TheRamadanOfShaykhAl-hadithMuhammadZakariyyaKandhelviAndOurEldersByShaykhDrMuhammadIsmailMemonMadani

the ramadan of shaikh muĤ ammud zakariyyĀĤadīth that two of my special guests are coming. Make sure youtake care of them”. [I don’t remember the exact words but this wasthe gist of what the Blessed Prophet s said].Ĥađrat interpreted this to mean that the Blessed Prophet s wasreferring to Dr. Ismā‘īl and Sufi Iqbāl. Our elders were head overheels over the smallest gesture from the Blessed Prophet s. Ĥađratwas profoundly affected by this instruction; he treated us with theutmost respect and took special care of us in every way, spiritually,financially, externally and internally. His special blessings andaffections for us are not something I can put into words. Throughoutthe month, he granted us his time and special attention and on thenight of Eid during tahajjud time, he granted us successorship. Allpraise is due to Allah u and gratitude is owed to Allah u alone.That night I was sitting in Ĥađrat’s presence and a few otherswere also nearby. Bismil Śāĥib, a well-known chanter [na‘t khāń]of na‘at (hymns in praise of the Blessed Prophet s) came in. Heasked Ĥađrat if he could recite a na‘at but Ĥađrat declined saying,“This is how innovations [bid‘a] are born. The purpose of thesegatherings [where na‘at were chanted and dhikr was held] wasgood in the beginning. When a shaikh passed away, his successorsand devotees would come together and say, ‘when shaikh was alivewe gathered here [at the shaikh’s khanqā], but how will we cometogether now?’ They finally agreed to meet once a year, but werestill undecided as to when and where. They decided the best placeto hold their annual gathering would be by the shaikh’s grave, andthe best time, the day the shaikh passed away since no one wouldever forget that date. This was the beginning of these festivals[urs] 24 , but look at them now?”A similar incident took place in Madina. The program was thesame in Madina as in India, with the common gathering being heldafter ‘Aśr. I don’t know the exact year, but I do remember that24 Festivals held around the graves of elders. Shaikh Zakariyyā explains thatthe beginning of these festivals were simple gatherings where the students of ashaikh gathered by his grave. But as time passed these gatherings became festivalsthat bred innovations and pagan customs [shirk].30