In the three-dimensional reality that we live in, the simple need for exoteric understanding is never enough. We always feel the need to understand and feel something beyond us, something that allows us to free our minds and replenish our souls. This is why God has blessed us with His lovers, time and again, to beautify our esoteric wisdom, and get moved towards the right path, the path of Truth.
In various religions throughout time, the idea of mysticism and search for knowledge of the world unseen has been pursued in various means. However, all of them have the same need to look inside us. Meditation, whether through Dhikr or Dhyana, brings us into that state of ecstasy and opens our eyes to another dimension, the dimension where God hides nothing, and nothing comes between Us. At this point, God and our soul becomes One, and in this Oneness we find peace. However, in order to reach there, the most important requirement is to remove the ego, open the hearts, and find an anchor that will bind you to your Creator in ways you can never imagine. For Muslims, this anchor comes with the name of Mohammad (SAW), the mercy of Mankind.
A khanqah or khaniqah (also transliterated as khankahs, khaneqa, khanegah or khaneqah (Persian: خانقاه)), also known as a ribat (رباط)– among other terms– is a building designed specifically for gatherings of a Sufi brotherhood or tariqa and is a place for spiritual retreat and character reformation.
Gulshan-e-Ghouspak, it was named by Hazur Chote Sarkar Sayed Wasim Akhtar Quadri (R.A.). The present structure, a khanqah, is located in Bhadrak, Odisha
Khanqah Gulshan-e-Ghouspak, situated at Sarkar Nagar, Bhadrak, Odisha India, is one of the most important Islamic spiritual centres where the prominent silsila of Qadriya have reached with original successor ships. The founder of the Khanqah Hazur Sarkar-e-Millat Sayed Nasim Akhtar Quadri (R.A.) and Hazur Chote Sarkar Sayed Wasim Akhtar Quadri (R.A.) was the spiritual successor of Ghaus e Samdani Mehboobe Subhani Syed Abu Mohammed Sheikh AbdulQadir Jilani (R.A.).
Prophet Mohammad (SAW) is not only the heart and mind of Islam, but also the beloved of our Lord Almighty, the reason He had created the worlds in the first place. In Islam, Prophet Mohammad (SAW) is the anchor that brings us closer to God. In order to become closer to our Prophet (SAW) however, we are told to become closer to His Holy family. His cousin and son-in-law Maula-e-Qaayinaat Hazrat Ali Karamullah Tallah Wajhul Kariim, his daughter Hazrat Fatima ta Zohra (R.A.), and his grandsons Hazrat Imaam Hassan and Hussain (R.A.). These 5 are known as the 'pure five' and the foundation of our Prophet's lineage.
As the Prophet's lineage continued, a very important figure in Islam arose from the blessed streets of Baghdad, known as the saint Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani (R.A.) also named as Ghaus Pak. A direct descendant of the Prophet (SAW), this Sultaan-ul-Auliyah (the saint of saints) did not only perform miracles and see things beyond our eyes can fathom, but with His powerful oratory skills, he would spread the knowledge of Islam far and wide. A myraid of miracles are attributed in His name, and He is known as a true Lover of God. His descendents continued His teachings in the name of Islam and the love of God. The Sufi order of the Quadriyya lineage (silsila) is founded in His name.
In religions other than Islam, there were messengers like Prophet Ibrahim A.S., and Prophet Musa A.S. (or ‘Moses’) and Prophet Isa A.S. (or ‘Jesus Christ’) and Prophet Nooh (or Noah) A.S. All these messengers bring the same message upon us, only in different ways, different places, and at different times. As time passed, the flourished religions became different, yet the Message remained the same. Any lover of God, thus, would be the lover of our Holy Prophet (SAW), and also His followers and so forth. And in order to reach to God, we need to find ourselves a guide who will help us walk up the ladder of Love and Truth, and finally, reunite with our True Master. These guides are known as Murshids, Gurus, or Peer.
The direct connection we have to God is through our Prophet Mohammad (SAW), and in order to get to Him, we need a spiritual master, who helps us along the journey and shows us the way. A Murshid is the most important figure in the path to God, a simple way to understand it is by heeding the following lines written by Kabir Das
गुरु गोबिन्द दोउ खडे काके लागूँ पाँय बलिहारी गुरु आपने गोबिन्द दियो बताय
Guru gobind dou khade, kaake lagoon paay Balihari guru aapne gobind diyo batay
Guru and God both are here to whom should I first bow All glory be unto the guru The path to God who did bestow
With that set in stone, a very few lucky souls get the privilege of having a Peer Murshid. And such is the case with the people of Orissa (Odisha).
In the late 1960s, during the times of darkness, where theft, drinking, and drug-lords were on the loose in Orissa, the people of that land were blessed with the arrival of a saint, Hazrat Sheikh Shah Syed Nasim Akhtar Quadri (R.A.). Nevertheless, before learning more about our Holy saint of Bhadrak, let us know more about His family, birth, and childhood.
Hazrat Sayeed Shah Fatah-al-Jabbar Quadri (R.A.) was a pious saint and direct descendent of Ghaus pak, who lived in Jhariya and followed an ascetic life of meditation and in supplication to God. He would be visited by hundreds of people and had many devotees (mureed). However, he was always anxious as he waited for his heir, the one who would continue his legacy.
When His daughter was born, Nana Abba was sitting in the company of Hazrat Waris Shah (R.A.), who foretold the birth of His daughter, saying "You go home, My Waaris (heir) is born", which is why His daughter was then named Syeda Warsa. His daughter was later married to a pious man named Hazrat Sayeed Shah Abusayeed Akhtar Razaqi Quadri (R.A.), and both were descendants of Hazrat Ghaus E Azam Shaykh Abdul Qadir al-Jilani (R.A.). This means that the parents of both Badey Sarkaar Qiblah and Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah are Najeeb-u-Turfaain Syed, as both parents are descendants of the Holy Prophet (SAW).
When Syeda Warsa gave birth to a son, named Shamim Akhtar Quadri, Nana Abba quickly took the infant to the Mazaar (shrine) of Shershah Baba (R.A.), but a voice was inspired onto him telling him that the child was not the saint he was seeking. However, in the late 1940s, a second son, Nasim Akhtar Quadri (R.A.), was born. He was born in the Bawandeha village of Aurangabaad. When Nanaba had taken the infant Hazrat Badey Sarkaar Qiblah (R.A) to Sher Baba's (R.A.) Mazaar sharif, the same voice inspired onto him telling him that ‘this is the heir you have been seeking’. Rejoicing, Nana abba found solace knowing that a powerful Wali was welcomed into this world.
While an infant, Hazrat Sheikh Syed Nasim Akhtar Quadri (R.A.) was taken under the wing of His Nanaba, His guardian. Wherever Badey Sarkaar Qiblah went, He would carry an aura of peace, blessings, and Noor (light of God) with Him. In His childhood, He would prefer to spend his time with wild animals, such as tigers, in jungles rather than with people of this duniya (world). He was known to play with snakes and other animals and had no fear of the wild, but always disliked meeting people and would only spend time with Nana Abba. Along this time, His parents had another child in late 1950s, who was then named Wasim Akhtar Quadri (R.A.), who is called Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah (Mamajaan) by his devotees. Both brothers were extremely close and had a very strong bond and the love They had for each other is quite impossible to put in words. Badey Sarkar Qiblah would love and take care of Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah as his child, despite the small age difference, until His last breath in this world.
Just like Nana Abba, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah spent most of His youth in seclusion and meditation. He spent His time gaining Ilm (knowledge) of Islam of the known and the unknown with the help of His Peer Murshid. He would spend his time in Disargarh, West Bengal, at the banks of the Damodar river. He would fast for months on end and not eat or drink anything, and sometimes put tealeaves in his mouth and then drinking water from the river.
Around this time, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah was given a spiritual task to come to then remote town of Bhadrak and settle there. At that time Bhadrak was filled with alcoholism, illegal works, theft, rivalries, fights, and all sorts of bad activities. Badey Sarkaar Qiblah had reached Bhadrak and saw remains of a mosque, which people said was filled with djinns who would harm whoever entered. Being fearless of the outcome, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah simply entered the mosque, and was completely unharmed, thus opening it up to the public as well.
The masjid itself was actually remains of a mosque built by King Allauddin Khilji many centuries before. Badey Sarkaar Qiblah transformed the remains of the Masjid from an uninhabited haunted place to a proper Mosque and named it Sheikh Shaahi Masjid. Similarly, slowly but surely, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah , and later Chotey Sarkaar, changed the face of Bhadrak by getting people to have proper jobs, regaining their faith back into religion, showing them the right path, cleaning their minds and souls even without them realizing it.
They did not only bring light to the darkest of times in Orissa, but also changed the hearts and lives of the people, especially those who lived there, and that is something the people will never forget for centuries to come. Badey Sarkaar Qiblah would continue living in the Sheikh Shaahi Masjid for years to come, where hundreds and thousands of people would visit Him daily for His blessings and guidance. It was in late 70s when Badey Sarkaar Qiblah had called Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah to Bhadrak, who was at that time studying in college.
It is said that at that time Badey Sarkaar Qiblah would be filled with Jalaal and would never meet people. People would fear Him and run away just by one Glance given by Him. He would stay in seclusion and he always avoided meeting the public even though everybody had already come to know of his sainthood and his miracles. However, once Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah had come, He would arrange public meetings and in parallel, he would convince Badey Sarkaar Qiblah to meet the people.
This way, slowly, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah would meet thousands of people and help and heal them and the people grew more and more fond of the brothers. After the renovations of the masjid, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah would live in the lower chambers and Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah would live in the upper chambers of the private quarters behind the Sheikh Shaahi masjid.
Years ago, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah (Badey Baba, as called lovingly by His devotees) had bought a land in Bhadrak and named it ‘Gulshan-e-Ghouspak’. A small hut was made there with 3 rooms, where Hazrat Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah (R.A.) would visit the place in the evenings after Maghrib and there He would meet the youth of Bhadrak and would talk to them, give them advice and blessings in every field of life. People already knew this sacred ground as a ‘Khanquah’.
Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah was always very keen on improving the livelihood, literacy levels of both boys and girls, in Orissa. He would give sermons on women empowerment and would organise blood donation camps, and started free schools, NGOs, and was the first person who started urdu literature festivals in Bhadrak. Moreover, He himself was the founder and chief editor of the urdu magazine 'Rauzan'. Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah taught the youth the etiquettes and way of living in all fields of life. He put great emphasis on maintaining the cleanliness of the body and soul.
For the last few years of His life, Hazrat Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah would recite the following verse of the Quran- ---------------- Kullu nafsin za-ikatul maut كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ “Every soul shall taste death” 3:185 ---------------
And thus, a day of calamity, 5th April 2013, had struck us when Hazrat Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah, at the age of only 58, breathed His last in this world. It was a Jummah (Friday) during the time of Asr, when he fell into an eternal slumber from this Duniya. He was said to have had a heart attack, even though he was examined to be in good health only a few days back.
And just as He had predicted years ago countless times, He was flown to Bhadrak from Delhi in a beautiful coffin, where thousands of people were waiting for Him to arrive. The burial was then told to be in the Gulshan-e-Ghouspak, the Khanquah, where Badey Sarkaar Qiblah put Him to rest. Hundreds of thousands of people came to the Janazah of Chotey Sarkaar, which was led by his older brother, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah. Hundreds of thousands of people came to the Janazah of Chotey Sarkaar, which was led by his older brother, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah . Chotey Sarkaar's departure into the next world had become a time of extreme grievance for everybody. Thousands of people whos hearts were touched by Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah came to visit from different corners of the world and mourned Him together.
After that for months and months to come, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah laid out the Khanquah and all His devotees volunteered whenever they could, whether it was for labor or to donate and buy required materials. The way Badey Sarkaar Qiblah led the crowds and how everyone worked tirelessly and effortlessly was simply miraculous, and soon enough the empty land turned into a beautiful Khanquah in a very short time period. At that time, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah also even finalised the place where he would rest and said He did not want any roof on top and wants to be in the open.
Badey Sarkaar Qiblah had also made a foundation for the Darbaar shareef, where many Tabarukaat of the Prophet (SAW), His family, Ghaus-pak, and Chotey and Badey Sarkaar Qiblah are kept for the public to see.
Then, exactly 1 year and 7 months later, once all of the important works of the Khanquah was finished, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah breathed his last in this world, during the early morn hours after Fajr on a Wednesday, 24th of September 2014, when He finally joined His eternal Beloved. Hundreds of thousands of people came for the Janaazah, and He was finally taken to His resting place next to Chotey Sarkaar, his little brother. Just like how they lived in the Masjid, Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah now rests in the upper quarters of the Khanquah, and Badey Sarkaar Qiblah in the lower quarters.
Every year, there is an Urs for both Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah and Badey Sarkaar Qiblah , attended by hundreds of thousands of people. Aside from that, the maintenance of the Khanquah still continues like it was during the lifetime of Chotey and Badey Sarkaar Qiblah , their rooms are still kept the same way for them, and people still come to the Khanquah to become their Mureed. They have devotees from all over the world. Thus, Badey Sarkaar Qiblah Qiblah and Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah uphold the name of 'Gulshan-e-Ghouspak', being the flowers of Ghauspak, who brought His Noor to this world, and will continue to spread it for centuries and centuries to come.
Finally, a very precious verse is written below that Hazrat Badey Sarkaar Qiblah and Hazrat Chotey Sarkaar Qiblah would always utter in remembrance and admiration of the Murshid of our Murshids:
Gulshan-E-Ghouspak Sarkar Nagar , Bhadrak, Odisha
