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Sufi Saint Shahenshah Baba Nebhraj

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Sufi Saint Shahenshah Baba Nebhraj

Baba Sahib’s Samadhi exists in Outer Delhi. A large number of Sindhi Gurmandirs do also have a statue of Baba Nebhraj.

Milind Teckchandani

Sindh has been the land the “Sufis” – a place known for religious tolerance and communal harmony. The land has been blessed with saints of both Hindu as well as Muslim faiths. One such saint was Baba Nebhraj who is popularly referred to as “Shahenshah” by his followers. I first came to know about Baba Nebhraj few years ago as my maternal uncle was a follower of his and regularly used to visit “Majnu Ka Tila” in Outer Delhi where the sacred Samadhi of Baba Sahib stands. The uncle has since expired but there is still a Baba Sahib’s small statue in the family car. A large number of Sindhi Gurmandirs do also have a statue of Baba Nebhraj along with other Sufi saints thereby reiterating Baba Sahib’s popularity in the “Samaj”.

Baba Sahib was born in the town of Rohri (Upper Sindh) in 1875 in Bhatia family. The town of Rohri has been blessed by the birth of countless Sufi saints and sages. As Dada Bhaneja writes in his book (Troubled Pilgrimage: Passage to Pakistan) about Rohri quoting (Late) Professor Motilal Butani “Oh Rohri! Even your stones must be worshipped because in the past at one time all the saints must have passed over them, graced by the touch of their feet”.  The town is also known for “Sat Ben” (Seven Sisters), a memorial erected in the memory of seven sisters, who sacrificed their lives to preserve their chastity. Baba Sahib left this world in 1949.

“Oh Rohri! Even your stones must be worshipped because in the past at one time all the saints must have passed over them, graced by the touch of their feet”. 

It is believed that Baba Sahib had “special” powers – he knew about all his previous births, could foretell events – one day , long before partition, he started crying as he could foresee the lines of demarcation being drawn, in another instance, he foretold about Quetta Earthquake and Bhagat Kanwarram’s assassination. He lived like a typical “Sufi” – largely detached from the materialistic world; however always willing to help others. Sufidar Trust website states:-

“Shahenshah Baba Nebhraj lived truly like a typical Sufi saint of Sind. Poor in the wealth of the world, he was rich in spiritual treasure. He moved about clad in a single long, flowing robe, carefree and fearless, absorbed in the thoughts of the King of kings, with a far-away gaze in his eyes. He had a stately bearing and moved nonchalantly, caring the least for things temporal. Rich and royal is the heritage of each human being but not many become aware of it. They live and move as beggars, knocking from door to door, begging from street to street and crying from one corner to another. Shahenshah Baba Nebhraj had come to this world to wake men from their slumber of the senses, to extricate them out of their dens and dungeons of ignorance and ambition, selfishness and restlessness and to lead them to the Abode of God, where dwells bliss untold.”

The interested reader may want to read the book: “Shahenshah Baba Nebhraj Sahib” by Shri Tulsidas Tahiliani available free of cost on the link: http://www.sufidar.org/biography

Sufidar Trust in Chennai, was established by (Late) Dada Ratanchand, a disciple of Baba Nebhraj. Over years, Sufi Dar has also become a center of service for the impoverished, the needy and the distressed.  Please see the below link to a dated newspaper article which shows how the followers of Baba Nebhraj / Dada Ratanchand are trying to keep the “core human values” alive. I wish Sufidar Trust all the best in their endeavors.

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Courtesy: Sindhi Chokro Blogs (Published on March 29, 2019)