Non-Syncretism of The Naqshbandi Sufis

After four centuries (1200-1600 CE) of contact both the Hindus and Muslims in India had developed some common syncretic religious practices borrowed from each other. The fifth Mughal Emperor Akbar (1556-1605) in order to develop a religio-political common ground for all the different identities inhabiting his realm started promoting some beliefs and practices which are considered antithetical to the tenets of orthodox Sunni Islam. Many Sufi orders like the Chishti Silsila also believed in this type of tolerance. But it was the Naqshbandi Silsila which provided Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi the ideological foundation to mount an opposition to these syncretic tendencies. This paper aims to examine critically the origins and impact of this ideology of non-syncretism.