The History Khwaja Gharib Nawaz

Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishty (R.A.) popularly known as Khwaja Gharib Nawaz (R.A.) , "The founder of  Chishty Order of Sufis" in India was born in 1142 A.D. in Sijistan (Iran). His paternal genealogy is related to Hazrat Imam Hussain (A.S.) and that of his maternal to Hazrat Imam Hassan (A.S.) and thus he is a direct descendant of Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (S.A.W.).

His father, Sayyid Ghiyas-u’d-din, a pious man of some means, died when his son was in his teens. He left as legacy an orchard and a grinding mill. Once Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Hassan Chishty (R.A) was looking after the plants in his garden that a mystic, Shaikh Ibrahim Qanduzi, happened to pass by. Shaikh Mu’in-u’d-din entertained him in his garden. Hagiologists trace the germination of mystic attitude in him to the blessings of this Saint. In fact, the most powerful factor in giving a mystic touch to his personality at this early stage was the condition of Sijistan which had suffered terribly at the hands of the Qara Khita and the Ghuzz Turks. It drove the Khwaja’s mind inwards and he realized the futility of hankering after worldly glory or looking after worldly goods. He sold all his assets, gave the proceeds in charity and took to itineracy. He visited the eminent scholars of his age. While on his way to Iraq, he passed through Harvan, in the district of Naishapur. Here he met Khwaja ‘Usman Harwani’ and was so deeply impressed by his spiritual eminence that he decided to join the circle of his disciples. For twenty years he accompanied him on his arduous mystic journeys and performed all sorts of personal services to him. Shaikh Mu’in’d-din once told his disciples. “I did not give myself a moment’s rest from the service of my Peer-o-Murshid, and carried about his night clothes during his journeys and stoppages”.

Haj and Prophet’s command:

As the great Khwaja become accomplished and perfect in every respect, the divine tutor (Hazrat Khwaja Usman Harwani (R.A.)) honored him with his robe and took him to Haj. Both then proceeded to Makkah and performed the Haj, and then went to Madina and stayed there for sometime, to get the blessings of Prophet Hazrat Mohammad (S.A.W.)

One night in a trance he was ordered by the Holy Prophet Hazrat Mohammad (S.A.W.)

“O Moinuddin! You are a prop of our faith. Proceed to India and show the path of truth to the people there. That is why he is known as Ataye Rasul/Naib-e-Rasul.” (Lieutenant of Prophet Mohammad (S.A.W.)

Later he undertook independent journeys and came into contact with eminent Saints and scholars like Shaikh Najm-u’d-din Kubra, Shaikh Najib-u’d-din ‘Abdul Qahir Suhrawardi, Shaikh Abu Sa’id Tabrizi, Shaikh Mahmud Ispahani, Shaikh Nasir-u’d-din Astarabadi and Shaikh ‘Abdul Wahid – all of whom were destined to exercise great influence on contemporary religious life and thought. He visited nearly all the great centers of learning in those days – Samarqand, Bukhara, Baghdad, Naishapur, Tabriz, Aush, Ispahan, Sabzawar, Mihna, Khirqan, Astarabd, Balkh and Ghaznin and aquainted himself with almost every important trend in Muslim religious life in the middle ages. His moral and spiritual qualities attracted many people to his fold and he appointed his Khalifas in Sabzwar and Balkh. Shaikh Auhad-u’d-din Kirmani, Shaikh Shihab-u’d-din Suhrawardi and many other eminent mystics benefited by his company. Having thus roamed all over the Muslim lands which had not yet recovered from the terrible shocks of Qara Khitai and Ghuzz invasions and were to be ravaged very soon by the Mongols, he turned towards India. After a brief stay at Lahore, where he meditated at the Shrine of one of the prominent Sufi, Shaikh Ali Hajweri, he proceeded to Ajmer. Khwaja Gharib Nawaz composed a couplet paying a glowing tribute to Shaikh Hajweri :

   "Ganj Bakhsh-e-Har Do Alam Mazhar-e-Noor-e-Khuda, 
      Na Qisan Ra Peer-e-Kamil, Kamilan Ra Peshwa"

Translation: He is a wealth bestowing Saint in this world and hereafter and an embodiment of divine light.

A complete spiritual guide for the imperfect disciples and a leader of the perfect Saints.
He adopted the Indian tradition and culture, seeing the inclination of Indians towards Music and singing he introduced Qawwali (Sama) to convey his message.

Huzoor Gharib Nawaz (R.A.) breathed his last; after achieving the command given to him by the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.). His noble soul left the corporeal body on the 6th of Rajab 633 A.H./ 16th March 1236 at the age of 97. He was buried in the same prayer room (Hujra)which was the center of his divine activities, throughout his stay at Ajmer. Today his Shrine is popularly known as “Dargah Sharif of Huzoor Gharib Nawaz (R.A.)”. People of all walks of life and faith from all over the world, irrespective of their caste, creed and beliefs visit this great Shrine to offer flowers, Chaddar and Itar of their esteem and devotion. The rich and the poor stand side by side to pay their homage and respect to the divine soul and to acquire the peace of mind & soul to get the blessings of Huzoor Gharib Nawaz (R.A.)

Ajmer was not merely the seat of Chauhan power ; it was a religious center also where thousands of pilgrims assembled from far and near Shaikh Mu’in-u’d-din’s determination to work out the principles of Islamic mysticism at a place of such political and religious significance shows great self-confidence.

Gharib Nawaz was the exponent of the true spirit of Islam. Like orthodox and static theologians he did not engage himself in vain metaphysics but rigorously strove to save human sympathy from running into narrow grooves and struck at the very root of parochialism, casteism and religious exclusiveness which are being propagated by some vested interests. According to Gharib Nawaz the religion is not merely based on rituals and ecclesiastical formalities but “service of humanity” is its sole raison d’etre . Describing the qualities which endear a man to God, Gharib Nawaz referred to the following attributes : AWWAL SAKHAWATE CHUN SAKHAWATE DARIYA, DOM SHAFQAT-E-CHUN SHAFQAT-E-AFTAB, SIWAM TAWAZO-E-CHUN TAWAZO-E-ZAMEEN. (First, river like generosity; second, sun-like affection, and third earth like hospitality.) When once asked about the highest devotion of God, Gharib Nawaz remarked that it was nothing but

“Dar mandgaan ra fariyad raseedan wa haajat-e-baichaargaan ra rawa kardan wa gursingaan ra sair gardaneedan”

i.e. to redress the misery of those in distress, to fulfil the needs of the helpless and to feed the hungry.

Gharib Nawaz loved humanity in general and the Indians in particular. Indeed he had a mission to bring a social and spiritual revolution.

He ruled over the hearts. The concepts of national integration, composite culture (Ganga-Jamni Tehzeeb) originated from his life style and teachings and thereafter were spread by his representative disciples.

Perhaps in no other country were the effects of this social and cultural revolution so marked and so far reaching as in India. Sufism (Islamic mysticism) reached India when it had entered the last and the most important phase of its history the organisation of Sufisticstructure of Islam having various denominations, especially Chishtiya, Qadriya, Naqshbandia, and Suharwardia. Among these denominations the Chishtiya order has been supremely successful on all levels of pluralistic society of India based on cultural, religious, and social differences.

Urs Mubarak of Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishty (radiAllah anhu):
Urs of Khwaja Gharib Nawaz (R.A.) is celebrated every year in the first week of Rajab, on seeing the moon of Rajab, the seventh month of the Islamic calendar, drums are beaten to herald the commencement of the annual ceremony. The permanent Chauki (troupe) of qawwals arrive, and after Maghrib (sunset prayers) sit infront of the Shrine and sing the following verses:

                                        “Bartui mehfil-shahana-mubarak-bashad
                                         Saqia-badao-paimana mubarak bashad”
(Felicitation to thee for this blessed and majestic assembly; salutation, ‘Oh Saqi for your bountiful goblet of sacred wine).
And,
                                                “Ilahi ta-abd-astana-i-yar-rahe
                                          Yeh-asra-hai-gharibon-ka-barqarar rahe”

(Oh God, may this Shrine of the beloved exist till the last day, may this refuge of the poor remain forever!)

The word Urs has been derived from “UROOS” which means “ultimate meeting of an individual with God” it is said that Huzoor Gharib Nawaz (R.A.) spent last six days of his life in Seclusion in a cell and the 6th day of Rajab, his noble soul left the corporeal body. Every year Urs Mubarak is celebrated on his death anniversary in the Islamic month of Rajab.

Although Urs held for the first six days of Rajab. Yet the 6th day is regarded to be the most special and auspicious. It is called “Chati Sharif”. It is celebrated on the 6th Rajab between 10:00 A.M. to 1:30 P.M. Inside the Mazar Sharif. Shijra is read by Khadiman-e-Khwaja then Fariyad (Prayers) start for people present at the Dargah and for the country and its people for the peace and prosperity and also those who are not present but have sent Nazar-o-Niyaz to the Khadims to mark their presence for their welfare and for the promotion of brotherhood amongst them. Khadiman-e-Khwaja tie small turbans on each others head and present Nazar (offerings in cash).

Just before the Qu'l (conclusion of 6th Rajab Chhati Sharif) Bhadawa is sung at the main entrance of the Shrine by Qwwals which literally means a poem or verses in praise of Allah, His Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) or famous Sufis (Auliyas).

Badahwa is the only recitation which is accompanied by talis (clapping) only, and no other instrument is played. It was composed by Hazrat Syed Behlol Chishty, one of the ancestor of Khadims who again refers to Khwaja Moinuddin Chishty (R.A) as Khwaja Hasan Dan. After its recitation, the ceremony of the Qul comes to an end and Fatiha is recited. The ceremony is marked closed by firing a cannon at 1:30 P.M. in afternoon.

History of India

                                                           
The history of India is one of the grand epics of world history and can be best described in the words of India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru as "a bundle of contradictions held together by strong but invisible threads". Indian history can be characterized as a work in progress, a continuous process of reinvention that can eventually prove elusive for those seeking to grasp its essential character. 

The history of this astonishing sub continent dates back to almost 75000 years ago with the evidence of human activity of Homo sapiens. The Indus Valley Civilization which thrived in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent from 3300- 1300 BCE was the first major civilization in India.

The Pre Historic Era

1. The Stone Age:
   The Stone Age began 500,000 to 200,000 years ago and recent finds in Tamil Nadu (at C. 75000 years ago, before and after the explosion of the Toba Volcano) indicate the presence of the first anatomically humans in the area. Tools crafted by proto-humans that have been dated back to two million years have been discovered in the Northwestern part of the country.
   
2. The Bronze Age:
   The Bronze Age in the Indian subcontinent dates back to around 3300 BCE with the early Indus Valley Civilization. Historically part of ancient India, it is one of the world's earliest, urban civilizations, along with Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. Inhabitants of this era developed new techniques in metallurgy and handicraft and produced copper, bronze, lead and tin.
   

Early Historic Period

1. Vedic Period:
   The Vedic Period is distinguished by the Indo-Aryan culture which was associated with the texts of Vedas, sacred to Hindus, and that were orally composed in Vedic Sanskrit. The Vedas are some of the oldest extant texts, next to those in Egypt and Mesopotamia. The Vedic era in the subcontinent lasted from about 1500-500 BCE, laying down the foundation of Hinduism and other cultural dimensions of early Indian society. The Aryans laid down Vedic civilization all over North India, particularly in the Gangetic Plain.
   
2. Mahajanapadas:
   This period saw the second major rise in urbanization in India after the Indus valley Civilization. The word "maha" means great and the word "janapada" means foothold of a tribe. In the later Vedic Age a number of small kingdoms or city states had mushroomed across the subcontinent and also find mention in early Buddhist and Jain literature as far back as 1000 BCE. By 500 BCE, sixteen "republics" or Mahajanapadas has been established, namely; Kasi, Kosala, Anga, Magadha, Vajji (or Vriji),Malla, Chedi, Vatsa (or Vamsa), Kuru, Panchala, Matsya, Surasena, Assaka, Avanti,Gandhara, and Kamboja.
   
   
   • Persian and Greek Conquests:
     Much of the Northwest subcontinent (currently Afghanistan and Pakistan) came under the rule of the Persian Achaemenid Empire in C. 520 BCE under the rule of Darius the Great and remained so for two centuries. In 326 BCE, Alexander the Great conquered Asia Minor and the Achaemenid Empire, when he reached the Northwest frontier of the Indian subcontinent he defeated King Porus and conquered most of Punjab.
     
   • Maurya Empire:
     The Maurya Empire, ruled by the Mauryan Dynasty from 322-185 BCE was a geographically extensive and mighty political and military empire in ancient India, established in the subcontinent by Chandragupta Maurya in Magadha (present day Bihar) and was it further thrived under Ashoka the Great.
     
3. The Mughal Empire:
   In 1526, Babur, a descendant of Timur and Gengis Kahn from Fergana Valler (present day Uzbekistan) swept across the Khyber Pass and established the Mughal Empire which covered modern day Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. The Mughal dynasty ruled most of the Indian subcontinent till 1600; after which it went into decline after 1707 and was finally defeated during India's first war of Independence in 1857.
   
4. Colonial Era:
   From the 16th century, European powers such as Portugal, Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom established trading posts in India. Later, they took advantage of internal conflicts and established colonies in the country.
   
5. The British Rule:
   The British Rule in India began with the coming of the British East India Company in 1600 and continued till Indian independence from British rule in 1947.
   
6. The Indian Independence Movement and Mahatma Gandhi:
   In the 20th century Mahatma Gandhi led millions of people in a national campaign of non-violent civil disobedience to contain independence from the British.
   
7. Independence and Partition:
   Religious tension between the Hindus and Muslims had been brewing over the years, especially in provinces like Punjab and West Bengal. The Muslims were a minority and they did not feel secure in the prospect of an exclusively Hindu government and hence made them wary of independence. All through this Mahatama Gandhi called for unity among the two religious groups. The British, whose economy had been weakened after World War 2, decided to leave India and participated in the formation of an interim government. The British Indian territories gained independence in 1947, after being partitioned into the Union of India and the Dominion of Pakistan.

The History of Palestine

Ancient Palestine

The earliest known inhabitants of Palestine were of the same group as the Neanderthal inhabitants of Europe. By the 4th millennium B.C. Palestine was inhabited by herders and farmers. It was in the 3d millennium that most of the towns known in historical times came into existence. They became centers of trade for Egyptian and Babylonian goods. During the 2d millennium, Palestine was ruled by the Hyksos and by the Egyptians. Toward the end of this period Moses led the Hebrew people (see Jews) out of Egypt, across the Sinai, and into Palestine.

 

 Around 1200 B.C., the Philistines ("Sea Peoples") invaded the southern coastland and established a powerful kingdom (see Philistia). The Hebrews were subject to the Philistines until c.1000 B.C., when an independent Hebrew kingdom was established under Saul, who was succeeded by David and then by Solomon. After the expansionist reign of Solomon (c.950 B.C.), the kingdom broke up into two states, Israel, with its capital at Samaria, and Judah, under the house of David, with its capital at Jerusalem. The two kingdoms were later conquered by expanding Mesopotamian states, Israel by Assyria (c.720 B.C.) and Judah by Babylonia (586 B.C.).

In 539 B.C. the Persians conquered the Babylonians. The Jewish Temple, destroyed by the Babylonians, was rebuilt (516 B.C.). Under Persian rule Palestine enjoyed considerable autonomy. Alexander the Great of Macedon, conquered Palestine in 333 B.C. His successors, the Ptolemies and Seleucids, contested for Palestine. The attempt of the Seleucid Antiochus IV (Antiochus Epiphanes) to impose Hellenism brought a Jewish revolt under the Maccabees, who set up a new Jewish state in 142 B.C. The state lasted until 63 B.C., when Pompey conquered Palestine for Rome.

Christianity and Islam

Palestine at the time of Jesus was ruled by puppet kings of the Romans, the Herods (see Herod). When the Jews revolted in A.D. 66, the Romans destroyed the Temple (A.D. 70). Another revolt between A.D. 132 and 135 was also suppressed (see Bar Kokba, Simon), Jericho and Bethlehem were destroyed, and the Jews were barred from Jerusalem. When Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity (312), Palestine became a center of Christian pilgrimage, and many Jews left the region. Palestine over the next few centuries generally enjoyed peace and prosperity until it was conquered in 614 by the Persians. It was recovered briefly by the Byzantine Romans, but fell to the Muslim Arabs under caliph Umar by the year 640.

At this time (during the Umayyad rule), the importance of Palestine as a holy place for Muslims was emphasized, and in 691 the Dome of the Rock was erected on the site of the Temple of Solomon, which is claimed by Muslims to have been the halting station of Muhammad on his journey to heaven. Close to the Dome, the Aqsa mosque was built. In 750, Palestine passed to the Abbasid caliphate, and this period was marked by unrest between factions that favored the Umayyads and those who preferred the new rulers.

In the 9th cent., Palestine was conquered by the Fatimid dynasty, which had risen to power in North Africa. The Fatimids had many enemies—the Seljuks, Karmatians, Byzantines, and Bedouins—and Palestine became a battlefield. Under the Fatimid caliph al Hakim (996–1021), the Christians and Jews were harshly suppressed, and many churches were destroyed. In 1099, Palestine was captured by the Crusaders (see Crusades), who established the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Crusaders were defeated by Saladin at the battle of Hittin (1187), and the Latin Kingdom was ended; they were finally driven out of Palestine by the Mamluks in 1291. Under Mamluk rule Palestine declined.

Turkish Rule

In 1516 the Mamluks were defeated by the Ottoman Turks. The first three centuries of Ottoman rule isolated Palestine from outside influence. In 1831, Muhammad Ali, the Egyptian viceroy nominally subject to the Ottoman sultan, occupied Palestine. Under him and his son the region was opened to European influence. Ottoman control was reasserted in 1840, but Western influence continued. Among the many European settlements established, the most significant in the long run were those of Jews, Russian Jews being the first to come (1882).

Conflict between Arabs and Zionists

In the late 19th cent. the Zionist movement was founded (see Zionism) with the goal of establishing a Jewish homeland in Palestine, and dozens of Zionist colonies were founded there. At the start of the Zionist colonization of Palestine in the late 19th cent., the rural people were Arab peasants (fellahin). Most of the population were Muslims, but in the urban areas there were sizable groups of Arab Christians (at Nazareth, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem) and of Jews (at Zefat, Tiberias, Jerusalem, Jericho, and Hebron).

At the same time Arab nationalism was developing in the Middle East in opposition to Turkish rule. In World War I the British, with Arab aid, gained control of Palestine. In the Balfour Declaration (1917) the British promised Zionist leaders to aid the establishment of a Jewish "national home" in Palestine, with due regard for the rights of non-Jewish Palestinians. However, the British had also promised Arab leaders to support the creation of independent Arab states. The Arabs believed Palestine was to be among these, an intention that the British later denied.

In 1919 there were about 568,000 Muslims, 74,000 Christians, and 58,000 Jews in Palestine. The first Arab anti-Zionist riots occurred in Palestine in 1920. The League of Nations approved the British mandate in 1922, although the actual administration of the area had begun in 1920. As part of the mandate Britain was given the responsibility for aiding the Jewish homeland and fostering Jewish immigration there. The British stressed that their policy to aid the homeland did not include making all Palestine the homeland, but rather that such a home should exist within Palestine and that there were economic limits on how many immigrants should be admitted (1922 White Paper).

In the 1920s, Jewish immigration was slight, but the Jewish communities made great economic progress. In 1929 there was serious Jewish-Arab violence occasioned by a clash at the Western, or Wailing, Wall in Jerusalem. A British report found that Arabs feared the economic and political consequences of continued Jewish immigration with its attendant land purchases. Zionists were angered when a new White Paper (1930) urged limiting immigration, but they were placated by Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald (1931).

The rise of Nazism in Europe during the 1930s led to a great increase in immigration. Whereas there were about 5,000 immigrants authorized in 1932, about 62,000 were authorized in 1935. Arabs conducted strikes and boycotts; a general strike in 1936, organized by Haj Amin al Husayni, mufti of Jerusalem, lasted six months. Some Arabs acquired weapons and formed a guerrilla force. The Peel commission (1937), finding British promises to Zionists and Arabs irreconcilable, declared the mandate unworkable and recommended the partition of Palestine into Jewish, Arab, and British (largely the holy places) mandatory states. The Zionists reluctantly approved partition, but the Arabs rejected it, objecting particularly to the proposal that the Arab population be forcibly transferred out of the proposed Jewish state.

The British dropped the partition idea and announced a new policy (1939 White Paper). Fifteen thousand Jews a year would be allowed to immigrate for the next five years, after which Jewish immigration would be subject to Arab acquiescence; Jewish land purchases were to be restricted; and within 10 years an independent, binational Palestine would be established. The Zionists were shocked by what they considered a betrayal of the Balfour Declaration. The Arabs also rejected the plan, demanding instead the immediate creation of an Arab Palestine, the prohibition of further immigration, and a review of the status of all Jewish immigrants since 1918.

The outbreak of World War II prevented the implementation of the plan, except for the restriction on land transfers. The Zionists and most Arabs supported Britain in the war (although Haj Amin al Husayni was in Germany and negotiated Palestine's future with Hitler), but tension inside Palestine increased. The Haganah, a secret armed group organized by the Jewish Agency, and the Irgun and the Stern Gang, terrorist groups, were active. British officials were killed by the terrorists. The horrible plight of European Jewry led influential forces in the United States to lobby for support of an independent Jewish state, and President Truman requested that Britain permit the admission of 100,000 Jews. Illegal immigration, often involving survivors of Hitler's death camps, took place on a large scale. The independent Arab states organized the Arab League to exert internationally what pressure they could against the Zionists.

An Anglo-American commission recommended (1946) that Britain continue administering Palestine, rescind the land-transfer restrictions, and admit 100,000 Jews, and that the underground Jewish armed groups be disbanded. A plan for autonomy for Jews and Arabs within Palestine was discussed at a London conference (1947) of British, Arabs, and Zionists, but no agreement could be reached. The British, declaring their mandate unworkable and despairing of finding a solution, turned the Palestine problem over to the United Nations (Feb., 1947). At that time there were about 1,091,000 Muslims, 614,000 Jews, and 146,000 Christians in Palestine.

The United Nations Special Committee on Palestine devised a plan to divide Palestine into a Jewish state, an Arab state, and a small internationally administered zone including Jerusalem, and the General Assembly adopted the recommendations on Nov. 29, 1947. The Jews accepted the plan; the Arabs rejected it. As the British began to withdraw early in 1948, Arabs and Jews prepared  for war.

Arab-Israeli Wars, conflicts in 1948–49, 1956, 1967, 1973–74, and 1982 between Israel and the Arab states. Tensions between Israel and the Arabs have been complicated and heightened by the political, strategic, and economic interests in the area of the great powers.