Khwaja Ghulam Farid

Khwaja Ghulam Farid (1845–1901) was a Sufi poet, scholar and writer whose poetry is closely associated with the literary and cultural traditions of the Saraiki region. Born at Chachran, he belonged to the Chishti-Nizami Sufi tradition and later became deeply associated with the Rohi desert and the wider cultural landscape of southern Punjab.

Farid lost his mother at the age of four and his father, Khwaja Khuda Bakhsh, when he was around twelve. He was subsequently raised by his elder brother, Khwaja Fakhr-ud-Din. According to Punjab’s Auqaf Department, he received religious education connected with the court of Nawab Sadiq Muhammad Khan V of Bahawalpur and developed knowledge of Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Punjabi, Saraiki, Sindhi and Braj Bhasha.

After the death of his elder brother, Farid spent approximately eighteen years in the Rohi area, the desert landscape commonly identified with Cholistan. The desert became an important recurring setting and symbol in his poetry. He also performed Hajj in 1876.

His literary legacy includes Deewan-e-Farid, along with Persian prose works including Manaqabe Mehboobia and Fawaid-e-Faridia. Punjab’s Auqaf Department records that Farid composed hundreds of poems and notes the importance of desert imagery in his poetry.

His poetry has continued to receive academic attention. A 2024 study published by Bahauddin Zakariya University’s Journal of Research examines his Urdu poetry, while a 2026 study from the same journal examines Hindi and Sanskrit allusions and symbolism in his Saraiki poetry.

Khwaja Ghulam Farid died in Chachran in 1901 and was buried at Mithankot. His shrine remains one of the major shrines listed by the Punjab Auqaf Department in the Dera Ghazi Khan region.