Sufism in Bangladesh
India, it is claimed, is one of the five great centers of Sufism, the other four being Persia (including central Asia), Baghdad, Syria, and North Africa.
[3] The Sufism tremendously influenced local population and thus these Sufi masters were the single most important factor in South Asian conversions to Islam, particularly in what is now Bangladesh.
The concepts of nafs (self), zikr (remembrance), ibadat (prayer), morakaba (meditation), miraj (ascension), tajalli (divine illumination), faqr (spiritual poverty), tawhid (Unity of God), fana (annihilation) and baqa (subsistence) are all the basic sources of Sufism, as practiced in Bangladesh.
[3] Bengal was also likely home to indigenous folk religions not bound by Buddhist, Brahmanic or Islamic orthodoxy; the 14th century account of Ibn Battuta describes the subjects of Fakhruddin Mubarak Shah in Sylhet as "[n]oted for their devotion to and practice of magic and witchcraft".
[12] The 12th century Turkish-speaking migrants from Central Asia were often either led by an alp (also written alp-eren; a heroic warrior) or a Sufi teacher.
[3] The earliest known Muslim inscription in Bengal records the construction of a khanqah by a fakir whose father was born in Maragheh, Iran.
[3] In the 1930s, orientalist Paul Wittek adopted this theme in his Gaza thesis explaining the spread of Islam and the Ottoman Empire.
Typically adherents of the Suhrawardi, Firdausi or Chishti orders, these "urban Sufis" often formed a mutual patronage with temporal leaders.
Nizamuddin Auliya's khanqah in Badayun trained sheikhs who spread throughout South Asia, including his Bengal disciple Akhi Siraj Aainae Hind.
The second sultan, Sikandar Shah, clashed with Alaul Haq Pandavi over the amount of money he was distributing to the poor, and he may have been wary of the Sufi gaining too much power with the public.
[3]The Jaunpur sultan Ibrahim Shah was the intended target of the sheikh's letter, but it was internal dynamics that would restore Muslim rule to Bengal.
The Hindu conqueror Raja Ganesha's son and successor Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah converted to Islam under Sufi influence.
In the 19th century, the Sufi teacher Gausul Azam Maizbhandari introduced the Qadiriyya order to Bangladesh, with his particular teachings coalescing into Tarika-e-Maizbhandari.
Prominent Sufi personalities in Bangladesh includes Sayyid Muhammad Burhanuddin Uwaysi, Abdul Gafur Hali, Syed Ahmad Ali Urfi Jan Sharif Shah Sureshwari,[19] Ahmed Ullah Maizbhanderi, Golamur Rahman Maizbhandari aka “Baba Bhandari”, Salekur Rahman Rahe Bhanderi, Sayed Delaor Husaein, Sayed Ziaul Haq, Syed Rashid Ahmed Jaunpuri.
Large numbers of the faithful attend anniversary ceremonies, which are festive occasions enjoyed by the followers of the pir as well as orthodox Muslims.
[4] Anthropologist Peter J. Bertocci wrote, "Many, if not most, visit the graveside shrines (mazar) of pirs, some at least occasionally, many often, and an untold number rather regularly, throughout their lives".
