Sayyid Jalaluddin Haydar "Surkh-Posh" Bukhari (, c. 595-690 AH, 1190 – 1295 CE was a saint of the Indian subcontinent.He belonged to the Hussaini Jalali Sufi order through his father, Syed Ali Al Moeed. He was descended from the 10th Shia Imam, Ali al-Hadi.
Names
Bukhari, a family name, is derived from the location of his descent from the city of Bukhara in the ancient administrative region of Bukhara Province Uzbekistan. Bukhari is a Sayyid from the Naqvi denomination, a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his grandsons Husayn ibn Ali and Hasan ibn Ali. Bukhari was born as Jalaluddin Haider. Sayyid Jalaluddin Bukhari was born in Multan but later settled in Uchh.
Bukhari was nicknamed Surkh-Posh ("clad in red") because he often wore a red mantle.
Over time, he has been referred to by a number of names and titles: Jalal Ganj; Mir Surkh (Red Leader); Sharrifullah (Noble of Allah); Mir Buzurg (Big Leader); Makhdum-ul-Azam; Jalal Akbar; Azimullah; Sher Shah (Lion King); Jalal Azam and Surkh-Posh Bukhari. With formal honorifics, he is also called Sayyid Jalaluddin; Mir Surkh Bukhari; Shah Mir Surkh-Posh of Bukhara; Pir Jalaluddin Qutub-al-Aqtab; Sayyid Jalal and Sher Shah Sayyid Jalal.
Career
Bukhari's life was spent travelling. As an Islamic missionary, he converted tribes such as the Soomro, Samma, Chadhar, Sial, Daher and the Warar. Bukhari was one of the Chaar Yaar (not to be confused with the Rashidun). The Chaar Yaar were the group of pioneers of the Suhrawardiyya and Chisti Sufi movements of the 13th century. Bukhari founded the "Jalali" order. He converted the Samma, the Sial, the Chadhar, the Daher and the Warar tribes of the Southern Punjab and Sindh.
Some of his followers (mureed) spread to Gujarat. The mureed included Bukhari's grandson, Jahaniyan Jahangasht (d. 1384 CE) who visited Mecca 36 times. In 1134 CE, the Sial followers of Bukhari settled in the community that is now Jhang. Bukhari's descendant, Mehboob Elahi Shah|Mehboob Elahi Naqvi-ul Bukhari Al-Maroof Shah Jewna also moved to Jhang from Kannauj. There is a town in Pakistan in the name of Shah Jewna his descendants are still present in India as well as Pakistan. Many of Bukhari's disciples are buried in Banbhore and Makli Hill near Thatta.
Legendary meetings
Sultan of Delhi
In 642 AH, when Jalaluddin Surkh-Posh Bukhari had begun his missionary work in Uch Shareef, he was visited by Nasiruddin Mahmud of the Delhi Sultanate.
Shah Daulah Shahid
Shah Daulah Shahid, is a Muslim saint who is buried in Bengal. In Bukhara, Bukhari presented Saint Daulah with a pair of grey pigeons. From Bukhara, Saint Daulah travelled to Bengal where he battled and was killed by the Hindu king of Shahzadpur.
Chengiz Khan
According to legend: Jalaluddin Surkh Posh was on his way to India and met Chengiz Khan, the Mongol conqueror. So forth he tried to convince him to convert to Islam however failed.
His two male issues from his second wife, Fatima, the daughter of Sayyid Qasim Hussein Bukhari, Sayyid Ali and Sayyid Jaffar, are buried in tombs at Bukhara. He brought his son Sayyid Baha-ul-Halim with him to Sindh and then he settled in Uchch in 1244.
Death
In 1244 CE (about 640AH), Bukhari moved to Uch, South Punjab (also known as Uch Sharif after the saint settled there) with his son, Baha-ul-Halim, where he founded a religious school. He died in about 690 AH (1295 CE) and was buried in a small town near Uch. After his tomb was damaged by flood waters of the Ghaggar-Hakra River, Bukhari's remains were buried in Qattal town. In 1027 AH, Sajjada Nashin Makhdoom Hamid, son of Muhammad Nassir-u-Din, moved Bukhari's remains to their present location in Uch and erected a building over them. In 1770s CE, the tomb was rebuilt by the Nawab of Bahawalpur, Bahawal Khan II.
The tomb is a short way from the cemetery of Uch. It stands on a promontory overlooking the plains and the desert beyond. To one side of the tomb is a mosque decorated with blue tilework. In front of the tomb is a pool. A carved wooden door leads into the room containing Bukhari's coffin. UNESCO describes the site:
Mela Uch Sharif
According to World Monuments Fund, "The ancient city of Uch was one of several metropolises founded by Alexander the Great on his crusade through Central Asia in the late 4th century BC."