Alaul Haq
ʿAlā ul-Ḥaq (Arabic: علاء الحق والدین, Bengali: আলাউল হক), also known as Ahmad and by his sobriquet Ganj-e-Nabat (Persian: گنج نابات, Bengali: গঞ্জে নাবাত), was a 14th-century Islamic scholar of Bengal. Posted in Hazrat Pandua, he was the senior disciple and successor of Akhi Siraj, and a Bengal Sultanate government official.[1]
Shaykh al-Mun`im al-Mukarram ʿAlā ul-Ḥaq wa ad-Dīn Pāndavī Ganj-e-Nābāt | |
|---|---|
| Personal | |
| Born | |
| Died | 1384-1398 AD |
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
| Flourished | Late 12th century |
| Parents |
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| Denomination | Hanafi |
| Lineage | Khalid ibn al-Walid |
| Relatives | Akhi Siraj (father-in-law), Badr Islam Abu Zahid (grandson) |
| Order | Chishti Order |
| Senior posting | |
| Teacher | Akhi Siraj, Nizām ul-Haq Sarfī |
Students
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| Bengal Sultanate |
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Early life and education
Haq was born in the city of Hazrat Pandua to a Muslim family descended from Khalid ibn al-Walid, an Arab commander and companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. His father, `Umar ibn As`ad Khālidī, migrated from Lahore to Pandua following the establishment of Muslim rule in Bengal.[2] Some sources claim that Haq was first taught by Nizamul Haq Sarfi, who was a senior scholar of Bengal based in Lakhnauti and teacher of Nasiruddin Bahath. This claim however, has been doubted by others due to issues relating to time periods. After the death of his father, Haq was meant to have inherited two gardens worth 8000 takas though someone else had taken possession of it. Haq never attempted to regain the inherited property.[1]
Excelling in his studies, Alaul Haq began calling himself Ganj-e-Nābāt. This act was criticised by Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi, as his teacher was Ganj-e-Shakar (store of sugar), and the title of Ganj-e-Nabat (store of fine sugar) sounded like Alaul Haq was showing some sort of superiority. Akhi Siraj of the Chishti Order arrived to Bengal on the advice of his teacher, Nizamuddin Auliya, where he was made the court scholar of Bengal. Alaul Haq became his student and dropped the Ganj-e-Nabat title. There are many stories relating to Haq's relationship with his mentor Siraj. It is said that Haq would accompany his teacher with a cauldron on his head, and carrying an oven whilst barefooted so that he could his teacher could have hot meals. Siraj admired his student to such an extent that he made him his successor and married his daughter to Haq; making Haq his own son-in-law.[3]
Career
Following the death of Siraj, Haq served as the court scholar; setting up a khanqah in Hazrat Pandua and becoming an elite member of the Sultan of Bengal Shamsuddin Ilyas Shah's government.[2] During the reign of Sultan Sikandar Shah, Haq was put in charge of the royal treasury of the Bengal Sultanate.[1]
According to legend, Haq was so generous to his students and the needy that his generosity outweighed that of the Sultan. As a result, Haq was supposedly banished to Sonargaon for two years before being allowed to return to his Khanqah.[2] Ashraf Jahangir Semnani, a former ruler of Semnan in modern-day Iran,[4] had abdicated his throne to become a student of Alaul Haq in Pandua.[5] His journey took two years and upon meeting Haq and his disciples in the outskirts of Pandua, Semnani was carried by doli to Haq's khanqah where he was fed four handfuls of rice and paan by Alaul Haq. Semnani studied under Alaul Haq for 12 years, before being instructed by him to go and propagate in Jaunpur.[1]
نهاده تاج دولت بر سر من، علاء الحق والدین گنج نابات
Alaul Haq Ganj-i-Nabat has placed the crown of Dawlat upon my head— Persian couplet recited by student Ashraf Jahangir Semnani after being received by Alaul Haq at the khanqah
Death
It is suggested by 'Abd al-Haqq al-Dehlawi, in his Akhbar al Akhyar, that Alaul Haq died in the year 800 AH (1398 AD).[6] On the other hand, the guardians of Haq's shrine possess a book which cites his death in 786 AH (1384 AD). It is said that Alaul Haq's janaza was performed by Jahaniyan Jahangasht. His shrine, the Chhoti Dargah,[7] is one of the major dargahs of Bengal; located in the ruined city of Hazrat Pandua in Malda and adjacent to the other contemporary scholars of Bengal such as Jalaluddin Tabrizi. Haq's disciples included his son Nur Qutb Alam (who was his successor), as well as the Sufi saint Ashraf Jahangir Semnani. His urs is commemmorted from 23-25 Rajab in Chhoti Dargah, presently in West Bengal, India.[2] Alaul Haq's grandson, Badr Islam, and his great grandson, Shaykh Zahid, were prominent scholars in Sonargaon.[8]
See also
References
- Abdul Latif (1993). The Muslim Mystic Movement in Bengal, 1301-1550. K P Bagchi.
- Abdul Karim (2012). "Shaikh Alaul Haq (R)". In Islam, Sirajul; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN 984-32-0576-6. OCLC 52727562. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
- Singh, NK, ed. (2002). Sufis of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. 1. New Delhi: Kitab Bhavan. p. 72-73.
- Shaykh Abdul Rahman Chishti. Mir-at ul-Israr - Urdu translation (in Urdu).
- Mufti Ghulam Sarwar Lahori. Khazinat-ul-Asfiya (Urdu translation) 4 volumes.
- 'Abd al-Haqq al-Dehlawi. Akhbarul Akhyar. p. 143.
- Serajuddin, Asma (2012). "Tomb Architecture". In Islam, Sirajul; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN 984-32-0576-6. OCLC 52727562. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
- Khan, Muazzam Hussain (2012). "Sonargaon". In Islam, Sirajul; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN 984-32-0576-6. OCLC 52727562. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
Bibliography
- Abdal Haqq Muhaddith Dehlwi [d.1052H-1642 CE]. Akhbarul Akhyar.: A short biography of the prominent Sufis of India have been mentioned in this book including that of Alaul Haq Pandavi
- 'Mir'at-ul-Israr' by Syed Abdur Rahman Chisti
- 'Lataife-Ashrafi' (Discourses of Ashraf Jahangir Semnani) Compiled by Nizam Yemeni, Edited and annotated by Syed Waheed Ashraf, published in 2010
- 'Ma'arijul-Wilayat'
- 'Hayate Makhdoom Syed Ashraf Jahangir Semnani(1975), Second Edition(2017) ISBN 978-93-85295-54-6, Maktaba Jamia Ltd, Shamshad Market, Aligarh 202002, India