The Naqshbandi in Central Asia

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

The history of Muslim resistance against the Czarists, the Soviets and their successors is inextricably the history of the Sufi orders and their muridun.  And the most prominent order in the region until today is the Naqshbandi, including the Naqshbandi Haqqani, followed closely by the Qadiri.  If we had to fight to believe, would we take your religion for granted? 

Much of Central Asia is the heartland of the Naqshbandi.  This was the land of Shah Baha’ ad-Din Naqshband al-Bukhari (q.s.), the Imam ath-Thariqa’ and the Ghawts al-Khaliqah.  The Naqshbandi shuyukh of Central Asia, from the 10^th to 16^th century, were known as the Khwajanagan or Khwajagan.  It is for this reason that the dzikr of the Naqshbandi is known as the Khatm Khwajanagan - it is the completion of the wisdom of the Masters.  “Khwaja” itself is a Persian title meaning “Master”.  Other prominent masters of the Naqshbandi and associated Sufi Orders include Khwaja Abu Ya’qub Yusuf ibn Ayyub al-Husayn al-Hamadani (q.s.), Khwaja Ahmed ibn Ibrahim Yasawi (q.s.), Shaykh Shams ad-Din Amir Kulal ibn Sayf ad-Din (q.s.), Mawlana Nur ad-Din ‘Abd ar-Rahman Muhammad Dashti Jami’ (q.s.) who is a great poet as well as a shaykh, and Khwaja ‘Abd al-Khaliq ibn ‘Abd al-Jamil al-Ghujdawani (q.s.).  Khwaja ‘Abd al-Khaliq al-Ghujdawani (q.s.) is described as one of the six prominent shuyukh in the Golden Chain of the Naqshbandi Haqqani.