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Rupa Abdi
THE CHISHTIIYYAS AND THE SUHRAWARDIYYAS
In India the four major silsilas to take root were Suhrawardiyya, Chishtiyya,
Qadiriyya and Naqshabandiyya. From these major orders many suborders such as
Shattariyya branched out.
This was the silsila which with its spirit of equality and brotherhood won the hearts
of the people of the subcontinent. The doors of the Chishtiyya khanqahs were open to
all at all times. This silsila was instrumental in spreading Islam in central and
southern Indian with its ocean like generosity, mildness of the evening sun and
earth-like modesty. Sufism became a mass movement under the influence of Chishti
saints who settled in the Indus region: Sind, Punjab and Multan. The contempt of the
Chishti saints for the rulers was obvious from their refusal to accept any land or
money from them. The early Chishti saints considered anything accepted from the
rulers as unlawful. From the low caste Hindus to the mighty Mogul kings, all bowed
in reverence at the feet of the great Chishti saints.
The birth place of the Chishti order is believed to be in Chisht, a village, sixty miles
east of Herat in present day Afghanistan. However in the Indian
subcontinent Hazrat Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti (d.1236) was instrumental in
laying the foundations of Sufism especially the Chishtiyya silsila. He was born in
Sistan (a province bordering Iran and Afghanistan) and in his early years was
inspired by Abu Najib Surhawardi. Muinuddin who was also known as Khwaja Garib
Nawaaz (benefactor of the poor), reached Delhi in 1193 but later shifted to Ajmer
when it was conquered by the Delhi Sultanate.