Mirwaiz (Urdu: میر واعظ, from mir, chief and waiz, preacher) is a hereditary institution of head priests that is unique to the Kashmir Valley.
Each lineage is traditionally the preserve of a single family that traces its roots to an ancestor who arrived in Kashmir with Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani in the 14th century.
Out of his four sons Moulana Rasool Shah the 2nd (1251-1327 H) also known as Sir Sayyed-e-Kashmir, was a pioneer in introducing modern education in Kashmir under the banner of Anjuman-e-Nasratul-Islam.
Mirwaiz Yusuf Shah is believed to have developed good relations with the world-famous scholar Muhammad Asad who had come to Kashmir in the year 1934.
[7] After the death of Atique Ullah Shah in 1962, his grandson Moulvi Muhammad Farooque became Naib Mirwaiz Kashmir.