‘Abd al-Quddūs Jalāl ad-Dīn ( ar, عبد القدوس جلال الدين), best known as Shah Makhdum ( bn, শাহ মখদুম), and also known as Rupos, was a Sufi Muslim figure in

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. He is associated with the

spread of Islam The spread of Islam spans about 1,400 years. Muslim conquests following Muhammad's death led to the creation of the caliphates, occupying a vast geographical area; conversion to Islam was boosted by Arab Muslim forces conquering vast territorie ...

into the

Varendra Varendra ( bn, বরেন্দ্র), also known as Barind ( bn, বারিন্দ, link=no), was a region of North Bengal, now mostly in Bangladesh and a little portion in the Indian state of West Bengal. It formed part of the Pundrav ...

region of

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

. He arrived in Bengal with his elder brother Syed Ahmad (Miran Shah) from

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

Shah Makhdum Airport Shah Makhdum Airport is a domestic airport serving Rajshahi, the principal city of the Rajshahi Division in Bangladesh. The airport is named after Sufi saint Shah Makhdum Rupos. The airport also serves as a base for two flying training academ ...

Rajshahi Rajshahi ( bn, রাজশাহী, ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city and a major urban, commercial and educational centre of Bangladesh. It is also the administrative seat of the eponymous Rajshahi Division, division and Rajshahi District ...

, is named after him.

Life

The exact birth date of Shah Makhdum is not known but he was born in

. His father was Azala Shah, who was said to have been a descendant of Abdul Qadir Gilani. He came to Lakshmipur in

Noakhali Noakhali ( bn, নোয়াখালী, , New canal), historically known as Bhulua ( bn, ভুলুয়া), is a district in southeastern Bangladesh, located in the Chittagong Division. It was established as district in 1821, and officia ...

, where he established a

khanqah A khanqah ( fa, خانقاه) or khangah ( fa, خانگاه; also transliterated as ''khankah'', ''khaneqa'', ''khanegah'' or ''khaneqah''; also Arabized ''hanegah'', ''hanikah'', ''hanekah'', ''khankan''), also known as a ribat (), is a buildin ...

in the village now known as Shyampur. His elder brother, Syed Ahmad Miran Shah, established a khanqah in the nearby village of Kanchanpur. He earned the nickname of Rupos as he was known to cover his face with a piece of cloth in the manner of a section of the saints of the

Chishti Order The Chishtī Order ( fa, ''chishtī'') is a tariqa, an order or school within the mystic Sufi tradition of Sunni Islam. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. It began with Abu Ishaq Shami in Chisht, a ...

. Two years later, he migrated with his companions to Bagha in

after hearing that contemporary Muslim preacher Shah Turkan and his comrades were murdered by the local tantric

Raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested f ...

Angsu Deo Chandavandi Varmabhoj and sacrificed to

Mahakala Mahākāla is a deity common to Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism. In Buddhism, Mahākāla is regarded as the sacred '' Dharmapāla'' ("Protector of the Dharma"), while in Hinduism, Mahākāla is a fierce manifestation of the Hindu god Shiva and th ...

. To avenge Turkan, Makhdum and his companions defeated the Raja and subsequently established a khanqah in Rampur Boalia (modern-day Rajshahi City). Makhdum then sent his companions to the adjoining areas to set up khanqahs and preach for

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. Bagha was later renamed to Makhdumnagar in his honour. Some of his companions here included Syed Shah Abbas, Syed Dilal Bukhari, Shah Sultan, Shah Karam Ali and Nusrat Shah. Shah Makhdum spent the rest of his life propagating in Rajshahi.

Death

It is unknown how, but Makhdum died on 27

Rajab Rajab ( ar, رَجَب) is the seventh month of the Islamic calendar. The lexical definition of the classical Arabic verb ''rajaba'' is "to respect" which could also mean "be awe or be in fear", of which Rajab is a derivative. This month is re ...

and was buried at Dargah Para in Rampur Boalia. Although some sources mention the year corresponding to 1313 CE others suggest he died in 1592 CE at the age of 117. During the

Mughal period The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

, Ali Quli Beg, a

Twelver Shia Twelver Shīʿīsm ( ar, ٱثْنَا عَشَرِيَّة; '), also known as Imāmīyyah ( ar, إِمَامِيَّة), is the largest branch of Shīʿa Islam, comprising about 85 percent of all Shīʿa Muslims. The term ''Twelver'' refers t ...

and servant of

Abbas the Great Abbas I ( fa, ; 27 January 157119 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the 5th Safavid Shah (king) of Iran, and is generally considered one of the greatest rulers of Iranian history and the Safavid dynasty. He was the third son ...

, constructed a square-shaped one-domed

mazar (mausoleum) A ''mazār'' ( ar, مزار), or ''darīh'' () in the Maghreb, is a mausoleum or shrine in some places of the world, typically that of a saint or notable religious leader. Medieval Arabic texts may also use the words ''mašhad'' or ''maqām'' ...

above the grave. Devotees commemorate Makhdum's death every year with an

urs Urs (from ''‘Urs'') or ''Urus'' (literal meaning wedding), is the death anniversary of a Sufi saint, usually held at the saint's dargah (shrine or tomb). In most Sufi orders such as Naqshbandiyyah, Suhrawardiyya, Chishtiyya, Qadiriyya, etc ...

on 27

at the

Dargah A dargah ( fa, درگاه ''dargâh'' or ''dargah'', Turkish: ''dergâh'', Hindustani: ''dargah'' दरगाह درگاہ, bn, দরগাহ ''dorgah'') is a shrine or tomb built over the grave of a revered religious figure, often ...

premise. The Mutawalli (guardian) of the shrine in 1877 stated that the shrine estate was made rent-free as a gift by Mughal emperor

Humayun Nasir-ud-Din Muhammad ( fa, ) (; 6 March 1508 – 27 January 1556), better known by his regnal name, Humāyūn; (), was the second emperor of the Mughal Empire, who ruled over territory in what is now Eastern Afghanistan, Pakistan, Northern ...

. In 1904, the ninth Mutawalli of the estate, Ghulam Akbar, made a statement at the

Rajshahi District Rajshahi District ( bn, রাজশাহী জেলা) is a district in mid-western Bangladesh. It is a part of the Rajshahi Division. The metropolitan city of Rajshahi is in Rajshahi District. Geography Rajshahi district is bounded by Naoga ...

Court mentioning that although the estate was established in 1634, Shah Makhdum Rupos was alive 450 years before that (thus placing him in the 12th century in 1184 AD). Shah Nur was the first Mutawalli of the shrine.

Eponyms

* Shah Makhdum Thana *Shah Mokhdum Medical College *Shah Makdum Hall,

University of Rajshahi The University of Rajshahi, also known as Rajshahi University or RU ( bn, রাজশাহী বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়), is a public co-educational research university in Bangladesh situated near the northern Bangladeshi cit ...

*Shah Mokhdum College, Rajshahi

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Makhdum Rupos, Shah Indian people of Arab descent Indian people of Iraqi descent People from Baghdad 14th-century Indian Muslims 13th-century Indian Muslims Bengali Sufi saints Sufi mystics People from Rajshahi District 1313 deaths 1592 deaths