Whoever remembered Hazrat from the depths of his heart,

Became absorbed in the sea of love,

He began reciting then, this verse with zeal.

Salutations to you, Oh Commander of Chishtia.

Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Ahmad Abdal Farasnafah Chishti (رضی اللہ) was a great saint and the successor Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Is’haq Shami Chishti (رضی اللہ), the founder of the Chishtiah Silsilah. His contemporaries acknowledged him as an Abdal, hence his title 'Qutab al-Abdal' (the axis of the substitute saints). He was the son of Sultan Faransafah and his lineage is linked to Hazrat Imam Hussain (عليه السلام). His aunt was a saintly woman, and was devoted to Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Is’haq Shami Chishti (رضی اللہ). Occasionally the master of the Chishtiah silsilah would partake of meals with her husband at her house. One day he remarked that in the house of her brother (sultan), a very pious child was to be born, he instructed her to go there and ensure that the queen ate no doubtful food during her pregnancy. It was this level of care, even before his birth that contributed greatly to the future wilayah of Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Ahmad Abdal Farasnafah Chishti (رضی اللہ) after his birth, his aunt took it upon Her Self to raise him, with the result that he used to live more with her than with his parents.

Whenever Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Is’haq Shami Chishti (رضی اللہ) used to visit the house, he used to remark that he smelt the fragrance of sainthood. At the age of seven, he began to attend the Sama gatherings of his future murshid. Seeing this, Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Is’haq Shami Chishti (رضی اللہ) said, "(Only) lovers should attend Sama, and you are indeed worthy!"

The barakah of these blessed words removed all the veils from his eyes, so that nothing in heaven or earth was hidden from his vision.

Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Ahmad Abdal Farasnafah Chishti (رضی اللہ) at this young age, whatever he prophesied came to pass, and the great people of his time showed tremendous respect towards him. When Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Ahmad Abdal Farasnafah Chishti (رضی اللہ) was twenty, he accompanied his father on a hunting expedition only to find himself separated from the king's party. It happened that he wandered onto a barren plain in front of a mountain, upon which he saw forty Auliya Allah standing in the presence of Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Is’haq Shami Chishti (رضی اللہ) out of respect. Thus was the greatness of the master of Chisht emphatically revealed to him, immediately he alighted from his horse and kissed his foot, than he put off his princely garb and donned the Khirqah.

The family of the sultan was distraught at this turn of events, and the king himself came to cajole, plead and eventually threaten his son to return but to no avail. Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Ahmad Abdal Farasnafah Chishti (رضی اللہ) remained with his murshid and became a Sufi of the first spiritual rank. He used to remain engrossed in Zikar, regularly performing the continuous fasts. It is also reported that he used to complete the recitation of the Quran twice every day. For seven continuous years, he never missed tahajud and it was his practice that afterwards he used to make the following dua; "Oh Allah (جل جلاله), Have mercy on your servants! Forgive the sinners from the Community of Huzoor Nabi Kareem (ﷺ).”

Thereafter, a voice used to say: "Oh Abu Ahmad! We have accepted your Dua and through it have forgiven ten thousand sinners. On the Day of Qiyamah, they will enter Paradise with you."

It happened that his father had a large winery wherein he used to store all his liquor. One day Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Ahmad Abdal Farasnafah Chishti (رضی اللہ) returned to this place and destroyed all the wine stocks. When the sultan saw this, he became enraged and hurled a large rock at the saint. However, by the power of Allah (جل جلاله) it was suspended in the mid-air, injuring no one. Awed by this miracle, the sultan immediately asked forgiveness from Allah (جل جلاله) and became a disciple of his son. Once he was found by a group of infidels whose hatred of Muslims was so intense that they used to burn alive any that they captured. When they taunted him as to his fate, he replied serenely, "The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) has said that fire cannot burn one in whose heart there is true faith." To prove his point as he approached the blaze, he willingly laid down his musallah and calmly entered the fire. When the Kuffar saw that the fire did not burn the great saint, they immediately repented and converted en masse.

Hazrat Khuwaja Abu Ahmad Abdal Farasnafah Chishti (رضی اللہ) is regarded as a patriarch of the Chishtiah order. He attained Unity on the 1st or 3rd of Jamad Us Sani 355 AH and lies buried in the village of Chisht, present day Afghanistan.