Makhdoom Ali Mahimi Shafi'i (1372–1431 C.E) was a saint and scholar of international repute. He lived during the time of the

Tughlaq The Tughlaq dynasty (also known as the Tughluq or Tughluk dynasty; ) was the third dynasty to rule over the Delhi Sultanate in medieval India. Its reign started in 1320 in Delhi when Ghazi Malik assumed the throne under the title of Ghiyath ...

dynasty and that of Sultan Ahmed Shah of Gujarat, and was married to the Sultan's sister. He is widely acknowledged for his scholarly treatises, liberal views and humanist ideals. Mahimi was born into a family of

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

travelers from

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

who had settled down on the island of

Mahim Mahim (, ) is a neighbourhood in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The Mahim Junction railway station on the Western Railway zone, Western Railway and Harbour line (Mumbai Suburban Railway), Harbour Railway of the Mumbai Suburban Railway, Mumbai Suburb ...

known as Nawayath, one of the seven islands that later formed the city of Bombay (now

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

). Not much is known of his early childhood. He later became the follower of disciples of

Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani (; CE) was a Sufi saint of the Kubrawiya order, who played an important role in the spread of Islam in the Kashmir Valley. He was born in Hamadan, Iran, and preached Islam in Central Asia and South Asia. He died in S ...

ShafI'i and became the master of

Kubrawiya The Kubrawiya order () or Kubrawi order, also known as Kubrawi Hamadani,or Hamadani Kubra, is a Sufi order that traces its spiritual lineage (''Silsilah'') to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, through Ali, Muhammad's cousin, son-in-law and the Fir ...

order.Great Sufis of South, page:44 print: Malabar, 1980 Mahimi's reputation grew after the

Sultan Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

, Ahmed Shah of the Muzaffarid dynasty, chose him to be the town's

Qazi Qazi may refer to: * Qadi A qadi (; ) is the magistrate or judge of a Sharia court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and minors, and supervision and auditing of public works. History ...

(the Head Muslim Judge/Cleric of a town). Mahimi was the first Indian scholar to write an

exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Ancient Greek, Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation (philosophy), interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Bible, Biblical works. In modern us ...

on the

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

, which gained critical acclimation from numerous Islamic scholars including

Shah Waliullah Dehlavi Qutb ud-Din Ahmad ibn ʿAbd-ur-Rahim al-ʿUmari ad-Dehlawi (‎; 1703–1762), commonly known as Shah Waliullah Dehlawi (also Shah Wali Allah), was an Islamic Sunni scholar and Sufi reformer, who contributed to Islamic revival in the Indian su ...

. He authored more than 100 books but only 21 books are known, from which only 10 books are available in different libraries in India, he was given the moniker ''Qutub-e -Kokan'' (Kokan's

Pole Star A pole star is a visible star that is approximately aligned with the axis of rotation of an astronomical body; that is, a star whose apparent position is close to one of the celestial poles. On Earth, a pole star would lie directly overhead when ...

). He was the first commentator of the Quran in India. His commentary is called " Tafsirur Rahman." It is available in

Al Azhar University The Al-Azhar University ( ; , , ) is a public university in Cairo, Egypt. Associated with Al-Azhar Al-Sharif in Islamic Cairo, it is Egypt's oldest degree-granting university and is known as one of the most prestigious universities for Islamic ...

, Cairo and Ummul-Qura University, Makkah and Markaz Saqafathi sunniyya Mahimi is revered by both the Muslims and

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

s. All

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

sects hold him in high esteem. After his death in 1431, he was buried in Mahim. The site later became a

Dargah A Sufi shrine or dargah ( ''dargâh'' or ''dargah'', Turkish: ''dergâh'', Hindustani: ''dargāh'' दरगाह درگاہ, ''dôrgah'') is a shrine or tomb built over the grave of a revered religious figure, often a Sufi saint or dervi ...

(shrine) for devotees.

Urs festival

During the annual ten-day

Urs Urs (from ''‘Urs'') or Urus (literal meaning wedding), is the death anniversary of a Sufi saint, usually held at the saint's dargah (shrine or tomb). In most Sufi orders such as Naqshbandiyyah, Suhrawardiyya, Chishtiyya, Qadiriyya, etc. ...

festival celebrated on the 13th day of

Shawwal Shawwal () is the tenth month of the Islamic calendar. It comes after Ramadan and before Dhu al-Qa'da. ''Shawwāl'' stems from the Arabic verb ''shāla'' (), which means to 'lift or carry', generally to take or move things from one place to an ...

as per the Muslim calendar, millions of devotees visit his dargah. The highlight of this is a procession of around eight thousand begins at the Mahim Police Station, believed to be the site of his residence. Two police officers from each of the eighty four city

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

stations represent the police whose association with the saint dates back to the saint's era. A representative of the Mumbai police who is the first to offer the "chaddar" (shawl) at the tomb on the first day of the festival. Legend has it that it was a

police constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an police officer, officer within a police ser ...

who gave water to the dying saint from his cap. Another story points to some miraculous assistance police officers once received from an old man, who they believed was the saint, in fighting smugglers. A room adjacent to the office of the senior inspector of police station contains a steel cupboard that houses the saint's preserved belongings such as his chair, a pair of sandals and his hand-written Qur'an which is considered to be a

calligraphic Calligraphy () is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instruments. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "the art of giving form to signs in an exp ...

work of art. The room is opened once every year to the public. In 1920 the cupboard was purchased by a senior British police inspector, Raymond Esquire as a tribute to the saint he revered. On 2005-05-21, the government of

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

named the JJ Flyover after the saint as a tribute to the saint. The 2.1 kilometre flyover is the longest

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide ...

in the country.

References

*''A saint revered by both Hindus and Muslims'', Mohammed Wajihuddin/ TNN, pg 4, ''Sunday

Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...

'', Bombay, dated 2005-05-22
On Urs, Mumbai police keep tryst with Sufi saint
S Ahmed Ali
The Indian Express
Sunday, 2002-12-22 *Sayed Imamuddin Gulshan Aabadi, Barakat-ul-Awliya, Bombay. *Ghulam Azad Bilgrami, Rausat'ul-Awliya, Aurangabad, 1892-93. *Bombay Gazetteer, Volume III, Bombay, 1910. * S. M. Edwardes, ''Rise of Bombay'', Bombay 1909. *Maulana A. R. Parvaz Islahi, Makhdum Ali Mahimi, Naqsh-e-Kokan Publication Trust, Bombay,1976. *Nawab Siddiq Hasan Khan, Abjad-ul-Uloon, Bhopal,1295 AH. *Muhammed Yusuf Khatkhatey, Kashaful Maktoon *Fi-Halat-e-Haji Ali Makhdoom, Maktaba-e-Shihabi, Bombay,1903. *Towns and Islands of Bombay, Statistical account (Administration), Volume III, Bombay,1894. *Prof. Abdus Sattar Dalvi, Dargahs Abodes of the Saints.

Urs festival

References

See also

External links