Sultan ul Awliya

Shaykh Nazim used to go every year for pilgrimage as the Hajj leader for the convoy of Cypriot pilgrims. He made 27 pilgrimages in all.

He looked after the murids and followers of Grandshaykh. .
One time Grandshaykh ordered him to go from Damascus to Aleppo on foot and to stop at every village on the way to spread the Naqshbandi teachings, the knowledge of Sufism and the knowledge of religion. The distance between Damascus and Aleppo is about 400 kilometers. It took him more than a year to go and return. He would walk one or two days, reach a village, spend one week in the village spreading the Naqshbandi Order, leading dhikr, training the people, then move on down the road to the next village. Soon his name was on every tongue, from the border of Jordan to the border of Turkey near Aleppo.

Similarly, Grandshaykh once ordered Shaykh Nazim to walk through Cyprus. He walked from one village to another, calling people to Islam, to leave atheism, secularism, and materialism and to come back to Allah. He became so well-known throughout Cyprus, and so beloved, that the color of his turban and cloak, both a dark green, became known throughout the island as "the Shaykh Nazim green head" (Sheih Nazim yesilbas).

In recent years he has performed a similar walkabout in the country of Turkey. Each year since 1978, he has spent three to four months traveling throughout one area of Turkey. In one year he traveled the area of Istanbul, Yalova, Bursa, Eskisehir and Ankara. In another he traveled to Konya, Isparta, Kirsehir. In another year he traveled the southern seacoast, from Adana, to Mersin, Alanya, Izmir, Antalya. Then another year he went to the Eastern side, Diyarbakir, Erzurum, up to the border of Iraq. Another sojourn he spent on the Black Sea, moving from one district to another, from one town to another, from one mosque to the next, spreading the word of Allah, and spirituality and light wherever he went.

Wherever he travels he is welcomed by crowds of common people, and by the officials and government people as well. He is known by the beloved nickname of al-Kibrisi throughout Turkey. He was the Shaykh of the late president of Turkey, Turgut Ozal, and he was extremely well-respected by him. Currently he is well-known throughout Turkey because of the extensive coverage given to him by the media and the press. He is interviewed nearly every week by one television station or another, one reporter or another, to get his opinions on the events in Turkey and its future. He walks the middle path recommended by the Prophet , enabling him to tread a fine line between the secularist government and the Islamicist group. This brings happiness and peace to the hearts and minds of both the common people and the intelligentsia.

Starting in 1974, he began to visit Europe, travelling every year from Cyprus to London by plane and returning overland, by car. He continues to meet all kinds of people from every land and tongue, from all different faiths and all different cultures. People continue to take shahada, Tariqat, and spiritual secrets from him.

As Shah Naqshband was the Mujaddid in Bukhara and Central Asia, as Sayyidina Ahmad as-Sirhindi al-Mujaddedi was the Reviver of the 2nd Millenium, as Sayyidina Khalid al-Baghdadi was the Reviver of Islam and Shari'ah and Tariqat in the Middle East, now Shaykh Muhammad Nazim Adil al-Haqqani is the Reviver, the Renewer and the Caller to God in this Age, the Age of Technology and Material Progress. His smiling, glowing face is beloved throughout Europe, for bringing the first real taste of spirituality the lifetime of the people.

Recently in 1991, he began his journey to America. In his first trip he visited over 15 states. He met many people of different beliefs and religions: Muslims, Christians, Jews, Sikhs, Buddhists, Hindus, and New Age believers. This resulted in the establishing of over 15 centers of the Naqshbandi Order in North America. He made a second visit in 1993, and traveled to many cities and towns, visiting mosques, churches, synaguoges, and temples. Through him, over 10,000 people in North America have entered Islam and have taken initiation in the Naqshbandi Order.

In 1986, he was called to travel to the Far East: Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka. He visited every major city in these countries. He was welcomed by sultans, presidents, members of parliament, government officials, and of course the common people everywhere. He is considered the saint of the Age in Brunei. He was welcomed by the generosity of its people and especially by the Sultan, Hajji Hasanal Bolkiah. He is considered one of the great Shaykhs of The Naqshbandi Order in Malaysia. In Pakistan, he is acknowledged as the Reviver of the Tariqat, and he has thousands of murids. In Sri Lanka, from among the officials and the common people he has over 20,000 murids. He is well respected among the Muslims in Singapore and has many murids there.

He visited Lebanon many times, where we came to know him. One time I was in the office of my uncle, who was the General Secretary for Religious Affairs in Lebanon, a high ranking government position. It was 'Asr time and my uncle, Shaykh Mukhtar Alayli, used to pray in the Masjid al-`Umari al-Kabir in Beirut. It was a church at the time of `Umar ibn al-Khattab (r), and it had been converted into a mosque in his time. Until today beneath the mosque are the foundations of the church. My uncle was leading the prayer, and two of my brothers and I were praying behind him. A Shaykh came and prayed beside us. He looked at my brother and said to him, 'Are you so-and-so?' and mentioned his name. He looked at my other brother and mentioned his name. He looked at me and called me by name also. We were very surprised at this, as we had never seen him before. My uncle was also drawn to him.

My eldest brother insisted on hosting Shaykh Nazim in our house and my uncle came with us. Our guest said, "I have been sent by Shaykh `Abdullah and he told me, 'The one on your right side after 'Asr prayer is named such and the other is named such and the other is named such. Initiate them into the Naqshbandi Order. They are going to be among our followers.' His knowing all our names astonished us and drew us to him. I was particularly attracted to him, being quite young.

From that time on, he made it a practice to visit Beirut regularly. We also used to visit Damascus every week to see Grandshaykh `Abdullah and Shaykh Nazim. We received a lot of spiritual knowledge and witnessed the miraculous powers that they were spreading to the hearts of seekers. We were so drawn to them, that we were always begging our father to let us go see them every Sunday.

Shaykh Nazim's house was never empty of visitors. At least one hundred visitors would pass through his house each day. He was serving each and every one of them. His house was near Grandshaykh's house on Jabal Qasiyun, a mountain overlooking the city, on the southeastern side of Damascus. He lived in a modest stucco house in which everything was simple, made by hand out of wood or some other natural material.