Previous Year Question
Which Sufi Saint was called ‘Mahbub-i-Ilahi’?
Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti
Baba Farid
Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki
Sheikh Nizamuddin Auliya
Correct Answer: D
Detailed Solution
Sheikh Nizamuddin Auliya was one of the most celebrated saints of the Chishti Sufi tradition in India. He was also popularly known as ‘Mahbub-i-Ilahi’, meaning “Beloved of God.”
He was born around 1238 CE at Badaun and died in 1325 CE at Delhi.
The spiritual master of Nizamuddin Auliya was Baba Fariduddin Ganj-i-Shakar. After receiving spiritual instruction from Baba Farid, Nizamuddin Auliya made the Chishti tradition highly influential in Delhi.
His khanqah was situated in the Ghiyaspur area of Delhi. People from different sections of society visited it. His teachings particularly emphasized love, compassion, service to humanity and devotion to God.
Among his most celebrated disciples was Amir Khusrau, who shared a particularly deep spiritual relationship with Nizamuddin Auliya.
Nizamuddin Auliya was also known by the title Sultan-ul-Mashaikh. He generally maintained a distance from political authority and sought to keep his khanqah distinct from the royal court.
Among the other options, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti was the great Chishti saint associated with Ajmer, Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki was an earlier Chishti saint of Delhi, and Baba Farid was Nizamuddin Auliya's spiritual master. The famous title Mahbub-i-Ilahi, however, belongs to Nizamuddin Auliya.