Sheikh Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...

Yusuf Abu el Haggag (; c. 1150 – c. 1245), also al Haggag or Al-Hajjaj, was a mystic

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 ...

scholar and religious figure whose

birthday A birthday is the anniversary of the birth of a person or figuratively of an institution. Birthdays of people are celebrated in numerous cultures, often with birthday gifts, birthday cards, a birthday party, or a rite of passage. Many religion ...

is celebrated annually in the town of Luxor, Egypt.

Early life

Yusuf Abu el-Haggag was born in

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

c. 1150 and is regarded as one of the

Sharif Sharīf or Sherif (, 'noble', 'highborn'), also spelled shareef, feminine sharīfa (), plural ashrāf (), shurafāʾ (), or (in the Maghreb) shurfāʾ, is a title used to designate a person descended, or claiming to be descended, from the fami ...

, or one of the descendants of the Holy Prophet

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

Sallallahu ‘Alaihi Wa Salam. His lineage goes back to Sayyidna Imam

Husayn ibn Ali Husayn ibn Ali (; 11 January 626 – 10 October 680 Common Era, CE) was a social, political and religious leader in early medieval Arabia. The grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and an Alids, Alid (the son of Ali ibn Abu Talib ibn Abd a ...

RA.

Career

Abu el-Haggag moved to

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

, likely between the years 1190 and 1200, and later settled in the upper Egyptian town of

Luxor Luxor is a city in Upper Egypt. Luxor had a population of 263,109 in 2020, with an area of approximately and is the capital of the Luxor Governorate. It is among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited c ...

. He established a zawiya in the settlement and devoted himself to knowledge,

asceticism Asceticism is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures through self-discipline, self-imposed poverty, and simple living, often for the purpose of pursuing Spirituality, spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world ...

and worship. He traveled to

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

, where he met prominent Sufis and became a student of Sheikh Abd Al-Razeq. He then returned to Luxor and convened with Sheikh Abdal Rahim Al-Qanai, the owner of the Qena mosque. In his pursuits, he earned the nickname "Father of the Pilgrim". Abu el-Haggag is the patron of the Abu Haggag Mosque, where his birthday (Mawlid) is celebrated annually. Local folklore indicates that he did not build the mosque, but saved it from later attempts by officials to demolish it. el-Haggag likely lived within the site of the temple and conducted his religious teaching there.

Death and burial

Abu el-Haggag died c. 1244 during the reign of Sultan

As-Salih Ayyub Al-Malik as-Salih Najm al-Din Ayyub (5 November 1205 – 22 November 1249), nickname: Abu al-Futuh (), also known as al-Malik al-Salih, was the Ayyubid ruler of Egypt from 1240 to 1249. Early life As-Salih was born in 1205, the son of Al-Kamil ...

. By the time of his death, he had amassed a large and devoted following in

. His body was placed in a mausoleum located on the roof of the ancient

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

, which at this time was buried below ground level. This site is where the early structure of the current mosque was erected a decade later by el-Haggag's son. el-Haggag may have been buried on the site of an already existing mosque.

Legacy

Haggag’s descendants constitute the Haggag family, who organise the celebrations devoted to him. Ahmed Al-Hajj, the head of the Heritage Series at the Egyptian Ministry of Culture, states: “Based on my background and experience working in Luxor, I can say that the annual Sufi Mawlids are unique and highly anticipated rituals for the people of Luxor.”

Notes

References