Posts Tagged Ajmer

Arundhati Roy is the conscience of India. Her treatment by a greedy media playing the tunes of fundamentalists is deplorable and condemnable. Roy’s statement issued a day before says it all. As she writes, RSS is trying to deflect attention from the terrorists who attempted to blow up the shrine at Ajmer Sharif. What is wrong with these psychotic militants across South Asia. Sufis were hardly contested in the worst of times but we are living in an age where any message of peace, pluralism and tolerance is a threat to exclusivist ideologies. We cannot be silent about it.

This is a fabulous, almost flawless performance by Sreeram, an aspirant for the Indian Idol selection. Originally rendered by A R Rahman, this young talent has given a new dimension to this ode to South Asia’s celebrated saint Khawaja Muinduddin Chishty of Ajmer.

Khwaja Mere Khwaja By SHREERAM

My piece published by the Walkerly Magazine

The internet has demolished the iron curtain between Pakistan and India almost overnight, writes Pakistani blogger and writer Raza Rumi.

I don’t need to tell you about the multi-billion dollar enterprise that is the animosity between India and Pakistan. Suffice to say that the birth of a new nation-state on the Indo-Pak sub-continent was among the bloodiest of all time, entailing the migration of nearly 10 million of the wretched of the earth who had to find a new home.

Millions of deaths and three wars later, the bitterness refuses to go away and the interaction of the two countries’ populations has been very limited over 60 years. As a result, not all Pakistanis have the privilege of visiting India. I happen to be one of those who, by sheer coincidence, have been visiting India primarily for work or cultural exchange.

My forays into journalism coincided with my alter ego as a blogger. Purely by accident, I discovered the world of blogging, driven by the desire to post my pieces published by The Friday Times (TFT), a weekly Pakistani magazine. Trying to avoid creating a paid website, the blog template came to my rescue. (more…)

AJMER: The 797th Urs of the 12th century Sufi saint, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, commenced on Friday with the flag-hosting ceremony at the Buland Darwaza.

About 200 people from the Gori family of Bhilwara, headed by Fakrudin Gori, came to Ajmer. As per age-old traditions, the family is authorized to hoist the Urs flag.
(more…)

After everything Muslim has been trashed by the rejuvenated Hindutva across the border, now Southasian Sufism is also being highlighted as an Islamist-supremacist project. What utter ignorance to write about the syncretic mystics who were not part of power games nor were they parts of the armies. They were wandering mystics who found India’s spiritual landscape exciting and endearing and chose to stay and die there. The saddest piece that was forwarded to me by a reader is linked below by someone who holds forth – rather fumes – on Sufism and makes sure that he is introduced as “IPS (Retd)” – a scion of the Indian Police Service, an abominable legacy of the colonial state and its naked exploitative nature. Small wonder, his communalised veiw of the world is what the architects of his proud service wanted and achieved with much success.

False, pretentious and ill-informed. Alas.

Dark side of Sufism: Reappraisal of the Role of Sufis Working as Missionaries of Islam, R.K. Ohri, IPS (Retd)

For centuries the Sufi creed and Sufi music have been tom-tomed as great symbols of spiritualism and promoters of peace and harmony between the Hindus and the Muslims. The cleverly marketed concept of Sufi spiritualism has been unquestioningly accepted as the hallmark of Hindu-Muslim unity. It is time we studied the history of Sufis, (more…)

My friend Syed Salman Chishty,from Dargah Ajmer Sharif sent me this message. I would have loved to be there but such are the divides and challenges that I simply cannot pack up and go without dealing with the layers of officialdom.

Chishty Foundation is based on the blessed vision ,principle and message of “Love towards all, Malice towards none” which is the blessed message of Hz.Khawaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishty (r.a) popularly known as Khawaja Gharib Nawaz (r.a). (more…)

No One Is Left Hungry

By Rajan Mahan, “No one goes hungry in Ajmer during Ramadan” – NDTV – New Delhi, India

And in the holy month of Ramadan people from all corners of the subcontinent seek the blessings of the Dargah’s immortal 13th century saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti.

Popularly called Gareeb Nawaaz, the Protector of the Poor, the Khwaja is still revered for his compassion and empathy for those desperate and needy. (more…)

My dear friend Salman Chishty is holding an exhibition at the death anniversary (Urs=Union) celebrations of Khawaja Muinuddin Chishty. This is such an innovative tribute to the great Chishty saint. I recall seeing some of these works that he was collecting in Ajmer earlier this year.

This story from the Times of India came as a pleasant surprise …

AJMER: The Sufi message of peace and harmony is being propagated through an exhibition of paintings called ‘Sufi art exhibition’ organized by Salman Chishti, a Sufi Scholar and a curator of art paintings.

He is displaying his collection of 100 paintings on handmade khadi paper at the Chishti Manzil here. The theme of exhibition revolves around calligraphy and paintings depicting Sufi values.

At the exhibition, the Sufi paintings of Najmul Hasan Chishti, a khadim of the Khwaja and a calligraphy artist. The unique feature of this exhibition is the representation of the saying of Sufis in calligraphy, along with its meaning illustrated through a painting in the background.

The principal essence of Najmul’s works is portraying life in ‘Sufi Islam’ and especially on ‘Sama, a form of mediation, widely practiced by the Sufi ‘dervish’. One can observe Rumi poetry in many of his paintings. He had beautifully portrayed the whirling ‘dervishes’ in ecstasy. (more…)

Music and Love share a primordial bond. None other than the legendary and a genius of our times Allah Rakah Rahman, better known to the world as A.R. Rahman appreciates it at a much deeper level. The composer who has been honoured by the world and the subcontinent, he is a follower of the Chishty school of Sufism.

After a glorious career path and adding melody to South Asian music, A R Rahman has set up a music conservatory in India dedicated to none other than Khawaja Ghareeb Nawaz of Ajmer. Two letters, K and M, are lucky for Rahman and also reflect his devotion to the great Saint, his teachings and all-encompassing spirituality.

This is perhaps why his latest composition for the film Jodhaa Akbar – Khawaja Meray Khawaja – is a matchless piece. It is subtle and moves at a pace akin to that of a lover’s – slow yet impatient, heavy and full of yearning. It is a separate matter that the film-maker turned it into a nightmare of pop-Sufi icons – whirling dervishes in medieval Ajmer and with fake beards.

Here is the Khwaja Meray Khawaja’s amazing track. Ignore the video – just listen to it. For lyrics and their competent translation.

May God bless AR for his music and search for the path.

My other favourites from A R Rahman are found below:

Kehha hi Kiya (Bombay)

Dil hai chotta sa (Roja)

Jiya Jale (Dil Se)

The list goes on – so more later

Khawaja Ghareeb Nawaz’s immortal verses on the status of Hazrat Imam Hussain (AS)
Shah ast Hussain, Badshah ast Hussain
Deen ast Hussain, Deen Panah ast Hussain
Sardad na dad dast, dar dast-e-yazeed,
Haqaa key binaey La ila ast HussainAnd a rough translation -

Ruler is Hussain, Emperor is Hussain,
Faith is Hussain , guardian of faith is Hussain .
Offered his head and not the hand to Yazid.
Indeed, Hussain is the foundation of La-ilah (more…)

Agar Gaiti Sarasar Bad Girad,
Chiragh-e-Chishtiyan Hargiz Namirad

If the entire universe is devastated by the storm
the lamp of Chishtiyan shall not cease to illuminate

Just as Eid announcement was made in this part of the world, the sad news of bomb blasts in India were splashed all over TV channels. In particular, the blast in Ajmer Shareef – opposite the dargah – was shocking. Despicable and pusillanimous!

How could the enemies of peace target a shrine that is above the Muslim/Hindu and other formal identities. Ajmer is the fulcrum of a Sufi practice and represents the broad spiritual, syncretistic consensus in South Asia.

The reaction of authorities was quite predictable as if an automated, pre-recorded message was ready with the officials:

Union Home Ministry sources in Delhi said it was a terror strike in which militants had used a low-intensity improvised explosive device.

They said the terror outfits, including Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, were against Sufi Islam and they could be prime suspects behind the blast which came barely 10 days ahead of the meeting of Indo-Pakistan anti-terror mechanism here on October 22…

However, the latter has some validity as we have a track record whereby the extremist elements always resist any progress towards the much needed peace – Let us not be daunted by this cowardice.

But this is so so sad. Though in the words of the devotees:

Ilahi ta-abd-astana-i-yar-rahe
Yeh-asra-hai-gharibon-ka-barqarar rahe

Oh God, may this Shrine of the beloved exist till the last day
may this refuge of the poor remain forever!

Ajmer Shareef is a spiritual centre-point in South Asia. It is not just another Muslim Saint’s dergah but represents the glorious tradition of inclusiveness and spirituality beyond the formal boundaries of religion, caste and creed. This is why it has become a fascinating rallying point for South Asians, regardless of what religion they profess and/or practice.

Next week, the death anniversary celebrations of Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti will start in Ajmer. Yesterday I was told that my visa processing would take ages and the outcome will be uncertain. The near-impossibility of getting there made me a little depressed. Yes I was planning to undertake this [mini]-pilgrimage this month.

Damn these visas and official hurdles. At the end of the day these have proved to be meaningless, only adding to the bad blood between the people of the two countries.

My friend Salman who lives next to the dergah and is from the line of shrine-keepers, wrote a piece for the Hindustan Times where he talks of the forthcoming Urs, its significance and place in India. Salman is a young and dynamic student of Sufism. May he stay the course! Read his article here.

Photo above was taken in 2006: On a crisp sunny-wintry afternoon, the pilgrim Qawwals sang in praise of the Khawaja. This was such an impromptu performance – I recall a verse – sab ki bigri hui, bana dey – Khawaja (Help all those who come to you – oops, this is a horrendous translation)…

10th Moharram is a day of mourning for all Muslims. The tragic incident at Kerbala where the righteous Hussain refused to submit to the autocracy of Yazid is an event laden with deep symbolism. Hazrat Imam Husain and his faithful companions preferred to die on the banks of river Euphrates and upheld the struggle of good against the evil.

Khawaja Muinuddin Chisty’s powerful verses epitomise the reverence and devotion of Muslims towards Imam Hussain:

Shah ast Hussain, Badshah ast Hussain

Deen ast Hussain, Deen Panah ast Hussain

Sardad na dad dast, dar dast-e-yazeed,

Haqaa key binaey La ila ast Hussain

Loosely translated

Ruler is Hussain, Emperor is Hussain,

Faith is Hussain , guardian of faith is Hussain .

Offered his head and not the hand to Yazid.

Truly, the mirror of faith is Hussain

As Adil Najam writes on All Things Pakistan:

Growing up in Pakistan, the night of Ashura was always defined for me by the Majlis i Shaam i Gharibaan (often by Allama Naseer ul Ijtihaadi) on PTV on the night of dasveen Muharram, which was followed immediately – and at right about midnight – by Syed Nasir Jahan’s soulful recitation of Salam-i-Akhir.

Bachay to aglay baras hum hain aur yeh gham phir hai

Jo chal basay tou yeh appna salam-i-akhir hai

His soulful voice, so pregnant with a deep and heartfelt pain, always echoes in my head when I read of continuing sectarian violence and the instigation of sectarian hatred.

However, the ugly face of sectarianism is now haunting the entire Islamic world. There have been deaths in Pakistan recently and I have forgotten the number of people dying each day in Iraq. Forgotten? Yes, it sadly increases by the day..

And the true spirit of this sacrifice by Prophet’s family gets clouded by politics and imperial projects.

And for the poor Iraqis, Kerbala is not an event from their distant past.