Sultan Syed Shah Mutaharuddin Suhrawardi (969–1039), also called Dada Hayat Mir Qalandar or Nathar Wali or Nadir Shah, was a

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 ...

preacher and mystic from

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

who in the 9th-10th century moved to

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

, India, where he travelled about preaching Islam. - ''Nathar Wali (died in 1039) is supposed to be the earliest Muslim Sufi who dedicated his life to Islam in the south''. He went to

Tiruchirapalli Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of Ta ...

in Tamil Nadu, The Tamil Warrior tribe converted by his preaching are known as ''Ravuttars'' in

and

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

are one of the earliest

communities in the region. The most important Islamic building in the city is Nathar Shah's Mosque, which contains the tomb of the saint Sultan Nathar Shah. According to legend it is atop the grave of the three-headed Hindu demon Tiriasuran whom Dada killed.

Early life

According to the source Tabl-e-Aalam, Nathar Shah was born Syed Shah Mutaharuddin into an aristocratic Persian Muslim ''

Syed Syed may refer to: * Seyd, alternative for Sayyid (name) * Alternative for Sayyid, an honorific title * Ahsan Ali Syed (born 1973), Indian businessman * Ghulam Murtaza Syed (1904-1995), prominent Sindhi politician * Ibrahim Bijli Syed (born 1939) ...

'' family of great influence and landholdings in

to the ''

Emir Emir (; ' (), also Romanization of Arabic, transliterated as amir, is a word of Arabic language, Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocratic, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person po ...

'' of Bahanasa, Syed Shah Ahmed Kabeer, and Syeda Fathimunnisa. His younger brother, Syed Shah Jalaluddin became the ''Emir'' of Bahanasa after he left.

Life in Tiruchirapalli

Nathar Wali left his comfortable life in search of murshid(spiritual preceptor). He was a Qalandar (unmarried saint) who came to India along with 900 Qalandars to spread Islam. Before coming to India, he became the ''

Mureed In Sufism, a (Arabic ) is a novice committed to spiritual enlightenment by (traversing a path) under a spiritual guide, who may take the title , or . A or Sufi follower only becomes a when he makes a pledge () to a . The equivalent Persi ...

'' (Student) of Ibrahim Garamseel near the

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

region. After that, he traveled his journey towards different parts of India, and at last he reached

Trichy Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...

and settled there. During this time,

Tiruchirappalli Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...

was a part of the

Chola Empire The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

under the reign of

Rajendra I Rajendra I (26 July 971 – 1044), often referred to as Rajendra the Great, was a Chola Emperor who reigned from 1014 to 1044. He was born in Thanjavur to Rajaraja I. His queen was Vanavan Mahadevi and he assumed royal power as co-regent with ...

, although Nathar Wali has never interacted with him. He was said to have performed miracles. Along with his qalandars, he came to Tiruchirapuram, which is now known as

, and led a religious life with his qalandars in a flower garden there.

Disciples

* Sultan Baba Fakhruddin Suhrawardi Qalandar * Abdul Qadir Shah al-Hamid Sohrawardi

Death

He died in Tiruchirappalli in 1039 and was buried there, and a mosque constructed at the spot. Tiruchirappalli's followers call him "Natharnagar".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vali, Nathar Indian Sufi saints Year of birth unknown 969 births 1039 deaths Turkish Muslim missionaries Missionaries in India Islam in Tamil Nadu 10th-century Indian people