Dargah of Hazrat Waris Ali Shah, Dewa Sharif, Barabanki, a photo by firoze shakir photographerno1 on Flickr.
Waris Ali Shah (Urdu: حاجی وارث علی شاہ, Hindi: हाजी वारिस अली शाह) or Sarkar Waris Pak (Urdu: سرکار وارث پاک, Hindi: सरकार वारिस पाक) was a Sufi saint from Dewa, Barabanki, India, who was the successor to the Qadriyya -Razzakiyya Silsila. He was born in the 26th generation of Hazrat Imam Hussain. The date of his birth is disputed, varying from 1233 A.H. to 1238 A.H. In Maarif Warisya, the date of his birth is written as 1234 A.H. corresponding to 1809 of the Christian era[citation needed]. His father, Syed Qurban Ali Shah, belonged to a landlord class and completed his education in Baghdad.
Sarkar Waris Pak accepted millions[citation needed] of people belonging to all faiths into the Warsi Silsila. During that period, Firangi Mahal was the famous religious centre for North Indian Muslims, and they too were "Qadiri people" and respected Waris Pak. Religious Scholars of Firangi Mahal regarded him as a "Kamilieen".
Some Hindus[who?] held him in high esteem and regarded him as a perfect Sufi and a follower of Vedant.[citation needed] To Hindus he said: "Believe Brahma. Do not worship idols and be honest".[this quote needs a citation] Thousands of Hindus, including sadhus and fakirs of different Panthas paid homage to him and entered his order[citation needed]. He allegedly told them: "You and I are the same".[this quote needs a citation] He did not ask non-Muslims to abandon their religion. On the contrary, he advised them to follow it with greater zeal and sincerity.[citation needed]
Shah was popular with English-educated youth and English-speaking men flocked to him and sat at his feet.[citation needed] He was the first Sufi Darvesh to visit Europe and to have attract English-speaking followers.[citation needed] A Spanish nobleman, Count Galaraza, came from Spain to visit and interview him at Dewa.[citation needed]
Death[edit source | editbeta]
Waris Ali Shah died on 7 April 1905 after a brief illness. He was buried at the spot where he died, and this place is marked by a monument erected in his memory by followers.[citation needed]
His mausoleum represents communal amity and was constructed on a pattern blending the Hindu-Iranian styles of architecture.[citation needed] The tomb, the shrines and the latticed outer apartment girdling the inner shrine for Parikrama (Tawaf) are indicative of the Hindu style of architecture while the towers and minarets present the Persian architecture.[1]
His disciples[edit source | editbeta]
He had many prominent followers from several faiths.[2]
