A Protector of the Poor

MIL/ANI - International Reporter - New Delhi, India
Friday, July 13, 2007

Ajmer (Rajasthan): Security has been beefed up in and around Muslim shrine as worshippers gather in Ajmer to mark the 795th Urs death anniversary of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti.

Organisers said security has been stepped up as thousands of devotees, including hundreds from Pakistan and Bangladesh, have come to the city.

"As per my information gathered from the intelligence agencies, about 500 to 600 worshippers from Pakistan and also some from Bangladesh have come here. Keeping the recent incidence of terror attacks in mind, security in the area has been strengthened," said Ahmed Raza Najim (manager) of Dargah committee.

According to Ahmed Raza Najim, the six-day long Urs will begin either on July 15 or 16 depending upon the rising of moon.

Apart from heavy deployment of security, 15 closed circuit cameras have been fitted in the shrine to check any untoward incident.

Legend has it that in 1236 AD, Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti had entered his cell to pray in seclusion for six days, at the end of which he died. Since then, the Sufi saint’s death anniversary is marked in a six-day long Urs every year.

Throughout the ceremony, devotional music and reciting from Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti's own works and other Sufi saints are presented in traditional Qawwali style and in chorus.

The annual event culminates with readings from the holy Quran and special prayers.

Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti was a great Sufi saint who was the harbinger of Islam in India. He is popularly known as Gharib Nawaz (protector of the poor) because he dedicated his entire life to the service of mankind.

[picture from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moinuddin_Chishti]