Khwaja Ghulam Farid (

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Sufi poet Sufi literature consists of works in various languages that express and advocate the ideas of Sufism. Sufism had an important influence on medieval literature, especially poetry, that was written in Arabic, Persian, Turkic and Urdu. Sufi doctr ...

from

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

. He was a member of the Chishti Nizami Sufi order. He wrote poetry in several languages, and his literary heritage has been claimed by both the Punjabi and the Saraiki language movements.

Early life

Farid's mother died when he was four years old and he was orphaned around the age of eight when his father, Khwaja Khuda Bakhsh, died. He was then brought up by his elder brother, Khwaja Fakhr-ud-Din, also known as Khwaja Fakhr Jehan Sain, and grew up to become a scholar and writer. He wrote

kafi Kafi ( pa, ਕਾਫ਼ੀ (Gurmukhi), (Shahmukhi), Hindi: काफ़ी, Urdu: کافی, Sindhi:ڪافي) is a classical form of Sufi music mostly in the Siraiki, Punjabi and Sindhi languages and originating from the Punjab, and Sindh re ...

poems in Punjabi, Sindhi,

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

, and Braj Bhasha. Sadeq Mohammad Khan III

Nawab of Bahawalpur Bahawalpur (Urdu, skr, ) was a princely state of British India, and later Dominion of Pakistan, that was a part of the Punjab States Agency. It existed as an autonomous state, within Pakistan from 1947 to 1955, when it was dissolved and merge ...

took Farid to his palace at Ahmedpur East for his religious education by a scholar, when he was 8 years old. His brother Fakhr-ud-Din, who had brought him up after his parents' deaths, also died when Farid was 28 years old. Farid then left for the

Cholistan Desert The Cholistan Desert ( ur, ; Punjabi: ), also locally known as Rohi (), is a desert in the southern part of Punjab, Pakistan that forms part of the Greater Thar Desert, which extends to Sindh province and the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is on ...

(also known as ''Rohi'') for '' chilla'' (retreat) where he lived for 18 years. Most of his work includes mentioning of the beauty of this place. Farid performed '' hajj'' (pilgrimage to

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow ...

) in 1876.

Works

His most significant works include: * '' Diwan-e-Farid'' (Punjabi verse) * ''Manaqabe Mehboobia'' (in Persian prose) * ''Fawaid Faridia'' (in Persian prose) Khawaja Ghulam Farid tomb at Kot Mithan

In his poetry, he frequently uses the symbolism of a desert. Namely, he discusses how beautiful the desert is and how it attracted him to stay there for 18 years and how he believed that made him feel close to

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...

. His work however does also include slightly touching the topic of political affairs, opposing the British rule in

Bahawalpur Bahawalpur () is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. With inhabitants as of 2017, it is Pakistan's 11th most populous city. Founded in 1748, Bahawalpur was the capital of the former princely state of Bahawalpur, ruled by the Abbasi fa ...

state, writing a letter to the

and also mentioning it in some of his poetry.

Legacy

*The 20th century saw the development of a branch of literary studies on Farid's life and work called ''Fareediyat''. *Today, many religious and educational institutions in Pakistan and India are named after Farid (e.g., Khawaja Farid Government College,khawaja farid University of engineering and information technology in

Rahimyar Khan Rahim Yar Khan () is a city in Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the 9th largest city of Pakistan by population. It is the capital of the Rahim Yar Khan District and Rahim Yar Khan Tehsil. The administration of the city is subdivided into nin ...

, Pakistan) as are streets and town living quarters. *A literary award named after Farid – the Khwaja Ghulam Farid Award – is awarded yearly by the

Pakistan Academy of Letters The Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL) ( ur, ) is a national academy with its main focus on Pakistani literature and related fields. It is the largest and the most prestigious learned society of its kind in Pakistan, with activities throughout th ...

in literature, its recipients including

Ismail Ahmedani Ismail Ahmedani (1930–2007) (اسماعیل احمدانی) was a Saraiki novelist, fiction writer, and promoter of the Saraiki language. Life He was born 1 January 1930 in a small village "Khoi" in Rajanpur District, British India (now Pak ...

(in 2013) and Irshad Taunsvi (in 2007) among others. * In 2001, on Farid's 100th death anniversary (''

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 ...

''), Pakistan Post issued a memorial stamp to honour him in its "Poets of Pakistan" series *

Sadiq Public School The Sadiq Public School (SPS) is a college-preparatory boarding school located in Bahawalpur, Punjab, Pakistan. It also takes day pupils. It is one of the largest schools in Pakistan and its area of makes it both the largest in the country and i ...

, the public school built by Nawab

Sadeq Mohammad Khan V General Nawab Sir Sadiq Muhammad Khan V Abbasi ( ur, ) (born 29 September 1904, in Derawar – died 24 May 1966, in London) was the Nawab, and later Amir, of Bahawalpur State from 1907 to 1966. He became the Nawab on the death of his f ...

in Bahawalpur, has a house for the day scholars of the prep section named after Farid, called Fareed House. * Fareed Gate is the name of one of the historic gates surrounding the old city of

named in Farid's honour. *The Khawaja Fareed University of Engineering and Information Technology (KFUEIT) in

Rahim Yar Khan District Rahim Yar Khan District ( ur, ) is a district in the of Punjab province, Pakistan and the city of Rahim Yar Khan is its capital. The city itself is administratively subdivided into nine Union Councils. Administrative The district of Rahim Yar ...

was named after Farid. * Shrine of Khawaja Ghulam Farid in

Rajanpur Rajanpur ( ur, ), is a city and the headquarters of Rajanpur District in the far southwestern part of Punjab, Pakistan. The district lies entirely west of the Indus River. it is a narrow, to wide strip of land sandwiched between the Indus Riv ...

, Punjab is among the ''10 most visited shrines in Pakistan''.

References

External links

The complete works of Khwaja Farid in Punjabi on Academy of the Punjab in North America website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farid, Khwaja Ghulam 1845 births 1901 deaths Sufi mystics Sufi poets People of British India Punjabi Sufi saints Poets from Punjab, Pakistan 19th-century poets People from Rahim Yar Khan District Punjabi-language poets Punjabi-language writers Chishti Order Punjabi people Indian poets

Early life

Works

Legacy

See also

References

External links