KHAJA BANDA NAWAZ (RH)

ABOUT DARGAH SHARIF:

The word 'Dargah', in Persian, means a courtyard. As a technical term of Sufism, it implies a courtyard surrounding the shrine of a saint. This shrine may or may not have a dome structure over it. The dargah of Gesudaraz has a huge dome structure over it.
Like other Chishti monasteries, the khanqah (monastery) of Gesudaraz at Gulbarga is broad based. People from all backgrounds have always been welcomed and greeted with respect. Instances of the saint holding religious discussions with the yogis and brahmans are known, and his teachings had a tremendous impact on contemporary religious and social life. He taught people to be particularly kind and affectionate towards each other. The hundreds who visit the dargah of Gesudaraz regularly on a daily basis and the hundreds of thousands who come during the Urs, meet in an atmosphere of amity and harmony, that is immaterial of the languages they speak and the rituals they perform. Driven by faith, the visitors are comforted with a solution, be it a peace of mind, cure for a sickness, or any other problem. And those who seek God, find Him here.
The dargah of Gesudaraz comprises of over 100 rooms for accomodation. These rooms are usually booked a month prior to the Urs, since people from all parts of India wish to attend this sacred event. These bookings are made through letters sent by postal mail requesting for a room and are addressed to the Sajjada Nasheen at the dargah address
About: Hazrath Khwaja Bandanawaz Gesudaraz (Rh)
The dargah of the enlightened Saint Hazrath Khwaja Bandanawaz Gesudaraz (Rh) lies in Gulbarga a district situated in the Deccan Plateau located in the northern Karnataka, India. The dargah encompasses of the mausoleum of a saint who taught love, amity and devotion. A saint who looked upon everyone else as equal and was never bias, where as he did not see who they were, what they wore, which language they spoke, or what beliefs they held. His mausoleum continues to send out a message of spirituality, integrity, and harmony to this day. It is a sanctuary where people from all walks of life, irrespective of religion or sect, caste or creed, come to pay homage and find peace around them and within. Today, after six hundred years, the dargah of Gesudaraz strives to maintain the atmosphere that his khanqah (monastery) was always known for.
LIFE:

Gesudaraz states that his 12th ancestor Sayyid Abu al-Hasan Jundi was the first to have come from Khurasan. He is said to have accompanied military campaigns against Delhi several times. Eventually he was killed and buried in the compound of a mosque in Delhi, where his family also later moved from Khurasan. Gesudaraz 's father Sayyid Yusuf Husayni (d. 731/1330) was a disciple of the Chishti saint of Delhi, Shaykh Nizam al-Din Awliya. He had four sons and a daughter. Gesudaraz was his second son.
A year after the foundation of the Tughlaq Dynasty, Gesudaraz was born on the 30th f July, 1321/ 4th Rajab 721 in Delhi. It was during the 14th century that Gesudaraz was born, brought up, was taught external sciences, was trained in the spiritual exercises and finally he preached.
Gesudaraz at the age of seven accompanied his parents to the new metropolis Daulatabad, where Muhammad bin Tughlaq had transferred his capital from Delhi, in the year 1327 and forced the populace to move to the Deccan. Sayyid Yusuf Husayni passed away in the year 731/ 1330 when Gesudaraz was ten years old. Five years later he returned to Delhi and finally settled down. Gesudaraz was eager to become a disciple of Shaykh Nizam al-Din Awliya, because he had heard a lot about him through his father and other sufis in Daulatabad, but the Shaykh had already died even before Gesudaraz's immigration to the Deccan. His place was occupied by his successor Shaykh Nasir al-Din Mahmud in Delhi. On the 1st of March 1336, Gesudaraz and his eldest brother became his disciples. Twenty years later in the year 1356 when Gesudaraz was 36 years old, Shaykh Nasir al-Din Mahmud bestowed on him the permission to maintain his own circle of disciples (Khalifah), which meant that he had become capabe of being a Shaykh.
During the same year Shaykh Nasir al-Din Mahmud fell seriously illand passed away on the 18th of Ramadan 757/ 14the September 1356. Gesudaraz took charge of his preceptor's monastery three days later. Hence he worked in Delhi for the next forty four years. At the age of 80, along with his family and some disciples, he left for Daulatabad in the year 801/ 1398 just after Timur's invasion of Delhi. It took him a couple of years to reach Daulatabad having halted at several places on the way. He paid homage at his fathers shrine and probably intended to settle down there.
In the year 800/ 1397, Firuz Shah Bahmani had been crowned Sultan in Gulbarga. When he heard the arrival of Gesudaraz at Daulatabad, he formally invited him to Gulbarga and requested to settle down in the capital instead. He constructed a monastery for the saint outside the walls of the fort. The Sultan seems to have had great respect for Gesudaraz but the relationship was strained later on for some odd reason. Gesudaraz had to move out of his Monastery to another place where his tomb now stands. Gesudaraz lived in Gulbarga for 22 years till he passed away on the 16th of the Dhu al-Qadah 825/ 1st November, 1422 at the age of 105 lunar years.

Works:
His magnum opus, Tafseer Multaqat in Arabic, was compiled into one book very recently. It is unfortunate, however, that most people even within Gulbarga are unaware of this work. Little has been done to publish this and his other works on a large scale. Other books authored are: Avarif-ul-Ma`arif, Fasoos-al-Hukm, Qaseeda Amali, and Adaab-al-Mureedein.
Content
URS E SHARIF:

With regard to Prophet Yahya, Allah says "Peace Be Upon Him on the day he was born, and on the day he died and on the day he will be risen (here after)." (Quran, sura Maryam, v. 15)
The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) used to pay a visit each year at the shrines of the Martyrs of the war of Uhad. On the authority of the above, Urs is celebrated once every year on the day Sufis Die.
Urs-e-Shareef of Hazrath Khwaja Bandanawaz is celebrated on the 15th, 16th and the 17th of Dhu al-Qadah every year. Around five to six lakh people from almost all over India and from abroad come to Gulbarga to visit the saint during the Urs.