Naqshbandi

Naqshbandi (Naqshbandiyya) is one of the major Sufi orders (tariqa) of Islam. Formed in 1380, the order is considered by some to be a "sober" order known for its silent dhikr (remembrance of God) rather than the vocalized forms of dhikr common in other orders.

The Naqshbandi order is also notable as it is the only Sufi order to trace its spiritual lineage (silsilah) to Muhammad through Abu Bakr, the first caliph. In contrast, most other turuq trace their lineage Ali ibn Abu Talib, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law and fourth caliph.

The word Naqshbandi نقشبندی is Persian, taken from the name of the founder of the order, Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari. Some have said that the translation means "related to the image-maker," some also consider it to mean "Pattern Maker" rather than "image maker," and interpret "Naqshbandi" to mean "Reformer of Patterns", and others consider it to mean "Way of the Chain" or "Golden Chain."

Common Naqshbandi chain of transmission

Muhammad [Peace Be Upon Him]
Abu Bakr Siddiq
Salman the Persian
Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr
Ja'far al-Sadiq
Bayazid Bastami
Abul-Hassan Kharaqani
Bu Ali al-Farmadi
Yusuf Hamdani
Abul Abbas al-Khadr
Abdul Khaliq Gajadwani
Arif al-Reogri
Mahmood al-Injir al-Faghnawi
Ali- Ar-Ramitani
Muhammad Baba as-Samasi
Sayyid Amir Kulal
Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari - Namesake of Naqshbandi order

From here, the order branches into several sub-orders. One of the most important and widespread is the Naqshbandi-Mujaddadi branch founded by Ahmad Sirhindi. The chain between Bahauddin Naqshbandi and Ahmad Sirhindi continues below:

Alauddin al-Bukhari al-Attar
Yaqub al-Charkhi
Ubaydullah al-Ahrar
Muhammad Az-Zahid Wali
Mohammad Darwish
Khawaja al-Akmangi
Muhammad al-Baqi Billah
Ahmad Sirhindi Mujaddid Alf-thani

Sub-orders

There is no single authority for the Naqshbandi order today. Rather, there are numerous sub-orders which operate in autonomy. Among them are the Owaisiah, Haqqani, Hijazi, Mujarradiya and Tauheedia branches. Hazrat Shah Waliullah Dehlawi Rehmat Ullah Aley has stated in his book "Al Intibah f Salasil e Awliya Allah" that the most Effective of all is the Naqshbandia Owaisiah.

Naqshbandia Owaisiah branch

Naqshbandi Order has another famous branch called Naqshbandia Owaisiah Order. The method of spiritual instruction is quite close to Mujaddidya branch. However, there are two main differences. First Naqshbandia Owaisiah order uses the "Pas Infas" method of zikr. Secondly, the method of spiritual instruction is "Owaisee", which means that the Shaikh can impart spiritual instruction regardless of physical distance and even difference of time period. Seekers of Naqshbandia Owaisiah can obtain spiritual blessing from their Shaikh regardless of their location in the world. Owaisiah connection is also useful in obtaining spiritual blessings from Sufis of the Past. Naqshbandia Owaisiah Order is based in Pakistan and its modern founder was Shaikh Allah Yar Khan (R.A). Current shaikh is Hazrat Maulana Akram Awan. Headquarters for this branch is Darul-irfan Minara, Chakwal, pakistan.As far as Baig Sahab is concerned, he was expelled from silsila because of his mutiny. There are round 300,000 followers under Mualana Akram awan, whereas Baig Sahab is non existant.

Naqshbandi Golden Chain

The Golden ChainNaqshbandi Golden Chain is a lineage of Khalidiyya-Naqshbandiyya that passes from Iraq under Shaykh Khalid al-Baghdadi to Daghestan, where it remained through seven generations of Sufi masters, to finally return to the Middle East in Damascus with the emigration of Shaykh Sharafuddin ad-Daghestani and his disciple Shaykh Abdullah al-Fa'iz ad-Daghestani, and then to Cyprus under Shaykh as-Sayyid Muhammad Nazim Adil Haqqani al Qubrusi. In Western nations and the Far East the order is under the guidance of Shaykh Nazim's deputy and son-in-law Shaykh as-Sayyid Muhammad Hisham Kabbani and his brother Shaykh as-Sayyid Muhammad Adnan Kabbani.

Tauheedia Naqshbandia branch

In 1955 Hazarat Kawajah Abdul Hakeem Ansari (rh) along with his only caliph Hazarat Abdul Sattar Khan (accompanied by Kawajah Sattar's wife and daughter) founded a new branch of the Naqshbandia Mujadidiah Order (chain mentioned below). He named it 'Tauheediah', with a focus on unity (Tauheed), truthfulness and love and making it more practical for modern Westernized society aiming towards unification of ummah... and development of humanity. It has a base in Lahore, and disciples throughout the world.