Karamat (Mini-Miracles)
Definition of Karamat
“Karamat” constitutes that supra-
Hazrat’s views about miracles and mini-
On the subject of miracles (of Prophet) and mini-
(i) preponderantly in accordance with the normal practice and precedent, and
(ii) in rare cases, contrary to such practice and precedent. The latter cases find expression in miracles and mini-
It would, however, be wrong to deny them simply because they cannot be grasped by ordinary common-
Hazrat Pir Meher Ali Shah (R.A) –
Hazrat (R.A) ranked among highly rare personalities blessed by Allah with Karamat. His personality was a rare blend of physical beauty and beauty of character, which made him the beloved of all who came into contact with him. Instances of such beautifully-
The physical –
In the case of Hazrat, inner spiritual beauty was reflected in outward physical beauty of rare order. The result was that people were attracted towards him if by a magnet. A light that defied description permeated their souls at the very sight of him, thereby providing a tacit commentary on the following Quranic verses:
Translation: “On those who believe and work righteous deeds (Allah) the Beneficent will bestow love (His own love, and the love of man’s fellow creatures).” (XIX, 96)
Translation: “Therefore, remember Me, I will remember you.” (II, 152)
Even Non-
The miracle of knowledge derived directly from God’s own presence
Another grand miracle of Hazrat (R.A) was the limitless treasure of knowledge which Allah had bestowed upon him, and which made use of whenever the occasion so demanded. The jewels of this knowledge are strewn in abundance in his writings as well as his recorded sayings (Malfoozaat). Haji Rahmatullah Muhajir of Makkah himself a most distinguished scholar of Islam, once described Hazrat’s knowledge as ‘Ilm-
Qazi Qudratullah of Peshawar (nick named Qazi Qadru by Afghans), and eminent scholar who made annual visits to Afghanistan and Khorasan to preach to the Kings there, was compelled to acknowledge defeat in a debate with Hazrat on the subject of Sama (devotional music) and to seek Hazrat’s bai’at. Similarly, Maulana Nazir Ahmad, a well known munazir (debater) of India, was obliged to request Hazrat to enroll him as a pupil following a meeting with Hazrat in Kaliar Sharif.
The abiding Karamat of noble lineage
Besides physical beauty and superior knowledge, Hazrat (R.A) had been blessed by Allah with the inalienable gift of noble lineage. From his father’s side, he was a descendent of Syedna Imam Hassan (R.A) son of Syedna Ali (R.A) and the Holy Prophet’s (P.B.U.H) daughter Fatimah-
An idea of Hazrat’s devotional schedule may be had from the fact that for thirty long years, Hazrat said his Fajr (morning) prayers with ablutions performed after the Isha prayers of the previous night. Most of the intervening period of the night was spent by him in quiet recitations and meditation in kneeling posture generally termed as marakabah in mystic idiom.
Establishment of Pakistan
As mentioned earlier, Hazrat-
During the period of Istighraq, Hazrat (R.A) had one day made this observation in the presence of Maulana Mahboob Alam and another devotee – “ In the near future, this part of the country will be dominated by the Muslims”. Pointing towards the east, he then added: “ Muslims of that region will, however, face a grave calamity”. These predictions came true when Pakistan emerged on the map of the world in August 1947, and its emergence was followed by wide-
The 1965 India Pakistan War
Once a Murid of well-
Only a few days after his narration, war broke out between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir front, and was followed by a full-
The wide ranging spiritual benefaction of Hazrat –
Some incidents which may serve as indicators of the exceptionally wide range of Hazrat’s spiritual benefactions outflow are cited below:
i) Hazrat as Ra’is-
It is believed among mystic circles that during every year’s Hajj, one of the Hujjaj (Pilgrims) is spiritually awarded the title of Ra’is-
ii) Pir Syed Abbas Ali Shah Bukhari, an eminent spiritual personality now buried at Sandah Khurdh in the suburbs of Lahore, who had wandered round in several cities of India during his life time was once awakened from sleep by a destitute majzub late on a rainy winter night in Bombay. The majzub requested a cup or two of hot tea, which Syed Abbas Ali Shah prepared instantly and offered to him. Going back to sleep after the majzub’s departure, Syed Abbas saw an exceedingly angelic looking person in dream, who said to him: “I thank you for giving a cup of tea to my fakir”. Twice he went back to sleep again but each time the dream repeated itself. Enamoured by the uniquely charming face of his dream visitor and having failed to trace the majzub in the streets of Bombay, Syed Abbas set out in search of him and traveled to several provinces in his quest without success. Finally, he reached Lahore but having failed even there to find the object of his search he was preparing to leave for Bombay by train, when some one he met at the railway station advised him to go to Golra. When he did so and saw Hazrat (R.A), he immediately recognized him as the person he had seen in his dream. Hazrat greeted him warmly as if he too identified him. Syed Abbas stayed in Golra for a few days and then returned home after having achieved his spiritual mission.
iii) Hafiz Ghulam Samadani once requested Hazrat to pray for the business success of his father, who had been awarded a contract by the then Afghan Government for the supply of forest wood in the south of Afghanistan. Instead of praying, Hazrat asked him whether there was peace in Afghanistan. When the latter met Hazrat again after some time with the same request, Hazrat repeated his earlier question. Outwardly, there was indeed peace in Afghanistan at the time, but soon thereafter rebel Bacha Saqqa attacked Kabul, forced King Amanullah Khan to flee the country, and there was wide spread bloodshed in Kabul. Ghulam Samadani met Hazrat again after his development whereupon Hazrat prayed for the safety of his relatives then living in Kabul. Some time later, Samadani went to pay his respects to a well-
iv) Afghan national once visited Hazrat in his sitting room. As soon as he saw Hazrat, he said in pashto language that he had seen Hazrat on horseback in the battle field during the armed fight of the Mullah of Haddah against the British. When the interpreter told Hazrat (R.A) what the Afghani was saying, Hazrat dismissed him as being out of his mind. The man, however, continued to insist on oath that he had in fact seen Hazrat there, thereby probably divulging a spiritual secret which Hazrat (R.A) wished to conceal. A similar narration was made by two other men from two different quarters.
v) Haji Muhammad Ayub Sethi of Peshawar was once traveling in a bus in Iran. As he dosed off during his journey, he saw Hazrat in dream warning him to have the bus stopped instantly since a deep ditch lay immediately ahead. The bus was immediately stopped, and it was revealed that there was in fact a ditch only a few yards ahead the bus was saved from falling into it just in time.
vi) Ghulam Rasul Khan, Deputy Superintendent in the Central Intelligence Department under the British, and a devotee of Hazrat, was once traveling by steamer, when Hazrat asked him in dream to leave the ship at the next re-
vii) On another occasion, the same Ghulam Rasul Khan was saved due to a warning given by Hazrat in dream one night that a gang of Sikh dacoits whom he was interrogating in connection with a charge of robbery against them had plotted to kill him. Ghulam Rasul Khan immediately hid himself on the top of a near by tree. Not long thereafter, the said gang came to his room to carry out their plot but had to go away disappointed on not finding him in his bed.
viii) On still another occasion, Hazrat informed Ghulam Rasul Khan, then on official duty in Russia, in dream that his house in Hong Kong had been burgled. Enquiry over the wireless confirmed this and also revealed that the burglars had been nabbed by the local police.
ix) Pir Wilayat Shah Sahib, Hazrat’s younger brother, was once preparing to leave by train for some distant place to participate in a wedding ceremony to which he had been invited. When he was informed of this, Hazrat firmly forbade him to do so. It later transpired that the train by which Pir Wilayat Shah Sahib had planned to travel met with a serious accident in which several lives were lost.
In such matters, the real force at work is doubtless the Will of Allah. In the world of cause and effects, however, His Will is often effectuated through the intermediacy of chosen men of Allah.
Fulfillment of prayers, and spiritual succour of devotees
Several remarkable instances are record concerning the fulfillment of Hazrat’s prayers for the alleviation of problems and difficulties confronting some of his devotee and admirers.
These include:
i) The succession cases of Divan Said Muhammad of Pakpattan Sharif and Sahibzadah Mehmood of Taunsa Sharif, both of which were decided in their favour by the Privy Council in London (then the highest appellate), thanks to Hazrat’s prayers;
ii) The property case of Sardar Muhammad ‘Azim Khan Golra, which was decided in his favour by the Chief court of Punjab, again as a result of Hazrat’s special prayers; A Fakir Sahib of the village where the property was located had sent a message to Hazrat that he had seen in the Lawh-
iii) The case of one Muhammad Hussain of Maira Badiyah, whose release was ordered just when he was about to be hanged on a murder charge after his mercy petition had been rejected earlier by the concerned court; (Hazrat had prayed for his release through the intermediacy of Syedna Ghaus-
iv) The cases of succession struggle of Amir Habib Ullah Khan, ruler of Afghanistan, Nawab Sadiq Muhammad Khan of Bahawalpur Princely state of India, and the Nawab Sahib of Amb Darband State, all of which were decided in their respective favours due to Hazrat’s prayers for them.
Some other miraculous happenings
a) Malik Sher Muhammad Tiwana, a sincere devotee of Hazrat, was once sentenced to six years in jail in connection with some lawsuit. All appeals against this conviction were rejected by the higher courts. In reply to a request for prayers, Hazrat (R.A) wrote a letter to the head of the family reassuring him that all would be well by the Grace of Allah. Soon thereafter, Queen Victoria, then Empress of India, passed away, and a general amnesty was granted to all prisoners in celebration of the coronation of her son and successor, Edward the Seventh. Malik Sher Muhammad was released as a part of this amnesty and was later promoted to an even higher post in government service than before his conviction.
b) A person who had lost his eyesight due to some illness once met Hazrat and requested him to pray for the restoration of his vision. Since Hazrat was then preparing to leave for Pakpattan Sharif, he prayed for the man and asked him to return home. As the man left for home by train the next day, he suddenly found his sight restored on his way to the railway station.
c) A Syed gentlemen belonging to the outskirts of Khushab was once disabled by an attack of paralysis. He was brought to Golra Sharif and Hazrat (R.A) continued to pray for his recovery for several weeks. Finding that his condition did not improve, Hazrat (R.A) told him that the destined time for his recovery had probably not yet arrived, and asked him to return home in the mean time.
Sometime later, Hazrat (R.A) happened, during a train journey en route to Sial Sharif, to spot the aforesaid person among the group of people who had come for his Ziarah at the Khushab Railway Station. Hazrat (R.A) then raised his hands in prayer, and people were astonished to see that the person was instantly cured of his long time disability and was able to walk away without any support from the railway station.
Syed Imam Shah, an eminent religious scholar of Oldham and a sincere devotee of Hazrat (R.A), was once afflicted by a severe and persistent toothache, which did not respond to continued treatment. He came to Golra Sharif and told Hazrat (R.A) that he had severe dental pain. Hazrat repeated Imam Shah’s own words three times and prayed for him. To everyone’s surprise, the toothache was immediately cured by this rather unusual prayer of Hazrat.
e) In a number of cases, Hazrat’s (R.A) prayers caused the grant of male off-
f) Hazrat’s younger daughter once happened to fall into an open water well inside the residential quarters. She was, however, miraculously saved by an invisible hand (identified by the young lady as that of Hazrat himself) which caught her in mid-
g) Khan Bahadur Ghulam Rasul Khan, Deputy superintendent of Police once expressed a strong desire to go to Baghdad for the Ziarah of the Holy shrine of Syedna Ghaus-
In another similar incident, Maulana Ghulam Muhammad Ghotavi was graced by a Ziarah of Syedna Ghaus-
h) Abdul Karim Sethi, a very ardent devotee of Hazrat from Peshawar, once accompanied Hazrat on his daily outing to a nearby spot after evening prayers. Sitting at some distance from Hazrat, Abdul Karim suddenly saw a crowd of strange looking creatures around Hazrat. Frightened at this scene Abdul Karim covered his eyes with his hands and lay down on the ground. Thereupon, Hazrat dismissed the group of creatures (who were in fact jinns) from his presence and reassured Abdul Karim by explaining the correct position.
i) In a couple of cases, the bitter-
j) A young village boy of Peshawar area suddenly lost his speech while grazing goats in nearby valley. On the supplication of his parents, Hazrat prayed for the boy and his speech was instantly restored.
k) Hafiz Ghulam Hussain, a devotee from Rawat a few miles away from Rawalpindi, once came to Golra to pay his respects to Hazrat. Hazrat prayed for him but then asked him to return home immediately. Rather surprised at this unusual bidding of Hazrat, Ghulam Hussain immediately left. The secret of Hazrat’s bidding, was revealed when a messenger from home met him on the way and told him that his father was on the verge of death. Ghulam Hussain was thus enabled to reach home in time to have the consolation of seeing his dying father before he breathed his last.
l) An authentic hadith of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H) says this of truly pious and Holy men: “When one looks at them, one is reminded of Allah”. In the line with this hadith, Hazrat Shaikh Muhyuddin Ibn-
Taking a cue from these sayings, Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi says in his famous Mathnavi:
Translation: “A short period in the company of Awlia-
In line with the foregoing quotes, many errant and wayward people were converted to steadfast piety and virtue by enrolling in bai’at with Hazrat spending sometime off and on in his chaste company. Rarely (if ever) did Hazrat have to verbally exhort or adopt a moralizing attitude.
m) One Malik Pir Bukhsh Khan Kanju of District Multan narrated that, in line with family tradition, he once took it into his head to “test” whether Hazrat Pir Meher Ali Shah Sahib of Golra Sharif was in fact true Syed off-
Malik Pir Bukhsh decided to conduct this test during one of Hazrat’s visits to Pakpattan in connection with the annual Urs there. He recited the Darud and blew out towards Hazrat when he was preparing to leave the mosque after the Zuhr (afternoon) prayers. The moment he did so, Hazrat (R.A) suddenly turned around, fixed his gaze at Pir Muhammad for some moments, and then resumed his walk. The latter was so taken aback at this gesture of Hazrat (R.A) that he lowered his head in shame and remorse, and returned home without having the courage to go in Hazrat’s presence again.
n) Recovery of persons virtually on the verge of death
Instances of restoration to life through prayers to persons long dead record in history as miracles of apostle of Allah, especially those of Jesus Christ (A.S). Similarly, examples of persons being snatched away from the jaws of death through the Karamat (mini miracles) of Awlia Allah have also been fairly common.
A few incidents, most of which occurred well after Hazrat’s passing away are listed below:
1. About two years after Hazrat’s passing away, his favourite qawwals Hafiz Nur Muhammad was taken so gravely ill with pneumonia in his village that the doctors gave up all hope of his survival. As his son Khadim Hussain was sitting on his death bed with his head in his lap one night, Nur Muhammad suddenly started chanting the following Persian verse:
Translation: “The fire of the love of beauties is still aglow in my heart and soul; O death! Stay thy hand for a while so that I can narrate my story (Of woe) to my beloved.”
When his son asked him how his condition had improved so suddenly, Nur Muhammad told him an amazing story. A short while before, he said, Hazrat had appeared to him in person and asked him whether he was ready to come over to the other world or wished to stay on here for some time more. Nur Muhammad told Hazrat he wished to have some respite so that he could celebrate the wedding of his youngest son Farid. Hazrat, he said, had thereupon asked him to recite the Persian verse which his son had heard him chant .On examination the next morning, the doctors were astonished to find that all signs of pneumonia had vanished. Nur Muhammad lived on for another seven years after this episode, and was not only able to wed his son but also to witness the birth of his two grand children.
2. The wife of Mian Fazl Ilahi Sethi of Peshawar, a sincere and old time devotee of Hazrat once fell gravely ill during Hazrat’s lifetime, and all hope of her recovery was lost. Fazl Ilahi prepared to bring her to Golra Sharif so that she could have the privilege of meeting her end and being buried here. When Hazrat learnt about this, he sent a message to Fazl Ilahi not to come to Golra, but instead to shift his wife’s bed to the room where Hazrat used to stay during his occasional visits to Peshawar. This was duly done, and Hazrat blew his breath in that direction after performing some recitations every morning and evening. The sick lady recovered fully from her illness in a few days’ time.
3. In 1960, i.e., “twenty three years” after Hazrat’s passing away, Malik Ghulam Samadani Tiwana fell victim to a serious illness involving profuse bleeding from his nose and throat. He was taken from his native village to the Mayo Hospital at Lahore, the premier medical house of the day, where the doctors pronounced him beyond recovery. He was then taken to the clinic of an eminent specialist, but as the latter was preparing to examine him, the patient suddenly opened his eyes, sat up in his bed, and signaled to leave his bedside. In a few minutes, his condition improved beyond recognition, and the weakness was sufficiently reduced to enable him to talk. He then told those around him that Hazrat had visited him in person a few moments earlier, had inquired about this health, raised his hands in prayer, asked him to leave hospital, and had then disappeared. Malik Ghulam Samadani was instantly cured of the grave ailment to the doctor’s surprise.
4. Hazrat’s illustrious only son Hazrat Babuji (R.A) was also once cured of an exceedingly grave illness, which had virtually carried him to the verge of death, through Hazrat’s prayers. Hazrat had initially taken no notice of this illness, had carried on his various activities as usual, and had responded to the entreaties of devotees for prayers by simply asking them to call in the best possible medical help to attend to Babuji. When the latter’s condition failed to improve and assumed alarming proportion, Hazrat was persuaded by a personal appeal from Babuji to come to his bedside, to formally enroll him in his bai’at, and then to closet himself in his room for single-
Continuance of Karamat after death
It may be observed here that according to truly erudite research scholars, the ensuance of Karamat from Awlia Allah does not cease after their death. Indeed, their spiritual capabilities increase vastly once their spirits are rid of the confines of their physical frames.
Convincingly true disciples of eminent Awlia Allah are known to be blessed in their last moments with spiritual visits from their Murshids in order to ease their pangs of death, and to console them about post-
Divination of transcendental things
Being informed through the Grace of Allah about matters or phenomenon which fall in the category of the invisible or the transcendental is one of the relatively more significant Karamat of Awlia-
Translation: “Beware the true believer’s vision, for he sees with the help of the light of Allah.”
Some of the many incidents of this type involving Hazrat’s spiritual beneficiaries are reproduced below.
1) According to Hazrat Babuji, a person belonging to Northern India once visited Pakpattan Sharif to pay his respects at the Holy Shrine of Hazrat Baba Farid-
When the man met Hazrat for this purpose, Hazrat divining his unspoken intention, made this observation even before he had said anything: “ How surprising it is that some people hold eminent Awlia Allah and their shrines in deep regards, but show no respect to their off-
Translation: “Out of love for Laila, I hold every dark-
The man realized and openly confessed his error.
2) Once a devotee, father of Maulvi Faiz Ahmad Faiz (the author of book “Meher-
Sometimes later, he had the opportunity to occasionally visit the madressah, and to listen to glowing accounts of Hazrat’s greatness and accomplishments. Soon thereafter, Hazrat happened to pay a visit to the area, and Faiz Ahmad’s father presented himself to Hazrat with a request for bai’at. A large gathering of persons desirous of seeking bai’at with Hazrat was present there on the occasion. Looking at him, Hazrat asked him to come next day. This sorely disappointed him, especially when he learnt from some person there that Hazrat himself was enrolled in the Chishtia school through Khwaja Shamsuddin of Sial Sharif, while he wished to get enrolled in the Qadriyah school in line with the family tradition.
When he visited Hazrat the next day as desired by him, he was most happily surprised to find that Hazrat on his own decided to extend bai’at to him in Qadiri school, and made it clear to him that he was doing so because all members of his family were enrolled in that school, and because he himself had the permission of his Shaikh to enroll people in both the Chishti as well as the Qadiri school.