Leadership within the Khatmiyya Tariqa; Sayyid Muhammad Othman al-Mirghani (al-Khatm) is considered the first Sheikh of the Khatmiyya Tariqa. The establishment of the Tariqa was effectively at his hands, and due to his great efforts, he was able to attract the largest number of followers and adherents. His center of leadership was in Mecca, where he resided permanently. However, shortly before his death, he moved to Taif as a result of the harassment and rivalry he encountered from the scholars of Mecca. He sent his sons as ambassadors to spread the Tariqa, call people to it, and act on his behalf in organizing the religious and social affairs of the disciples. It was the fortune of Sayyid Muhammad al-Khatm, the eldest of his sons, to be sent to Yemen and Hadramaut. This indicates Sayyid Muhammad Othman's interest and care for this region, which is the area of settlement of Ahmad bin Idris.

As for Sayyid Muhammad al-Hasan, his mother was Sudanese, Ruqayya bint Jallab, from a well-known family in western Sudan (as we explained before). It appears that Muhammad Othman al-Mirghani, when he sent his son to Sudan to represent him, instructed him to establish connections with the rulers and not to be isolated from them, unlike his own approach, which he took from his teacher Ahmad bin Idris. Sayyid al-Hasan adopted the village of al-Khatmiyya, which was originally named al-Sunniyya, as his center of leadership. His father, Sayyid Muhammad Othman, had also made it a base for his call in Sudan. From there, the Khatmiyya call was launched to spread and proliferate in the regions of Eritrea and eastern Sudan. Muhammad al-Hasan al-Mirghani was able to solidify his father's call and establish his ideas and teachings. He was truly the man who succeeded in rooting the Tariqa and creating many extensions and increasing loyalties in the land of Sudan.

The good and intimate relations that Sayyid al-Hasan established with Sudanese religious families provided him with a great deal of respect and appreciation among Sudanese people, and also enabled him to spread his call among them. Sayyid al-Hasan was extremely tolerant and forgiving towards people of other Tariqas, which helped him to gain constant sympathy and great affection from the Sudanese towards him, especially considering his noble lineage. He is the son of Idris al-Rabatabi, Ahmad: al-Ibana al-Dhuriyya. Published by Dar al-Jeel, Beirut (72) 110, 110, -75-