Biography
Abu l-Hasan al-Husri was a Persian Sufi and scholar in the 11th century. He significantly contributed to the spreading of Islam in South Asia.
Ali Hujwiri studied Sufism under Abu 'l-Fadl Muhammad, who was a student of Abu 'l-Hasan al-Husri. Abu 'l-Fadl Muhammed bin al-Hasan was well-versed in tafsir and riwayat. Ali Hujwiri traveled far and wide through the Indus River to the Caspian Sea. Among the countries and places which he visited were Adharbayajan, the tomb of Bayazid at Bistam, Damascus, Ramla, and Bayt al-Jinn in Syria. In Khursan alone he is reported to have met 300 Sufis.[5] Al-Hujwiri was associated with the most well-known Sufi orders in the subcontinent, such as the Qadiri, Suharwardi, Naqshbandi, and the Junaidi orders. Hujwiri belonged to the Junaidia school of Sufism, founded by Junaid Baghdadi, a major Sufi saint of Baghdad. Hajwiri is also viewed as an important intercessor for many Sufis. Moinuddin Chishti Ajmeri, a chief saint of the Chishti order, stated that an aspiring murid (disciple) one who does not (yet) have a murshid (spiritual master), should read Ali Hujwiri's book Kashf al-Mahjub, as that would be (temporarily) enough for his spiritual guidance.[6] He settled for some time in Iraq where he had a short experience with married life.
Al-Hujwiri was a contemporary of al-Qushairi. During his travels, he met with many eminent Sufis, and saw and felt the slow transformation of Sufism from simple asceticism and adoration of God to a highly developed theosophical cult considerably influenced by pantheistic ideas. He is the link between mysticism as it developed in Persia and Khurasan, and the form it took in the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent.[7]
Al-Hujwiri came to Lahore under orders from his Pir as successor to Shaikh Husain Zanjani at a time when as a result of irruption of the Seljuks on one side and the rising tide of Hindu resistance on the order, the Ghaznavid Empire began to dismember rapidly, and life in Ghazni itself was disrupted. The saint had to leave Ghazni in difficult circumstances, leaving his books behind. According to Faw'id-ul-Fu'ad, Ali Hujwiri reached Lahore at night and in the morning found the people bringing out the bier of Shaikh Husain Zanjani whom he replaced in Lahore.[8]
Although a Sunni Hanafi, Hujwiri's theology was reconciled with the concept of Sufi annihilation. However he strenuously campaigned against the doctrine that human personalities can be merged with God, instead likening annihilation to burning by fire which allows the substance to acquire fire like properties while retaining its own individuality. He also was a great upholder of the Sharia and rebuffed the idea that outward observances of Islam are not important for Sufis. Hujwiri believed that individuals should not claim to have attained "marifat" or gnosis because it meant that one was prideful, and that true understanding of God should be a silent understanding.
Ali-Hujwiri is said to have died on the twentieth of the month of Rabi-ul-Awwal 465 H.E, but the date, the month and year are all conjectural. Most early writers agree on 455 H.E. as the year of his death, on the basis of the various chronograms.[9]
