RAS question
The correct succession in the Chishti silsilah is:
Correct answer: (B) Moinuddin Chishti → Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki → Fariduddin Ganjshakar → Nizamuddin Auliya.
The Chishti silsilah succession runs from Moinuddin Chishti to Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki, then to Fariduddin Ganjshakar and Nizamuddin Auliya.
Explanation
The correct order is Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmer, followed by Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki of Delhi, Baba Fariduddin Ganjshakar of Pakpattan, and then Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi. The NCERT account identifies the Chishti tradition as a long line of teachers and lists Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti of Ajmer, Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki of Delhi, Baba Farid of Punjab, and Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi in that sequence. The same line extends further to Nasiruddin Chiragh-i-Delhi. Therefore, option B is right because it preserves the accepted teacher-to-disciple order within the Chishti silsilah instead of rearranging the saints by later fame or place.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) It begins with Nizamuddin Auliya, who comes after Moinuddin Chishti, Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki, and Fariduddin Ganjshakar in the Chishti line.
- (C) It wrongly places Qutbuddin before Moinuddin and shifts Nizamuddin ahead of both Moinuddin and Fariduddin, breaking the succession.
- (D) It starts with Fariduddin and puts Qutbuddin last, although the Chishti chain places Qutbuddin after Moinuddin and before Fariduddin.
Concept
This tests the medieval Bhakti-Sufi section of Indian History, especially the order of major Sufi saints and silsilahs. RAS often asks such succession questions because they check whether candidates know institutional religious lineages, not just isolated names.