Maner Sharif
Dargah · Makhdum Yahya Maneri and Makhdum Shah Daulat · Maner, Patna, Bihar
Maner is a major Sufi pilgrimage centre, "the land of Sufi saints"; devotees come to the tombs to seek...
Two Sufi tombs stand at Maner. One is the tomb of Makhdum Yahya Maneri, the 13th-century Suhrawardi saint around whom Maner grew as a centre of Sufism. The other is the tomb of Makhdum Shah Daulat (d. 1608), built in 1616 by Ibrahim Khan Kakar, Mughal governor of Bihar - a fine Mughal domed structure with Quranic inscriptions on the ceiling and fine calligraphy; the ASI protects it as "Tomb of Shah Makhadum Daulat Maneri and Ibrahim Khan" (N-BR-47). Note that sources disagree on which shrine is called Bari (great) and which Chhoti (small): Bihar Tourism calls Yahya Maneri's the Bari Dargah and Shah Daulat's the Chhoti Dargah, while Wikipedia's Maner article reverses the two. Confirm locally.
Plan your visit
- Best season
- September to April" (Bihar Tourism)
- Area
- Patna
Festivals
- the annual Urs at the dargahs, with qawwali, drawing thousands across communities; Chhath Puja is observed at Haldi Chha
Yatras that include Maner Sharif
- Sufi Yatra: The Chhoti Dargah of 1616, carved stone on the water, thirty kilometres west of Patna.
Experiences here
- An urs, and the qawwali after it: The night a saint's death is kept as a wedding, with singing until dawn
Tirtham can arrange here
Guide, car and stay around Patna
Also around Patna
- Bihar Museum: The state's own account of itself, from the Didarganj Yakshi to the present, in one building on Nehru Path.
- Golghar, the granary on the Ganga: A British granary of 1786 built after the famine of 1770, and the widest view of the Ganga at Patna from its top.
- Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Library: One of India's great manuscript libraries, open to the public since 1891, with a Quran 2.5 mm wide.
- Ganga aarti at Gandhi Ghat: The evening aarti on the Ganga that the Bihar government holds at Patna every weekend.
- Litti chokha: The dish people mean when they say Bihari food.
- Maner laddu: The laddu Bihar Tourism names as the finest in the state, from the town of the Maner Sharif dargah.
Nearby places
- Mahavir Mandir, Patna: Patna's beloved Hanuman temple
- Takht Sri Patna Sahib: Birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh Ji
- Gurdwara Gobind Ghat: It commemorates the incident in which Gobind Rai threw his gold bangle (kangan) into the Ganga as a...
- Gurdwara Guru ka Bagh: It marks the spot where Guru Tegh Bahadur first alighted on his return, and where he met his son Guru...
- Gurdwara Bal Lila Maini Sangat: Pilgrims come for the childhood association with Guru Gobind Singh, and receive boiled salted gram as...
- Gurudwara Handi Sahib: To honour the handi of khichri offered to the child Guru; a distinctive evening prayer here recalls his...
- Gurdwara Gai Ghat: It commemorates Guru Nanak's stay in Patna and is part of the Bihar government's "Guru Circuit" of Sikh...
- Badi Patan Devi: Devotees believe the right thigh (and the *pata*, the cloth, from which "Patan" and the city's name are...
Questions pilgrims ask
Why is Maner Sharif important?
Two Sufi tombs stand at Maner. One is the tomb of Makhdum Yahya Maneri, the 13th-century Suhrawardi saint around whom Maner grew as a centre of Sufism. The other is the tomb of Makhdum Shah Daulat (d. 1608), built in 1616 by Ibrahim Khan Kakar, Mughal governor of Bihar - a fine Mughal domed structure with Quranic inscriptions on the ceiling and fine calligraphy; the ASI protects it as "Tomb of Shah Makhadum Daulat Maneri and Ibrahim Khan" (N-BR-47). Note that sources disagree on which shrine is called Bari (great) and which Chhoti (small): Bihar Tourism calls Yahya Maneri's the Bari Dargah and Shah Daulat's the Chhoti Dargah, while Wikipedia's Maner article reverses the two. Confirm locally.
When is the best time to visit Maner Sharif?
September to April" (Bihar Tourism).
Which festivals are celebrated at Maner Sharif?
the annual Urs at the dargahs, with qawwali, drawing thousands across communities; Chhath Puja is observed at Haldi Chha.
Can Tirtham plan a yatra to Maner Sharif?
Yes. Tell us how long you have and who is going, and Tirtham plans the days, the guide, the car and the stay.
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