Our brother Green Sufi has posted a picture of Hz Qudratullah Shahab here. Shahab was well known as a civil servant and writer during his life. His autobiography Shahab Nama has become something of a modern classic. However what was not known during his life was that Shahab sahib was also an Uwaysi/Malami sufi who had kept his spiritual life hidden. The great disclosure came in the final chapter of his autobiography which was published after he had passed away. Since then there has been much debate about its truth amongst Pakistani “intellectuals”. Even his close friend Mumtaz Mufti who had been the first to draw attention to this aspect of Shahab’s personality had not been aware of the full details.

Muftiji has written a great deal about Shahab especially in the second part of his autobiography called Alakh Nagri. He observed that Shahab was a man of great intelligence with a photographic memory. Two of the dominant features of his personality were humilty and silence. He was religious but did not wear his religion on his cuff. He accepted all types of people and did not try to paint people in his own colors. He was a man of refined character who was happy to serve his fellow beings in whatever capacity he could without talking about it or making a show about it. Most importantly he never let any of his spiritual attainments surface either in words or behavior. For many Shahab sahib has been an inspiration. He has shown that even in these times a man can lead a full life “in the world” whilst remaining fully focused on the Real Purpose for which he was created.

Insha’Allah I hope to translate some passages from the last chapter of Shahab Nama which has the merit of focusing on the essential aspects of the path to God in a clear and concise manner.