BUNER: Prayers for lasting peace in the country were offered at the conclusion of the 447th Urs of spiritual saint Hazrat Pir Baba (Syed Ali Tirmizi) here on Sunday.

Lungar (meal) was distributed among the participants after the ritual of laying floral wreath on the tomb of the saint with recitation of the holy Quran.

Thousands of devotees, and visitors from all over the country and Afghanistan thronged the shrine.

Mohammad Rasool, an Afghan, told Dawn he along with his four colleagues had come from Nangarhar district of Jalalabad province to participate in the Urs.

A large number of women, children and elderly people also visited the shrine and paid respects to him. Different stalls were set up for visitors and their families.

Religious scholars threw light on the life and services of the spiritual saint, and praised his contributions for the revival of Islamic teachings.

They said Pir Baba was an enlightened Sufi figure who spread the message of humanism in the subcontinent in the early 16th century.

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2017