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Sultan Bahu

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Sultan Bahu
سُلطان باہُو
Shrine of bahu.jpg
Shrine of Sultan Bahu
Born17 January 1630
Died1 March 1691(1691-03-01) (aged 61)
Resting placeGarh Maharaja, Punjab
Known forSufi poetry
PredecessorAbdul Rehman Jilani Dehlvi
SuccessorSyed Mohammad Abdullah Shah Madni Jilani
Parents
  • Bayazid Muhammad (father)
  • Mai Rasti-Quds-Sara (mother)

Sultan Bahu (Punjabi: سُلطان باہُو (Shahmukhi), ਸੁਲਤਾਨ ਬਾਹੂ (Gurmukhi); also spelled Bahoo; 17 January 1630 – 1 March 1691), was a 17th-century Punjabi Sufi mystic, poet, scholar and historian.[1] He was active in the Punjab region (present-day Pakistan) during the reigns of Mughal emperors Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb.[2][3]

Little is known about Bahu's life, other than what is written in a hagiography called Manaqib-i Sultani, which was written by one of Bahu's descendants seven generations after Bahu's own time.[4]

According to these records, he was born in Shorkot, Jhang, in the current Punjab Province of Pakistan, in the Awan tribe.[5][6] He was son of Bayazid Muhammad, an officer in the Mughal Army, and Rasti.[7] He belonged to Qadiri Sufi order,[6] and started the mystic tradition known as Sarwari Qadiri.[3]

More than forty books on Sufism are attributed to him (mostly written in Persian), largely dealing with specialised aspects of Islam and Islamic mysticism. However, it was his Punjabi poetry which had popular appeal and earned him lasting fame.[4]: 14  His verses are sung in many genres of Sufi music, including qawwali and kafi, and tradition has established a unique style of singing his couplets.[4]: 14 

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Gurmukhi

Gurmukhi

Gurmukhī is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonly regarded as a Sikh script, Gurmukhi is used in Punjab, India as the official script of the Punjabi language. It is one of the official scripts of the Indian Republic. While Arabic based Shahmukhi script is used in Punjab, Pakistan.

Mysticism

Mysticism

Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in ultimate or hidden truths, and to human transformation supported by various practices and experiences.

Poet

Poet

A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator who creates (composes) poems, or they may also perform their art to an audience.

Historian

Historian

A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. Some historians are recognized by publications or training and experience. "Historian" became a professional occupation in the late nineteenth century as research universities were emerging in Germany and elsewhere.

Punjab

Punjab

Punjab is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, on the Indus Plain comprising areas of eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. Punjab's major cities are Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Multan, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Sialkot, Chandigarh, Shimla, Jalandhar, Gurugram, and Bahawalpur.

Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-largest Muslim population just behind Indonesia. Pakistan is the 33rd-largest country in the world by area and the second-largest in South Asia, spanning 881,913 square kilometres. It has a 1,046-kilometre (650-mile) coastline along the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman in the south, and is bordered by India to the east, Afghanistan to the west, Iran to the southwest, and China to the northeast. It is separated narrowly from Tajikistan by Afghanistan's Wakhan Corridor in the north, and also shares a maritime border with Oman. Islamabad is the nation's capital, while Karachi is its largest city and financial centre.

Aurangzeb

Aurangzeb

Muhi al-Din Muhammad, commonly known as Aurangzeb and by his regnal title Alamgir, was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling from July 1658 until his death in 1707. Under his emperorship, the Mughals reached their greatest extent with their territory spanning nearly the entirety of Indian subcontinent.

Hagiography

Hagiography

A hagiography is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might consist of a biography or vita, a description of the saint's deeds or miracles, an account of the saint's martyrdom, or be a combination of these.

Jhang

Jhang

Jhang is the capital city of Jhang District, in the central portion of the province of Punjab, Pakistan. Situated on the east bank of the Chenab river, it is the 18th largest city of Pakistan by population.

Awan (tribe)

Awan (tribe)

Awan is a tribe living predominantly in the northern, central, and western parts of Pakistani Punjab, with significant numbers also present in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Kashmir, and to a lesser extent in Sindh and Balochistan.

Persian language

Persian language

Persian, also known by its endonym Farsi, is a Western Iranian language belonging to the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. Persian is a pluricentric language predominantly spoken and used officially within Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan in three mutually intelligible standard varieties, namely Iranian Persian, Dari Persian and Tajiki Persian. It is also spoken natively in the Tajik variety by a significant population within Uzbekistan, as well as within other regions with a Persianate history in the cultural sphere of Greater Iran. It is written officially within Iran and Afghanistan in the Persian alphabet, a derivation of the Arabic script, and within Tajikistan in the Tajik alphabet, a derivation of the Cyrillic script.

Kafi

Kafi

Kafi is a classical form of Sufi music mostly in the Siraiki, Punjabi and Sindhi languages and originating from the Punjab, and Sindh regions in the Indian subcontinent. Some well-known Kafi poets are Baba Farid, Bulleh Shah, Shah Hussain, Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, Sachal Sarmast and Khwaja Ghulam Farid. This poetry style has also lent itself to the Kafi genre of singing, popular throughout South Asia, especially Pakistan, Bangladesh and India. Over the years, both Kafi poetry and its rendition have experienced rapid growth phases as various poets and vocalists added their own influences to the form, creating a rich and varied poetic form, yet through it all it remained centered on the dialogue between the Soul and the Creator, symbolized by the murid (disciple) and his Murshid (Master), and often by lover and his Beloved.

Education

Sultan Bahu's first teacher was his mother, Mai Rasti. She pushed him to seek spiritual guidance from Shah Habib Gilani.[3]

Around 1668, Sultan Bahu moved to Delhi for further training under the guidance of Syed Abdul Rehman Jilani Dehlvi, a notable Sufi saint of the Qadiriyya order, and thereafter returned to Punjab where he spent the rest of his life.[3]

Literary works

The exact number of books written by Sultan Bahu is not known, but it is assumed to be at least one hundred. Forty of them are on Sufism and Islamic mysticism. Most of his writings are in the Persian language except Abyat-e-Bahu which is in Punjabi verse.[8]

Only the following books written by Sultan Bahu can be found today:

  • Abyat e Bahu[9]
  • Risala e Ruhi
  • Sultan ul Waham
  • Nur ul Huda
  • Aql e Baidar
  • Mahq ul Faqr
  • Aurang e Shahi
  • Jami ul Israr
  • Taufiq e Hidiyat
  • Kalid Tauheed
  • Ain ul Faqr[10]
  • Israr e Qadri[10]
  • Kaleed e Jannat
  • Muhqam ul Faqr
  • Majalis un Nabi
  • Muftah ul Arifeen
  • Hujjat ul Israr
  • Kashf ul Israar
  • Mahabat ul Israr
  • Ganj ul Israr
  • Fazl ul Liqa
  • Dewaan e Bahu[10]

Spiritual lineage

Mian Taj Muhammad was successor of Sultan Bahu as his spiritual master, however Mian Taj Muhammad was born long after the death of Sultan bahu.[11] Bahu was follower of Abdul Qadir Jilani's Qadiriyya tradition, Sultan Bahu initiated an offshoot of his own which he named Sarwari Qadiri.

According to tradition, the lineage reaches Mian Taj Muhammad as follows:[12]

The Sultan Bahu's tradition is still practised to this day by Mian Taj's successors.

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Shrine

Shrine of Sultan Bahu near Jhang, Pakistan
Shrine of Sultan Bahu near Jhang, Pakistan

The shrine of Sultan Bahu is located in Garh Maharaja, Punjab.[13] It was originally built on Bahu's grave site until the Chenab River changed its course causing the need to relocate twice and as witnessed by those present at the time of relocation, claims that his body was still intact at the time.[13] It is a popular Sufi shrine, and the annual Urs festival commemorating his death is celebrated there with great fervour on the first Thursday of Jumada al-Thani month. People come from far-off places to join the celebrations.[14][12]

Sultan Bahu also used to hold an annual Urs to commemorate the martyrs of Karbala from the 1st to the 10th day of the month of Muharram. This tradition continues to this day and every year, thousands of pilgrims visit the shrine during the first ten days of Muharram.[12]

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Shrine

Shrine

A shrine is a sacred or holy space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon, or similar figure of respect, wherein they are venerated or worshipped. Shrines often contain idols, relics, or other such objects associated with the figure being venerated. A shrine at which votive offerings are made is called an altar.

Garh Maharaja

Garh Maharaja

Garh Maharaja, is a Town Committee of Ahmedpur Sial Tehsil in the Jhang District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is located at 30°50'0" North, 71°54'0" East. The Shrine of Sultan Bahu is located in Garh Maharaja. It is a popular and frequently-visited Sufi shrine. Garh Maharaja located 17 km from Shorkot, 38 km Kot Bahadur Shah, and 65 km from Chowk Azam.

Chenab River

Chenab River

The Chenab River is a major river that flows in India and Pakistan, and is one of the 5 major rivers of the Punjab region. It is formed by the union of two headwaters, Chandra and Bhaga, which rise in the upper Himalayas in the Lahaul region of Himachal Pradesh, India. The Chenab flows through the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, India into the plains of Punjab, Pakistan, before ultimately flowing into the Indus River.

Urs

Urs

Urs or Urus, is the death anniversary of a Sufi saint, usually held at the saint's dargah. In most Sufi orders such as Naqshbandiyyah, Suhrawardiyya, Chishtiyya, Qadiriyya, etc. the concept of Urs exists and is celebrated with enthusiasm. The devotees refer to their saints as lovers of God, the beloved.

Jumada al-Thani

Jumada al-Thani

Jumada al-Thani, also known as Jumada al-Akhirah, Jumada al-Akhir, or Jumada II, is the sixth month of the Islamic calendar. The word Jumda, from which the name of the month is derived, is used to denote dry, parched land, a land devoid of rain. Jumādā may also be related to a verb meaning "to freeze", and another account relates that water would freeze in pre-Islamic Arabia during this time of year.

Karbala

Karbala

Karbala or Kerbala is a city in central Iraq, located about 100 km (62 mi) southwest of Baghdad, and a few miles east of Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorate, and has an estimated population of 1,218,732 people (2018).

Muharram

Muharram

Muḥarram is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is forbidden. It is held to be the second holiest month after Ramadan.

Pilgrim

Pilgrim

A pilgrim is a traveler who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journey to some place of special significance to the adherent of a particular religious belief system. In the spiritual literature of Christianity, the concept of pilgrim and pilgrimage may refer to the experience of life in the world or to the inner path of the spiritual aspirant from a state of wretchedness to a state of beatitude.

Source: "Sultan Bahu", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, March 18th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sultan_Bahu.

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See also
References
  1. ^ Kamal Aziz, Khursheed (1993). The Pakistani Historian. Original from the University of Michigan. Vanguard.
  2. ^ Syed Ahmad Saeed Hamadani. Sultan Bahu Life & Work.
  3. ^ a b c d Parvez, Amjad (30 October 2019). "Metaphysics of Sultan Bahu dedicated to those with clear concepts of philosophy". Daily Times (newspaper). Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  4. ^ a b c Sult̤ān Bāhū (1998). Death Before Dying: The Sufi Poems of Sultan Bahu. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-92046-0.
  5. ^ Kumar, Raj (2008). Encyclopaedia of Untouchables Ancient, Medieval and Modern. Gyan Publishing House. p. 187. ISBN 9788178356648. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  6. ^ a b Frembgen, Jürgen Wasim (2006). The Friends of God: Sufi Saints in Islam, Popular Poster Art from Pakistan. Oxford University Press. p. 103. ISBN 9780195470062.
  7. ^ Sultan Bahu (29 March 2015). Ganj ul Asrar. Translated by Hafiz Hamad Ur Rahman. Sultan ul Faqr Publications. p. 12. ISBN 9789699795213.
  8. ^ Sultan Hamid Ali,"Manaqib-i Sultani" Malik Chanan Din Publishers (Regd) Lahore Pakistan 1956
  9. ^ Muhammad Sharif Sabir. "Complete Book of Poems by Sultan Bahu". Academy of the Punjab in North America (APNA). Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  10. ^ a b c Sultan Bahu books on Rekhta.org website Retrieved 18 May 2020
  11. ^ S. Padam, Piara (1984) [1st. Pub. 1984]. Dohrhe Sultan Bahu. s. n.
  12. ^ a b c "Urs of Sultan Bahu begins" The News International (newspaper), Published 2 September 2019, Retrieved 18 May 2020
  13. ^ a b Sadia Dehlvi (1 December 2013). Sufism: Heart of Islam. HarperCollins Publishers. pp. 185–. ISBN 978-93-5029-448-2.
  14. ^ Book Name: Tareekh-e-Jhang, Author: Iqbal Zuberi, Publisher: Jhang Adibi Academy, Jhang Sadar, Pakistan, First Edition, Date: 2002

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