Cheikh Ibrahima fall is certainly one of the most prominent figures among the mouride brotherhood. He was a descendent of the former “Damels” of Cayor (an ancient Senegalese kingdom). They were much respected due to their sense of practical organization and hard work (clearing and farming fields, collecting firewood, building concessions and carrying crops, etc.). Cheikh Ibrahima Fall is the founder of a chief branch in mouridism known as "Baye Fall", and was entirely devoted to the service of Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba.

The union between Cheikh Ibrahima Fall and Khadimou Rassoul was made far from the eyes, hearts and minds of people. After he had completed his studies in his native village of Ndiaby, he became a scholar of Islam and spent his days under a heavy tamarind tree down the forest of Cayor. There, was his place for meditation where he forbade access beyond sunset because "This place is frequented by evil spirits," he warned. His adoration for God and his deliberate retirement away from his neighbours and worldly things, made people think of him as someone prone to mental disorders.   Read More...

What is the pact of allegiance or "Jayanteh" in Muridiya? What does it mean to the Sheikh and the Murid him/herself? What requirements are there if any? Check out Professor Mouhameth Galaye Ndiaye's response on the question during a conference that was held in Marseille, France.   Read More...

Jariyatul Lahi was born in 1833 (1250 of Hegira). She became in her early ages a prominent scholar of Islam in the image of his father Serigne Mouhamadou Bousso and his mother Sokhna Waalo Mbacke who was a very impressive woman and a lecturer of the Holy Qur'an. As she received education and training from both parents, Mame Diarra was able to recite and write the Koran when she was just 10 years old. At 19, she read all metrical books as well as the most applied law books and those of jurisprudence. At the age of 20 she made her first steps in the hard path of Sufism till she reached the peak of devotion (Nafsul Kamil). She was not only one of the greatest scholars of her time in the fields of Theology, Philosophy and Islamic jurisprudence, but she was also responsible for great social and communal actions. Serigne Moussa Ka reports that one day, she even went so far as to offer her bracelets as a pledge to the woman who would provide her with milk. Greatness of personality was in short the characteristic of that woman who was gentle, kind and who was available to everybody be they young or old.   Read More...

A Saint in the City: Sufi Arts of Urban Senegal Opens at the Schomburg Center on March 9, 2008

New York February 28, 2008—A Saint in the City, is the first major US exhibition of the arts and expressive culture of a dynamic and influential Muslim spiritual brotherhood in Senegal, West Africa. Known as Mouridism, it is based on the teachings of the Senegalese Muslim Saint Sheikh Amadou Bamba (1853–1927). The exhibition explores the striking range of Mouride arts—from large popular murals, intricate glass paintings, and calligraphic healing devices to posters for social activism, colorful textiles, and paintings by internationally known contemporary artists.

With generous support from Columbia University’s Institute for Religion, Culture and Public Life; Institute of African Studies; Center for the Study of Democracy, Toleration, and Religion; and Committee on Global Thought, this seminal exhibition will be on view at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library from March 9 through May 31, 2008.   Read More...

In order to show his appreciation to his younger brother and honorable guest for the gesture, Serigne Fallou, the beloved second caliph of Khadimu Rassul, had decided to name his beloved new born son after Cheikh Mouhammadou Lamin Bara Mbacke (son of Khadimou Rassoul) who was beside him when the announcer came by to inform Serigne Fallou of the good news (that Serigne El Hadj Bara was born). Consequently, to further confirm his appreciation to his younger brother, Serigne Fallou entrusted his little one to his brother, the great Cheikh Mouhammadou Lamine Bara Mbacke, for his education and upbringing. As a result, his responsible namesake did the masterful job of making sure that his nephew memorized the Qur’an and could calligraph it in the most delicate way.
Again, following his ancestors’ footsteps, Serigne El Hadji Bara also mastered the Islamic and other religious sciences. He spent many years receiving knowledge from his namesake before returning to his father in order to finish up his spiritual training. Now 82 years old, Serigne Mouhammadou Lamine Bara has become the sixth caliph of the Muridiyya since the return of Serigne Saliou Mbacke to The Creator, on December 28, 2007.   Read More...