Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh Ali Hajveri is illuminating star of the world of knowledge & spiritualism: Dr Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri

MQI President Dr Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri attended the 976th annual 'Urs' ceremony of renowned Sufi Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh Ali Hajveri (R.A). A three day international conference was held as part of the 'Urs' programme. Dr Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri was invited as a guest speaker to give talk on the life and teachings of the Sufi saint. Provincial minister for religious affairs Sahibzada Sayyid Saeed-ul-Hassan Shah Gillani was the guest of honour, whereas those who joined on the stage included Sahibzada Tahir Raza Bukhari, Dr Zahoor Ahmad Azhar, Dr Ali Akbar Al-Azhari, Raja Zahid Mahmood, Allama Asif Akbar Mir. People belonging to various walks of life including religious scholars, intellectuals, Mashaykh and the general people attended the third session of the conference.

Addressing on the subject of spiritualism, Dr Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri said there are three stages of spiritualism, namely knowledge, morality and third stage being gnosis and understanding of reality. He said the followers of spiritualism can also be divided into three categories. Scholars base their acceptance of spiritualism on their vast reading and scholarship of the subject. In order to become the traveler on the path of spiritualism, one needs to be excellent in one's morality, which the second stage in the journey. When one learns knowledge and moulds his life accordingly, one becomes a traveler. He said the third stage is gnosis and understanding of the reality, adding that the first two stages of spiritualism are related to effort, whereas the third stage i.e. gnosis is bestowed as a blessing.

Dr Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri said the tragedy is that those who studied spiritualism as knowledge could only become a scholar. The second category of people confined themselves to the spiritualistic practices. The third group of people studied the lives of the Sufi-saints and started talking about its beautific visions and illuminations. As a result of this, philosophy of spiritualism came into being. He said the young generations were made to walk away from the knowledge of religion due to philosophy of spiritualism, adding that the philosophers got the young generation bogged down in academic debates with the result that they have developed misunderstandings about the concept of spiritualism.

Dr Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri said Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh is heir to spiritualism. His life and work are the source of understanding the meaning and concept of spiritualism. His teachings on spiritualism have clarified the misunderstandings of the youth, stating that his magnum opus Kashf ul Mahjoob has been guiding generations of seekers of truth over the centuries. He said if we get connected to his teachings even today, we can succeed in life.

Earlier, when Dr Hussain Mohi-ud-Din Qadri reached the shrine to attend the Urs ceremony, the people gave him a warm welcome.