It is said that those who used to wear cloth of white wool were called Sufi. Sufi saints followed Islamic principle of oneness of God. Generally, they were the people who opposed complexity of Islamic traditions and rules and regulations. They emphasized on abandoning rituals and adopting devotion and mercy and affection towards all human beings. Like saint poets in India, Sufi saints also expressed themselves through poetry. They also used to give their messages through stories.
Different stories are also popular about divine and cosmic powers possessed by these Sufi saints. Slowly, Sufis started coming to medieval India too. By the 11th century, India came to be known in the world for Sufism. Some of the Sufi orders are important even today. A long list of Oliyas had been there in this order, which is still continuing. Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmer, Qutubdin Bakhtiyaar Kaki of Delhi, Baba Farid of Punjab, Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia of Delhi are considered important even today.
