Sheikh Noor-ud-din Wali

Sheikh Noor-ud-din, also known as Nund Rishi or Nanda Rishi, was a Kashmiri saint who belonged to the Rishi order. He was born in 1377 CE, corresponding to 779 Hijri and he died at the age of 63 years in the year of 1440 CE or 842 Hijri.^[1] In various circles, is also called Alamdar-e-Kashmir and Sheikh-ul-Alam and is the patron saint of Kashmiris, highly revered by both Muslims and Hindus.^{[citation needed]}

Biography

Shaikh Nur-ud-din was born in a village called Qaimoh (old name Katimusha)[District 'KULGAM'], which is 60 km South east of Srinagar, in 779 A.H. = 1377 A.C, on the day of the Eid al-Adha.^{[citation needed]} His father's name was Shaikh Salar-ud-din his mother Sadra, was called Sadra Moji or Sadra Deddi. In Kashmir, Moji means 'mother' and Deddi denotes 'elderly.' Both the parents were well known for their piety. It was a period when Kashmir was ruled by the sultans Qutub-ud-Din, Sikandar, Ali Shah, and Zain-ul-Abidin.^{[citation needed]}

When Nur-ud-din grew up, his stepbrothers began to trouble him.^{[citation needed]} They were rogues, while he was saintly. Once or twice he accompanied them to find work but felt that he could not be happy with them. He was then apprenticed to a couple of traders, one after the other. There, too, he felt disgusted with the ways of the world, and, deciding upon renunciation, retired to caves for meditation at the age of thirty. It is said that he lived for twelve years in the wilderness. Hence, perhaps, kaimuh is given the derivation of kai-wan (or ban, a forest) in rustic belief. The actual cave of contemplation is shown in kaimuh and is about 10 feet deep. In his last days, the saint sustained life on one cup of milk daily. Finally, he reduced himself to water alone, and died at the age of 63, in the reign of sultan Zain-ul-Abidin, in 842 A. H. = 1438 A.C. Shams-ul-Arifin or 'the sun of the pious' is the chronogram which gives the date of his death. The Sultan accompanied his bier to the grave. The burial prayers were led by a great divine or 'Alim of the age, Makhdum Baba Usman Uchchap Ganai. The tomb of Shaikh Nur-ud-din at Charari Sharief, a small town perched on a dry bare hill, 20 miles south west of Srinagar, is visited by thousands of people to the present day.

During his lifetime, he witnessed a gradual cultural and religious transformation of the people of the valley, from Hinduism to Islam. Various historical events helped to shape his mind in such a manner that he produced some works of philosophy, in his own manner of verses and poetry.^{[citation needed]}

Sheikh ul-Alam was deeply affected by such events and this is apparent in a majority of his verses. The biggest event that occurred in the Sheikh's childhood was the coming of another Muslim preacher, Amir Kabir Mir Syed Hamadani, to Kashmir. Shah Hamadan, as he was popularly called, came to Kashmir in September 1372 CE, 1379 CE and the third time in the year 1383 CE.

Shaikh Nur-ud-din- appears to have married Zai Ded from Dadasara, Tral, Pulwama( her father Akber-u-Din(RA) and two brothers "Kamal-u-din" and "Jamal-u-din" are buried at Dadasara Tral, people of the area visited their shrine for "Dua" to fulfil their needs ) and had two sons and one daughter. On the death of the children, Zai Ded also renounced the world, and became a hermit. She was buried at Kaimuh on her death.

The simplicity and purity of Shaikh Nur-ud-din's life have deeply impressed the Kashmiri who entertains the highest veneration for the saint. In fact, the Afghan governor, Ata Muhammad Khan, gave, as it were, expression to public sentiment when coins were struck by him in the name of Shaikh Nur-ud-din in 1223-25 A.H. (1808-10 CE).^{[citation needed]}

Works

Sheikh Nur al-Din Wali is one of the most prominent scholars and Du'ah of Kashmir. He used his poetry as tool to spread the true knowledge of Islam. His poetry is commonly known as Shrukhs. Tawhid, Risala, Ma'ad, human lust etc. are main subjects of his poetry. He vehemently criticized the so-called Mullas and other pseudo-scholars of Islam .^{[citation needed]}

He was a man of innate foresight and intuitive knowledge. One of his most famous and oft quoted couplets is (Kashmiri:"Ann poshi teli yeli wann poshi") meaning 'Food will last as long as forests last'^[2] Lal Ded the famous Shaivite poetess of Kashmir was his contemporary. She had a great impact on his spiritual growth. He has in one of his poems prayed to God to grant him the same level of spiritual achievement as God had bestowed on Lal Ded.^[3]

His teachings were not to the liking of the Sayyids who had recently come from central Asia and wanted the sultan to implement a radical version of Islam. For this the sultans had him arrested and imprisoned for two years. Later the popular sultan Budshah (son of Sultan Sikandar Butshikan) who was of a secularist bent of mind had him rehabilitated. His sayings are preserved in the Nur-nama, commonly available in Kashmir. The Nur-nama also gives the life of the saint. It was written by Baba Nasib-ud-din Ghazi in Persian about two centuries after the death of Shaikh Nur-ud-din.^[1][3] Anecdotes of the life of this 'chief of the Rishis' are on the lips of the people throughout the valley.

The University of Kashmir has honoured him by creating the Shaikh-ul-Alam Chair in his name.

Shrine

The shrine of Sheikh-ul-Alam, in addition to the structure itself, comprises attached Khanqahs, inns for the pilgrims is a place of pilgrimage for Kashmiris of all communities. The shrine contained 600 years old handmade Persian and Kashmir carpets, ancient objects and scrolls, some antique copies of the Quran, extremely precious cut-glass chandeliers etc., all which were reduced to smoke and ashes during a firefight between the Indian army and militants on April 11, 1995.^{[citation needed]} The shrine has been rebuilt although the adjoining Khanqah is still under construction.

References

External links