Hazrat Khwaja Bande Nawaz Gesu Daraz - Gulbarga

Neither Hindu nor Muslim
I sit with all on a whim
Having no caste, sect or creed,
I am different indeed.
I am not a sinner or saint,
Knowing no sin nor restraint.
Bulleh tries hard to shirk
The exclusive embrace
of either Hindu or Turk.
--Bulleh Shah

Bande Nawaz Dargah

It is widely known, that Islam in India was spread much less by the sword than by the Sufis. After all, Sufism, with its holy men, visions and miracles, and its emphasis on the individual's search for union with God, has always borne remarkable similarities to the mystical side of Hinduism. Under Sufi influence it was particularly at the level of village folk worship that the two religions fused into one, with many ordinary Hindus visiting the graves of Sufi pirs - some of whom are still considered to be incarnations of Hindu deities - while Muslim villagers would leave offerings at temples to ensure the birth of children and good harvests. To this day, Sufi dargahs still attract as many Hindu, Sikh and Christian pilgrims as they do Muslims

Dargha hostel

The 14th Century Sufi saint was a disciple of Hazarath Khwaja Pir Naseeruddin Mahmood also popularly known as Chirag of Delhi. Khwaja Bande Nawaz played an important role in preaching Islam in India during the 14th Century. Khwaja, who had his formal education in Islamic and Koranic studies, Arabic grammar, prophetic traditions, theology, law and jurisprudence, philosophy, and Sufism under the watchful eye of Chirag of Delhi, also underwent training in the mystic path and mastered it at a young age. The Sufi saint settled down in Gulbarga on the invitation of Bahamani King Firuz Shaha Bahamani. For the next 22 years, till his death at the age of 105 years, Khwaja made Gulbarga his home and spread the message of universal brotherhood from here.