Pilgrimage to the tombs of Sufi Saints to seek spiritual grace is known as _________.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Ziyarat
Option (1) Barkat — Incorrect. Barakat is the spiritual grace of the sufi itself. Pilgrims go to the tomb to seek it, so it is what the pilgrimage is for, not the name of the pilgrimage.
Option (2) Ziyarat — Correct. Pilgrimage, called ziyarat, to tombs of sufi saints is prevalent all over the Muslim world; it is an occasion for seeking the sufi’s spiritual grace (barakat).
Option (3) Langar — Incorrect. The langar was the open kitchen of the sufi hospice, run on unasked-for charity (futuh), where people from all walks of life ate. It has nothing to do with travelling to a tomb.
Option (4) Silsila — Incorrect. The word silsila literally means a chain: the continuous link between master and disciple, stretching as an unbroken spiritual genealogy to the Prophet Muhammad. It names a sufi order, not a pilgrimage.
Note: A same/similar question was asked in CUET (UG) in the papers below.
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
| – | – | – | 05-06 S1 05-06 S2* | – |
* A similar question.
NCERT (2026-27): “7.2 Chishti devotionalism: ziyarat and qawwali … Pilgrimage, called ziyarat, to tombs of sufi saints is prevalent all over the Muslim world. This practice is an occasion for seeking the sufi’s spiritual grace (barakat). For more than seven centuries people of various creeds, classes and social backgrounds have expressed their devotion at the dargahs of the five great Chishti saints (see chart on p.154).… 6.1 Khanqahs and silsilas … Sufi silsilas began to crystallise in different parts of the Islamic world around the twelfth century. The word silsila literally means a chain, signifying a continuous link between master and disciple, stretching as an unbroken spiritual genealogy to the Prophet Muhammad. It was through this channel that spiritual power and blessings were transmitted to devotees.…” |