New Year pilgrimage: Devotees throng Ajmer's Sufi shrine for spiritual harmony

On New Year's Day, a multitude of devotees flocked to Ajmer's Khwaja Garib Nawaz shrine, dedicated to Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti.

A large number of devotees visited the shrine of Khwaja Garib Nawaz in Ajmer on the first day of the New Year. The shrine was built in memory of Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti, which is a typical Sufi shrine that sees a horde of pilgrims from all over the world experience divine peace. The shrine of Mu'in al-Din Chishti or Moinuddin Chishti, or by the epithet Gharib Nawaz ('comfort to the poor'), is such a place where everyone reaches to have their prayers heard and answered. Devotees reach the shrine with a lot of expectations and spend their first day in its vicinity. On the night of December 31, pilgrims reached the shrine and started praying for the prosperity of their families and the country.

"I can tell you that the spirit of the Gharib Nawaz, after eight centuries, is still here. We can feel the love he has given us. And all those young people who are here are getting that love for themselves. That is why they come and feel it," Oliver Schiffish, a pilgrim from Budapest, Hungary, told ANI.

"That is the future for all of us. Because the youth are our future. And if the youth is empowered or soaked with love, then everything would be good," he added. Aftab Qadri, a Sufi artist, while speaking to ANI, said, "A lot of pilgrims have come here to express their faith. I would like to extend my wishes for the New Year."

Devoted to the most famous Sufi Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti's tomb, Ajmer Sharif is considered to be a prominent holy place in the world . All of his teachings, in particular, focus on educating the poor masses about the importance of selfless service. This makes him so famous that visitors flock to the place to pay homage and respect his tomb.