Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh (R.A) - Sufism Biographies

Any one writing on Hazrat Ali bin Usman Al-Hujwiri, in spite of his
popularity amongst all classes of people and thedeep veneration in
which he has been held for nearly 900 years, is faced with
considerable difficulty. There is no authentic biography of the saint,
no record of his table-talks (malfuz) by his immediate disciples and
companions, no detailedaccount of his life and teachings in earlier
tazkiras or biographical dictionaries of saints of any importance
except the Nafahat-ul-uns of Abdur Rahman Jami. References are to be
found in later hagiological works but the information is scrappy and
mere repetition of the Nafahat. Only Dara Shukoh, in his
Safina-tul-Aulia, gives us a brief but informative account of the
great saint and speaks of his numerous karamat, which he does not
mention, except the one relating to the direction of the mosque built
by Ali Al-Hujwiri. This paucity of material relating to the life of
Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh,as he came to be popularly known, may have
been due to the fact that Lahore had to pass through a series of
political revolutions and military depredation during which most of
the written records of allsorts must have perished.
Secondly, the Chishti, Suharwardi, Naqshbandiand Qadiri silsilas
became the most popular silsilas in the subcontinent and the Junaidi
silsila, to which Ali Al-Hujwiri was affiliated, does not appear to
have had an effective organisation inthis country. The absence of
biographical accounts has in a way been a blessing in disguise as no
miracles, no legends, no fiction has gathered round his name to
obscure his personality. His monumental work on Sufism, the
universally esteemed Kashf-ul-Mahjub and his Kashf-ul-Asrar, probably
an apocryphal work, are the only authentic sources of information for
his life and thought.
Abul Hasan Ali bin UsmanAl-Hujwiri Al-Jullabi Al-Ghazanwi was born
probably in Ghazni (Hujwir) where his family had settled and the
members of which were held in high esteem for piety and learning. He
was known as Ali Al-Hujwiri Al-Jullabi, Al-Ghazanwi because he lived
for a long time in Hujwir and Jullab, the two suburbs (Mazafat) or
quarters (Mohallas) of the city of Ghazni. Little is known of his
early life or his education. Amongst his teachers, he mentions Abul
Abbas bin Muhammad Al-Shaqani.
"I was very intimate with him" writes he"and he had a sincere
affection for me. He was my teacher in some sciences. During my whole
life I have never seen anyone of my sect, who held the religious law
in greater veneration than he." He also mentions Shaikh Abu Jaafar
Muhammad as-Sayadalani with whom he used to read out the works of
Hasan bin Mansur al-Hallaj, andanother scholar-saint was "Abdul Qasim
Abul Karim bin Hawazin al-Qushairi (d. 438-39 A. H.) whom he knew well
and who, according to him, was the wonder of the age by virtue of his
spiritual life and other manifold virtues. He visited and "had much
spiritual conversation with Abul Qasim bin Ali bin Abdullah al-Gurgani
who was unique and incomparable in his owntime." Besides the above, he
mentions AbulAbbas Ahmad bin Qassab, Abu Abdullah Muhammad bin Ali
Al-Daghistani, Abu Said Fazl-Ullah bin Muhammad and Abu Ahmad
Al-Muzaffar bin Hamdani.
Abul Fazl Muhammad binAl-Hasan Al-Khuttali was his spiritual teacher.
He was well-versed in tafsir and riwayat. He was a follower in Sufism
of Junaid. "I never saw," says Al-Hujwiri, any one"who inspired me
with greater awe than he did." He died at Bayt-al-Jin in Syria. Ali
Al-Hujwiriwas with him at his death-bed with the dying saint's head
resting on his bosom. Hisspiritual guide said to him, "O my son, I
will tell thee one article of beliefwhich if thou holdest it firmly
will deliver thee from all troubles. Whatever good or evil God
creates, do not in any place or circumstance quarrel with His action
or be grieved in thy heart."
After having completed his studies, he travelled widely as was
customarywith early Sufi Shaikhs, in Syria, Iraq, Iran, Azerbaijan,
Tabaristan, Khuzistan, Kirman and Transoxiana and met several
prominent Sufis of the time. In Khurasan alone he is reported to have
met 300 Sufis. He relates an interesting encounter with a group of
sufis while on his wayto Khurasan.
"Once I, Ali b. Uthman al-Jullabi, found myself in a difficulty. After
many devotional exercises undertaken in the hope of clearing it away,
I repaired-as I haddone with success on a former occasion-to the tomb
of Abu Yazid, and stayed beside it for a space of three months,
performing every day three ablutions and thirty purifications in the
hope that my difficulty might be removed. It was not, however, so I
departed and journeyed towards Khurasan. One night I arrived at a
village in that country where there was a convent (khanqah) inhabited
by a number of aspirants toSufism. I was wearing a dark-blue frock
(muraqqa-i-khishan) such as is prescribed by the Sunna: but I had with
me nothing of the Sufi's regular equipment(alat-i-ahi-i-rasm) excepta
staff and a leathern water-bottle (rakwa). I appeared very
contemptible in the eyesof these Sufis, who did not know me.
They regarded only my external habit and said to one another, 'This
fellow is not one of us'. And so in truth it was: I was not one of
them, but I had to pass the night in that place. They lodged me on a
roof, while they themselves went up to a roof above mine, and set
before me dry bread which had turned green, while I was drawing into
my nostrils the savour of theviands with which they regaled
themselves. All the time they were addressing derisive remarks to me
from the roof. When they finishedthe food, they began to pelt me with
the skin of the melons which they had eaten, by way of showing how
pleased they were with themselves and how lightly they thought of me.
I said in my heart: 'O Lord God, were it not that they are wearing
dress of Thy friends, I would not have borne this from them.' And the
more they scoffed at me the more glad became my heart, so that the
endurance of this burden was the means of delivering me from that
difficulty which I have mentioned, and forthwith I perceived why the
Shaykhs have always given fools leave to associate with them and for
what reason they submit to their annoyance."
He is reported to have travelled for forty years, during which he used
to offer his prayers always in congregation and wasalways in some town
for Friday prayers. Like his spiritual guide he disliked ostentations,
and wearing of Sufi symbols which he regarded as marks of hypocrisy.
Once in Iraq where he appears to have settled down for some time, he
occupied himself in amassing wealth and giving it away so lavishlyand
inconsiderately that he ran into debt. Then some one who saw his
plight wrote to him as follows: "Beware that you distract your mind
from God by satisfying the wishes of those whose minds are engrossed
on vanity. If you find anyone whose mind is nobler than yourown, you
may firstly distract yourself, since God is sufficient for his
servants." This advice he appears to have followed and obtained relief
from his predicament.
It is not clear whether hemarried or not. From his statement in
Kashf-ul-Mahjub it appears that he had a very poor opinion about women
ingeneral which might have been a result of his own unhappy experience
of association with women.The Sufis were divided about their views on
celibacy, women being regarded by some Sufis as an entanglement and
obstruction in the pursuit of the knowledge of God which required
complete absorption in prayer and meditation. The short and unpleasant
experience of married life to which Nicholson refers in his Preface to
the English translation of Kashf-ul-Mahjub is given here.:
"A woman was the causeof the first calamity that overtook Adam in
Paradise, and also of the first quarrel that happened in this world,
i.e. the quarrel of Abel and Cain. A woman was the cause of
punishmentinflicted on the two angles (Harut and Marut); and down to
the present day all mischiefs,wordly and religious, have been caused
by women. After God had preserved me for eleven years from the dangers
of matrimony, it was my destiny to fall in love with the description
of awoman whom I had never seen, and during awhole year my passion so
absorbed me that my religion was near being ruined, until at last God
in His bounty gave protection to my wretched heart and mercifully
delivered me. In short, Sufism was founded on celibacy;
theintroduction of marriagebrought about a change." The inference
drawn by Nicholson about Ali Hujwiri having married is far fetched and
the passage referred to above may be interpreted differently.
Ali Al-Hujwiri came to Lahore under orders from his Pir as successor
to Shaikh Husain Zanjaniat a time when as a result of the irruption of
the Seljuks on one side and the rising tide of Hindu resistance on the
other, the Ghaznavid Empire began to dismember rapidly and life in
Ghazni itself was disrupted. The saint had to leave Ghazni in
difficult circumstances and had to leave his books behind. Accordingto
fawid-ul-fuad, Ali Al-Hujwiri reached Lahore at night and in the
morning found the people bringing out the bier of Shaikh Husain
Zanjani whom he was toreplace in Lahore."Shaikh Husain Zanjani and
Shaikh 'Ali al-Hujwiri were the disciples of the same Pir who was the
Qutb of theage. Husain Zanjani had been settled in Lahore for some
time. Later the Pir directed 'Ali Al-Hujwiri to go and settle in
Lahore. Shaikh Hujwiri pointed out that Shaikh Zanjani was already
there. The Pir again asked him to go. When 'Ali Al-Hujwiri in
compliance with the order of his Pir reached Lahore it was night
time.The bier of Shaikh Husain was brought out of the city (Lahore) in
the morning." He does not appear to have found Lahore a congenial
place to live in, as he found himself amongst uncongenial people. He
writes:
"My Shaykh had further traditions concerning him, but I could not
possibly set down more than this", my books having been left at
Ghazna-may God guard it- while I myself had become a captive
amonguncongenial folk (darmiyan-i-najinsa) in the district of Lahawur,
which is a dependency of Multan. God be praised both in joy and
sorrow."
At Lahore he settled at the place where his mausoleum now stands. He
built a mosque here and gathered round himself a group of students. He
gave up teaching because this, according to him, engendered a spirit
of superiority over others. About the mosque mentioned above, Dara
Shukoh relates a story which is the only Karamat, as already
mentioned, ascribed to him. "In Lahore 'Ali Al-Hujwiri took to
teaching during the day and instructing those who were the followers
of the Truth at night. Thousands of unlettered persons became alims;
Kafirs accepted Islam, the misguided began to follow the Path, the
insane recovered reasonand sanity, the imperfectbecame perfect (in
knowledge), the sinners became virtuous". Lahore was at that time the
centre of "Ulama who benefited by studying under him". Speaking of the
mosque referred to above, Dara Shukoh writes, "He had built a mosque,
the Mihrab of which was turned a little to the south as compared with
the other mosques. The Ulama of that age raised an objection in regard
to the direction of the Mihrab. One day he assembled all of them, and
led them in prayer. Addressing the assembled Ulama he said, 'Look! in
which direction is the Kaaba? The Ulama saw that all the veils
(hijabat) had been removed and they could see (in front of them) the
Kaba-i-Hijazi".
It is claimed that Ali Al-Hujwiri converted a large number of the
inhabitants of the area to Islam. One of the earlier converts was one
Rai Raju, the naib of Lahore during the time of Sultan Maudood. On
conversion to Islam he was named Shaikh Hindi. His descendants have
been since that time the custodians of the mausoleum.
Ali Al-Hujwiri died on thetwentieth of the month of Rabi-ul-Awwal 465
H.E. The date, the month and year are all conjectural. Most of the
early writers are agreed on the year 455 H. E. on the basis of the
various chronograms incorporating the year of his death. Prof.
Nicholson has suggested that he died between 465 and 469. Mr. Yahya
Habibi in a well-argued article published in the Oriental College
Magazine, Lahore (Volume 36, pp. 27-43) has examined the question of
the year of death on the basis of Kashf-ul-Mahjub, and theinternal
evidence it provides of the dates of death of those of his
contemporaries with whom Al-Hujwiri was in close touch. He has cometo
the following conclusions:
(i) That Kashf-ul-Mahjub was completed sometimes between 481 and 500,
A.H. and that, (ii) the saint died sometimes between 481-500 A.H.
One is inclined to agree with Mr. Habibi. The most disturbing
statement of Al-Hujwiri is that he was with his Pir in Syria when the
latter died. According to 'Allama Zahabi, Khuttali died in 460 H. E.
and this date is commonly accepted. According to Mufti Ghulam Sarwar
Lahori, Khuttali died in 453. Even if this date is accepted, will it
be too far-fetched to infer that Al-Hujwiri came to Lahore after that?
He mentions nowhere his fellow murid Husain Zanjani whom he is
supposed to have replaced. The date of thedeath of Husain Zanjani also
presents similar difficulties.
Very little is known of the life of Al-Hujwiri in Lahore. There is
only onemention of Lahore in his Kashf-ul-Mahjub. We do not know
anything about his daily life, the sort of people he met, his friends
and pupils. A man of his disposition and active habits must have been
engaged in religious exercises whichhe mentions in his book and in
promulgating and popularising Islam and sufi doctrines. In
Kashf-ul-Asrar, he relatesthat he met one Husam-ud-Din and was much
impressed by his piety. He was ninety years old. He asked Husam-ud-Din
for advice about his spiritual well-being. The Sufi replied, "Keep
constantly occupied in bringing solace to the heart of the people and
making them forget their miseries". Do not hurt the feelings of
anyone". Do not waste the knowledge you havegained ". Constantly,
remember your Pir." Another person mentioned in Kashf-ul-Asrar is
Karim-Ullah Tajir (merchant), a very wealthy man, who lost all that he
had " his wealth, his son and his wife. This story is relatedto
impress his disciples with the transitoriness of worldly belongings.
Al-Hujwiri was buried near the mosque which he had built during his
life-time. Several Sufi-Shaikhs besides multitudes of people from all
sections of society have since visitedthe tomb. Hazrat Muin-ud-Din
Chishti is reported to have stayed there for Itikaf and when he left
the place he recited the following couplet:
It is from this time that Ali Al-Hujwiri, according to popular
tradition, came to be known as Data Ganj Bakhsh (the master who
bestows treasures). In Kashf-ul-Asrar, however, he complains that
people call him Ganj Bakhsh though he was penniless. This would mean
that he came to beknown as Ganj Bakhsh during his life-time and this
appears to be more reasonable. It is significant that many rulers and
saints after him came to be known by similar appellations " Lachhman
Sen of Nudea,Qutb-ud-Din Aibak, Sultan Sakhi Sarwar and Shaikh Hamid
Ganj Bakhsh Qadiri.
The tomb of Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh is situated outside Bhati Gate of
Lahore. Towards the north is a graveyard, a well and a bathroom. The
courtyard to the eastof the well was built by Rani Chand Kaur, wife of
Kharak Singh. Some of the extant buildings were built by Akbar and
later repaired or rebuilt by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Adjoining the
porch is a mosque, an extension of the one which the Shaikh had built
during his life-time.To the east of this mosque is the grave of Shaikh
Sulaiman Mujawir which was builtin the time of Akbar. In front of it
is the gate of asmall room where HazratKhwaja Muin-ud-Din performed
his Chilla. To the west of the tomb is the courtyard for the reciters
of Quran.
The tomb of Ali Hujwiri isbuilt on a white marble chabutra. The
enclosure of the chabutra, was built by 'Iwaz Khan, an elephant-keeper
of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Inthe centre is the tomb ofAl-Hujwiri and
the two graves on its sides are ofShaikh Ahmad Sarkhasi and Shaikh Abu
Saeed Hujwiri at whose request the Kashf-ul-Mahjub was written. The
tomb, a chabutra and some buildings surrounding it were firs built by
Zahir-ud-Daula Sultan Ibrahim, nephew of Sultan Mahmud Ghaznavi.
In 1278 A. H. Noor Muhammad Sadhu built a dome (Gunbad) on the
enclosure. Several copiesof the Quran presented to the mausoleum are
preserved. The most prized of them are; the one presented by Moran,the
mistress of Maharaja Ranjit Singh; the second by Muhammad Khan
Chaththa of Ahmadnagar; the third, an autographed copy by Nawab Nasir
Jang of Daccan and the fourth by Amir Bakhsh. A copy of the Quran was
presented by Maharaja Ranjint Singh after his victorious campaign
against the Afghans, anda copy written in musk was presented by an
unidentified devotee.
Note: The above monograph was published in 1967. Since then, because
of renovation from time to time, a lot of improvement can be witnessed
in the premises of the shrine.