مناقب فخریہ :تعارف و اہمیت

Manāqib-i Fakhriyyah: Introduction and Significance

Abstract

The article presents a critical academic examination of Manāqib-i Fakhriyyah, the only surviving Persian prose work authored by Nawwāb ʿImād al-Mulk Ghāzī al-Dīn Khān Niẓām (d. 1215 AH / 1795 CE), a distinguished political, intellectual, and spiritual figure of 18th-century South Asia. As a devoted disciple and khalīfa of Khwāja Fakhr-i Jahān Dihlawī (d. 1199 AH / 1784 CE), a prominent Shaykh of the Chishtī-Niẓāmī Sufi order, Niẓām composed this five-chapter tadhkirah to document the life, teachings, spiritual lineage, and mystical experiences of his master. The text not only highlights Fakhr-e Jahān's personal and spiritual attributes, his mystical states (aḥwāl), and miracles (karāmāt), but also contextualizes the Chishtī-Niẓāmī tradition within the sociopolitical and literary fabric of late Mughal India. This research explores both the historical significance and the literary elegance of Manāqib-i Fakhriyyah, arguing that the work fills critical gaps in existing biographical and hagiographical records of the Chishtī Silsila. The article underscores the unique eyewitness authority of the author, offering firsthand insights into Sufi pedagogy, samāʿ practices, and spiritual discipline. Additionally, the study reveals how the text preserves underexplored facets of Indo-Islamic culture, especially the intertwined roles of political power, poetic expression, and mystical devotion. Through detailed content analysis and contextual interpretation, this paper affirms the enduring value of Manāqib-i Fakhriyyah as a key historical source for understanding the evolution of South Asian Sufism, particularly the Chishtī-Niẓāmī branch.