Then Muhammad Zakir-Afandi was engaged in teaching, deriving benefits from the sciences in his country for many years, the knowledge he used for the benefit of many of his contemporaries. Then he took the path of the Khalidian branch of the Naqshbandi tariqah and learned the zikr from Sheikh Mahmud-afandi al-Dagistani al-Almali, may his soul be sanctified. Mahmud Afandi al-Almali learned this zikr from Sheikh Yunus al-Khalidi, and he, in turn, had Sheikh Abdullah al-Arzanjani. What was mentioned (regarding this zikr), I copied from the letter written by the sheikh (Muhammad) Zakir Afandi himself. But we heard from Sheikh Khalil Bash that Yunus Afandi joined the Tariqah (under the direction of) Sheikh Yahya Bek, and he did not meet with Sheikh Abdullah al-Makki. Allah Almighty is more knowledgeable about this "... all people have learned where they should drink from."

 

Mahmud-afandi ad-Dagestani joined the tariqa under the leadership of Sheikh Hashim-afandi al-Yamshani, and the latter was led by Sheikh Ziyaaddin Zubayhullah al-Shirwani. The latter was the successor of Mawlana Khalid al-Baghdadi - may Allah sanctify their supreme secrets. The author of these lines has many times been honored to be familiar with him.

 

I completed what I came across and summarised (from the composition) the scholar who knew Allah (`arif), who is holding on the rope of Allah, Sheikh Muhammad Murad bin Abdullah al-Kazani ... " (5. pp.346-347).

 

In the same collection, Shuaib al-Bagini also has his own Arabic-language work by Muhammad-Zakir al-Chistawi, entitled "Tabsirat al-murshidin" (Clarification of Mentors). In this work, in addition to the foreword from the publisher, a brief biographical information about Muhammad-Zakir and detailed explanations of some issues of the Naqshbandi ritual practice, explanation of some Sufi terms are given. 

 

Information about Muhammad Zakir al-Chistawi is also found in another Arabic-language work "Siraj as-Sa`adat" (The Candle of Happiness), which belongs to the pen of Dagestani Naqshbandi Sheikh Hasan al-Kahibi. In the section dealing with the biography of his sheikh Saifulla-qadi Bashlarov, Hassan al-Kahibi remembers and recalls from his teacher's words: "We were closely connected with the famous scholar Khasbulat al-Kustaki. I studied with him and read under his guidance the book Silk al-'ain. Then I told him that I wanted to become his murid. He said: "The soul of my sheikh Mahmud al-Almali appeared to me and said that your mentor will be Sheikh Muhammad-Zakir al-Chistawi, who occupies a high position (in Sufism), and that you will be in his spring." I was confused by this. And he told me again: "I was hoping that you would become my son, but the command is from Allah, and it will happen that you meet Muhammad Zakir, may his secret be sanctified" ... Then in the spring I bid farewell to him and went to Muhammad-Zakir al-Chistawi." Soon Sayfulla-Qadi met with the Naqshbandi Sheikh Muhammad Zakir. Here is how he describes his meeting with him: "He was a great sheikh, possessing a number of virtues. I've never seen him talk to anyone about this world, even once. One day, when I came to him, he performed a muraqaba (one of the techniques in Sufi ritual practice, as self-control). When I met him, he was glad to see me. Together with him at our meeting there were about one and a half thousand of his murids. Muhammad Zakir asked me to sit next to him, and while I was with him, none of his murids sat down. He instructed me to perform the Sultan Zikr (the main zikr in the Naqshbandi ritual practice) for forty days. Soon, with the permission of his sheikh, he left us and returned to his homeland ... I said that I would return to him a second time, to which he smiled and said: "You will not see me again ...". Afterwards they really did not meet. After the death of al-Chistawi Saifulla-qadi took up the guidance of Sheikh Zaynullah Rasulev and received from him the ijazah" (3. pp.242-243).

 

In his memoirs Abulkhalil al-Ata al-Bakri writes about the reasons that prompted Muhammad Zakir al-Chistawi to stand under the guidance of the Shaykh Mahmud Afandi al-Dagistani: "Our learned scholar, Haji Habibullah al-Qahi, told me that Shaykh Muhammad Zakir, the author of "Tabsirat al-murshidin" (Guide to Mentors), was an enlightened, wealthy man of a large build; he did not recognize Shaykh Mahmud Afandi. One night, while he was sleeping, Mahmoud-Afandi came to him and struck him with a stick. He woke up from a dream, then fell asleep again. After that the shaykh again approached him and struck with a stick. He woke up a second time ... This was repeated seven times. After that the shaykh came to him and stood beside him silently. And Mahmud-afandi told him words explaining what happened to him that night in a dream. After that he accepted from him the tariqah and became perfect (Kamil) shaykh.