________________ 312 Homage to Vaisali to the summit of the mound. No complete bricks are visible; but some of those used in the steps measure 24 ins. thick and nearly 9 ins. in width. The top of the mound has been levelled up for the reception of Muhammadan tombs, the largest and the most important of which is known as Miranji ki Dargah, but really contains the relics of a well-known saint of this country named Shaikh Muhammad Qazin. The full name of the saint was Shaikh Muhammad Faizullah Qazin Shutyari ibn Qazi Ula ibn Qazi Alam ibn Qazi Jamaluddin ibn' Ali ibn Sulaiman ibn Sulahuddin ibn Isma'il ibn Imam Muhammed Faqih. The last named was one of the earliest Muslim missionaries in India and is generally known as Taj Faqih among bis numerous descendants. He is believed to have wrested Maner from the local Hindu chief some time about 576 A.H.=1180 A.D. and to have left three of his sons, named Isra'il, Isma'il and 'Abdul Aziz', to propagate Islam in this country while he himself went back to Mecca, whence he had come and where his grave is still shown. The eldest and the youngest brothers worked on this side of the Ganges while the second son Isma'il took upon himself the task of preaching the Truth in the provinces lying on the other side of the river. Of the descendants of Israil, the eldest son of Imam Muhammad Faqih, the best known are Makhdum Sharfuddin Bibari, Qazi Yahya and Shah Daulat Maneri; of the descendants of the second son, Isma'il, the most famous was Shaikh Qazin of Banya Basalh; and of the descendants of the third son, 'Abdul 'Aziz, the most renowned was Sulaiman LangarZamin of Kako in the Gaya District. Shaikh Qazin was born at Maner on the 7th of Zil Hijja 838 A.H. - 1434 A.D. and died on the 24th of Shawwal 901 A.H. - 1495 A.D. He is said to have travelled all the way to Mandu in Central India to become a disciple of Shaikh 'Abdullah Shutyarl and soon became one of his best Khalifas. He is the grand-pir of Shah Muhammad Ghauth, one of the greatest saints of India, who is buried at Gwalior. Shaikh Qazin had several sons. The eldest, Makhdum Shaikh Uwais, is said to have been killed by the Hindus for attempting to build a mosque at Basaph-probably the same one the ruins of which are seen on the stupa mound. Another son, named Abul Fath, is buried in Tangol, Dear Hajipur, on the bank of the Gandaka. Diwan Sbah 'Ali, the saint of Jandaba, was a grandson of Shaikh Qazin. The tomb is surrounded by high brick walls on all sides and is approached by a long flight of steps on the south. An annual fair is held at the tomb on the 9th of the bright fortnight of Chaitra when thousands
