The life of Aliyu unlike other sudanic princes at the time was one of a strict adherence to Tasswuf, according to the Tarikh al Kano, Aliyu was a strict adherent of the Qadariyyah Order and a gifted swordsman.[2] At a young age he wrote the Rad al Jahla; a sufist text for initiates.[3] In 1893, shortly after the death of Emir Muhammad Bello, Sultan Abdurrahman appointed Tukur the new Emir of Kano.