi which was considered as heresay by the
Muslim fundamentalists. His writings and
counsels encouraged the people to combat this
very innovation. The nobility also favoured him
and he used their power for the betterment of
the Muslims. He stressed on Shariat during his
life and influenced the people by virtue of his
piety and his strict adherence to the Sunnah. He
preferred Shariat to Tariqat (Sufism) and
reformed the Sufis and Ulama of that time.
Khwaja Muhammad Kishmi, a disciple of Hazrat
Mujaddid Alif Sani, writes about the
achievements of Hazrat Baqi Billah as under:
‘Probably his greatest achievement is that in two
or three years, he firmly established the
Naqshbandi Order in India, whereas others of
the same Order lagged behind and worked for
many years’.
Hazrat Mujaddid Ali Thani paid tribute to
Hazrat Baqi Billah in the following words.
‘I am convinced that such training as I received
from him has hardly been given by anyone else
after the Holy Prophet Salallaho Alyhe Wasalam. I
did not enjoy the Prophet's company but I thank
Allah, I was not denied the honour of Khwaja
Baqi Billah's Company.’
In fact, extra-ordinarily firm faith in the
supremacy of Allah and strict adherence to
Sunnah had elevated Hazrat Baqi Billah to such
heights of spiritual excellence as could not be
attained by any other sheikh of the Naqashbandi
Order. He is torch-bearer of the Order, which he
practized.
All words, deeds and actions of Hazrat Baqi
Billah which were in the wake of the Holy
Prophet Sallalho Alyhe Wasalam, worked
miracles quite spontaneously. Many of his
miracles reflected his immense love for his
fellow beings and his sympathy with other
creatures of Allah.
One, late at night, a few guests of Hazrat Baqi
Billah came to see him. Since no foodstuff was
available at home, he asked the baker, who held
Hazrat Baqi Billah in great esteem and
reverence, to serve the guests as directed. After
having served the guests, the baker appeared
before Hazrat Baqi Billah and demanded his
remuneration. At this Baqi Billah enquired the
baker how much he was to pay for the dinner. On
his own part, he tried to pay the price of the
dinner but the baker declined to accept the
remuneration in terms of money. The baker
requested Hazrat Baqi Billah to make him just
like him.
Hazrat Baqi Billah took the baker into his (Hujra)
room, embraced him, and transformed him into
his own facsimile. When Hazrat Baqi Billah and
the baker came out of the room both of them
resembled each other so closely that it was
difficult for the people to distinguish between
the two. The only difference between them was
that whereas the actual Baqi Billah performed
his duties, as usual, in a normal way, the
transformed Baqi Billah lay lost in trance. He
could not bear such a state of transformation the
baker died three days later.
Another miracle, showing Baqi Billah’s love for
any sympathy with other creatures of God,
deserves special mention. It is said that one night
Baqi Billah after having offered his Tahajad
prayers, stepped towards his bed for rest. To his
great surprise, he saw a cat couching in his bed.
Blessed and gifted as Baqi Billah was with a kind
and benign heart, he did not disturb the cat.
Instead quietly he sat down on the floor and
spend the rest of the night in the coldness of the
winter. However the cat enjoyed a sound sleep
until morning.
According to Khwaja Baqi Billah Tawwakkal
(trust in Allah) does not mean that a person
should not earn his living and become idle. This
would be an act of disobedience to Allah. A
person should do some work to earn his living,
and should have a strong faith that only Allah is
the Sustainer. Work is just like a source,
mediation or an intersessor. There is a great
moral lesson for our modern youths to learn
from the philosophy and preaching of this
sheikh. In fact, according to all Naqshbandi Sufis
and saints, escape from the struggle of life is
cowardly. According to Khwaja Baqi Billah a
hermit lives in a world of dreams, whereas to the
adventurous and the brave, this world offers a
splendid scope to struggle for existence.
Shrine Hazrat Baqi Billah- behind Pahar Ganj Railway
Station New Delhi, India
Hazrat Khwaja Baqi Billah entered eternity on 25
Jamadi-ul-Sani 1012 A.H. or 1603 A.D. His Shrine
is situated in Delhi near the Qadam Sharif (foot-
prints) of the Holy Prophet Sallalho Alyhe
Wasalam at a platform. No dorne was
constructed over his shrine according to his will.
There is no tree to cast a shadow on the shrine.
In spite of this, the visitors do not feel the effect
of heat when they stand barefooted beside the
shrine.
JOURNEY TO INDIA
AND WORKS:
Baqi Billah was the first Naqshbandi master to
come to India. And latter settled in New Delhi.
His shrine is in old Delhi behind Pahar Ganj
railway station inside the Mohammaden
cemetery. I have given the picture depicting the
outside view of the cemetery, and the actual
shrine. The gate has the inscription of Baqi
Billah. Inside anyone can direct you to the shrine.
Lucky are those who can pay the visit to the
shrine. And those who cannot reach there for
such aspirant meditation considering the picture
as shrine will work. This is my trust. This work is
the link between you and the master. Only you
have to be available.
His sheikh, Muhammad Khwaja al-Amkanaqi did
not make any changes in the technique or
tariqat, however he instructed Baqi Billah to
bring even the ordinary ones into the fold. Make
this spiritual awareness available to the people
who are still not on the path, was the trust and
the instruction of his master. Once Baqi Billah
visited a master who told him it is good that you
have brought so many into this fold. Nearly half
of these are incapable on their own. Transform
these people. Bring the light divine or noor into
their hearts so that it begins to shine with the
Light Absolute and can kindle up the dark being.
Sheikh Amkanaqi asked him not to look at the
inner capacity of the individual. This way you
will never find aspirants. Had Baqi Billah not
brought such relaxations in the tariqat a vast
cross section would have remained deprived of
this inner treasure. Amkanaqi said, “I am sending
you to a distant land whose very texture is
soaked in spirituality. It is the land sanctified,
nourished and nurtured by such forces from
times immemorial. A land which is ready to
explode any path! A land whose very being is not
only ready but has the capability to infuse life
even in a dead heart. I am sending you to INDIA.
India has been the University of Meditation and
the BEACON LIGHT not only now but from
TIMES IMMEMORIAL. It has created many
Buddhas.
Baqi Billah was the Knower. Annihilated in God
(Fana Billah) and Existing in His Existence (baka
Billah), who was lifted to the highest state of
Inner Vision. He was a Secret of Allah's Secrets
and a Miracle of Allah's Miracles. He combined in
his person the two types of knowledge: the Outer
Knowledge and the Heavenly Knowledge. God
gave him from the two Oceans, and conferred on
him Authority in the two worlds of men and Jinn
- the souls after they leave human body. It is not
easy to transform these. A jinni does not exist at
normal plane of existence. The methodology
differs in such case.
Imam Rabbani Ahmad al-Faruqi said,
‘Muhammad al-Baqi was the One Sitting on the
Throne of all Sheikhs, and he was the Deputy of
all Masters of the Naqshbandi Golden Chain, who
reached the end of the Infinite, who achieved the
highest states of wilayat (Friendship of God). He
was the qutb (Spiritual Pole) who supported
every creature on this earth. He unveiled the
secrets of Reality. He was the Verifier of the
Station of the Reality of Muhammad. He was the
Pillar of the People of Guidance. He is the
Essence of all that is known and all that still
remains unknown and unknowable. Also he was
the Guide of the Verifiers (muhaqqiqin).’
He moved back to India and stayed in the city of
Delhi, which he filled with faith and knowledge
and secrets and lights. Through him the
Naqshbandi Order was spread with great
swiftness throughout the Indian Subcontinent
and millions of people were connected to him
through his various Khalifas. All nations in the
Subcontinent were attracted to his knowledge
and his ENERGY FIELD or tawwajzoh and to the
Prophetic Characteristics dressing him. It
became known throughout the Indian
Subcontinent that anyone coming to him and
looking in his eyes, or sitting in his proximity
doing dhikr, would enter a state of Self-
Effacement and intoxication, through which he
could reach a state of Annihilation, in a single
meeting. By this miraculous power he attracted
millions of people, until this Naqshbandi Order
was on the tongue of every person during his
time.
He passed the Secret of the order to his
successor, the Sheikh of this order, the Sheikh
Ahmad Farooki Mujaddadi Alif Thani. Thus the
name Mujaddadi was added to the already
known Naqshbandi order. Later on another
name was added to the Shajarah of Naqshbandi
order. And now it is known as NAQSHBANDIA
MUJADDADIA MAJAHARIA!
 MAY ALLAH SANCTIFY HIS SOUL?

Those who deny God are like man who,

Forsaking of sunshine and moonlight,
Has buried his head in a pit, only to ask,
‘If the spirit of God is present in nature,
Then where is its light?’
In order to see the beauty of God around him,
He must first lift up his head and look.

RUMI MASNAVI III: 4796-7

Shrine Sheikh Ahmad Faruqi Mujaddadi Alif Thani Sirhindi, India

TAOSHOBUDDHA AT SHRINE SHEIKH AHMAD AL FARUQI MUJADDADI ALIF THANI (26 TH JUNE1564 - 10 TH OF DECEMBER 1624)
Sheikh Ahmad al Farooqi is The 25th Sheikh from Silsila Auliya Naqshbandia.
He is the master of the second millennium.

W ith him the tariqat attained a new

dimension and a new impetus. Earlier
the tariqat was known as Naqshbandi
one who designs the path of growth and
transformation of the consciousness of the
aspirants. With Sheikh Ahmad a new era was
ushered into the Naqshbandi tariqat. Accordingly
Mujaddadi was added to the path. Now the
tariqat is known as NAQSHBANDI MUJADDADI.
He is the Diamond of the Crown of the Masters.
And the treasure of those who came before and
also of those who came after and those who are
yet to come as well! In him were combined all
their favors and generosity. He is the Sinai of
Divine. Manifestation, the Furthermost Bodhi
Tree of the Knowing, awareness, and
understanding is Sheikh Ahmad al Farooqi. Also
he is the Fountain of the Hidden Prophetic
Knowing. The Genius of Scholars is Sheikh. And
the Sultan of the Earth, which smiled when he
was born and was honored by his existence! He
is the perfect Perfected Guide.
He was the Caller to Allah’s presence, the One
Qutb and the Unique Heavenly Imam. He was the
Reviver of the Second Millennium, Sayyidina and
Maulana (our Leader and Master) Sheikh Ahmad
al-Faruqi as-Sirhindi. He is regarded as having
rejuvenated Islam, due to which he is commonly
called ‘Mujaddidi Alf Thani,’ meaning ‘reviver of
the second millennium’, referring to the Islamic
tradition of Mujaddid. He is said to have had
considerable and long lasting influence in India,
and to have given ‘to Indian Islam the rigid and
conservative stamp it bears today.’
Numerous Naqshbandi suborders, such the
Mujaddidi, the Khalidi and the Haqqani sub-
orders, trace their spiritual lineage through
Sheikh Sirhindi, referring to them as
‘Naqshbandi-Mujaddidi’. Sirhindi's shrine is
located in Sirhind, India and is referred to as
‘Rauza Sharif’.
BIRTH AND LIFE:
It has been related that the blessed day of the
Sheikh’s arrival into this world was Thursday the
fourteenth of Shawwal 971 Hijri, or twenty-sixth
of June 1564. His place of birth, also the place
from where the Sheikh enlightened the world
with his presence, was a town called Sirhind. At
the time of his birth, some extraordinary events
were recounted. His mother relates, ‘After the
birth of my son Sheikh Ahmad, I fell unconscious
whereupon I had a vision, and saw that my home
was full of Awliya’ Allah who was all
congratulating me on the birth of my son’. The
Sheikh’s father Makhdoom Abdul-Ahad relates,
‘On the day of the birth of my son, I had a vision
in which I saw Allah's Messenger Holy Prophet-
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam reciting first the
Adhaan and then the Takbir in the ears of my
son.’ In addition, the khalifa of Hazrat Sheikh
Abdul Quddoos Gungohi, namely Sheikh Abdul
Aziz, was present in Sirhind on that day, and in a
state of Kashf he saw a huge gathering of angels.
Sheikh Ahmad was bestowed by Allah subhana
wa ta'ala with natural adherence to the Sunnah
of Allah's Messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam
(another name of the Holy Prophet) right from
his first days. He was born with the physical
requirements of the Sunnah already fulfilled, and
as an infant he was unlike other children. He
would not cry, would always have a smile on his
face and would never be seen naked. When Shah
Kamal Kaythli saw the child, he said, ‘A huge
number of practicing scholars and Kamil Sheikhs
will obtain faiz from this child. The light of his
guiding words and instructions will shine until
the day of Qiyamath. He will rid the land of
innovation and falsehood, and will revive the
Sunnah of Allah's Messenger sallallahu alayhi wa
sallam.’ After saying this, the Sheikh placed his
tongue in the baby's mouth, and Hazrat Sheikh
Mujaddid Alf Thani suckled on it.
When Sheikh first went to school, he memorized
the Quran in a very short space of time. He
received his early education through his father
and through many sheikhs of his time. He made
progress in three tariqats: Suhrawardiya,
Qadiriyyah, and Chistiyya. He was given
permission to guide followers in all three
tariqats at the age of 17 years. He was busy in
spreading the teachings of these tariqats and in
guiding his followers, yet he felt that something
was missing in him and he was continuously
searching for it. However he felt an interest in
the Naqshbandi Sufi Order, because he could see
by means of the secrets of the other three
tariqats that it was the best and highest. His
spiritual progress eventually brought him to the
presence of the Ghawth and Qutb of his time,
Sheikh Muhammad Baqi Billah who had been
sent from Samarqand to India by his Sheikh,
Muhammad al-Amkanaqi. He took the
Naqshbandi Order from the sheikh and stayed
with him for two months and some days, until
Sayyidina Muhammad Baqi Billah opened to his
heart the secret of this tariqat and gave him
authorization to train his murids in the Order. He
said about him, ‘He is the highest Qutb in this
time.’
He then became a student of his father and
acquired much knowledge very quickly. The
Sheikh could easily solve many complicated
masaa'il. His childhood behaviour and pastimes,
in fact, were more like those of a youth, and as
soon as he finished his studies, the famous
scholars of Akbarabad began to talk about the
talent of this young man. Akbarabad at the time
was the capital city from where the Moughal
Emperor Akbar ruled his Empire. The Sheikh
went to Akbarabad, and it was not long before
many great scholars were considering it an
honour to be his students and learn Ahadeeth
and Tafseer from him. His popularity spread to
the extent that a renowned scholar of the time
called Abul Fayz Fayzi, who was in the process of
writing a Tafseer of the Quran, came to the
Sheikh requesting assistance regarding a
particular point that he could not explain. At his
request, Hazrat Sheikh wrote one detailed and
perfect page regarding that particular topic. The
scholar was so astonished at the accuracy and
knowledge of the Sheikh that he too became a
firm believer in the Sheikh. However when
Sheikh Ahmad learned that the beliefs of this
scholar were not correct, he expressed his dislike
for him.
It has been related that during this period,
Sheikh Sultan had a dream in which he saw
Allah's Messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam,
who said to him, ‘Your daughter is the most
pious woman of this age; marry her to my son
and representative Sheikh Ahmad. This will be
extremely beneficial for both yourself and your
daughter.’ He had this same dream on three
occasions and each time he was shown the image
of the Sheikh. So Sheikh Sultan set out in search
for the Sheikh Ahmad. By apparent coincidence,
Hazrat Sheikh happened to be in the area and
upon seeing and recognizing the Sheikh Ahmad,
Sheikh Sultan took him home as a guest. Sheikh
Sultan informed the Sheikh Ahmad of his dream
and the instruction of Allah's Nabi sallallahu
alayhi wa sallam. Hazrat Sheikh gladly accepted
the offer of marriage. Soon afterwards, Hazrat
Sheikh was married and returned to Sirhind with
his bride.
After marriage, the Sheikh remained in the
service of his father and attained the faiz of inner
perfections. When his father was getting close to
his last days, he gave khilafat to the Sheikh in the
Suhrawardi, Chishti and Qadiri Silsila, and in the
presence of all his sons and companions he
appointed the Sheikh as his successor. The
Sheikh’s father had attained khilafat in the
Suhrawardiya silsila from his ancestors; from
Hazrat Shah Kamal Kaythli in the Qadiriyyah
silsila; and from Shah Rukn-ud-deen, the son of
Hazrat Sheikh Abd-ul-Quddoos Gungohi, in the
Chistiyya silsila. Thus he was authorized to
guided the aspirants in all these paths.
Soon after this, Hazrat Sheikh himself fell very ill,
and out of much anxiety his wife prayed two
rakats nawaafil prayer and supplicated for his
health. While supplicating, she fell into a slumber
and heard a person saying, ‘Do not worry; we
have many an important task for this man.
Indeed, not even one in a thousand of these have
yet been accomplished.’ And it was not long
before the Sheikh regained his full health.
MEETING WITH SHEIKH
BAQI BILLAH:
Hazrat Sheikh always had an intense desire to
visit the Haramayn to perform tawaaf of the
Ka’aba and to visit the shrine of Allah's
Messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, but due to
the health of his father he did not travel. After
the demise of his father, the Sheikh made
intention for Hajj and set out on the journey. The
first stop on the way was Delhi. In Delhi, Maulana
Hasan Kashmiri praised a Sheikh of the
Naqshbandi Silsila who had recently arrived in
the city. The name of this Sheikh was Khwajah
Baqi Billah and because Sheikh Ahmad had
always had a deep interest in the Naqshbandi
silsila, he was keen to meet him. After the
meeting, Hazrat Baqi Billah asked Sheikh Ahmad
that he should stay with him for at least one
month. After just two days, the Sheikh was
overcome by the Tareeqah, and there followed
events that can neither be expressed in words
nor understood by the ear. Hazrat Sheikh
acquired all the stages of the Naqshbandia order
within two months and a few days.
Hazrat Khwajah Baqi Billah states, “Sheikh
Ahmad is the meaning of my dream, the dream
that caused my Sheikh Khwajah Amkanki to send
me to India, saying, ‘There will emerge from your
companions in India a very great person who
will enlighten the world with his presence; and
you too will benefit from him.’ When I passed the
town of Sirhind on my way to Delhi, I was
informed through a vision that I was in the
neighbourhood of this Qutb, and I was also
shown an image of this person. I saw myself
lighting a very big lamp, and all the people
around me lit their lamps from mine; and when I
approached Sirhind, I saw that the whole area
and countryside around it was lit up with
burning torches.”
There was no limit to the respect and trust that
Sheikh Ahmad had for his Sheikh Baqi Billah. One
day Sheikh Baqi Billah called him, and as soon as
he heard his voice, his whole body began
trembling uncontrollably out of fear and
reverence. Regarding the love and service that he
showed his Sheikh, Sheikh Ahmad writes, ‘Four
persons were blessed with the opportunity to be
in the service of Hazrat Khwajah Sahib at all
times, and I was one of them. Until then I had
never believed that such love could exist after
the time of Allah's Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa
sallam, and I am very grateful to Allah subhana
wa ta'ala. ‘Never had anyone seen nor heard of
such a relationship between a murid and his
Sheikh. On one occasion, Hazrat Khwajah Baqi
Billah said, ‘Mian Ahmad is one of the complete
lovers and seekers.’ Another time he stated,
‘Under the skies, there is no one like him living
today.’ He was also heard to have said, ‘After the
Sahaba and the blessed Tabi'een, there have only
been a handful of people like him.’
Hazrat Mujaddid Alf Thani himself stated, ‘It
seems that when Hazrat Khwajah completed my
training, he withdrew from teaching as a Sheikh
and transferred his students to me.’ He also
stated, ‘On the third occasion that I travelled
from Sirhind to Delhi to see Hazrat Khwajah,
Hazrat Khwajah said, ‘My body has now become
very weak indeed and it is evident that I will not
live in this world for much longer.’ On returning
to Sirhind, the Sheikh realized that this was the
last meeting he would have with Hazrat Khwajah
Sheikh Ahmad then travelled to Lahore, and it
was in Lahore that he learnt that Hazrat Khwajah
had passed away. As soon as he heard the news,
he set off from Lahore to Delhi. The companions
of Hazrat Khwajah saw his arrival as a great
blessing, and the Sheikh attended all the
gatherings that took place while he was there.
The Prophet predicted the advent of Sheikh
Ahmad in one of his Hadith when he said, “There
will be among my nation a man called Selah or
the connection. By his intercession many people
will be saved.” It was mentioned in the collection
of Suyuti, Jamc ul-Jawamic. What confirmed the
truth of this Hadith is what Imam Rabbani wrote
about himself: “God has made me the Selah
between the two Oceans.” So he meant that God
had made him a connection between the two
oceans the two knowledge, external and internal.
Sheikh Mir Husamuddin said, “I saw the Prophet
in one of my dreams standing on the minbar
(pulpit) and praising Sheikh Ahmad as-Sirhindi.
The Prophet was saying, ‘I am proud and happy
with his presence among my Nation. God has
made him a reviver of the religion.’”
Many saints predicted his advent. One of them
was Sheikh Ahmad al-Jami (q). He said, ‘After me
will appear seventeen men of the People of God,
all of whom are named Ahmad and the last one
among them will be at the head of the
millennium. He is going to be the highest of them
and he is going to receive the state of Unveiling.
He is going to revive this religion (the tariqat).”
Another to predict his advent was Khwaja al-
Amkanaki (q). He said to his khalifa, “A man from
India is going to appear. He will be the Imam of
his century. He will be trained by you, so hurry to
meet him, because the people of God are
awaiting his arrival.” This was mentioned for
Muhammad al-Baqi (q). He said said, “That is
why I moved from Bukhara to India.” When they
met he told him, “You are the one whose
appearance the sheikh Muhammad Khwaja al-
Amkanaki predicted. When I saw you I knew you
were the Qutb of your time. When I entered the
region of Sirhind in India, I found a lamp which
was so big and so bright that its light reached up
to the heavens. Everyone took from that lamp's
light. You are that lamp.”
It is said that the sheikh of his father, was Sheikh
Abdul Ahad, of the Qadiri Order. He had been
given a jubbah (cloak) from his sheikh which had
been passed down from the Ghawth al-Azam,
Sayyidina Abdul Qadir al-Jilani (q). Sayyidina
Abdul Qadir had said about it to his subsequent
successors, ‘Keep it for that one who is going to
appear at the end of the first millennium. His
name is Ahmad. He is going to revive this
religion. I have dressed him with all my secrets.
He combines in himself both the internal and
external knowledge."
 MAY ALLAH SANCTIFY HIS SOUL

It was a fair orchard, full of trees and fruit

And vine and greenery! A Sufi there
Sat with eyes closed, his head upon his knee,
Sunk deep in mystical meditation!
‘Why’, asked another, ‘do you not behold?
These signs of God the merciful displayed
Around you, which He bids us contemplate?’
‘The signs,’ he answered, ‘I behold within;
Without is nothing but symbols of the signs.’
What is all beauty in the world? The image,
Like quivering boughs reflected in a stream,
Of that eternal orchard which abides
Unwithered in human hearts.

RUMI MASNAVI IV: 1358-65

Saidyana Shamsuddin Shaheed Feesawi Lillah Hazrat Shah Mahboob Habibullah Mirza Mazhar Mir
Jane Jana is the third master who provided a new yet profound direction to the Naqshbandi-Mujadadi-
Mazaharia sub order of the Sufis. The influence of Mughal was waning and other significant influences
were at the threshold to give a new direction. Indian Spiritual Horizon provided a background for the
merger of many streams into the vast ocean.

Life and Birth:

His full name is Saidyana Shamsuddin Shaheed Feesawi Lillah Hazrat Shah Mahboob Habibullah
Mirza Mazhar Mir Jane Jana. He was the Sun of Eternal Happiness. He was the Beloved of Allah,
Almighty and Exalted. He was the Spirit of the People of Truth, and he was the Essence of the Spirit of the
People of Taste. He was the Kaaba of the Godly and one of the Flags of the Noble Messenger. He elevated
the Knowledge of the Religion of Muhammad. He revived the Way of the Naqshbandi Order.
 SHRINE HAZRAT MAZHAR MIRZA MIR JA NE JANA, TURKMAN GATE NEW DELHI, INDIA

TAOSHOBUDDHA IN MARAQBA AT THE SHRINE MIRZA MAZHAR MIR JANE JANA, NEW DELHI, INDIA

kae$ naja< hE tIrae tegaE zmzIr ke dm pr

muje hE )³dage #Zk kI tnvIr ke dm pr

hU ALlah ke isva kuD ÉI inklta hI nhI< mu<h se

yh takt Aa gyI dIvane kae jNjIr ke dm pr

grIbe rahe %L)t zad hU< duinya se Kya mtlb

bjata cEn kI b<sI hU< Apne pIr ke dm pr

KOI NAZA HAI TEERO TEGO SHAMSHEER KE DAM PAR

MUJHE HAI FAKR DAGE ISHK KI TANVEER KE DAM PAR
HOO ALLAH KE SIVA KUTCH BHI NIKALTA HI NAHI MUH SE
YEH TAKAT AA GAYEE DEEWANE KO ZANZEER KE DAM PAR
GARIBE RAHE ULFAT SHAAD HUN DUNIYA SE KYA MATLAB
BAJATA CHAIN KI BANSHI HUN APNE PEER KE DAM PAR
 SOMEONE EXISTS AS THE OUTCOME HIS OWN EGO THE FALSE,
I REALLY BOAST ON THE INNER STRENGTH OF LOVE ETERNAL;
WITH LOVE ETERNAL ‘HOO ALLAH’ ALONE ECHOES
MY EXISTENCE MY BEING!
AND NOW BINDS MY EXISTENCE EACH FINTE AND INFINITE MOMENT, WITH LOVE ETERNAL
EVER INTOXICATED I DWELL IN MY MASTER UNCONCERNED OF THE FINITENESS AND DUALITIES:
INTOXICATED! NOW EACH PARTICLE OF MY BEING ECHOES THE SONG OF BLISS AND HARMONY!!!

INTRODUCTION: eternity where a master rests after he

BEFORE BEGINNING THE SHAZRAH OR
ANYTHING SUBLIME ONE MUST BEGIN WITH
PRAYER. SUCH IS ETERNAL ETIQUETTE OR
ADAB. NEVER CONSIDER THIS A MERE
TRADITION. SOMETHING THAT SPRINGS FORTH
FROM DEEP WITHIN THE INNER SANCTUM IS
NOT TRADITION. KNOW THIS AS YOUR BEING.
POINTING TOWARD THIS I NOW BEGIN THIS
OVERFLOW.
Each finite moment life is plundered with what
appears to our individual ego as benediction and
at other times as obstacles. All this happens
because of the cosmic energy field or what we
know as God. The source of all this ever remains
hidden from human cognition! From an
unknown source it springs forth. Sufis call this as
gaib.
Guided by an energy field within we interact.
Undergo pain and pleasure! Continue to blame
others for all states of unpleasantness. Thus
moves on life and living. This we consider as our
destiny. Ecstatic Umar Khayyam laments:
Moving finger writes and having writ, moves on!
Nor all thy wit nor piety shall lure it back to cancel
half a line!!
Such are the ways of human understanding.
However this is not Sufi understanding.
Generally gaib refers to the realm that contains
within its womb all that is hidden and remains
unknown to human understanding. To a Sufi
gaib refers to a state of awareness. It is a
storehouse of various energy fields that are
capable to transform human consciousness.
Bayazid Bistami explains gaib as that realm of
relinquishes the finite world after leaving the
body. All that comes from this realm is not only
sublime but transforming as well. The best way
to explain this is Cyber Space – that stores
everything yet still remains hidden from human
cognition. Only one who knows how to enter this
space will have an access.
Man ultimately gets all that he has earned for.
Hindus call this as the law of Karmas. Because of
our accumulated actions we assume human
form. Each moment we continue to accumulate
new actions. With awareness and meditative
insights each action exhausts the web of past
actions and impressions on our consciousness.
And in this process never accumulates any more
impressions. Such are the ways of a spiritual life.
A life of Awareness! Only benediction happens!
Even amidst all vicissitudes and turmoil that life
presents. Awake and arise therefore! O Fool!
Laments an ecstatic Shankar through Bhaja
Govindam – an immortal epic of the being!
It is said that at the time of initiation or what
Sufis call as bay’at the aspirant once again
becomes childlike. Like a mother the master
nourishes and nurtures the disciple even when
he is no more in physical form. What flows from
a mother’s heart as love towards her child flows
from the being of a master towards the disciple
or murid as compassion or spiritual energy or
faiz. This can happen no other way. This is the
reason that mother is considered second after
God as replica. So too a master is replica of the
Whole in finite form. This all happens because of
this indomitable unknown and unknowable
energy-field or gaib. All that one attains this way
van happen no other way.
Initiation is like a mother feeding the child.
Unless the mother breast feeds the child the
child cannot grow. So too without initiation and
its conscious recognition by the disciple no
progress is ever possible along this path.
BIRTH AND LIFE:
He was born in 1113 H /1701 AD in India. From
his childhood the light of Guidance and the
Traces of Piety shone from his forehead. His
features (Mazhar) were moulded with the
Manifestation of heavenly beauty (tajalli-l-
Jamal). He was famous, like the Prophet Yusuf,
for his beauty. And everyone loved him because
he represented beauty both inner and outer.
That is the attribute of God, about whom the
Prophet said: “God is beautiful and he loves
beauty,” and it is also the attribute of the
Prophet, about whom Anas said, “Your Prophet
was the most beautiful in appearance and had
the best voice of all prophets.” Because of this,
Sheikh Abdur-Rauf al-Munawi said, “The Prophet
has no comparison in his beauty.”
When Sheikh Mazhar was nine years of age, he
saw Sayyidina Ibrahim, who gave him
miraculous powers through spiritual
transmission. At this age, if anyone mentioned
Abu Bakr as-Siddiq in his presence, he would see
him appear with his physical eyes. He was also
able to see the Prophet and all the Companions
of the Prophet as well as all the Sheikhs of the
Naqshbandi Order, especially Sayyidina Ahmad
al-Faruqi Mujaddadi.
His father raised him and educated him in all
branches of religious knowledge. At a young age
his heart was attracted to the spiritual light
coming from his Sheikh, as-Sayyid Nur
Muhammad Badayuni. His Sheikh opened the
eyes of his heart and fed him from the nectar of
the flower of the Hidden Awareness and
Understanding. The Sheikh took him out of the
state of self-awareness and lifted him up to the
Highest Realms, which produced in him great
astonishment and caused him to faint. When he
awoke up he accompanied Sheikh Nur
Muhammad in further ascension. The Sheikh
allowed him to observe the Mysteries of the
Hidden World and gave him gifts from his
miraculous Powers and realms.
One look of his Sheikh opened in him the Nine
Points, the loci of the Naqshbandi Secrets. From
the knowledge of the nine points, he delved into
the secrets contained in the five of the more
powerful points, until his Sheikh authorized him
to “activate” the Nine Points at any time and to
use them. Then he brought him back down to be
in his presence and only in his presence. He
brought him up and down, from one stage to
another, and enveloped him with his light and
protected him with his gaze, until he achieved
the ultimate fruition and awakened himself from
Ignorance and inertia.
He stood fast in serving his Sheikh with complete
truthfulness and sincerity. He continued to
progress by entering seclusions in the desert and
in the jungle at the instructions of his Sheikh. In
these seclusions, his only food was grass and the
leaves of trees. During his period of asceticism in
the desert and jungle, he wore only what would
cover his nakedness. One day, after many of
these seclusions, he looked in the mirror and
didn't see himself instead, he saw his Sheikh.
At this stage the Sheikh authorized him to guide
Allah's servants to their destinies and to the
Straight Path, and he put him on the Throne of
Succession, and by him the Sun of Guidance
ascended the Tower of Happiness.
When his teacher passed away, he continued to
visit his shrine and for two years he received
whatever lights and knowledge his master was
able to transmit to him from his shrine. Then he
was ordered through his spiritual connection to
his Sheikh to connect himself with a living
master.
He reached the Door of the perfect Saints of his
time, Sheikh Muhammad Afzal, Sheikh Safi
Sadullah, and Sheikh Muhammad Abid. He
attached himself to Sheikh Shah Kalshan and to
another Sheikh by the name of Muhammad az-
Zubair. He used to attend the session of Shaikh
Muhammad Afzal, one of the khalifas of the son
of Muhammad Masoom. He visited and studied
with Sheikh Abdul Ahad and received from him
knowledge of the Prophetic Hadith. During this
class, whenever the Sheikh would mention a
Hadith, he would disappear through Self-
Effacement, and a vision would come to him in
which he would find himself sitting with the
Prophet and hearing the Hadith directly from the
Prophet. He would correct any mistakes that
might occur in the Sheikh’s narration of the
Hadith, and was acknowledged as a genius in the
science of Hadith.
He kept the company of these Sheikhs for twenty
years. He progressed further and further in the
States of Totality, until he became an Ocean of
Bliss and Knowing. He rose in the Firmament of
the Qutbs until he became the Qutb of his time,
shining like the sun at high noon. Sheikh
Muhammad Afzal said, “Sheikh Mazhar
Habibullah was given the state of Qutb and he is
the central pivot of this tariqat at this time and
will remain so in times to come.”
His spiritual understanding and awareness
attracted people from all reaches of the
Subcontinent. In his presence, each seeker would
find what he needed, until through his blessing
the Indian Subcontinent became like a Kaaba
encircled by flocks of angelic beings.
In his noble person were combined the energy of
four tariqats. He was a master of the Naqshbandi,
Qadiri, Suhrawardi and Chishti Orders. He used
to say, “I received the secrets and knowledge of
these orders from my Sheikh, Sayyid Nur
Muhammad Badayuni, until I attained a very
distinguished awareness in these Orders. He
lifted me from the Ibrahamic Stage to the
Mohammaden Stage, which caused me to see the
Prophet sitting in my place, while I was sitting in
his. Then I disappeared and I saw him sitting in
the two places. Then I saw him disappearing and
I saw myself sitting in both places.”
About gaib many misconceptions exist. It is
argued that after the master is no more then how
can the disciple be nourished and nurtured.
Master is the connection or the link between the
murid and the realm of gaib. SO when the master
is no more then how can this link remain. Just as
before the birth of child milk descends in
mother’s breasts so too with the inner
connection with the master the treasures of this
unknown and unknowable realm open for the
disciple. For this unwavering trust for the master
is the first criterion. With adab comes in love for
the master. Love is the key to treasure realm of
gaib. For an ordinary consciousness this is very
difficult to understand. There is no inner
connection. Once the realm doors are unlocked
you are connected to all the masters that
happened in the past and also those who are to
happen at some future date. With this inner
connection all the inner states of awareness,
tariqat and all that is needed for transformation
becomes available.
It is said that with Mazhar Mir the Naqshbandi
tariqat attained to its totality. This should mean
the tariqat was incomplete or faulty. He
emphasized that one can be in the world and still
follow the path to inward journey. One can
continue totally in the outer and its affairs and
deep within flows the stream of benediction and
awareness. With trust and adab one remains
connected with the realm of masters. Remember
trust and adab is not an outward exposition
instead it is an understanding. And for this no
external expression is needed. Then one realizes
that that the energy field of the master is always
envelops the aspirants.
#nayt ka r<g Aaj bdla huAa hE
vh hE< ya< jama bdl kr bEQe hu@
jra Apne cZme hkIkI se deoae
n yh jam oalI n vh jam oalI
INAYAT KA RANG AAJ BADLA HUYA HAI,
VOH HAIN YAN JAMA BADAL KAR BAITHE HUYE;
JARA APNE CHASME HAQUIQUI SE DEKHO;
N YEH JAAM KHALI N VOH JAAM KHALI!!!
TODAY THE FORM OF GRACE
AND COMPASSION IS DIFFERENT,
TODAY HE IS AMONG US IN A DIFFERENT GARB!
FORGETTING YOUR PHYSICAL
INSTRUMENTS OF COGNITION,
LOOK DEEP WITHIN THROUGH
YOUR CELESTIAL VISION;
NO REALM OR PLACE IS EVER DEVOID OF THY
PRESENCE SOLEMN AND SUBLIME!!!
His father was one of the jwels in the court of
Moughal emperor Aranguez. Every one used to
call his father MIRZA SAHAB out of respect. Once
Mazhar accompanied his father to court of the
emperor, someone asked his name. At this
Aranguez responded by saying, ‘The child is the
life essence of the father. Therefore this boy is
JAANE JAANA.’ Thus Mirza JANE JAANA was
added to his name. He was a poet who composed
in Arabic and Persian languages.
His entire training completed in just six months!
During the time he lived it was difficult to follow
the path of spirituality. Aranguez imposed severe
restrictions. His tariqat or the methodology was
intuitive or guided by gaib.
With him the tariqat attained to totality. The first
change happened because of Bahauddin
Naqshband. As a result Naqshbandi was added to
the nomenclature. The second change happened
because of Ahmad Farooki Mujaddadi Alif Thani.
With this Mujaddadi was added to the already
existing name. And with Mirza Mazhar Mir Jaane
Jaana the third change was affected in the
nomenclature of the tariqat. He emphasized that
it is not important that the disciple does the
dhikr, or any thing else. What is more important
is the inner connection with the master. This
inner connection happens only because of inner
connection, love, and adab towards ones master.
Once this has happened the journey becomes
easy. When the aspirant begins to move within
the journey becomes difficult. Because of your
constant negligence of the inner there remains
utter darkness. And travelling through the dark
caves of the being is not only difficult but
dangerous as well. It is the light of the master
that guides the aspirant until one reaches to a
state when darkness is no more. Instead these is
illumination. And you are ‘LIGHT ONTO
YOURSELF’.
In his youth he worked in the army of Aranguez
and fought certain wars as well. Even in spiritual
realm he used the terminology of a soldier. He
said that an aspirant needs to be like a soldier
who sacrifices even his life for his master. He
reached his master when he was quite old.
Mazhar served his master to his utmost. He used
to do all kinds of work. He came from an affluent
family.
Most of his external teaching happened through
his grandfather. From his mother he got the
training of adab and akhlaq respect and
etiquette. His mother was the daughter of a
master from Lahore. Over an incident he
resigned from the army and later settled in Delhi
in India. It was there that he started the work of
transformation. Because of the loss of job he
underwent through financial hardships. It was
his wife who supported him then. It was then
that his uncle said, ‘It is during financial
hardships alone inward journey attains new
dimension. Also the progress that one attains
during such hardships is very difficult otherwise.
Spirituality is beyond all riches and poverty.” At
this he expressed desire for initiation from him.
This his uncle refused as he was not permitted
for this. Then he took Mazhar to his fellow
disciple Noor Mohammad Badayuni. He
remained there until his uncle died. Mirza
Mazhar sought the permission to visit Sirhind.
The two Mazhar and Noor Mohammad visited
the shrine of his uncle. While still on the shrine
intuitively Mirza Mazhar felt the need for
initiation and thus expressed the desire
intuitively as well! At this the master Noor
Mohammed extended his had in agreement. And
even without expressing the desire Noor
Mohammed initiated Mirza Mazhar. Mirza never
had to ask for anything from his master.
Everything used to be answered intuitively.
The life of Mirza Mazhar is full of anecdotes and
incidents. All of these cannot be mentioned. He
was quite young when his master Noor
Mohammad passed away. Once he had a vision
that a congregation of masters descended from
heaven. And one the masters resembled Noor
Mohammed! At this he sought the confirmation
from the master. At this the master responded I
am your thought not your master. At this Mirza
expressed agony that it was for the first time I
have been inclined towards another master. At
this the master in question appeared in his true
form. He was in fact his master. This he thought
was due to any weakness. Thus he attained to
the association of 17 masters.
Following are some sayings of Sheikh Mazhar:
“Once I was sitting in the presence of Sheikh
Muhammad Abid and the Sheikh said, "The two
suns at the two ends met, and if their lights were
combined and spread throughout this universe,
they would have burned everything.”
“Sheikh Muhammad Afzal was much older than I
but he used to stand up for me when I entered,
and he used to say to me, 'I am standing in
deference to the high lineage that you possess.’”
“This whole world and the entire universe are in
my hand, and I can see everything in them, just
as clearly as I can see my hand.”
He had innumerable miraculous experiences and
numberless visions about the Heavenly world as
well as the lower world.
Once he travelled with some of his followers
without any food or provision. They walked and
whenever they got tired they sat. The Sheikh
would call them and say, "This food is for you,"
and tables of food would appear in front of them.
One day during the trip there was a terrible
storm and the wind was blowing everything in
its path. It was freezing and everyone was
shivering because of the cold. Their situation
worsened until it appeared that they were going
to die in that frozen desert. Then Sheikh Mazhar
raised his hands and said, "O Allah make it
surround us but not be upon us." Immediately
the clouds lifted from around them, and though
the freezing rain continued to fall one mile away,
around them the temperature rose to a
comfortable level.
He said, "One time I visited the grave of Sheikh
Muhammad Hafiz Muhsin. I disappeared from
myself and in a vision I saw his body. It had
suffered no decomposition, and his shroud was
still perfectly clean except for a patch of dirt on
one part by his feet. Through my spiritual power,
I asked him about that. He said, 'O my son I will
tell you a story. One day I took a stone from the
garden of my neighbor and put it in a hole in my
garden, and I said to myself, 'in the morning I
will return it to him,' but I forgot. As a result of
that action, the dirt has appeared on my shroud.
That one action has tainted my shroud.'"
He said, "As long as you are lifted upward in
piety you will be lifted up in sainthood."
One day he became angry at a tyrant and he said,
"A vision came to me in which I saw that all
Sheikhs, from Abu Bakr as-Siddiq up to the
Sheikhs of today, were unhappy with that
tyrant." The next day the tyrant died.
A man came to him and said, “O my master, my
brother has been jailed in another village. Please
pray to Allah to save him.” He said, “O my son,
your brother has not been jailed, but he has done
something wrong and tomorrow you will receive
a letter from him.” It turned out to be just as he
described.
He informed his followers of great tidings and
some jealous people refused to accept what he
said. He said, “If you don't believe me let us bring
a judge. We will each tell him our point of view
and let him judge between us." They said "We
don't accept any judge except the Prophet, and
on Judgment Day we will ask for his judgement
in this matter." Then he said, "There is no need to
wait until the Judgment Day. We will ask the
Prophet to give his Judgment now.” He entered a
deep state of contemplation in his heart and was
told to read the Fatiha. This he did, and
immediately the Prophet appeared to everyone
and said, "Al-Mazhar Habibullah is right and all
of you are wrong.”
About Creation:
He said, “Existence is an Attribute of Allah alone.
This world is a mere shadow of realities existing
in the Divine Presence. The reality of all possible
creations or haqaiq al-mumkinat results from
the action of the Divine Attributes and Qualities
on the Void adm. The Real Existence of all that
manifests in physical creation is confirmed as a
light in the Divine Presence.
"Everything that appears in the physical creation
is a mere shadow of the luminous reality
projected by the Divine Qualities upon the void
of non-existence. The World of the Divine
Attributes or sifat is the Origin of the Well-
springs of the Created Universes or mabadi'
taayyunat al-alam. Because all physical creation
arises from a combination of Allah's Divine
Qualities and the Void, creation thus partakes of
two origins of opposite nature. From the nature
of the void of non-existence and nothingness
arise the dense qualities of physical substance
that in the sphere of human action produce
darkness, ignorance and evil. From the Divine
Attributes come Light, Knowledge and Good.
Thus the Sufi, when he looks at himself sees all
that is good in him as a light from the Divine that
is reflected on him, but that is not of him. A
simile for it would be a borrowed suit of fine
clothes with which one is beautifully dressed but
that does not truly belong to him and for which
he deserves no credit. Conversely, he sees
himself as base substance, full of darkness and
ignorance, with a nature worse than that of an
animal. With this dual perception he loosens his
attachment to the attractions of the self and
effaces himself, and turns in repentance or tawba
towards the Divine Source of all good. With this
turning, Allah fills his heart with love and
yearning for the Divine Presence. As Allah said in
a Holy Hadith, “If My servant approaches Me by
one hand's length I will approach him by one
arm's length; and if he comes to Me walking I will
come to him running.”
Shortly before his death Sheikh Mazhar (q) was
in a state of great emotion and intense love of
God. He experienced a great unhappiness at
having spent so long in this transient world. He
spent his last days in intense contemplation and,
when asked, he would always say that his state
was that of Annihilation and Existence in Allah
Sublime and Exalted. He increased his dhikr in
his final days, and as a result of the intense light
of attraction generated thereby, thousands and
thousand of seekers entered into the tariqat.
Each new day would bring three thousand new
people to his door, and he would not let one of
them go without meeting him. Finally, he became
so exhausted that he scheduled only two times a
day to meet with people.
One day, one of his followers, Sheikh Mullah
Nazim, asked permission to travel and visit his
parents in his homeland. He said, “My son, if you
want to go you may, but I may not be here when
you return.” This reply went from one mouth to
another, shaking the hearts of people, as it
indicated that his era was ending. With tearful
eyes, and broken hearts, people all around the
Punjab began wailing and crying. His house was
full and no one knew what was going to happen
when he was gone. Then he took a paper and
wrote to one of his successors, Mullah Abdur-
Razzaq, “O my son, I am now over eighty and my
life is coming to its close. Remember me in your
prayers.” He sent him that letter and he sent
many others the same letter.
Thanking Allah for His Favors he said, “There is
nothing left in my heart of anything that I have
wished to achieve or to reach that remains to be
accomplished. There is nothing for which I have
asked Allah that I did not receive. My only
remaining desire is to leave this world and be in
His Presence continuously. Allah gave me
everything, except permission to go to Him. I am
asking Allah to take me to Him today, before
tomorrow. But I don't want to go to Him as an
ordinary person. I want to go to him, as Allah
described in the Holy Qur'an, as a martyr who is
always alive. So, O Allah, make me a martyr in
this world and take me to you as a martyr. This
kind of death will bring happiness to my heart
and will cause me to be in the presence of Your
Prophet and of Ibrahim and of Musa, and with all
your 124,000 prophets; and to be with all the
Companions of the Prophet, and to be with al-
Junnaid and the master of this Order, Shah
Naqshband (q), and with all the masters of the
Tariqat. O Allah, I want to combine the
witnessing of physical martyrdom with spiritual
death in the State of Witnessing, in the State of
Annihilation.”
DEATH
THE ULTIMATE TRANSCENDENCE:
It was Wednesday evening, the seventh of
Muharram, of the year 1195 H/1780 CE. His
servant came to him and said, “There are three
men at your door. They want to visit you.” He
said, “Let them enter.” When they entered, he
came out of his bedroom and greeted them. One
of them said to him, “Are you Mirza Jaane Jaana
Habibullah?” He answered, “Yes.” The two said to
the third, “Yes, he is the one.” One of the men
took a knife from his pocket and stabbed him in
the back, piercing his kidney. Because of his age,
he was unable to withstand the severity of the
blow and he fell to the ground. When it was time
for the Fajr prayer, the King sent him a doctor.
He sent back the doctor and said, “I don’t need
him. As for the men who stabbed me, I forgive
them, because I am glad to die as a martyr and
they came as an answer to my prayer.”
He passed from this life on Friday. When the day
reached its middle, he read the Qur’anic chapters
Fatiha and Ya Sin until AzR time. He asked his
followers, how many hours were left until
sunset. They told him, “Four hours.” He said, “It
is still long until the meeting with my Lord.” He
said, “I have missed ten prayers in my life, all in
these past two days, because my body is full of
blood and I have been unable to raise my head.”
They asked him, “If a sick person is in such a
weak condition, is he obliged to pray with
movements of his eyes and his forehead or to
postpone his prayer?” He answered, “Both ways
are correct.”He waited with patience for the
sunset, and then he died. It was the night of
Ashura, 1195 H /1781 AD.
He passed his secret to his successor, Hadhrat
Abdullah Shah Naimullah.
 I am sending you to a distant land whose very texture is soaked in spirituality. It is the land
sanctified, nourished and nurtured by such forces from times immemorial. A land which is ready to
explode any path! A land whose very being is not only ready but has the capability to infuse life even
in a dead heart. I am sending you to INDIA. India has been the University of Meditation and the
BEACON LIGHT not only now but from TIMES IMMEMORIAL. It has created many Buddhas.
Sheikh Mohammad Al Amkanaqi RA-to Sheikh Mohammad Baqi Billah

N aqshbandiyah tariqat was the part of the

fundamentalist Islamic tradition until it
came to Indian sub continent. It evolved,
grew and flourished as an oasis amidst the
deserts of the Middle East. However, it was
entering a new climate of - political, religious and
social fabric. Therefore it could not separate itself
from the prevailing influences.
Politically Muslim invasions continued from the
North West part of the continent. After the
invasion Mughal rule of Babar was established
because of political disunity and fractions among
the Hindu rulers. Because of atrocities of the
Islamic rulers there was social, cultural, and
political unrest. In the name of religion
conversions were imposed. All this was causing
unrest.
On the other hand Bhakti movement was at its
pinnacle. In north and South many streams and
tributaries were flourishing. A Sheikh of this
Golden chain Hadhrath Al Amkanaqi realizing it
to be the will of Allah Subhan wa Taala sent
Hadhrath Al Baqui Billah to India. Before he
actually did he spoke of these words about the
land and the climate where this sacred chain was
now being sent.
Hadhrath Amkanaqi said:
“I am sending you to a distant land whose very
texture is soaked in spirituality. It is the land
sanctified, nourished and nurtured by such forces
from times immemorial. A land which is ready to
explode any path! A land whose very being is not
only ready but has the capability to infuse life
even in a dead heart. I am sending you to INDIA.’
India has been the University of Meditation and
the BEACON LIGHT not only now but from TIMES
IMMEMORIAL. Truly its cultural heritage is older
than any of the oldest civilizations. Indus valley
civilization is even older than the Egyptian or
Babylon civilization. Scientific and astrological
researches have proved the existence of
scriptures that mention of constellation of stars
that happened nearly 90,000 years ago. It has
created many Buddhas, saints, sages, incarnations
and masters.
It has absorbed many religions and paths for
spiritual development.
And in the process has lent its texture to all that
once appeared to be alien.
Hadhrath Baqui Billah moved back to India and
stayed in the city of Delhi, which he filled with
faith and knowledge and secrets and lights.
Through him the Naqshbandi Order spread with
great swiftness throughout the Indian
Subcontinent and millions of people were
connected to him through his various Khalifas.
All nations in the Subcontinent were attracted to
his knowledge and his ENERGY FIELD as
tawwajzoh and to the Prophetic Characteristics
dressing him. It became known throughout the
Indian Subcontinent that anyone coming to him
and looking in his eyes, or sitting in his proximity
doing dhikr, would enter a state of Self-
Effacement and intoxication, through which he
could reach a state of Annihilation, in a single
meeting.
By such miraculous energy-field he attracted
millions of people, until this Naqshbandi Order
was on the tongue of everyone. And the tariqat
blended with the existing spiritual trends and
textures.
His spiritual understanding and awareness
attracted people from all reaches of the
Subcontinent. In his presence, each seeker would
find what he needed, until through his blessing
the Indian Subcontinent became like a Kaaba
encircled by flocks of angelic beings.
The journey of the tariqat continued through
various Sheikhs of the Naqshbandiyah tariqat.
Along with also developed other tariqats – like
Quadriyah, Chistiyah, and Sohrawadiyah. The
Naqshbandiyah path traversed through the
Mujaddadi era for which Hadhrath Baqui Billah
was sent. The journey passed through Sheikh
Ahmad Farooqui Mujaddadi, Hadhrath
Mohammad Masoom, Hadhrath Sheikh Safuddin,
Hadhrath Nur Mohammd Badyuni and reached
another juncture at Hadhrath Mirza Mazhar Nir
Jane Jana.
In the noble person of Hadhrath Mirza Mazhar Nir
Jane Jana were combined the energy of four
tariqats. He was a master of the Naqshbandi,
Qadiri, Suhrawardi and Chishti Orders.
Hadhrath Mazhar Mir Jane Jana used to say, “I
received the secrets and knowledge of these
orders from my Sheikh, Sayyid Nur Muhammad
Badayuni, until I attained a very distinguished
awareness in these Orders. He lifted me from the
Ibrahamic Stage to the Mohammaden Stage,
which caused me to see the Prophet sitting in my
place, while I was sitting in his. Then I
disappeared and I saw him sitting in the two
places. Then I saw him disappearing and I saw
myself sitting in both places.”
Although the tariqat was blending within the
social and religious fabric of the continent yet still
the custodians of the various paths maintained
their separate identities and rancor against one
another. Religious narrowness continued among
the fundamentalists and those who considered
themselves the custodians of the path of inner
transformation.
In the name of religion and conversions many
atrocities were inflicted upon the common
masses. As a result many revolted. On one hand
these custodians (the combination of the priestly
communities and the polity) spoke of
religiousness, however their hearts were all filled
with ignorance and the lack of the understanding
of the message of Allah Subhan wa Taala and the
masters. Religious intolerance remained the
order of the day.
As the journey continued the Naqshbandiyah
tariqat that once wore a totally Islamic texture
began to have other color and hue. Some resented
these while others welcomed this as the setting of
a new trend.
Constant atrocities by the Moughal emperors on
the other religious sections especially Hindus in
the name of religions saw the emergence of Sikh
religion. The masters maintained the spiritual
values of both Hindu and Islam and incorporated
these as integral part of their religious teaching.
Yet still their survival made the Sikh Gurus follow
the road to become militants. This was once again
the revival of the era of the Holy Prophet when
for survival he had to take the sword in his hand.
Saints like Tulsidas, Mira, Sahjobai, Tukaram,
Kabir, Nanak, and all the remaining nine gurus
came on the spiritual horizon along with Sufi
Masters like Moin Uddin Chisti, NizamUdin
Auliya, Amir Khushroo, Raskhan etc rose to the
occasion. All these different traditions, and faiths
blended in the main stream of Indian spirituality
that was at its pinnacle from times immemorial.
Thus evolved new poetry, values, and many
influences.
Naqshbandiyah tariqat could not keep itself
separate from these trends. Both Hindu and
Muslim followed the tariqat. Yet still religious
narrowness continued. It was in such an
environment one of the Sheikhs of this Golden
Chain of Naqshbandiyah tariqat made predictions
for the setting of a new trends and influence in
the tariqat.
Shah Bahauddin Naqshband is the 17th Sheikh of
the Golden Chain. Therefore I have given the
chain in that order. This does not mean there has
been no one else who carried on the tariqat. Each
sheikh had many khalifas. However the chief
among them was handed over the golden chain of
the tariqat while others worked in harmony with
the main stream. Yet still there were a significant
numbers who cut off the links for various reasons
and started their own work under the false
banner of truth. These I will not mention as this is
not the work of the one who seeks light or Noor.
And since this is happening it must have the
sanction of Allah Subhan wa Taala. Nothing ever
happens without the Supreme will. May the
masters guide those who have deviated along the
path?
There has been many other khalifas who have
done tremendous work in the process of
transformation as part of the main stream. Still
they are not the part of the golden chain.
Following is the actual chain from Shah
Bahauddin Naqshband.
1. Kwajah Bahauddin Naqshband r.a. (d. 2
Rajab al-Murajjab, 791AH) - Qasr-e-
Aarifan (Bukhara)
2. Hadhrat Alaa'uddin Attaar r.a. (d. 20 Rajab
802AH) - Jafaaniyan (Mawralnahar)
3. Hadhrat Ya'qoob Charkhi r.a. (d. 5 Safar,
851AH) - Charkh (Bukhara)
4. Hadhrat Ubaidullah Ahraar r.a. (d. 20/29
Rabi al-Awwal, 895AH) - Samarqand
(Mawralnahar)
5. Hadhrat Muhammad Zaahid r.a. (d. 1 Rabi
al-Awwal, 936AH) - Wakhsh (Malk Hasaar)
6. Hadhrat Darwesh Muhammad r.a. (d. 19
Muharram, 970AH) - Samarqand
(Mawralnahar)
7. Hadhrat Muhammad Waaqif Amkanki r.a.
(d. 21/22 Sha'baan, 1008AH) - Akang
(Bukhara)
From here the tariqat came to India and became
the part of Indian Sub continent. There has to be a
reason for this. And when it came to Indian
Subcontinent that was predominantly A Hindu
community how could it keep itself separate. Such
is the will of Allah Subhan wa Taala. Yet still
fundamentalists maintain the Islamic texture and
negate the will of Allah Subhan wa Taala, and go
on calling themselves to be on the path. It is time
to rise beyond narrowness of all kinds. Only then
you will seek the realm of spiritualism.
8. Hadhrat Khwaja Baqui Billaah r.a. (d. 25
Jumaad al-Aakhar, 1012AH) - Delhi (India)
9. Hadhrath Imam Rabbani, Mujaddid Alif
Thani, Hadhrat Sheikh Ahmad Farooqui
Sirhindi r.a. (d. 28 Safar, 1034AH) - Sirhind
(India)
10. Hadhrat Muhammad Ma'soom Farooqui
r.a. (d. 9 Rabi al- Awwal, 1079AH) - Sirhind
(India)
11. Hadhrat Sheikh Sayfuddeen Bin Ma'soom
Farooqui r.a. (d. 19 Jumad al-Oola, 1095-
1096AH) - Sirhind (India)
12. Hadhrat Nur Muhammad Badyooni r.a. (d.
11 Dhul Qa'dah, 1135AH) - Dehli (India)
13. Hadhrat Mirza Mazhar Jaan-I-Jaanan r.a.
(d. 10 Muharram, 1195AH) - Khanqah
Mazharia Turk Man gate Delhi(India)
14. Hadhrat Abdullah Shah Naimullah r.a. (d.
22 Safar, 1240AH) - Behraich U.P.(India)
15. Hadhrat Mawla’na Muradullah r.a. (d. Dhul
Qa'dah, 1248AH) - Lucknow U.P.(India)
16. Hadhrat Sayyed Abul Hasan Sa'eed r.a. (d.
Sha'ba'n, 1272) - Rai Bareli U.P.(India)
17. Hadhrat Mawla’na Khalifa Ahmad Ali Khan
r.a. left on 04.11.1904(AD) Kaimganj, Distt.
Farrukhabad (Uttar Pradesh)
18. Hadhrat Mawla’na Shah Fazl Ahmad Khan
r.a. (1857-1907 A D) Qusba- Raipur Distt.
Farrukhabad (Uttar Pradesh)
19. Hadhrat Mawla’na Abdul Ghani Khan
r.a.(1867-1952 AD) Qusba- Bhogaon, Distt.
Mainpuri (Uttar Pradesh)
20. Hadhrath Sheikh Ramchandra (Lalaji) Ji
Maharaj (1873-1931 AD) r.a. Fatehgarh
(Uttar Pradesh) India
 21. Hadhrath Sheikh Raghubar Dayal
(Chachaji) Ji Maharaj (1875-1947 AD) r.a.
Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh India
22. Hadhrath Sheikh Brij Mohan Lal (1898-
1955 AD) r.a. Lucknow Uttar Pradesh,
India
23. Hadhrath Sheikh Onkar Nath (1935-2008
AD) r.a. Lucknow Uttar Pradesh, India
As I have mentioned earlier it was from Sheikh
Baqui Billah that the tariqat came to Indian Sub
Continent. With Imam Rabbani Sheikh Ahmad
Mujaddadi a new era was ushered in the tariqat.
And then with the advent of Hadhrath Mazhar Mir
Jane Jana the existing tariqat entered a new
phase.
And once again after the advent of Mazaharia
Nisbet the path underwent another major
influence. It was the advent of the Naqshbandiyah
Sheikh beyond the Islamic religion, instead from
Hindu religion. About this advent a prediction
was made by one of the Sheikhs nearly 100 years
before the actual happening of the event.
It was the 33rd Sheikh Hadhrat Sayadina
Hazarat Kutub-i-alam Abul Hasan
Naseerabadi who made the following prediction
to his Khalifa. And in the process each sheikh
waited and then passed on the forecast to the
next Sheikh. It was Hadhrath Abul Hasan
Naseerabadi who mentioned of this forecast to his
khalifa – the next Sheikh Hadhrat Mawla’na
Khalifa Ahmad Ali Khan Kaimganji, who left
the body on 04.11.1904(AD). The forecast
meant,
‘I am witnessing the lack of interest among the
Muslim community towards this
Naqshbandiyah tariqat. I am seeing two
persons from Hindu religion will come to you.
They are the true inheritor of this Nisbet. Do
not hesitate in transferring the secrets of this
tariqat and the Golden Chain to these two
persons.’
This was the time of ‘tassubi’ or spiritual
narrowness, division on the basis of religious
beliefs and many atrocities in the name of
religion. There was division and ignorance as far
as spirituality or ‘roohaniyat’ was concerned.
However with this Nisbet came to Hindu Sheikhs
beyond the narrowness of religions and religious
belief. Spirituality is beyond religions and
narrowness of any kind.
Almost one hundred years ago a forecast was
made by Sayadina Hazarat Kutub-i-alam Abul
Hasan Naseerabadi. Who in turn mentioned of
this to his khalifa Sufi Ahmad Ali Khan (Khalifa
Sahib) Kayamganji.
Sufi Ahmad Ali Khan too waited lifelong for these
two people. No one came. So when it was the time
for Sufi Ahmad Ali Khan to leave the finite realm
he spoke to his chief khalifa, Sufi Maulana Fazl
Ahmad Khan, who became the next Naqshbandi
master:
‘Maybe my master had seen your reflection
through me. And this forecast is for you. Take
care and be ever aware about this forecast. Maybe
these people will come to you.
All along Sufi Fazl Ahmad Khan waited. The
destined time of the meeting was coming closer. It
was rainy night! Thunder and lightning! Amidst
such an atmosphere when serenity prevailed
amidst turmoil indicating that at the center of
cyclone there always exists tremendous serenity.
The destined meeting happened! A person named
Ramchandra came to the company of the master
wading through the external turmoil.
This was followed by his younger brother
Raghuber Dayal. These were the two destined
ones about whom the forecast was made nearly
one hundred years ago. Ramchandra and
Raghuber Dayal later came to be known as
Naqshbandi Sufi Ramchandra or Lala ji, and
Naqshbandi Sufi Raghuber Dayal or Chacha ji.
The entire system of roohaniyat is based on such
forecasts or wisharads. Thus came the dawn of a
new era in Naqshbandi order of Sufis. This was
the beginning of the Hindu influence into tariqat.
Although the outer appearance may differ, beliefs
too may differ but the inner state of awareness or
truth or Nisbet never changes. And if there is any
change in that state then it is not truth. Truth is
sublime and most auspicious. Truth is ALHAM
DIL ALLAH, SUBHAN ALLAH. OR what Hindus say
it SATYAM, SHIVAM, SUNDRAM. Let us dwell in
the realm of truth or haquiqat beyond
narrowness of all kinds. Remember the words of a
Sheikh of this tariqat:
‘BETASSUBI SADAKAT KI JAAN HAI!’
‘TO RISE ABOVE NARROWNESS IS SPIRITUALITY!’

From here the tariqat came to India and became the part of Indian Sub continent.
There has to be a reason for this. And when it came to Indian Subcontinent that
was predominantly A Hindu community how could it keep itself separate. Such is
the will of Allah Subhan wa Taala. Yet still fundamentalists maintain the Islamic
texture and negate the will of Allah Subhan wa Taala, and go on calling themselves
to be on the path. It is time to rise beyond narrowness of all kinds. Only then you
will seek the realm of spiritualism.
 Human beings climb the ladder of egotism,
But in the end everyone must fall from this ladder,
The higher you climb, the more foolish you are,
For your bones will be more badly broken
When you die to yourself and come alive through God,
In truth you have become one with God, in absolute unity.

RUMI MASNAVI IV: 2763-7

From Saidyana Shamsuddin Shaheed Feesawi Lillah Hazrat Shah Mahboob Habibullah Mirza
Mazhar Mir Jane Jana a new era in Naqshbandi Sufi path ushers. It was the beginning of the decline of
Mughal Empire. The atrocities of Aurenguez have brought the downfall of the Empire. The other
influences like Sikhism and Hindu influence was on the rise. The Shazrah from here continues as under:

1. Hazrat Mazhar Mir Jana Jana

2. Sayiaddina Naim Ullah Shah Baihraichi
3. Sayiaddina Hazrat Shah Murad Ullah
4. Khawaja Abulhasan Nasirabadi
5. Hazrat Maulwi Ahmad Ali Khan
6. Hazrat Maulana Fazl Ahmad Khan
7. Hazrat Maulwi Shah Abdul Ghani Khan
8. Sufi Hazrat Ramchandra
9. Sufi Hazrat Raghuber Dayal
10. Sufi Hazrat Brij Mohan Lal
11. Sufi Hazrat Onkar Nath

It was Khawaja Abulhasan Nasirabadi RA who
envisioned the advent of Hindu influence into the
Sufi Path. He spoke to his Calipha Hazrat Maulwi
Ahmad Ali Khan.
Before the advent of Sufi Ramchandra – Lala ji
the Naqshbandi Nisbet was confined basically
with the seekers of Islamic community. This was
the time of ‘tassubi’ or spiritual narrowness,
division on the basis of religious beliefs and
many atrocities in the name of religion. There
was division and ignorance as far as spirituality
or ‘roohaniyat’ was concerned. However with
this the Nisbet came to Hindus beyond the
narrowness of religions and religious belief.
Spirituality is beyond religions and narrowness
of any kind. Yet still the custodians have tried to
muddle it up within the narrow boundaries of
religion, caste, and creed.
Almost one hundred years ago a forecast was
made by the 33rd Naqshbandi Master Hadthrath
Sayadina Kutub-i-alam Abul Hasan Naseerabadi.
Who in turn mentioned of this to his khalifa Sufi
Ahmad Ali Khan (Khalifa Sahib) Kayamganji. The
forecast meant:
‘I am witnessing the lack of interest among the
Muslim community as far as roohaniyat is
concerned. I am also seeing two people will come
from alhe hinud or Hindu Religion. They will be
true inheritor of this spiritual treasure. Do not
hesitate in giving them this wealth.’
After this kasf Hadhrath Sayadina Abul Hasan
waited life ling for the arrival of these two
destined ones. But no one came. When he was
leaving the world he mentioned of this to the
next master Sufi Ahmad Ali Khan saying that may
be this forecast if meant for you.
Sufi Ahmad Ali Khan, who lived in a place called
Kayamganj in U.P. India, too waited lifelong for
these two people. No one came. So when it was
the time for Sufi Ahmad Ali Khan to leave the
finite realm on 4th November 1904 he spoke to
his chief khalifa, Sufi Maulana Fazal Ahmad Khan,
who became the next Naqshbandi master:
‘Maybe my master had seen your reflection
through me. And this forecast is for you. Take
care and be ever aware about this forecast.
Maybe these people will come to you.’
All along Sufi Fazal Ahmad Khan waited. Sheikh
Fazal Ahmad Khan was a school teacher. He used
to rent a small room in same school compound of
Mufti Sahib where Sufi Ramchandra Lala Ji had
also rented a room to carry on his studies. Sufi
saint used to teach children in his room as part
of livelihood. Each time when LalaJI would pass
in front of the room of the Sheikh to reach to his
room; with door open the Sheikh would wait and
LalaJI will pay respect before reaching to his
room. Thus the communion continued
mystically. The meeting has not yet happened.
In 1891 Ramchandra got a temporary job for a
very small salary as the financial situation was
very tight and the resources were meager to
meet the basic needs. He still maintained the
room for his studies. The destined time of the
meeting was coming closer. It was a dark yet
cold wintry rainy night! Thunder and lightning!
Amidst such an atmosphere serenity prevailed
amidst turmoil indicating that at the center of
cyclone exists tremendous serenity. In the night
Ramchandra was returning to his room in this
cold wintry rainy night. His condition was
pitiable. He was shivering with cold as his whole
body was drenched in rain. The destined
meeting happened!
Same time the Sufi master caught the glance of
him and looked at him lovingly. The glance came
like the warmth from the soul. Sufi said such an
atmosphere of thunder and lightning and still
you are here. Lalaji used to say these words of
Sufi came like panacea for the soul that erelong
aspired for the union. Ramchandra came in the
company of the master wading through the
external turmoil.
Even in such a state Lalaji paid his regards of the
master. The two eyes met. With this a high
voltage current flowed through his body from
head to toe. And the body and mental
consciousness drowned in that current. It
appeared as if a new soul from the unknown and
unknowable realm entered his being.
The Sufi instructed him to go in and change the
clothes. In the mean time he lit the fire-place and
asked LalaJI to sit along with him before
returning home. Lalaji followed the instruction.
The two sat on the same bed as the only sitting
place. The Sufi covered him with his comforter to
maintain the natural warmth. The two went into
the state of meditativeness as the Tawazjoh of
the Sheikh Fazal Ahmad Khan overflowed and
Ramchandra (Lala Ji) was pulsating at its melody
totally intoxicated and blissful.
It was a state of intense meditativeness. The
effect of Tawazjoh or the energy-field was
intense. It appeared as if all outside turmoil was
drowning in such energy-field. The inner and the
outer states merged into one another. It
appeared as if the bliss overflowing from the
soul was drowning the body and its
consciousness. It also appeared as if all the cells
of the body were breaking into its components.
This was the first physical commune. The
meditative commune lasted for nearly two
hours. As the rain had ceased with the
permission of the Sheikh Lalaji left for his home.
Lalaji explains the state of his awareness as he
entered the outer world coming out of the
Sheikh’s room:
‘It appeared as if the sky, the stars, the entire
creation, the plants, everything were overflowing
the bliss that flowed at that moment. All the
psycho-centers of head, heart and the body were
opening. Also it appeared as if his Sheikh had
dissolved in him – a state of fana-fi-ul-murid.’
On reaching home he did not take dinner.
Instead went to sleep straight away. And at dawn
a vision happened. He saw a congregation of
Sheikhs and enlightened ones. Suddenly a
magnificent platform descended and a glorious
sheikh sat on it. Full of etiquette and loving
respect Sheikh Fazal Ahmad Khan presented Lala
Ji to this sheikh. He was immediately accepted by
the Maasheikh saying ‘your life and the being are
inclined towards truth since birth.
As Lala Ji narrated this vision to his Sheikh tears
began to overflow. And wished this vision to be
fulfilled! Saying this he became meditative and
said, ‘You are very dear to me. I used to see you
very often and whenever you paid respect you
were being nourished and nurtured by the
Tawwajzoh, faiz and nisbate-illahi mystically.
Persons like you are rare whose life is for the
upliftment of humanity. It appears that the
Maasheikh has accepted you and all that
happened to you in the first commune rarely
happens to others even after a long association.
You will not only attain to the state of fana-fi-ul-
sheikh instead that of fana-fi-ul-murid as well.’
This was the advent of Hindu beginning into
Naqshbandi Sufi Path.
Only this much for now.
 Who broke the religious barriers

Naqshbandi Sufi Ram Chandra

Lalaji
Lars Jensen, Naqshbandi

Stockholm, Sweden

Naqshbandi Sufi Sheikh Ram Chandra (q) (Lala ji) (1873-1931)

137th Birth Anniversary
Lalaji - Naqshbandi Sufi Ram Chandra, 1873-1931

In Hindu scripture Bhagwat Gita the Lord Incarnate as Krishna proclaims

Whenever there is decline is religiousness and eternal value, O Bharat, for the establishment of
righteousness and resurrection of declining values! For the protection of the sage, the destruction of
the lowly narrowness and for the transformation of Human Consciousness I rise from age to age!!!

W
hat will be the form in which Absolute
consciousness will manifest, everyone
has his own understanding. Christians
are waiting and will continue to wait for the
arrival of Jesus. In existence nothing can be
repeated. When absolute consciousness chooses
to assume the human form it can choose any
form. Lucky are those who recognize this. Walk a
few steps along with such consciousness hand in
hand. In the process they are transformed.
I am really fortunate that I lived in an era that saw
the advent of this great soul that humanity came
to know as Lalaji(q) – A Naqshbandi –
Mujaddadi – Mazaharia Sheikh from Indian Sub
continent. And Lo! My good fortunes does not end
here, the existence has now brought me in
association of another Naqshbandi Sheikh from
the same linage Sheikh Taoshobuddha. Thus
the sunshine and moonlight of this great soul
surrounds us each finite moment.
And I count on my good fortune as grace when a
few months ago Taoshobuddha asked me to edit
the work ‘The Secrets of Spiritual Life’, and now
once again Taoshobuddha asked me to present
you the moment of celebration of the life of this
mystic and master. Ecstasy of my being knows no
limits as I never thought that being in such
spiritual desert of Sweden Oasis of Spirituality
could be created. All this is the grace of this Soul
that we know as LalaJi.
In the month of February on Basant Panchami (A
Hindu festival declaring the arrival of spring
season) the birth anniversary of Lalaji is
celebrated. This event is even celebrated at the
inner planes, as it is a special happening. And to
me that is the real celebration. First we celebrate
deep with and then its beauty manifests in the
outer realms. Unless we learn to celebrate like
this we are still far from truth as Taoshobuddha
says. His birth was foretold and his mastership
prophesized several decades before its actual
happing. Lalaji is unique, as he became the very
first Hindu Sufi master who did not convert into
Islam. Different religions are only outer labels, as
it has nothing to do with your inner self or with
your inner contact with God. Spirituality lies far
beyond the religious spheres. The labels of the
different religions are just labels and nothing
more. It says nothing of your inner qualities,
whereas your actions, words and thoughts reveal
your inner state. Lalaji lived a perfect life and his
words were so potent that they affect even the
people of today who read it, more then hundred
years after.
His birth was predestinated
Even the birth of Lalaji had to obey to the
happening of destiny. His mother was a very
pious and religious lady spending her time in
prayer, singing and recital of the Ramayana
(Hindu book about Rama, one of the incarnations
of Lord Vishnu). She often used to visit saints and
spending her money for helping the poor.
Once a saint came to their city and she went to his
CONGREGATION (satsang). The saint explained
some certain compositions of Saint Kabir and she
was completely absorbed in them that as tears
started rolling out of her eyes. Perceiving her
state the saint was moved and showered her with
blessings. From that day she got more and more
dedicated to God and she often started to fall in
deep meditation and Samadhi.
After some time a Muslim Fakir came to her door
and she gave him some food. He asked for some
other food, which she did not have. She did some
arrangement so that the food he asked for could
be served. The Fakir was very pleased with her
and asked her if there was anything she was
missing in her life. She was a woman of heart and
wanted to be a mother, so the servant of the
house told that she has everything except a son.
The saint looked up in the sky and rising two
finger to heaven and said, “One…two…. one...two”
and departed never to be seen again.
The blessings of the Fakir materialized and after
about a year on the 2nd February 1873 Ram
Chandra alias Lala ji was born. After two years, on
the 7th October 1875 his younger brother,
Munshi Raghubar Dayal was born. So the eternal
happenings had to flow with the destiny, as
foretold by the Fakir.
Mastership is prepared even
at childhood
Both his parents love him very dearly and he was
like a prince. However his father used to drink
and engage in ostentatious and flamboyant
activities and the wealth was thus wasted. On
Lalaji’s fourth birthday his father’s friend
celebrated and a lot of liquor was served. His
mother never liked it but she kept mum. He was
not an infant anymore and when his father with
love embraced him tightly, with a sudden jerk he
came out of his embrace and said, “You are
stinking”. It hit his father and he hated himself for
having taken liquor. It is said that thereafter he
sopped drinking. Not only that, he even started
hating it. After that he did not even mention the
word liquor again. By three words alone this four-
year-old boy changed his father’s bad habits. It
was as a master had told them, because these
words completely transformed his father within
seconds.
Lalaji wrote in his book, “I never liked to play
with children of my age. As long as my mother
was alive, she was my friend, companion, and
everything. Whatever she did, I too did…because
of her company I developed interest in seeking
the Truth and getting religious knowledge…When
I was seven years old, my mother passed
away…My childhood thus ended.”
His mother lived a devotional life and he learned
from her practical living. She was his first teacher
and he copied her good character. His mother
played an important role for the preparation of
Lalaji’s spiritual growth. It seems like even his
mother was selected by destiny - for her good
character - so he could be developed from the
spiritual side right from the start.
The meeting with a 150
years old saint
As Lalaji’s mother had got the blessings form a
Kabir panthi saint and a Sufi fakir. Likewise her
son got the blessings in the same order. Lalaji
follow the same destiny and met Swami
Brahmananda, a saint of the Kair-panth who was
told to be over 150 years old. So in the same
order as it already happened with his mother he
first met a Kabir saint and later he come in
contact with a Sufi saint that he adopted as his
master. It was Swami Brahmananda that
mentioned to Lalaji that there was one greater
saint in this area then himself. He was referring to
the Sufi Sheikh Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan (q), but
did not give his name. This Lalaji found out much
later after meeting his Sufi Master. These two
saints were very close to each other.
THE FIRST HINDU SUFI MASTER
Lalaji became the very first Hindu disciple of the
Sufi master Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan of the
Naqshbandi Sufi order. In his diary Lalaji writes
about the very first meeting:
“At the very first encounter of my spiritual
director, he whispered into my ear, “Your life has
been inclined towards the way of truth since long
before, for this reason it shall be revealed to you.
And you yourself shall relate the truth to others.
Relate the truth; relate the secrets of the Divine
principle in such a way as to make its
transmission and the refuge your sword. Take the
help of the shade to create your own display and
do not rely on anything but the Pure Essence.”
After giving me such a hint, my director did not
leave me on my own, but himself acting like a
shadow provided me for a period of sixteen years
with his inner and outer attention. He ordered me
to keep always apart from the outer tenets of the
tariqat (way, path and method), and finally
entrusted me with the task of spreading his
mission to the people. “
On the 23rd January 1896 Shah Fazal Ahmad
Khan took Lalaji completely in his shelter and
accepted him as his disciple. And on 11th October
1896, he conferred upon Lalaji full authority to
work as a master after only ten months of
intensive training after his initiation.
Authorization and approval
After some time, Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan called a
meeting in which many spiritual heads of
difference religions and sect was invited. Shah
Fazal Ahmad Khan then presented Lalaji and told
the assembled mahatmas:
“In my entire life, I have prepared only one
person. Now these are my last days. It appears to
me to be the order of great Masters that I should
give dear Puttulal (he used to address Lalaji by
this name) the full authorization and appoint him
my successor. All of you, who are assembled here
are kindly requested to test him and concur in my
decision or to reject it.”
All who was present were asked to meditate and
Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan asked Lalaji to give
Tawazjoh (transmission of divine energy) to them
and to answer question that may be asked.
Shrine Naqshbandi Sheikh Maulana
Fazal Ahmad Khan RA
Lalaji’s brother Sufi Raghubar Dayal (the
grandfather to the mother of Taoshobuddha) who
also was invited at the meeting used to say that
this session was an extra-ordinary happening.
This experience was never repeated again. He has
described his experience in detail during this
sitting:
Initially there was a feeling of happiness, then the
thoughts started disappearing and the state of
thoughtlessness was there. There was total
absorption in this state. Only the remembrance of
God was there. All the Masters of the order
appeared to be present. Gradually a light
appeared and that light alone was visible, not
even ones own body. There was no land or sky,
they were only surrounded a light. The light
appeared to be the real Master and one desired to
completely merge with it. Eyes were full of tears
and the heart totally melted. One did not desire to
come out of this state. This state remained for a
long time after Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan asked the
meditation to stop.
After the sitting some questions was asked to
Lalaji and he answered them to all the assembled
mahatmas’ delight. All mahatmas approved Shah
Fazal Ahmad Khan decision to appoint Lalaji to
his successor.
The new era that was
prophesize
Thus Lalaji carried out the mission upon Shah
Fazal Ahmad Khan’s commands faithfully until his
last breath. He was the first Sufi master who used
the language of the Hindus and won polarity
among the Hindu community and later his
teaching even spread to the western world.
It was a start of a new era that blossomed, but
was prophesized long before. It was the wave of
Time (Kal – the lord of justice - the director of this
creation) that read out loudly from the book of
the destiny that was written long before. It was
already decided within that this was to happen. A
decision was taken from within at the assembly of
the saints and now the time was right for it to
blossom. When a tree is planted it will definitely
bear fruit, if the tree is watered daily. So the outer
happening is the fruits of the inner happening.
Sheikh Abul Hassan Naseerabadi the Adi Guru
(great grand guru) of Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan had
foretold the event of initiating a Hindu disciple
half a century before. He told to his successor
Shah Amad Ali Khan, “Someone from the Hindus
will come to enjoy your company…and since they
possess the qualities for this task, do not refuse
them this incomparable treasure of our spiritual
heritage.”
However Shah Ahmad Ali Khan could not fulfill
his masters instructions, since no right person
among the Hindu community came for this
purpose. So when Shah Ahmad Ali Khan
authorized Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan as his
spiritual successor, he told that he had not much
time left in this world and therefore he entrusted
this task to Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan by the words,
“These orders of my Guru could not be fulfilled by
me…these will not remain empty words, now they
will manifest themselves through yourself.”
The responsibility of granting Hindus access to
the order’s spiritual heritage had to wait one
generation without having been accomplished by
Shah Ahmad Ali Khan to whom it had originally
been entrusted. But through the meeting of Shah
Fazal Ahmad Khan and Lalaji this prophesy was
fulfilled.
The religious barriers
Due to the religious misconceptions even Lalaji
himself initially hesitated about his master being
only a Muslim. Lalaji wrote, “I considered that
great personality, who was in fact free from any
bondage of religion and communal feelings, ‘just a
Muslim’ because of my worst thinking, “Just a
Muslim” – how communal…This entire untrue
behavior of mine was unraveled by none other
than my wife. I was fortunate that it was she who
made me realize my folly… Not only did she save
me from sinking, but gave me guidance too. Her
silent words seemed to sink into my heart, “Saints
do not belong to any cast or any race. They are
free from all bondage. …Take me also to that great
Saint. I am at your service…A woman’s duty is to
follow her husband. Without me, your wish will
not fructify.”
For this insight Lalaji look up on his wife as one of
his teacher.
After adopting Shah Fazal Ahmad Khan as his
master worldly people complained that Lalaji had
not converted to Islam, so once Lalaji asked
permission from his master to adopt Islam. Shah
Fazal Ahmad Khan told, “You should never think
of such an absurd idea. Spirituality does not need
following of any particular religion. Spirituality
seeks after the truth and self-realization that are
the matter of soul, which is the same in every one
regardless of outer label of religion one belongs
to.”
they affect even the people of today who read it,
more then hundred years after.
Lalaji told: ‘God has hidden himself inside your
hearts and exposed you. Hide yourselves and
expose God! This is the real spiritual practice.’
These words are so simple but so pregnant with
meaning. They melted my heart and send me to
another dimension the first time I heard them,
hundred years after Lalaji uttered these.
Lalaji’s birth was foretold and his mastership was
predestinated. All the eternal happenings had to
flow with the destiny, as foretold. It is an internal
happening materialized to the outer. It was
already decided within that these barriers of the
religion had to fall. The words of Lalaji reveal his
inner state but the outer label says nothing about
his inner state. The prophecy was an internal
happening materialized to the outer. And with the
materialization to the outer world the religious
barriers was broken and a new era into
spirituality ushered.
May all of us join together in this eternal
celebration?

The time was ready for this happening. The seed

was planted long before at another level and now
the tree had grown ready to bear forth fruit. As
the destiny had preordered the happening
followed accordingly.

Your inner state is the

indicator of truth
Your inner state is the real indicator of your
spiritual state and, not the outer labels of religion.
Spirituality is beyond all these outer labels and
rituals. As I already told you in the beginning the
labels of the different religions are just labels and
Lala ji Naqshbandi Sheikh Ram Chandra (q)
nothing more. It says nothing of your inner
qualities, whereas your actions, words and
thoughts reveal your inner state. Lalaji lived a
perfect life and his words were so potent that
LARS JENSEN is born in Sweden. Professionally he works with project management in Stockholm, the capital of
Sweden. He has Master of Science in Engineering, from the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. At level of
heart he is a spiritual seeker after God. His interest in Lalaji brought in contact with
Taoshobuddha.

References:

1. Leaves from a Sufi Heart Vol 1 By Taoshobuddha E Book Mall.com

2. Leaves from a Sufi Heart Vol 2 By Taoshobuddha E Book Mall.Com
3. Shah Bahauddin Naqshband – Life and Works by Taoshobuddha E Book Mall.Com
4. Tasawwure Sheikh By Taoshobuddha
5. Maraqba-I- Naqshbandi by Taoshobuddha
6. Maraqba-I-Rumi by Taoshobuddha
7. The Spirit of Sufism by Taoshobuddha : Sterling Publishers Pvt Ltd, New Delhi, India
8. Meditation the way to Self Realization by Taoshobuddha: Sterling Publishers Pvt Ltd, New Delhi, India
 Links to Taoshobuddha

Talks on Sufism

MARAQBA KHAMOSHI PT 1 OF 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaGyskPrRjI

INTRODUCTION SAMA E MARIFFIA’T

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7XHvAeFOPo

INNER AND THE OUTER MARAQBA –I-RUMI PART 3 OF 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2XPYNWFxP0

WHAT IS TAWAZJOH? PT 2 OF 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=037vZUdNNVM

Choose to be Happy Pt 1 of 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtznprRZmm8