Sufism and Islamic Remnants in China چین میں صوفی اور اسلامی باقیات

By Syed Najmi Zafar

(Translated from Urdu by Sohail Arshad)

China has been a centre of curiosity and attraction for us since day one. The Chinese doll finds references in folk tales and our elderly women generally liken the gentilesse of pretty young girls to that of a Chinese doll. Our dear Prophet (PBUH) said, “Acquire knowledge even if you have to go to China.” This tradition of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) has given China a unique place. It was because of these motivations that several sufis of different mystic schools carried the message of the divine in their perch and cassock and reached the land called China and enlightened the servants of God with his message. The study of the travelogues of the Chinese tourists, ancient monuments and other antiquities reveals that Muslims and Islam arrived in this region through commercial and political relations with Iran. The footsteps of Iranian rulers and traders are found in this country before the advent of Islam. That’s why the sufi or Islamic manuscripts, writings and the books are mostly found in old Iranian language. The famous Chinese Muslim author who is the founder of Shandong Islamic traditional school, has written in his book ‘Minhajul Na’alab’ that most of the writings on Islamic jurisprudence, exegesis and edicts found in China are in Persian, so the students will have to depend on Persian language for the study of Islamic texts. Moreover, in central Chinese cities, words of Persian language are frequently used in day to day interactions. In the Uyghur language, about 60 per cent of words are derived from Persian. Iranian scholar and Uyghur language expert Ibn Badee’ has compiled the words of Persian language in Uyghur in his book. The names of food and beverages, dress and objects of daily use used in Shandong, Yunan, Fijan, Xinjiang and Jiang are mostly in Persian. The word Hui Hui was also used to mean the Persian speaking Chinese population. Now the word means the Muslim population of China. The Chinese Turkistan, the ancient state of China which is also called Xiang Jiang was a cradle of Iranian Sufism which is mentioned in the book of the history of Chinese Sufism titled ‘Nuzhat al Uns’. The sufi series of Turkistani school had a place of its own and the groups of the sufis of this series are found even today in the ancient capital of Kashghar. The shrine of Khwaja Rasheeduddin and the monastery of Khwaja Afaque is present in the city of Kashghar with its traditional pomp and grandeur. A big urn named Dostkami with Persian inscription on it is still preserved in the museum of Khatan. The monastery of Ghazni had received the urn from the sufis of the city of Khatan. The urn was used on the congregation of sufis, celebrations, Urs and other religious ceremonies. The remnants of sufi monasteries and shrines are scattered all over China most of whom are specimens of Iranian architecture. Due to ignorance, the Chinese department of Tourism has introduced them as mosques or graveyards. Even the Chinese guide books have mentioned them as mosques or graveyards.

Unfortunately, most of the remnants, the relics of Islamic history and the specimens of Iranian art and culture are in shambles, for example, the shrine and monastery of Sheikh Abul Shaqi Wali in Shahryar Qand. The causes of this impoverishment and dilapidation are historical incidents and accidents and natural calamities like the earthquakes that rocked the 19^th century. Apart from that internal feuds have also contributed to the ruin of these historical places. A tribe of the Chinese Turkistan destroyed the Uzbek Shia buildings in revenge against the Safvi group. During the rule of the Russian Czar, most of the relics of Sufism, Islamic culture and society in Turkistan and China were wiped out. The last cause of this destruction was the Chinese Revolution during which books, shrines and other Islamic relics became extinct. Nevertheless, domes, tombs and shrines of sufis are found in abundance across the length and breadth of China even today. It is noteworthy that the city of Quan Xi Lu has been rechristened Zaytun which is derived from Arabic.

In China, apart from Iranian sufi sects, non-Iranian sufi sects are also found. The ancient graveyard in the suburbs of the city of Kan’an and the shrine of Khwaja Bahauddin amidst it is testimony to this. The most important of the factors behind the arrival of Islam and sufism in China is the interpretation of the sufi thought that the acquisition of knowledge through observation and experience is inevitable for a sufi. Apart from that the dominant belief among the sufis has been the fact that after the banishment of Adam from the heaven, his first step fell on Sarandip (Sri Lanka) which still has its impression. To the sufis, the pilgrimage to the sacred footprint leads to divine requital. There are two ways to reach Sarandip: one is land route and the other is via sea. The land route went through China. So the sufis of Iran would set out on the journey in groups and would reach there via China. This has been stated by the famous sufi guide Zainul Abedin Sherwani in his book. Ibn Batuta has said that the dervishes going to Sarandip via China would get a letter from the men at the monastery of Sheikh Abul Ishq which assured them financial help from various institutions associated with Sheikh Abul Ishq on the way. In this way, the religious journeys by the sufis and their interaction with the common Chinese People left a deep impact on the society and culture of China. Gradually, the influence of the Naqshbandia order of Sufism became so powerful in the society of China by the 18th century that they declared a revolt against the royal family. But the ruler Kiang Lun crushed the sufi movement led by Khwaja Afrin and captured the Turkistan region of China. Later, to win the loyalty of the Muslims, he married the daughter of a sufi of the Naqshbandia order belonging to Kashghar. The king took his new queen to Beijing. The woman of the sufi household was able to have her influence on the king and maintained her faith until the king built a mosque for his queen with Quranic verses and hadiths inscribed on it. It should be noted that it was a period when building mosques, worshipping and cow-slaughter was prohibited by the government. Unfortunately the influences of the Naqshbandia order are rarely seen in the present Chinese society, though different sufi sects of China are the flagbearers of the Naqshbandia order. It is said that the sufis of Naqshbandia order interfered with the contemporary politics and the governance keeping the government on tenterhooks. Consequently, the government dealt with them strictly and dissolved their existence.

Jahria sect is a famous sufi sect of China. The remains of this sect are still found in China. In fact, it is a branch of Naqshbandia order. The founder and guide of this sect was Nia Mingxin. The followers of this sect represent the puritanical interpretation of Islam in their beliefs and thoughts that are strictly adherent to the Quran and hadiths. This sect has resemblance to the Ahle Haq sect of Iran while the Khafia sect also claims closeness to Naqshbandia order of China. Nia Mingxin travelled through various Arab countries between 1760 to 1780. The purpose of this journey was to acquire a practical knowledge of the conditions and teachings of different sufi orders. It is said that the Jahriya sect organised many movements among the Muslims of China. These movements put the Deng royal family in constant trouble. The cause of these movements among the Chinese Muslims is said to be the issue of their religious identity. The question whether they were Chinese first or Muslims first was foremost in their minds and would perplex them continuously. However, the disciples of the Jahriya sect would keep their belief a secret and their incantations were known only to their own colleagues. The Deewan-e-Hafiz, the Mukhammas of Mohammad Tabdkani and Tafsir-e-Hussaini are famous religious and literary books which are very popular among the Chinese Muslims. Apart from the Jahriya sect, the Qadria sect is also found in China. The centre of this sufi sect is the city of Linxia in the district of Busu. The shrine of Sheikh Abu Abdullah in Larigose in the state of Sichuan is the important centre of the Chinese Qadria order. The speciality of this shrine is that Shiekh Abdullah is buried here according to his will and his monastery also stood here. The followers of the Qadria order celebrate the Urs on the birthday of Hadhrat Abdul Qadir Jeelani. Though Khafia sect is also a branch of the Naqshbandia order, the relics of this sect are seen rarely in Chinese Muslims.

Another famous sect of China is Kubrviyah. Most of the monasteries are within the access of this sect. It has its central monastery in Wang Tao village where the Urs of the Principal Peer is held and thousands of devotees assemble even today. Mehfil-e- sama’a  is also common in Kubrviyah sect till now. The components of Shiaism are found in their poetry and Rubayees (quartets). The thought of sustentation from the 12^th imam is found in them, though their guides are followers of Hanafi shool of jurisprudence. It is said about Sheikh Kubrviya that he fasted for 90 days and went into solitary meditation in the mountains of Wang Tao. On completion of the fasts, he appeared in Kherqah (cassock) before his disciples and held celebrations. Sheikh Md Ibrahim Zahang, the contemporary guide of the Kubrviyah sect, is of the view that the Qalandaria sect has been associated with Kubrviyah monasteries though it is also a fact that the representatives or representative institutions of the Qalandariah sect are rarely found in China in modern times.

URL: https://newageislam.com/urdu-section/sufism-islamic-remnants-china-/d/3258