Shah Jalal - Later Life

Later Life

During the later stages of his life, Shah Jalal devoted himself to propagating Islam. Under his guidance, thousands of Hindus and Buddhists converted to Islam. Shah Jalal became so renowned that the famous traveller Ibn Battuta, then in Chittagong, made a one-month journey through the mountains of Kamaru near Sylhet to meet him. On his way to Sylhet, Ibn Batuta was greeted by several of Shah Jalal's disciples who had come to assist him on his journey many days before he had arrived. At the meeting in 1345 CE, Ibn Batuta noted that Shah Jalal was tall and lean, fair in complexion and lived by the mosque in a cave, where his only item of value was a goat he kept for milk, butter, and yogurt. He observed that the companions of the Shah Jalal were foreign and known for their strength and bravery. He also mentions that many people would visit the Shah to seek guidance.

The meeting between Ibn Batuta and Shah Jalal is described in his Arabic travelogue, Rihla (The Journey). Amir Khusrau also gives an account of Shah Jalal's conquest of Sylhet in his book Afdalul Hawaade. Even today in Hadramaut, Yemen, Shah Jalal's name is established in folklore.

The exact date of his death is unknown, but he is reported by Ibn Batuta to have died in 746 AH (1347 CE). He left behind two descendants, with many still living in Sylhet today. He is buried in Sylhet in his Dargah (tomb), which is located in a neighborhood now known as Dargah Mohalla. His shrine is famous in Sylhet and throughout Bangladesh, with hundreds of devotees visiting daily. The largest mosque in Sylhet was built at the Dargah (also one of the largest in Bangladesh).