Life well lived: Numerologist who made predictions for politicians

Pir Syed Shabeer Ali Shah Kirmani, an acclaimed scholar and numerologist who died of pneumonia at the age of 78 in London where he lived, last month, was a man of knowledge and wisdom, character and integrity.

Peer Kirmani would dislike to be called a pir despite being a successor to a well-known shrine of Jhelum.

He was laid to rest in Jhelum. His Chehlum was held on Sunday (September 18), which was attended by people from various walks of life. Pir Kirmani is survived by his wife Shahnaz and three children — Khudija, Ameer Hamza and Ameer Turab Ali.

A tall, handsome, and a witty man, Kirmani was a polymath who had command over Urdu, English, Arabic, Persian and Pashto.

His ability to interpret historic Islamic scripts was exemplary. He spent his late 20s and early 30s at the Cairo University and Baghdad. He researched and later relayed his knowledge in text and lectures to institutes all over the world.

He went to Britain in the late 50s to study engineering at the Oxford, but could not complete his education due to economic reasons and the passing of his father.

He was the successor and custodian of his father?s shrine in Jhelum (Astana Peer Qasim Ali Shah, Pir Peshawari) and another shrine in Peshawar.

A philanthropist to the core, he dedicated his life to the welfare of others around him.

The knowledge of numerology which Syed Kirmani had command over, was never used as a bait to entertain or impress the people around him. People of influence from various fields including politics from far and wide are reported to have consulted Pir Kirmani on matters of fate and future. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was fascinated with his precise predictions.

Pir saab never forced his views upon others. To him, prayer was an individual?s private matter with the Almighty. He would always maintain that Allah loved His creation. And if one did not love another human being, how could one possibly be close to Allah? This was his constant refrain.

He would often say that to be close to Allah, one has to first love his beloved Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Only then, can one unlock and have the ability to perceive things which only the blessed ones could see.

The writer is a niece of Pir Kirmani and lives in Amsterdam.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 19^th, 2016.