Baba Wali Kandhari was a

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

'' pir'' who was born in 1476 at

Kandahar Kandahar is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city, after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118 in 2015. It is the capital of Kandahar Pro ...

. In about 1498, he moved to

Hasan Abdal Hasan Abdal ( Punjabi; ) is a city in the Attock District of Punjab Province in Pakistan. Located 40 km northwest of the country's capital city, Islamabad, Hassan Abdal is the headquarters of Hasan Abdal Tehsil (sub-district). As home of ...

to the western side of mountains. The terrain was hilly and natural fountains used to flow from the ground.

Encounter with Guru Nanak

Guru Nanak stops the boulder from falling with his hand

Guru Nanak Gurū Nānak (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539; Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ; pronunciation: , ), also known as ('Father Nanak'), was an Indian spiritual teacher, mystic and poet, who is regarded as the founder of Sikhism and is t ...

with

Bhai Mardana Bhai Mardana (; 1459 — 1534) was one of the first Sikhs and longtime companion of Guru Nanak Dev, first in the line of gurus noted in Sikhism. Bhai Mardana was a Muslim by-birth who would accompany Guru Nanak Dev on his journeys and became on ...

arrived at Hasan Abdal in 1521 during summer season. Upon arrival, Guru Nanak started doing

kirtan Sikh ''kirta''n with Indian harmoniums and '' Kenya.html" ;"title="tabla'' drums (a common and popular pairing), in Kenya">tabla'' drums (a common and popular pairing), in Kenya (1960s) ''Kirtana'' (; ), also rendered as ''Kiirtan'', ''Kirt ...

and a large crowd of devotees gathered where the guru was performing kirtan. Each day, Guru would perform kirtan and a large crowd would gather. This upset Baba Wali Kandhari. On the top of a nearby hill, Wali Kandhari had established a dera where he helped the believers and punished those who did not believe in

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

. There was a spring near his house on the hill. It was the only spring in the area and it was commanded by Wali Kandhari. He blocked the water of the spring from going down to the town. The people begged him as there was now a water shortage. Wali Kandhari told them to ask water from their so-called guru. The people told the guru about the whole matter. Guru Nanak, then, sent Bhai Mardana to fetch water from Wali Kandahari but he refused saying 'Why don't you ask water from the guru you serve?' and Bhai Mardana had to return empty handed. After all of this, Guru Nanak picked up a small stone under his feet and a small trickle of clean water began to flow from the place where the guru lifted the stone and the water which came from the spring of Wali Kandhari started to dry up. This angered Wali Kandhari and he picked up a huge rock and threw it upon Guru Nanak. The rock came rolling from the hill. He had thought that the rock will crush Guru Nanak to death but Guru Nanak raised his hand and the rock stopped when it came in contact with his hand. There is a

gurdwara A gurdwara or gurudwara () is a place of assembly and place of worship, worship in Sikhism, but its normal meaning is "place of guru" or "home of guru". Sikhism, Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as ''Gurdwara Sahib''. People from all faiths and rel ...

located at the spot where this incident occurred. The gurdwara is known as Panja Sahib.

Shrine

The shrine of Baba Wali Kandhari is located on the banks of Arghandab river. It was constructed by

Gul Agha Sherzai Gul Agha Sherzai (; born 1954), also known as Mohammad Shafiq, is a politician and former warlord in Afghanistan. He is a former governor of Nangarhar province in eastern Afghanistan. He previously served as Governor of Kandahar province, in th ...

. He is known as Baba Saheb by locals.

Death

He died in about 1529 in a village called Baba Wali in Kandahar. Devotees climb up his hill and make offerings there.

References

{{Sufi People from Kandahar Sufism in Afghanistan