| Naqshbandi order | |
|---|---|
| الطريقة النقشبندية al-Ṭarīqa al-Naqshbandīyya | |
 Shrine of the order's founderBaha' al-Din Naqshband inUzbekistan | |
| Abbreviation | Naqshbandīyya |
| Type | Sufi order |
| Classification | Sunni Islam |
| Region | Central Asia,Indian sub-continent,Middle East |
| Founder | Baha' al-Din Naqshband |
| Origin | 14th century Timurid Empire |
Naqshbandi (Persian: نقشبندیه) is a majorSufi order withinSunni Islam, named after its 14th-century founder,Baha' al-Din Naqshband. Practitioners, known as Naqshbandis, trace their spiritual lineage (silsila) directly to theProphet Muhammad through the first caliph,Abu Bakr, viaJa'far al-Sadiq. The Naqshbandi order is distinct for its strict adherence toSharia (Islamic law) and silentdhikr practices adopted from earlier Central Asian masters.[1]
The order is also known as the "convergence of the two oceans" due to the presence ofAbu Bakr and Jafar al-Sadiq in thesilsila and the "Sufi Order of Jafar al-Sadiq".[2][3][4][5][6][7] The Naqshbandi order owes many insights toYusuf Hamadani andAbdul Khaliq Ghijduwani in the 12th century, the latter of whom is regarded as the organizer of the practices and is responsible for placing stress upon the purely silentremembrance of Allah.[8] It was later associated withBaha al-Din Shah Naqshband in the 14th century, hence the name of the order.[9]
Since it was founded the Naqshbandi order has split into multiple sub-orders founded by several prominent figures within the chain of succession.'Ubeydullah Ahrar founded the Naqshbandiyya-Ahrariyya;Ahmad Sirhindi founded theNaqshbandiyya-Mujaddidiyya;Shamsuddin Mirza Mazhar founded the Naqshbandiyya-Mazhariyya; andMawlana Khalid founded theNaqshbandiyya-Khalidiyya.[9]
The Naqshbandiyya order became an influential factor inIndian Muslim life, and for two centuries it was the most common Sufi order in theIndian subcontinent.Khwaja Baqi Billah, who was born in Kabul and brought up and educated in Kabul andSamarkand, is credited for bringing the order to India during the end of the 16th century. He tried to spread his knowledge about the order but died three years later. His discipleAhmad Sirhindi took over after his death, and it was through him that the order gained popularity within a short period of time.Shah Waliullah Dehlawi was an 18th-century member of the order.[10]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding missing information.(March 2025) |
| This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding missing information.(March 2025) |
The Naqshbandi order entered Anatolia during the Ottoman Empire, especially in the 15th and 16th centuries. It became particularly influential in the 18th and 19th centuries, often seen as a more orthodox alternative to the Mevlevi (Rumi followers) or Bektashi orders. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, during Atatürk’s secular reforms, Sufi lodges (tekkes) were banned in 1925. Despite this, the Naqshbandi order continued underground and remained influential.
The Naqshbandiyya order was introduced into Syria at the end of the 17th century by Murad Ali al-Bukhari, who established himself in Damascus and traveled throughout Arabia. His branch became known as the Muradiyya and was led by his descendants. In 1820, Khalid Shahrazuri rose as a prominent Naqshbandi leader in the Ottoman world and his order became known as theKhalidiyya which spread for at least two decades. In Syria and Lebanon, the leaders of every active Naqshbandiyya group acknowledged itsspiritual lineage. Later, a strife between Khalid's khalifas led to disruption of the order and it divide. The Farmadiyya branch, which practices silent and vocalinvocation, is still present in Lebanon and is named after Ali-Farmadi. The pre-Mujaddidi line of the Naqshbandiyya in Greater Syria came to an end when political leader Musa Bukhar died in 1973. The only branch to have survived till recently is the one based in theKhanqah al-Uzbakiyya in Jerusalem.[11]
The Naqshbandi order rose to prominence in Egypt during the 19th century. A major khanqah was constructed in 1851 by Abbas I as a favor to the Naqshbandi sheikh Ahmad Ashiq, who led the order until his death in 1883. Ahmad Ashiq practiced the Diya'iyya branch of the Khalidiyya. Two other versions of Naqshbandiyya spread in Egypt in the last decades of the 19th century: the Judiyya, led by sheikh Juda Ibrahim, and the Khalidiyya, led by Sudanese al-Sharif Isma'il al-Sinnari and his successors. These branches continued to grow and are still active today. None of the early orders survived far into the 20th century however, and all khanqahs in Egypt were closed in 1954 when the buildings were either assigned a different function or demolished.[11]
The first known Naqshbandi murshid inMalay Archipelago wasYusuf al-Makassari, a 17th century Islamic scholar who also introducedKhalwatiyya to the region. However, the order quickly disappeared before being introduced again in the 19th century. There are two well known branches of Naqshbandiyya in Southeast Asia. The first one is Khalidiyya, introduced byIsmail al-Minankabawi, a disciple of Abdullah al-Arzinjani in Mecca, and spread acrossSumatra,Java, andMalay Peninsula.PERTI, anIndonesian Islamic organization fromMinangkabau Highlands, was founded bySulaiman ar-Rasuli and other Khalidi clerics. The other branch is Mazhariyya, named after Shamsuddin Mazhar, a Naqshbandi branch through Abu Said al-Ahmadi, one of Abdullah Dehlawi's khalifas. Mazhariyya is the main Naqshbandi branch inMadura, brought by Abdul Azim al-Maduri after studying in Mecca. Another related order isQadiriyya wa Naqshbandiyya, a fusion ofQadiriyya and Naqshbandiyya, whose sheikhs inBanten andLombok led rebellions against theDutch East Indies at the end of the 19th century.[12]
Ma Laichi brought the Naqshbandi (نقشبندية)納克什班迪 order to China, creating theKhufiyya (خفيه)虎夫耶 Hua Si Sufi华寺; ("Multicolored Mosque")menhuan.Ma Mingxin, also brought the Naqshbandi order, creating theJahriyya (جهرية)哲赫林耶 menhuan. These two menhuan were rivals, and fought against each other which led to theJahriyya Rebellion,Dungan revolt, andDungan Revolt (1895).[13]
Naqshbandi teachings center on the “Eleven Principles,” combining silent dhikr with daily mindfulness.[14][circular reference] These include inward awareness, watchfulness over thoughts, and conscious breathing.
The order highlights strict observance of theSharia and introduces silent inward dhikr, distinguishing it from vocal chanting practices prevalent in other Sufi tariqas.[15]
The Naqshbandi order has 11 principle teachings known as theEleven Naqshbandi principles. The first eight were formulated byAbdul Khaliq Ghijduwani, and the last three were added by Baha-ud-Din Shah Naqshband.[8]
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help){{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)Excerpt from note 11: "There are some Naqshbandi branches which trace theirsilsila through Ali ibn Abi Taleb." See Algar, 1972, pp. 191-3; al-Khani, 1308. pg 6
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help){{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Britannica2 was invoked but never defined (see thehelp page).
Media related toNaqshbandi order at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
