Skip to main content

Badi Dargah

Badi Dargah

(translated as big mausoleum) is a major Sufi shrine and a significant Islamic heritage located at Muhalla Badi Dargah in Bihar Sharif, Nalanda district of Bihar, India. It is the resting place of Hazrat Shaykh Sharfuddin Ahmed Yahya Maneri, who is well respected throughout the Indian subcontinent for his teachings and writings on spirituality, notably his famous letters collection such as Maktubat-e-Sadi (One Hundred Letters) and Maktoobat-e-Do Sadi (Two Hundred Letters).

The shrine complex, usually called Badi Dargah to differentiate it from Chhoti Dargah (translated as small mausoleum), another Sufi place in the area, of Hazrat Peer Badruddin Badr-e-Aalam Zaahidi.[a]

Badi Dargah is not just the mausoleum of Hazrat Shaykh Sharfuddin Ahmed Yahya Maneri but also contains the graves of many other important spiritual figures. Among them is his mother Hazrat Syeda Bibi Raziya urf Badi Buaa bint Syed Shahabuddin Suhrawardi, a saintly lady of great standing and the elder sister of Hazrat Bibi Hadiya urf Bibi Kamal, female Sufi saint resting at Kako Sharif in the Jehanabad district of Bihar. The dargah also houses the tomb of Hazrat Shaykh Sharfuddin Ahmed Yahya's brother, and some of his loved disciples (mureeds) and spiritual successors (khulafa), and thus forms a focal point of the Firdausiyya Sufi order in Bihar.

History

edit

Initially the Mazaar Sharif of Hazrat Shaykh Sharfuddin Ahmed Yahya Maneri and his mother was not pucca (cemented) for hundreds of years and there was no Gumbad (dome) over it. The Badi Dargah has been visited and venerated by hundreds of notable figures such as Babur, Firoz Shah Tughlaq and others.

Khanquah Muazzam

edit

The Khanquah Muazzam was build by Muqti (governor) of Bihar, Zainuddin Majeed-ul-Mulk (Majdul Mulk) on the order of Sultan Muhammad Bin Tughlaq for Hazrat Shaykh Sharfuddin Ahmed Yahya Maneri. After completing his riyazat(spiritual exercises) in the Bihiya forest, Hazrat Sharaf Maneri went to the Khanquah and stayed there till his wisal.

Urs Shareef

edit

The annual urs (death anniversary) is celebrated from 5th shawwal to 10th shawwal at Bihar Sharif.[2] The urs festival begins with Chiraga, followed by ghusl(sacred bath) and Chadar Poshi. The first Chadar Poshi at Badi Dargah is usually done by the district and police administration.[3] Every year annual Mela (funfair) is organised in the surrounding Dargah premises for the pilgrims.[4]

Sajjadanasheens

edit

The list of Sajjadanasheen (hereditary custodians) can be found in Makhdoom-e-Jahan Shaikh Sharfuddin Ahmad Yahya Maneri: Jeevan Aur Sandesh written by Prof. Syed Shah Shamimuddin Ahmed Munemi[1]

  1. Hazrat Makhdoom Maulana Muzaffar Balkhi bin Shamsuddin Balkhi (1380–1401)
  2. Hazrat Makhdoom Hussain bin Muizuddin Balkhi also known as Nausha–e–Tauheed Balkhi (1401–1441)
  3. Hazrat Makhdoom Hasan Daayem Jashn Balkhi (1441–1451)
  4. Hazrat Makhdoom Ahmad Langar Dariya Balkhi Firdausi (1451–1486)
  5. Hazrat Makhdoom Ibraheem Sultan Balkhi Firdausi (1486–1509)
  6. Hazrat Makhdoom Haafiz Balkhi Firdausi
  7. Hazrat Makhdoom Syed Shah Bheek Firdausi
  8. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Jalaal Firdausi
  9. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Akhwand Firdausi
  10. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Ahmad Firdausi
  11. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Deewan Ali Firdausi
  12. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Abdus Salam Firdausi
  13. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Zaki Uddin Firdausi
  14. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Wajih Uddin Firdausi
  15. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Muhammad Buzurg Firdausi
  16. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Ali Firdausi
  17. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Alauddin Firdausi
  18. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Badiuddin Firdausi
  19. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Aleemuddin Durwesh Firdausi
  20. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Waliullah Firdausi
  21. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Ameeruddin Firdausi
  22. Hazrat Makhdoom Shah Ameen Ahmad Firdausi (1870–1903)
  23. Hazrat Makhdoom Syed Shah Muhammad Hayat Firdausi (1903–1935)
  24. Hazrat Makhdoom Syed Shah Muhammad Sajjad Firdausi (1935–1976)
  25. Hazrat Makhdoom Syed Shah Muhammad Amjaad Firdausi (1976–1997)
  26. Hazrat Syed Shah Saifuddin Firdausi (1997–present)

Notes

edit
  • Hussain, Syed Amjad (2025). Dargahs and Devotion: Preserving Bihar Sharif's Sufi Heritage, New Age Islam.

References

edit
  • [1] Dr Syed Shah Shamimuddin Ahmed Munemi (2011) “Makhdoom-e-Jahan Shaikh Sharfuddin Ahmad Yahya Maneri: Jeevan Aur Sandesh”. Madarsa Asdaqiya Makhdum Sharaf, Bihar Sharif, Nalanda. pp.113–143 (Hindi)
  • [2] Tasnim, Shakir (2025-01-01). "The Mahfil-e-Sama in Indian Sufi Tradition: A Focus on the Firdausia Silsila of Bihar Sharif". Sangeet Galaxy. 14 (1): 413. ISSN 2319-9695.
  • [3] "बड़ी दरगाह में चिरागा मेला कल से शुरू". Live Hindustan (in Hindi). 2025-04-02. Retrieved 2026-01-23.
  • [4] Ibid.