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Shaykhuna belongs to Kilakarai, Ramanathapuram District, Tamil Nadu, which has been a dominant centre for the religious, educational, cultural and commercial, both national and international, activities of the Tamil speaking Muslims, since several centuries. He hails from a very illustrious family of Saints or savants who, ever since their forefathers had arrived from the Holy City of Madinah and from Cairo in 232 AH/846 AD and settled in Tamil Nadu, have sustained the honourable traditions of rendering laudable social and religious services. Well known in the circle of Islamic scholars all over the world, he is the present Head of the Spiritual Order of Aroosiyyah, which is widely followed as a Branch of the famous Qadiriyyah Order by several million Muslims in India, SriLanka, Malaysia, Singapore, Phillipines, Thailand and many countries in the Middle East like Morocco and United Arab Emirates. Shaykhuna is the son of Allama Thaika Ahmad Abdul Qadir, the Saint known as 'Shaykhu Nayagam', of Kilakarai West. Jalwat Nayagam is his paternal grandfather and Khalwat Nayagam is his paternal uncle. Shaikha Nayagam's grandfather was the Imamul Arus Allama Mappillai Labbai Alim, a great Saint, the logical jurist, writer and poet. He was a prolific writer. 'Minhatu Sarandib' is one of his works, a critical study of which is the subject matter of Shaykhuna's thesis submitted to the Columbia Pacific University, San Raphael, San Francisco, U.S.A. which fetched him the M.A. Degree. Shaykhuna and his forefathers are the followers of the Spiritual Order of Saint Bukhari Thangal who is laid to rest at Kannur in Kerala. As far as their literary and cultural activities are concerned they have the heritage of Saint Sadaqatullah who is laid to rest at Kilakarai. Saint Sadaqatullah was one of the two spiritual Masters of the Mughal Emperor, Aurangazeb. It may thus be seen that Shaykhuna has a rich spiritual and cultural link.
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