The Life of Sheikh Abu’l-Hasan Kharaqani His Teachers and His Sufi Identity in The Context of Mysticism
Authors: Celep Halil 
Published: December 2022

In this study, the Sufi identity of Sheikh Abu’l-Hasan Kharaqani, one of the Khorasan masters who lived in the 4th and 5th centuries of the Hijri era and who has not been sufficiently recognized or introduced in our country until recently, is discussed. Kharaqani was born in the village of Kharaqan in the north of the town of Bestam in the Semnan province of Iran in 352 Hijr as the child of a poor family. Although his real name was Ali, he became famous with the name Kharaqani because of the village of Kharaqan where he was born. As for Kharaqani’s education, almost all sources state that he was an illiterate at first, but later, by the grace of Allah, he learned the sciences and was endowed with innate knowledge. In addition, according to the information provided by limited sources, Kharaqani’s spiritual mentor and teacher, whom he met face to face, participated in his conversations and learned from him, was Shaykh Abu’l-‘Abbas Kassab-i ‘Amuli. The other was his spiritual sheikh and teacher, Bayezid Bistami, the sultan of the sultans, who lived about a century before him. It is known that Kharaqani received education from these masters and developed himself both intellectually and spiritually. Although there is no information about Kharaqani’s lineage and parents, there is some limited information about his wife and children. According to rumors, Kharaqani had two sons, one named Abu’l-Qasim, who for some unknown reason was suddenly beheaded one night and left at the door of his father's lodge, and the other, Ahmad, who continued his father’s legacy as a Sufi by continuing to live after him. When we look at the available sources, we see that although Kharaqani was accepted in Sufi circles as the sea of sorrow, the divine sun, the pole of the century, the sultan of the reigning sheikhs, the sultan of the people of tariqa and truth, and the sole imam, his wife, who was his closest and life partner, never accepted this spiritual aspect of him. One of the most debated issues about Sheikh Abu’l-Hasan Kharaqani today is about his grave. There are two different opinions about the place of his death and the location of his tomb. According to the first view, Kharaqani died in 425 AH (December 11, 1033) at the age of 73 in the village of Kharaqan, where he was born, and was buried there. According to the second view, which belongs to the Ottoman authors, Sheikh Abu’l-Hasan Kharaqani died outside the village of Kharaqan in Bestam, and there are even authentic sources that say that his tomb is located in the Turkish city of Kars. In addition, although there is no reliable information in the sources about when, how and for what purpose the sheikh came to Kars and how he died, Awliya Chalabi’s words about the disclosure of the sheikh’s grave led to the belief in and around Kars that Sheikh Kharaqani participated in the conquest of Kars and was martyred there. Kharaqani, also known as the man of the heart, has deeply influenced many Sufi figures in Sufi culture, as well as many sects. Kharaqani has always been praised by his contemporaries and the scholar Sufis who lived after him for leaving deep traces. This means that Kharaqani has a real weight in the history of Sufism, and that he has a superior intelligence and value alongside famous Sufis. Sheikh Kharaqani was a Sufi who internalized Islam wholeheartedly, who not only spoke eloquently, but also lived what he said; who embraced both the education and the marifah dimension of Sufism, both the line of asceticism and the line of wisdom, both the shari'a and the tariqa. Although it is not possible to discuss his multifaceted Sufism in detail in an article, we have tried to evaluate some of his views such as tawhid, murshid, disciple, tolerance, mujahada and faqr under subheadings.