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Shaharpara

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Shaharpara (Bengali: শাহারপাড়া), a village in the northeastern part of Sunamganj district, Bangladesh, was founded in 1315 CE by Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah and his disciples. It is approximately one hour drive away from city of Sylhet. The village is at the heart of Sylhet Division and nestles beside the river Ratna.[1]

Origin of Shaharpara

Shaharpara is a village that nestles on the bank of river Ratna in Syedpur-Shaharpara Union Parishad, Jagannathpur upazila, Sunamganj district, Sylhet Division of Bangladesh. In 1315 CE, Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah established a settlement on a group of islands in Ratnang Sea. Nowadays, it lies on the bank of river Ratna (river Ratna is a remnant of erstwhile Ratnang Sea). The settlement of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah became an epicentre for spiritual occurrence, academic and esoteric learning. Gradually, it transformed into a mega village enticing a number of adjoining islets when they transmuted into hamlets: Kamalshahi, Tilak, Mirpur, Muftirchawk, Nurainpur, Lalarchar, Kurikiyar and Noagaon. From ancient to medieval periods, Jagannathpur upazila and all of its bordering upazilas were submerged in a vast sea by the name of Ratnag.[2]

Kamalshahi

Kamalshahi (Bengali: কামালশাহী), aka Kamalshah, was founded by Shah Muazzamuddin Qureshi and it was named in honour of his father, Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah. Kamalshahi was the capital of Muazzamabad and centre of academic and esoteric learning. At present, Kamalshahi has lost its past grandeur, but mausoleums of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafa, his wife and children are sites of archaeological interest.[3]

Tilak

Tilak (Bengali: তিলক্) was a settlement established by kith and kin of ‘Moi’ or ‘Mai’, who was a female disciple of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah. Family and friends of Moi came to Shaharpara from Moi’erchar or Moiyarchar in southwest of Sylhet and they established a settlement on an islet of Shaharpara archipelago, which later came to be known as 'Tilak', as Moi’s family belong to a Brahmanic denomination that required them wearing a mark on their forehead called, tilak, and the settlement later derived its name from that insignia on their forehead. At present, Tilak is considered as a hamlet of Greater Shaharpara.[4]

Muftirchawk

Muftirchawk (Bengali: মুফতিরচক) was an estate of Mufti Da’eem Uddin Qureshi of Mullah Barhi and it was named after his appellation of mufti. Mufti Da’eem Uddin Qureshi returned to Shaharpara on vacations and married his paternal cousin. Descendants of Mufti Da’eem Uddin Qureshi have settled in Dargah Mahalla, Sylhet. Mufti Da’eem Uddin Qureshi’s eldest son, Maulana Zia Uddin Qureshi, was a philanthropist, who founded the very first school in Sylhet.[5]

Nurainpur

Nurainpur (Bengali: নুরাইনপুর) is a hamlet within the periphery of Shaharpara; it was established by Shah Nurain Uddin Qureshi and thus named after him. Shah Nurain Uddin Qureshi was a descendant of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah; he was a social activist, who dedicated most of his life for welfare of people and societal improvement.[6]

Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah

Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafa (aka Hazrat Shah Kamal) was born in Makka, Hijaz province of Arabian Peninsula. He travelled to Bangladesh to meet his father, Khwaja Burhanuddin Quhafan, who came to Bangladesh a decade earlier with the most esteemed sufi of Bangladesh, Hazrat Shah Jalal Yamani in 1303 and then Khwaja Burhanuddin Quhafan travelled to Chittagong region leading an expedition of twelve sufi dervish. Hazrat Shah Kamal came to Bangladesh with his newly-wed Meccan wife, who begot three sons: Shah Jalaluddin Qureshi, Shah Muazzamuddin Qureshi and Shah Jamaluddin Qureshi. Mazar of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah is located at Kamalshahi, Shaharpara.[7] [8]

Ancestry

Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah was a descendant of Hazrat Abdur Rahman ibn Abi Bakr, who was the eldest son of Hazrat Abu Bakr, the First Caliph of Islam. He was a Quréish; belonged to Banu Tahim, which was a distinguished clan of the tribes of Hazrat Ishmael and the Quréish. Hazrat Shah Kamal Quhafah came to Bangladesh with his newlywed wife to meet his father, Hazrat Khwaja Burhanuddin Quhafan, who had already travelled to Chittagong leading an expedition of twelve Sufi dervish. Hazrat Khwaja Burhanuddin Quhafan is known in Chittagong as Shah Kat’tal, Qat’tal Shah and Gazi Kadal Khan. He has two mazar, one at Katalganj, Chittagong and another at Faringajuri or Faringi Bazaar.[9] [10]

Descendants

Descendants of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah are settled in Shaharpara, Patli Aurangabad and Dargah Mahallah in Sylhet and they have formed very distinguished families, which are known as Kamalis of Shaharpara, Qureshis of Patli and Muftis of Sylhet. Kamali, Qureshi, Mufti, Khwaja, Siddiqui and Shah are the surnames invariably used by the descendants of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah. Descendants of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah have mainly extended to a number of families: Mullah Family, Shahjee Family, Baglar Family in Shaharpara, Qureshi Family in Patli and Mufti Family in Sylhet Dargah Mahallah. Maulana Shah Shamsuddin Qureshi, a descendant of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah, established the Qureshi Family in Patli and Maulana Shah Zia Uddin Qureshi, another descendant of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah, established the Mufti Family in Dargah Mohallah, Sylhet.[11]

Consanguinity

People of Shaharpara are related to each other; this is because most of them have descended from three sons of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah and their surnames are Shah, Khwaja, Kamali or Kamaly, Qureshi, Mufti and Siddiqui after their ancestor Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah, who settled on the bank of river Ratna and founded a village that was named "Shaharpara" (derived from his first name). Family ties and relations with other clans are strikingly similar to that of the Arab tribes. Outside of Shaharpara, descendants of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah are settled in the village Patli Aurangabad and Muftibari in Dargah Mahallah in Sylhet. Today the Kamali population stands at approximately 5000 and most of them have immigrated to western countries for a better life, but they maintain a website that aims to bring the clan members together. [1]

History

In 1303, Hazrat Shah Jalal Yamani vanquished Sylhet with aid of his 360 disciples and the Mughal military might. After about a decade of Muslim governance of Sylhet, an expedition of 12 Sufi disciples was sent to Sunamganj under the leadership of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah, commonly known as Shah Kamal, son of Hazrat Khwaja Burhanuddin Quḥāfah, who was a commander and companion of Hazrat Shah Jalal. The expedition suffered due a turbulent rainfall of monsoon season and thus Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah ended up near a village called Tilak in Jagannathpur upazillah in Sunamganj District with his disciples. It is assumed that the expedition was less adventurous because Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah was accompanied by his Arab wife, who was not accustomed to the local weather. Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah with his 12 disciples settled on the bank of river Ratna. These twelve Sufi disciples of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah are as follows:

1. Pir Kallu Shah, 2. Shah Chand, 3. Dawar Bakhsh Khatib, 4. Dilwar Bakhsh Khatib, 5. Shaikh Shamsuddin Bihari, 6. Shah Faizullah, 7. Shah Jalaluddin, 8. Syed Tajuddin, 9. Syed Bahauddin, 10. Syed Ruknuddin, 11. Syed Shamsuddin and 12. Shah Manik.

After Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah founded a settlement on the bank of river Ratna, which is nowadays known as Shaharpara, though initially it was Shahpara, he established a mosque and khanqah in Shaharpara proper. Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah came to Sylhet with his wife from Mecca in Saudi Arabia and she begot three sons and a daughter. Three sons of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah were Shah Jalaluddin Qureshi, Shah Muazamuddin Qureshi and Shah Jamaluddin Qureshi. State of Muazzamabad (Iqlim-i-Muazzamabad) was established by Shah Muazzamuddin Qureshi. Silhat was conquered in 1384, and its north-western thana contained the mint town of Muazzamabad.[12] Around 1620 CE, Mughal annexed Muazzamabad and Sylhet; the seat of administration was transferred from Shaharpara and Sylhet to Sonargaon. Sonargaon comprised two iqlims, which is evidenced in inscriptions of Bengal: one stretching towards east and north-east, called iqlim e Muazzamabad, and the other stretching towards west and south-west keeping Dhaka in the middle, called iqlim e Mubarakabad.[13]

Twelve Saints

Twelve Sufi disciples of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah were conferred with a mission to propagate Islam in the vicinity of Shaharpara and, on completion of their mission, they were instructed to marry local women and raise their own family.

Pir Kallu Shah

In accordance with the instruction from Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah, Pir Kallu Shah settled within a walking distance of Shaharpara and the village was named Pirergaon. He was too old to marry so at one point he went to his native Patna, Bihar, India and died there. His tomb is in Azimabad, Patna. His son, Shah Chand, established a village on the bank of the river Bharang (a tributary of the river Ratna) and the village later named as Chand Bharang on the periphery of Bishwanath upazillah.[14]

Dawar Bakhsh Khatib

Dawar Bakhsh Khatib and Dilwar Bakhsh Khatib were brothers and learned Islamic scholars, who relentlessly campaigned in villages northeast of Shaharpara and enticed huge followers. Finally, both the brothers married and settled in a village that was named after the elder brother, Dawar Bakhsh Khatib, as Dawarshahi, Dawarshai and presently Dawarai, and the Khan Family of Dawarai or Dawarshahi are descendants of Dawar Bakhsh Khatib and Dilwar Bakhsh Khatib.

Shaikh Shamsuddin

Shaikh Shamsuddin was also known as Shaikh Shamsuddin Bihari because he met and sworn oath of allegiance to Shah Kamal Quḥāfah in the city of Patna and joined his entourage in Bihar. It is also assumed that he was a native of Bihar and to distinguish him from Syed Shamsuddin, Bihari was post-fixed to his name. Shaikh Shamsuddin was well-read and committed to his faith. He was very much a Sufi mendicant and engaged in dawa by himself without much thinking of his personal safety. One day a gang of Hindu thugs took advantage of his vulnerability: he was harassed and incarcerated him in the village of Aatghar. Although, Shaikh Shamsuddin was alone and defenceless, his conviction in faith saved him from this cowardice attack on him. Miraculously, a sister of one of the attackers was taken by a surprised paroxysm; this caused a sudden confusion amongst assailants, who was divided into two camps. One group believed that wrath of God fell on them and they should seek forgiveness from Shaikh Shamsuddin and the other group wanted to test him by asking him to cure their sister. The latter won and Shaikh Shamsuddin was given the task to heal the young lady. It is said that Shaikh Shamsuddin got a bowl of water in front of him, did a prayer and splash the water on the face of the shuddered lady and she slowly recovered from the seizure. On her recovery, she demanded to marry her saviour and her demand was fulfilled. Eventually, the attackers of Shaikh Shamsuddin embraced Islam and Shaikh Shamsuddin settled in Aatghar near Khan-bari Bazaar on the periphery of Jagannathpur and Bishwanath upazilas. Four of the eight Khan Families of Aatghar are descendants of Shaikh Shamsuddin and the remaining four descendants of his in-law.

Shah Faiz Ullah

Shah Faiz Ullah was also a learned and pious awliya (saint), who settled in a village near Shahrpara and it later named Faizi (commonly known as Fesi). He was actively involved in spreading the message of Islam and, apart from this, very little is known about him.

Shah Jalaluddin

Shah Jalaluddin was another companion of Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah and he was active in northeast of Shaharpara. Shah Jalaluddin established an outer-watch post or armoury Quchi far afield beyond the borders of Shaharpara, which is nowadays on the periphery of Jagannathpur and Balaganj upazilla. Gradually a settlement was formed around the Quchi and later it was named Quchipur (commonly known as Kuskipur). Shah Jalaluddin’s tomb is there and his descendants are settled in Quchipur.

Syed Taj-ud-Din

Syed Taj-ud-Din, Syed Bahauddin, Syed Ruknuddin and Syed Shamsuddin were brothers, sons of Syed Ala-uddin and nephews of Shah Kamal Quḥāfah. Their father came to Sylhet with Hazrat Shah Jalal, but they came with Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah from Baghdad in Iraq. Despite their relationship with Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah, they were too instructed to engage themselves to promulgate Islam and in so doing, they spread in different parts of Sylhet. Syed Tajuddin’s tomb is in Aurangapur (commonly known as Orompur in Balaganj and his descendants are found in Aurangapur and many different parts of Sylhet Division, including Shaharpara and Syedpur.

Syed Baha-ud-Din

Syed Baha-ud-Din’s tomb is in the village of Bhadeshwar in Gulapganj upazillah of Sylhet District. It is believed that the name Bhadeshwar is corrupt of Bahadinshahr, which derived from Syed Baha-uddin and historians are silent on his descendants.

Syed Rukn-ud-Din

Syed Rukn-ud-Din’s tomb is in the village of Kadamhati in Maulvi Bazar District of Sylhet Division and his descendants are settled there. Syed Mujtaba Ali, a renowned novelist, was a descendant of Syed Ruknuddin.

Syed Shams-ud-Din

Syed Shams-ud-Din was the youngest of all brothers; some historian indicates that he was in his teen when he came to Sylhet and thus his name was not included when history Shah Jalal and his companions were initially penned. Nevertheless, Shah Kamal Quḥāfah loved his youngest nephew and thus Syed Shamsuddin was not sent away like others. Syed Shamsuddin lived with his uncle, Shah Kamal Quḥāfah, in Shaharpara util Syed Shamsuddin reached his maturity. His marriage was arranged with a daughter of Shah Dawood Qureshi of Dawoodpur in Renga, Sylhet and Syed Shamsuddin lived in Shaharpara for some years after his marriage and then sojourned in Dawoodpur with his in-law’s family. Eventually, Syed Shamsuddin returned to Shaharpara and he was instructed to establish his own settle with his family in a village west of Shaharpara, which later was named after his surname: Syedpur, which is in Jagannathpur upazillah, Sunamgaj District of Sylhet Division.

Shah Manik

Shah Manik was very devoted to Hazrat Shah Kamal Quḥāfah; he expressed his wish to live in Shaharpara with his spiritual mentor and he stayed in Shaharpara for many years. Finally, Shah Manik settled in a place near Shaharpara and it is nowadays called Manik Hara or Mani Hira. Historians are silent on his descendants.[15][16]

Education

Shaharpara has a number of primary schools, one seminary by the name of Hazrat Shah Kamal Madrasa and one high school by the name of Shaharpara Shah Kamal High School.

Trade and Commerce

Greater Shaharpara has a number of markets, emporiums and bazaar where people from neighbouring villages and beyond trade. Shaharpara Bazaar is largest amongst other bazaar in the area.

References

  1. ^ Achuytacharan Chowdhury
  2. ^ Achyutacharan Chowdhury, Purbansh, Sylheter Itibritta
  3. ^ Syed Mujtaba Ali, Shreehatte Islam Jyoti
  4. ^ Nur Chowdhury
  5. ^ Syed Mujtaba Ali
  6. ^ Chowdhury, N; Sylheter Kotha
  7. ^ Syed Murtaja Ali
  8. ^ Ghulam Saklayn
  9. ^ Syed Murtaja Ali
  10. ^ Ghulam Saklayn
  11. ^ Dr G Saklayn
  12. ^ Bourdillon J A, Bengal Under the Muhammadans – Brief Notes on its geography and history. By, Indian Civil Service Calcutta, Bengal Secretariat Press 1902: 6.
  13. ^ Stapleton
  14. ^ 5:55, Shreehatté Islam Jyoti, Siddiqui M A.
  15. ^ Syed Mujtaba Ali, Shreehatte Islam Jyoti
  16. ^ Dr Ghulam Saklayn, Bangladesh Sufi Sadhak

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