Muharram and Sufi Waris Ali Shah

Muharram and Sufi Waris Ali Shah     

By Dr.Mazhar Naqvi

Haji Waris Ali Shah, the founder of Warsi Sufi order, was a great devotee of Imam Husain and Muharram is observed at his shrine at Deva Sharif near Lucknow with great reverence every year. The existence of an Imambara inside the complex of his Dargah stands as a symbol of Waris Pak’s love for Ahle-Bait.

Waris Pak belonged to a distinguished family Husaini Syeds known for its piety and learning. His genealogy reveals that he was born in the 26th generation of Hazrat Imam Husain in 1809 according to the author of ‘ Maarif Warisya’ . He lost his father Syed Qurban Ali Shah who had completed his education at Baghdad and was a learned man with considerable means.

He showed his love for Imam Husain from the days of infancy. It is stated that he did not allow her mother to feed him on Yaum-E-Ashura when he was a few days old. He showed his indifference towards the worldly affairs from a very young age. Having lost his parents at the age of only three, he was brought up by his grand mother. He never played with children and preferred seclusion and isolation. Waris Pak avoided the company of children of his age but derived great pleasure in distributing sweets among them. He used to say that ‘My Dadi( Grand mother has enough Asharfis ( Gold Coins) for distributing sweets to children every day”.

He had memorized Quran by the age of five but he seldom took interest in the reading of books. However, whenever his teacher asked him any question, he came up always with superb answers. Soon his fame as a child blessed with divine power spread and people came to realize that he was destined to glory as a pious saint at a time when Mughal Empire was on its death bed and sectarian frenzy was being encouraged to facilitate British Rule in India. After early education at Deva, Waris Pak’s responsibility for further learning was taken by his brother in Law Haji Syed Khadim Ali Shah. He  lived at Lucknow and initiated him in the mysteries of occult science and imparted him necessary training to become a true Sufi of highest order.

The mantle of spreading the mission of his brother –in-law descended upon Waris Pak at the age of 14 following the demise of Syed Khadim Ali Shah. He started initiating people in his order and increased the number of his disciples in a short span of time.. When he was only fifteen, the burning glow of divine love impelled him to start on a pilgrimage to He decided to visit Mecca at the age of 15 and  gave away all his property including a valuable library to his relations and destroyed documents relating to his properties. Apart from Mecca, he also visited Najaf Ashraf and Karbala. He wept bitterly at the shrines of Maula Ali and Imam Husain.

About Ahle-bait, he used to tell his disciples during his discourses with them that Tasleem  aur Raza, Bibi Fatima aur donon sahabzadon Ka Hissa Hai. He always preached that Imam Husain sacrificed not only himself but his entire family for the raza of Allah at Karbala. “Who can understand the relationship between Allah and martyr like Husain? This is a hyper sensitive issue.” He always emphasized that love for Ahle-Bait a pre- requisite for the attainment of God’s will and no one can claim himself to be a Muslim without revering Prophet and his family.

During Muharram he performed taziadari himself. The tazia kept at the imambara inside the complex of his shrine is still carried in the Ashura procession. Its color is black and studded with glasswork. The imambara also contains ‘Alams’ in memory of Saqqa-e-Karbala Hazrat Abbas. Waris Pak also had high regards for Hazrat Abbas and used to arrange Sabeel-E-Sakeena   on Ashura and Chehlum for distribution of water and sharbat among taziadars. Waris Pak ensured to visit each house of Deva where tazia was kept during Muharram. While visiting a tazia he used to sit in front of it for several hours quietly and at times he hurriedly returned after offering nazr. He never explained the reason behind his strange behavior.  

In his old age, he restricted his visits to tazias of only Ghasite Miyan and Choti Bibi. On 10^th Muharram, he used to receive all the tazia processions in front of his house. He never entered his house so long as tazias remained near his house and retired to his room only after the departure of all tazias. His biographer mentions that on first night of Muharram, he recited verses from Holy Quran more than his daily routine. In rest of the days of Ashura, he preferred to remain silent. But he listen marsiyas and bravery of Ahle- Bait throughout Muharram.

After preaching the right path to humanity  and presenting Imam Husain and Ahle-Bait-e-Athar as role model for  becoming  decent human beings  in accordance with Allah’s will, Waris  Pak left for  his heavenly abode on April 7th, 1905. He was laid to rest at the spot where he attained ‘Purdah’. This place is marked by a splendid monument erected in his memory by his followers. It is visited by a large number of devotees every day and it is considered incumbent upon each visitor to offer tribute to king of martyr at the imambara inside Dargah complex as a mark of successful completion of his pilgrimage to Deva Sharif.