Khwaja Ubaidullah Ahrar (1403-1490) was born in a poor family in
Shash (Tashkent). His father, Khwaja Mahmud Shashi, was a farmer and his
family went through hard times.They did not even have enough clothing to
keep themselves warm in winter. He always remembered his difficult
days, and this perhaps accounts for his great concern for the poor and the
destitute. He did not show any interest in acquiring a formal education.
One of his maternal uncles, Khwajah Ibrahim, was keen on having him
educated, but his efforts were unsuccessful.
Khwaja Ahrar believed in manual labour and personally set an example
of earning a living in this way.After acquiring spiritual training, he returned
to his native village and took to cultivating the land himself. He worked so
hard that very soon he was able to purchase 33 hundred villages, including
the famous village of Kashghar. He was one of the wealthiest Naqshbandi
saints, but his wealth did not make him vain. In fact, he regarded pride and
arrogance as the greatest moral evils. He believed that a mystic should not
succumb to pride and arrogance, for these were opposed to the principles
on which spiritual life rests. He was both modest and humane. Regarding
service to humanity to be of supreme spiritual value, he spared no effort in
helping the poor and the downtrodden.Without doubt his love and affection
for the people won the hearts of the high and the low alike. Babar held him
in inordinate esteem and considered him a source of spiritual guidance.
Once during the Khwaja’s stay in Samarqand, an epidemic broke out.
He himself attended the patients, even washing their soiled beds. He used
to say: “People have reached their spiritual goals through different gates. In
my case it has been through the door of service to mankind.” He said that
those who did not come to people’s assistance were as good as tyrants, and
that not only other human beings but also animals were deserving of
sympathy.
