Hazrat Syed Waris Ali Shah ‎(رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)

Name: Syed Waris Ali Shah
Titles: Makhdoom-Ul-Asfia, Sartaj-Ul-Fuqura
Silsila:
Predecessor:
Successor:
Date of Birth: 1st Ramzaan (1238A.H.) (Disputed)
Date of Wisaal: 6th April 1905
Date of Urs: Kartik: (Held any time between 1st Oct – 15 Nov)
Resting at: Dewa Sherif, Lucknow, India

Genealogical Table:

1. Prophet Hazrat Muhammad Mustafa (صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم)
2. Hazrath Imam Hussain (رضي الله عنه)
3. Hazrath Imam Zainul Abiddin (رضي الله عنه)
4. Hazrath Imam Jaffer Sadiq (رضي الله عنه)
6. Hazrath Imam Moosa Kazim (رضي الله عنه)
7. Syed Qasim Hamza (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
8. Syed Ali Raza (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
9. Syed Mohammad Mahdi (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
10. Syed Mohammad Jaffer (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
11. Syed Abu Mohammad (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
12. Syed Askari (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
13. Syed Abul Qasim (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
14. Syed Mahrooq (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
15. Syed Ashraf Abi Talib (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
16. Syed Azizuddin (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
17. Syed Alauddin (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
18. Syed Abdul Alad (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
19. Syed Abdul Wahid (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
20. Syed Umar Shah (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
21. Syed Zainul Abiddin (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
22. Syed Umar Noor (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
23. Syed Abdul Ahad (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
24. Miran Syed Ahmad (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
25. Syed Karmallah (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
26. Syed Salamath Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
27. Hakim Syed Qurban Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)
28. Al-Haj Hafiz Syed Waris Ali Shah (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ)

Born Date and Place:
First Ramzaan, 1238 Hijrah (disputed). At Dewa Sheriff which is 13 Km from Barabanki and 28 to 30 Km from Lucknow.

Belongings:
Our Saint Belongs to a family of learned and distinguish Syed of NISHAPUR (IRAN), Syed Ashraf Abi Talib (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) Migrated to India with his family. He settled in the out skirts of Kuntur. Town of Barabanki District. He built a home there now known as Rasoolpur.

Generation:
Miran Syed Ahmed Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) was born at Dewa Sheriff in 1141 Hijrah. Syed Karmallah (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) was his son. Whose sons were Syed Salamath Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ), Syed Bisharat Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ), and Syed Sher Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ). Syed Salamath Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) has two sons, one was Syed Qurram Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) and other was (Syed Qurban Ali (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) Father of our Saint Waris Ali Shah (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ).). 

Place of Sarkar Waris Birth:
Dewa Sheriff earned the proud name of being the birthplace of such an earnest Personality as our holy saint Waris Ali Shah (رحمتہ اللہ علیہ). It has also been historical as well as Laudable land of illustrious, intellectual luminaries, religious learned personalities and men of intellect who took birth there. It is also a place higher university education from whose portals came out savants of universal fame.
Many aged and specially venerated persons of Dewa sheriff have declared when the time for the birth of our saint was nearing his mother at different times.

Bought up:
Our Saint lost his father’s protecting hand at the age of two years and the solacing care of his mother at the age of three. His grand mother Janaba Hayathunissa Saheba (aleh-ir rahmaa) Under took the duty of carefully bringing him up. And the strange fact is that unlike other children he would not drink his milk hurriedly but gradually and slowly, moreover his thirst would be quenched with just a few Gulps, which reflected the future qualities of patience and contentment.

The ladies of Dewa Sheriff were also surprised at the noble behavior of the child and expressed that such a marvelous child is rarely to be seen; unlike other children his sleeping bed was clean, free from filth. Unlike other children he never cried but was mostly silent. Whenever he felt urge to answer the calls of nature he made strange signs and the nurse promptly attended to easy himself. During nights he was seen gazing at the moon and stars as if to appreciate the artistry of the Creator. He used to sleep very little; he would always awaken with the smiling face.


Witnessing the same and Serene activity of the precocious child, elder people of Dewa Sheriff begin to respect and hold him in high estimation. As the child begin to grow his habits assumed dignity and a sprit of independence. At the age of five his grandmother engaged a fit instructor to begin his education.

Childhood games of Sarkar Waris Pak:
The aim of his plays and games was to display the quality of Devine truth, Dignity, generosity and kindness. In the grab of games he was distributing sweets purchased from a sweet meat seller name Lukai Halwai. Even through games one can discern his aversion towards worldly life and glorification of divine love. His most delightful pastime was to distribute clothes and coverings to the poor and needy. He would even distribute home utensils of value. These innocent acts of charity are signs of revulsion towards mundane life.

Instead of enjoying the fruits of his inherited property he lavishly spent it out for the benefit of poor. In short this was an essential and inherits quality of our saints full and genuine love, which appears to us as children’s play.

Secular Education of Sarkar Waris Pak:
He learned Quran-e-Sherif from his uncle Hazrat Ameer Ali ‎(رحمتہ اللہ علیہ), on returning home he would not open his book to revise his lessons. Later seated in the lap of nature, in the quiet stillness, would be immersed in deep meditation.
With the aid of God given intellect, within two years he memorized the whole Quran and become a Hafiz (One who learns the Quran by heart). And Maulvi Imam Ali Shah ‎(رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) imparts to him secular education. Though the teacher was venerable yet he treated our saint with great respect. The reason for respecting a young was that he was himself a saint and could make out a man’s urgings for acquiring a Divine love. Our saint teaches men such lessons that are acquired without learning and without any teacher’s aid thus our saint was in not need of worldly education. He wanted to teach such lessons to others which were beyond the compression of laymen. He never forgets whatever was taught to him.
And at the age of eight he was deprived of his grand mother and there was none except the lord of the universe to look after him. There after his brother in law Hazrat Haji Syed Khadim Ali Shah Sahib a resident of Lucknow took him under his supervision and continued his education where he learnt under renowned savants.
From his sayings and particular circumstances it is quite clear that he was proficient scholar of literature and have a perfect knowledge of Quranic exegesis, one such incident was that when our saint was the guest of justice at Maulvi Syed Sharfuddin ‎(رحمتہ اللہ علیہ), he was a well known literary expert of literature and philosophy. He recited to our saint Waris-e-Pak a lengthy encomium Ode Couched in high flown Arabic Language decked with metaphors and similes. Hardly he finished reciting two of three couplets when our saint took it from his hand and read it fluently, explain the difficult words and figures. From this one can estimate our Saint’s literary, ability of Arabic Language. Our Saint had perfect knowledge of recitation of Quran and its Verses exegeses. The power of his memory was so sharp that what was taught to him at the age of 12 or 14 he would recollect at the age of eighty. It has also been noticed that our Saint conversed fluently with the Arabs and Persians in there respective languages. Such people do not need acquisition of worldly Knowledge but they are fit to answer any question as if they are experts of art and sciences.

Performing Hajj:
In 1838 A.D. Sarkar Waris Pak decided to visit holy places to perform Hajj. His devotees and disciples insisted to take some one as his companion but refusing all worldly arrangements for his journey, started on foot towards the holy shrine. Then Sarkar Waris Pak reached Unnao, Shikohabad, Ferozabad, Agra, Jaipur Ajmer, Nagore, and they’re after a voyage from Bombay to Jeddah. And Sarkar Waris got down at Jeddah and continue his journey to the holy shrine on foot.MECCA on the night of 29th Shaban our saint sat his foot in to Mecca, and saw the reality of holy Kaaba. He beheld with what his heart was aspiring without any veil draping it. There after he spent the whole day in visiting historical and sacred places, there also many prominent persons joined his cult and became his disciples. And during the pilgrimage season every year he performs the holy Hajj.

Sarkar Waris Pak Final Hajj and trips abroad:
Sarkar Waris also visited Egypt and returned to Medina passing though Palestine and from there went to Mecca to perform Hajj rites. There after a while he went to Aden and again returned to Medina to participate in Hajj ceremony. There he remained two weeks in Medina and after Friday prayers visit the tombs of high spiritual leaders.
From Bombay via Ajmer Sarkar Waris ‎(رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) reached Dewa Sheriff in 1266 Hijrah 1853 (A.D.)
IN SHORT OUR SAINT SPENT FOURTEEN YEARS COMPLETELY, TRAVELING TO THE HOLY SHRINE OF KAABA AND PERFORMED SEVEN OR ACCORDING TO TRADITION ELEVEN HAJJ.
More important and significant is the devotional sprit, purity of heart with which it is performed rather than the mere display of adding the application of Hajj with ones name.

Pardah of Sarkar Waris Pak (Death):

Friday 6th April 1905


It was nearing four ‘O’Clock Hakim Mirza Yaqub Baig was feeling the pulse and Our Saint was awaiting the approaching time to join his beloved. All of a sudden the Hakim Sahib withdrew his hand and began to weep profusely and the duration of separation of eighty six or eighty eight years came to an end and Our Saint’s Soul flew to Heaven to merge with the Infinite Beloved.

Now every year at Dewa Sheriff Karthic Mela will be held after Dusshera accordingly. Every year this Mela will be organized to pay respect and Homage to Syed Haji Qurban Ali Shah ‎(رحمتہ اللہ علیہ), Father of Our Saint Al Haj Hafiz Syed Sarkar Waris Ali Shah ‎(رحمتہ اللہ علیہ). Sarkar Waris ‎(رحمتہ اللہ علیہ) himself had fixed the date of the URS (yearly Ceremony) of his Father after Karvachauth

Some Important Instructions about Pir (Spiritual Guide):

-It is necessary for a Pir to sacrifice his life in the cause of God and not to amass any worldly wealth. He also stressed that a Pir is one who owns nothing, never to rely on anyone except God, A Pir Is Imperfect if he calls anything his property. One who makes Profession a means of subsistence is not a mendicant.
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed,” It is necessary for a Pir (Spiritual Guide) to sacrifice his life in the cause of God and not of amass any worldly wealth. He also stressed that a Pir is one who owns nothing, never to rely on any one except God, he should not hoard for the tomorrow, should not seek help from anyone other than God. A Pir (Spiritual Guide) is imperfect if he calls anything his property. One who makes profession a means of subsistence is not a mendicant.
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed,” It is the dignity of a Pir to be free, independent and self less, should never fear adversity, never complain if any trouble occurs because hardship and comfort are God given and if so to whom should he complain? A Pir is one who for love of God should obliterate himself. A fakir is one who has no capital in this world and after life. A Pir is one who maintains his behavior and manners. One who relies in God succeeds and one who trusts humanity e loses. A Pir is one who should not think of others except aloof from this world A Pir should not pray for a friend or curse and enemy. A Pir should never indulge in making amulets or knotted strings.
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed,”Mustaqim Shah not to open his eyes, Hafiz Gulab Shah Sahib to be awake day and night, Abdul Razaaq Shah Sahib not to speak and to Qadr Baqsh Sahib to abstain eating vegetables, beef meat or birds.
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed,” It is necessary for a Pir to sacrifice his life in the cause of God and not of amass any worldly wealth. He also stresses that a Pir is one ho owns nothing, never to rely on any one except God, he should not hoard for the morrow, should not seed help from anyone other than God, A Pir is imperfect if he calls anything his property. One who makes profession a means of subsistence in not a mendicant.
-Our saint often advised mendicants not to sit on a stool or sleep on a cot. The heaven of a man is mud and he should merge himself in mud.
-Sarkar Waris pak instructed his disciples never to wreck vengeance even on an enemy.
-Sarkar Waris pak instructed, “Breaking promise is a sin; greed is a prelude to dishonor.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “Envy as an ignoble quality and it spoils one’s faith.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “never to speak ill of anybody’s religion.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “Ego separates a disciple from his guide. Obscurity should be regarded as a friend and publicity should be avoided. The yearnings of one’s base self keeps one away from God.”

Instructions of Sarkar Waris pak about Namaz (Prayers):
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “Be regular in your prayers, even if there is an excuse for delay, perform it by signs.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “Prayer is one of the obligatory tenants of Islam and its importance need not be repeated.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “God likes humility, repent and perform your Namaz regularly. Prayer is an exact picture of humility and a symptom of God’s devotee.” God will be merciful.
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “one who is not observing Namaz (Prayer), “He will not be admitted as a disciple.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “It is necessary that every one should pray. Prayer is a world’s system and if this is abandoned order and law would suffer”.
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “In Prayers what is required is intense concentration and punctual performance of prayer is excellent and is a sign of obedience.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “That prayer should be performed with well intention and with one’s heart.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “In prayer fear of God and humility are essential and it is an acme of believers for it enables one to reach Divine proximity.”
-Sarkar Waris pak Instructed, “Prayer is the food of the soul”.

Sarkar Waris pak Instructions on Faith and Social Manners:
Our saint clearly taught the fundamental articles of faith and social manners.
The external and renowned meaning of unity is to express. God is one and understand him as one, which is the condition for belief. When this is confirmed, the other meaning of unity is to see God as one. This is the stage of Mystics, therefore this meaning regarding God is revealed to the heart of the Unitarian and he sees with his eyes Divine manifestation in every thing.

-Sarkar Waris pak instructed, “Concentrate in one being. What ever occurs openly or secretly, think God as a cause for it.”
-Sarkar Waris pak instructed, “It is customary when you spend a night at any place where there is a shrine you must pay a visit.”
-Sarkar Waris pak instructed, “Just as a woman’s marriage with two persons is prohibited, similarly a disciple pledging loyalty to two sheikhs is harmful.”
-Sarkar Waris pak instructed, “It is incumbent on a fakir (Hermit) to see the land and not to look up at the sky.”

Below are some important sayings of Sarkar Waris Pak:

To spend sleepless nights and to lead a recluse’s life are the attributes of mystics. These two attributes are connected with love and are distinctive features of love. Due to love a lover relinquishes worldly affairs.

-Sarkar Waris pak said, “The easiest way to reach the beloved is conception of the Beloved’s face.” Sarkar Waris pak said, “Concentrate on one face. The same will be with you in this world at the time of death and on the day of resurrection. Its regular practice makes seekers of truth turn in to complete and chaste human beings.
-According to our Saint “love is positively monotheism and monotheism is positively love.”
-Sarkar Waris pak said, “When the day of Resurrection every one will appear with their deeds and miss-deeds in hand. I too will be present, clutching the portrait of my Beloved. The Day of Judgment for them is better than the night of meeting the Beloved and in the plane of Resurrection they embraced their object of imagination.
-Sarkar Waris pak said “the strange dignity of love is that any attribute of a mystic is based on love.”
-Sarkar Waris pak said “ISLAM IS ONE TING AND FAITH IS ANOTHER THING.” Many people failed to understand the meaning behind this comment. So Sarkar Waris pak further clarified that all people who have embrace Islam by birth or by conversion just blindly follow the outward injunctions of Islam but their hearts are like stone. They pride of their prayers and it is well known the moment pride enters humility is lost. Our Holy Prophet‎(صلى الله عليه و سلم) declared,” the man who loves me more than his family, property and wealth he has faith” thus Islam is one thing and faith another. Faith also is not to stretch one’s hands before others, the significance of which is to desist asking any thing.
-Sarkar Waris pak said “The food of a mendicant is that which he gets without asking, “Do not ask anything, be satisfied and patient whatever you get without asking.”
-Our Saint instructed his devotees to mention the name of Almighty God repeating always.
-Sarkar Waris pak said “Attribute of forgetfulness is a mental state of a lover which is the fruit of excessive love. Peculiarity of a lover is hi is entirely absorbed in forgetfulness
-Sarkar Waris pak said “Love for worldly life makes one a wild animal and love for God turns one in to an angle.”
-Sarkar Waris pak said, “adhere to one face it will help you.”
-Sarkar Waris pak said. “Love is the step to reach the highest truth.”
-Sarkar Waris pak said “God is the friend for all who render services to his creatures without any ulterior motive or selfish end”
-Sarkar Waris pak said,” for, a real person is one who distributes his income to others while a coward is one who takes advantage of others property.
-Sarkar Waris pak said,” Pious people do not think of hearth and grinding stone.”
-Sarkar Waris pak said, “Women, land, and wealth are the source of worldly wrangles.” To remain free one should avoid them.
-Sarkar Waris pak also said. “Our way of life is love. There is no arrangement and one always bows down to the will of God.” And patience is the fruit of love.
-Sarkar Waris pak said.” the correct and conspicuous dignity is resignation to the will of God.”
-Fortitude to secure the pleasure and willingness of the glorious God without evading and shrinking back.
-Sarkar Waris pak said,” One who is ruined in love becomes prosperous.”
-Sarkar Waris pak said,” In love Satan also becomes a friend.”
-Sarkar Waris pak said, “What you ever want, temporal spiritual do not forget the love of God.
-Sarkar Waris pak said, “Love is the step to reach the highest truth. Angels were given partial love and human beings full love.
-Sarkar Waris pak said, “Trust in God is all prophets’ tradition. Make God your counsel.”
-The commandment of our saint is ‘be patient even if you are starving.”
-Our Saint declared “our goal of journey is love.”
-Our Saint at time waived aside all formalities of taking the oath of allegiance and would say that since if any one had love form the dawn of creation there is no need for any formal entry into the Waris fold.
-Sarkar Waris pak said, “God is the creator of each and every one in like manner he is also Master of the Universe and every ting Contained in it. God is the sustainer.”

Quality of Divine Love:
Sarkar Waris pak Said love is the step to reach the highest truth; also angles were given partial love and human beings full love.
-If love is real and true a lover sees his beloved in everything.
-Love makes man the most eminent of created beings.
-Love makes mosques and temples appear grand and dignified.
-There is rivalry in love and in love Satan is not a stranger.
-In love Satan also becomes a friend.
-One who is ruined in love becomes prosperous.
-To a real over Knowledge of God is invisible in every atom, like a mirror,
-In love man becomes blinds and deaf, except disgrace he will not be associated with good qualities.
-In entanglement in love, one’s Wisdom vanishes away.
-There is no arrangement in love.
-If love is perfect the faith also is full and perfect.
-If love is defective, faith will also be defective.
-Sarkar Waris pak instructions to his devotees and disciples were to cultivate the habit of love.
-Surrender to the will of God which is the highest rank of Perfect resignation.
-In love, our Saint said, “there is giving up and foregoing and in love a lover only sees the manifestation of his beloved in everything”.
-It is necessary for a lover never to complain even if his head is cut because the murderer is not a stranger. A lover is one in whose breath the remembrance of his beloved is audible.
-Lovers are less but Saints are numerous, a lover with whomsoever he is in love, worships him, of which face he has fallen in love with, hi is absorbed in that face.

Trust in God:
The Commandment of our Saint is be patient even if you are starving. God is all Knowing omniscient. Sarkar Waris pak also said, to whoever it is destined you will surely get it; who ever trust God He surely helps him.
-Trust in God is all prophets’ tradition. Make God your counsel.
-God is responsible for your food.
-Trust in God is opposite of avarice.
-Trust in God is a symptom of modesty,


The sense of the moral conclusion of our Saint is his sterling qualities of trust in God as a superfine quality. The miracle of trust in God of our Saint, its rays of light on others, makes them his votaries gifted with this quality, which becomes inherent in them.

Fragrance Emanating from Sarkar Waris pak Body:
Sarkar Waris pak wide renowned and special quality was a fragrant scent emanating from his body which his devotees smelled during their visit and unanimously acknowledged it’s exhilarating and soul-solacing fragrance. It may seem strange to the present generation as it is against nature but from reliable, and incontrovertible sources it has been proved that our Holy Prophet‎(صلى الله عليه و سلم) was gifted with this Divine quality which left a trail of fragrance over places through which he passed. People were certain from the fragrance emanating in the atmosphere that our Prophet must have passed through those places. And this divine fragrance was passed down in their children for generations to come.

Thus in accordance with the above authoritative saying for instance among the descendants of their Holy Prophet‎(صلى الله عليه و سلم) a fortunate child was born the enchanting fragrance of whose body, a symptom of superiority, spread his fame in the world.
Even the other group of mystics acknowledges the unusual gift bestowed on him by the Almighty God.
His disciples were already aware of its enchanting fragrance.
Another rare quality was, even Sarkar Waris pak clothes when they touched his body absorbed this fragrance and people would easily identify his clothes. Any cloth cotton, woolen, or silk would immediately be saturated the moment they touched Sarkar’s sacred body.
Even to this day this unique quality of fragrance is not extinct and felt during the anniversary when his devotees of all religions from the highest to lowest level of society offer coverings sheets to be spread over his tomb, testing one above the other and are saturated with this fragrance from top to bottom……

Urs:

The fair attracts pilgrims from as far as Pakistan and the middle -east countries. The shrine of the Sufi saint is much revered by Muslim pilgrims all over the world. Every Year Urs Ceremonies will be held 3 times, as described below:

Kartik: (Held any time between 1st Oct – 15 Nov)

Fair commenced every year between the months of September October. Sarkar Waris Pak Alam Panah organized Urs of his father, “Syed Haji Qurban Ali Shah (r.a)” in the month of ‘Kartik’ according to Hindu calendar when a big fair is held to commemorate the Saints. Relieved of agriculture operations in the month of the fair people from far and wide participate in it in a festive mood. Visitors from all the parts of the country come to pay their homage to the great Sufi Saint Haji Waris Ali Shah and his father. Pilgrims from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia are also attracted to make the fair a cosmopolitan congregation.

Chait:(1st Rabi-ul-awwal, starting April)

Safar: (1st of Safar, starting March)

Haji Waris Ali Shah a monarch in the domain of Sufism passed away for his heavenly abode on April 6th, 1905. The fair ceremony in this month is the ceremony of Sarkar Waris Pak Alam Panah himself, held in the month of April every year, in Urdu calendar this month is termed to be safar.