Sultan-ul-Ashiqeen – the Reviver of Sultan Bahoo’s Complete Life and Authentic Teachings
It is now a known fact that Sultan Bahoo RA authored 140 books in Persian language. His mystic poetry which is his masterpiece consisting of 202 pieces is in Punjabi popularly known as Abyat-e-Bahoo and Kalam-e-Bahoo.
Research Upon Sultan Bahoo and Sarwari Qadri Saints
Sultan ul Ashiqeen Sultan Mohammad Najib ur Rehman, the spiritual descendant of Sultan Bahoo began to research and work upon the teachings and work of Sultan Bahoo around the year 2000. Under the beneficent company of Sultan-ul-Faqr VI Sultan Mohammad Asghar Ali, he began his research on Sarwari Qadri Saints. In fact, Sultan-ul-Ashiqeen has revealed the lives and teachings of all Sarwari Qadri Saints including of Sultan Bahoo. It is Sultan ul Ashiqeen who has actually paved way to remove discrepancies in the true sequence and chain of the Sarwari Qadri Saints
Sultan ul Ashiqeen’s Struggle
It took hardwork and extensive research of years. In most cases, there was hardly any written material was available.
However, this did not deter Sultan ul Ashiqeen from gathering information regarding his spiritual ancestors. He personally met Sultan Bahoo’s progeny and shrine caretakers and custodians. In this regard, he sometimes travelled to far flung areas. It was not only a physically demanding task but spiritually challenging as well. However, Allah helps those who strive in His way.
Manuscripts of Sultan Bahoo
Each manuscript of Sultan Bahoo is at least more than 150 years old. Some of these are rewritten by his descendants and others have been found partially damaged or faded. However, finding all these was the initial task Sultan ul Ashiqeen set for himself. This was not an easy procedure but when love of labour- especially one whose desire is Divine love-overpowers a person, he surely achieves it. In this regard, it would not be wrong to say that Sultan-ul-Ashiqeen is the reviver of Sultan Bahoo’s work that we are familiar with today. Moreover, the most attractive thing about his work is that he makes a comparative study of previous works on the subject and then, through evidence, dissects the accurate from the inaccurate information. Before he made the prudent effort of compiling and translating Sultan Bahoo’s work, none of these manuscripts were easily available or even known to have existed.
History Lost in Time
It is quite disappointing and more so, tragic that the progeny of Sultan Bahoo kept his manuscripts hidden. Many manuscripts were lost, damaged or eaten by insects without serving their true purpose. Sultan Bahoo was known to spread Faqr (Sufism) by going an extra mile. He was the one who would go door to door to demean his nafs (innerself) but would not refrain from spreading the word of Allah. Sultan Bahoo started spreading beneficence as soon as he received it and later his spiritual guide advised him to pass it only to the deserving. Hence, being the progeny of such a personality, they should have made it incumbent upon themselves to let the light of his manuscripts shine upon the seekers of Allah. Instead of cherishing the sacred relics of their ancestor, they displayed lack of interest that led to the extinction of the authentic manuscripts of Sultan Bahoo. In contradiction, Sultan-ul-Ashiqeen actually had to struggle for years to convince people to provide him with these sacred manuscripts to let the world know of the sacred and beautiful teachings of Sultan Bahoo.
Reviver of Sultan Bahoo’s Work
Determined to reveal the life and teachings of Sultan Bahoo, Sultan ul Ashiqeen continues to work for his aim until today when we find him to be the most authentic authority upon Sultan Bahoo. Unfortunately, several other writers and scholars took inspiration to work on the same subject and took content from Sultan ul Ashiqeen’s well researched work. This way, they did not go through the struggle Sultan ul Ashiqeen did to find the writings, to work on it, compile and translate it.
Sultan ul Ashiqeen’s Perspective Upon Bahoo’s Work
In his book, The Spiritual Guides of Sarwari Qadri Order, Sultan-ul-Ashiqeen says:
“These Spiritual Guides have played priceless roles to keep the true religion of the Holy Prophet pbuh alive. They sacrificed their entire life for the revival of the true religion. They sacrificed their entire life for the revival of the true religion. It was only after going through extreme outward and inward struggle that they reached the level where they became the Heirs of the Divine Trust of Faqr.”
Prediction of Sultan Bahoo
Sultan Bahoo said:
“When ignorance would prevail and falsehood would overcome the Truth, there would be a variety of sects and groups; every sect would consider itself upon Truth and others as the depraved ones; when people would hesitate to talk against the wrong sects; those falsely claiming to have the inward knowledge would disguise themselves as Saints and occupy the seats of shrines to plunder people’s wealth, then the Fountains of Divine Light would sprout from my shrine.”
It means that in this world of chaos and sectarianism, if the Muslim Ummah is ever going to find guidance towards righteousness then the source would only be the Order of Sultan Bahoo i.e. The Sarwari Qadri Order. The “Fountains of Divine Light” refers to his valuable teachings of Faqr which shall bring out the people of this age from darkness towards the light of right guidance. Sultan ul Ashiqeen Sultan Mohammad Najib ur Rehman is the one who has proved himself to be that descendant who revives Sultan Bahoo’s teachings of Faqr.