People
across the globe are drawn to Sufism, its influence is particularly strong in
Pakistan. Sufis played a vital role in the spread of Islam in the sub-continent
and are highly revered in the region. Not surprisingly, shrines of these
mystics draw hundreds and thousands throughout the year, and opulent tributes
are paid to them on their birth and death anniversaries annually. Sufism has an illustrious history in Pakistan and India evolving for over 1,000 years.
Here are some of the most frequented shrines
in Pakistan:
1.Shrine of Abdullah Shah Ghazi, Karachi
Abdullah Shah
Ghazi was an
eighth century Muslim mystic whose shrine is located in the Clifton
neighbourhood of Karachi, Pakistan. One of the most popular
urban myths of Karachi is related to what is perhaps
its largest Sufi shrine.
2. Shrine of Hazrat Shah Rukn-e-Alam, Multan
The Tomb of Shah Rukn-e-Alam located in Multan, Pakistan, is the mausoleum of the
Sufi saint Sheikh Rukn-ud-Din Abul Fateh. Shaikh
Rukn-e-Alam (Rukn-al-Din) was buried in the mausoleum of his grandfather,
according to his own will. After sometime, however, his coffin was transferred
to the present mausoleum, which was built between 1320 and 1324.
3. Shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, Sehwan Sharif
The shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar was built in 1356 and
decorated with Sindhi 'kashi-tiles', mirror-work and a gold-plated door donated
by the Shah
of Iran, Reza Shah Pahlavi and installed by the late
Prime Minister of Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.[5] The
inner sanctum is about 100 square yards with a silver-canopied grave in the middle,
according to Nadeem Wagan, Cutharo silver donated by Sardar Mahboob Ali Khan
Wagan (Chief Sardar of Wagan Tribe) on one side of the marble floor is a row of
about 12-inch-high (300 mm) folding wooden stands, on which there is a set
copies of Quran for devotees to read. On the
other side, beside a bundle of incense, are rows of oil-lamps lighted by
devotees. Thousands of devotees visit the tomb particularly every Thursday.
4. Shrine of Data
Ganj Bakhsh, Lahore
Data Darbar located in the city
of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan is one of the
oldest Muslim shrines in South Asia. It houses the
remains of a Sufi saint, Abul Hassan Ali Hajvery (commonly known as DaataGanj Baksh). Ali-Hajvari is
said to have died on the twentieth of the month of Rabi-ul-Awwal AH 465, but
the date, the month and year are all conjectural. Most early writers agree on
AH 455 as the year of his death, on the basis of the various chronograms.
Though the actual date of his death was the 9th of Muharram and his Urs is on
the 19th of Safar.
5.The Tomb of Bibi Jawindi, Uch Sharif, Punjab
Shrine Uch or Uch Sharif is located in Punjab, Pakistan. Uch is also
known as "Alexandria at the Head of the Punjab", is a historical
city in Pakistan. Once it was an important city of ancient India. It
is believed that in 325 BC Alexander the Great founded a city
called Alexandria at the site of the last confluence of Punjab rivers
with the Indus river. The Tomb of Bibi Jawindi is a monument in Uch Sharif
and on the tentative list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. According to
historians, the shrine was built around 1493 by an Iranian prince for Bibi
Jawindi, the great-granddaughter of a famous Sufi saint Jahaniyan Jahangasht.
Overall Uch Sharif, is famous for shrine culture because of several monuments
and shrines in the area.
6.Shrine of Khawaja Ghulam Farid, Mithan Kot, Rajanpur
Hazrat Khawaja Ghulam Farid Shrine - Mithan Kot.Khawaja
Farid (1845-1901) was a Seraiki poet, mystic and Sajjada nashin (Patron saint)
of the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. He was born and died at
Chacharan Shrif but buried at Kot Mithan. He was the son of Khwaja Khuda
Bakhsh. His mother died when he was five years old and he was orphaned at age
twelve when his father died. He was educated by his elder brother, Fakhr Jahan
Uhdi. He was a scholar of that time and wrote several books. He knew Arabic,
Persian, Urdu, Sindhi, Panjabi, Braj Bhasha, and Seraiki. He was a poet of
Seraiki and Urdu. He also wrote some poems in Sindhi, Persian, and Braj Bhasha.
He was an imperialist poet. He opposed British rule in Bahawalpur. He said to
ruler of Bahawalpur in his poem, “You rule yourself on your state and finish
police station of British from your state.”
7.Hazrat Muhammad Shah Yusaf Gardezi, Multan
Within the city
of Multan Pakistan there is shrine
of Hazrat Muhammad Shah Yusaf
Gardezi commonly
known as Shah Gardez. old classical shrine with a beautiful touch of Iranian
construction touch, situated in the walled area of Tha ancient MULTAN city.
8.Shrine of Hazrat Bahauddin Zakariya, Multan
Hazrat Bahauddin
Zakariya was
a Sufi of Suhrawardiyya order (tariqa). His Moseleum or shrine is situated in the heart
of Multan city of Pakiatan. Hazrat
Sheikh Bahauddin Zakariya Suhrawardi was the leading Sufi saint of
his time in North Western India and belonged to well known Suhrawardi silsila
originating in Baghdad. He was a contemporary of Hazrat Baba Fariduddin Ganjshakar of
Ajodhan and Hazrat Khwaja Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki of
Delhi. All three great saints had a close friendship and mutual regard for each
other.
9.Tomb Of Shah Shams Tabrez, Multan
He arrived in Multan in 1165 AD and passed away in 1276 AD.
The message is given by this holy saint is peace, humanity and respect with
each other. He was buried near the passageway of the River Ravi, at that time
there was no tomb was built. His tomb was built by his grandson after 54 years
of his death and was reconstructed by one of his follower (Mureed) again. The
tomb is about 360 inches in height and covered by a semi-circular green color
dome. As the saint Shah Shamas tabraiz was simple his tomb too and decorated
with glassy tile
10.Shrine Sultan Bahu
The shrine of
Sultan Bahu, located in Garh
Maharaja, Punjab,[5] was
originally built on his grave but has had to be moved twice when the Chenab River changed its course. It is a
popular Sufi shrine, and the annual Urs festival
commemorating his death is celebrated there with great fervour on the first
Thursday of Jumada
al-Thani month. People come from far off places to
join the celebrations
