and Najjar is a historic village in Gujar Khan tehsil, situated around seven kilometres east of Gujar Khan town. Jand Najjar comprises small hamlets, locally called dhoke. Some of the notable dhokes in Jand Najjar village include Dhoke Baba Rahim Bakhsh, Dhoke Munshi Ghulam Haider, Dhoke Chaudhry Allah Dad, Dhoke Baba Sahib Din, Dhoke Tehsildar Noor Muhammad, Dhoke Baba Pir Muhammad, Dhoke Peeran, Dhoke Chaudhry Qutbuddin, Dhoke Malkan, Dhoke Baba Gaman, Dhoke Kalleriyan, Dhoke Subedar Abdul Aziz, Dhoke Baba Gorian, Dhoke Chaudhry Muhammad Sadiq LumberdarWali, Dhoke Maherian, Dhoke Thekedar Muhammad Hussain Wali, Dhoke Mughal, Dhoke Sar Andaz, Dhoke Baba Fazl, Dhoke Haji Ashraf, Dhoke PirBakhsh Kohel and DhokeSattar Muhammad.

I have been visiting Jand Gujran, Jand Najjar, Jand Mehlu and some neighbouring villages since 2004 to study the role of shrines in Pothohari culture and society.

Jand Najjar village is known for the Qadiri Naushahi mystics, who preached the Qadiriyya-Naushahiyya order not only in Jand Najjar but also in various other villages in Gujar Khan and throughout Pothohar. The Qadiri Naushahi Sufis from Jand Najjar were connected to three main centres: Naushahra Sharif, Rokhia Sharif and Sanghoi Sharif. These three Qadiriyya-Naushahiyyacentres played a significant role in spreading the teachings of their spiritual mentor, Haji Muhammad NaushahGanj Bakhsh Qadiri (d. 1654). As spiritual hubs, these centres became a powerful force for socio-religious transformation.

The earliest known Sufi adept in Jand Najjar village was Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi, a deputy (khalifa) of Syed Mir Kalan Badshah, whose shrine is located in Gujar Khan’s Rokhia Sharif village. According to Hasan Nawaz Shah, the author of Gujar Khan kaySuhrawardi Mashaikh, Syed Mir Kalan Badshahhad five prominent deputies. They were Mian Muhammad AzeemNaushahi of Bhadana, Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi (d.1759) from Jand Najjar, Mian Muhammad Sahe or Saeed Naushahi from Jairo Ratial village and Shaikh Khair Muhammad Naushahi (d. 1783–84) from Jabba village – all from Gujar Khan tehsil – as well as Mai Nawab Sahib from Kallar Syedan’s Pir Garata Syedan village.

Syed Mir Kalan Badshah Qadiri Naushahi was a deputy of Hafiz Qaimuddin Barqandaz Qadiri Naushahi (d. 1765), who was a deputy of Pir Muhammad Sachiar Qadiri Naushahi (d. 1707). Pir Muhammad Sachiar Qadiri Naushahi, born in Gujar Khan’s Narali village, was a deputy of Haji Muhammad Naushah Ganj Bakhsh (d. 1654), the founder of the Naushahiyya silsila (order).

The shrine of Haji Muhammad Naushah Ganj Bakhsh is located in Mandi Bahauddin’s Ranmal Sharif. I have visited the shrine twice.

After receiving the robe of initiation from Syed Mir Kalan Badshah, Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi began preaching in Jand Najjar village, which, during his time, became a thriving centre of the Qadiriyya-Naushahiyya silsila.

From the bayaz (notebook) of Hafiz Syed Muhammad Ayub Shah Qadiri Qalandari (d. 1792), whose shrine is located in Kuri Jajwal near Jand Najjar, we learn that Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi was the son of Shaikh Muhammad Talib. Shaikh Muhammad Talibwas the son of Mian Sharaf Ali. Mian Sharaf Ali had three sons: Shaikh Abdullah, Mian Shaikh Muhammad Talib and Mian Allah Quli. Both Shaikh Abdullah and Mian Shaikh Muhammad Talib were known for their piety. I have visited the shrines of both.

The shrine of Shaikh Muhammad Talib, the father of Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi, is located in Kuri Haider village. Near Jand Najjar, there are five villages that begin with the prefix ‘Kuri’: Kuri Jajwal, Kuri Karim Bakhsh, Kuri Sarfraz, Kuri Haider and Kuri Hazaro. Each of these villages is home to a shrine. The shrine of Shaikh Abdullah, an uncle of Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi, is located in Kuri Hazaro village;the shrine of Mian Allah Quli, the brother of Shaikh Abdullah and Shaikh Muhammad Talib, is situated in Gujar Khan’s Jhamath village.

The Qadiri Naushahi Sufis of Jand Najjar have played a significant role in shaping the village’s social, political and religious landscape, serving as cultural and spiritual hubs.

Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi passed away in 1759, leaving behind a daughter and a son. His son, Mir Ghulam Mir, was known for his piety. He had a son named Pir Bakhsh. However, some believe that Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi did not have a son and that Mir Ghulam Mir was one of his followers. The graves of Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi, his son, and his grandsons are located in Bara Gaon in Jand Najjar. The grave of Mian Faizullah Qadiri Naushahi is also in the same graveyard.

Ishtiaq Ahmed Naushahi states in Gujar Khan Men Faizan-i-Naushahiyya that Roshnai Bi, the daughter of Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi, was married to FaizullahNaushahi. However, a study of Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi’s genealogy in the bayaz by Hafiz Syed Muhammad Ayub Shah Qadiri Qalandari indicates that his daughter was named Bi Gul Bi, not Roshnai Bi.

Mian Faizullah was an eminent Qadiri Naushahi leader of Jand Najjar. Some writers believe that he was a deputy (khalifa) of Pir Akbar Ali Shah (d. 1888), also known as Chambi Wali Sarkar, whose shrine is located in Jhelum’ districts Sanghoi Sharif. However, according to Sharif-ul-Tarikh, Vol. 3, No. 4, by Syed Sharif Ahmed Sharafat Naushahi, Mian Faizullah was the deputy of Mir Ghulam Mir, who was himself a deputy of Shaikh Munawar. Shaikh Munawar, in turn, was a deputy of Mai Nawab Sahib, a prominent female deputy of Syed Mir Kalan Badshah.

Mai Nawab Sahib (BibiJhandi) had seven prominent khulafa (deputies): Raza Quli, Syed Gulab Shah, Shaikh Munawar, Mian Moizullah, Mian Khuda Bakhsh, Pir Ghulam Rasool and Ram Singh Kuka of Peshawar. However, I believe that Ram Singh Kuka was not her khalifa; rather, he and his wife, Jind Kaur, were her followers. Ram Singh Kuka was also a devoted follower of Balak Singh, the founder of the Kukapanth or Kuka sect in Hazro, Attock. Originally from Ludhiana, his history and the account of the Kuka sect can be found in the Gazetteer of the Rawalpindi District, which was later reproduced in the Gazetteer of the Attock District (1930).

Shaikh Munawar was a resident of Jand Najjar village. The exact date of his death and the location of his burial remain unknown. Nevertheless, his deputies and disciples effectively spread his teachings and ideology throughout Jand Najjar and various villages in the Pothohar region.

Mian Faizullah was originally from Gujar Khan’s Dara Kiyal village. After becoming a deputy of Mir Ghulam Mir, he moved to Jand Najjar, where he eventually passed away. His son, Mian Noor Alam, became a distinguished Qadiri Naushahi mentor of Jand Najjar. He received the robe of initiation from Mian Sultan Ali Naushahi (d. 1932), the son of Pir Akbar Ali Shah Naushahi (d. 1888), also known as Chambi Wali Sarkar. Mian Noor Alam Qadiri Naushahi continued preaching the Qadiriyya- Naushahiyya silsila in Jand Najjar, gaining numerous disciples.

According to Hasan Nawaz Shah, the author of Gujar Khan KaySuhrawardi Mashaikh, one of Mian Noor Alam’s most prominent disciples was Maulana Karamuddin (d. 1975), a resident of Moza Jand in Chakwaltehsil. Mian Noor Alam passed away in 1959 and was buried in Dhoke Chaudhry Sadiq in Jand Najjar, where a tomb has been built over his grave. Alongside his grave, the tomb houses two other graves: that of his wife, Sahib-i-Noor (d. 1957), and his son, Miran Bakhsh (d. 1970), who was a follower of Pir Hadi Hussain Naushahi (d. 1965). Mian Miran Bakhsh’s son, Rehim Dad Naushahi, a disciple of Pir Mehboob Hussain Naushahi (d. 1999), is the current Sajjada Nashin of Darbar Mian Noor Alam Qadiri Naushahi.

Apart from Shaikh Muhammad Naushahi, Shaikh Munawar Naushahi, Mir Ghulam Mir Naushahi, MianFaizullah Naushahi and Mian Noor Alam Naushahi, another eminent Qadiri Naushahi teacher from Jand Najjar was Sain Muhammad Hayat. His shrine is located in Jand Najjar’s Kohl Sharif. He was a deputy of Sakhi Sultan Mast Ji Naushahi (d. 1866), the Sajjada Nashin of the darbar of Pir Muhammad Sachiar at Naushahra Sharif in Gujrat. The family of Sain Ghulam Muhammad maintained a strong spiritual connection to the darbar of Pir Muhammad Sachiar and received initiations from its custodians (Sajjada Nashins).

The enclosure of Sain Muhammad Hayat Naushahi is located by the roadside in Kohl Sharif village. I revisited this shrine in November 2024 and met Sain Safdar Hussain, a member of Sain Muhammad Hayat’s family, whom I interviewed about his family’s spiritual connection to the darbar of Pir Muhammad SachiarNaushahi.

Inside the enclosure, there are five graves. The first belongs to Sain Muhammad Hayat Qadiri Naushahi, son of Ghulam Haider. The second is that of Sain Allah Ditta, son of Sain Muhammad Hayat Qadiri Naushahi. The third is Sain PehlwanQadiri Naushahi, son of Sain Allah Ditta Qadiri Naushahi. The fourth grave is of Sain Fazal Hussain Qadiri Naushahi, son of Sain Pehlwan Qadiri Naushahi; the fifth belongs to Sain Akbar Hussain, son of Sain Pehlwan Qadiri Naushahi.

The Qadiri Naushahi mystics of Jand Najjar have played a significant role in shaping the village’s social, political and religious landscape, serving as cultural and spiritual hubs. During the annual melas (festivals) their shrines attract numerous visitors from Pothohar and beyond.

The writer is an anthropologist at the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, Islamabad. He has authored 17 books on Pakistan’s cultural heritage and anthropology. He tweets @kalhorozulfiqar. He may be contacted at zulfi04@hotmail.com