Shah Amanat

Shāh Amānat Khān (Bengali: শাহ আমানত খান, Persian: شاه أمانت خان‎), was a late 18th century Sufi Muslim figure in South Asia. He is regarded as one of the most prominent saints of Chittagong, in eastern Bengal (now Bangladesh).[1]

Shah

Amanat Khan
Other namesAmanot Shah
Personal
Born
Bihar Sharif, British Raj
Died1809 CE
Laldighi, Chittagong
Resting placeQuddus Serrahul Aziz Darbar Sharif
ReligionSunni Islam
SpouseUmm Anwar
ChildrenAnwar Khan
Parents
  • Abu Amanat (father)
  • Umm Amanat (mother)
Other namesAmanot Shah
Senior posting
Based inChittagong
Period in officeEarly 11th century
PredecessorShah Abdur Rahim
SuccessorAnwar Khan

Life

Amanat was said to have originated from Bihar Sharif, and moved to Bengal. He was a descendant of Abdul Qadir Gilani.[2][3] He became a disciple of Shah Abdur Rahim Shahidan of Laxmibazar, Dhaka for a number of years.[4]

One day, Abdur Rahim advised Amanat to migrate to Chittagong. Amanat built himself a small cottage in a forest area in Chittagong to live in. He managed to get a job as a punkah wallah at the Chittagong Judge Court, and preferred a simple lifestyle without attracting much attention. It was from this career at the court, that he was nicknamed Khan Saheb.[2] However, he later gave up his job, dedicating more of his life towards religious devotion.[5] His first disciple was Shah Sufi Muhammad Dayem of Azimpur.[6]

Death and legacy

Amanat died in 1809 and was buried near his cottage in a mazar (mausoleum). It is currently in the city of Chittagong; east of the Laldighi and north of the Central Jail road. He was succeeded by his son Anwar Khan and his descendants are the guardians (mutawalli) of the shrine complex. The family have preserved Anwar Khan's Persian language waqfnama (deed of endowment) as evidence.

In 1969, the Mutawalli of the shrine along with a group of people were in Karachi. With Eid al-Adha approaching, they purchased 10 camels for qurbani and were wondering how they would ship them to Chittagong. They went to M. H. Khan for assistance, as the last ship had left in the morning. Khan then asked Dinshaw to return one of the ships back to Karachi so they could load the camels. Fortunately, the ship was not too far and returned back to Karachi Harbour. The Mutawalli was very thankful to Khan, and began a strong relationship between the two. Khan mentions in his memoirs that from then on, he visited the mazar several times whilst in Bangladesh.[7]

In Halishahar, there is a school named after Amanat called the Shah Amanat Shishu Niketan. There is also a power and energy company called Shah Amanat Prakritik Gas Co. Ltd. owned by S. Alam Group of Industries.[8] Shah Amanat International Airport was named after him.[9]

References
  1. Harder, Hans (4 Mar 2011). "Introduction". Sufism and Saint Veneration in Contemporary Bangladesh: The Maijbhandaris of Chittagong. Routledge. p. 13.
  2. Muhammad Ghulam Mustafa Mullah (1990). Hazrat Khwaja Sharaf Uddin Chishti ebong Mayar Proshashon o Proshongika Kichhu Kotha (in Bengali). Mubeshah Prakashani. p. 27.
  3. Abdul Haq Choudhury (1994). Bondor Shohor Chottogram: Ekti Oitihashik Porjalochona (in Bengali). Bangla Academy.
  4. Chakrabarti, Kunal; Chakrabarti, Shubhra (22 Aug 2013). Historical Dictionary of the Bengalis. Scarecrow Press. p. 428.
  5. Abdul Karim (2012). "Shah Amanat (R)". In Islam, Sirajul; Miah, Sajahan; Khanam, Mahfuza; Ahmed, Sabbir (eds.). Banglapedia: the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Online ed.). Dhaka, Bangladesh: Banglapedia Trust, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. ISBN 984-32-0576-6. OCLC 52727562. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  6. Sayed Mahmudul Hasan (1987). Muslim Monuments of Bangladesh. Islamic Foundation Bangladesh. p. 43.
  7. M. H. Khan (26 Sep 2016). Memoir of M H Khan: Turbulence in the Indian Subcontinent. Memoirs Publishing. pp. 114–115.
  8. "Change of guards raises eyebrows". The Daily Star. 2017-10-31. Retrieved 2020-07-26.
  9. "Chattagram, an orphaned city". The Daily Star. 2018-07-03. Retrieved 2020-07-26.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.