TheSuhrawardi order (Arabic:سهروردية,Persian:سهروردیه) is aSufi order founded byAbu ’l-Nad̲j̲īb Suhrawardī (died 1168). Lacking a centralised structure, it eventually divided into various branches. The order was especially prominent inIndia.[1] The ideology of the Suhrawardi order was inspired byJunayd of Baghdad (d. 910), a Persian scholar and mystic fromBaghdad.[2]
Under theIlkhanate (1256–1335), the Suhrawardi was one of the three leading Sufi orders and was based in western Iran. The order had its ownkhanqahs (Sufi lodges), which helped them spread their influence throughoutPersianate society. The order included prominent members such as theAkbari mysticsAbd al-Razzaq Kāshānī (died 1329),Sa'id al-Din Farghani (died 1300), and the Persian poetSaadi Shirazi (died 1292).[3]
Today, most orders have dissolved inMiddle Eastern countries such asSyria. However, the order is still active inIraq, where it recruits new members.[4]
The presence of the Suhrawardi order in India was established by three disciples ofS̲h̲ihāb al-Dīn Abū Ḥafṣ ʿUmar Suhrawardī, who established branches inDelhi,Bengal, andMultan. The most successful proselytizer of the order wasBahāʾ al-Dīn Zakariyyāʾ Multānī. One of his disciples,Sayyid D̲j̲alāl Buk̲h̲ārī aka D̲j̲alāl Surk̲h̲ founded the Jalali branch of the order. Bahāʾ al-Dīn’s most notable disciple was the poetFak̲h̲r al-Dīn Ibrāhīm ʿIrāḳī. Bahāʾ al-Dīn's descendants remained in Multān, such as his grandsonRukn al-Dīn Abu ’l-Fatḥ. The line ended with the execution of Rukn al-Dīn's successor, Hūd, by the sultān due to embezzlement charges. InUččh,D̲j̲alāl al-Dīn Buk̲h̲ārī “Mak̲h̲dūm-i D̲j̲ahāniyān", became the most notable figure of the Multān branch, who was also a member of theChishti order and was notably puritanical. The descendants and disciples of the Mak̲h̲dūm spread to Kalpī,Gujarat, and notably Delhi. The greatest presence of the Suhrawardi order in India was inKashmir. The king of Kashmir,Rinchana, was converted toIslam bySayyid S̲h̲araf al-Dīn aka Bulbul Shah.[5]
The Suhrawardi order had a strong relationship and exerted influence over Indian rulers and governments such theDelhi Sultanate,Gujarat Sultanate, andMughal Empire. The Suhrawardīs supported theforced conversion of Hindus and Buddhists to Islam, and its converts were mainly upper caste. Suhrawardiyya spirituality focused ondhikr andRamadan fasting and followed classical Ṣūfī doctrine.[5]
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