Sajjada Nashin

"Throne" of the Sajjada Nashin of Sufi poet Sachal Sarmast, in Sindh, Pakistan

The Sajjāda Nashīn (Persian: سجاده نشین; lit. "[one who] sits [at a] prayer mat")[1] or Gaddi Nashin is a term of Persian origin, used chiefly within the Sufi traditions of South Asia referring to the successor or hereditary administrator of a Sufi master who typically functions as a custodian or trustee at his shrine.[2]

In some cases, the Sajjada Nashin is the descendant of a Sufi or Pir or a descendant of one of their disciples. Sajjada means 'prayer mat' (from the Arabic sajdah or 'prostration') while nashin is the word used for the person seated thereon.[3] A Sajjada particularly tends to the shrine which is made over the Sufi's tomb or grave, known as a Dargah or Mazar. A trustee is a key person who holds and leads the traditional Sufi rituals in the Dargah's daily activities and particularly during death anniversaries called Urs. As a hereditary position the role of Sajjada nashin passes onto a child following the death of the holder.[4]

Pakistani politician Shah Mehmood Qureshi is the Sajjada Nashin of the shrine of Sufi saint Hazrat Baha-ud-din Zakariya Multani.

Syed Ghulam Nizamudin Jami is the current Sajjada Nashin of Golra Sharif.

Syed Sarwar Chishti is the Sajjada Nashin of Dargah Ajmer Sharif.

  1. ^ Schimmel, Annemarie (1980). Islam in the Indian Subcontinent. Leiden: Brill. p. 273.
  2. ^ "Who is Sajjadanashin?". Sufi Cultural Organization. n.d. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  3. ^ Ali, Syed Ameer (1885). The Law Relating to Gifts, Trusts, and Testamentary Dispositions Among the Mahommedans:According to the Hanafi, Maliki, Shâfeï, and Shiah Schools. London: Thacker, Spink and Company. p. 246.
  4. ^ "Waqar Hussain becomes 12th Sajjada Nashin of Shah Bhitai shrine". Dawn. 31 December 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2022.