Location of Ajmer Sharif Dargah, History of Ajmer Sharif Dargah, Architecture of Ajmer Sharif Dargah, Visiting hours in Ajmer Sharif Dargah.
Location of Ajmer Sharif Dargah (Dargah Sharif of Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti):
This Sacred Centre of Pilgrimage is situated in Ajmer City which is located at the foot of a 800 feet high mountain towards the Northern foot of the Taragarh Hill in District Ajmer, Rajasthan.
History of Ajmer Sharif Dargah:
This Shrine is dedicated to Great Sufi Saint Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti who laid the permanent foundation of Islam in India in 1192 A.D. by his spiritual powers and peaceful preachings. He is regarded as one of the greatest spiritual redeemers of human sufferings. Because of this World famous Shrine, the Ajmer City is called ‘Madinatul Hind or The Madina of India’.
Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti was born in 1141 A.D. at Chishty in Sistan also known as Sajistan in East Persia. His Father’s name was Khwaja Syed Ghyasuddin Hasan and Mother’s name was Syeda Bibi Ummul-Wara alias Bibi Mah-e-Noor. He showed signs of rare piety and sacrifice for others during his childhood. His Father was a well to do and an influential gentleman. At that time, the Sistan area was repeatedly plundered by the barbarous Tartars due to the weak ruler, Sultan Sanjar. So his Father decided to migrate to Neshapur, the Capital City which was one of the most flourishing Cities at that time.
His father purchased an orchard and a windmill to settle down in life. But due to the absence of Sultan Sanjar in the Capital for a long time, the rebels started to torture the innocent people. This bloodshed created a deep impression on the mind of Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti. Finally, the Sultan Sanjar was defeated and captured by the rebels and the barbarous Tartars. This was followed by the destruction of all the Cities and the massacre of the innocent people.
By the year 1156 A.D., Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti lost his parents, but he was a hard-working young man and continued to look after his orchard. A year later, the area was again looted by the barbarous Tartars. It seemed that the Almighty was preparing young Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti for a divine mission of peace and reform by showing him the sins of this wretched World full of hate, murder and greed.
In the year 1161 A.D., a divine person named Sheikh Ibrahim Qandozi visited his orchard and he served him well. The divine person took out a Sesame seed from his pocket, chewed it for sometime and then put it into the mouth of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti. Khwaja Moinuddin found himself in a different World. When he recovered, he found that the divine person had already left. This was the begining of his divine career.
He sold his orchard and windmill, renounced the World and reached Bokhara City for religious education. From here, he reached Samarkand for further religious education. After completion of his education, he reached Haroon town and went to pay homage to Great Sufi Saint Hazrat Khwaja Usman Harooni and became his disciple. He along with his master went to pay homage at Mecca in 1167 A.D. and then at the Shrine of the Holy Prophet Mohammed in Madina.
Then he travelled in the company of his master to many Cities like Sewastan, Damascus, Awash, Badakhshan, Ray and the banks of river Tigris. After visiting Asfahan City, he travelled to Mecca and Madina between 1188- 1190 A.D. At Madina, he was instructed in his dreams by Holy Prophet Mohammed to visit and stay at Ajmer for preaching Islamism. He resumed his journey and reached Khirqan, Astrabad, Herat, Sabzawar, Balakh and Ghazni.
Finally, in the year 1191 A.D., Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti arrived in India and via Multan – Lahore – Samana and reached Delhi for his mission of peace and harmony. He asked his disciple Khawaja Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki to preach Islamism at Delhi. He himself proceeded towards the City of Ajmer as it was located in the heart of Rajasthan, was the Capital of the powerful Rajput ruler King Prithviraj Chauhan (1170-1192 A.D.) and also it was a densely populated City.
He stayed for sometime on the Anasagar Hill and then shifted to the place where now the Shrine is located. He is known to have performed many miracles like he remained present both at Ajmer and Mecca during the Haj period. He got married in 1193 A.D. to Bibi Ummutulla and then in 1223 A.D. to Bibi Asmat and had three sons and one daughter. He passed away in the year 1233 A.D.
Ajmer Sharif Dargah is like a precious jewel ornamenting the City of Ajmer. It is one of the holiest places of worship in India not only for the Muslims but also for the people of other religions who visit here to seek the blessings of the Saint to fulfil their wishes. Even the mighty Kings of India visited this Shrine to seek his blessings. The Mughal Emperor Akbar had visited Ajmer Sharif Dargah on foot when he conquered Ajmer and built many buildings inside the Shrine Complex in the honour of the Great Saint.
Architecture of Ajmer Sharif Dargah:
The main gate of Ajmer Sharif Dargah is located towards the North and is called Nizam Gate which was built in 1911 A.D. by Mir Usman Ali Khan, the Nizam of Hyderabad. On the top of this gateway, there is a Naqqar Khana (the drum house) which contains two pairs of huge beating drums which were presented by the Mughal Emperor Akbar after his victory in a campaign of Bengal.
Another huge entrance named Buland Darwaza was built by Sultan Ghiyasuddin Khilji of Mandu who ruled Malwa from 1469-1500 A.D. Before the commencement of Urs Sharif, a flag is hoisted on the top of this gateway with grand ceremony.
On the either side of the Buland Darwaza, there are two huge Degs (huge utensils for cooking food with the larger one being 10-1/4 feet in circumference at the edge) fixed into masonry in which a mixture of rice, sugar, ghee and dry fruits is cooked for distributing among the devotees as tabarruk. One of the two Degs was presented by Mughal Emperor Jahangir, who himself lit the fire beneath it to inaugurate it. These Degs are cooked generally during the Urs Festival.
The Sanctum of the Shrine is the tomb of the Saint Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti. An inscription in golden letters on the Northern wall of the tomb indicates that its cupola was embellished in 1532-1533 A.D. Everyday a number of ceremonies are performed here which include – Khidmat (cleaning the Holy Mazar and offering fresh flowers), Lighting, Karka (the closing ceremony), Langar (the free food), Sama (Qawwali), Milad and Quran recital.
Towards the West of the Courtyard Lamp, a square-shaped magnificent building (46 feet x 46 feet in size) known as Mahfilkhana is located. This auditorium and darbar Hall has a 14 feet gallery running around it and it was built in 1888-1891 A.D. by Nawab Bashir-ud-Doula Sir Asmaan Jah of Hyderabad. It is used for 6 days during the annual Urs Festival for singing of Qawwali.
Towards the East of the Shrine, a beautiful Porch known as Begami Daalaan is located. It was built in 1643 A.D. by Princess Jahan Ara Begam, the favourite daughter of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan and was used by the Begams or ladies of the Moghul harem during their frequent visits to the shrine. Its walls and pillars were coated with colorful gold in 1888 A.D. and later on its ceiling was also decorated with gold.
The Akbari Masjid located inside the Shrine Complex is a spacious square-shaped (140 feet x 140 feet in size) Mosque which was built in 1571 A.D. by the Mughal Emperor Akbar. It was repaired in 1901 A.D. by Nawab Ghafoor Ali of Danapur. A part of it is now accommodated by the Moiniua Usmania Darul-Uloom, an Arabic and Persain School for religious education which is run by the management of the Dargah.
The Ajmer Sharif Dargah also houses other tombs – of Princess Jahan Ara Begum, the daughter of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, Hafiz Begum, of the daughter of Saint Khwaja Moinuddin, of Khwaja Ziauddin Abu Sayeed, the son of Saint Khwaja Moinuddin and of both Bibi Ummatullah and Bibi Asmat, the wives of Saint Khwaja Moinuddin.
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