A Digital Atlas of Sacred Geography

Saints

1177 records · Page 29/50

Yusuf Khass Hajib al-Balasaghuni

A Karakhanid Turkic poet and statesman, born around 1018 in Balasagun. His mirror-for-princes 'Kutadgu Bilig' (completed c. 1069-70, over 13,000 couplets) is regarded as the first major work of Islamic Turkic literature; he presented it to the ruler of Kashgar and received the title Khass Hajib ('Privy Chamberlain'). By tradition he died and was buried in Kashgar; the present mausoleum building is modern (built 1865, destroyed in the Cultural Revolution and rebuilt). (Sources: İslam Düşünce Atlası 'Yûsuf Has Hâcib'; en.wikipedia.org 'Yusuf Balasaguni')

KashgarDied 470 AHView →

Saint

Afaq Khoja (Hidayat Allah)

A leading Naqshbandi Sufi master and political leader, great-grandson of Ahmad Kasani, who founded the Afaqiyya ('White Mountain Khojas'). With Dzungar backing he helped conquer the Yarkent Khanate in 1678 and ruled Kashgaria as a vassal, spreading Naqshbandi Sufism into Gansu and Qinghai. His family necropolis near Kashgar (five generations, about 72 burials) is one of Xinjiang's most important Islamic monuments; the popular claim that the 'Fragrant Concubine' Iparhan/Xiangfei lies there is legendary and disputed. (Sources: en.wikipedia.org 'Afaq Khoja'; Wikidata Q617328)

KashgarDied 1105 AHView →

Companion

Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas

One of the ten companions promised Paradise and a maternal relative of the Prophet, among the earliest converts; he commanded at al-Qadisiyyah and governed Kufa. Hui Muslim tradition holds he led an embassy to the Tang court in 651 CE, bringing Islam to China and dying in Guangzhou. Mainstream scholarship rejects this — he is generally believed to have died and been buried at Jannat al-Baqi in Medina — so the Guangzhou tomb is a traditional and disputed attribution. (Sources: TDV İslam Ansiklopedisi 'Sa'd b. Ebû Vakkâs'; en.wikipedia.org 'Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas')

GuangzhouDied 55 AHView →

Saint

Syed Shah Hashim Peer Dastagir

A Sufi saint of the Qadri-Shattari order, born in 1576 in Ahmedabad (Gujarat), raised under the influence of Wajihuddin Alvi, who migrated to Bijapur under Ibrahim Adil Shah II. He is said to have influenced the Sultan to abandon some un-Islamic practices; his disciple Sultan Mohammed Adil Shah built the famed Gol Gumbaz near the saint's shrine. His dargah was built in 1649 and has hosted an interfaith urs for four centuries. (Sources: Wikipedia 'Hashim Peer Dastagir'; qadrishattari.xyz)

BijapurView →

Scholar

Kunangudi Masthan Sahib

A Tamil Qadiriyya Sufi mystic, poet and ascetic, born (1792) into a wealthy Rowther family at Kunangudi near Thondi (Ramanathapuram district), who renounced his wealth to become an ascetic. He composed about 100 devotional and philosophical poems (~5,000 lines) blending Islamic mysticism with Tamil siddhar and kirtan traditions, and settled in Chennai. His dargah has Hindu-temple-influenced architecture (a mandapam) and four disciples are interred with him (died 1838). (Sources: Wikipedia 'Kunangudi Masthan Sahib'; indoislamicheritage.com)

ChennaiDied 1838View →

Saint

Syed Shah Yousufuddin & Syed Shah Sharifuddin (Yousufain)

Two Sufi saints originally from Shaam (Syria) who, during Hajj in Mecca, took bay'ah from Shah Kalimullah Jahanabadi and followed him to Delhi. They served as military commanders under Aurangzeb and, after the Deccan campaign, settled in Hyderabad to teach Islam; they died on the same day and were buried beside their Nampally residence ('Yousufain' = the two Yusufs). The Urdu poet Daagh Dehlvi is also interred here. Their death is dated 6 Dhu al-Hijja 1121 AH (1710). (Sources: Wikipedia 'Dargah Yousufain'; yousufain.org)

HyderabadDied 1121 AHView →

Saint

Dada Hayath Mir Khalandar / Baba Budan

NOTE - DISPUTED/SYNCRETIC SITE: The site fuses veneration of the 11th-century Sufi Dada Hayath (Abdul Azeez Macci), the 17th-century Sufi Baba Budan (credited with bringing coffee to India), and the Hindu deity Dattatreya. Muslims regard it as the dargah of Baba Budan/Dada Hayath, while Hindus regard it as 'Sri Guru Dattatreya Swami Datta Peetha'; it has been a communal and legal flashpoint for over 30 years (the Supreme Court limited ceremonies to those practised before 1975). Both narratives must be presented neutrally. No precise death date exists. (Sources: Wikipedia 'Baba Budangiri'; Maktoob Media)

ChikmagalurView →

Saint

Tawakkal Mastan

Per a Persian account by Kirmani, a Suhrawardi saint and disciple of Baba Fakhruddin of Penukonda, who settled at Cottonpet in Bangalore alongside companions such as Tipu Mastan and Manik Mastan. His shrine is the oldest and largest dargah in the city and is associated with the Hindu-Muslim shared 'Bangalore Karaga' festival. The mosque-and-mausoleum complex was begun by Hyder Ali in 1777 and completed by Tipu Sultan in 1783. (Sources: Wikipedia 'Hazrat Tawakkal Mastan Dargah'; Wikidata Q97262500; Deccan Herald)

BengaluruDied 1777View →

Saint

Nathar Shah (Nathar Wali)

A Qalandar saint counted among the earliest Sufis to bring Islam to South India; tradition holds he was born to a Persian family in Anatolia, became a murid of Ibrahim Garamseel, and came to India with 900 qalandars, settling at Trichy. His preaching is linked to the conversion of the Tamil Rowther community; he was the murshid of Baba Fakhruddin of Penukonda. His death is dated 15 Ramadan 417 AH (1039); the 70-foot dome was added in the 18th century by Chanda Sahib. (Sources: Wikipedia 'Nathar Shah'; dargahinfo.com / Islamic Heritage)

TiruchirappalliDied 417 AHView →

Saint

Baba Fakruddin

A Qalandar/Suhrawardi saint said to be a prince of Sistan who renounced the throne, travelled via Mecca and Medina to Tiruchirappalli, and became the disciple and khalifa of Nathar Vali, serving 23 years. He was then sent with 300 qalandars to Penukonda, where the 'blooming twig' legend marks his settlement. His hilltop dargah is an interfaith pilgrimage site; Hindus call him 'Babayya Swami'. His death is dated 12 Jumada al-Thani 694 AH (5 May 1295). (Sources: Wikipedia 'Baba Fakruddin'; Government of Andhra Pradesh Ananthapuramu district portal)

PenukondaDied 694 AHView →

Saint

Shahul Hamid

A Qadiri Sufi mystic and preacher who studied at Gwalior under Muhammad Ghaus, performed Hajj, and settled at Nagore via the Maldives and Sri Lanka. He is locally venerated as 'Nagore Andavar' (Ruler of Nagore) and credited in tradition with curing the Thanjavur ruler Achuthappa Nayak. His dargah is a noted site of Hindu-Muslim shared devotion; the 14-day Kanduri (urs) marks his death anniversary. The most-cited death year is 1570. (Sources: Wikipedia 'Nagore Dargah'; Wikidata Q3595346)

NagoreDied 1570View →

Saint

Jalaluddin Tabrizi

A Tabriz-born Suhrawardi Sufi, disciple of Shihab al-Din al-Suhrawardi, who migrated first to Delhi (under Iltutmish) then to Bengal. He is the protagonist of the Sanskrit Sekhasubhodaya and namesake of the Jaliliyya order; his 22,000-taka endowment gave his shrine the name 'Baish Hazari Dargah'. His tomb's location is disputed (Bari Dargah at Pandua, or Deotala) but both candidates lie in Malda, West Bengal, India, and he is distinct from Shah Jalal of Sylhet. The death year (623/1225 or 642/1244) is disputed. (Sources: Banglapedia; Wikipedia 'Jalaluddin Tabrizi')

PanduaView →

Scholar

Nesaruddin Ahmad (Pir of Sarsina)

A Bengali Islamic scholar, Sufi reformer and educationist; the principal eastern-Bengal disciple of Abu Bakr Siddique of Furfura Sharif. In 1915 he founded the Sarsina Darbar Sharif and the Darussunnat Kamil Madrasa, a leading alia madrasa. The Swarupkati upazila was renamed 'Nesarabad' in his honour in 1985; several pirs are buried at the darbar but he is the principal figure. (Sources: Wikipedia 'Nesaruddin Ahmad'; Wikidata Q118115329; Journal of Ilahiyat Researches)

PirojpurDied 1952View →

Saint

Shah Sultan Balkhi Mahisawar

A warrior-saint said to be the son of a ruler of Balkh (Afghanistan) who renounced his status, became a disciple of Shaikh Taufiq of Damascus, and was sent to preach in Bengal. 'Mahisawar' (fish-rider) is a hagiographic motif; tradition holds he defeated King Parshuram at Mahasthan. His death date is undocumented and even the century (14th vs 16th) is disputed; a 1685 Mughal sanad under Aurangzeb confirmed lakhiraj lands. (Sources: Banglapedia 'Shah Sultan Mahisawar (R)'; Wikipedia 'Sultan Balkhi')

BograView →

Saint

Bayazid Bastami (Chittagong Maqam)

NOTE - MAQAM/DISPUTED: Abu Yazid al-Bistami was a 9th-century Persian Sufi, a pioneer of the 'intoxicated' (sukr) school, who died and is buried in Bistam, Iran. Sources state plainly that the Chittagong structure is NOT his actual grave but a jawab/maqam (commemorative imitation tomb); Banglapedia records it was 'discovered' in 1831. The complex pond holds the critically endangered Bostami black softshell turtle. (Sources: Banglapedia 'Bayejid Bostami', Abdul Karim 2012; Wikipedia 'Shrine of Bayazid Bostami')

ChittagongDied 261 AHView →

Saint

Shah Paran

A 14th-century Sufi saint and scholar who took part in the final battle of the 1303 Conquest of Sylhet under his maternal uncle Shah Jalal. His birthplace is disputed in the sources (Konya in Anatolia, or Hadhramaut in Yemen). He died unmarried and without descendants and was buried beside his khanqah; a dargah complex with a mosque, eidgah, langar khana and pond grew around the grave. No precise death year is documented. (Sources: Banglapedia/Shah Jalal corpus; Wikipedia 'Shah Paran')

SylhetView →

Saint

Shah Amanat

An 18th-century Sufi saint regarded as one of the foremost saints of the Chittagong (Chattogram) region of eastern Bengal. He founded the Khanqah Amanatiya and taught within the Naqshbandi and Qadiri orders. His shrine near Laldighi draws large crowds, especially during Ramadan; Chittagong's Shah Amanat International Airport is named after him. (Sources: Banglapedia 'Shah Amanat (R)'; Wikipedia 'Shah Amanat'; Harder 2011)

ChittagongDied 1773View →

Saint

Shah Ali Baghdadi

A 15th-century Sufi saint and missionary, born in Baghdad to Mufti Fakhruddin, who settled in Bengal and carried out missionary work across the Faridpur and Dhaka regions. Wikipedia primarily dates his death to c. 1480, while other sources cite 913 AH (1507) or 1577. His shrine at Mirpur is a major pilgrimage site with a large annual urs. (Sources: Banglapedia 'Shah Ali Baghdadi (R)'; Wikipedia 'Shah Ali Baghdadi')

DhakaDied 1480View →

Saint

Shah Makhdum Ruposh

A 13th-14th century Sufi missionary associated with spreading Islam in the Varendra region of northern Bengal, said to have arrived from Baghdad and founded khanqahs. Banglapedia dates his death to 27 Rajab 713 AH (1313); a minority folk tradition cites 1592 (aged 117). The shrine was monumentalised in the Mughal period and the annual urs falls on 27 Rajab. (Sources: Banglapedia 'Shah Makhdum Rupos'; Wikipedia 'Shah Makhdum Rupos')

RajshahiDied 713 AHView →

Saint

Khan Jahan Ali

A 15th-century Sufi saint, commander and administrator who spread Islam in southern Bengal and founded the UNESCO World Heritage 'Mosque City of Bagerhat' (including the Sixty Dome / Shat Gombuj Mosque). The inscription on his tombstone dates his death to 27 Dhu al-Hijja 863 AH (25 October 1459). His single-domed cut-stone mausoleum stands on the north bank of the Thakur Dighi pond. (Sources: Banglapedia 'Khan Jahan's Tomb'; UNESCO Mosque City of Bagerhat; Wikipedia 'Mausoleum of Khan Jahan Ali')

BagerhatDied 863 AHView →

Saint

Shah Jalal

A 14th-century Sufi saint, the patron saint of Sylhet, traditionally credited with leading the 1303 Muslim conquest of Sylhet and spreading Islam across northeast Bengal. Ibn Battuta, who visited him, records in his Rihla a death date of 20 Dhu al-Qa'da 746 AH (15 March 1346). His shrine in Sylhet is the most-visited religious site in Bangladesh. (Sources: Ibn Battuta, Rihla; Banglapedia 'Shah Jalal'; Wikipedia 'Shah Jalal Dargah')

SylhetDied 746 AHView →

Saint

Gazi Husrev-beg

Gazi Husrev-beg (1480-1541) was an Ottoman sanjak-bey of Bosnia across three terms and the great endower who transformed Sarajevo into an Ottoman-Islamic city. He is remembered for the waqf complex of the Gazi Husrev-beg (Begova) Mosque he built in 1531, together with a madrasa, khanqah, bezistan and public kitchen; he is venerated locally for his piety and philanthropy. After his death he was buried in his türbe in the mosque courtyard, where the tomb is still visited today. His veneration as a saintly figure reflects a regional tradition of honouring a pious statesman-warrior. (Sources: TDV Encyclopaedia of Islam, 'Gazi Hüsrev Bey' and 'Saraybosna', islamansiklopedisi.org.tr; Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque, Wikipedia/Britannica)

SarajevoDied 948 AHView →

Saint

Kütüklü Baba

Kütüklü Baba was a Bektashi dervish associated with the early Ottoman frontier and the household of Gazi Evrenos. His octagonal domed türbe near Selino in Xanthi, Western Thrace, Greece, is dated on architectural grounds to the late 15th–early 16th century. Only the stone mausoleum survives of what was once a tekke complex. (Sources: Wikipedia 'Kütüklü Baba Tekke'; Heath W. Lowry, In the Footsteps of the Ottomans, 2009; Georgios Tsigaras 2006; Wikidata Q12885275.)

Selino (Xanthi)View →

Saint

Seyyid Ali Sultan (Kızıl Deli)

Seyyid Ali Sultan, called Kızıl Deli ("Red Madman"), was a Vefâî-Kalenderi/Bektashi dervish who, per his Velâyetname, came from Khorasan with forty companions and accompanied Ottoman commanders in the Balkan conquests. Around 1400–1403 he founded a tekke by the Kızıl Deli stream (Erythropotamos) near Dimetoka; Bayezid I endowed him with three villages (804/1402). His türbe lies within the tekke complex near Roussa village in Evros, Greek Thrace, beside a roughly 600-year-old mulberry tree held to be miraculous; in Bektashism it ranks second in importance only to Hacıbektaş. (Sources: TDV İslam Ansiklopedisi 'Seyyid Ali Sultan'; Wikipedia 'Seyyid Ali Sultan Tekke'; Kültür Envanteri; Wikidata Q15442756.)

Roussa (Evros)Died 815 AHView →