Ḥaḍrat Ḥājī Khair Muḥammad ʿAbbāsī Naqshbandī Bakhshī Ṭāhirī raḥmatu’llāhi ʿalayhi was a venerable saint and Ṣūfī of the Naqshbandī Mujaddidī Order in Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan.
Haji Khair Muhammad Abbasi
He was born in a town called Abrāl, Thatta district, Sindh, Pakistan. At young age, he was initiated into the Naqshbandī Order by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Ghaffār Faḍlī Naqshbandī Mujaddidī, mostly renowned as Pīr Mitthā, of Raḥmatpur, Lārkānū, Sindh. Lārkānū is in Northern Sindh, so Ḥājī Khair Muḥammad often visited and stayed with his shaykh from his home town Abrāl, situated in Southern Sindh. He received spiritual training and blessings from his shaykh for some years.
His first encounter with the Naqshbandī Sufism was his meeting with a renowned deputy of his shaykh, named Ḥājī Muḥammad ʿAlī Bozdār, who passed through his village while preaching the spiritual path in the rural Sindh. Ḥājī Bozdār was himself a renowned saint who spread his masters’ brotherhood into far flung areas of Southern Sindh, to places where no other preacher had ever gone before. He was a simplistic man, yet full of spiritual powers. Ḥājī Bozdār took him to his shaykh, and he soon became one of the beloved disciples of his shaykh Pīr Mitthā.
A strange miracle
Hai Khair Muhammad Abbasi Naqshbandi Tahiri
He was engaged to his cousin. However, his uncle refused to marry his daughter with him because of him becoming a follower of Pīr Mitthā. Being sad and agitated, he left for Lārkānū and reached there by train, considering not to return to his home town ever again. The very next day, his uncle arrived there, seemingly in a rush, and asked him to return and marry his daughter. When asked why had he travelled so far in such a short time, his uncle told that the day you left, I was asleep in the night that Pīr Mitthā came to me (in dream). He started beating me with a stick very harshly, and said: Why have you refused to marry your daughter with my disciple? When I woke up, all my body was swollen and signs of beating were evident all over it. I could not even lie down and felt pain in all the limbs. So I rushed to you and did not sleep on my way, fearing to be beaten up again.
After the death of his shaykh in December 1964, he renewed his initiation with his shaykh’s chief deputy and successor Khwāja Allāh-Bakhsh ʿAbbāsī Ghaffārī and continued his spiritual journey. Because of his extraordinary spiritual aptitude, he was soon made a deputy by the shaykh (approximately in 1967).
By the orders of his shaykh, he was stationed in Hyderabad, Sindh, where he started preaching the Naqshbandī Dhikr to the seekers and initiated them in the silsila (chain or order) of his Shaykh. Later, he established the first center of his shaykh’s brotherhood in Hyderabad, named ʿUmar-Islām mosque, Gārī-Khātā, Hyderabad. This mosque still serves as the major center for the followers of the Naqshbandī Ṭāhirī Order in Hyderabad city.
A heavenly vision
He performed Ḥajj multiple times, and is often simply called Ḥājī Ṣāḥib. Once he visited the illuminated Madīnah city, based on Umrah visa, but decided to stay until Ḥajj. The Saudi government decided to deport all persons with expired visa and strict measures were taken in that regard. Faced with this situation, and the idea that his shaykh may be displeased with him (for not writing letters to the shaykh), Ḥājī Ṣāḥib became sad. In that state of sadness, one day he offered the Tahajjud prayer in the Prophet’s mosque and then engaged in supplication while facing the blessed tomb of the Prophet ʿalayhi as-salām. He reports that while supplicating, I started crying and then I started murāqabah (meditation) and covered myself and my head with a shawl. A few minutes had passed that I saw (in vision) that my master Khwāja Allāh-Bakhsh is praying Tahajjud besides me. When he finished, I kissed his feet and he consoled me that do not worry, everything will be all right.
Suddenly I saw that a person coming out of the mausoleum of the Prophet, who said to my shaikh! O Quraishī! You are late! The Prophet is waiting for you. My shaykh stood up and hurried towards the tomb of the Prophet, and I followed him. At the tomb, I saw a servant who opened the doors and my shaykh entered. When I tried to enter, I was blocked by that servant, but then a voice came from inside that allow him to enter. So I also entered and saw a wide field covered with carpets and many light-faced people are seated there. And the Prophet peace be on him is seated on a beautiful and magnificent throne.
That spiritual assembly was highly scented and the awe was more than I could take. So I stood behind some other people. I saw that the Prophet peace be upon him was looking at some registers, and my shaykh was holding a register and waiting for his turn. After a while, the Prophet peace be upon him saw my shaykh and greeted him affectionately. A beautiful person met my shaykh and took him to sit besides him. Out of wonder, I asked someone standing closely: Who is that person who has seated my shaykh close to him? He said: He is Abū-Bakr Ṣiddīq. While I was still in that vision that I heard the Adhān of Fajr prayer. The Prophet peace be upon him was about to stand up for the prayer that my shaykh approached him and requested to look at his register. The Prophet said to him: O Quraishī! I am pleased with you and your followers who preach my teachings and serve my religion in such hard times. Then he put the stamp of approval on the register of my shaykh without even opening it. After this, the Prophet peace and blessings be upon him, led the Fajr prayer and everyone offered the prayer behind him.
All of a sudden, someone shook me and awoke me for the Fajr prayer. Even though I realized it was a vision, I was still perplexed that I had already offered the prayer and yet was being awoken for it.
Ḥājī Ṣāḥib also reported that the scent during that vision was so excessive, I could smell that scent from my clothes even after waking up.
Haji Khair Muhammad Abbasi
His second shaykh Khwāja Allāh-Bakhsh ʿAbbāsī passed away in December 1983, leaving behind his only son Shaykh Muḥammad Ṭāhir ʿAbbāsī Naqshbandī Mujaddidī as the successor. Like all disciples and deputies of Khwāja Allāh-Bakhsh, Ḥājī Khair Muḥammad also resumed his discipleship and deputyship with Shaykh Muḥammad Ṭāhir, who is the current head of the brotherhood.
Later, he moved to Hyderabad and lived in the ʿUmar-Islām masjid, where he managed the center and provided spiritual guidance to the people. Many would come to him to seek help for their life problems and get not only guidance and coaching, but also prayers and supplication which would solve their difficulties. Even those who were at the verge of committing suicide, came to him and lost their depression and anxiety, and became enthusiastic followers of the Ṣūfī path.
He was a venerable saint and possessed numerous spiritual powers. His face and appearance was full of light and he looked more like a heavenly angel than an earthly being. While sitting in his company, everyone was engulfed in utmost awe, mixed with feelings of strong love and affection towards his holy person.
During weekly collective murāqabah, he used to sing beautiful verses from Ṣūfī poetry while everyone closed the eyes and engaged in the silent Dhikr. His beautiful voice would enchant the people and many attendees would cry, weep, and make uncontrollable noises out of ecstasy and spiritual emotions.
His love and devotion to the Holy Prophet ṣallAllāhu ʿalayhi wasallam was unparalleled. He used to visit the holy city Madīnah every year, accompanied with many of his followers and associates. Every year, one or more of his companions were blessed with the sight of the Holy Prophet in dream.
He himself was blessed with the vision of the Holy Prophet peace and blessings be upon him numerous times. Although he never mentioned himself, he even had the bliss of viewing the Best of Creations peace and blessings be upon him in the state of wakefulness, as revealed in a speech by his colleague Mawlānā Shaykh Muḥammad Idrīs Dāhirī Naqshbandī Ṭāhirī.
Even though he had full authority in the Naqshbandī Path from his masters, as well as the Qādrī order previously, he never initiated anyone as his own disciple, rather initiated everyone and made them disciples into the silsila of his master Shaykh Muḥammad Ṭāhir.
Among his extraordinary spiritual powers was the ability to induce dhikr into the new seeker’s heart immediately. Once, this author visited him accompanied with a friend who was a fervent Shia. Despite hesitation, this friend of mine finally agreed and learned the dhikr of heart (the first Naqshbandī lesson) from the venerable Ḥājī. This was in the afternoon, just after the Ẓuhr prayer. Later in the evening after sunset, that friend told this author that he was continuously feeling that his heart was remembering Allah and still did to that moment, without any effort on his behalf. Such occurrences are frequent and the number of people who learned the dhikr from him are countless. With his efforts, the brotherhood of his masters is firmly established and rooted in the Hyderabad city and surrounding areas. Many of his associates have been made deputies by his master Shaykh Muḥammad Ṭāhir ʿAbbāsī.
The demise
After serving the Naqshbandī Path and acting as the deputy of his masters for more than forty years, Ḥājī Khair Muḥammad ʿAbbāsī passed away on Monday 26 Ṣafar 1432 AH (31 January 2011). His funeral prayer was attended by thousands of people and was offered in the central Eidgah of Hyderabad city. It was led by his master Shaykh Muḥammad Ṭāhir ʿAbbāsī.
Following his will, he was buried in the Ṣūfī center he had established and managed for about half a century, namely, ʿUmar-Islām masjid, in Gārī-Khātā, Hyderabad city, Sindh, Pakistan. His tomb is visited by all who come to the weekly Dhikr and Murāqabah gatherings and is a source of enlightenment and blessings for his lovers and followers.
Al-Fātiḥa for him.
(Video: Spiritual advice and collective murāqabah by Ḥājī Khair Muḥammad ʿAbbāsī, Hyderabad)
(Video: Naat recited by Ḥājī Khair Muḥammad in Madīnah)
Haji Khair Muhammad (seated on chair)