Sharfuddin Yahya Maneri

Makhdoom Shaykh Sharfuddin Ahmed Bin Yahya Maneri (1263-1381) popularly known as Makhdoom-e-Jahan or Makhdoom-ul-Mulk Bihar was an Islamic scholar, writer and Sufi saint. He was a follower of Firdausiyya order, an offshoot of Suhrawardiyya order of Sufism and was a spiritual student of Peer Shaykh Najeebuddin Firdausi. He was the great-grandson of Imam Muhammad Taj Faqih Hashmi, who reached India and defeated King of Maner along with Momin Arif, the first Muslim to reach Bihar.

Birth

Shaykh was born on 26 Shaban 661 Hijri same as in the year 1263 in Maner Sharif, a small town near Patna to Shaykh Kamaluddin Yahya Maneri, also known as Shaykh al-Hind and Bibi Raziya, daughter of Syed Shahabuddin Suhrawardi Balkhi also known as Peer Jagjot Balkhi, a sufi saint of Suhrawardiyya order and is buried at Kachchi Dargah, Patna. He was born in the Khanqah built by his great-grandfather Imam Muhammad Taj Faqih Hashmi at Maner Sharif. His birth place is secured and marked as a holy place.

Shaykh Sharfuddin's lineage meets to a place called Al-Khaleel, which is connected to Hazrat Ibrahim Alayhissalam, Al-Khaleel is about 24 Kilometres from Jerusalem and is in Syria now.

During his birth, Sultan Naseeruddin Mehmood was the emperor of Delhi.

Name

He was name Ahmed and Sharfuddin was his given title. He added Yahya as the family name to his name, after his father’s name.

Family tree from father side

1. Shaykh Sharfuddin Ahmed Yahya Maneri
2. Shaykh Kamaluddin Yahya Maneri
3. Shaykh Israil Hashmi Maneri
4. Imam Muhammad Taj Faqih Hashmi
5. Imam Abu Bakr
6. Imam Abul Lais
7. Imam Abu Sahma
8. Abudeen
9. Imam Abu Mas’ood
10. Imam Abuzar
11. Zubair
12. Abdul Mutallib
13. Hashim

Family tree from mother side

1. Shaykh Sharfuddin Yahya Maneri
2. Bibi Raziya
3. Makhdoom Syed Shahabuddin Peer Jagjot Balkhi Suhrawardi
4. Syed Muhammad
5. Syed Ahmed
6. Syed Naseeruddin
7. Syed Yousuf
8. Syed Hasan
9. Syed Kasim
10. Syed Moosa
11. Syed Hamza
12. Syed Daood
13. Syed Ruknuddin
14. Syed Qutubuddin
15. Syed Ishaq
16. Syed Ismaeel
17. Imam Jafar Sadiq
18. Imam Muhammad Baqir
19. Imam Zainul Abdeen
20. Imam Hussain
21. Bibi Fatima
22. Hazrat Muhammad Mustafa Sallallahu Alayhi Ta’Aala Wasallam

Education

Makhdoom-e-Jahan had his early education under his father Kamaluddin Yahya Maneri and Shah Ruknuddin Marginani at Maner Sharif, Bihar.

He left Maner Sharif, Bihar at the only age of 12, to study and to gain knowledge abroad about Islam and Arabic, Persian, Logic and Philosophy. He reached and been under the guidance of Ashraf-Uddin Abu Towama Bukhari, a famous teacher based in Sonargaon (now in Dhaka, Bangladesh). He has been under the guidance of Towama Bukhari for more than 24 years and then came back to the region of Bihar and stayed at Bihar Sharif's most popular place Badi Dargah.

Sufism

After the completion of his studies he went to Delhi, which was then known as the centre of sufism to became a disciple of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya in sufism, but Hazrat Nizamuddin asked him to contact Khwaja Najibuddin because you’re written in his ‘Kismat’.

Silsila-e-Firdausiyya

Maneri went to Hazrat Najibuddin with a low mood after being rejected by Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya. He reached and just saw a sight of Hazrat Najibuddin and got shiverings, it was the first-ever shiverings Maneri got. Maneri became a Mureed of Hazrat Najibuddin and got the Khilafat there, and Hazrat Najibuddin said, i have prepared your Khilafatnama 12 years ago.

Journey

Shaykh Sharfuddin had spent about 30 years in the jungles of Bihiya, Rajgir a place about 120 kilometres far from Maner Sharif, Patna for his meditation. During his meditation, he used to pray Allah at the mountain. There is a hot water spring in Rajgir named after him, Makhdoom Kund.

Bihar Sharif

Shaykh Sharfuddin used to serve sermons (written and verbal) at Khanqah in Bihar Sharif around 52 years, which was built by Sultan Muhammad Bin Tughlaq before the heavenly abode of Shaykh Sharfuddin in January 1381.

Personal life

He refused to marry in his life, but he later married Bibi Badaam, Daughter of Abu Tawama after falling ill. They had a son Shaykh Zakiuddin, who was born in 1289, who lived and died in Bengal.

Books

• Maktoobat-e-Saadi, a collection of letters written to Qazi Shamsuddin in 747 Hijri based on Islamic Theosophy are literary genii on spiritual writing.
• Madan-ul-Maani
• Seerat-ush-Sharaf
• Rahat-ul-Quloob, a book on Sufism
• Irshad-ut-Talibeen-o-Irshad-us-Saalikeen
• Fawaid-ul-Murideen
• Munisul-Mureedeen
• Khwan-e-Pur Nemat
• Maktoobat-e-Bist-o-Hasht
• Maktubaat-e-Sharfuddin Yahya Maneri
• Kanzul Ma-ani, a book on Sufism
• Shara-e-Abadul, a book on Sufism
• Fawaidat Rukni, a book on Sufism

Successors

• Khwaja Shaykh Ishaque Maghrabi, he was a sufi saint who is buried at Matokhar Dargah in the Sheikhp District of Bihar.
• Shaykh Shah Shuaib Firdausi Sheikhpurvi, an Indian sufi saint who is known as the one who established Sheikhpura district of Bihar during the 14th century. He was the son of Shaykh Jamaluddin Yahya Maneri, uncle of Sharafuddin Yahya Maneri.

Bibliography

• Raza, Mohammad Akram Firdausi Silsila E Tasawwuf Shaikh Sharfuddin Ahmad Yahya Maneri Ke Hawale Se PhD Thesis submitted to Jamia Milia Islamia (in Urdu)
• Imran, Atif The Contribution of Shaikh Sharfuddin Ahmad Bin Yahya Maneri in Persian Literature: An Overview Article submitted to Department of Islamic Studies, Maulana Azad National Urdu University, Hyderabad.
• Rahman, Rizwanur Sharafuddin Ahmad Yahya Maneri: Patron Sa int of Islam in the Ind ian Province of Bihar