"I swear by God that in these times (after the tradition had been laid down by Araki), many men of parts and spiritual excellence were born who pulled down huge temples and destroyed them completely. Innumerable idols and statues were struck down and thrown into dust. None of his disciples or attendants was harmed in any way. He dmolished numerous imposing and stately idol-houses, yet nobody ever had the courage and strength to bring even the slightest harm to the family members of these noble men (sufis and dervishes). The possibility of bringing harm to Hazrat Baba did not arise. Shah QasimĂs blessings Shah Qasim came to know the story of destruction of temples and idols at the hands of ShamsuĂd-Din Araki. In great surprise he asked Dervish Salman, Dervish Walid and the group of other dervishes who had proceeded to Arak as emissaries, as to how it was possible for Araki to raze to the ground such lofty temples and the idols as these places are the habitat of the ginii. He asked whether his sufis had encountered any mishaps. The dervishes (from Kashmir) answered, ìYour Holiness! We have pulled down and destroyed so many temples and idol houses; we have razed to ground so many imposing and lofty structures (of infidels). Never did any one from among our sufis ever come to grief or suffer a mishap or contract a disease. On the contrary, as a result of the blessings thereof, we all remained in good health and we feel glad and satisfied.Ă® Having heard this happy news, he raised his hands for thanksgiving; dervishes (from Kashmir) also raised their hands and prayed to God Almighty that He blessed Araki with profound courage and victory in his mission. They offered fateha (thanksgiving) and prayers. God Almighty bestows munificence on His beloved and obedient followers. He helps them with success. From among the Shaykhs of high order and stalwarts among the spiritualists, none had the honour of breaking so many idols and destroying so many temples as ShamsuĂd-Din Araki had for the sake of propagating, and strengthening prosperity of Islam. Only he was blessed to eradicate lock, stock and barrel the dark and depraved customs of the community of darkness, their rituals, laws and beliefs. No Sultan, Padishah, Governor or noble could claim credit for an achievement like that. We shall take up this matter again in this work."
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Tohfatu'l-Ahbab
Tohfatu'l-Ahbab is a Farsi work by Muhammad Ali Kashmiri, presumably written in 1642. It is the biography of Shamsu'd-Din Muhammad Araki, a Shi'a Muslim missionary, who visited Kashmir, Gilgit and Baltistan in the 15th and 16th century. Araki was the founder of the Nurbakhshiyyeh Sufi order in Kashmir.
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