Mirza Mazhar Jan-e-Janaan
Encyclopedia
Mirzā Mazhar Jān-i Jānān (), also known by his laqab Shamsuddīn Habībullāh (1699–1781), was a renowned Naqshbandī
Sufi poet of Dehli, distinguished as one the "four pillars of Urdu
poetry." He was also known to his contemporaries as the sunnītarāsh, "Sunnicizer", for his absolute, unflinching commitment to and imitation of the Sunnah
of the Prophet Muhammad
.
He established the Naqshbandī suborder Mazhariyya Shamsiyya.
notes his date of birth as 11th Ramadan
1111 AH. His father Mirzā Jān was employed in the army of the mighty Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb
. Following a custom according to which the Emperor had the right to name the sons of his officers, Aurangzeb is reported to have said:
His early religious instruction was entrusted to hājjī Afzal Siyālkōtī (hadith
) and hāfiz Abd al-Rasūl Dihlawī (Qur'an
). At the age of 18, he joined the Naqshbandī order under Nūr Muhammad Bada'ūni, who was closely connected to the teachings of Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindī
, and completed his studies in four years. He was also initiated in the Qādirī, Chishtī and Suhrawardī orders.
In his prime, Mazhar was advised to write poetry in Urdu
rather than Persian
as the days of the latter language were said to be numbered in India. Besides authoring poetry and polemics, Mazhar also wrote a large number of letters relating to Sufi thought and practice.
. In Mazhar's view, Krishna
and Rama Chandra were both prophets, who preached the oneness of God.
īn was the great Hanafī
scholar, Qādī Thanāullāh Panipatī
, who wrote a famous Tafsir
of the Qur'an by the name Tafsir-i Mazharī, which he named after his teacher. Also in his spiritual lineage (silsila
) came the great Hanafī jurist Imam Ibn 'Abidīn
and the Qur'an exegete Allāma Alusī.
His Naqshbandī lineage came to be known as Mazhariyya Shamsiyya. Mazhar apparently authorized more disciples than any of his predecessors. He regularly corresponded with his deputies, and his letters form much of the basis of our knowledge about his life and ideas.
He was succeeded by his khalifa (deputy) Hazrat Abdullah alias Shah Ghulam Ali Dahlavi, who is considered Mujaddid
of the 13th Islamic century by most Naqshbandi
followers today. His tariqah spread to whole India and Middle East.
It should be noted that the author of Āb-i Ḥayāt, a determined Shi'a, has been suspected of indulging in partisan religious bias. Professor Frances Pritchett has noted that the latter account of the death of Mirzā Mazhar in Āb-i Ḥayāt is a deliberate distortion. Professor Friedmann, as well as Annemarie Schimmel and Itzchad Weismann, have all noted that Mirzā Mazhar was killed by a Shi'ite zealot.
Most of his Urdu biographers have also written that he was killed by a gunshot by a Shi'ite on 7th Muharram, and he died on 10th Muharram 1195 AH.
, which is the main branch of Naqshbandi
Sufi tariqah. His spiritual lineage goes to Prophet Muhammad, through Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi
, the Mujaddid
of eleventh Hijri
century. The complete lineage is as under:
Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi is one of the major Sufi spiritual orders of Sufi Islam. It is considered to be a "Potent" order.The Naqshbandi order is over 1,300 years old, and is active today...
Sufi poet of Dehli, distinguished as one the "four pillars of Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
poetry." He was also known to his contemporaries as the sunnītarāsh, "Sunnicizer", for his absolute, unflinching commitment to and imitation of the Sunnah
Sunnah
The word literally means a clear, well trodden, busy and plain surfaced road. In the discussion of the sources of religion, Sunnah denotes the practice of Prophet Muhammad that he taught and practically instituted as a teacher of the sharī‘ah and the best exemplar...
of the Prophet Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
.
He established the Naqshbandī suborder Mazhariyya Shamsiyya.
His birth and early life
The date of birth is variously given as 1111 or 1113 A.H, and it took place in Kālā Bāgh, Mālwa. Shaikh Muhammad Tahir BakhshiHazrat Khwaja Muhammad Tahir
Khwaja Muhammad Tahir Bakhshi Naqshbandi , also known as Sajjan Saeen , is a prominent Naqshbandi Sufi shaykh in Pakistan. He was born on January 6, 1962 at dargah Rahmatpur Sharif, district Larkana, Pakistan. He is successor to Khwaja Allah Bakhsh, also known as Sohna Saeen, whose lineage goes to...
notes his date of birth as 11th Ramadan
Ramadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts 29 or 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and...
1111 AH. His father Mirzā Jān was employed in the army of the mighty Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb
Aurangzeb
Abul Muzaffar Muhy-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb Alamgir , more commonly known as Aurangzeb or by his chosen imperial title Alamgir , was the sixth Mughal Emperor of India, whose reign lasted from 1658 until his death in 1707.Badshah Aurangzeb, having ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for nearly...
. Following a custom according to which the Emperor had the right to name the sons of his officers, Aurangzeb is reported to have said:
"A son is the soul of his father. Since the name of his father is Mirzā Jān, the name of the son will be Jān-i Jānān."
His early religious instruction was entrusted to hājjī Afzal Siyālkōtī (hadith
Hadith
The term Hadīth is used to denote a saying or an act or tacit approval or criticism ascribed either validly or invalidly to the Islamic prophet Muhammad....
) and hāfiz Abd al-Rasūl Dihlawī (Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
). At the age of 18, he joined the Naqshbandī order under Nūr Muhammad Bada'ūni, who was closely connected to the teachings of Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindī
Ahmad Sirhindi
Imām Rabbānī Shaykh Ahmad al-Farūqī al-Sirhindī was an Indian Islamic scholar from Punjab, a Hanafi jurist, and a prominent member of the Naqshbandī Sufi order. He is described as Mujaddid Alf Thānī, meaning the "reviver of the second millennium", for his work in rejuvenating Islam and opposing...
, and completed his studies in four years. He was also initiated in the Qādirī, Chishtī and Suhrawardī orders.
In his prime, Mazhar was advised to write poetry in Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
rather than Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
as the days of the latter language were said to be numbered in India. Besides authoring poetry and polemics, Mazhar also wrote a large number of letters relating to Sufi thought and practice.
Views on Hinduism and other religions
Among his notable ideas is his acceptance of the Divine-origin of the vedas, which he claimed were revealed by God at the beginning of creation, and his acceptance of the Hindus as the people of the bookPeople of the Book
People of the Book is a term used to designate non-Muslim adherents to faiths which have a revealed scripture called, in Arabic, Al-Kitab . The three types of adherents to faiths that the Qur'an mentions as people of the book are the Jews, Sabians and Christians.In Islam, the Muslim scripture, the...
. In Mazhar's view, Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
and Rama Chandra were both prophets, who preached the oneness of God.
Legacy and influence
Among his 'disciples' or MuridMurid
Murid is a Sufi term meaning 'committed one' from the root meaning "willpower" or "self-esteem". It refers to a person who is committed to a Murshid in a Tariqa of Sufism. Also known as a Salik , a murid is an initiate into the mystic philosophy of Sufism. When the Talib makes a pledge to a...
īn was the great Hanafī
Hanafi
The Hanafi school is one of the four Madhhab in jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. The Hanafi madhhab is named after the Persian scholar Abu Hanifa an-Nu‘man ibn Thābit , a Tabi‘i whose legal views were preserved primarily by his two most important disciples, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani...
scholar, Qādī Thanāullāh Panipatī
Qadi Thanaullah Panipati
-Views:He viewed Yazid I to be a Kafir:-References:...
, who wrote a famous Tafsir
Tafsir
Tafseer is the Arabic word for exegesis or commentary, usually of the Qur'an. Ta'wīl is a subset of tafsir and refers to esoteric or mystical interpretation. An author of tafsir is a mufassir .- Etymology :...
of the Qur'an by the name Tafsir-i Mazharī, which he named after his teacher. Also in his spiritual lineage (silsila
Silsila
Silsila is a 1981 Bollywood film directed by Yash Chopra. The film stars Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bhaduri, Sanjeev Kumar and Rekha, with Shashi Kapoor in a special appearance.-Plot:...
) came the great Hanafī jurist Imam Ibn 'Abidīn
Ibn Abidin
Muhammad Amin ibn Abidin lived in the city of Damascus in Syria during the Ottoman era. He was the authority of the fiqh of the Hanafi madhhab . He was a state employee with the title of Amin al-fatwa. This meant that he was the mufti that people would go to when they had legal questions in...
and the Qur'an exegete Allāma Alusī.
His Naqshbandī lineage came to be known as Mazhariyya Shamsiyya. Mazhar apparently authorized more disciples than any of his predecessors. He regularly corresponded with his deputies, and his letters form much of the basis of our knowledge about his life and ideas.
He was succeeded by his khalifa (deputy) Hazrat Abdullah alias Shah Ghulam Ali Dahlavi, who is considered Mujaddid
Mujaddid
A Mujaddid , according to the popular Muslim tradition, refers to a person who appears at the turn of every century of the Islamic calendar to revive Islam, remove from it any extraneous elements and restore it to its pristine purity...
of the 13th Islamic century by most Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi is one of the major Sufi spiritual orders of Sufi Islam. It is considered to be a "Potent" order.The Naqshbandi order is over 1,300 years old, and is active today...
followers today. His tariqah spread to whole India and Middle East.
His death and martyrdom
Mirzā Mazhar was shot and seriously injured on the 7th of Muharram, of the year 1195 AH/1780 CE. The author of Āb-i Ḥayāt writes:"The cause of this murder was widely rumored in Delhi among high and low: that according to custom, on the seventh day [of Muḥarram], the standards were carried aloft [in procession]. Mirzā Mazhar sat by the side of the road in the upper veranda of his house, with some of his special disciples. Just as ordinary barbarous people do, his [Sunni] group and the [Shia] procession group may perhaps have hurled some insults and abuse, and some barbarous person was offended. Among them was one stony-hearted person named Faulād [=steel] Ḳhān, who was extremely barbarous. He did this evil deed. But Ḥakīm Qudratullāh Ḳhān 'Qāsim', in his anthology, says that in his poetry Mirzā Sahib used to compose a number of verses in praise of Hazrat ʿAlī, and some Sunni took this amiss and did this evil deed.
It should be noted that the author of Āb-i Ḥayāt, a determined Shi'a, has been suspected of indulging in partisan religious bias. Professor Frances Pritchett has noted that the latter account of the death of Mirzā Mazhar in Āb-i Ḥayāt is a deliberate distortion. Professor Friedmann, as well as Annemarie Schimmel and Itzchad Weismann, have all noted that Mirzā Mazhar was killed by a Shi'ite zealot.
Most of his Urdu biographers have also written that he was killed by a gunshot by a Shi'ite on 7th Muharram, and he died on 10th Muharram 1195 AH.
Spiritual Chain of Succession
Mirza Mazhar belonged to the Mujaddidi order of SufismSufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
, which is the main branch of Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi
Naqshbandi is one of the major Sufi spiritual orders of Sufi Islam. It is considered to be a "Potent" order.The Naqshbandi order is over 1,300 years old, and is active today...
Sufi tariqah. His spiritual lineage goes to Prophet Muhammad, through Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi
Ahmad Sirhindi
Imām Rabbānī Shaykh Ahmad al-Farūqī al-Sirhindī was an Indian Islamic scholar from Punjab, a Hanafi jurist, and a prominent member of the Naqshbandī Sufi order. He is described as Mujaddid Alf Thānī, meaning the "reviver of the second millennium", for his work in rejuvenating Islam and opposing...
, the Mujaddid
Mujaddid
A Mujaddid , according to the popular Muslim tradition, refers to a person who appears at the turn of every century of the Islamic calendar to revive Islam, remove from it any extraneous elements and restore it to its pristine purity...
of eleventh Hijri
Islamic calendar
The Hijri calendar , also known as the Muslim calendar or Islamic calendar , is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 lunar months in a year of 354 or 355 days. It is used to date events in many Muslim countries , and used by Muslims everywhere to determine the proper day on which to celebrate Islamic...
century. The complete lineage is as under:
- MuhammadMuhammadMuhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
d.11AH, buried Madinah SA (570/571 - 632 CE) - Abu BakrAbu BakrAbu Bakr was a senior companion and the father-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He ruled over the Rashidun Caliphate from 632-634 CE when he became the first Muslim Caliph following Muhammad's death...
Siddiq, d.13AH, buried Madinah, SA - Salman al-Farsi, d.35AH buried Madaa'in, Iraq
- Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu BakrQasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu BakrAl-Qāsim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr as-Siddiq was an important jurist in early Islam. He is considered the fourth in the Naqshbandi Golden Chain of Sufi masters. Naqshbandis also consider him to have passed the chain to his grandson Ja'far as-Sadiq...
d.107AH buried Madinah SA. - Jafar Sadiq, (after which moves to Iran) d 148AH buried Madinah SA.
- Bayazid BastamiBayazid BastamiBayazid Bastami , also known as Abu Yazid Bistami or Tayfur Abu Yazid al-Bustami, was a Persian Sufi born in Bastam, Iran.- Background :...
, d 261AH buried Bistaam, Iraq (804 - 874 CE). - Abul Hassan Kharqani, d 425AH buried Kharqaan, Iran.
- Abul Qasim Gurgani, d.450AH buried Gurgan, Iran.
- Abu Ali Farmadi, (after which moves to Turkmenistan) d 477AH buried Tous, Khorasan, Iran.
- Yusuf Hamadani, d 535AH buried Maru, Khorosan, Iran.
- Abdul Khaliq Ghujdawani, d 575AH buried Ghajdawan, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
- Arif Reogari, d 616AH buried Reogar, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
- Mahmood Anjir-Faghnawi, d 715AH buried Waabakni, Mawralnahar.
- Azizan Ali Ramitani, d 715AH buried Khwaarizm, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
- Muhammad Baba Samasi, d 755AH buried Samaas, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
- Amir Kulal, d 772AH buried Saukhaar, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
- Muhammad Baha'uddin NaqshbandBaha-ud-Din Naqshband BukhariBaha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari was the founder of what would become the Naqshbandi. He was born in Bukhara which is located in Uzbekistan...
, d 791AH buried Qasr-e-Aarifan, Bukhara, Uzbekistan (1318–1389 CE). - Ala'uddin Attar Bukhari, buried Jafaaniyan, Mawranahar, Uzbekistan.
- Yaqub Charkhi, d 851AH buried Charkh, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
- Ubaidullah Ahrar, d 895AH buried Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
- Muhammad Zahid Wakhshi, d 936AH buried Wakhsh, Malk Hasaar
- Durwesh Muhammad, d 970AH buried Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
- Muhammad Amkanaki, (after which moves to India) d 1008AH buried Akang, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
- Muhammad Baqi Billah Berang, d 1012AH buried Delhi, India.
- Ahmad Faruqi SirhindiAhmad SirhindiImām Rabbānī Shaykh Ahmad al-Farūqī al-Sirhindī was an Indian Islamic scholar from Punjab, a Hanafi jurist, and a prominent member of the Naqshbandī Sufi order. He is described as Mujaddid Alf Thānī, meaning the "reviver of the second millennium", for his work in rejuvenating Islam and opposing...
, d 1034AH buried Sarhand, India (1564–1624 CE) - Muhammad Masum Sirhindi, d 1079AH buried Sarhand, India.
- Muhammad Saifuddin Faruqi Mujaddidi, d 1096AH buried Sarhand, India
- Muhammad Mohsin,
- Nur Muhammad Badayuni, d.1135AH
- Mirza Mazhar Jan-e-Janaan, d.1195AH
His Khulafa
In Maqamat Mazhari, his foremost Khalifa and successor Shah Ghulam Ali Dahlwai writes short biographies of many of his Khulafa (deputies). Here only those names are mentioned:- Shaykh Abdullah alias Shah Ghulam Ali Dahlawi (author of the book)
- Shaykh Sayyad Mir Musalman, a Sayyad (descendant of Prophet Muhammad), died during the life of his shaykh
- Qadi Thanaullah PanipatiQadi Thanaullah Panipati-Views:He viewed Yazid I to be a Kafir:-References:...
, author of Tafsir Mazhari and other notable Islamic books, descendant of UsmanUsman-Places:*Usman, Russia, a town in Lipetsk Oblast, Russia*Usman River, a river in Russia; left tributary of the Voronezh River-See also:*Ottoman Empire, also known as Osmanli, Empire of Osman...
the third caliph of Islam - Mawlana Fadalullah, elder brother of Qadi Thanaullah PanipatiQadi Thanaullah Panipati-Views:He viewed Yazid I to be a Kafir:-References:...
- Mawlana Ahmadullah, eldest son of Qadi Thanaullah PanipatiQadi Thanaullah Panipati-Views:He viewed Yazid I to be a Kafir:-References:...
, famous for his braveness and fighting skills - Wife of Qadi Thanaullah PanipatiQadi Thanaullah Panipati-Views:He viewed Yazid I to be a Kafir:-References:...
- Shaykh Muhammad Murad, a trader, spent 35 years in the company of his shaykh
- Shaykh Abdur-Rahman
- Mir Aleemullah Gangohi
- Shaykh Muradullah alias Ghulam Kaki
- Shaykh Muhammad Ehsan
- Shaykh Ghulam Hasan
- Shaykh Muhammad Muneer
- Khwaja Ibadullah
- Mawlana Qalandar Bakhsh
- Mir Naeemullah
- Mawlana Thanaullah Sanbhali
- Mir Abdul-Baqi
- Khalifa Muhammad Jameel
- Hazrat Shah Bheek
- Mawlana Abdul-Haqq
- Shah Muhammad Salim
- Shah Rahmatullah
- Muhammad Shah
- Mir Mubeen Khan
- Mir Muhammad Mueen Khan, brother of Mir Mubeen Khan
- Mir Ali Asghar alias Mir Makhoo
- Muhammad Hasan Arab
- Muhammad Qa'im Kashmiri
- Hafiz Muhammad
- Mawlana Qutbuddin
- Mawlana Ghulam Yahya
- Mawlana Sayyad Ghulam Muhiuddin Jilani
- Mawlana Naeemullah Bahra'ichi
- Mawlana Kaleemullah Bangali
- Sayyad Mir Ruhul-Amin
- Shah Muhammad Shafi
- Muhammad Wasil
- Muhammad Hussain
- Shaykh Ghulam Hussain Thaanisari
- Mawlana Abdul Kareem
- Mawlana Abdul Hakeem
- Nawab Irshad Khan
- Ghulam Mustafa Khan, student of Shah WaliullahShah WaliullahShah Waliullah Muhaddith Dehlvi was an Islamic scholar and reformer. He was born during the reign of Aurangzeb. He worked for the revival of Muslim rule and intellectual learning in South Asia, during a time of waning Muslim power...
Muhaddith Dahlawi - Noor Muhammad Qandhari
- Mulla Naseem
- Mulla Abdur Razzaq
- Mulla Jaleel
- Mulla Abdullah
- Mulla Taimoor
External links
- Urdu poetryUrdu poetryUrdu poetry is a rich tradition of poetry and has many different types and forms. Borrowing much from the Persian language, it is today an important part of Pakistani and North Indian culture....
- List of Urdu language poets
- Maqamat Mazhari (Urdu translation): Biography of Mirza Mazhar