HAZRAT SHAIKH AHMED GANJBAKSH KHATTU (RAHMTULLAH ALAIH) - Shrine in Ahmedabad - Ahmadabad, India

SARKHEJ ROZA [1] Shrine of Shaikh Ahmad Ganj Baksh Khattu Life and Teachings of Shaikh Ahmad Khattu Shaikh Ahmad was among the early Sufis who came to Gujarat around the year 1400 and who received patronage from the rulers. He was to proceed to the Deccan but both Zafar and Tatar Khan prevailed upon him to stay in Gujarat and so he chose to settle in Sarkhej, a village outside the city on the bank of the Sabarmati. "The child of aristocratic parents, Shaikh Ahmad was born in Delhi in 1338 and named Malik Nasiruddin. But mystery surrounds his early life when, at the age of four, he was carried away far from home in a sudden dust storm. Sources wary as to whether he was rescued by Shaykh Abu Ishaq of the Maghribi order and taken to his hermitage in Khattu (near Nagaur) in Rajasthan, or picked up by a caravan and given to a childless couple in Khattu and afterwards taken by Baba Ishaq and brought up with tender care. On the completion of his intellectual and spiritual training, Baba Ishaq invested him in the Maghribi order from North Africa of which he was the head in India, an order known for its rigorous austerities and fondness for poetry and music. Ahmad Khattu was to win the respect of no less than eight rulers of Delhi and Ahmadabad. He became famous for his learning, having acquired theological knowledge from leading teachers in Delhi during the Tughluq era when the capital was known for its madrasas and scholars. He was also known for his austerities. On the death of his preceptor in 1374, he locked himself in a room with a jug of water and some dates to emerge a skeleton after a forty-day penance. Thereafter, he wandered barefoot and penniless, eschewing all company, to undertake a prolonged journey in the heartlands of Islam. It was from his meetings with divines in Mecca and Medina that he gained the spiritual enlightenment for which he later became renowned. Shaykh Ahmad Khattu returned to Delhi after twelve years and stayed at the Khan-i-Jahan mosque. During a visit to the mosque, Sultan Firuz Shah Tughluq met him and later sent him flowers. Soon after, the shaikh played a pivotal role in protecting those taken prisoner in Timur's sack of Delhi. One version of the story observes that he was captured with the other residents and that he boldly interceded with Timur for their release. Another version describes how they were all taken to Samarkand where Ahmad Khattu entered into debates with scholars to impress them with his learning and obtained release from Timur. He returned via Thatta in Sind and settled in Gujarat where he lived humbly in his khanqah at Sarkhej village. Here he developed a remarkable ability to understand and identify himself with those around him, and to attend to their problems and aspirations. He passed away at the advanced age of 108 lunar years in 1446. The shaikh's discourses inculcated a disciplined life and a sense of community among his devotees. He exhorted them to fight their baser instincts and appetites and shake off pride, for he considered pride the greatest among evils. Renowned shaikhs like his contemporary Qutb-i Alam were known to visit him regularly and Shah Alam studied under him. The Mughal emperor Jahangir paid homage to him when he visited the saint's rauza outside Ahmadabad in 1618. His hermitage was known to serve food daily at all times. Large amounts of futuh were never lacking at his khanqah and he shared what he received with all. His generous nature and hospitality won him the appellation of Ganj Baksh, or One who Bestowed Treasure, and yet he said: "How can this dervish give anything to anybody. The real giver is Allah." Having embraced poverty, Shaykh Ahmad Khattu always looked upon himself as a dervish or fakir. But he enigmatically warned his audience: "It is easy to enter an assembly of dervishes but ard

Sarkhej Roza comprises one of the most elegant and unique architectural complexes of Ahmedabad. In its architecture, Sarkhej Roza is an example of the early Islamic architectural culture of the region, which fused Islamic stylistic influences from Persia. It became associated with the name of Shaikh Ahmed Khattu Ganj Baksh, a Sufi saint and a friend/advisor to Sultan Ahmed Shah, who in his later years retired to the quiet environment of Sarkhej, away from the city. The saint lived till he was 111 years of age and was greatly venerated during his lifetime.

Good place. Nice

The Sarkhej Roza complex is the finest flowering of the medieval Gujarati architecture known as the Sultanate architecture. Geometrical beauty drips from the sandstone walls of these structures. Its calmness facilitates dialogue between the sky, water and light. This is also a meditation on the meaning of life; this meditation is reflected in the very size, proportions, and colour of the stone used to make these buildings.

Shrine of ahemad khattu Baksh.. Muhammad begda added palace for him and his consert .. jumma masjid Rani Mahal and raja Mahal.. and tomb of muhmmad begda and sons .. the architecture of whole complex is magnificent. The small museum is there in complex and librery too The authorities should take care of this monuments and cleanliness.. on every Thursday there is small celebration and various shooting also done for films ..

The architecture of the complex is credited to Azam and Muazzam Khan; two Persian brothers who are buried in the tomb near Vasna, Ahmedabad. The complex was originally spread over 72 acres, surrounded by elaborate gardens on all sides. Over time, human settlements came around it, eating into the gardens and reducing the area to 34 acres. Shaikh Ahmed Khattu Ganj Bakhsh of Anhilwad Patan, the friend and adviser of Ahmad Shah I, retired to Sarkhej in his later life and died here in 1445. In his honour a tomb, begun in 1445 by Muhammad Shah II, was, in 1451, finished by his son Qutbuddin Ahmad Shah II. The next Sultan Mahmud Begada was fond of the place and expanded the complex greatly. He dug a large Sarkhej lake, surrounded it with cut stone steps, built on its south-west corner a splendid palace, and finally, opposite to the Ganj Baksh's tomb, raised a mausoleum for himself and his family, where he, his son Muzaffar Shah II and his queen Rajbai are buried. Entering the covered eastern gateway on the north bank of the Sarkhej lake, the building to the right with a handsome stone pavilion in front of it, is the mausoleum of Shaikh Ahmed Khattu Ganj Bakhsh. This, the largest of its kind in Gujarat, has along its whole length its sides filled with stone trellis work, and inside, round the tomb, has a beautifully cut open metal screen. Across the courtyard on the left are two mausoleums with a connecting porch, the east mausoleum containing the tombs of Mahmud Begada, and of his son Saltan Muzaffar II, and the west, the tomb of Rajabai, Muzaffar's queen. Beyond the Ganj Bakhsh mausoleum is a courtyard, covering more than an acre of ground, surrounded by cloisters, with a mosque only slightly smaller than the Jama mosque. The want of minarets and the shallowness of its caves rather mar the outside effect. But inside 'it is the perfection of simple grace unrivaled in India except by the Moti mosque at Agra.' Looking across the lake the ruined buildings at the south-west corner are Mahmud Begada's palace and harem. The Sarkhej lake covers 17 acres. Oblong in shape, it is surrounded by flights of stone steps, and has a most richly decorated supply sluice. Besides the chief group of remains, the country round is studded with mosques and other old buildings. A little to the south of the lake is a small ugly whitewashed tomb, the burial place of Baba Ali Sher, a saint held in higher respect even than Ganj Bakhsh. Close by are the remains of Fatehwadi or Victory Garden, laid out in 1584 by Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana (1583-1590) to mark his defeat of Muzaffar Shah III, the last of the Gujarat Sultanate. In the 17th century Sarkhej was so famous for its indigo that in 1620 the Dutch established a factory in the village

Very beautiful and historical location ! Roza and daragah both are very good and peaceful. The beauty of the wall and building is very sharp and handsome. Many people shoot their pre wedding video. For that you have to grant permission. Note - ladies not allowed in short kurta or short clothes inside this place. Visit it once.

Heritage site Tomb of Hazrat Ahmed Shah Khattu Ganj e Bhakhsh Beautiful courtyard with lake, mosque & library .