Syed Jalaluddin Surkh-Posh Bukhari (Urdu: سید جلال الدین شرخ پوش بخاری‎, c. 595-690 AH, 1199–1291 CE) was a Sufi saint and missionary and was one of our ancestors. He was a follower of Baha-ud-din Zakariya of the Suhrawardiyya order. Bukhari died on the 19th day of the 5th month (Jumada al-awwal) 690 AH (20 May 1291 CE) in Uch, Punjab aged 95.

Names

Bukhari, a family name, is derived from his birthplace, Bukhara, in modern Uzbekistan. Bukhari is a Sayyid, a male who is a descendant of Muhammad. Bukhari’s ancestors were Muhammad’s grandsons, Hasan ibn Ali and Husayn ibn Ali. Bukhari was bornJalaluddin haider. However, he has a number of names and titles. He is known as Jalal Ganj; Mir Surkh (Red Leader); Sharrif ullah(Noble of Allah); Mir Buzurg (Big Leader); Makhdum-ul-Azam; Jalal Akbar; Azim ullah (Azim? of Allah); Sher Shah (Lion King); Jalal Azam and Surkh-Posh Bukhari. With formal honorifics, Bukhari is known as Sayyid Jalaluddin; Mir Surkh Bukhari; Shah Mir Surkh-Posh of Bukhara; Pir Jalaluddin Qutub-al-Aqtab; Sayyid Jalal and Sher Shah Sayyid Jalal. Bukhari was known as Surkh-posh (“clad in red”) because he often wore a red mantle.

Family

Fatima (first wife)

Bukhari’s first wife was Syeda Fatima, daughter of Syed Qasim. Bukhari and Fatima had two children, Ali and Ja’far. In 635 AH, after Fatima’s death, Bukhari moved with his two sons from Bukhara to Bhakkar. Ali and Ja’far are buried in Bukhara.

Zohra (second wife)

In Bhakkar, Bukhari married Bibi Tahireh (Zahra), daughter of Sayyid Badruddin Bhaakri, the son of Sayyid Muhammad Al-Makki. Zohra and Bukhari had two sons: Sadruddin Mohammed Ghaus (who moved to the Punjab) and Bahauddin Mohamed Masoom. Their descendants live in and around Thatta, Uch (Deogarh) and Lahore. A daughter of Sadruddin Mohammed Ghaus married Jahaniyan Jahangasht.

Bibi Fatima Habiba Saeeda (third wife)

After Zohra’s death, Bukhari married the second daughter of Badruddin Bhakkari, Bibi Fatima Habiba Saeeda. They had a son, Syed Ahmed Kabir (Ahmed Kabir), who was the father of Jahaniyan Jahangasht and Makhdoom Sadruddin. It is mentioned within books of history that Sayyid Sadruddin, Sayyid Maah and Sayyid Shams who were the brothers of Sayyid Badruddin objected to him marrying his daughters to Bukhari and exiled him and Bukhari from Bhakkar.

Life’s work

Bukhari’s life was spent travelling. As an Islamic missionary, he converted tribes such as the Soomro, Samma, Chadhar, Sial, Daher and the Warar. Bukhari was one of the Chaar Yaar (not to be confused with the Rashidun). The Chaar Yaar were the group of pioneers of the Suhrawardiyya Sufi and Chisti movements of the 13th century. Bukhari founded the “Jalali” section of the Suhrawardiyya order of Sufi. He converted the Samma, the Sial, the Chadhar, the Daher and the Warar tribes of the Southern Punjab and Sindh. Some of his followers (mureed) spread to Gujarat. The mureed included Bukhari’s grandson, Jahaniyan Jahangasht (d. 1384 CE) who visited Mecca 36 times. Other mureed included Abu Muhammad Abdullah (Burhanuddin Qutb-e-Alam) (d. 1453 CE) and Shah e Alam(d. 1475 CE). In 1134 CE, the Sial followers of Bukhari settled in the community that is now Jhang. In the late 17th century, the settlement was washed away. Bukhari’s descendent, Mehboob Alam Naqvi-ul Bukhari Al-Maroof Shah Jewna, encouraged the followers to resettle the area. Many of Bukhari’s disciples are buried in Banbhore and Makli Hill near Thatta.

Legendary meetings

Sultan of Delhi

In 642 AH, when Bukhari had begun his missionary work in Uch, he was visited by Nasiruddin Mahmud of the Delhi Sultanate.

Shah Daulah Shahid

Shah Daulah Shahid, is a Muslim saint who is buried in Bengal. In Bukhara, Bukhari presented Saint Daulah with a pair of gray pigeons. From Bukhara, Saint Daulah travelled to Bengal where he battled and was killed by the Hindu king of Shahzadpur.

Lalla

One of Bukhari’s female disciples was Lalleshwari (Lal Ded) (d. 1400 CE, Bijbehara). She met Jahaniyan Jahangasht, a descendant of Bukhari and embraced Islam at his hands. She travelled in Kashmir with him. Lalla was a teacher of Nuruddin Nurani who is considered by the Kashmiris, both Hindus as well as Muslims, as the patron saint of Kashmir. He also met Chengiz Khan, the Mongol, and endeavoured to convert him to Islam, but Chengiz Khan ordered him to be burnt alive.[citation needed] The fire however turned into a bush of roses and on seeing this miracle Chengiz Khan became inclined to be more sympathetic towards Islam and Muslims[citation needed]. Chengiz offered to give his daughter in marriage to Hazrat Jalaludin. He at first refused to take Chengiz’s daughter as his wife but then he heard a divine voice say that hisdescendants would spread far and wide and were destined to be Qutubs “saints” of the world. After this he consented to the marriage on[citation needed]. This proved to be true as his descendants are quite numerous, and many Sayyid families in the Punjab, Sindh, the United Provinces (Uttar Pradesh), Kachchh and Hyderabad Deccan, claim descent from him, and trace their origins toUchch Sharrif. His two male issues from his second wife, Fatima, the daughter of Sayyid Qasim Hussein Bukhari, Sayyid Ali and Sayyid Jaffar, are buried in tombs at Bukhara. He brought his son Sayyid Baha-ul-Halim with him to Sindh and he settled in Uchch in 1244

 

Ancestors and descendants

Bukhari’s biography and family history are cited extensively in such works as the “Marat-e-Jalali”, the Mazher-i-Jalali, the Akber-ul-Akhyar, the Rauzat-ul-Ahbab,Maraij-ul-Walayat, Manaqabi Qutbi, the Siyar-ul-Aqtar, the Siyar-ul-Arifeen and the Manaqib-ul-Asifya. These manuscripts are held by Bukhari Sayyids, however the work Marat-e-Jalali  was first published in 1918 in books form from Allahabad India and its second edition with updates and more research material was printed as a book in 1999 from Karachi Pakistan. His descendants are called “Naqvi al-Bukhari”. The part of Uch where the family settled is called “Uch Bukharian”. The lineage contains saints and religious leaders. Some moved to Turkestan and were married to the Tatar Mongols. Others moved to Bursa in Turkey and others moved to Bilot Sharif,District Attock (Attock Khurd+village Kamra Kalaan) and District Sialkot (Tehsil Shakargarh in Villages Kotli Shah Saleem Kala Chechi (Kara Chechen), Nurkot, etc.) as well as in the Tribal Areas of Kurram, Orakzai and Kohat. There are a number of tombs of Bukhari descendants across the Punjab, Sindh, Indian Gujrat and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. They include: Jahaniyan Jahangasht (d. 1308 CE), Baba Shah Jamal in Lahore, Hazrat Baba Shah Saleem and Shah Nazar in Sialkot district and Rajan Qittal, Bibi Jawindi (c. 1492 CE), Bukhari’s great granddaughter and Mir Mohammad Masoom, the forefather of the Bokhari Naqvi family of Dreg, Dera Ghazi Khan and Channan Pir and Wadpagga Sharif in Peshawar.

The tomb of Bibi Jawindi and the tomb and mosque of Jalaluddin Bukhari have been on the “tentative” list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 2004. World Monuments Fund also promotes its conservation.

Family lineage

According to Mara’at Jalali and Malfuzul Makhdoom, Bukhari’s lineage is:

• Jalaluddin Surkh-Posh Bukhari
• Ali Al-Moayad
• Ja’far
• Muhammad Abu al Fateh
• Mahmood
• Ahmed
• Abdullah
• Ali Al Ashghar
• Ja’far (d. 271 AH Samarra)
• Ali al-Hadi
• Muhammad al-Jawad
• Ali al-Ridha
• Musa al-Kadhim
• Ja’far al-Sadiq
• Muhammad al-Baqir
• Ali ibn Husayn Zayn al-Abidin
• Husayn ibn Ali
• Ali ibn Abi-Talib

Mai Heer

Bukhari’s son, Ahmed Kabir, had a disciple called Choochak Sial, a member of the Sial tribe. Choochak’s daughter was Mai Heer, of the popularised romantic tragic poem Heer Ranjha.

Syed Pahlawan Shah

In the Kurram Agency the Jalali leader was Pahlawan Shah. He was the son of Hussain Ali Shah, Fakir ul Fukara. Miracles have been attributed to him. Pahlawan Shah led the resistance against the British Raj in Kurram Agency. In the Orakzai Agency, Bukhari’s teaching was presented by Pahlwan Shah’s elder brother, Gul Badshah.

Baba Shah Jamal of Ichchra Lahore

Baba Shah Jamal was a religious leader in Lahore. He was the 7th descendant of Makhdoom Syed Sadruddin Rajan Qattal, who was a son of Makhdoom Syed Sultan Ahmad Kabir Bin Makhdoom Syed Jalaluddin Surkh-Posh Bukhari. Dr Pir Syed Ali Hussain Shah Naqvi Naqshbandi Suharwardi Qadri Qalandri is Khalifa Majaz of Hazrat Shah Jamal and also Gaddi Nasheen Kot Muhammad Sharif, Chichawatni and of Hazrat Pir Ghulam Ali Shah sahib. He is presently in Canada.

Qutub al-Aktab Makhdoom Syed Fateh Muhammad Shah Bukhari al-maroof Ghazi Baba

Ghazi Baba moved to Wadpagga Shareef, Peshawar. The word Wadpagga is derived from the Punjabi language “Wadi” and “Pag”, which means “Big Turbans”. Since the Syeds wore big turbans, therefore the village came to be known by this name. Ghazi Baba was the 15th descendant of Syed Nasiruddin Mehmood, who was a direct descendant of Makhdoom Jahanian. Ghazi Baba was a contemporary of Mian Omar, a saint buried in the village of Chamkani, Peshawar. Ghazi Baba had seven sons, the eldest being Syed Abdul Wahab Shah and the youngest Syed Abdullah Shah. Other sons are, Syed Shah AbdulAziz, Syed Inayat Shah Bukhari.The Shrine of Ghazi Baba is a site of pilgrimage.

Descendants in Sindh

Bukhari’s descendants in Sindh included famous Sufis. After the death of Hazrat Makhdoom Jahaniyan Jahangasht, Hazrat Makhdoom Mehmood Nasiruddin qalan was declared as Sajadanasheen Makhdoom Jahaniyan. Then, Hazrat Makhdoom Syed Abdullah Burhan u Deen Qutb E Aalam migrated to Gujarat, India. He had a son named Makhdoom Syed Shah Alam.

This line includes:

Faqir Syed Mehdi Shah Jahaniyan

Mehdi was the great great grandson of Kamil Shah. He was a poet who lived in Muhammad Qasim Bughio near the Chowdaggi Hala road district of Matiari.

Death

In 1244 CE (about 640AH), Bukhari moved to Uch, Sindh with his son, Baha-ul-Halim, where he founded a religious school. He died in about 690 AH (1290 CE) and was buried in a small town near Uch. After his tomb was damaged by flood waters of the Ghaggar–Hakra River, Bukhari’s remains were buried in Qattal. In 1027 AH, Sajjada Nashin Makhdoom Hamid, son of Muhammad Nassir-u-Din, moved Bukhari’s remains to their present location in Uch and erected a building over them. In 1670 CE, the tomb was rebuilt by the Nawab of Bahawalpur, Bahawal Khan II. The tomb is a short way from the cemetery of Uch. It stands on a promontory overlooking the plains and the desert beyond. To one side of the tomb is a mosque decorated with blue tile work. In front of the tomb is a pool. A carved wooden door leads into the room containing Bukhari’s coffin. UNESCO describes the site:

The brick-built tomb measures 18 meters by 24 meters and its carved wooden pillars support a flat roof and it is decorated with glazed tiles in floral and geometric designs. The ceiling is painted with floral designs in lacquer and its floor covered with the graves of the saint and his relatives an interior partition provides purdah for those of his womenfolk. Its mosque consists of a hall, measuring 20 meters by 11 meters, with 18 wooden pillars supporting a flat roof. It was built of cut and dressed bricks and further decorated, internally and externally, with enamelled tiles in floral and geometric designs.

Mela Uch Sharif

The Mela Uch Sharif is a week-long mela (folk festival) held in March – April in Uch. People from the southern Punjab come to honour Bukhari’s role in spreading Islam. Participants visit Bukhari’s tomb, and offer Friday prayers at the local mosque which was built by the Abbasids. The mela commemorates the congregation of Sufi saints connected with Bukhari. It aligns with the Hindu calendar month of Chaitra.

 

Source and photo credits: WikiPedia