Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari (1318–1389) was the founder of the influential Naqshbandi Sufi order. He was born in what is now Uzbekistan and received his early spiritual training from Baba Muhammad Sammasi and Amir Kulal, the last link in the chain of teachers before him. He is notable for receiving instruction in silent dhikr from the ruhaniya of Abdul Khaliq Gajadwani, establishing silent dhikr as the normative practice for the Naqshbandi order. He died and was buried in his native village of Qasr-i Arifan, where a tomb was

1. Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari (1318–1389) was the founder of what would become one of
the largest and most influential SufiMuslim orders, the Naqshbandi.
Concerning his life much information is lacking. This is not surprising since he forbade his
followers to record anything of his deeds or sayings during his lifetime, and writings composed
soon after his death, such as the Anis at-Talibin of Salah ad-Din Muhammad Bukhari (d. 1383),
concentrate upon matters of spiritual and moral interest.
Early life and education
Baha-ud-Din was born on 18 March, 1318 CE (14 Muharram, 718 AH) in the village of Qasr-i-
Hinduvan (later renamed Qasr-i Arifan) near Bukhara, in what is now Uzbekistanand it was there
that he died in 1389.[1] Most of his life was spent in Bukhara, Khwarezm and contiguous areas
of Transoxiana, in keeping with the principle of "journeying within the homeland" (a practise
mentioned in "The Sacred Words"),and in Omar Ali-Shah's: "The Rules or Secrets of the
Naqshbandi Order", and the only long journeys he undertook were for the performance of hajj on
two occasions.
He came into early contact with the Khwajagan (lit: the Masters), and was adopted as spiritual
progeny by one of them, Baba Muhammad Sammasi, while still an infant. Sammasi was his first
guide on the path, and more important was his relationship with Sammasi's
principal khalifa (successor), Amir Kulal, the last link in the silsila, or chain of teachers, before
Baha-ud-Din.
It was from Amir Kulal that Baha-ud-Din received his fundamental training on the path and
whose company he kept for many years. Still more significant, however, was the instruction
Baha-ud-Din received in the method of silent dhikr from the ruhaniya of Abdul Khaliq
Gajadwani (ruhaniya refers to an initiation dispensed by the spiritual being of a departed
preceptor). Although he was a spiritual descendant of Abdul Khaliq, Amir Kulal practised vocal
dhikr, and after Baha-ud-Din received instruction in silent dhikr, he would absent himself from
Amir Kulal's circle of followers whenever they engaged in dhikr of the tongue. This separation
of Baha-ud-din from Amir Kulal's circle may be thought of as marking the final crystallization of
the Naqshbandiya, with silent dhikr, received from Abdul Khaliq and ultimately inherited from
Abu Bakr, established as normative for the order, various later deviations nontwithstanding.
Death
Baha-ud-Din was buried in his native village, Qasr-i Arifan, in 1389. In 1544 Khan Abd al-
Aziz built over his grave a tomb and surrounding buildings. The Memorial complex is located 12
kilometers from Bukhara and is today a place of pilgrimage.