Nizamuddin Auliya Biography

Nizamuddin Auliya was the fourth Spiritual Successor (Khalifa) of Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmer. The Chishti order he belonged to believed in moving close to God through renunciation of the world and service to humanity, and Auliya, like his predecessors stressed on love as a means of realizing God. He was spiritually inclined from a young age. Having lost his father when he was a small child, he was raised by his mother who was a very pious woman. She ensured that her son learned to recite the holy Quran and studied Ahadith (traditions of the Prophet Mohammed). He grew up to be an intelligent and sharp-witted boy who excelled not only in religious studies, but also in mathematics and astronomy. When he was 20 he became a disciple of the Sufi saint Fariduddin Ganjshakar, commonly known as Baba Farid. He grew much attached to Baba Farid and received spiritual training along with lessons in "Awarif-ul-Ma'Arif" (a unique publication of Hazrat Khwaja Shihabuddin Suhrawardi on Sufism), and "Tamheed Abu Shakoor Salmi." Nizamuddin Auliya went on to succeed Baba Farid and became the founder of the Chisti Nizami order. Regarded an unparalleled Sufi of his time amongst all the existing Sufi orders, he was renowned for his simplicity and service to humanity.