Al-Shaykh Al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi

The Shaykh al-Sayyid Ahmad Al-Badawi was a Muslim saint and founder of the Badawiyyah Tariqah. He was born in Fez, Morocco in 596 AH and died in Tanta, Egypt in 675 AH. He was noted for his ascetic behavior, and was credited with many karamat

Many false stories have unfortunately also been attributed to him, including by those who claim to be Sufi teachers.

According to the famous Muslim writer al-Sayyid Muhammad Murtada al-Zabidi (d. 1205 AH), the full genealogy of al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi is Ahmad ibn `Ali ibn Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr ibn Isma`il ibn `Umar ibn `Ali ibn Uthman ibn al-Husayn ibn Muhammad ibn Musa al-Ashhab ibn Yahya ibn `Isa ibn `Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Hasan ibn Ja`far ibn `Ali al-Hadi ibn Muhammad al-Jawad ibn `Ali ar-Rida ibn Musa al-Kazim ibn Ja`far al-Sadiq ibn Muhammad al-Baqir ibn [Zain al-`Abidin] `Ali ibn al-Husayn ibn Fatimah, daughter of the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah shower blessings and peace upon him and his family members.

Al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi was the youngest of the seven children of al-Sayyid 'Ali. His siblings were al-Hasan (the eldest, born in 583 AH), Muhammad, Fatimah, Zainab, Ruqayyah, and Fiddah.

Even from a young age, al-Sayyid Ahmad was already known as al-Badawi (the bedouin) as he liked to cover his face, imitating the behaviour of the desert dwellers.

And while he was still living in Fez, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi was brought by his brother al-Sayyid al-Hasan to meet a Sufi shaykh by the name of `Abd al-Jalil ibn `Abd al-Rahman al-Naisaburi, who recognized the spiritual talent of the young boy and gave him initiation into the Sufi path.

In 603 AH, al-Sayyid 'Ali heard a voice in his dream telling him to migrate to Makkah al-Mukarramah. So he took his family, including the seven year old al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi, to move to Makkah al-Mukarramah. The journey took approximately four years. They stopped at several places including Cairo, which at that time was under the rule of al-Sultan Sayfuddin al-`Adil al-Ayyubi.

When they finally reached Makkah al-Mukarramah, they were warmly welcomed by the leaders of the shurafa' (descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah shower blessings and peace upon him and his family members).

In Makkah al-Mukarramah, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi studied and memorized the Quran. He also attended lessons on al-Hadith and on al-Fiqh based on the madhhab (school of thought in Islamic jurispudence) of al-Imam al-Shafi'i.

After being introduced to the world of Sufism, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi would spent a lot of his time in spiritual seclusion. One of his favourite spots was on Jabal Abi Qubais, which is located near Masjid al-Haram.

In 633 AH, in a vision, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi was spiritually visited by al-Shaykh 'Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani (d. 561 AH) and al-Shaykh Ahmad al-Rifa'i (d. 578 AH) who invited him to visit their tombs.

The next day, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi left Makkah al-Mukarramah and set out to visit the tombs of the righteous ones in Iraq, accompanied by his elder brother al-Sayyid al-Hasan.

Before they reached Umm 'Abidah, the resting place of al-Shaykh Ahmad al-Rifa'i, al-Sayyid al-Hasan decided to go back to Makkah al-Mukarramah for he missed his family. Al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi continued his journey alone and met with many adventures including defeating the enchantress called Fatimah near Umm 'Abidah.

In one of the most misquoted anecdotes, it was related that while al-Shaykh Ahmad al-Badawi was in Iraq, he was offered by al-Shaykh 'Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani and al-Shaykh Ahmad al-Rifa'i [in their spiritual forms] the keys to the spiritual kingdoms of Iraq, Yemen, India, Iconium, and all the Muslim lands in the East and the West, for the keys were in their hands.

Al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi politely declined. According to one version of the story, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi said that he would only take the keys from the hand of the Prophet Muhammad himself, may Allah shower blessings and peace upon him and his family members.

After visiting the tombs of the pious ones in Iraq, including that of his ancestor al-Imam Musa al-Kazim, and receving further spiritual illumination after spending some time in meditation there, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi headed home.

Back in Makkah al-Mukarramah, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi reported to his brother al-Sayyid al-Hasan on the offer of the keys to the spiritual kingdoms by the two spiritual poles al-Shaykh 'Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani and al-Shaykh Ahmad al-Rifa'i.

Al-Sayyid al-Hasan told his younger brother, "Verily, inviting people to the path of Allah is the key to goodness. What al-Shaykh 'Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani and al-Shaykh Ahmad al-Rifa'i had wanted was that you follow their path in inviting people to God. And their path is none other than following the Quran and the Sunnah. This is the true path (tariqah) in Islam."

Al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi concurred with and appreciated the explanation given by his elder brother al-Sayyid al-Hasan.

In the month of Ramadan 634 AH, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi received a spiritual command asking him to migrate to Tanta, Egypt. Without delay, he left Makkah al-Mukarramah and departed for Tanta.

After reaching Tanta, al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi stayed at the home of a trader by the name of Rukain (also known as Ruknuddin) ibn Shuhait.

Al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi was very well received in Tanta. Many people came to visit him, for they benefitted from his presence and his teachings, and also from the barakah that flowed through him.

It was reported that al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi once said, "The spiritual paupers (al-fuqara') are like the olive fruit. Among them are the great ones and among them are the small ones. For those who do not possess "oil", I will be their "oil". I will aid them in all their affairs and I will also help them overcome their difficulties. Not on my own efforts and strengths, but through the barakah of the Prophet, may Allah shower blessings and peace upon him and his family members."

After the death of al-Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi in Tanta, his followers came to visit his tomb regularly. Today, three special annual festivals are celebrated in his honour, the centre of which are held at the mosque bearing his name. The largest of these festivals is very popular and is attended by up to three million people from all walks of life in Egypt [and some parts of Sudan].