Sultan Bahu

 

Sultan Bahu (Punjabi: سلطان باہو) (ca 1628 - 1691) was a Muslim Sufi and saint, who founded the Sarwari Qadiri Sufi order.
Sultan Bahu belonged to the Awan tribe, and was born in Anga, Soon Valley, Sakesar (Vadi-e-Soon Sakesar). Like many other Sufi saints of South Asia, Sultan Bahu was a prolific writer, with more than forty books on Sufism attributed to him. Most of His books are in Persian. However, most of his books deal with specialised subjects related to Islam and Islamic mysticism; it is his Punjabi poetry that had popular appeal and made him a household name in the region. His verses are sung in many genres of Sufi music, including qawwali and kafi. Tradition has established a unique style of singing his couplets.
Sultan Bahu is a direct descendant from Ali, (cousin of Muhammad, husband of Fatima and father of Hasan ibn Ali and Husayn ibn Ali). Traditionally, he is Hashimi, and belongs to the Awan tribe. Historically the tribe trace their descent to Ameer Shah, son of Qutub Shah whose family lineage is traced back to Ali

Shrine of Sultan Bahu
The mausoleum of Sultan Bahu is located in Garh Maharaja, Punjab, Pakistan. It was originally built on his grave. However, the mausoleum subsequently had to be moved twice when the Chenab River changed its course. It is a popular and frequently-visited Sufi shrine, and the annual Urs festival commemorating his death is celebrated with great fervour. The Urs festival is held during the month of Muharram. Every year on the 9th of Muharram (Islamic calendar month) a ghusal is also conducted under the supervision of Muhammad Najeeb Sultan (Sajjada Nasheen (Chair-holder) of the Sultan Bahu shrine), in which all descendants of Sultan Bahu wash his shrine with pure rose water.

Spiritual Genealogy / Tareeqa
Sultan Bahu belonged to the Qadiri Sufi order, and later initiated his own offshoot, Sarwari Qadiri.
Sultan Bahu refers to Muhiyuddin Abdul Qadir Jilani as his spiritual Master in a number of his books and poetry, but it is obvious that this relationship must have existed purely in the spiritual domain, as Abdul Qadir Jilani died before the birth of Sultan Bahu. However, a majority of Sufi orders and saints maintain that Abdul Qadir Jilani has a special role in the mystic world and thus all orders and saints are always indebted to him directly or indirectly in some way.
Sultan Bahu's education began at the feet of his mother, Mai Rasti, who was herself a saintly woman, and has her own Mausoleum in Shorkot, Punjab, Pakistan. She told him to seek spiritual guidance from a wali (friend of GOD). After some time, he moved to Delhi for further 'polishing' under the guidance of Sheikh Abdul Rehman al Qadari. Soon Sheikh Abdul Rehman al Qadari felt that he can not add anything to Sultan Bahu's knowledge as Sultan Bahu already knew more than Sheikh Abdul Rehman al Qadari. This did not take long, after which Sultan Bahu returned to his own, familiar surroundings.


Shrine of Sultan Bahu
The complete spiritual lineage (Silsila) of Sultan Bahu is as follows:

Genealogy

Sultan Bahu was of the progeny of Ali, cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. His family is thus Hashemi, and his tribe Awan. The Awan tribe trace their ancestry to Ameer Shah, son of Qutub Shah.
After the incident of Karbala, the household of Muhammad had to migrate to other lands. Many of his descendants who lived in Egypt and nearby lands departed for Turkistan and Iran due to persecution at the hands of Hujjaj bin Yusuf.
As time went by, they resettled in places such as Bukhara and Hamadan in Turkistan, and Baghdad in Iraq. Some migrated to Khurasan and others to Herat in the mountainous regions of present day Afghanistan. The ancestors of Sultan Bahu migrated and settled in South Asia, and the father of Sultan Bahu, Bazid Muhammed, became an important titleholder at the court of the Mughal emperors of South Asia.
The complete genealogy of Sultan Bahu is as follows:
Sultan Bahu, Bazid Muhammed, Fatah Muhammed, Alla-Radatta, Muhammed Tameem, Muhammed Mannan, Mogila, Peera, Muhammed Sughra, Muhammed Noor, Sulla, Muhammed Baharie, Muhammed Jayoon, Muhammed Hargun, Noor Shah, Ameer Shah, Qutub Shah, Emmaan Shah, Husein Shah, Firoze Shah, Mahmud Shah, Fartak Shah, Nawaab Shah, Darrab Shah, Awhum Shah, Abeeq Shah, Ahmed Shah, Ameer Zubeir,Abbas ibne Ali, Caliph Ali, Abu Talib, Abul Mutallib (Grandfather of Muhammad), *Hashim, *Abdul Munaf

Literary works

The actual number of books written by Sultan Bahu is not certain. According to tradition, he is supposed to have authored over one hundred works and treatises. The following is a list of the important works of Sultan Bahu that still exist today, and can be traced back to him with credibility. Nurul Huda, Risala-e-Roohi, Aql Baidaar, Mahq-ul-Fuqar, Aurang-Shaahi, Jami-il-Asraar, Taufiq-Hedaayat, Kaleed Tauheed, Ainul Faqr, Shamsul Arifeen, Magzane Faiz, Ameerul Quonain, Asrare Qaderi, Kaleed Jannat, Muhqamul Fuqar, Majaalis-tun Nabi, Muftahul Arifeen, Hujjatul Asraar, Jannatul Firdaus, Kash-ful Asraar, Risaala Ruhi Shareef, Abyaat Bahu (poetry), Muhabbatul Asraar, Ganjul Asraar, Dewaan Bahu, Panj Ganj, Fazlul Laqa, Jhook Sultany, Ameerul Mumineen
Of the above, Nurul Huda (Light of Guidance) and Risala-e-Roohi (Book of Soul) are the most popular, along with the poetry collection Abiyaate Bahu.
Sultan Bahu written in his book Risala-e-Roohi (Book of Soul) for truth seekers:
He is playing the game of love by Himself
He Himself is the sight
He Himself is the seer
He Himself is the seen

He Himself is Love
He Himself is the lover
He Himself is the beloved

if you lift the veil
(you will see) that in reality, there is only One
Duality is only owing to your squint eyes

I say this, the author of this book
who resides in the sanctuary of His beauty (Jamal)
and grandeur (Jalal)

(I am) the 'Ha' of Howiyet
completely absorbed in witnessing the absolute Being
gifted by the Witnessed Omnipresence
(gifted by) the Worshipped One
(I am he) who swings in the cradle of
praise me, how great is my splendour
who being at the station of highest respect
wears the crown of Knowledge of God,
and the crown of His Oneness,
and on whose shoulders
is the robe of reconciliation and purification

(who is at the station of)
'You are me and I am you'

(who was given) the title of 'from the truth'
(by) the Absolute Truth

the secret of the Entity of 'Hu' (Him)
Faqeer Bahu (May his secret be sanctified)
known as Awan resident of the vicinity of Shorekote
may Allah safeguard him from mischief and oppression[1]

Completely absorbed in the 'Ha' of 'Howiyet'
the author of this book states that
when truly divine grace and favour
was bestowed upon me
which I received as a blessing in the truest sense
then He, who is stationed
at the highest, holiest stations of divine light (noor)
The prophet Muhammad (sm)
(peace and blessing be upon him)
instructed me to guide the people

may they be Muslims,
may they be non-believers,
may they be the fortunate,
may they be the unfortunate ones,
may they be destined to find the truth,
may they be destined to be doomed,
may they be living,
may they be deceased,

Because from his holy tongue,
which emanates the secrets
(The prophet has called me)
Mustafa the second and Mujtaba of the last days[2]      
                                                             
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