Master of Quran and Hadis

1955 - 1960

Jamia Millia Islamia

Khwaja Hasan Sani Nizami received his primary education at home in a traditional Islamic scholarly environment, where he was immersed in religious and classical learning from an early age. He later pursued higher education at Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi, from which he graduated, building on his foundational knowledge with studies that emphasized Urdu literature and Islamic studies. Through his academic pursuits, Nizami developed an extensive expertise in Delhi's history, culture, and civic lineage, earning him the moniker "Encyclopedia of Delhi" among contemporaries who recognized his profound scholarly depth on the subject.

As a scion of the Nizami family—the hereditary custodians (sajjada nashins) of the dargah—he experienced early immersion in the rituals and ethos of the Chishti Order's Nizami branch, with the shrine serving as both home and spiritual cradle from infancy. This intimate familial and locational proximity fostered his initial encounters with Sufi practices, including dhikr (remembrance of God) and sama (spiritual listening), embedding the order's emphasis on love, humility, and devotion in his formative years.

His foundational exposure to tasawwuf—the mystical core of Islam blending ritual observance with inner spiritual realization—occurred through paternal family teachings and the pervasive shrine atmosphere. As the son of the eminent Chishti Sufi scholar and shrine custodian Khwaja Hasan Nizami (1878–1955), he absorbed guidance on Sufi principles from close kin steeped in the tradition, amid the dargah's daily confluence of pilgrims, scholars, and mystics who exemplified tasawwuf in action. While pursuing formal academic studies at Jamia Millia Islamia, these informal spiritual influences predominated, shaping his worldview beyond structured learning.

A pivotal element of his early spiritual development was his growing fondness for Qawwali, the ecstatic devotional music integral to Chishti expression, which he encountered amid the shrine's routine mehfil gatherings. Nurtured in this auditory landscape of poetic invocation and rhythmic praise, Nizami's affinity for Qawwali deepened into a lifelong commitment.

Khilafat

Year:

Murshid : Khwaja Hasan Nizami

• His initiation occurred under the guidance of Khwaja Hasan Nizami (d. 1955), a revered Chishti Saint from the Sabiri-Nizami lineage & his Father, whom Nizami accepted as his first spiritual master (murshid).
• As a spiritual successor (sajjadanasheen) in the Nizami family lineage connected to Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya, Nizami upheld the order's core principles of inner purification and ethical living, guiding adherents through personal mentorship and communal gatherings at the Hazrat Nizamuddin Dargah in Delhi. His leadership focused on preserving the Chishti emphasis on humility and service to humanity, ensuring the order's doctrines remained accessible and relevant in contemporary contexts without diluting their mystical essence.
• To sustain the intellectual heritage of the Chishti tradition, Nizami actively republished key historical texts that encapsulate the order's teachings, including works on Sufi mysticism and practice. He also authored publications such as Tasawwuf (Rasm Aur Haqeeqat), which delineates the rituals and realities of Sufi discipline within the Chishti framework, making these insights available to younger generations and scholars. Through such initiatives, he bridged classical Chishti scholarship with modern dissemination, countering the erosion of oral and textual traditions amid urbanization and secular influences.
• Nizami played a pivotal role in fostering the Chishti traditions of Sufi music (qawwali) and poetry by organizing annual events and mehfil gatherings at the Nizamuddin Dargah, which celebrated the devotional compositions of legendary figures like Amir Khusro, the 13th-century poet-musician closely associated with Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya. These events, drawing thousands of participants, preserved the performative aspects of Chishti spirituality, where qawwali serves as a medium for ecstatic remembrance (zikr) and communal harmony, linking historical legacies to living practice. By integrating these cultural elements into the shrine's routine, Nizami ensured the continuity of Chishti expressive traditions as vital tools for spiritual awakening.

Shajra Nizamia Naseeriya

• Ilahi Bahurmat Murshid Azam Huzur Mohammad Rasool Allah ﷺ
• Imam-ul-Auliya Hazrat Ali Bin Abi Talib A.S.
• Sheikh-ul-Azam Hazrat Khwaja Hasan Basri R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Abdul Wahid Bin Zaid R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Fuzail Bin Ayaz R.A.
• Hazrat Sultan Ibrahim Adham Balkhi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Sadiduddin Huzafatul Marashi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Aminuddin Abi Hubairatul Basri R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Mumshad Alu Dainuri R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Abu Ishaq Shami Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Abu Ahmed Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Abu Mohammad Chishti R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Abu Yusuf Naasiruddin Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Syed Qutabuddin Modud Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Hazi Sharif Zindanni Chisthi R.A.
• Khwaja Azam Hazrat Khwaja Usman Harooni Chisthi R.A.
• Nayab Rasool Allah Fil-Hind Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chisthi Ajmeri Garib Nawaz R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Qutabbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Baba Fariduddin Masood Ganj-e-shakar Chisthi R.A.
• Sare Silsila Nizamia Mahboob-e-ilahi Hazrat Khwaja Syed Nizamuddin Mohammad Auliya Chisthi Dehlavi R.A.
• Hazrat Makhdoom Nasiruddin Mahmood Chirag Dehlavi R.A.
• Hazrat Sheikh Kamaluddin Ulama Chisthi Dehlavi R.A.
• Hazrat Sheikh Sirajuddin Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Sheikh Alamuddin Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Sheikh Mahmood urf Sheikh Rajan Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Sheikh Jamaluddin urf Jumman Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Hasan Mohammad Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Sheikh Mohammad Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Sheikh Yahiya Madani Chisthi R.A.
• Hazarat Khwaja Sheikh Kaleemullah Jahanaabadi Chisthi R.A.
• Hazrat Khwaja Nizamuddin Aurangabadi Chisthi R.A.
• Mujaddid-ul-Islam Hazrat Molana Mohammad Fakhruddin Chisthi Dehlavi R.A.
• Hazrat Qibla Alam Molana Noor Mohammad Maharavi Chisthi R.A.
• Imam-ul-Huda Hazrat Molana Shah Suleman Taunsvi Chisthi R.A.
• Noorul Awwaleen wal Akhireen Hazrat Molana Shamsuddin Sayalvi Chisthi R.A.
• Hajjatullah Fizamanul Hazir Hazrat Molana Peer Meher Ali Shah Chisthi R.A.
• Shamsul Ulama Imamul Mashaikh Hazrat Khwaja Syed Hasan Nizami R.A.
• Fakhr-e-Delhi va Fakhr-e-Hindusthan Humrang-e-Mehboob-e-Ilahi Hazrat Khwaja Syed Hasan Sani Nizami R.A.
• Fakhr-e-Delhi Dilruba-e-Shaheedane-Khwajgan Hazrat Khwaja Syed Mohammad Nizami R.A.
• Khakpaye Warisane Khwajgan Khwaja Syed Mohammad Shafi Nizami

Urdu

Hindi

Dargah Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya

1931-2015

Sajadqa Nasheen

Khwaja Hasan Sani Nizami succeeded his father, Khwaja Hasan Nizami, as Sajjadanasheen of the Nizamuddin Auliya Dargah in 1955, inheriting the hereditary custodianship tied to their family's direct lineage from the Chishti saint. This position, rooted in the Nizami branch of the Chishti order, positioned him as the spiritual head responsible for perpetuating the shrine's traditions following his father's passing.

In his role, Nizami oversaw the shrine's core administrative and spiritual duties, including the coordination of daily rituals such as Fatiha recitations to honor the saint and ensure the site's ongoing sanctity. He managed visitor influxes, facilitating access for pilgrims and tourists while upholding the dargah's ethos of inclusivity and communal harmony, often delegating day-to-day operations to family members as he aged. Additionally, as Mutawalli-like manager, he maintained the physical and devotional integrity of the complex, safeguarding its role as a living center of Sufi practice.

A key aspect of his custodianship involved organizing regular Qawwali programs through Mehfil-e-Sama gatherings, which drew devotees to experience the ecstatic devotional music central to Chishti worship at the shrine. These sessions not only preserved the auditory heritage linked to Nizamuddin Auliya and his disciple Amir Khusrau but also reinforced the dargah's vibrant spiritual atmosphere under Nizami's guidance.

Khwaja Syed Mohammad Nizami

1978-2026

Janasheen, Khalifa & Nephew

• Khwaja Syed Mohammad Nizami, son of Syed Mehandi Nizami elder brother of Khwaja Hasan Sani Nizami.
• In his short span of life, he climb lots of stairs of Sprituality and become Murshid in Nizamia Silsila
• He spread this spritual mission of Nizamiya Silsila at higher peak. on the path of Khwaja Hasan Sani Nizami he also Organise Four annual Seminar (interfaith events ) at Khawaza Hall, that integrated Hindu and Muslim traditions, fostering communal harmony at a local level with global resonance. These drew from the family's historical practices of honoring shared cultural heritage and tolerance rooted in Sufi ethos.
• Delhi Government honour Khwaja Syed Mohammmad Nizami title of "Delhi Ratan".