Hazrat Babajan

Hazrat Babajan hailed from Afghanistan (Central Asia) and was the daughter of a well to do Afghan of noble lineage. Her first name was Gulrukh (rose faced) and her early training was that befitting the position of an Afghan aristocrat. At a real early age, she learned Quran by heart and later became conversant with Arabic, Persian, Pushtoo and Urdu. From early life she developed mystical tendencies, and unlike girls of her age, she applied to spend a good heap of her time in prayers, meditation and solitude.

This mystical view in her asserted itself, as when coming of age, she was found to be against any thought of matrimony. The parents could not understand her and to them the idea of a Pathan girl remaining unmarried was extremely shocking. Seeing the position no longer tenable and the parents bent upon pushing the issue of matrimony on her. Gulrukh managed to break loose and came to Peshawar (India) and then to Rawalpindi. For a Pathan girl brought up below the strictest discipline of the purdah system, wandering at the age of 18 years, was not an easy task.

For certain it was her spiritual destiny landed her safely into India unscathed and undetected. In Rawalpindi, Gulrukh led an ascetic life for some years, and eventually got into touch with a Hindu saint, who inducted her into the spiritual itinerary. Later on this initiation she went into seclusion in a nearby mountain outside Rawalpindi and underwent very serious penance for about seventeen months. Thereafter, she came down to Punjab and stayed a few months in Multan. It was in Multan, while Gulrukh was 37 years of age, that she contacted a Muslim holy man – a Mazjoob (immersed in Divinity) who put an end to her spiritual struggle by giving her God-recognition. Gulrukh once again wended her way to Rawalpindi, and thither she was again spiritually drawn to the same Hindu saint, responsible for her first introduction. The angel helped her to get down from the super conscious state of God-realization to the normal consciousness of a Master.

Hereafter for Gulrukh began a long trail of journeys from one part of India to another. In one of her itineraries she visited Bombay, and later a few months’ stay in Bombay, went back once again to the Punjab, and dropped a respectable number of years at different stations in Northern India.

 It was at this time that she chanced to emit in a second of ecstasy words connoting her divine state. This was treated as blasphemy by orthodoxy, which, with the collusion of the church, got her buried alive Gulrukh miraculously, survived this ordeal, and seeing the country unsafe for her she bade good-bye to the Punjab and Northern India forever. 

She went south to Bombay took up her residence in a neighborhood know as Chuna Bhatti near Byculla. Bombay, however, was not to be adorned by her presence for long and the enviable honor of manifesting Gulrukh’s spiritual greatness goes to Poona, that the spoils of the Baluchi Regiment, which held just lately arrived from the North and who knew that Gulrukh was buried and dead, had a surprise of their life to get her all alive and sat underneath a neem (margosa) tree at a place called Malcolm Tank within Cantonment limits. The Baluchi sepoys looked upon this as a great miracle, and thus feeling convinced of her spiritual greatness, gave Gulrukh an ovation, by stooping to her reverently. After this incident her saintly fame spread far and wide, and she arrived to be universally known as Hazrat Babajan.

Sometime later on her entry into Poona about the year 1903, Babajan had no specified place of residence. She was found out sitting or resting at odd positions in different sections of the city and cantonment. Although shabbily dressed, there was something magnetic in her personality very unusual in a street mendicant that she expected, that no passer-by could resist making her a second glimpse. She was seldom seen moving about or sitting anywhere all alone. Her bodily requirements were very few, and food she ate very sparingly at long intervals. She was very fond of tea, which was offered to her very frequently by visitors. While walking in the streets, on whomsoever her eyes feel that somebody could not but halt or stand up reverentially unit she passed by. An unsettled life of some years in and around Poona saw Babajan at last decided on a spot near Char Bavadi, Malcom Tank, underneath the name (margosa) tree. At this time the locality mentioned was a picture of dirt, desolAction and ugliness.

The Cantonment authorities became alive in the state of affairs, and had it been possible they would unhesitatingly have had Babajan shifted to some out of the way place. But they dared not risk a public demonstration in the affair. By now Babajan’s fame as a saint hand spread far and wide and ‘Char Bavadi’ became a space of pilgrimage for people from all over India. In place of Babajan’s shabby shelter, when the novel structure which was merely a few feet away from Babajan’s original seat was ready to every one’s surprise, she declined to be run there. The sticky situation, however, was brought over by extending the structure a little more so as the include and embrace Babajan’s original seat, as well as the name tree.

When Babajan first came to Poona people surmised her age to be not less that 90 years, and thereafter even 30 years added to her life in the city wrought no changes in her personality. Short in stature, firm and agile fair and sunburn, face broad and heavily wrinkled, high cheek bones, liquid blue eyes possessing great depths, head covered with a silvery crown of dense white hair hanging loose up to the shoulders, deep sonorous voice, all conspired to establish her personality very unique and unworldly. Her dress was simple, consisting of a long apron extending below the knees, a pyjamas narrowed round the pegs and a linen scarf thrown carelessly round the shoulders.

Babajan slept very little, one day she would feel out of sorts, at times even high fever, and the next day she would be her usual self without recourse to any medicine. Young and old, male or female, she applied to address everyone as Bachcha or Baba (child).

Her method of healing was quite unique and entertaining. When anyone approached her for a cure, she would apply between her fingers, the pain or diseased section of the individual concerned, and calling upon some imaginary being, simultaneously ordering the troublesome entity to cease. Amazingly enough, this funny operation would impart instantaneous relief.

A Zorastrain child aged around 10 years had lost his eyesight completely. His guardians brought him to Babajan, and when told of the sad predicament of the child, Babajan mumbled some words, and messed up her breath upon his eyes. The child immediately recovered his eyesight and began to jump about joyfully saying “I can see at present, I can understand”.

One Hindu woman, a devotee of Babajan very humbly and supplicatingly submitted to Babajan that she was married over ten years, but was not yet blessed with an issue. She requested Babajan’s blessings in her lawsuit. Babajan blessed her, and pronounced. “Your first topic would be a son.”. Exactly after a yr and a half, the lady came back and put the male baby at the feet of Babajan. Babajan took up the small fry in her arms, played with it for some time, and allowed the female parent and the child to depart with her graces.

Babajan’s love and brotherly love towards humanity was supremely Divine in expression; it could not but reclaim a most confirmed sinner and subdue the cruellest of ideas.

Once a man tried to steal a costly shawl covering her body while asleep, but he found its removal rather risky, as some portion of it was held underneath her body. Babajan instinctively raised herself bodily a little, thereby helping the thief to achieve the purpose. On another occasion, a person from Bombay, in token of his fulfilled desire, placed two bangles of solid gold round Babajan’s wrists. At the earliest opportunity, an unknown person snatched away the bangles so very roughly that it gave her wrist a nasty cut which bled profusely.

Hazrat Babajan‘s spiritual status in the hierarchy of saints is that of Qutub. Literally the word Qutub means a peg or a pin, and a Qutub functioning on the physical plane is the hub round which the universe revolves. After a spiritual sojourn of about 35 years in Poona, Hazrat Babajan left her mortal coil on 21st September 1931 at the ripe old age of 125 years. Her funeral procession was tremendous affair, never accorded to any dignitary or royalty in the annals of Poona. Her remains were laid at rest at the very spot underneath the neem tree where she sat and dispensed Divine Grace for such a long number of years.

Babajan’s seat being in the Cantonment area, everyone though that the military authorities would refuse permission for Babajan’s burial within their limits. The trustees saw and proposed many sites in different parts of the city, but there was no unanimity amongst them about any one particular spot. One day they decided to approach Babajan herself and settled the question of her burial ground direct. No sooner they approached her, Babajan flew into rage at the sight of them and said, “Get away from here. How can the dead show concern for the living? I am not going to leave this place.” Thus Babajan decided the question of her burial ground at the same time conveyed to them that materially – minded people are more dead than alive.

At one time a man attempted to steal a costly shawl covering her body while asleep, but he set up its removal rather risky, as some part of it was kept underneath her torso. Babajan instinctively raised herself bodily a little, thereby helping the thief to accomplish the aim. On some other occasion, a person from Bombay, in token of his fulfilled desire, placed two bangles of solid gold round Babajan’s wrists. At the earliest opportunity, an unknown person snatched away the bangles so very roughly that it gave her wrist a nasty cut which bled profusely.

Hazrat Babajan‘s spiritual status in the pecking order of saints is that of Qutub. Literally the word Qutub means a peg or a pin, and a Qutub functInn on the physical plane is the hub round which the universe goes around. Later on a spiritual sojourn of about 35 years in Poona, Hazrat Babajan left her mortal coil on 21st September 1931 at the ripe old age of 125 years. Her funeral procession was tremendous social occasion, never accorded to any dignitary or royalty in the annals of Poona. Her remains were placed at ease at the very spot underneath the name tree where she sat and dispensed Divine Grace for such a long number of years.

The Babajan’s seat being in the Cantonment area, everyone believed that the military authorities would deny permission for Babajan’s burial within their boundaries. The trustees saw and proposed many sites in different regions of the urban center, but in that location was no unanimity amongst them about any one peculiar place. One day they decided to approach Babajan herself and settled the doubt of her burial ground direct. No sooner they came near her, Babajan flew into rage at the peck of them and said, “Get out from here. How can the dead show concern for the support? I am not surviving to give this place.” Thus Babajan decided the inquiry of her burying ground at the same time conveyed to them that materially – minded people are more dead than live.