I Intersectionsbetween

Sufism and power

Narrating the shaykhs and sultans
of Northern India, 1200-1400

Blain H. Auer

This study involves a critical re-evaluation of the litera¡y modes ofrepresentaton

ofthe flgures ofthe sulta.n and the Sufi shaykl in the pre-modem Muslim world.
It attempts to show how narrative frameworks from historiography and biography,
depicting the lives ofthe Delhi sultans a¡d Sut shaykhs ofthe seventh./thirteenth
and eightb/fouteenth centuries, were interdependent. In biographical genres and
in the recorded conversations of Sufr shayklx of the eighth/fourteenth cenhìry,
images ofthe shaykh were crafted with litera¡y techniques found in historiography.
In historiography of tle same period, sultans are depicted with images commonly
reserved for Sufl shaykhs as for.rnd in their recorded conversations and biographies.
It is importa.nt to understard the intertextuality of these literary genres ald
to understand the relationships between image, authorship, and audience.r Tlese
texts provide a means to understand the evolving cormections between royal
cowts as they played a major role in the institutionalization of Sufl orders through
patronage and confened legitimacy. They also reveal the multitude ofways Suû
shaykbs reciprocated power by legitimating the authority of sultans.
Ar understanding of this historical relationship car help to unravel some
fundamental questions in the study of this period in the history of Muslim South
Asia. For instance, what were the sources of legitimacy for Suû shaykhs and
Muslirn rule¡s? What was the role of Sufl shaykhs in establishing Islamic
hegemony? ì hat role did the courts of Muslim rulers play in the evolution and
institutionalization ofSuû o¡ders? In attempting to answer some ofthese questions
this chapter offen new methods ofinterpretation for the study ofthe relationship
between Sufism and power over t}re course of tle seventh./thirteenth and eighth/
fourteenlå centuries.

Conflicting images, genre, and authorship

In his remarkable study ofthe power ard authority ofpre-modem Moroccan Sufr
shaykhs, Vincent Comell makes the general and provocative st¿tement that
"Sainthood is a matter of discourse."2 Employing the term "discourse," Comell
acknowledges something frequently ignored or generally overlooked in the study
oflslam and Sufism.3 Religious flgures, in this case Sufi shaykhs, pass through
social, institutional, and literary processes to achieve tïeir sanctified status.a More
18 Blain H. Auer
importa¡tly, the acknowledgment oftheir status, and the level and extent oftheir
authority, ias been the subject of intense debates, both intemally within Sufl
circles and extemal to them.5 This was clearly the case in regard to Sufism in pre-
modem Morocco. It is equally the case in regard to Suûsm as it developed in the
context of Muslim South Asia.
The subject of the discourse under consideration is the relationship between
Sufi shaykhs and the sulta¡s of Delhi. Of course, the historical trajectory of the
northem India¡ subcontinenl was quite different from that ofthe Magbreb' which
stood at the opposite end of the pre-modem Muslim world Centers of lslamic
authority had been founded in the imperial cities of Fes and Marrakesh long
before tire establishment of Sufi orders. The origin of Delhi as a center of Islamic
authority dates back to the early seventl/thì¡teenth century when Shams al-Dtn
tltutrnisir 1r. 607 3311210-36) took the throne and established the lineage of the
Shamsþa sultans of India.6 Delhi, as a preeminent center of Islamic authority,
was bom in tìe context of increasingly institutionalized forms of Sufism' The
coeval development of an Indo-Islamic sultanate based in Delhi and the
establishment of Sufl centers was unique to South Asia and perhaps had a more
profound impact on the socio-political climate of the seventh/thirteenth and
than anywhere else in the Muslim world'7
"lghttt/foo.t""ntn ""nturies the time ofthe emergence ofthe Delhi Sultanate'
It is no coincidence that during
the "founders" ofwhat would become the two most importãnt Sufi orders of South
Asia, the Chishtilya and Suhrawardiyy4 established religious centers in India'
One rnajor clifficulty in plope y undeßtanding the origins ofthese orders in South
Asia is that there is no literary evidence pertaining to them from
the periocl in which their purported founders lived. Mu'in al-Din chishti
(53Á331114l-1236) is said to have migrated from Chisht, a town located
8
ìear Herat in eastem Afghanistan near the Ghurid capital, Frräzküh He settled
in the to',{n of Ajmer in India and his tomb became the site of an important
pilgrimage center, at least by the mid-eighth/fourteenth century, when tlle
sultan ofbehi, Muhammarl b. Tughluq (r ' 724-5211324-51), singled it out for his
own pilgrimage.e Mu'Tn al-Din would become known, at least in reûospect,
as the founder ofthe Chishtiyya order. The other shaykh, Baha' al-DlnZakanyyã
(5'18-66111182 1262), was bom in South Asia but travelled far and wide
to complete his religious education.ro In Baghdad, he studied under tlte
famous Sufr, Abü Hafç 'Umar al-Sub¡awa¡di (539-63211145-1234), who is
reported to have deputed him to represent the Suhrawardi order in South
esia. Salã' al-Din Zakarilyã's fame would spread as the formder of the
Suhrawardi order in India.
These two ûgures have served as focal points in the understanding of the
evolution of a vast network of Sui groups that shared ritual practices, a common
conception ofgenealogy, and the formal transmission ofreligious authoriry They
hved àuring the time when Shams al-Dïn Iltutrnish was attempting to establish
Delhi as a center of Islamic authority, a¡d in later sources they are depicted as
having had influence over him.rr The relationship between these men ofpower is
the subject of considerable scrutiny and it stands at the crux of the social, cultural,
Intersections between Sufsu and power 19
and political issues that were integral to the various formulations of Islamic
authority in the subcontinent.
What we krow about Sufr shaykhs and Muslim rulers fiom South Asia is
primarily constructed out of literary writings that fall into tbree genres broadly
conceived: history (t4rtlçl¡), biography þþar), and the conversations of shaykhs
(malJùv1t/nøjalß).12 Hisiory writing ìvas, of coutse, an ongoing literary activity
ofMuslim cou¡ts that began as early as the second/eighth century. One ofthe ûrst
histories of signiûcaace ûom the Delhi Sultanate was the universal history
of Minhãj Sirãj Jüzjãnr @. 589/1193), the Tabaqãt-i Natiri It was a universal
history of Islam beginning with tales from the life of ihe prophet a.nd father of
humanity, Adam, and ending with the exploits of Nãsù al-D-m Mahmi¡d Shãh
(r. 644 64/1246 66), sultan of Delhi ard Jüzjãni's patron. If history was the
premier literary mode of representation for Muslim rulers in South Asia, then
biography was the purview of Sufi shaykhs. However, writings pertaining to Sufi
orders as they would develop in South Asia do not appear until the eighth/
fourteenth century. These writings take general shape in two prominent literary
genres. One form is the biographies of Sufi shaykhs, sometimes referred to as
siyar or \øz-kira. The most famous and widely read of the biographies of Sufi
shaykhs written in P ersiat is the Tbzkirat al-øwliya'by Faljid al-D-m 'Attãx (d. ca.
6i7l1220). In South Asia, the fust ofthese kinds ofbiographical works to impact
the literary culture ofthe Delhi Sultanatewasthe Siyar al-a id' ofM-rr Khwurd
(fl,. 7 52-90 I 13 s I -82) ;t 3
Another layer in this literary tradition was the recorded didactic conversations
of shaykhs known as malJù7at or møjalis.ra This tradition is exempliûed by works
such as Amrr flasan Sijzt's (655-737 /1257-1336) Føva'id al-fu'ød, which
documents the teaching sessions of the most farnous Suû shaykh of the day,
Nizãm al-Drn Awliy-a' (ca. 640-72511243-1325). There a¡e also importa¡t but
lesser known wo¡ks such as lhe Durqr-i Ni?ami by 'Ali b. Mahmüd Janda¡, a
major source utilized in the composition of tt.e Siyar al-awliya'.\5 Arßtbet
extremely important work is {arnrt Qalandar's Khayr al-mø7äft1s, which records
the sayings of Nasjr al-D-rn Mahmüd Chirãgh-i Dihlî (d. 75711356), perhaps the
most prominent successor to Nigãm al-DTn Awtiyã' ró .
It is within the pages of the Sufi biographies and the conversation of shaykhs
that the stock imagery of the pious Sufl shaykh was crafted. Stories about Sufi
shaykhs emphasized their divine inspirati on (ilham), poverly (faqr\,theprobcrion
(wilõya) they of'fered tbrough God, their marvelous powes (karamat) and their
chosenness by God. These kinds oftexts are frequently collectively referred to as
hagiograph¡ a term that canies with it the nineteenth- and t\üentieth-century
pejorative baggage ofbeing'întrue," and they are often contrasted \ ith the "true"
narratives fou¡d in other types of historiography.rT However, the generic
distinctions made between the hagiography and historiography of the eightb/
fourteenth century ca¡not be accepted outright, as will be seen. Carl Emst has
commented upon this axtiflcial distinction, saying, "The polarity between mystical
and royal historiographies should not be taken as absolute and exclusive, but as a
s
synbiotic relationship. "l
20 Blain H. Auer
Courts, Sufi circles, and Patronage
In addition to understanding gerue when interpreting discouses on the relatiori-
ship between Sufi shaykhs and Muslim rulers it is also important to pay attention
to authonhip and audience. The authors of the histories of the Delhi sultans and
the biographies of Suû shaykhs shaxed discusiv€ spaces. Both court historiaß
ancl the biãgraphers of Sufi shaykhs were prominent members of Muslim courts,
holding high offices, mingling at the elite levels ofsociery In fact, in many cases
authots *ho chose Sufi shaykhs as the subject for their literary endeavors also
wïote works dedicated to the lives of sulta¡s. Though it is difficult to trace the
patronage of the works dedicated to Sufi shaykhs, it is unlikely that these literary
endeavors would have been created without, at least, indirect court patronage'
There certainly was a sha¡ed audience for both historical and biographical works:
the court, the iiterate, and a notion ofposterity. Ultimately, the primary audiences
of the histories of sultans and biographies of shaykhs difered completely' Simply
put, one was, literally, dedicated to sultans and the other to shaykhs
The long-lasting interactions between royal courts, Sufi circles, a¡d the literaxy
culture are no beiter exempliûed than in the life of Amtr Khusraw (651 725l
1253-1325). Amir Khu$aìv authored some ofthe most important historical works
on the Delhi sultans produced in the late seventh,/thirteenth and earþ eightb/
fou¡teenth centudes, in both prose ald verse.le He prominently served at the
pleasure of no fewer ttran five sultans of Delhi, fiom Ja1ãl al-Dîn Ftruz Shãh (r
ãSg-gSltZgo 5) to Ghiyâg al-Din Tughluq Shah (r. 7204/13204\. At the sartjLe
time he was a close associate ofthe most influential Sufi shaykh ofhis day, Ni7ãm
al-DmAwliyã'.20 He \üïote "dedications- to Ni?ãm al-DinAwliyâ' in a mrmber of
his writings. Moreover,+he Aþal al-fava'rd, though likely a spuriously attributed
work, is supposedly the sayings of the shaykh as collected by Amir Kltusraw,
and the collection reptesents a testament to the fame ofthe relationship between
the two.2r
Ni7ãm al-Din Awliyã' 's infuence at the royal court extended far beyond Ari-tr
Khusraw. There was also Amtr Hasan SijzI, the author of the most famous
collection of conversations of NiTam al-DTn Awliyã', the Fava'id al-fu'ad' Lrke
ô,nr*rr Khusraw Amtr tlasan held court appointments under a variety of sultans of
Delhi. As court poet, his ¿lïvøz is full ofpraise poems dedicated to the sulta$ he
served.z ln fact, many ofthe compileË ofthe sayings ofinfluential Sufi shaykhs
also wrote praise poetry to sultans. This was the case \¡/ith Hatu..rd Qalandar' In
addition to the Khayr al-maialß, Qalandar also composed poetry in praise of the
sultan Frruz Shãh (r 752-90i 1351-88), the last ofthe great Tughluq rulers ofthe
Delhi Sultanate. Though his rFvãn has been lost, some of Qalandar's verses have
been preserved in the Maimu'a-yi lqíq'if va safina, an anthology of poetry
compiled in the ninth/flfteenth century.23
Finally, consider Ziyã' al-DTn Baram (ca. 684-758/1285-1357), author of the
famous Tarlkh-i Fîruz Shãh|, a dynastic history of the sultans of Delhi from
Ghiyãg al-DÍn Balb an (r. 664-85/1266-87) to the sixth regnal year of Frräz Shãh'
BaranT held the distinguished post of c ovrt cormcilor (na[tm) to Mubâmmad b'
rugrrruq. He arso aurhored the m ,:'ff:#r:::":r::::i::"::ri:.
of the eightb./fourteenth century, the f'ø tuvd-i Jahqndqrl.24 Barani frequented the
khãnaqdh of Ni7Ãm al-Drn, and this is where he cultivated his relationship wilh
Amir Khusraw and Amir flasan. As Barani said of their relationship, "Amr-r
Khusraw, Am-u flasan, and I had had a close füendship for many years; they could
not survive without my companionship, nor I without theirs."25 Baram's writings
testi8/ to the fact tlÉt Ni7ãm al-D-rn's high-level associations with the royal court
were at times beneûcial and at times detrimental. For instance, during the reign of
Qutb al-Dïn Mubãrak Shãh (r. 71G20/l3lG20), Ni7ãm al-Dln was singled out
for threats because of the influence he wielded over powerful members of the
royal court.26
Patronage between Islamic courts and Sufi centers can further be seen in the
construction ofthe ftå Anaqah, or cetÍer of Sufi activity.2? Strltans made significant
financial contributions to the building ofthese multifaceted structures. One ofthe
major functions ofthe khctnqqahwastoprovide food and shelter to underprivileged
members of sociery This ability to distribute charity was made possible through
the generous donations ofa shaykh's admirers, maay ofthem being sultans, emirs,
and their cou¡tiers. This is best illustrated by an anecdote recordedi¡lhe Favõ'id
al-Fu'ad. ThereNrqãm al-Din Awliyã' relates that Ulugh Klan, then govemor of
the province oflahore, while passing through Ajüdhan on the way to Multan ìvent
to meet with Bãbâ FanI. In this meeting he donated a large sum of money
(naqdana), whrchBãbã Farid accepte{ though he rejected the land grants (zi¡al)
offered along with it.28 Coincidentally, Ulugh Khan later became Sultan Ghiyãg
al-Dïn Balban.
Bãbã FanI's acceptance ofthe donation and his association with Ghiyãg al-D-rn
Balban indicates his approval ofthe future sultan. Thus, there developed a system
of donalions (futuh) that supported the charitable activities o l the S\fi khãnaqoh -2e
This ensured that Sufi shaykhs had a steady stream of visitors and, at the same
time, it elevated the piety ofthe sultan through his generous donations. It was a¡
economic system ofinterdependence and of such importance to the court that the
sultans of Delhi devoted the activities of the appointed office of shoykh al-ßlõm
to the care and maintenance of the Sufl khanaqãh and the patronage of Suû
shaykhs. This specific function of the office appears to have been unique to the
Delhi Sultanate when compared to the broader Muslim world ofthe time. Richard
Bulliet traces the offi ce of the shaykh al-ßlãrz to Khurasan in the late tenth century
CE. By the eleventh century this ofûce was dedicated to administedng the
madrasa. However, in the context of South Asia this office took on a rather specific
function. He wdtes, "The Shaykh al-Islam was a higbly religious, govemmental
ofÊcial charged with dispensing patronage to eminent men of religion, sufis in
pa.rticula¡. ":o
Muslim rulers helped contribute to the institutionålization of Suûsm in a
number ofother ways. Just consider the relations befween Muhammad b. Tughluq
and Ni7ãm al-Dîn Awliyã' . In one incident, Ibn Battúta records in his magniûcent
travelogue, popularly known as the Riirla, a tale in which Ni?ãm al-D-rn Awþä'
confers the kingdom upon young prince Muhammad b. Tugbluq during a moment
22 Blain H. Auer
of ecstasy (rt hllihi\.In the same passage Ibn Battüta tell us that Muþammad b'
tughluq wås among the pallbeareis ofthe firneral of Ni7ãm al-Din Awliyã"3r In
u nìrttt"i .t"p tttut Uineflted tÏe forh¡nes of the Chishti order, Ibn Battuþ
records
that Muhammad b. Tugbluq remitted the revenues from the town ofAjüdhan for
the maintenance ofttre sbrine complex.32 As Richard Eaion noted, "This seems to
be the earliest reference to ttre court's alienation oflocal revenues in favor of tlle
shrine's support."r3 Muhammad b. Tughluq was also responsible for the
construction of the tomb of 'Alã' al-D-rn Mawj-i Daryã (d ca' 66111268)'
r}r,e
grardson of Bãbã Fanl.sa As was noted earlier, 'Abd al-Malik 'IçãmI (b' ca'
ittlt:tO¡ reports in his "Fati þ al-sala¡1n that Mubammad b. Tughluq went on
pilgilmage (zíyãra)to Ajmer, visiting the tomb of Mu'rn al-Dm Chishti' This was
anà'ter way tnat suttans lent their legitimacy to the Sufi shaykhs, while receivirg
tlrc benefits of associating with popular living and deceased shaykhs'
One of the more convincing views conceming the rise ofSuû centers in South
Asia can be found in Richa¡cl Eaton's classic study on the settlement of Sufis in
Bijapur, the bugeoning capital of a southem Indian Muslim court' He ûotes that
th; institutionalized forrns of Sufism that evolved across the Muslim world did not
occur simultaneously. The spread of the Qãdirilya and Chishtilya into southem
lnclia did not occu¡ until after the mid-eighth/fourteenth century' This development
paralleled the expansion of Islamic authority into southem India' Eaton wdtes,
:"Than, too, by the mid-fourteenth cenh.rry the city of Bijapur was beginning to
pass from a remote outpost on the edge ofthe Islamic frontier to a small center of
islamic culture in its own right."35 Eaton makes the important distinction between
what he refers to as "Warrior Sufls"-individuals who "began to arrive around the
time of the first invasions from Delhi, and began to disappear around the time of
the establishment ofthe Bahmani Kingdom (1347-1489)'-and those Suñs who
accompanied the uban arrd settled phase of Islamic empire in South Asia-3ó
Fo[ãwing this line of thought, ono explanation for the emergence of Sufi
centers in Sòuth Asia may be sought in the late-sixth/twe1ftl-century expansion
of the Ghurid realms. Ghurid conquests in India facilitated tÏe movement of
Muslim religious leaders of the "Sufi Warrior" ¡pe from the Ghurid heartlands
into India. Chisht, the town from which the Chishtiyya derive úeir name, was
located near the Ghurid capital, Frrüzküh. It vr'as elevated as an impofant religious
center by the Ghurid sultans through the patronage of mosques, madrasas, and
Ghurid sultans saw it as a site to strengthen their religious credentals'r8
mausoleâ.37
The fact that there is no mention ofthe Chishtiyya order during the Ghurid period
is at least partial evidence that institutionalized forms of Sufi orders were still not
in existence. lt was not lmtil the eighth/fourteenth century, when Delhi was fifly
establishecl as a major urban center ìvhich supported a vibraat economy and rich
cultural life, that narratives ofthe Chishtiyya order begin to appear'
The closeness ofthe economic ties held between courts and Sut ci¡cles makes
it easier to understarìd why the image ofthe relationship between Sufi shaykhs and
sultans, when looked at as a whole from the Delhi Sultanate, is ambiguous,
paradoxical, and contradictory At times, Sut shaykhs are depicted in historical
and biographical modes of representation as being at odds with the Muslim
*, .""o"liT,
":::"i:|:;::::#t#;"
politicar readers or*" :t^
criticizing their lifestyles. At other times they are represented as accepting money
from the govemment's treasury, supporting sulta¡s in political and militaxy
matters, and developing close personal relationships with members of the court,
as well as with sultans.
The piety of shaykhs ând the politics of poverty
Fundamental ambiguities in the relationship between Suû shaykhs and sultans
would not be a problem, per se, except for the conventional reception in secondary
scholarship where, more often than not, the image ofthe politically removed Sufi
shaykh has come out on top against the image of the Sufi shaykh entangled in
matten of t¡e court. Sunil Kuma¡ has neatly summed up the general misreading
of scholars who attempt to answer tlre sultan and Sufl shaykl question, saying that
"They have frequently assumed these reports described the 'actual'natu¡e of the
relationship belwe€n the two groups, ignoring the discursive, rhetorical content of
the na¡ratives."3e It is also a partial consequence of the way many scholars have
neglected the important vr'ay genre, authorship, and audience underlie the
representations of lslamic authority, particdarly the Sufi shaykh.
K.A. Nizami was the first prominent scholar to aclively promote the image of
the pious shaykh aloof fiom the enticements of political power and intrigue. He
was extremely influential in perpetuating an idealized version of the Chishti
shaykhs'renunciation from the world and their distance ftom royal courts. He first
cultivated this idea in a series ofinfluential articles published urrder the title "Early
Indo-Muslim Mystics and thet Attitude towards the State."{ It was a perspective
he maintained throughout his career a¡d is summarized by his claim that, "The
Muslim mystics of the early Middle Ages, particula¡ly those belonging to the
Chishti si/sila, cut themselves offcompletely &om kings, politics, ard govemment
service.'ar Nizami's ideas were picked up most notably by Aziz Ahrnad. Speaking
directly to the attitude ofthe Chishti shaykhs arrd summarizing the conclusions of
Nizami, he wrote, "The Chishti order continued to abide by the principle ofpride
in poverty, avoiding as far as possible the court and company of nobles," and
further argued that "The Chishtî saints continued to decline levenues or pensions
offered to them from va¡ious sultans.'42
Indeed, there is a proverbial quality to the image of the pious Sufr shaykh as
depicted in eighth/fourteenth-century works. In writings from this period, there
are a plethora of na¡ratives which highlight the ma¡ner in which Suû shaykhs
avoided contact or criticized the Muslim rulers of the day. The avoidance of
worldly power was a popularly disseminated creed of the Chishtiyya order, as is
demonshated in a number of statements by prominent shaykhs on the subject.
Take for example Farid al-Dln Garj-i Sh kar (57I-664/117 3-1265), also known
as Bãbä FanA, the predecessor to Ni?âm al-D-rn Awliyã', and his teaching as
recorded in lhe Siyar al-awliyãl He is reported to have said "If you desire to
attain the position of great saints, do not pay attention to tlte princes."a3 In a
broader context of the Muslim world, this attitude of opposition and rejectiou of
24 Blqin H. Auer
power is epitomized by tlre encounter between Abu 'Alî al-Hasan b. Mas'ùd Yusi
(1040 1102/1631-91) and the Moroccan Sultan Mawlãy lsmã'Il (r' 1082
113911672-1727), a story tbât was given wide circulation by Clifford Geertz in
his fæned Islam Observed.aa
However, statements like Bãbã Fana's reveal more thanjust an attitude towards
worlclly power They underscore the intersection and contestation of a variety of
forms of Islarnic authority evolving during this period. The kind of reluctarce to
even associate with the rulers of metedal things was often a function of the
shaykh's voluntary adoption of poverty (faqr) arrÔ world rcnunciation which is
part of asceticism (zuhd).as In lhe Køshf al-naþiúå, considered to be the first
treatise on Sufrsm inthe Persian language, 'Alrb. 'Usmãn Hujv i(d. ca.46411071)
quotes a saying ofAbü'l-Hasan Nül (d.2951907), "|he Suû is one who owns
nottring and is not ov/ned by an!'thing" ( ql- -suf altadW la yamlik wala yumlak).$
Both Hujvid and al-Qushayri (37(./.65198Ç1072), author of the important
Risdla, devote signifrcant portions oftheir reflections on Suûsm to th€ concept of
was prevalent
faqr.a1 This was a general ideal for the figule ofthe Sufi shaykh that
across üre pre-modem Muslim world. Speaking of seventVthirteenth-century
biographies of Sufi shaykhs in Morocco, Daphna Ephrat writes, "The general
impression conveyed is that the more the wali refuses tlte vanities of this world
the more his prestige is enhanced.'48
This general and pervasive attitude has made it difficult for scholars io explain
the many cases where shaykhs do not appear to strictly follow the ideal of
separation from worldly power. Citing ar incident in v/hich Bãbâ Fand utilized
his influence with Sultan Ghiyás al-Din Balban to secure employment for an
acquaintance, Nizami writes, "lt was not the Shaikh's practice to wÌite
recommendatory letters to rulers or officials but when tlre person insisted, he
wrote to Balban.'{9 He dismisses these kinds of narratives as a consequence of
the helplessness of the shaykh in the face of the sheer power of the sultar The
persistence of this view has, in a general way, obscured the importa¡t ways Suû
shaykhs, including the Chishti shaykhs, were deeply immersed in the political
currents oftheir day, whether they chose to be or not.
The ideal, or in this case failure, of the world-renouncing Sufi shaykh was
clearly picked up in ar interesting way in history writing. One paradignatic
example is Barani's carefully craft€d na¡rative of the liie and death of the Sut
shaykh Sid Muwallih. This story illustrates the way public statements, ofthe kind
made by Bãbã FanI, become an interpretive framework for the understanding of
history at least in the hands ofthe historian. STdi Muwallih lived during the time
of transition from the dynasty established by Balban and that initiated by Jalãl
al-Drn Fuäz Shãh.50 In the aftermath of the overthrow of Balban's successors,
allegiances in the royal court remained divided, as would have frequently been the
case with any dynastic change. One judge, QãzI Jalãl Kãshãn! had taken up a
rebellious attitude toward the new d¡masty and along with the sons ofBalban, who
had beerì left without omce, hatched a plot to overtlìro'ñ/ Jalãl al-DÏn These men
were regulars at the hospice (kåanaqa&) of SidI Muwallih. There they devised a
scheme to kill Jalãl al-Din and have SÌdT Muwallih succeed to the tbrone.
Intersections between Sufism qnd power 25
Unforhmately for them, their plarr was uncovered before they could see it to
fruition. Those involved in the conspiacy were given varying degrees of
punishment. However, a special end was reserved for Sid Muwallih: he was
trampled to deatï under the feet of an elephant.5 I
There are maly questions that arise when confronting this narative that carì
only be answered by digging somewhat deeper. One key to understanding Baruru's
nanative ofsidi Mu\¡r'allih's demise comes a few pages earliq where he documents
a prescient and foreshadowing encounter between Bãbã Fadd and Sidi Muwallih.
In this meeting Bâbã Fand is said to have advised Sidi Muwallih to go to Delhi,
but with an ominous caveat. He wamed Sid Mu\ryalllh, "Do not mix (ikhtilãt)
with kings and emirs (muluk va umara). Imagine their coming and going to your
house as a deadly place to inhabit; every dervish who has mixed with kings and
emin has come to a disastrous end."52 How Bafa - was able to document verbatim
the advice ofBãbã Fanl is a¡other matter entirely, but Bararù-'s main pu4rose in
narrating the events above was not merely to record court intrigue and conspiracy.
Rather, he cralìed his na¡rative ofthe execution of Sidi Muwallih as a didactic tale
to illustrate the dangers waiting for Sufi religious leaders who involve themselves
too closely in the affairs of the couf. For Barani the transgression of the Sufl
shaykh and the punishment issued by the Sultan disrupted the natu¡al order of the
world. Following Sfdi Muwallih's death Baram narates how the skies tumed
black and drought and famine spread through the land.53
Narratives of legitimation
Though it was cefainly not Barani's pu4rose in telling this story it is clear that
Sufl shaykhs were not imrnune to the allure of worldly affairs. It is also clear that
sultans recognized the popularity of cefain Suû shaykhs and were prepared to
deal with them harshly if they entered too deeply into their power politics. In
contrast to either the portrait ofthe aloofSufl shaykh preoccupied with meditation
and devotion to God or conversely the Sufi shaykh who fails to follow that policy
and pays the price with his life, there are a number of narratives that depict a
stronger a.nd more positive involvement ofSufi leaders in the political currents of
the day. For instarice, it is said that the Chishti shaykh, Naç-rr al-Drn Mabmüd
Chirãgh-i Dihli, accompanied Fnäz Shãh Tughluq on his Sindh campaign,
sometime around the year 76211361.54 It is also said that the same shaykh
corresponded with Frräz Shãh during the time he ascended the throne following
the death of Muhammad b. Tûghluq. ln that correspondence Nas-u al-D-rn Mahmüd
inquired of Frrüz Shãh what kind of ruler he intended to be. When F-rrüz Shãh
responded that he would be clement and tolerant, the shaykh confered his blessing
and predicted that he would reign for fort¡r yea¡s.55 Needless to say, Naç-u al-D-rn's
prediction came true.
There are a plethora of nanatives that detail the occasions that Sufi shaykhs
provided their blessings to Muslim rulers who then succeeded to positions of
power and authority. Omid Saû has referred to these as 'firãsat desigtnlng
narratives," noting their prevalence in historical writings from the Se.juk period.56
26 Blqin H. Auer
It general, firasal refers to one of the Sufi shaykh's mawels of knowledge
(karãmat), their ability to predict the future.s7 This spiritual quality is often
associated with a mysterious and urmamed figure who, in the Qur'adc telling, led
Moses on a mystical joumey. This figure was later identified with the legends of
Khi{r. In the speciflc context ofthe interaction between Suû shaykhs and sultans,
frãsal refeß to the sagacity and discernment of Sufi shaykhs to recognize the
qualities and regal character of fledgling rulers bound for greatness.
There a¡e scores of t^Ies ofrtrqsal ftomthe Delhi Sultanate. One ofthe earliest
comes in tÏe writings of Minhãj Sirãj Jäzjãni. JuzjAnI was a courtier and high
ofûce holder under the Ghurid sultans during the waning years of their imperial
fortunes.5s Subsequently, he had an un¡ivalled ca¡eer in the service of Iltutmish
ancl his progeny. Jüzjãn achieved status at court through appointments by
Iltutmish and arowtd 63911241 he was raised to the level of chief judge
(qazî al-qu1qt)by rhe then sultan of Delhi, Mu'izz al-Din Bal[ãm Shãh (r. 637-9l
124V2). Jtrzjarn was judge and court official ûrst before he was a historian. In
fact, no court historian survived on his literary exploits alone. Those individuals
who chose to wdte history were deeply entangled with the goals and objectives of
the sultans they sewed. History was not just the observations and recordings of
independent scholars with an eye to detail. It was an activity of courtiers whose
fortunes and livelihood depended upon the success ofthe dynasties that were ûte
subject of their writings.
In his seminal history ofthe eady Delhi Sultanate period, the Tabaqqt-i Nõsirl'
Jüzjani documents a special tale about an encounter between tle young Iltutrnish
and a wandering dervish, a tale reportedly told by the sultan himself. As a boy
Iltutrnish had been sold into slavery by members of his own family and was
purchased by the ¡adr- ijahan ofB'Ã<hara.se One dây, when lltutmish was growing
up in the household of the sadr-i iahãn, he was given a gold coin and sent out on
a market errard. On the way to the bazaar Iltutrish lost the coin. When he realized
his mistake he began to cry A d€rvish noticed the dejected boy, and taking hirn
into his care, purchased the goods he needed and made him a promise ('a&d).
He said "When you achieve royal power (daulat wa-mulk) shovr' rcspect to those
who have chosen a life of poverty (fuqarã) and the people of goodness (aål
al-khayr). Give themrheir ùse (þaqq);'60Iltutmish says that he made this promise
a¡d attributed his success as a ruler to tìe favor of that dervish' Whatever the
veracity of this tale, it provides strong evidence for how this sulta.n wished to be
perceived in terms of his piety. It shows that lltutnrish benefited from his
association with the mysterious religious figure who legitimated his authority by
recognizing his destiny as a mler ofmen.
Firasat-designating tales continued to be common in history writing of the
Delhi Sulta.nate. Another importånt example ofthese kinds ofnarratives comes in
the Tõnkh-i F-trúz Shaåt of Shams al-Din 'Afifo. 75711356). The Tarlkh-i F-truz
Såa7f is dedicated to Frrúz Shãh Tughluq. Like Jüzjan! 'Afif served in the courts
ofsultans and, like Jäzjãni and Barafl-, 'Afrfreceived his position in court through
his family's influence: his father held the appointment of nightkeeper of the
imperial guard (shab nwls-i khava$an) and served in the imperial revenue
Intersections between Sufrsm and power 27
minislry ([tvãn-i vizarat). He was also closely connected with Sufi circles and he
mentions by name his Sul shaykh, När al-D-rn, tÏe son and successor of Qulb
al-Din Munawar (d. 75711356) within the Chishtiyya order.ór 'Afrf's "history"
fits squarely within the manaqib genre. As Peter Hardy noted in his study of this
text, it was unusual for the manaqib genre to be applied to sulta$ during this
period of the Delhi Sultanate. He took this as an "indication of the strong ¡rlf
undertones of medieval Indo-Muslim historical wdting."62
In his introduction to the Tõríkh-i F-truz Shãhî, 'Afif produces a frãsat-
designating nanative that foretells Frrúz Shãh's future as a sultar of Delhi. Fr¡üz
Shah was said to be in the company of GhiyãË al-D1n Balban, futule Sultan of
Delhi but then govemor of Dipalpur, as well as M"trammad b. Tughluq, who was
still in his youth. During theh tlavels together they went to meet with 'Alã' al-Din
Mawj-i Daryã. In their meeting, the Shaykh laid out a bolt offne cloth, which he
proceeded to divide amongst them. He gave four and one-half yards to Balban,
twenty-seven yards to Muhammad b. Tughluq, and forty yards to Flruz Shãh, each
length ofcloth corresponding to the reign ofeach sulta¡. The Shaykh then declared
that €ach of them would become "possessor of crown and throne"
þ-Abib-i taj vq takht).63 Following on from this story 'Afrftells tfuee otherfirãsa1-
designating tales, each from a different shaykh at different points in Füüz
Shãh's life.
F dsar-desþating tales were as conmon to the genres of Sufi biographies and
t¡e conversations of shaykhs as they were to history $'riting, though they served
a different purpose. For instance, Amlr Hasan relates at aßcolurtt ir lhe Fqvq'id
al-Fu'ødthal says lltutmish was acquainted with 'Umar al-Sulrawardî and Awhad
al-Dïn Kirrnãni (d. ca. 63511237) and that one of them recognized Iltutmish's
destiny to rule and said to him during one oftheir meetings, "You will be king!'4
When read through the eyes of the.Føvã'id al-Fu'ãd,Ilít1lrî1sh's designation tale
is really a commentary on the power of Sufi shaykhs to appoint God's chosen to
positions of power within the Muslim community.
These kinds of stories are at the very crux ofthe debates about the relationship
between Sufr shaykhs arrd sultans. Each is a story tlat works in two directions.
When told from the perspective ofhistory the story's primary goal is to establish
a sultan's destiny to become king. It shows that his trajectory of power was not
llre consequence of a raridom series of events, but a fulfillment of a divinç plan.
At the same time the story legitimates the sultan's authority, it also recogn2es the
power of tle dervish io discern the future. This is the primary thrust of these
narratives as they appear in Sufi biogaphies arìd the sayings ofthe shaykhs. These
nanatives indicate t¡e power ofthe shaykh to appoint those who bear the marks
ofdivine rule. It confrms the role ofSufi shaykhs as the makers ofdestiny and as
vehicles for the hand of God on earth.
The metamorphosis ofthe shaykh and the sultan
By the eightVfourteenth century it is possible to observe a confluence ofimages
thatjoined the ûgwes ofthe Sufl shaykh and sulta¡. A number ofauthors ftom this
28 Blain H. Auer Intersections between Suftsm and power 29

period refer to Ni7ãm al-Din Awliyã' as the "sultan of shaykhs" (sal¡ãz svlf t' (barqkot-i du'a-yi sullAn).12 This marvelous ability ofthe sufta¡ was then
àl-masha'¡kh).65It is one indication that historians and biographers viewed the equated to a story ofthe famous Sufl shaykh Dhü 'l-Nùn Miçri (180-245/79G
Svfr khõnaqah as a kind ofcout at which the shaykh held the throne' Indeed, 860), who was also reported to have brought rain to the earth during a time when
some of th; activities surrounding the position of the shaykh resembled those Eg)?t was experiencing a severe drought. 'Afìf says that he found this story in
created around the sultan and his court. The oath of allegiance (bay'a) was a Fa¡îd al-Din ' Afrü's Tazkirat al-awlþa'. 'fl'rus, the sultan is said to possess the
common means ofeslablishing networls of allegiances in both Sufi circles and in marvelovspower (k(trama) that is the very definition and source ofa Sut shaykh's
Muslim royal courts. The conferring of Suû robes (Èålr4a) resembled the gifting charismatic authority.
ofrobes oihonor (fråilc ) that was so common in the circles ofthe sultan'6 It is very telling, in this final example, when the historian reveals that he derived
In addition to the manner in which shaykhs axe depicted as having influence his image ofthe sultan from the most famous work on Sufi shaykhs ever produced.
over sultans, and even referred to as sultars, there are many ways sulta'ns are These nanativ€s, and many others, testifu to the increasing influence that the
depicted as shaykhs. In fact, fiom the early Sultanate period onward sultans were literary models of Suû shaykhs had on the image-maldng endeavors of court
viãwed as possessing the "attributes ofthe friends ofGod" (øwsíf-i
qwliya) Tttls historians during the eighth/fourteenth century. The images of the Sufi shaykh's
was the ctse ofJü4ãni's literary teatnent of his patron, Nãçir al-Din Mabmüd bqrokql, kqramal,his powers offrasat, the ritual dimensions ofreligious practice
Shãh.67 By the eightb/fourteenth ceníry this kind of representation evolved to a in khalva, and.faqr ptoúrced. in the Sufi biographies and conversations had now
new degree entirely. It had become possible to use the pious imagery resewed for penetrated the sphere ofthe history of sulta$. Similarly, the authority inherent in
shaykhÀ and apply it dilectly to sultans. This is exempliûed in the manner in tle sovereign office of the sulta¡ as society's ca¡etaker a¡d ruler was likewise
whi;h 'Afif crafted the irnage of Fnäz Shãh. 'Afrf went much further than Júzjanr-, tansferred to the ûgure of the Suû shaykh. The interpenetration ofthe genres of
who said his patron possessed the qualities of Sufr shaykhs. 'Afrf said of Ftrtiz historiography, biography, and the conversations of shaykhs was a consequence
Shah that he was "onã of the füends of Got' Qald az awliya'-i Allãh)'68 Tltrs was of a new social dynamic of court patronage and the evolution of literary cultue in
certainly a radical departue ftom previous literary hadition. the Delhi Sultanate.
The most illustrative example of the ma¡rer in which sultans become Suû
shaykhs is the narrative ofFrruz Shãh's failed conquest ofThattq the capital ofa Notes
regional kingdom in Sindh. Thatta was ruled by the Samma dynasty, which had
achieved a degree ofautonomy in the early years ofFrrúz Shãh's reign Attempting
I Needless 1o say, the term interúextuality has a complex and contested history For aû
ove¡viçw see the inaoduction to J. Clalton and E. Rothst€in (eds\, Infiuence ønd
to rectiry this situation and bdng the Sindhi province back under t}te inîuence of Inlertextuality in Literary Hísiory (Medisont, University of Wisconsi¡r Press, 1991),
Oellri, fr¡uz Shãh led a military campaign to the region tn 7 6711365-6'6e His pp. 3-36. For a critique ofthe ¡eceived deñnition ofthis t€rm see W. Irwin, 'Against
efforts were a failure, as he encountered much stronger resistance than anticipated, Intf,rtexbtality," Philosoplry and Literature,2S,2 Q004), W.227a2. I am usiûg the
term to describe Ρe genealogy of literary images and the various modes of liúe¡ary
and he w¿s forced to withdraw ard lead a retreat of his forces into the vast
influerces that go into the making ofthe flgures ofthe Sufl shaykh and sullan,
wastelard ofthe Ra¡n ofKutch. Trapped in an infemal desert, his troops suffered 2 Y.J . ComeII, Realm oÍ the Saint: Powet and Authority ín Morcccal¡ Srlstu (Aùstin:
from a lack of water and food, which led to a number of deaths and desertions University ofTexas Press, 1998), p. 63.
within the ranks ofhis men. Faced with this dire situation, and with seerningly no 3 Comell has tak€n his cue from Michel Foucault, who saw discourse as a relationship
hope for suwival, 'Afrf writes that !-rruz Shãh entered into meditative seclusion betwee[ powû and knowledge; see The Archaeologt of Knowledge (New Yo¡k:
(khalva). Khølva ts a technical term utilized in Sufr circles and it refers to one of Pantheon, 1972).

the major spiritual endeavors of Sufi practitionels, seclusion utilized to bing

one's attention closer to God by removing the distraclions ofthe wo¡1d.70
'Afif details the following plea, as if velbatim, from the sultan while in
seclusion:
O God, send the rain of mercy out of ttre blessing of the merit of someone in
the army, he who is ofthe rank of the people ofholiness; deliver [us] out of
this desolate land tb¡ough the blessings ofhis merit and the grandeur ofthe
dust ofhis feet!7r
Following this prayer, 'Afifsays that the skies clouded over and it rained tlre "rain
of mercy" (barqn-i rqþna), and this was due to the "blessing of the prayer ofthe
4 The qualities ofthat sanctity are discussed in F. Dermy, "'God's Friends:'The Sanctity
of Persons in Islam," in R. Kieckhefer aûd G.D. Bolld (eds), Sainthood: Its
Mandestatioß in World Religions @etkeley: Utriversity of Califomia Press, 1988),
pp.69 97.
5 The history of this disput¿tioû is amply demomtrated in a number of irsightful
a¡ticles collected in F. De Jong and B. Radtke (eds), 1s,larøic Mysticísm Contested:
Thirteen Centuries oÍConrroversies and Polerzics (Leiden: Brill, 1999).
6 Historians have also thought of the Delhi Sultanate as beginning in 588/1192 when
Mu'izz al-Diû Muþammad b. Sãm (r. 569 4\2/ll?3 1206) conque¡ed Delhi.
Of course, origins are difñcult to precisely hace. Sunil Kuma¡ acknowledges the
evolvirg historical p¡ocesses that went into the making of the Delhi Sultanate. He
titled his political history of the pe¡iod utilizing the evocative word "emergence,"
indicating a process of consolidating authority in Delhi that took place over a period
ofa hnndred years. See S. Kuma4 The Emergence ofthe Delhi Suhøndte 1192 1286
(New Delhi: Permanent Blaclq 2007), pp. 3 {.
 Intersections between Sufrsm end power 3\
30 Blain H. Auer
arc deeply tied
?' cluestiots conceminq relations betweet Sufi shaykhs and sultans orders 21 See Amr Khus6v, Afzal al-fava'id (Delhi: Matba'-i Ri¿vr, 1305/1887). The attribu-
tion of this wo¡k to Aa-lr Klusraw has been disputed. B¡uce Lawrence views
Schola¡s
tì t-h" *ã..,^¿,ng"of the origins and institutionalization of Sufl the Chishtilya wolk See B. Lawrcnce, "Afzal-ul-Fawa'id - A Reassessment," in
"forgery"
l"rl-f*" .ã"*rtt i¡t ttre histõrical causes tlìat led to the ¡ise of the as a
Z. Aj¡sari Life, Tìmes & Worl<s of Amît Khusrau Dehlaví Q{ew Delbi: Natioml
(ed,.),
ã¿ Su¡åwar¿-irrya in at lcast' consensus
South Asia, but with little success, or
Am-r¡ Khusrau Society, 1975), pp. 119 31.
ofooinion.
g on Mu ln al-Dîn ChishtÍ from his lifetime' Everything l(1lown 22 See Amû Hasan Sijzl, Dlvan-i Amlr Hasa S¡jzî Dihlaw, J. Nargis (ed.) @elhi:
" ìftJ" ut "o .o*ces
ftom wdtings beg¡nning at lçast a ce¡n¡ry after his death lor exam-
Intishãrat-i Hasrat MühaniFã'undîshaû, 2004).
uUãot fti- 23 See LH. Siddiqui, "HamId Kalaûdar," in EI2, suppl. 5 4,pp.3523.
"o-".
pies ofsome ofthe difficultie; invólved in interpreling lhese sources sj'e PM Curie'
"ril s:¡,ír" of Mu'ln al-Dín chßhi of Ainer (Delhi: oxford Universitv 24 B¡uce l¿wrence b€lieves that in addition to his contributions to history wdtirg a¡d
"ilòrn
Press, 1989), PP. 2G55.
advice literatule Bara wlot€ a collection of sayings ofNi?ãm al-Dîû. The work is
fitled Hasrat-nãma and is only available in a fragnent preserved in the Siar
s'il"^t'lirúitrínl¿/¡r,A.S.Usha(ed.)(Madras:UniversitY^ofMa&a-s'1948)'p466' al-øwlíyã'. See th€ introduction to Amir I.{asan Sijzi, ly'izaø aùdin Awlþa: Morals
- " rirc Ir,lo'¡n ¡-n¡t thete
tò a¡e no sources on Bahã' al-Dîn fiom his lifetime For an
;;;;; ãt m ti¡" as it is received iû later works see I HPrcûle"'siddiqui' "shaikh
i¡ A Nazir 25
lor
Ziyá'
the Heaû,B.LawrcÍce (trans.) (New York: Paulist Press, 1992),p.46.
al-D-rn Barun, Tãrlkh-i Fîntz Sh¡ãr¡i S.A. K-tran (ed.) (Calcutta: Asiatic Society,
ãJ"rã¿i. z"t"ty" suh¡awardi and His Suçcesso¡s: spiritual
1862), p. 360.
@ds), Islamic Heritage in South Asian Subcontinent
(Jaip.Jtr"
""d-ä.-itddtdt
prUfi-tion S"ftå-"ì fSÓ.8), pp. lS-aS; anã the next chapter in the p:resent voh¡me' 26 Ibid., p. 396. For a fuller treatmert of the intense conflicts that arcse between Qutb
saying al-Drn Muba¡ak Sbãh, his successor Ghiyãg al-Din Tughluq, and Ni?am al-Din see
ll'' For instance, K.A. Nizami \ì;ites ofthe influence of Bahã al-Dîn Zakariyyã
:tf!--¡"fD"¿ iltu*¡.¡ tooz 33/1210-35) in establishing his hold over MulFn and S. Digby, '"The Sufr Shaykh a¡d the Sulta¡: A Co¡lict of Claims to Authority in
Medieval India," Iran,28 (1990), pp.724.
,"""pr",í rtte honori6c title of S,/¡ oykh at-tstan"' Tltis. opinion is based on
ft". ft-
*u"ä luæ, s"e K.A. Nizami, "Baha' ât-oin zakuriyya," in The Encyclopaedía
21 Oí the khanaqah iî India see K.A. Nizalni, "Some Aspects of Khãnqah Life in
ÌMedie]"al India," Studia Is lanica, 8 (1951), pp. 5149.
;f ßhn. New Edition ( Leideû: E.J. Brill. 1954 2004; hereaner EI2l, vol' l' p' 912
"ou.""".
*lnlerdisc¡plinary 28 See AûÌir Hasan Sljñ, Føva'id al-fu'õd (Lahore: Malik Sirãj al-Diû 1966), p. 171.
l z- Ëo.- on"*¡"* ofa host ofbiographical genres see M Hermansen' Naqdãnd also stJggests an "annual stipend' indicatt€ to an even geater extent court
eoo.ou"¡". to t.lam¡c Biog¿pÉic;l Mat"nds," R"tigion' 18(1988)'pp 16l-82 For patronag€.
produced dwing
[i*i ."-"v ¡iograihiès and conversations of sufi shaykhs Dowson's Hßtory oÍ 29 R. Islam, Suftsm in South Asia: Impact on Fourleenth Century Muslim Society
"i see-K.A Nizami, Supplement to Elliot &
",¡" õ"ifti S"f,itu"
(Oxford: Oxford Univeßity P¡ess, 2002), pp. 87 150.
ila¡", ät.-iti in" rna¡x and the TughtiÇs @elbi: Idarah-i Adabivat-i Delli' 1981)' 30 See R.W. Bulliet, "The Shaikh Al-Islam and the Evolution oflslamic Society," Slrzdia
pp.92 116.
Islømíca, 35 (1972), p. 56. He derives this idea from Ishtiaq Hudain Qureshi, on
f¡
'- [i*:.m.ui"fy, considçring the valuc of this text to the understanding of Sufism in which see idem, The Admínístrqtíon of the Suhanote of Delhi,2nó, revised edn
sáJh ñ; ih" eighth/f;ufieenth century therc axe Yery few studies d€dicated to it'
Reference to Koshaf-ul- (Laho¡e: Sh. Muhammad Ashraf, 1944), pp. 190-1.
See M.H. Siddiqui,T e Memoirs of Sufu Written in Ind¡a:
siy*-ui'eaiyø and Siyatul-Àrifn @aroda: Maharaja Sayajirao Universitv 3l For both incidents see lbn Ba[fúta, Ríblat lba Ba!îùta (Bei¡ut: Dtu $ãdir, l96a),
^àn¡it. p.439.
ofBaroda Press, 1979), PP. 56_81.
f+ ófï nu-ler of these works see KA Nizami' on Hßtory 32 Ibid., p.410.
' fã. " u¡"¡.nru"y -¡rdia (Ne\v Delhi: Munshinm Manoharlal' 1983)' 33 R.M. Eaton, "The Political and Religious Authority ofthe Shrine ofBaba Fari4" in
ira nxìiì¡t^ oi M"di*ol
idem (ed.), Indíø\ Islaníc Tlãditions, 711 1750 (New Delhi: Oxford University
pp. 163 97.
'liÀ. A Unique but Less K¡ovn maltuz of Shaikh Nizam- Press,2003), p. 208.
r s Ñi--i, "¡*--i-Nizami 34 A.N. Khan, "The Mausoleum of Saib '41ã' al-Drn at Pãkpattan (Punj ãb): A Significant
u'd-Din AuJ$a," Indo-Itanica,46,l 4 (1993), pp 37 5l
-Uu-iJ Shaykh- Naçtr al-Dîn Example of the Tugluq Style of Architecture," East ønd West,24, 34 (19'14),
"fO S"" ö"fan da:, Khayr al-maialis: a\iEat-i ,ha'rat.--¡ pp.3ll-26.
utnlilcniaen-¡ ó¡¡ti, k ¡.N¡nr¡j (€d.) iAligarh: Shu'bah-vi Tán-kh-i Muslim 35 See R.M. Eaton, Surts oÍBijryuL 1300 1700: Social Roles ofSufts in Medíeval India
Yünîva¡si1í" I 959).
pe¡muta- (Pdnceúon: Princelon Unive$ity Pr€ss, 19'78), p. 45,
l7
'' An instruiúve article which t¡aces the Dineteenth- and twentieth-centuÐ/
in opposition to historiog- 36 Ibid., p. 33.
ii".r ãiift" t".- hagiography and how it came to be seen
37 For a document of the moûumerrts €rccted by the Ghurid sultans at Chisht
-pîyï- u" r"t"¿ï î
iifshitz, "leyonarositivism-and Gen¡e: 'Hagiographical'
Blai¡, "The Madrasa at Zuzan: Islamic Architecíüe in Eastem Ira¡ on th€ Eve of
see

Texts as Historical Nanarive," narct-2511994),pp' 95-l l4'

S.S.
the Mongol Invasiors," Muqanas,3 (1985), pp. 81 4. For an image ofthe madrasa
fA
'- ie;-ð.W. n..st, ¡r, tnal Gaíden: Mysticßm, History and Politics al a South Asian
p- and mosque built at Chishq as well as a discussion on Frtüzküh, see C.E. Bosworth,
Suf Center (Albarry,l'IY: Stâte Univeßity ofNew York Prcss' 1992)' 88.
rií. fu-o". it.o." histo¡ical wo¡k is the Kf æa'in at-futuþ dedicated to the victories of
"Ghü¡id," in -t12, vol. 2, pp. 1099 1104.
rs
-' 38 For aû ove¡view of th€ importarce of th€ religious history of this ¡egion and the
tit" rult- 'Áfa' ur-Din Muhammad Shãh (r 695 7i5l1296 1316) For poetic histori-
S".if Sharma, "Amir Khusraw and the cenre ofHistorical NårrÂtives comections b€tween Suñ shaykhs and sultans see L.G. Potúet "Sufis aûd Sultans in
*timg" Post-Mongol lran," lranian Studies,21,14 (1994), pp.77 lO2.
ii'v.tnj: co^p*"tive Sndies of South Asia, AÍtica and the Middle East' 22' l&2
"ui """
39 See S. Kumar, "Assertions of Authority: A Study of the Discursive Statements of
(2002), pp. ll2 8.
20
-- ior a íirwey or ae early sources on this famor¡s ¡€lationship see N A Faruqi' "Amü. Two Sultans of Delhi," in M. Alam, F.'N'. Delvoye and M. Gaborieau (eds), låe
Making of Indo-Persíøn Culture: Indian and Frencå Sradies (New Delhi: Manohar,
KÌt".."rv in the P."."nc" of his M€ntor Had¡at Ni?ãm al-Din Awliya"' Hamdad
5 24 2000), p. 39.
Islanicus, l 6, 2 (1993), PP.
32 Blqin H. Auer between sufism and power 33

40 K.A. Nizami, "Eaxly Indo-Muslim Mystics and their Attitude towa¡ds tìe State," 6r, Afif,Tankh-i Fîruz,*or,r.,rrtl'"'"""tions
Islamic Cuhurc,22 (1948), pp. 387-98; 23 (1949), Pp l3¿1, 162:70,312-24:,24 62 P. Hañy, Hktorians of Medieval India: Studíes in Indo-Muslim Hßtot¡cal WriÍíng
(1950), pp.60 71. (Londoû: Luzac, 1960), p. 41.
41 See K.A. Nizami, Religion and Polítics in India during the Thirteenth Century'îew 63 ' Afrf, Tãrtkh-i F-truz Shãhí,W.27-8 (tt.39).

revised edn (New Delhi: oxford University Press,20o2), pp. 255-6.
42 After that of K.A. Nizami, this artiçle is the most frequently cited in support of this
idea. See A. Ahmad, "The Sufl and the Sultan in P¡e-Mughal Muslim lndi4"
Der Islam, 38, l)
(1963), pp. 142-53.
43 As quot€d fiom the Siyar øl-ttwliya' i¡,r.Nizami, Religion and Politics, p.258
44 See C. Geertz,Islam Obsened: Religious Development in Morocco and Inlonesia
(Chicago: Unive¡sity ofChicago Press, 19?1), pp. 33-5.
45 L. Kinbe¡g, "WhøtisMeñtby Zuhd," Sndia Islamica,6l (1985), pp.2744
46 This apothegm plays off the Arabic root mJ-k, ftom which is also derived the
words for king (malþ urd royal power (nulk). See H,tjvin, Kashf al-naþjub'
VA. Zhukovskii (ed.) (Tehran: Tahurl, 1381 sh.), p. 42 (tr' 37).
64 Sijn, Favã'íd al-fu'ad,p.358.
65 For a list ofthe titles associated with Ni?âm al-Din see K.A. Nizami, The Lde and
Times of Shaikh Nizøm-u'd-din Auliya (Delln: Ida.rah-i Ad¿byat-i Delli, l99l),
pp. 1824.
66 For traditions surrounding the Suf robe see J. Elias, "The Sufi Robe (Klirqa) as a
Vehicle of Spiritual Auúority," in S. Gordon (ed.), Robes and Honor: The Medieyal
World of Investitute (New York: Palgrave, 2001), pp. 275-89, and for the history of
cor¡¡tly robes ofhonu see G.R.G. Hambly, "From Baghdad ø Buklar4 from Ghaana
toDelhi: The/r¿il a Ce¡enony in the Transmission ofKingly Pomp and Cirçumstance,"
inibid-,pp. 193-222.
67 lùzj:ü-\ Tabaqãr-i Nã;itt, \ol. 1,p. 477 .

47 See ibid., pp. 2134. Also see al-Qushayt, ful-Rís^ld al-øushøyriyya f iln 68' Aftf, Tarlkj-í F trùz Shahî, pp. 22, 95.Fo1 a fuller t¡eatment of the ùansformation of
øl-taqawwuj M. 'Abd al-Rahma¡ Mar'ashli (€d.) (Beirul Da¡ lhyã' al-Turãth the image ofthe sultaû hto the shaykh see B. Auer, "S),rnbols ofAuthority: Religion,
al-'A¡ab¡" 1998), pp. 345 55. Islamic Legitimacy, and Historiography of the SultaN ofDelhi" (PhD diss., Harvard
48 See D. Epbrat, "I¡l Quest of an Ideal T}?e of Saht: Som€ Observations on the F st Uriiversiry, 2009), pp. 142-9.
Ceneration of Mo¡oc cal. Awlíyí' Allah iî Kíiab 4l-tashawwuÍ," Studia Islamica,94 69 Fol aû overview of this independent Muslim court see R. Islam, "The Rise of the
(2002), p. 7 4. Sammas in Sind," lslazr ic Culture,22 (1948), pp. 359 82.
49 See Nizami, Religion and Politics, p. 259. Nizami provides the full text of Bãba 70 H. Landolt, "Khalwa," in El2,lr'ol,4,pp.990 1. Khalw<twastie subject ofan impor-
FaÌÎd's letúer from the Siyar al-awliyã' n an appendix to his lMork. ta¡tworkbyNajm al-Dn Kubrã (540 617l1145 1220), on which see G. Böwering,
50 For furthe¡ histo¡ical background to these evetts see P. Jackson, The Delhi Subanare: "Kr¡bÉ's Trcahnent on Spidtual Retreat, À ßâla f 'l-khalwa," al-Abb^th, 54 QOO6'),
A Political and Mílitary History (Canbndge: Cambridge University Press, 1999), pp.'714.
p. 83. '11 ' Afif, Tarîkh-i F-truz Shohr, W. 2l'l -18.
5l Èor the entirety of this narrative see Ziyã' al-Din Barani Tartkh-i F"trúz Shahl, pp- 12 Ibid.,p.2t8.
210-12. For a fuller teafinent ofthe sources on SrdI Muwallih and the Muwallihãn,
the "lamenteß," a group of Suñ dervishes for which Srdr Muwallih was likely the
main shaykh, see S. Digby, "Qalandaß aûd Related Groups: Elem€nts of Social
Devia¡ce in the Religious Life ofthe Delhi Sultanate ofthe Thirteenth and Fourteenth
Centuri€s," in Y Fri€dmann (ed.), Islam ín Asia, vol. l, South Asiø (Jerusalem:
Magnes Press, 1984),pp.60 108. Also see Islarr', Suftsm in South Asia,pp.298-30'7
52 Bã¡añ, Ta.nkh-i F-trúz Shahî,p.209.
53 lbid.,p.212.
54 Shami Silãj 'Afif, Tarlkh-i Fîrûz Shaht, V Husa)'n (ed.) (Calcutta: Asiatic Society,
1888), pp. 29, 82.
55 lbid., p. 29.
56 See O. Safr, The Politics of Knowledge in Plemodern Islam: Negoti^Íing ldeology
and Religious Inquiry (Chapel Hill, NC: Uûiversity of North CaroÌina Press, 2006),
p. 129.
57 Some interesting examples ofthis speciaJfir^at eblliry axe cited in J. Renard, Frier¿¿t
ofGod: Islamic Images ofPiely, Commih ent, andservanthood(Berkeley: Univeßity
of Califomia Press,2008), pp. 112-15.
58 For some biographical details oû Jüzj äûi's life see Nizami, Or, lli,t tory and Histolians,
pp. 76-80.
59 iltutmish's slavery tale is an important social document from a time when it was quite
common fo¡ rion-Muslim Celtral Asian Tu*s to b€ sold into a bu¡geoniûg slave
t¡ade. For an overview ofthe subject as it impacted the subcontinent see P Jackson,
"Turkish Slaves on Islam's Indian Frontier," in I. Chatterjee afld R.M. Eatoû (eds),
Slavery & South Asian ¡1istoli/ (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2006),
pp. 63 82.
60 Minhãj Sûãj Júzjâni, TabdqdTi Nâ¡ír|,2nd edû,2 vols, 'Abd al-flayy flabibÍ (ed.)
(Kabul: Anjuman-i Tarfth-i Afghaûistan, 1342-3119624),vol.l, p. 442 (tr. 600).