Shrine of Hazrat Shah Ali Bogdadi at Mirpur

shrine from a distance

imposing minaret of the shrine mosque

entry gate

shrine under the 'shirni' tree

sentinel to warn unauthorized intruder

pop corn packets sell at Tk.10/-

Shrine of Hazrat Shah Ali Bogdadi: The shrine of the revered figure was part of a mosque that collapsed in river erosion long ago. The shrine (Majar) is situated in Mirpur, Section 1 near Turag river, Amin Bazar beside a large water pool (beel) north of Mirpur graveyard.

Hazrat Shah Ali along with his disciples came from Baghdad to Dhaka via Delhi in 1412 to preach Islam in this region. Many versions of his miracle power and death are told. One saying goes, in 1498, he decided to meditate for 40 days (chillah) in an isolated room. In the 39th day, his disciples could hear wild screams from the room. They broke open the door and found the body of Shah Ali lying dead. Another verson states they found a flame instead of body which was buried at the shrine. Anyway, the shrine remains crowded with devotees all over the year. Once it became a too noisy due to activities of unsocials when Govt. stepped in to take over control and management of the shrine. It's now a much cleaner place. A Mosque and madrassa have been added and there is plan to make the place presentable to the visitors.

The huge tree over the shrine looks similar to Banyan (Ashattha/Bot) with smaller leaves. It is known at the shrine as ‘Firni/Shirni’ tree. It bears fruit size of 'Indian Jujube' (boroi) that turn yellow when ripe and tastes similar to grapes. During season the devotees eat it with respect.