The Dargah Sharif — the shrine of the 13th-century Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti — is the most important Muslim pilgrimage site in the Indian subcontinent. The complex is a layered ensemble of marble courtyards, two great iron cauldrons (the deghs) for the cooking of charity meals, the Akbari and Shahjahani mosques, and at its heart the silver-domed tomb of the saint himself.
The lanes leading up to the gates are dense with vendors selling rose petals, ittar (perfume), chadors (offering cloths) and prayer caps. Qawwali singers perform every evening in the courtyard, building to a furious crescendo on Thursday nights. Visitors of any religion are welcome; cover your head, leave your shoes at the entrance, and expect to give a small donation. The Urs festival in late May or early June — the saint's death anniversary — draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims and is the most extraordinary time to come.