'The Kashful Mahjub «Unveiling the Veiled»: The Earliest Persian Treatise on Sufism'.
Translation with special commentary by Maulana Wahid Bakhsh Rabbani.
Syed Ali bin Uthman al-Hujweri, popularly known as Data Ganj Bakhsh (Bestower of Spiritual Treasures) belonged to a place called Hujwer in the town of Ghazna, Afghanistan. He lived during the 5th century A.H. (11th century A.D.) and was well versed in all the Islamic sciences such as Tafsir (exegesis) of the Qur'an, Hadith (Traditions of the Prophet), Fiqh (Muslim Law) and dogmatic theology (Ilmu Kalam). Al-Hujweri's spiritual lineage traces back to Hadhrat Junaid Baghdadi through the three intermediaries al-Husri, an-Nasrabi, and Shibli. In the course of his spiritual journey to God, he journeyed physically to many countries, often alone and with hardship. These places included Turkestan, Transoxania, Iran, Iraq, and Syria where he met innumerable Sufi shaikhs, many of whom he has mentioned in this book. He went to Lahore in the later part of this life to spread Islam, converting large numbers of Hindus into Muslims. He passed away in Lahore in 469 A.H. (1077 A.D.) where his maqam currently stands, visited by people of all walks of life, from near and far. Starting from the life of the Prophet's brimful experience of Divine nearness, Presence, Union and Communion, this book describes the spiritual experiences of the Companions of the Prophet, Companions of the Companions (tabi'in), their Companions (taba-tabi'in), and the Imams (heads) of the four schools of Islamic law (Ahli Sunnah wal Jama'ah ), showing in truth, «when Sufism was made to leave Islam,» and that it is not the so called question of «when Sufism 'entered' Islam.» This book also explains the various aspects of Sufism in a thorough yet simple manner. This Edition of Kashful Mahjub, contains for the first time ever, an invaluable comprehensive English Commentary by a practising Sufi Shaikh further clarifying in today's language and context, the various subtleties of Sufism in an understandable form rarely found elsewhere.