Sayed Sharaf-Ud-Din Abdul Rehman popularly known as Bulbul Shah was the first to introduce the Suharwardi order into Kashmir. This order became widely popular during the time of Sultan-Un-Arifeen Sheikh Hamza Mukhdoom RA. Fortunately, Peer Mohammad Yaseen Sahib- one of the dearest vicegerents of Mirk Shah Kashani RA got connected to this spiritual lineage (Suharwardiya) through his family. Almighty Allah blessed his paternal grandfather Mohammad Anwar Suharwardiya with abundant knowledge. Almost all the grand scholars of Islam including his contemporaries uphold high opinions about his personal life and endorsed his scholastic abilities and intellectual pursuits.
Besides being a well-known Islamic scholar, Almighty Allah endowed him with distinctive spiritual stature. He rendered his duties as a family tutor of the Mughal family in Delhi. Sheikh Hamza Mukhdoom directed the then Mughal Empire in a dream to relieve his spiritual son- Anwar Sahab from his court so that he could shower the blessing of his knowledge on his native land- Kashmir. The Mughal empire gave due respect to his call and deputed him back to Kashmir with high protocol and allotted him the Jageer at Chaki-Dara. (Most probably he was one amongst the last Mughal Emperors ). While he was returning to his native land- Kashmir. On one particular night at Pathankot Punjab, he saw an inspiring dream that changed his entire life. He saw Hazrat Khwaja Khizar and Hazrat Ilyas (AW). They both showered his spiritual blessings and guided him in the future course of action in the field of spirituality. This spiritual elevation influenced him to a great extent and he decided to leave his all materialist assets and immersed himself fully in the world of spirituality. He covered that long distance with-Taymuqaam and reached Srinagar. His ancestral home was at Nowhata Srinagar near Jamia Masjid. He had a very close association with the Managing Committee of Jamia Masjid. He stayed there for a while Srinagar. During this spiritual journey, he was receiving spiritual guidance from Hazrat Khawaja Khazir and Hazrat Elyas (AW) continuously. It was in the direction of those two personalities that he moved to Shopian. He went for long seventeen years of meditation in complete isolation in an ordinary hut neat Rambi Ara (A Tributary of the River Jhelum in District Shopian).
During that period, Ghulam Hassan Suharwardi his younger son- the father of Peer Mohammad Yaseen served his father day and night with proper care. On one occasion, one of his disciples from Naarwa-Shopian expressed his regret regarding the education of Ghulam Hassan. He remarked, “ Hazrat you gave proper time and attention to your elder son Ghulam Mohammad, gave them proper education but you do not give any kind of education to your younger son-Ghulam Hassan” That very episode left a deep impression on his psyche and in the next day, he salivated him on his chest with three fingers. In this way, he transmitted as many as twenty-one subjects of knowledge concerning different fields. Before leaving this transit world, Anwar Sahab advised his family members including his disciples not to tie Ghulam Hassan with a maternal Knot till he attained the age of forty-one. He remarked, “ He is a unique flower, his fragrance will spread far and wide” But because of social pressure and other family reasons, he was married before that pre-fixed time set by his father. Consequently, when his marital life could sustain only for three months because of the premature death of Ghulam Hassan Suharwardi. So, Peer Mohammad Yaseen was born as an orphaned child. His birthplace is Laater Aglar Pulwama because the family had already migrated to Pulwama and was residing near the Shrine of Syed Ahmed Qurashi RA. After the death of his father, he was brought up under the care of his paternal and maternal uncles, and the disciples of his forefathers.
Wherever he visited, everyone poured him a lot of respect and love. Ali Sahab Pazan-Chadoora Budgam provided him with the initial guidance. After that, Jinab Ghulam Rasool Suharwardi -his cousin’s brother who happened to be the Uncle of his spouse gave him due care and guided him. Jinab Ghulam Rasool Suharwardi had a very good following in the entire Harwan area. His occasional visits to this area became the main reason that Peer Yaseen Sahab came under the influence of Syed Mirak Shah Kashani RA.
Under his guidance, he was acquainted with all the spiritual lineages including the prominent spiritual lineages like Naqshbandiya Kubriya Qadririya, and Chistiya. He confirmed him the spiritual cloak- Khilat and bestowed him the Khati-Irshad. It is said that Syed Mirak Shah Kashani RA wished that his dearest Khalifa Peer Mohammad Yaseen would occupy the seat of Khanqha-Kahsyaniya -Shalmar after his physical death. But, his deep attachment with the people of the Elaqa Phag area didn’t allow him to accept that offer. During his stay, he used to attend Darbari-Kashani every Thursday with a bouquet. He preferred to stay here and served this entire area till his last breath. First, he made his stay at Muftibagh Harwan at the residence of Mohammad Ramzan Bhat and Abdul Gani Bhat. This is the same place where Faqeer Mohammad Hamdani RA-the mystical son of Shahi Hamdan RA had already predicted his arrival in the area.
Before leaving the place, Hazrat left a wooden sword and a small wooden log. He directed them that the person with the particular face mark and getup would arrive here. Once he would arrive, give all those physical assets to him. This unique episode indicates that his spiritual position had been already set up in the world of spirituality. As Peer Yaseen made his entry into the hamlet, they uphold the promise and gave all those assets to him. During his entire life, he guided all his disciples as per their capacity and prescribed the right path for spiritual attainments. He guided and impressed upon the people to follow the path of Shariah. He was humble with all people whether they were present or absent, whether they were standing or sitting, and whether they were walking in the street or sitting in a gathering, his beautiful manners were the manifestation of his intense humbleness. He was moderate in his appearance and dress. He used to wear a particular type of cape Roomi- Cap. He also showed interest in writing Naath Sharief. His collection of Naath Kalam is titled as “Jami Wahadat” During my childhood, I knew how he was inviting all the students enrolled in different Darasgha's of neighboring villages, including ours, and arranged the annual gathering at Eid-Gha Darbagh for Qirat and Naath competition. To develop the interest among the Darsgah-going students in the teaching of the Quran, he distributed prizes to the students who showed excellent performance in the said competition. Our village people owned a lot of respect for him. They used to invite him on special occasions. He played a dynamic role in the construction of Eid-Gha at Muftibagh.
He not only used his influence but also motivated the people residing in the surrounding area for this noble cause. , Inspired by his humble nature, he established the trust by the name & Zahoor-Ul- Islam Trust”. The sole intention of establishing this trust was to provide timely help to needy people. Presently his son, namely Peer Bilal Ahmad is looking after the affairs of this trust. He also played a key role in the construction of the local Shrines and their preservation. This noble soul left this transit world on the 21 st of December 2011 ( 25th Muharram). His funeral procession was attended by thousands of people and the funeral prayer (Nimazi Jinaza) was headed by Moulana Mohi-Ud-Din Naqeeb Sahab. His last resting place is just adjacent to the Shrine of Syed Musa Bagdadi RA at Mufti-Bagh Harwan Srinagar. A tree is known by its fruit and man by its deeds, Peer Mohammad Yaseen Suharwardi popularly Known as Yaseen Soub, Papa Jan will be remembered for his noble deeds. Special thanks to M. Shafi Ganaie, Peer Mohammad Ishaq, and Mohatarama Jameela Sahiba for their support and cooperation.
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