14th Jumada al-Thani: Urs of Khwaja Muhammad Baqi Bi-Llah, 24th Grandshaykh of the Naqshbandi Golden Chain

Bismi Llāhi r-Raḥmāni r-Raḥīm

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The 14th of Jumada al-Thani marks the blessed Urs of Khwaja Muhammad Baqi Bi-Llahق, the 24th Grandshaykh of the Naqshbandi Golden Chain, whose pure heart became the doorway through which the Naqshbandi Way entered India.

He was a man whose years were few, yet whose light continued to shine across generations. From his heart Allah ﷻ raised Imam ar-Rabbani, Shaykh Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindiق, the spiritual sun of his age, whose light revived the Ummah and restored clarity to hearts.

Khwaja Baqi Billahق was born in Kabul in 972 H, in a noble household adorned with knowledge and spirituality. His father, Qazi Abdus Salam Samarqandiق, was a scholar, saint, and judge, and his mother was from the blessed descendants of Khwaja Ubayd-Allah al-Ahrarق. From the beginning, the fragrance of sainthood surrounded him.

Those who saw him as a child noticed a softness in his eyes, as though his gaze belonged to another world. He was quiet and attentive, drawn to remembrance, and he often chose the company of worshippers rather than the play of children.

Although his given name was Razi ud Din Muhammad Baqi, lovers of the unseen called him Baqi Billah, the one who remains with Allah ﷻ. In time, this name would come to reflect his inner reality.

From an early age he travelled widely across India in search of knowledge. His heart longed for a knowledge that went beyond books and speech, a knowledge that would descend into the heart and transform the soul. He kept company with scholars and seekers, yet felt that something essential was still missing.

It was during this journey that he saw the Prophet ﷺ in a dream, saying, “Go to Samarqand, for your provision is there.”

He set out without hesitation, carrying nothing of this world, and never returned to worldly pursuits.

There he found the Master of his time, Khwaja Muhammad al-Amkanakiق. When he entered his presence, the veils lifted, and he recognised the one his heart had been seeking. The Shaykh recognised him too, saying, “The one who was commanded to come has come. The trust that has been awaited has now arrived.”

Through Khwaja Amkanakiق’s guidance, he received the secret of the Naqshbandi Way, not through gradual instruction, but through a sudden opening bestowed as a gift already prepared for him.

What others spent many years yearning for was poured into him swiftly. Under the care of his Shaykh, he rose in spiritual rank until his light became known throughout the region.

When his training was complete, his Shaykh granted him permission to guide seekers and ordered him to return to India. Before sending him, Khwaja Amkanakiق said, “You will have a follower who will be like the sun.”

The one foretold was Imam Rabbani, Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindiق, the reviver of the second millennium.

Khwaja Baqi Billahق obeyed the command of his Shaykh and travelled to Delhi. There he settled quietly, without grand announcements or displays. Yet despite his desire to remain hidden, the fragrance of his heart spread, and seekers began to gather around him.

Through him the Naqshbandi Order spread swiftly across the Indian subcontinent. His deputies carried his secret from city to city and village to village until millions were connected through his blessings.

Delhi at that time was a meeting place of diverse cultures, ideas and movements. Its spiritual atmosphere had grown clouded by distraction and philosophical experimentation, and many had drifted far from the teachings of the Prophet ﷺ.

Into this environment, Allah ﷻ sent Khwaja Baqi Billahق as a purifier, a healer and a renewer.

His gatherings were simple, filled with remembrance and sincerity. People entered with heaviness and left with awakened hearts. Many accepted Islam through him, and it was said that his silent gaze had the power to reorder a person’s life.

Yet he remained covered in humility and would say, “The heart is a mirror, and when Allah ﷻ grants purity, it reflects only His generosity and not the one who holds it.”

The challenges to the religion in his era were many. Philosophies, politics and new currents attempted to obscure the clarity of the Way.

He responded not with argument but with steadfastness, and a teaching that was gentle, firm and deeply rooted in the Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ. He often reminded his students, “Purify the garment of your body with water, and the garment of your soul with remembrance.”

Among the stories preserved from his blessed life is one of a young man who lived nearby, known for mischief and a troubling character.

The neighbours complained of him, but Khwaja Baqi Billahق never allowed dislike or annoyance enter his heart. He had a way of looking at people that allowed their hidden potential to appear rather than their faults.

One of his students, however, could not tolerate the behaviour of the young man and eventually reported him to the authorities.

The youth was imprisoned and the student felt he had defended the honour of the neighbourhood.

When Khwaja Baqi Billahق heard what had happened, he asked gently, “Why did you take this step?” 

The disciple insisted that the youth deserved punishment.

Khwaja Baqi Billahق listened in silence and then said only, “You consider yourself pious and that is why his faults appeared large to you. I do not see myself in any way better than him.” 

He immediately arranged the young man’s release from prison. When the youth returned, trembling with shame, Khwaja Baqi Billahق welcomed him with gentleness.

That compassion broke the hardness of the young man’s heart and he became one of Khwaja Baqi Billahق’s most sincere students. People would later say that this incident showed not only his compassion but his deep understanding of human hearts.

His compassion extended to all creatures. One cold night, after tahajjud, he returned to rest and found a small cat sleeping on his bed. He did not disturb it, for it had found warmth, and he lay down on the floor and slept beside the bed.

Another time, a man came to him with a complaint about a student who behaved with arrogance and spoke with pride.

Khwaja Baqi Billahق called the student gently and asked him, “Tell me what you have learned on this path.”

The student replied, “I have learned to see myself as higher than others, because I worship more than they do.”

He responded, “If worship raises you above people, then you have not yet worshipped Allah ﷻ. True worship lowers the head until the heart cannot see anything but Him.”

It is said that the student’s arrogance melted at that moment, and he spent the rest of his life in service and humility.

He would often remind his companions that every heart contains a seed of nearness, and that our duty is to water it with remembrance until the mercy of Allah ﷻ causes it to bloom.

His greatest trust was the arrival of Imam Rabbaniق. When the young seeker came into his presence, Khwaja Baqi Billahق recognised the light that had been promised. He said, “A light has appeared whose fragrance will reach every corner of the world.”

Under his guidance, Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindiق blossomed into the great Mujaddid whose writings reshaped the spiritual life of the Ummah.

Imam Rabbaniق later said of his Shaykh, “He is the one seated on the Throne of all Shaykhs, the Deputy of all Masters of this Way. He is the Qutb who supports every creature on earth, the Essence of the Knowers, and the Guide of the Verifiers.”

Khwaja Baqi Billahق carried a rare combination of strength and gentleness. In matters of the Shariah he was firm, knowing the dangers of innovations and distortions in a time of confusion.

Yet in dealing with people he was soft, forbearing and endlessly patient. His presence awakened longing, and his silence often taught more than words.

He remained in this world for only forty years and four months. On the 14th of Jumada al-Thani, he returned to his Lord ﷻ. It is said that shortly before his passing, he spoke softly, “My Beloved is calling me. What remains here to hold me back?”

Khwaja Muhammad Baqi Bi-Llahق left this world with a heart at peace, entrusting the secret of the Way to his successor, Imam Rabbani, Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindiق, the sun whose radiance he had been sent to prepare.

His blessed resting place lies in Delhi, and from that sacred spot his light continues to reach the hearts of those who remember him with love and longing.

His greatest gift to the Ummah was the raising of Imam Rabbaniق, through whom Allah ﷻ revived the religion in an age of spiritual decline. Through that single transmission, the light of Khwaja Baqi Billahق continues to shine, illuminating hearts until today.

May Allah ﷻ sanctify his secret and fill our hearts with the compassion, humility and remembrance he embodied.

May his light continue to guide us to sincerity, patience and nearness to Him ﷻ.

Al-Fatiha.

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