Kashmir, also referred to as the paradise on earth, is a place where nature’s majesty rubs shoulders with the spirituality of its depths. Its white-capped mountains, meandering streams, and verdant valleys are not just marvels of creation but also quiet testaments to the footprints of saints who trod this earth with hearts aglow with divine love. The valley has been blessed through history with great friends of Allah whose company made its soil a sanctuary of belief. Among the myriad of saints who illuminated here, the likes of Hazrat Amir Kabir Mir Syed Ali Hamadani (RA), Hazrat Sheikh Nooruddin Noorani Nund Reshi (RA), Baba Naseebuddin Ghazi (RA), Baba Shakuruddin (RA), Baba Reshi (RA), Hazrat Zainuddin Wali (RA) light up the spiritual galaxy of Kashmir. Among such giants, the name of Hazrat Roup Reshi (RA) shines with a unique brilliance, as his life was the ideal reflection of piety, humility, and nearness to Allah, and his miracles still inspire belief in millions of hearts.
The shrine of Hazrat Roup Reshi (RA) is in the village of Kuchmulla in Tral, where each stone bears the scent of his memory and each gust whispers blessings from his aura. Being a village dweller, I have seen how individuals from far and wide come to his shrine with hope in their eyes and prayers in their hearts, and depart with an inner peace that defies expression in words. Historical records state that there were two saints by the name of Roup Reshi, one at Habbah Kadal in Srinagar and the other in Kuchmulla, both contemporaries of Baba Naseebuddin Ghazi (RA) and highly respected by the people of those times.
Hazrat Roup Reshi (RA) was born in the village of Largam, which is two kilometers from Kuchmulla. From his very childhood, he renounced worldly pleasures and immersed himself in the remembrance of Allah. He was a shepherd immersed in zikr (remembrance of Allah), and his proximity to the Almighty was so intimate that even a lion would guard his flock , the folklore has it- a miraculous occurrence still retold in wonder by the elders.
He trod the path of spirituality guided by divine wisdom from Allah, without any earthly teacher, a special boon reserved only for the purest of souls. As a member of the Rishi fraternity, he spurned luxuries and eschewed meat, fish, and eggs in his entire life. Even today, on his Urs, the Kuchmulla folk revere this practice by not taking these foods to recall his selfless example of austerity and dedication.
Historical accounts such as Tarikh-i-Hassan report his years in intense withdrawal in the Kali Paadin forest, not far from Largam, where he would fast for long months and worship, at times fasting only for three days and subsisting on the bare minimum. His love was for Hazrat Sheikh Nooruddin Noorani (RA), whose poems he memorized and recited to propagate divine love. His miracles are still imprinted in the valley’s memory. One of them is the well-known tale of the Sheikh family of Kuchmulla, who accepted Islam after coming in contact with him. Their forefather, Ziyon, a blind Hindu, was taken to the saint, and Hazrat Roup Reshi (RA) instructed his mother that if she let her son accept Islam, he would regain his eyesight. She consented, and through the will of Allah, the blind man recovered his sight, embraced Islam as Sheikh Inayatullah, and established himself in Kuchmulla. His offspring remain there to this day, ever proud of their heritage. The Sheikh family then rose to prominence as Zaldars, influential landlords and respected leaders.
Hazrat Roup Reshi (RA) passed his last days in Kuchmulla, in which he realized union with his Creator. Legend has it that when the inhabitants of Largam came to claim his blessed body, the villagers of Kuchmulla had already laid him to rest in their land, where his shrine presently stands amidst an ancient graveyard and a mosque, both silently testifying to his eternal presence.
His Urs is celebrated annually on the 26th of Safar with deep faith. It is a tradition and a reverence for this saint that at this period meat, fish, and eggs should not be cooked, for when a family, at some point in time, broke this custom their kitchen was set alight. Even now, it is told in awe that a lion comes to pay his shrine a visit on Thursday nights, bowing as in worship, a living testament to his spiritual might.
In 1983, Roup Islamia High School was founded in Kuchmulla in his honor, as an epitome of knowledge to the generations and as a remembrance of his name forever with dignity. His life taught people selflessness, chasticity, and love for Allah, and that humanity has to learn that true greatness never consists of riches and dominance but of devotion and sincerity. His teachings inform us that love and trust are the real treasures of existence.
Now, when the world is drowning in materialism and divine ignorance, the teachings of Hazrat Roup Reshi (RA) are radiating like a lamp, showing the lost hearts the way towards the light of Allah. His mausoleum is still a refuge where hearts find peace, prayers receive solutions, and souls feel the warmth of divine love.
His legacy reminds us to purge our hearts of hate, to accept love and humility, and to live in faith and service to mankind. The atmosphere of Kashmir still carries the scent of his graciousness, and as long as this valley remains, his name shall keep on shining like a beacon illuminating believers’ hearts and reminding us of the fact that the way to success is the one that ends at Allah.
This is the tale of Hazrat Roup Reshi (RA), the illustrious Sufi of Kashmir, the very figure of piety, the miracle saint whose name and deeds shall never die.
The writer is a medical student. wania6817@gmail.com)
