Sharfuddin Yahya Maneri
By SYED AMJAD HUSSAIN
published July 28, 2024
Makhdoom Shaykh Sharfuddin Ahmed Bin Yahya Maneri (1263–1381), popularly known as Makhdoom-e-Jahan, Makhdoom-ul-Mulk Bihar, or Makhdoom e Bihar, was an Islamic scholar, writer, and Sufi saint. He was a follower of the Firdausiyya order, an offshoot of the Suhrawardiyya order of Sufism, and was a murid (spiritual student) of Peer Shaykh Najeebuddin Firdausi. He was the great-grandson of Imam Muhammad Taj Faqih Hashmi, who reached India and defeated King Maner along with Momin Arif, the first Muslim to reach Bihar. He comes from a family that is the most influential in Sufism. He was the most known Sufi saint of the Firdausiyya order; his resting place, Bihar Sharif, was known as the Centre of Sufism during his time.
Birth
Shaykh was born on 26 Shaban 661 Hijri, the same as in the year 1263, in Maner Sharif, a small town near Patna, to Shaykh Kamaluddin Yahya Maneri, also known as Shaykh al-Hind, and Bibi Raziya, daughter of Syed Shahabuddin Suhrawardi Balkhi, also known as Peer Jagjot Balkhi, a sufi saint of the Suhrawardiyya order, and is buried at Kachchi Dargah, Patna. He was born in the Khanqah built by his great-grandfather, Imam Muhammad Taj Faqih Hashmi, at Maner Sharif. His birth place is secured and marked as a holy place. During his birth, Sultan Naseeruddin Mehmood was the emperor of Delhi.
Education
Makhdoom-e-Jahan had his early education under his father, Kamaluddin Yahya Maneri, and Shah Ruknuddin Marginani at Maner Sharif, Bihar.
He left Maner Sharif, Bihar, at the age of 12 to study and gain knowledge abroad about Islam, Arabic, Persian, logic, and philosophy. He reached and was under the guidance of Ashraf-Uddin Abu Towama Bukhari, a famous teacher based in Sonargaon (now in Dhaka, Bangladesh). He has been under the guidance of Towama Bukhari for more than 24 years and then came back to the region of Bihar and stayed at Bihar Sharif's most popular place, Badi Dargah.
Sufism
After the completion of his studies, he went to Delhi, which was then known as the center of sufism, to become a disciple of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya in sufism, but Hazrat Nizamuddin asked him to contact Khwaja Najibuddin because you’re written in his ‘Kismat’.
Personal life
He refused to marry in his life, but he later married Bibi Badaam, the daughter of Abu Tawama, after falling ill. They had a son, Shaykh Zakiuddin, who was born in 1289 and lived and died in Bengal.
Books
- Maktoobat-e-Saadi, a collection of letters written to Qazi Shamsuddin in 747 Hijri based on Islamic Theosophy, are literary genii on spiritual writing.
- Madan-ul-Maani
- Seerat-ush-Sharaf
- Rahat-ul-Quloob, a book on Sufism
- Irshad-ut-Talibeen-o-Irshad-us-Saalikeen
- Fawaid-ul-Murideen
- Munisul-Mureedeen
- Khwan-e-Pur Nemat
- Maktoobat-e-Bist-o-Hasht
- Maktubaat-e-Sharfuddin Yahya Maneri
- Kanzul Ma-ani, a book on Sufism
- Shara-e-Abadul, a book on Sufism
- Fawaidat Rukni, a book on Sufism
Successors
- Khwaja Shaykh Ishaque Maghrabi was a sufi saint who is buried at Matokhar Dargah in the Sheikhp District of Bihar. (Makhdoom-e-Jahan, written by Shamim Munemi, pages 25–26).
- Shaykh Shah Shuaib Firdausi Sheikhpurvi was an Indian Sufi saint who is known as the one who established the Sheikhpura district of Bihar during the 14th century. He was the son of Shaykh Jamaluddin Yahya Maneri, the uncle of Sharafuddin Yahya Maneri.
Bibliography
- Raza, Mohammad Akram Firdausi Silsila E Tasawwuf Shaikh Sharfuddin Ahmad Yahya Maneri Ke Hawale Se PhD Thesis submitted to Jamia Milia Islamia (in Urdu)
- Imran, Atif The Contribution of Shaikh Sharfuddin Ahmad Bin Yahya Maneri in Persian Literature: An Overview Article submitted to Department of Islamic Studies, Maulana Azad National Urdu University, Hyderabad.
- Rahman, Rizwanur Sharafuddin Ahmad Yahya Maneri: Patron Sa int of Islam in the Ind ian Province of Bihar
References
* Aḥmad, Iẓhār (2007). Madhubani, Through the Ages: A Regional History of Madhubani. Madhubani (India)
* Malik, Jamal (2020-04-06). Islam in South Asia: Revised, Enlarged and Updated Second Edition. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-42271-1.
* Proceedings - Punjab History Conference. Department of Punjab Historical Studies, Punjabi University. 1992.
* Hussain, Syed Shah Shahamat Ansaab-e-Sharfi: Hazrat Makhdoom Sharfuddin Ahmed Yahya Maneri Aur Unka Khandaan page number 28-29
* Ansab-e-Sharfi page 30-31
* Munemi, Syed Shah Shamimuddin Makhdoom-e-Jahan page 6, 12-13
* Indo-iranica. Iran Society. 2005.
* The Journal of the Bihar Research Society. Bihar Research Society.