Abdul Rahman Bulbul Shah: The first preacher of Islam in Kashmir
About Us | Contact Us | E-Paper
Title :    Text :    Source : 

Abdul Rahman Bulbul Shah: The first preacher of Islam in Kashmir

Bulbul Shah was the first Islamic preacher to introduce Islam to the people of Kashmir for the first time and introduced Islam to non-Muslims

Post by on Sunday, October 31, 2021

First slide

Kashmir has a glorious past of its own. It has always been a historical place. From time-to-time different nations of the world have piled up in it. Thus, Kashmir has been the cradle of various tribes and families from ancient times to the nineteenth century. Although Prophet Muhammad (SAW) passed away in 632 C.E., it was only after his death that Islam began to spread rapidly all over the world and its rays reached Africa, Europe, and Asia and the same rays also spread to the Kashmir Valley. Who was the first person to convert to Islam in Kashmir? The efforts of historians continue unabated.

For the first time in Kashmir, Muslims were introduced by the army of Raja Harsh as his armies were meat eaters but instead of slaughtering with their own hands, they hired butchers. These butchers can be called the first Muslims of Kashmir. Nothing can be said about where these Muslim butchers came from and what their real homeland was. According to a tradition, the first Muslim in Kashmir entered during the period of Muhammad bin Qasim when he conquered Sindh and defeated Raja Dahir. He was Syrian by origin and settled here and also constructed a Masjid. There is also an indication that Muslims entered Kashmir during the time of Mahmud Ghaznavi, However, historic scripts also clear that Muslims did not come to Kashmir for military coup and lust for power.

Bulbul Sahib was the first Waliullah who entered Kashmir during the reign of Raja Sahadeva (1301-1320). He had excelled in religious, secular, external and internal sciences. He spent all his life in solitude, and as Da’i. His real name was ‘Syed Abdul Rahman’; designated as ‘Sharafuddin’ and ‘Bulbul Shah’. He was a resident of Turkestan and after completing his education and cognition there, he moved to Baghdad, and after acquiring knowledge of Sufism from Shahabuddin Suhrawardi and Syed Shah Niyamatullah, according to the constitution of that time, Bulbul Shah set out for the world to popularize the Islamic Da’wah, and in 1302 C.E. he finally entered Kashmir.

Rinchan Shah was the ruler of Kashmir at that time, who practiced Buddhism, while his wife, Kota Rani daughter of Ram Chandrina, was a follower of Hindu Dharma. The religious divergences between the two spouses always created the dissentism. The Queen urged Rinchan to accept Hindu Dharma, but he did not agree. Finally, one day, they decided that the man of which religion would appear before them in the morning, they would adopt the same religion. The next day Rinchan opened the window of his palace and saw a man who was worshiping in a new way. This was the Bulbul Shah who was performing the Fajr prayers. Rinchan Shah got much impressed by this method of worship and reminded the promise to Kota Rani, which resulted in the convergence of the whole empire to Islam. Rinchan Shah was renamed as Sadruddin and Kota Rani as Khatun Begum, and thus Islam got the official position in Kashmir.

Bulbul Shah was a great Muslim and a strict adherent of the Sunnah of the Prophet (SAW).It has been recorded in historic manuscripts that one day he was standing on the bank of river Jhelum intending to perform ablution. He saw a beautiful nightingale (bulbul) on a branch of a tree which was singing in a very sweet voice and suddenly flew towards the sky. Bulbul Shah also flew behind him and grabbed the bulbul and landed in his room and bulbul disappeared from his hand. One of his followers inquired about the incident. Bulbul Shah said that the bird was my soul which was ascending to the sky. I followed him and brought him back. It is said that the person remained silent on the matter. This became clear to Bulbul Shah and he poured water from his mouth into the mouth of that person, which resulted in him diving into the ocean of cognomination and experiencing the state of spiritual development and he accepted what Bulbul Shah had said. When this news spread among the people, they gave Abdul Rahman the title of “Bulbul Shah”. Sultan Sadruddin built the first Masjid and monastery (Khanqah) in Kashmir for his teacher Bulbul Shah, which still exists. As per records Bulbul Shah passed away in 1327 C.E.and was buried near his Khanqah.

Bulbul Shah’s tomb is a long plain stone which is located on the banks of the river Jhelum in Bulbul Lanker Aali Kadal Srinagar. There is no inscription on his grave. Near the tomb of Bulbul Sahib is the tomb of Allama Ahmad. The tomb of Sultan Sadruddin is also located on a small piece of land to the west of the tomb of Bulbul Shah where the Archaeological Department has built a beautiful park. Sultan Sadruddin ruled Kashmir from 1320-1331 C.E.

Bulbul Shah was the first Islamic preacher to introduce Islam to the people of Kashmir for the first time and introduced Islam to non-Muslims. There was also Langar where the poor and orphans were fully accommodated and the area is still known as the Bulbul Lanker. The monastery was set on fire in 1613 C.E. at that time Akbar Ali was the Mughal Governor of Kashmir. However, it was rebuilt again. In 1836 C.E. the Sikhs took possession of the monastery and turned it into a food store. However, in 1933 C.E., under public pressure, Maharaja Hari Singh handed it over to the Muslims.

On the instructions of Bulbul Shah, Sadruddin Shah, built a Masjid in AaliKadal, on the banks of the Jhelum River, in 1321-1322 C.E., adjacent to his palace. This Masjid was also set on fire. But later a small Masjid was built in its place. On the door of the Masjid, Sadruddin had placed an inscription in the Sharda language which was later stolen by a British officer during the reign of Maharaja Ranbir Singh and was kept in a museum in London.

Abdul Rahman Bulbul Shah came here and during his stay, many people converted to Islam. After 52 years later Syed Ali Hamadani (RA) visited Kashmir in 1372 C.E. Along with Bulbul Sahib, some famous scholars also came here, Popular among them was Mullah Ahmad who was a very close associate of Bulbul Shah. When Sultan Shamsuddin ascended the throne in 1339 C.E., he felt the need for a scholar who could have mastered the Qur’an and Hadith. The emperor appointed Mullah Ahmad as Shaykh-ul-Islam of Kashmir and he took over all Islamic affairs, established scientific and religious institutions, and introduced the Islamic Shari’ah Law. He remained in this post even during the reign of Sultan Shahabuddin. He was buried near the tomb of Bulbul Shah.

(The author is a Senior Researcher of Islamic Studies at the Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University in Rajouri, Jammu & Kashmir. He can be reached at khalid6484@bgsbu.ac.in)

 

Latest Post