Khwaja Abdullah Ansari

Saint Khwaja Abdullah Ansari
Khwaja Abdullah Ansari portrayed on a stamp in Tajikistan (2010)
Shaykh al-Islām, Sage of Herat
Born	1006 Herat, Khorasan
Died	1088 Herat, Khorasan
Venerated in	traditional Sunni Islam, particularly in the Hanbali school and the Qadiriyya Sufi order
Major shrine	Tomb of al-Ansari, Herat, Afghanistan

Hazrat Shaikh Abu Ismaïl Abdullah al-Herawi al-Ansari or Khajah Abdullah Ansari of Herat (1006–1088) (Persian: خواجه عبدالله انصاری‎‎) also known as Pir-i Herat (پیر هرات) (sage of Herat) was a famous PersianSufi who lived in the 11th century in Herat (then Khorasan, now Herat province, Afghanistan). One of the outstanding figures in Khorasan in the 5th/11th century: commentator of the Qur'an, traditionist, polemicist, and spiritual master, known for his oratory and poetic talents in Arabic and Persian.

He was born in the Kohandez, the old citadel of Herat, on 4 May 1006. His father Abu Mansur, was a shopkeeper who had spent several years of his youth at Balkh. Abdullah was the disciple of Shaikh Abul Hassan Kharaqani, for whom he had deep respect and faith, as he has said: "Abdullah was a hidden treasure, and its key was in the hands of Abul Hassan Kharaqani."

He practiced the Hanbali fiqh, one of the four Sunni schools of law or jurisprudence. His shrine, built during the Timurid Dynasty, is a popular pilgrimage site.

He wrote several books on Islamic mysticism and philosophy in Persian and Arabic. His most famous work is "Munajat Namah" (literally 'Litanies or dialogues with God'), which is considered a masterpiece of Persian literature. After his death, many of his sayings that had been transmitted by his students along with others that were in his written works were included in the Tafsir of Maybudi, "Kashf al-Asrar" (The Unveiling of Secrets). This is among the earliest complete Sufi Tafsirs of Quran and has been published several times in 10 volumes.