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Sayyid Ball Hamadani (714/1314 - 786/1385) is a major Sufi figure with two shrines-one marking the place of his death, the other his burial site-and a major khanqah complex associated with him. The three sites are in three different countries, and he is the patron saint of an entire ethnic group, the Kashmiri Muslims. Yet there is no noteworthy shrine cult associated with him, nor do people piously recall stories of miracles or charisma as the most cherished aspects of his biography. His authority appears to have derived in large part from his aristocratic Iranian background, his intellectual credentials as one of the most productive scholars in what came to be known as the Kubrawi tradition, and perhaps from his status as the nephew of the important Kubrawi shaykh, 'Ala aldawla Simnani (d. 736/1336).1 Early biographical writings concerning him endow him with behavioral characteristics typical of Sufi masters in his environment. Several generations after his death, Hamadani was elevated above the status of ordinary Sufi shaykh by being accorded qualities reminiscent of the Prophet Muhammad.
In modern times, his resemblance to the Prophet has been consolidated in hagiographical writings in Pakistan and Kashmir, where he is popularly revered as the source of Islam in the region. He is the subject of several poems, including one by the famous philosopher-poet, Muhammad Iqbal. He is known variously as `The Second 'Ali' (,Ali-yi sani), `The King of Hamadan' (Shah-i Hamadan), `The Great Prince' (Amir-i kabir), or by his full name preceded by the honorific title `Mir.' The Shah-i Hamadan International Association was formed in 1986 to provide a forum for religious devotees and scholars to share their reflections on him. The second annual Shah-i Ramadan International Conference was held in 1993 in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Azad Kashmir (the part of Kashmir controlled by Pakistan and the closest Pakistanis can legally get to Hamadan's khanqah in Srinagar); it was sponsored by Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan, President of Azad Kashmir, and presided over by Nawaz Sharif, the Prime Minister of Pakistan.2 The following year, the conference was held in Tajikistan, the country where Hamadani is buried, and the year after that in the small village of Nowkot in Pakistan where he died.
Given his importance, it is surprising that...