He was Muhammad al-Tayyib al-Dillisi al-Maliki ibn Muhammad al-Mubarak ibn Muhammad al-Dillisi al-Qayrawani, whose lineage goes back to Mawlana Idris, the founder of the city of Fas and great grandson of sayyiduna al-Hasan Sibt Rasul Allah (sall Allah-u `aleyhi wa sallam). His family  came from Algeria, where they lived amongst the berbers. In the aftermath of the Jihad fought by al-Amir Sheikh `Abd Al-Qadir al-Jaza'iri against the french colonizers, his family migrated to Damascus and settled there.

Tomb stone of  Sheykh Muhammad al-Tayyib in Mazza. (Photo: JK/Ziarat 2006)

When Sheikh Muhammad al-Fasi came to Damascus in 1282, Sheikh Muhammad al-Tayyib took the Shadhili tariqa from him, and later became his khalifa in Damascus.  His successor in the Shadhili Tariqa was his brother, Sheikh Muhammad al-Mubarak, through whom it has been passed down to the Ya`qubi family.

In 1287, he was sent by al-Amir Sheikh `Abd Al-Qadir, together with Sheikh Muhammad al-Tantawi and some other people, to the city of Konya in Turkey, in order to compare with their copy of "Al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya" with a hand-writing of its author that existed there. The two Sheikhs recited the entire book twice, and then returned and recited it again to al-Amir `Abd Al-Qadir.

© Damas Cultural Society 2006