More Than A Saint: How Ameer Kabir Became Kashmir's Moral Compass

(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer)
Khanqah-e-Maula in Old Srinagar.

By Dr Sheikh Arshid Ahmad

You can't talk about Kashmir without talking about Hazrat Ameer Kabir. People say his name with a kind of softness, like they're remembering an old warmth.

Even now, six centuries later, his memory is stitched into the fabric of the valley. It's spoken in homes, echoed in mosques, felt in the curves of calligraphy on ancient shrines.

He was born in Hamadan, a city in what we now call Iran, sometime in the early 1300s. His full name was Mir Syed Ali Hamadani. But in Kashmir, most just call him“Shah-e-Hamadan”, the King of Hamadan.

He wasn't a king in the usual sense. He didn't wear a crown or rule a palace. But he ruled hearts. And that's the kind of power that lasts.

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As a child, he came from a family of scholars and mystics. Books, prayer, reflection was the air he breathed. He joined the Kubrawiya Sufi order, a spiritual path that focused on purifying the self and getting closer to God. He studied hard. Traveled. Learned from masters. And then, at some point, something in him turned toward Kashmir.

At the time, Kashmir was a beautiful but complex place, with a population scattered across snow-covered valleys. It wasn't easy to get to. Roads were rough. Mountains loomed. The people were proud, deeply rooted in their traditions. Why would a Persian Sufi want to walk into that?

But he came. Not once, but three times. He didn't arrive with armies or demands. He came with books, sermons, and a group of disciples. And he came with a plan.

Unlike other preachers of the time, Ameer Kabir made sure every journey had a structure. His disciples would go out in groups, visit villages, speak with people, and then return to present something called a karguzari.

These were detailed reports about who they spoke to, what they taught, what the response was. They shared these in community gatherings that usually ended with a meal. It wasn't just about spreading faith. It was about creating connection.

His followers didn't preach from pulpits alone. They walked into remote mountain villages. Sat with people by streams. Helped with everyday life. They opened centers of learning. They taught ethics, crafts, language. Many were met with suspicion. Still, they kept going, through snow, hunger, and often silence. But eventually, something shifted.

People began to listen.

Why? Maybe it was the way Ameer Kabir carried himself. He didn't shout. He didn't argue. He taught tawheed, the belief in one God, with clarity. He followed the Prophet's life as a model. He spoke about inner discipline. How to clean the heart, not just the body. And more than that, he lived it. He practiced what he preached.

But his influence didn't stop at the soul.

He brought with him Persian literature. New ideas in art and architecture. Handicrafts that would one day become the backbone of Kashmir's economy. Carpet weaving, shawl making began with him. He taught ethical governance through books like Zakhirat

Muluk. He wrote Risalah Nooriyah, a guide for both spiritual seekers and political leaders.

You could say he didn't just change people's beliefs. He changed the way they saw the world.

Some scholars estimate that tens of thousands accepted Islam during and after his visits. But numbers were never the whole story. What mattered more was the shift in thinking. A new kind of society began to take shape, the one built on humility, learning, and faith.

Today, his shrine in downtown Srinagar still draws thousands. Not just the religious, but also the curious, the grateful, the lost. His books are still read. His story is still told. Not just as history, but as a reminder.

So what does real change look like?

Maybe it looks like a man stepping into a cold, foreign land, armed only with belief and patience. Maybe it looks like disciples scribbling reports by candlelight. Maybe it looks like a people finding a new way to live, without ever feeling forced.

Hazrat Ameer Kabir didn't conquer Kashmir. He convinced it. And in doing so, he gave it something that even time hasn't taken away.

• The author can be reached at [email protected]

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