Shahbaz e Arifaan Hazrat Sakhi Sultan
Pir Syed Mohammad Bahadur Ali Shah
Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Sayyid Mohammad Bahadur Ali Shah was born on 16th August, 1801 AD (5th Rabi’ ath-Thani, 1216 Hijri) in Shorkot, District Jhang, Pakistan (then India). Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Sayyid Bahadur Ali Shah was the 28th Shaikh of Sarwari Qadri order. His ancestors migrated from Mashhad (Iran). His genealogy eventually reaches Ali ibn Abi Talib through Sayyid Imam Musa Kazim of Mashhad. That is why Kazmi and al-Mashhadi are part of his name.
RECEIVING SPIRITUAL BENEFICENCE FROM SULTAN BAHOO
When he was eight years old, his father took him to a religious institution in Multan. On the way, they stayed at the shrine of Sultan Bahoo for seven days. Afterward, his father left him at the institution for his schooling. When Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Bahadur Ali Shah’s teacher started the lesson, he was highly amazed. As, Sayyid Bahadur Ali Shah already knew whatever he wanted to teach him. Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Bahadur Ali Shah had complete command over all the branches of religious knowledge. Even, knew the Holy Quran by heart.
Thus, the teacher called Sayyid Bahadur Ali Shah’s father and told him the whole situation. Thereupon, his father asked him from where and when he gained all that knowledge? Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Bahadur Ali Shah replied that Sultan Bahoo spiritually blessed him with entire religious knowledge during his seven-day stay at the shrine.
STAYING AT THE SHRINE
Thus, Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Bahadur Ali Shah’s father took him back to Sultan Bahoo’s shrine and left him there. Sayyid Bahadur Ali Shah stayed at the shrine for forty years. During those years he performed many services. His greatest service is collecting, compiling and writing Sultan Bahoo’s books. After forty years, in 1849, Sultan Bahoo esoterically ordered Bahadur Ali Shah to return to his home.
OATH OF ALLEGIANCE
Then, in 1861, Sultan ul Faqr Sultan Bahoo ordered Shahbaz e Arifaan Sayyid Bahadur Ali Shah esoterically to go to Shorkot and take oath of allegiance on the hand of Pir Mohammad Abdul Ghafoor Shah. Sayyid Bahadur Ali Shah obeyed the orders and went to Shorkot. After bayat, he made it a routine to spend the day in service of his spiritual guide (Murshid). While, at night he used to go to the shrine of Sultan Bahoo. Hence, he received spiritual beneficence from Sultan Bahoo as well as Pir Mohammad Abdul Ghafoor Shah. Resultantly, he elevated to unimaginable heights of Faqr.
DIVINE TRUST OF FAQR
Pir Abdul Ghafoor Shah passed on the Divine Trust of Faqr to Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Bahadur Ali Shah before death. Whereas, Sultan Bahoo granted him complete authority over the treasure of Faqr.
Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Bahadur Ali Shah made tremendous efforts in spreading the teachings of Faqr. That is, he made the real gold Ism-e-Allah Zaat for the first time. And gave them to the seekers for invocation (zikr) and contemplation (tasawur).
MYSTIC POETRY
Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Bahadur Ali Shah wrote various eulogies and mystic poems for the travellers of the spiritual path. His poetry is very famous among the followers of Sarwari Qadri order.
TITLE
Al-Ghawth al-Azam Shaikh Abdul Qadir Jilani bestowed the title of Shahbaz-e-Arifaan upon Pir Bahadur Ali Shah. It means ‘the falcon of Mystics’.
DEATH
Shahbaz e Arifaan Pir Sayyid Bahadar Ali Shah died on 27th February, 1934 (14th Dhul al-Qadah, 1352 Hijri). His shrine is in Shorkot, District Jhang, Pakistan. His death anniversary is held every year on the 25th, 26th and 27th of February.
After the demise of Pir Sayyid Bahadur Ali Shah, Sultan Mohammad Abdul Aziz succeeded him as the 29th Shaikh of the Sarwari Qadri order.
Present Shaikh of Sarwari Qadri Order
Sultan ul Ashiqeen Sultan Mohammad Najib ur Rehman is the 31st and present Shaikh of the Sarwari Qadri order. He succeeds Sultan ul Faqr VI Sultan Mohammad Asghar Ali in the chain of Sarwari Qadri order Shaikhs. Since assuming responsibility, Sultan ul Ashiqeen teachings are revolutionary steps in spreading the teachings of Faqr throughout the world. Previously, there was no authentic published work to ascertain the chain of Sarwari Qadri order spiritual guides after Sultan Bahoo. One of his greatest marvel is that after a lot of research and hard work, he has published book “The Spiritual Guides of Sarwari Qadri Order” which puts the record straight. This will be an authentic reference for the future generations about the correct chain of the Sarwari Qadri order spiritual guides.
Khanqah Sultan ul Ashiqeen
In order to spread the teachings of Faqr throughout the world, Sultan ul Ashiqeen established Tehreek Dawat e Faqr in October 2009. It is head quartered at Sultan ul Faqr House in Lahore, Pakistan. The same premises serves as the centre for the Khanqah Sarwari Qadri. Over the years, there has been an exponential growth in the numbers of disciples and devotees of Sultan ul Ashiqeen. This means that the present Khanqah is not big enough to accommodate the growing numbers of devotees. In view of this, foundation stone of Khanqah Sultan ul Ashiqeen has been laid and the construction work in underway. Once completed, the Khanqah will serve as the new headquarters for Tehreek Dawat e Faqr and many of its departments.
NOTE:
For detailed study of life history of Shahbaz e Arifaan Sultan Pir Sayyid Mohammad Bahadur Ali Shah, please study Chapter # 4 of The Spiritual Guides of Sarwari Qadri Order.
Author: Sultan-ul-Ashiqeen Sultan Mohammad Najib-ur-Rehman.