History
Tazkira Sadat-i-Simanania, compiled by 13th-century scholar and poet Swaleh Reshi, gives the name of place as “Shampora”. Syed Hussain Simnani later renamed it “Kulgam” (kul for ‘clan’ and gam for ‘village’ in Sanskrit). Simnani is said to have invited Hazrat Amir Kabir Mir Hamdani to Kashmir with poets including Sheikh Noor-ud-din Noorani and Lal Ded.
The form of administration from Shair Shah Suri’s reign led to creation of a Tehsil during Mughal Rule, through the aegis of Sheikh Hamza Makhdoom. This had jurisdiction encompassing Doru, Banihal, Gulabgarh, and Shopian. After time, constituent units including Pulwama, Shopian, and Reasi attained the status of district.
The area had been a hunting place for Mughal emperors and Dogra rulers, especially for Shahanshah Shah Jehan, who laid the Chinarbagh,and Maharaja Hari Singh, who discovered the virgin potential of sanctuary at Kutbal. The District is the birthplace of Sheikh Noor-ud-din Noorani, the founder of the Rishi order, and of the forefathers of Allama Iqbal and Jawaharlal Nehru.
Kulgam is located at 33°38’24” N 75°01’12” E. It has an average elevation of 1739 metres (5705 feet). Now it has become a separate district of Jammu and Kashmir. Kulgam is known for a religious saint (Sayed Simnan Sahib), who gave it the name “Kulgam” (“Kul” means “clan” in Sanskrit; “gram” in Sanskrit means “village”), because he lost something in the stream. Syed Simnan came from a place called Simnan in Iran. Travelling in the Kashmir valley, he came to Kulgam and liked the spot on a cliff overlooking the river Veshaw. He made Kulgam his permanent abode and was buried at the very spot which he had found fascinating. His ‘aastan’ is a draw from the population in and around Kulgam. The family of Syed Simnan is buried in a nearby village called Amun. Both the shrines have a masonry plinth and a wooden superstructure of deodars. He was known for his mystical powers and had devotees amongst Muslims as well as Hindus.
Shaikh Nur-ud-din also known as Nund Rishi, was a Kashmiri saint who belonged to the Rishi order and is also called Alamdar-e-Kashmir. Sheikh-ul-Alam as the patron saint of Kashmiris, revered by both Muslims and Hindus, was also born in a village called Kaimuh of the Kulgam distinct in 779 A.H. (AD 1377). The family of Shaikh Nur-ud-din is buried in Kaimuh. The Kulgam area is the birthplace of the ancestors of Allama Iqball (Supur village). Pandit Jawhar Lal Nehrus ancestors also are from Nadi Marag, a
