- Zahed Gilani
The mystic Taj Al-Din Ebrahim ibn Rushan Amir Al-Kordi Al-
Sanjan i (or Sinjani) (1216 – 1301) ( _ar. تاج الدين ابراهيم الكردي السنجاني), titledSheikh Zahed (or Zahid) Gilani, was Grandmaster (Murshid Kamil) of the famedZahediyeh Sufi Order atLahijan .Since the mid 13th century, Sheikh Zahed is revered as a spiritual authority and his tomb near
Lahijan inIran 'sGilan Province, on the shores of theCaspian Sea , draws numerous pilgrims to the picturesque village ofSheikhanvar . His ancestors hailed from the ancient city ofSanjan in Iran. Fleeing theSeljuq invasion that would eventually conquer large parts of Persia, his ancestors settled in Gilan in the late 11th century. Sheikh Zahed Gilani was able to attain cultural and religious influence on theIlkhanid rulers (1256-1353), descendants ofGenghis Khan , who followed Seljuq rule.The Sheikh's most notable disciple was Sheikh
Safi Al-Din Ardebil i (1252-1334), theEponym of theSafavid Dynasty (1501-1722). He wed Sheikh Zahed's daughter Bibi Fatemeh and, overgoing the interest ofShaikh Zahed's firstborn son, Gamal Al-Din Ali, was entrusted with the Grand Master'sZahediyeh Sufi Order, which he transformed into his own, theSafaviyeh (Safavid) Order. Some 170 years after Sheikh Safi Al-Din's death, the Safaviyeh had gained sufficient political and military power to claim the Throne of (Northern) Iran for theSafavid Heir,Shah Ismail I Safavi. The Sheikh's second-born son, Sadr Al-Din, wed Sheikh Safi Al-Din's daughter from a previous marriage. The two families were to be intertwined for many centuries to come, by blood as well as mutual spiritual causes.The
Sil-silat-al-nasab-e Safaviyeh or "Genealogy of the Safavids," was written by SheikhPir Hossein AbdulZahedi , a 17th century descendant of Sheikh Zahed Gilani. Thishagiography in praise of the Safavid forebearers, was devoted to the genealogy of the Safavid Sufi masters.The Turkish
Bayrami andJelveti orders also had their origin in Sheikh Zahed Gilani'sZahediyeh Sufi Order.*Other transliterations: Tajeddin, Tajoddin, Tajoldin
References
* E.G. Browne. "Literary History of Persia". (Four volumes, 2,256 pages, and twenty-five years in the writing). 1998. ISBN 0-7007-0406-X
* Jan Rypka, "History of Iranian Literature". Reidel Publishing Company. 1968 OCLC|460598. ISBN 90-277-0143-1
* Monika Gronke, "Derwische im Vorhof der Macht". Sozial- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte Nordwestirans im 13. und 14. Jahrhundert. Wiesbaden 1993ee also
*
List of Persian poets and authors
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