14-05-2025
621th Urs-e-Sharif of 14th-century Sufi saint Hazrath Khwaja Banda Nawaz Gesudaraz begins with sandal rituals in Kalaburagi
The 621th Urs-e-Sharif of 14th-century Sufi saint Hazrath Khwaja Banda Nawaz Gesudaraz began with sandal rituals on Wednesday on the dargah premises in Kalaburagi city.
The four-day religious proceedings begin with 'Khidmat-I Fatiha', 'Band Sama'', and then distribution of tabarruk at Dargah Shareef followed by Namaaz-e-Asar at the Mehboob Gulshan public garden.
Sajjada Nasheen Syed Muhammad Ali Al-Hussaini presided over a special prayer prior to the sandal procession at Mehboob Gulshan garden. The procession carrying the sandal paste commenced from the garden and reached the Dargah Sharif, where it was received at the 'Gyarah Sidi' (eleven steps) leading to the Dargah Sharif tomb.
This was the first time that Syed Muhammad Ali Al-Hussaini was presiding over the ceremonies and ritual observances after being anointed as the 24th Sajjada Nasheen of the dargah, following the passing away of former Sajjada Nasheen Syed Shah Khusro Hussaini in November last year.
The urs of the saint takes place on the 15th day of Zul-Qa'dah of the Muslim calendar. Thousands of devotees from different States thronged the city to participate in the sandal procession on Wednesday.
The first three days of the fortnight urs includes ceremonial verses, religious speeches, and qawwali programmes on the dargah premises.
