Did Wikipedia remove the word "hostage" from the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen article?

Yes. "hostage" appeared 1 times in this article's opening at its peak. Today the opening has none; the body has 3. We saved the article's opening paragraph at 6 moments between 2005 and 2025, and the counts come from those saved copies.

When did the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen article stop using the word "hostage"?

The word appeared 1 times in the opening at its peak in 2005. It is absent from today's opening, the part search engines quote and AI systems train on, checked against the live article on 2026-08-02.

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What did Wikipedia remove from the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen article?

The opening as it read in 2005

Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Muhammad Raheem Bawa Muhaiyaddeen was a revered Sufi saint from the island of Sri Lanka who shared his knowledge and experience with people of every race and religion and from all parts of the world. He first came to the United States in 1971 and established the The Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship of North America in Philadelphia.¹ Since then branches have spread throughout the United States and Canada, as well as in Sri Lanka, Australia and the U.K.² Little is known of his early personal history. Records of his life began in the early 1900's when religious pilgrims traveling through the jungles of Sri Lanka first caught glimpse of a holy man. They were overwhelmed by the depth of divine knowledge that he imparted. Sometime later a pilgrim invited him to a nearby village, and with that began his public life as a teacher of wisdom. Throughout Sri Lanka , people from all religious and ethnic traditions would listen to his public discourses. Many consulted him on how to conduct life's affairs, including public figures, politicians, the poor, and the learned. In 1971 Bawa Muhaiyaddeen accepted an invitation to visit the United States . Here, once again, people from all religious, social and ethnic backgrounds would join to hear him speak. Across the United States, Canada and England, he won recognition from religious scholars, journalists, educators and world leaders. The United Nation's Assistant Secretary General, Robert Muller, asked for Bawa Muhaiyaddeen's guidance on behalf of all mankind. Time Magazine turned to him for clarification during the hostage crisis in 1980. Thousands more were touched by his wise words when interviewed in Psychology Today, the Harvard Divinity Bulletin, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Pittsburgh Press. Wherever he went, he tirelessly answered the many personal and mystical questions that people brought to him until his death on December 8th, 1986. Bawa Muhaiyaddeen authored over twenty books and the Fellowship he founded recorded thousands of hours of audio and video discourses. The Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship now serves as a thriving community dedicated to studying and disseminating the vast treasury of his teachings. The name Muhaiyaddeen literally means 'the giver of life to the true belief.' And indeed Bawa Muhaiyaddeen did spend his life awakening and strengthening faith in God within people's hearts. Though he was an unlettered man, he was able to guide and inspire people from all walks of life. Many scholars and leaders from the Islamic , Judaic , Christian , Hindu and communities considered him to be a true saint.³

This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 16824378.

The opening as it stood in 2010 20 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear

This article describes the Sufism philosopher, for the Sri Lankan architect see Geoffrey Bawa . Muhammad Raheem Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (died December 8, 1986) was a saintly Tamil -speaking teacher and Sufi mystic from the island of Sri Lanka who first came to the United States on October 11, 1971 and established the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in Philadelphia. From Philadelphia, with its approximately 1,000 followers, branches of the Fellowship have spread throughout the United States and Canada, as well Australia and the UK. Societies of followers were already in Jaffna and Colombo, Sri Lanka before his arrival in the USA.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 369161372.

The opening as it stood in 2015

This article describes the Sufism philosopher, for the Sri Lankan architect see Geoffrey Bawa . Muhammad Raheem Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (died December 8, 1986) was a Tamil -speaking teacher and Sufi mystic from the island of Sri Lanka who first came to the United States on October 11, 1971 and established the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in Philadelphia. From Philadelphia, with its approximately 1,000 followers, branches of the Fellowship have spread throughout the United States and Canada, as well Australia and the UK. Societies of followers were already in Jaffna and Colombo, Sri Lanka before his arrival in the USA.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 661386431.

The opening as it stood in 2020 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear

Muhammad Raheem Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (died December 8, 1986) was a Tamil -speaking teacher and Sufi mystic from the island of Sri Lanka who first came to the United States on October 11, 1971 and established the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in Philadelphia. From Philadelphia, with its approximately 1,000 followers, branches of the Fellowship have spread throughout the United States and Canada, as well as Australia and the UK. Societies of followers were already in Jaffna and Colombo , Sri Lanka, before his arrival in the USA. He is considered to be one of the few known Muslim saints to be buried in the United States.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 957302897.

The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023 3 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear

Sri Lankan Sufi mystic and spiritual leader (d. 1986) Muhammad Raheem Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (died December 8, 1986), also known as Bawa , was a Tamil -speaking teacher and Sufi mystic from Sri Lanka who came to the United States in 1971, established a following, and founded the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in Philadelphia . He developed branches in the United States, Canada, Australia and the UK — adding to existing groups in Jaffna and Colombo , Sri Lanka. He is known for his teachings, discourses, songs, and artwork. Bawa established vegetarianism as the norm for his followers and meat products are not permitted at the legacy fellowship center or farm.

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1177950161.

The opening as it stood in 2025

Sri Lankan Sufi mystic and spiritual leader (d. 1986) Muhammad Raheem Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (died December 8, 1986), also known as Bawa , was a Tamil -speaking teacher and Sufi mystic from Sri Lanka who came to the United States in 1971, established a following, and founded the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship in Philadelphia . He developed branches in the United States, Canada, Australia and the UK — adding to existing groups in Jaffna and Colombo , Sri Lanka. He is known for his teachings, discourses, songs, and artwork. Bawa established vegetarianism as the norm for his followers and meat products are not permitted at the legacy fellowship center or farm. The Encyclopedia of the Sri Lankan Diaspora . Sufism in Western Contexts .

Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1297580317. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.