Peterborough Today - U.K.
Monday, 22 May 2006
Proud Muslims celebrated the birth of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh)with a holy march.
Hundreds of Islamic followers from around the country gathered in West Town to pay tribute to the prophet who founded their religion.
It was also a chance for the national Naqshbandiya Aslamia group to remember key Islam figure Sheik Khawaja Sufi Muhammed Islam, who died in 1999 after founding their group.
Kadafi Sadiq, member of the Naqshbandiya Aslamia committee, said: "This is a big message for the Muslim youth. It is a big attraction for them and it is the first time many have got to go on a really big event.
"It is a chance for us to tell them that the Prophet Muhammed came to spread a peaceful lifestyle and the message of this religion."
The march was organised by one of the late Sheik's disciples, Sufi Yusuf, from Peterborough, in honour of his mentor.
The march set out from Mr Yusuf's home, in Alderman's Drive, and included city residents, as well as people from London, Manchester and York. It ended at the Madrassa Qassimmyia in Bamber Street, where prominent poets and scholars gave poetry readings and speeches.
The main guest of the day was Sufi Muhammed Asghur, who has taken over as head of the organisation.
Mr Sadiq said: "The speeches gave people a chance to express their views about things going on in the world, such as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"It got people talking about what we can do to follow the lifestyle and example of the Prophet Muhammed and make this world a better place."
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Mountain of Fire
By Zoher Abdoolcarim - Time Magazine Asia
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Merapi holds a sacred—and deadly—significance for the villagers who seek its protection.
The Indonesian province of Central Java is charged with mysticism: animist spirits, Hindu gods, Sufi saints. One of the most sacred sites is a magnificent 3,000-m peak called Merapi, which literally means "fire mountain." For centuries villagers living on its slopes and base have pledged their fate to Merapi, not just because it's an active volcano but because it provides fertile soil for them to grow food and raise cattle, and sand and stone for them to build their homes. Every year they bring Merapi gifts of food, tobacco and clothing, both to appease it and to seek its protection. The volcano even has a caretaker, appointed by a former sultan of the nearby royal city of Yogyakarta, to ensure that offerings are made and rituals observed. This is no mere mountain, but a giver of life and a deliverer of death.
In recent weeks Merapi has been showing its uncharitable side. A series of small eruptions has darkened the sky with hot clouds of gas, raining ash on the fields below, and discharging streams of lava down the mountain. By last Saturday, the dome remained intact, but threatened to blow at any time. "We are still at the highest alert status," says Subandrio, director of the Merapi-observation division of Indonesia's Center of Volcanological Research and Technology in Yogyakarta. "An explosion is still very possible."
When Merapi last erupted 12 years ago, 60 people were scorched to death by 300°C smoke. And since the tsunami of Dec. 26, 2004, which claimed 170,000 Indonesian lives, the government has been especially wary of the toll that can be inflicted by natural disasters. So the authorities have built dams to block the lava, set up evacuation routes, taught villagers to build bunkers, and transferred 20,000 people to makeshift shelters at least 8 km away.
Last week, however, thousands of them filed back to their homes, partly out of fear that they were being looted (they weren't). Merapi's current caretaker, 79-year-old Marijan, told reporters his dreams tell him the volcano won't blow its top, but that the eruptions are a warning to the people to fulfill their obligations to the spirits. He says he won't leave his own home, even though it's just 6 km from the summit: "If I do, I would not be guarding the mountain I have promised to guard. I would not be doing my duty." For the villagers living in Merapi's shadow, science has yet to supplant their faith in the power of their mountain.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Merapi holds a sacred—and deadly—significance for the villagers who seek its protection.
The Indonesian province of Central Java is charged with mysticism: animist spirits, Hindu gods, Sufi saints. One of the most sacred sites is a magnificent 3,000-m peak called Merapi, which literally means "fire mountain." For centuries villagers living on its slopes and base have pledged their fate to Merapi, not just because it's an active volcano but because it provides fertile soil for them to grow food and raise cattle, and sand and stone for them to build their homes. Every year they bring Merapi gifts of food, tobacco and clothing, both to appease it and to seek its protection. The volcano even has a caretaker, appointed by a former sultan of the nearby royal city of Yogyakarta, to ensure that offerings are made and rituals observed. This is no mere mountain, but a giver of life and a deliverer of death.
In recent weeks Merapi has been showing its uncharitable side. A series of small eruptions has darkened the sky with hot clouds of gas, raining ash on the fields below, and discharging streams of lava down the mountain. By last Saturday, the dome remained intact, but threatened to blow at any time. "We are still at the highest alert status," says Subandrio, director of the Merapi-observation division of Indonesia's Center of Volcanological Research and Technology in Yogyakarta. "An explosion is still very possible."
When Merapi last erupted 12 years ago, 60 people were scorched to death by 300°C smoke. And since the tsunami of Dec. 26, 2004, which claimed 170,000 Indonesian lives, the government has been especially wary of the toll that can be inflicted by natural disasters. So the authorities have built dams to block the lava, set up evacuation routes, taught villagers to build bunkers, and transferred 20,000 people to makeshift shelters at least 8 km away.
Last week, however, thousands of them filed back to their homes, partly out of fear that they were being looted (they weren't). Merapi's current caretaker, 79-year-old Marijan, told reporters his dreams tell him the volcano won't blow its top, but that the eruptions are a warning to the people to fulfill their obligations to the spirits. He says he won't leave his own home, even though it's just 6 km from the summit: "If I do, I would not be guarding the mountain I have promised to guard. I would not be doing my duty." For the villagers living in Merapi's shadow, science has yet to supplant their faith in the power of their mountain.
A Russian Muslim Patriot
Interview by Andrei Zolotov, Jr. - Russia Profile
Monday, May 22, 2006
Duma deputy Shamil Sultanov, 54, a member of the State
Duma’s Foreign Relations Committee, also heads the
coalition of Muslim deputies and has traveled the
Islamic world trying to establish contacts with
parliaments, governments and businesses in Muslim
countries. Ironically, he is a deputy from the
nationalist Rodina party. Russia Profile Editor Andrei
Zolotov Jr. spoke to Sultanov on the origins of his
faith, his view of the world and what it is like to be
a practicing Muslim integrated into the Russian
establishment.
R.P.: Were you brought up in the Islamic faith, or did
you come to it yourself?
S.S.: I came to it myself. Although I am from a Muslim
background ethnically, my parents did not observe any
rituals. My grandparents did perform salat (daily
Islamic ritual prayer), but in the strict Soviet times
it was all kept secret. I embraced the faith when I
was 25, at the end of the 1970s. That was the time
when our country entered a systemic crisis that
continues to this day. The ideologies on which we were
educated crumbled before our eyes. It was only natural
that many people began their search for alternative
values then. Some people looked to the West, others to
culture and yet others to the past. For me, the
Islamic past of my family was one of the options.
I started to study Islamic metaphysics. In 1986, I
published a biography of [medieval Persian scholar and
poet] Omar Khayyam. He was a special representative of
Sufism who was also connected to Neoplatonic
rationalists. So, in a way, I came to Islam through
Sufism and through Neoplatonic philosophers,
particularly Plotin, whom I consider to be a Muslim
because he rationally came to monotheism and
influenced Khayyam.
My biggest interest is in the metaphysics and
epistemology of Islam. You know, there is Islam and
there are present-day Muslims. Some 90 percent of
Muslims have no idea of Islam, its real spiritual
treasures.
R.P.: Where did you work at the time? Can you tell me
about your career?
S.S.: I was a senior research fellow at the Moscow
Institute of International Relations (MGIMO). There I
worked on theories of decision-making and political
forecasting, wrote papers for the Politburo and the
Foreign Affairs Ministry. A lot of my papers were
thrown out because my supervisors thought that what I
wrote was too complicated. In the late 1980s, there
was a failed attempt to create an Islamic Revival
Party of the Soviet Union. But then the Soviet Union
fell apart, and there was nothing left of the party.
At one point, I worked at the Institute of Foreign
Economic Relations, where together with several other
romantics I created a department of concept modeling.
It was clear that what was happening to the Soviet
Union was part of a strategic game, but our
gerontocracy had no strategy. We cherished the dream
of developing a strategy for our country, around which
a new elite could eventually consolidate. But nothing
ever came of it.
In 1990, it became pointless, everything was
crumbling, and I left for the newspaper that later
became known as Zavtra. I helped found the paper and
served as deputy to Alexander Prokhanov. Of all the
labels I have been called - a fascist, aÊMuslim
fundamentalist - I most like the label “intellectual
provocateur,” which Literaturnaya Gazeta once called
me. All of the ideas which later developed in Russia -
geopolitics, Eurasianism, the New Right, you name it -
all were born on the pages of Zavtra, which was always
quietly read in every Kremlin office.
In 1996, I left Zavtra, because Prokhanov forged an
alliance with the Communists. I told him “Sasha,
Communists have been dead since 1993, when they were
unable to draw even 5000 people into the streets. To
bet on Communists today is like digging up a coffin
and running around with it, happy that the
long-suffering bones are rattling around inside.”
I went to Yury Skokov’s Center for the Study of
Inter-Regional and Inter-Ethnic Economic Problems,
because I am convinced that the key problem for Russia
- always - is the relationship between the center and
the regions. In 1919, the country splintered into 120
pieces, and a strict dictatorship was necessary to put
it back together. By the mid-1990s, we were once again
facing a stark choice - either a terrible, stupid
dictatorship, or smart authoritarianism. Not a
democracy! Forget it!
Together with Skokov we created the Party of Russian
Regions, which eventually joined Rodina.
R.P.: Do you not sense a conflict between being a
Russian Muslim and being part of the leadership of
Rodina, which is perceived as a nationalist,
xenophobic party, and was even banned from running for
Moscow City Duma elections because of the now famous
campaign video deemed xenophobic?
S.S.: In our party, I am in charge of Dagestan,
Bashkortostan, Tatarstan and other predominantly
Muslim regions. Our party has about 150,000 members
today, among them about 20,000 Muslims. When I speak
to a Muslim audience and people ask me how I can be a
member of a Russian nationalist party, I answer that a
true Muslim would never need to ask such a question.
Everything that happens is determined by the niyat, or
intention of the Almighty. If this video came out,
there must have been a niyat behind it. Every niyat is
aimed at the good, at justice one way or the other.
Where is the good with this video? Look at the
consequences. About a year ago, there were from
300,000 to 500,000 people working as slaves in Moscow
- with no rights whatsoever. These people escape from
poverty, from civil war at home, and they come to
Moscow because there is money here. And I guess that
they give between $2.5 and 3 billion annually in
bribes to Moscow bureaucracy. Now, you can be offended
by being called this or that in the video. But is
there a real improvement? It caused a scandal,
attention was attracted to the treatment of migrants,
the State Duma adopted a law on the absorption of
these immigrants. These people gained some rights. The
Koran says that if people think that something’s good,
in reality it’s bad. Likewise if people think
something is bad, in reality it’s good. Only the
Almighty is all-knowing.
R.P.: Does the Russian state system adequately
accommodate the needs of Muslims?
S.S.: Of course not. It does not understand any
religious people, including Muslims. There are many
reasons for this - our society was atheistic, all
official religious figures were government-controlled.
But things are changing. According to the Justice
Ministry, we have about 3,000 registered jamaats
[Islamic associations], and I’d say there are more
than 3,000 unregistered ones. People say there are 20
million Muslims in Russia. I think there are 1.5
million real Muslims at most. Some 9 to 11 million are
those who I call hypocrites. They say they are Muslims
but, in reality, they do nothing. And among the 1.5
million there are some 30,000 to 40,000 radicals,
Wahhabis.
R.P.: Is it hard to be an observant Muslim believer
integrated in Russian society?
S.S.: It is hard to be a believer. Unfortunately, we
have today a widespread light, hypocritical attitude
towards religion. We have Christians who think that
wearing a cross makes them Christians, Muslims who
just proclaim shahada (the Muslim confession of faith)
and think they are Muslims.
Believing is a supreme way of life that consumes all
your energy. I observe all the rituals and not only
that - I also think. The main problem of Islam today
is that people just do things automatically.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Duma deputy Shamil Sultanov, 54, a member of the State
Duma’s Foreign Relations Committee, also heads the
coalition of Muslim deputies and has traveled the
Islamic world trying to establish contacts with
parliaments, governments and businesses in Muslim
countries. Ironically, he is a deputy from the
nationalist Rodina party. Russia Profile Editor Andrei
Zolotov Jr. spoke to Sultanov on the origins of his
faith, his view of the world and what it is like to be
a practicing Muslim integrated into the Russian
establishment.
R.P.: Were you brought up in the Islamic faith, or did
you come to it yourself?
S.S.: I came to it myself. Although I am from a Muslim
background ethnically, my parents did not observe any
rituals. My grandparents did perform salat (daily
Islamic ritual prayer), but in the strict Soviet times
it was all kept secret. I embraced the faith when I
was 25, at the end of the 1970s. That was the time
when our country entered a systemic crisis that
continues to this day. The ideologies on which we were
educated crumbled before our eyes. It was only natural
that many people began their search for alternative
values then. Some people looked to the West, others to
culture and yet others to the past. For me, the
Islamic past of my family was one of the options.
I started to study Islamic metaphysics. In 1986, I
published a biography of [medieval Persian scholar and
poet] Omar Khayyam. He was a special representative of
Sufism who was also connected to Neoplatonic
rationalists. So, in a way, I came to Islam through
Sufism and through Neoplatonic philosophers,
particularly Plotin, whom I consider to be a Muslim
because he rationally came to monotheism and
influenced Khayyam.
My biggest interest is in the metaphysics and
epistemology of Islam. You know, there is Islam and
there are present-day Muslims. Some 90 percent of
Muslims have no idea of Islam, its real spiritual
treasures.
R.P.: Where did you work at the time? Can you tell me
about your career?
S.S.: I was a senior research fellow at the Moscow
Institute of International Relations (MGIMO). There I
worked on theories of decision-making and political
forecasting, wrote papers for the Politburo and the
Foreign Affairs Ministry. A lot of my papers were
thrown out because my supervisors thought that what I
wrote was too complicated. In the late 1980s, there
was a failed attempt to create an Islamic Revival
Party of the Soviet Union. But then the Soviet Union
fell apart, and there was nothing left of the party.
At one point, I worked at the Institute of Foreign
Economic Relations, where together with several other
romantics I created a department of concept modeling.
It was clear that what was happening to the Soviet
Union was part of a strategic game, but our
gerontocracy had no strategy. We cherished the dream
of developing a strategy for our country, around which
a new elite could eventually consolidate. But nothing
ever came of it.
In 1990, it became pointless, everything was
crumbling, and I left for the newspaper that later
became known as Zavtra. I helped found the paper and
served as deputy to Alexander Prokhanov. Of all the
labels I have been called - a fascist, aÊMuslim
fundamentalist - I most like the label “intellectual
provocateur,” which Literaturnaya Gazeta once called
me. All of the ideas which later developed in Russia -
geopolitics, Eurasianism, the New Right, you name it -
all were born on the pages of Zavtra, which was always
quietly read in every Kremlin office.
In 1996, I left Zavtra, because Prokhanov forged an
alliance with the Communists. I told him “Sasha,
Communists have been dead since 1993, when they were
unable to draw even 5000 people into the streets. To
bet on Communists today is like digging up a coffin
and running around with it, happy that the
long-suffering bones are rattling around inside.”
I went to Yury Skokov’s Center for the Study of
Inter-Regional and Inter-Ethnic Economic Problems,
because I am convinced that the key problem for Russia
- always - is the relationship between the center and
the regions. In 1919, the country splintered into 120
pieces, and a strict dictatorship was necessary to put
it back together. By the mid-1990s, we were once again
facing a stark choice - either a terrible, stupid
dictatorship, or smart authoritarianism. Not a
democracy! Forget it!
Together with Skokov we created the Party of Russian
Regions, which eventually joined Rodina.
R.P.: Do you not sense a conflict between being a
Russian Muslim and being part of the leadership of
Rodina, which is perceived as a nationalist,
xenophobic party, and was even banned from running for
Moscow City Duma elections because of the now famous
campaign video deemed xenophobic?
S.S.: In our party, I am in charge of Dagestan,
Bashkortostan, Tatarstan and other predominantly
Muslim regions. Our party has about 150,000 members
today, among them about 20,000 Muslims. When I speak
to a Muslim audience and people ask me how I can be a
member of a Russian nationalist party, I answer that a
true Muslim would never need to ask such a question.
Everything that happens is determined by the niyat, or
intention of the Almighty. If this video came out,
there must have been a niyat behind it. Every niyat is
aimed at the good, at justice one way or the other.
Where is the good with this video? Look at the
consequences. About a year ago, there were from
300,000 to 500,000 people working as slaves in Moscow
- with no rights whatsoever. These people escape from
poverty, from civil war at home, and they come to
Moscow because there is money here. And I guess that
they give between $2.5 and 3 billion annually in
bribes to Moscow bureaucracy. Now, you can be offended
by being called this or that in the video. But is
there a real improvement? It caused a scandal,
attention was attracted to the treatment of migrants,
the State Duma adopted a law on the absorption of
these immigrants. These people gained some rights. The
Koran says that if people think that something’s good,
in reality it’s bad. Likewise if people think
something is bad, in reality it’s good. Only the
Almighty is all-knowing.
R.P.: Does the Russian state system adequately
accommodate the needs of Muslims?
S.S.: Of course not. It does not understand any
religious people, including Muslims. There are many
reasons for this - our society was atheistic, all
official religious figures were government-controlled.
But things are changing. According to the Justice
Ministry, we have about 3,000 registered jamaats
[Islamic associations], and I’d say there are more
than 3,000 unregistered ones. People say there are 20
million Muslims in Russia. I think there are 1.5
million real Muslims at most. Some 9 to 11 million are
those who I call hypocrites. They say they are Muslims
but, in reality, they do nothing. And among the 1.5
million there are some 30,000 to 40,000 radicals,
Wahhabis.
R.P.: Is it hard to be an observant Muslim believer
integrated in Russian society?
S.S.: It is hard to be a believer. Unfortunately, we
have today a widespread light, hypocritical attitude
towards religion. We have Christians who think that
wearing a cross makes them Christians, Muslims who
just proclaim shahada (the Muslim confession of faith)
and think they are Muslims.
Believing is a supreme way of life that consumes all
your energy. I observe all the rituals and not only
that - I also think. The main problem of Islam today
is that people just do things automatically.
My Nine Lives: from Stage to Sufism
Book Review by Valerie Lawson - The Sidney Morning Herald - Australia
Monday, May 22, 2006
Title: My Nine Lives
Author: Diane Cilento
Genre: Biography
Publisher: Viking
Pages: 522
RRP: $49.95
After putting life as Mrs 007 behind her, Diane Cilento set off to find meaning in her life. Like an agile cat, Diane Cilento sees her life as a journey through nine lucky lives. But her autobiography can be more neatly divided into two: before and after Sean Connery.
Before is the sensual half: men fall at the feet of the frisky Aussie actress. After is the esoteric half: Cilento becomes the hero of her own story, searching for meaning through spiritual experimentation. Already intrigued by Buddhism, she embraces Sufism for a sense of purpose.
The division took place about 1970 when she knew "I could not live the rest of my life in the shadow of 007". Soon after, she stumbled upon In Search of the Miraculous: Fragments of an Unknown Teaching by P.D. Ouspensky. She barely understood it then, but the book became a key that opened a door to the second part of her life. Ouspensky had written of his studies with the mysterious Russian, George Ivanovitch Gurdjieff, a guru and philosopher and, some have said, a charming charlatan.
Following in their wake was the British intellectual, J.C. Bennett - who, in turn, became Cilento's guru and whose ideas she finally adapted into running her Karnak Playhouse within the Daintree National Park from the 1980s.
At 72, Cilento marches on, still feeling like a child, yet knowing she is "old", and still looking for Mecca, literally. Her book, which begins poetically with her early life at Mooloolaba, ends equally serenely, with her journey last year to Mecca.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Title: My Nine Lives
Author: Diane Cilento
Genre: Biography
Publisher: Viking
Pages: 522
RRP: $49.95
After putting life as Mrs 007 behind her, Diane Cilento set off to find meaning in her life. Like an agile cat, Diane Cilento sees her life as a journey through nine lucky lives. But her autobiography can be more neatly divided into two: before and after Sean Connery.
Before is the sensual half: men fall at the feet of the frisky Aussie actress. After is the esoteric half: Cilento becomes the hero of her own story, searching for meaning through spiritual experimentation. Already intrigued by Buddhism, she embraces Sufism for a sense of purpose.
The division took place about 1970 when she knew "I could not live the rest of my life in the shadow of 007". Soon after, she stumbled upon In Search of the Miraculous: Fragments of an Unknown Teaching by P.D. Ouspensky. She barely understood it then, but the book became a key that opened a door to the second part of her life. Ouspensky had written of his studies with the mysterious Russian, George Ivanovitch Gurdjieff, a guru and philosopher and, some have said, a charming charlatan.
Following in their wake was the British intellectual, J.C. Bennett - who, in turn, became Cilento's guru and whose ideas she finally adapted into running her Karnak Playhouse within the Daintree National Park from the 1980s.
At 72, Cilento marches on, still feeling like a child, yet knowing she is "old", and still looking for Mecca, literally. Her book, which begins poetically with her early life at Mooloolaba, ends equally serenely, with her journey last year to Mecca.
The heart of a Sufi
By Anandmurti Gurumaa - DNA Daily News and Analysis - India
Sunday, May 21, 2006
One summer night in Turkey, Jalaluddin Rumi and Shams Tebriz, his teacher, were out admiring the moon. The whole of Konya village was asleep. Shams remarked, "Behold the beauty of the moon, and look at the people sleeping in a state of unconsciousness!" Rumi responded, "They are sleeping. We should not wake them up." This prompted a reprimand from Shams, "Rumi, you are a sea of benevolence! Your job is to awaken people, whether they are of Konya, Istanbul or Damascus."
Later, when Shams went into hibernation, Rumi wrote a poem: "I remember the moon that had paled in front of my moon (Shams) because my moon is not a moon; it is a sun. O Shams! Now I suffer remembering those moments when we used to go round and round in that moonlit night and do Zikr… Let me describe that night, when the earth and sun danced and gazed at the stars in the sky. I revolved around my sun and my sun revolved around its own self."
Rumi's advice is, "Just like the Prophet kept his lips on one end of the Ney (Persian flute) and the Almighty's songs began coming out from the other end, when you empty your spirit of vanity, His songs begin echoing." There is pain and imploration in this emptiness, like in a 'sigh'. In this space, love takes birth, true love gets nurtured and blossoms.
Love, pain and devotion are central to Sufism. The pain should arise in the heart and the heart needs to implore. Then the heart lotus opens and divine love fills you, making life a celebration. We all long for love, but we look at the wrong places. Love based on mental compatibility will die soon. We delude ourselves repeatedly that we are in love, but we falter and get hurt. Love between Shams and Rumi was of the soul, therefore fulfilling. It is a blessing to fall, nay, rise in love.
The writer is a Sonepat-based mystic and singer.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
One summer night in Turkey, Jalaluddin Rumi and Shams Tebriz, his teacher, were out admiring the moon. The whole of Konya village was asleep. Shams remarked, "Behold the beauty of the moon, and look at the people sleeping in a state of unconsciousness!" Rumi responded, "They are sleeping. We should not wake them up." This prompted a reprimand from Shams, "Rumi, you are a sea of benevolence! Your job is to awaken people, whether they are of Konya, Istanbul or Damascus."
Later, when Shams went into hibernation, Rumi wrote a poem: "I remember the moon that had paled in front of my moon (Shams) because my moon is not a moon; it is a sun. O Shams! Now I suffer remembering those moments when we used to go round and round in that moonlit night and do Zikr… Let me describe that night, when the earth and sun danced and gazed at the stars in the sky. I revolved around my sun and my sun revolved around its own self."
Rumi's advice is, "Just like the Prophet kept his lips on one end of the Ney (Persian flute) and the Almighty's songs began coming out from the other end, when you empty your spirit of vanity, His songs begin echoing." There is pain and imploration in this emptiness, like in a 'sigh'. In this space, love takes birth, true love gets nurtured and blossoms.
Love, pain and devotion are central to Sufism. The pain should arise in the heart and the heart needs to implore. Then the heart lotus opens and divine love fills you, making life a celebration. We all long for love, but we look at the wrong places. Love based on mental compatibility will die soon. We delude ourselves repeatedly that we are in love, but we falter and get hurt. Love between Shams and Rumi was of the soul, therefore fulfilling. It is a blessing to fall, nay, rise in love.
The writer is a Sonepat-based mystic and singer.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Sufi singer Zila Khan promises more classical notes in her next album
By Banasree Purkayastha - The Financial Express - India
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Zila Khan has just returned from Pakistan and she is
waxing eloquent about the reception accorded to her
there. Home to the genre of Sufi music, Pakistan has
its own Sufi queens — Farida Khanum, Nayyara Noor,
Tina Sani — but “that adds to the warmth of the
welcome”, she says.
“I had a live performance in Lahore, which was
appreciated by the audience. I sang in Iqbal’s home,
which is like a shrine for a Sufi singer,” says the
singer whose rendering of Sufi compositions has made
her famous. Khan was a member of the delegation that
went to Pakistan for the release of Taj Mahal.
“It is only when you visit that side of the border
that you realise how similar the two cultures are. Our
sense of humour is the same. We have similar tastes in
food. There is so much that brings us together,” says
Khan, lamenting that cultural exchanges have been held
to ransom by political pulls.
“We are open to their artists coming to India and
performing. We have had Shafqat Ali Khan, Raahat Ali
and Waaris Ali with the pop band Strings, all
performing in different cities in India. In contrast
the number of Indian artistes going across the border
is few,” she adds.
Khan has been flying in and out of the country giving
performances in not only the sub-continent but also
Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston
where expatriates hanker for music from back home,
whether it is Hindi film songs, Sufi music or Indi
pop. Talking about the increasing acceptance of Sufi
music, made more popular as Bollywood embraced it, she
says, “Sufi music is easier to understand and the
listener can identify with the words which has a
rustic feeling to them.” The popularity of her album
Ishq Ki Naayee Baahar is a case in point. It has
traces of Sufi, folk and semi-claasical music, she
says.
However, Khan’s first love continues to be classical
music. Admitting that classical music can only be
appreciated by the select few who understand the
nuances of a raag, Khan says that “classical music is
a nasha (addiction) for her. That’s where I find my
inspiration,” she says, adding that her next album
would be closer to the classical music format.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Zila Khan has just returned from Pakistan and she is
waxing eloquent about the reception accorded to her
there. Home to the genre of Sufi music, Pakistan has
its own Sufi queens — Farida Khanum, Nayyara Noor,
Tina Sani — but “that adds to the warmth of the
welcome”, she says.
“I had a live performance in Lahore, which was
appreciated by the audience. I sang in Iqbal’s home,
which is like a shrine for a Sufi singer,” says the
singer whose rendering of Sufi compositions has made
her famous. Khan was a member of the delegation that
went to Pakistan for the release of Taj Mahal.
“It is only when you visit that side of the border
that you realise how similar the two cultures are. Our
sense of humour is the same. We have similar tastes in
food. There is so much that brings us together,” says
Khan, lamenting that cultural exchanges have been held
to ransom by political pulls.
“We are open to their artists coming to India and
performing. We have had Shafqat Ali Khan, Raahat Ali
and Waaris Ali with the pop band Strings, all
performing in different cities in India. In contrast
the number of Indian artistes going across the border
is few,” she adds.
Khan has been flying in and out of the country giving
performances in not only the sub-continent but also
Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston
where expatriates hanker for music from back home,
whether it is Hindi film songs, Sufi music or Indi
pop. Talking about the increasing acceptance of Sufi
music, made more popular as Bollywood embraced it, she
says, “Sufi music is easier to understand and the
listener can identify with the words which has a
rustic feeling to them.” The popularity of her album
Ishq Ki Naayee Baahar is a case in point. It has
traces of Sufi, folk and semi-claasical music, she
says.
However, Khan’s first love continues to be classical
music. Admitting that classical music can only be
appreciated by the select few who understand the
nuances of a raag, Khan says that “classical music is
a nasha (addiction) for her. That’s where I find my
inspiration,” she says, adding that her next album
would be closer to the classical music format.
Seminar in Kashmir on “Sufism and its Relevance today”
Greater Kashmir, Online edition
Friday, May 19, 2006
Srinagar, May 19:A one-day seminar on “Sufism and its
Relevance today” was organized by Institute of Peace,
Research and Action, an NGO under project CROKSY at
Institute of Management Public Administration and
Rural Development here Thursday.
In the seminar many speakers including Prof Fida M
Khan Hasnnain, Prof Susheela Bhan Siraj-ud-Din, Prof.
Prem Singh, Dr. Hamid Naseem Rafiabadi, Dr. M. Maroof
Shah, Dr. Manzoor Ahmad Zargar, Dr. Manzoor AG Shah,
Dr. Shafkat Altaf besides many other scholars and
intellectuals dwelt an various aspects of Sufism and
its relevance in the contemporary world.
Light was thrown by speakers on various topics on
Sufism. The Sufi perspective of post modernism and
Sufism versus environmentalism, besides other related
topics were also spoken about.
Giving details the organizers told that the general
objective of the project is to work with the students
youth, develop and effective communication with them
and operationalise on educational programme aimed at
imparting the necessary knowledge, values and skills
towards a cultural regeneration and renewal of the
student youth with a special focus on four modern
values namely democracy, secularism, human rights and
social justice.
Director Information Kh. Farooq Ahmad Renzu while
referring to various upsurges in the annals of
Kashmiri history said that the Kashmiri mind was very
fertile which has always resists to its subjugation by
foreign elements. He said that the Kashmiri culture is
a product of gradual evolution and synthesis of
various faiths of Hinduism Vedanta, Buddhism and
Islam. He lamented the fact that the present
generation has unfortunately got drowned in the
endless ocean of confusion. He said that the world is
indebted to Kashmir for many modern day concepts of
the democracy and secularism. (INF)
Friday, May 19, 2006
Srinagar, May 19:A one-day seminar on “Sufism and its
Relevance today” was organized by Institute of Peace,
Research and Action, an NGO under project CROKSY at
Institute of Management Public Administration and
Rural Development here Thursday.
In the seminar many speakers including Prof Fida M
Khan Hasnnain, Prof Susheela Bhan Siraj-ud-Din, Prof.
Prem Singh, Dr. Hamid Naseem Rafiabadi, Dr. M. Maroof
Shah, Dr. Manzoor Ahmad Zargar, Dr. Manzoor AG Shah,
Dr. Shafkat Altaf besides many other scholars and
intellectuals dwelt an various aspects of Sufism and
its relevance in the contemporary world.
Light was thrown by speakers on various topics on
Sufism. The Sufi perspective of post modernism and
Sufism versus environmentalism, besides other related
topics were also spoken about.
Giving details the organizers told that the general
objective of the project is to work with the students
youth, develop and effective communication with them
and operationalise on educational programme aimed at
imparting the necessary knowledge, values and skills
towards a cultural regeneration and renewal of the
student youth with a special focus on four modern
values namely democracy, secularism, human rights and
social justice.
Director Information Kh. Farooq Ahmad Renzu while
referring to various upsurges in the annals of
Kashmiri history said that the Kashmiri mind was very
fertile which has always resists to its subjugation by
foreign elements. He said that the Kashmiri culture is
a product of gradual evolution and synthesis of
various faiths of Hinduism Vedanta, Buddhism and
Islam. He lamented the fact that the present
generation has unfortunately got drowned in the
endless ocean of confusion. He said that the world is
indebted to Kashmir for many modern day concepts of
the democracy and secularism. (INF)
EVENT: Muslims are set to march for Prophet
Peterborough Today (UK)
Friday, May 19, 2006
Muslims in Peterborough are set to hold a holy march
to celebrate the birth of the Prophet Muhammed.
The event, in West Town, will also be in remembrance
of another key figure within Islam, the late Sheik
Khawaja Sufi Muhammad Aslam – founder of the
Naqshbandiya Aslamia, who died in 1999.
One of his disciples, Sufi Yusuf, who lives in
Peterborough, helped organise the march, and followers
from across the country are expected to attend.
Prominent poets and scholars will give poetry readings
and speeches inspired by the occasion during the
event, which will also be attended by special guest
Sufi Muhammed Asghur, who has taken over the mission
from the Sheikh.
Kadafi Sadiq, from the Naqshbandiya Aslamia Committee,
said: "We would like to give the message to young
people that the holy prophet came to spread the
message of Islam and the religion teaches people to
lead a peaceful lifestyle. "The sheikh revived this
message and brought it to this country.
"It will be a beautiful occasion with special guests
and food, and everyone, no matter what race, religion
or colour, will be very welcome."
The march will set off from 109 Aldermans Drive, in
Peterborough, at 1pm and will culminate at the
Madrassa Qassimmyia in Bamber Street.
Friday, May 19, 2006
Muslims in Peterborough are set to hold a holy march
to celebrate the birth of the Prophet Muhammed.
The event, in West Town, will also be in remembrance
of another key figure within Islam, the late Sheik
Khawaja Sufi Muhammad Aslam – founder of the
Naqshbandiya Aslamia, who died in 1999.
One of his disciples, Sufi Yusuf, who lives in
Peterborough, helped organise the march, and followers
from across the country are expected to attend.
Prominent poets and scholars will give poetry readings
and speeches inspired by the occasion during the
event, which will also be attended by special guest
Sufi Muhammed Asghur, who has taken over the mission
from the Sheikh.
Kadafi Sadiq, from the Naqshbandiya Aslamia Committee,
said: "We would like to give the message to young
people that the holy prophet came to spread the
message of Islam and the religion teaches people to
lead a peaceful lifestyle. "The sheikh revived this
message and brought it to this country.
"It will be a beautiful occasion with special guests
and food, and everyone, no matter what race, religion
or colour, will be very welcome."
The march will set off from 109 Aldermans Drive, in
Peterborough, at 1pm and will culminate at the
Madrassa Qassimmyia in Bamber Street.
Islam Karimov visits Bahauddin Nakshband memorial
Press Service of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan
Friday, May 19, 2006
President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov is visiting
Bukhara region. On the second day of his visit, 19
May, the Uzbek leader visited the memorial complex of
Bahauddin Nakshband.
In the years of independence, large-scale work has
been carried out in the sphere spirituality,
enlightenment and education. Serious attention is paid
to perpetuation of the memory of great ancestors,
preservation and wide propaganda of their heritage.
Scientists are studying the heritage of Hadj Bahauddin
Nakshband, an outstanding thinker, famous
representative of Sufism, his invaluable contribution
to the world intellectual treasury, as well as the
effective application of this spiritual wealth in deed
of upbringing young generation.
Jubilees of Imam Buhari, Hadj Abduhalik Gijduvani, Abu
Mansur Maturidi, Burhonuddin Marginoniy were
celebrated widely on the initiative of the Uzbek
President. Centre of Memorial Complex of Bahauddin
Nakshband was created in 2004 on the basis of the
resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan.
Viewing the complex, the Uzbek head appreciated the
constructive work carried out in Bukhara for the years
of independence, and noted the necessity of increasing
orchards, looking after parks and flower gardens.
Friday, May 19, 2006
President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov is visiting
Bukhara region. On the second day of his visit, 19
May, the Uzbek leader visited the memorial complex of
Bahauddin Nakshband.
In the years of independence, large-scale work has
been carried out in the sphere spirituality,
enlightenment and education. Serious attention is paid
to perpetuation of the memory of great ancestors,
preservation and wide propaganda of their heritage.
Scientists are studying the heritage of Hadj Bahauddin
Nakshband, an outstanding thinker, famous
representative of Sufism, his invaluable contribution
to the world intellectual treasury, as well as the
effective application of this spiritual wealth in deed
of upbringing young generation.
Jubilees of Imam Buhari, Hadj Abduhalik Gijduvani, Abu
Mansur Maturidi, Burhonuddin Marginoniy were
celebrated widely on the initiative of the Uzbek
President. Centre of Memorial Complex of Bahauddin
Nakshband was created in 2004 on the basis of the
resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan.
Viewing the complex, the Uzbek head appreciated the
constructive work carried out in Bukhara for the years
of independence, and noted the necessity of increasing
orchards, looking after parks and flower gardens.
Bari Imam urs ends: ‘If govt improved living standards, people would stop making manats’
By Hassan Shehzad - Daily Times - Pakistan
Friday, May 19, 2006
ISLAMABAD: Visitors chant prayers of devotion and hopes for future reunion, as they obsequiously admit their own insignificance in comparison to the piety of renowned saint, Bari Imam, during the final day of his urs (death anniversary).
Around 200,000 devotees return home today, after five days and six nights at the shrine, where a rather sad environment greets visitors. Some devotees cry, as others comfort them. “Who knows if we will get another chance to pay homage to Bari Badshah (king),” said a visitor.
The climax of the annual urs is the mehndi (henna) ceremony. In the sub-continent, the mehndi ceremony is part of marriage celebrations. This practice, however, is common to urs celebrations as well, as the word ‘urs’ means marriage. In Sufi philosophy, the soul of a saint unites with God on the day of his death. Sufism, therefore, takes a saint’s death to be his marriage to God, which is why death anniversaries of saints are called urs, where people dance and beat drums to celebrate the event just like marriages in the sub-continent are celebrated.
Ghulam Jafar, a devotee visiting the shrine, said that his caravan had brought henna to the shrine from Peshawar, from where he had travelled by foot with a party of 800 men. The caravan travelled 15 kilometres a day and stopped at 25 places on the way, he said, adding that more devotees joined their caravan at every stop. “It takes eight days for the caravan to reach the shrine. However, women and children cannot join the caravan. Only men with beards can join us,” he said.
The urs tradition is around 250 years old and was pioneered by Davang Shah, a saint, said Jafar, adding that the tradition was celebrated by decoratively placing a ‘gharroli’ (small pitcher), ‘charaghs’ (earthen lamps), ‘desi ghee’ (cooking oil made of animal fat) and henna at 10pm at the saint’s tomb. The ‘hujra’ (the room where the saint is buried) was then locked and reopened at 3am, he said. When the plate of henna was taken back before dawn, said Jafar, the impression of Bari Imam’s hand could be seen on it.
Hundreds of people, including transvestites, placed their henna plates at the tomb, he said. He claims that a group of saints known as the ‘Pirs of Peshawar’ are the real custodians of the shrine, which included Syed Rozi Aga, Syed Gul Aga, Syed Sheri Aga, Syed Hassan Aga and Syed Muhammad Raza Shah. However, approximately 60 families living in the areas surrounding the shrine, claim to be the saint’s heirs. So far, the only verifiable one is Raja Sarfaraz Akram, who had been recognised by the government as Bari Imam’s true heir. Akram is a young law graduate who runs his own tax consultancy firm in Islamabad. “No pictures please. We are here to serve the masses, not ourselves. I cannot give you a formal interview, because my murshid (spiritual teacher) disliked publicity. But you may share your thoughts with me. I’m no custodian of the shrine, only a servant,” he said while talking to Daily Times, as he personally served food and offered tea to the devotees who had gathered for the langer (free food). He paused in between only to stop admiring visitors from kissing his hands and touching his feet.
Many of Bari Imam’s relations are currently involved in disputes as to the rightful heir and custodian of his shrine. “Bari Imam was born in 1617 and his real name was Syed Abdul Latif Shah. His lineage dates back to the seventh Shia imam. At Nurpur Shahan, Bari Imam prayed for many years. After the sad demise of his wife and daughter, he became reclusive and spent most of his time praying. He preached throughout his life to non-believers,” said a research paper by Dr Hafeezur Rehman Chaudhry, the head of the Anthropology Department at Quaid-e-Azam University.
Urs celebrations are part of a tradition that has lasted for centuries. The 1893 District Gazetteer of Rawalpindi refers to the urs - “The principal religious gathering in the district takes place at Nurpur, a small village at the foot of the Margalla hills, where the shrine of a Musalman saint, Bari Imam Latif Shah, is located. It is visited by large crowds at the time of the fair or mela. Latif Shah got the name of Bari from his constant wanderings in the forest. The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah, is said to have visited Nurpur in the saint’s lifetime, when some of the buildings were erected.”
One of the major attractions for devotees at the shrine are manats (solemn pledges), which they make at the tomb of the saint. Manats are promises made by visitors that require fulfilment, such as arranging for food at the shrine, in return for the saint’s help to solve the devotee’s personal problems, that range from employment or academics to bearing children. A woman at the shrine claimed that though she had been infertile, the saint had helped her bear children, after which she vowed to visit the shrine once a month for the rest of her life. Fourteen-year-old Rani, a devotee from Haripur, said she had attended Bari Imam’s urs 14 times with her family. “As my birth was the result of a manat that my parents had made, my family brings me to shrine every year. I have developed a passion for the urs. I was able to pass my class 8 examination because of a manat,” she said.
Din Muhammad from Sindh said that though he had been visiting the shrine for three years, his manats had not been fulfilled. “There is a time for everything. However, if the government would only ensure better living standards for the people, they might stop making mantas,” he said.
Police officials were quite active during the urs.
Friday, May 19, 2006
ISLAMABAD: Visitors chant prayers of devotion and hopes for future reunion, as they obsequiously admit their own insignificance in comparison to the piety of renowned saint, Bari Imam, during the final day of his urs (death anniversary).
Around 200,000 devotees return home today, after five days and six nights at the shrine, where a rather sad environment greets visitors. Some devotees cry, as others comfort them. “Who knows if we will get another chance to pay homage to Bari Badshah (king),” said a visitor.
The climax of the annual urs is the mehndi (henna) ceremony. In the sub-continent, the mehndi ceremony is part of marriage celebrations. This practice, however, is common to urs celebrations as well, as the word ‘urs’ means marriage. In Sufi philosophy, the soul of a saint unites with God on the day of his death. Sufism, therefore, takes a saint’s death to be his marriage to God, which is why death anniversaries of saints are called urs, where people dance and beat drums to celebrate the event just like marriages in the sub-continent are celebrated.
Ghulam Jafar, a devotee visiting the shrine, said that his caravan had brought henna to the shrine from Peshawar, from where he had travelled by foot with a party of 800 men. The caravan travelled 15 kilometres a day and stopped at 25 places on the way, he said, adding that more devotees joined their caravan at every stop. “It takes eight days for the caravan to reach the shrine. However, women and children cannot join the caravan. Only men with beards can join us,” he said.
The urs tradition is around 250 years old and was pioneered by Davang Shah, a saint, said Jafar, adding that the tradition was celebrated by decoratively placing a ‘gharroli’ (small pitcher), ‘charaghs’ (earthen lamps), ‘desi ghee’ (cooking oil made of animal fat) and henna at 10pm at the saint’s tomb. The ‘hujra’ (the room where the saint is buried) was then locked and reopened at 3am, he said. When the plate of henna was taken back before dawn, said Jafar, the impression of Bari Imam’s hand could be seen on it.
Hundreds of people, including transvestites, placed their henna plates at the tomb, he said. He claims that a group of saints known as the ‘Pirs of Peshawar’ are the real custodians of the shrine, which included Syed Rozi Aga, Syed Gul Aga, Syed Sheri Aga, Syed Hassan Aga and Syed Muhammad Raza Shah. However, approximately 60 families living in the areas surrounding the shrine, claim to be the saint’s heirs. So far, the only verifiable one is Raja Sarfaraz Akram, who had been recognised by the government as Bari Imam’s true heir. Akram is a young law graduate who runs his own tax consultancy firm in Islamabad. “No pictures please. We are here to serve the masses, not ourselves. I cannot give you a formal interview, because my murshid (spiritual teacher) disliked publicity. But you may share your thoughts with me. I’m no custodian of the shrine, only a servant,” he said while talking to Daily Times, as he personally served food and offered tea to the devotees who had gathered for the langer (free food). He paused in between only to stop admiring visitors from kissing his hands and touching his feet.
Many of Bari Imam’s relations are currently involved in disputes as to the rightful heir and custodian of his shrine. “Bari Imam was born in 1617 and his real name was Syed Abdul Latif Shah. His lineage dates back to the seventh Shia imam. At Nurpur Shahan, Bari Imam prayed for many years. After the sad demise of his wife and daughter, he became reclusive and spent most of his time praying. He preached throughout his life to non-believers,” said a research paper by Dr Hafeezur Rehman Chaudhry, the head of the Anthropology Department at Quaid-e-Azam University.
Urs celebrations are part of a tradition that has lasted for centuries. The 1893 District Gazetteer of Rawalpindi refers to the urs - “The principal religious gathering in the district takes place at Nurpur, a small village at the foot of the Margalla hills, where the shrine of a Musalman saint, Bari Imam Latif Shah, is located. It is visited by large crowds at the time of the fair or mela. Latif Shah got the name of Bari from his constant wanderings in the forest. The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah, is said to have visited Nurpur in the saint’s lifetime, when some of the buildings were erected.”
One of the major attractions for devotees at the shrine are manats (solemn pledges), which they make at the tomb of the saint. Manats are promises made by visitors that require fulfilment, such as arranging for food at the shrine, in return for the saint’s help to solve the devotee’s personal problems, that range from employment or academics to bearing children. A woman at the shrine claimed that though she had been infertile, the saint had helped her bear children, after which she vowed to visit the shrine once a month for the rest of her life. Fourteen-year-old Rani, a devotee from Haripur, said she had attended Bari Imam’s urs 14 times with her family. “As my birth was the result of a manat that my parents had made, my family brings me to shrine every year. I have developed a passion for the urs. I was able to pass my class 8 examination because of a manat,” she said.
Din Muhammad from Sindh said that though he had been visiting the shrine for three years, his manats had not been fulfilled. “There is a time for everything. However, if the government would only ensure better living standards for the people, they might stop making mantas,” he said.
Police officials were quite active during the urs.
Call of the Saint: The Sufi Shrine of Ajmer
Expressindia - Delhi Newsline
Thursday, May 18, 2006
A new coffee table book revisits the 700 years old
dargah at Nizamuddin.
At a glance, she looks ill-equipped to talk about the
legendary dargah of Nizamuddin Auliya in south Delhi.
Laxmi Dhaul is a saraswat Brahmin by lineage and a
Maharashtrian by birth. But the 50-year-old mother of
three has penned some 120 pages on the dargah in her
book The Dargah of Nizamuddin Auliya (Rupa, Rs 595),
which was released at Urs Mahal, Nizamuddin, last
evening.
"I made a lot of effort to have the book released on
this day," says Dhaul about the fact that the launch
coincided with the 702nd Urs celebration at the
dargah.
The coffee table book is not her first attempt at
discovering the mystic powers that the dargahs exude.
Dhaul, who has always been attracted to the history
and culture of Delhi, was first exposed to sufism at
the Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti's dargah in Ajmer when she
had her children admitted to the Mayo College. Soon
she compiled a A4-sized book, The Sufi Saint of Ajmer,
which was published and then reprinted in 2003 by
Rupa.
''The sanctity of the place gets lost in swotting away
the flies and shooing away the beggars at most of
these places. People all around you are telling you
where to deposit the donations or where to buy the
chadar from. And the next moment you are happily out
of the dust and crowd,'' says Dhaul, who also
co-partners husband Harry Dhaul's NGO, Independent
Power Production Association of India.
For Dhaul, her ''inexposure'' to dargahs has worked to
her advantage. ''I have a layman's view on the dargah
and even little details about the peer's life are new
for me,'' she reveals.
While Dhaul's second book is out with support from
Delhi Tourism Department, she is now busy working on
her next venture, the ''Eklingji Shrine in Udaipur''.
This, besides plans to pen a comprehensive book on the
dargahs of Delhi.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
A new coffee table book revisits the 700 years old
dargah at Nizamuddin.
At a glance, she looks ill-equipped to talk about the
legendary dargah of Nizamuddin Auliya in south Delhi.
Laxmi Dhaul is a saraswat Brahmin by lineage and a
Maharashtrian by birth. But the 50-year-old mother of
three has penned some 120 pages on the dargah in her
book The Dargah of Nizamuddin Auliya (Rupa, Rs 595),
which was released at Urs Mahal, Nizamuddin, last
evening.
"I made a lot of effort to have the book released on
this day," says Dhaul about the fact that the launch
coincided with the 702nd Urs celebration at the
dargah.
The coffee table book is not her first attempt at
discovering the mystic powers that the dargahs exude.
Dhaul, who has always been attracted to the history
and culture of Delhi, was first exposed to sufism at
the Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti's dargah in Ajmer when she
had her children admitted to the Mayo College. Soon
she compiled a A4-sized book, The Sufi Saint of Ajmer,
which was published and then reprinted in 2003 by
Rupa.
''The sanctity of the place gets lost in swotting away
the flies and shooing away the beggars at most of
these places. People all around you are telling you
where to deposit the donations or where to buy the
chadar from. And the next moment you are happily out
of the dust and crowd,'' says Dhaul, who also
co-partners husband Harry Dhaul's NGO, Independent
Power Production Association of India.
For Dhaul, her ''inexposure'' to dargahs has worked to
her advantage. ''I have a layman's view on the dargah
and even little details about the peer's life are new
for me,'' she reveals.
While Dhaul's second book is out with support from
Delhi Tourism Department, she is now busy working on
her next venture, the ''Eklingji Shrine in Udaipur''.
This, besides plans to pen a comprehensive book on the
dargahs of Delhi.
Diane Cilento's, *My Nine Lives* and Sufism
By Rachael Kohn - ABC Radio National - Australia
Transcript from a recording of the program "The Spirit of Things"
Sunday 6pm, May 7 (repeated Monday 9pm and Friday 4am) 2006
She made it big in the movies in the 1950s and 60s, married 'James Bond', Sean Connery, but later turned her back on stardom to embark on a life of spiritual discovery. From Gurdjieff to Sufism, Diane's awakening has been profound.
Rachael Kohn: 'No Regrets' sang Edith Piaf, and for my guest today, it's probably a suitable anthem. Hello, I'm, Rachael Kohn. Welcome to The Spirit of Things on ABC Radio National. This is the second in our Epiphanies series, personal tales of courage, adventure and fulfillment.
My guest today is Diane Cilento, one of those rare people who's followed her heart, in love, in her profession, and in her spiritual life. If anyone's been on a journey, Diane has, leading her ever forward into new territory, even to Mecca, as a Sufi pilgrim.
She's an acclaimed actress in film and on stage, a writer and film maker, a spiritual seeker, and an owner and director of a theatre, and much more besides. She's had a couple of famous husbands: Sean Connery, the first James Bond, and Tony Shaffer, one of England's great playwrights. In all that, Diane's never lost her feisty personality which she had way back in boarding school in Queensland. All of which she's written about in her new autobiography, My Nine Lives.
I met her when she was down from Queensland to give a series of talks on Sufi Poetry and Sainthood for the Temenos Foundation at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney.
Diane Cilento, welcome to The Spirit of Things.
Diane Cilento: Thank you.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, you grew up in Brisbane, the daughter of two famous doctors, Lady Phyllis and Sir Raphael Cilento, and I think your father became the head of the World Health Organisation; were you expected to achieve great things?
Diane Cilento: Nooo! I'm in fact the only one except for a sister who didn't become a doctor. I have three brothers and a sister who was also married to a doctor, and in a way, it was expected that you would go into medicine and be part of the medical group that was our family. My mother and father, and all the rest of them.
Rachael Kohn: Goodness. So joining the theatre must have been a very rebellious thing to do.
Diane Cilento: Well I think they thought I was a bit stupid, actually. I mean, I didn't go to university, I think I'm the only member of my family that didn't. I did go to RADA and I did go to the American Academy of Dramatic Art, but that, I mean actually have you noticed that professional people don't take - I mean especially doctors - don't take other professions like acting seriously. They think it's sort of a bit of a joke.
Rachael Kohn: Do you think your family didn't take your profession seriously?
Diane Cilento: Well they didn't take it seriously until I started earning more money than they were! That's when they started taking me seriously. But I think even then it was a bit - no, I think that they began to think it was OK after that, now.
Rachael Kohn: Well you went on to have quite a significant career as an actress, playing some of the most memorable parts like Molly Seagram, the saucy wench in Tom Jones, that great film of the '60s. And not long after that your then husband, Sean Connery, I guess he was your second husband, became a superstar as James Bond. And that was in the mid-'60s. That must have been a terrific time for you, but also very challenging. What were the personal challenges of that kind of fame so early?
Diane Cilento: Well. I was more famous than him when we married, and then he got to be very, very famous, and we lived in a funny little house in the middle of Acton Common. And of course we had absolutely no protection, and nobody really knew about security and guards and people then, we never thought about it.
We had 17 robberies, and oh dear, it was very challenging, believe me, because see I think England at that time, I mean America had had Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra, but England suddenly got Bond and the Beatles, and they'd never really had any internationally ding-dong drag out celebrity type lifestyles. And it was a very, very swift learning process. And none of us knew that obviously it would cost so much money. And as Sean's Scottish, he didn't want to spend anything on guards coming around, and I didn't know anything about all that stuff. We were a bit Babes in the Wood about it.
Of course, after a while you get to not be, especially with the paparazzi who invade your space continuously.
Rachael Kohn: Did that spark some questions in you about what it is to be Diane Cilento?
Diane Cilento: Well it certainly sparked questions about the idea of being famous. Because when you're a working actor, what you're really entranced by is the skill of acting. And then suddenly, when you get into films, and I had a contract with Alexander Korda long ago before this, and he then died when I was in America, so I had been sort of passed on to the government; I was a civil servant.
British Lion was owned by the British government, so I was shoved into all these films, and suddenly the gilt goes off the gingerbread in the acting stakes, and you think, Oh God, not another one of these ghastly films. And you get put into - at least I did - at that time I didn't fit the mould, you see, never, of that sort of British type star, of Deborah Kerr 'arrive as a star', get your hair sort of done into these awful little globules and follow a formula which I wasn't good - I couldn't do it.
Rachael Kohn: Well I think you actually described yourself as a young woman, being impetuous and passionate and what else? Dramatic. Though I suppose that's predicable for an actress. Did that work for you, or against you, in what became a budding spiritual quest?
Diane Cilento: Well, first of all Sean didn't want me to work, because he had a very different idea of what wives do. They sit at home and they do other things than acting. So I thought that I'd be sitting at home and writing books. So I started writing and I did write two books actually. I wrote one called Hybrid, but the first one was called The Manipulator, and it was really because I'd been to the Mexican Film Festival with Tony Richardson. See, I was in the Royal Court and all that, too. And I'd seen the sort of manipulation that goes on in the film industry, and I suppose I began finally to actually begin to look at things in a more questing way.
Rachael Kohn: Well you got involved in the esoteric movement called the School of Philosophy that was begin by J.G. Bennett, and I think he was based in London, was he?
Diane Cilento: No, he was based in Gloucestershire. At first he was in London and in fact I knew him in London and used to go to meditational things at his place, which was in the next street from me in Kingston. But he started a great big school in Gloucestershire, which was in the same school that If - you know that film called If, where the boys from school revolted against their schoolmaster and threw him in Sherwater - it was called Sherborne - and the school was left empty, and then it was taken over by Bennett and called the School of Continuous Education, and that's where I lived for a year.
Rachael Kohn: Is that where your interest in Sufism first began?
Diane Cilento: Yes, it did, because Sufism really was the parent of I suppose you could say, Sufism was the parent of Gurdjieff, and the source from which he took a lot of his work, and although Bennett wasn't a complete Gurdjieffian, he did also go back, and I find myself going back to the source of where the knowledge came from.
And I found that it came from very much from a philosopher that lived in the 12th century called Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi, and I met the man who did translations, he was a Turkish gentleman, called Bulent Rauf, and then I was taken to the Whirling Dervishes to stay with them and do this film, and then I was taken to Turkey to help with the translations of Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi's work. So suddenly, I was taken into a different world, where the work went back to a very long time before.
Rachael Kohn: How did you find yourself making a film about the Whirling Dervishes? That couldn't have been easy in the first place to organise.
Diane Cilento: I know that this will sound very bizarre. First of all I had a dream that I saw this whirling white figure, and I wrote to Bulent, and I said, Look, I keep seeing this strange - and I thought he'd say, 'Go away and take a pill, or have a shower, or do something.' But he said, 'No, no, we'll go to the Turkish Embassy together, because I happen to know the Mevlevi, he was an archaeologist'.
Rachael Kohn: Who was that?
Diane Cilento: Rauf his name was. And he was also a great chef. We went to the Turkish Embassy and we did - I had just done a film for the BBC with the director, and that director was supposed to come with us and sign up, because at that time, they'd just done Midnight Express and no-one was allowed to go into Turkey to film, because they were terrified you were going to put a camera in a paper bag and get into their prisons and do some nasty stuff.
Anyway, this silly BBC director didn't come, so suddenly we all were there, and they wouldn't let him come because he hadn't signed on in the Embassy. So there was me who had to direct it. I would never have done it if I hadn't actually been to that school, because by that time, practically speaking, I'd tackle anything.
Rachael Kohn: I was going to say, Diane, you never recoil from a challenge, do you?
Diane Cilento: Well I couldn't. We were all there, nine people and a group of wonderful technicians and we were off down to stay with the Mevlevi and they were all ready to go, and the old Sheikh, Suleiman Dede, and Ahmed Becan and all these people were lined up. And I was sort of suddenly the director. What did happen though was it took me a long time to edit it. And that was very exciting. I loved that. But I mean, I promise you, the editing was together-together, and to do it right, I had to write the whole thing, then I had to get myself and Bulent to do the words. It won a few prizes and it is a lovely film, I think. And I suppose probably it's the only film which explains the ceremony of the Whirling Dervishes, the sema, in fact what's really happening.
I've often see a lot of films of people turning round and round, and it's very fascinating, but you don't know why they're doing it. That's what my film's about, why they're doing, what they're doing.
Rachael Kohn: Tell me about that, and why it affects you, why it's important to you.
Diane Cilento: Well it's important to anybody who's watching it because in fact they are taking part in it. It's called the sema and it's actually a meditational practice that, it's sort of like the transmission of blessings through - they raise their right hand and it comes through that place, then it goes through their heart and out their left hand, and it's actually a wonderful symbolic passing of the energies from one world to another, and I think really that's what happens.
It has the most extraordinary effect upon those people watching it, they are taken into it, it's wonderfully - it's with the music, and the music of the flute, and the music of the blind man, who sings the incantation, and the thing called the walk where they acknowledge the godhead of each one. It's a very, very complicated but beautiful ceremony from beginning to end.
I had one of the guys turn. I found a nightclub which had a square as a dance floor, and I put him in the middle of it as the circle within the square, and I put the camera right above his head and shot down on him. But he couldn't do it unless the whole of the incantation, this flute, and the whole thing was done, then he could do it. Without that, he couldn't actually turn properly. Odd that, wasn't it?
Rachael Kohn: Well there are no women dervishes are there?
Diane Cilento: Oh yes. Of course. But they don't turn like that, but there are really a lot of women dervishes, yes, and they've got a lot of Vroom. They're very powerful women, promise you.
At one time there was a woman dervish there who was extraordinary, her name was Madame Ayashler and she had a big turban on a big stick, and I was shooting in the tomb of Mevlâna Jalâluddîn Rumi and someone because we were supposed to be sort of non-Muslims, pulled out all the plugs and the light. And so suddenly the lights went tchiu! like that, and she knew, she'd been watching, and she went over and she tongue-lashed them with a big stick and they were all terrified. Up went the lights again in a flash!
Rachael Kohn: Diane, one of the great names associated with Konya in Turkey, is the Sufi poet Jalâluddîn Rumi who fled there with his family when he was a boy. And you've actually lectured on his poetry for the Temenos Institute. Would you read a bit of his poetry for us?
Diane Cilento: Well one of the names that Jalâluddîn Rumi had was the Master, Mevlana. And he was incredibly enamoured of poetry, calligraphy and especially that music of the ney, which is that reed flute that you hear that's so haunting. And his students were encouraged to go down to the river and pick their own reed and fashion it for themselves, for their own mouth and their own hands. And he wrote this poem about that.
Listen to the reed forlorn
Crying since it was torn
from its rushy bed
a song of love and pain.
The secret of my song, though near,
none can see and none can hear.
Oh, for a friend to know the sign
And mingle all his tears with mine.
'Tis the flame of love that fired me,
'Tis the wine of love inspired me.
Would you learn how lovers bleed?
Then listen, listen to the reed.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, Sufi poets are known for mixing up passion and love and divinity in this beautiful way. Is that what is so powerful for you, that mixture?
Diane Cilento: Oh yes. I mean the love affair's very powerful, but also the humour and the individuation, that the extraordinary advanced tastiness of most Sufi poets. Each one is different, and each one has their own sort of as though you know them, because they're so funny, some of them are very funny.
Rachael Kohn: Well you read that poem from memory. Do you read them as a kind of spiritual practice?
Diane Cilento: I don't know. I just do like them. I don't think you can segregate spiritual practices from anything, that's just it, it's just your life, and once you come across these poems, I mean I like lots of other poems, too. For my picture I used T.S. Eliot and different people, although strangely enough, T.S. Eliot was a pupil of J.G. Bennett's, did you know that?
Rachael Kohn: No.
Diane Cilento: Well, he was.
Rachael Kohn: Amazing.
Diane Cilento: And they were both Catholics. [T.S.Eliot was an Anglo-Catholic.] But you can be in the Sufi way and be any - although it is based in Islam. But I mean, it doesn't really matter what basically the religion is, it's all the same thing. It's all oneness. And I don't think you can divorce or segregate or pigeonhole life in that way much. It is just life, and poetry's part of that.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, you were married to the celebrated English playwright and screen writer, Tony Shaffer for many years. Did he share your spiritual interests?
Diane Cilento: Yes, he did, but he was more fascinated by the personalities. He loved Bulent Rauf for instance, he thought he was wonderful. He loved J.G. Bennett as well. Bulent had been married to King Farouk's sister. He was an extraordinary man, and he loved smoked salmon and that very black chocolate when it's dipped in grapefruit peel. And things like that. He was a wonderful sensualist. And Tony loved all that sort of thing too.
He did quite a lot of work with everyone, and he came when we did the translating bits, and when we went - there is a place in Scotland that is run, it's called Beshara, which is 'In this way', it's a school. And he came there and did a retreat and he was nearly always though more fascinated by the theatricality of it than the personalities, than in fact the idea of meditational practice. I don't think he had the gift of meditation. He used to think, not meditate.
Rachael Kohn: Did you ever want to convey or transmit your spiritual interests to your children?
Diane Cilento: I know that that's not possible. You can talk about it. One of my children lives in a Sufi group but the other, my son, doesn't. And I would never think of trying to proselytise anything to my children. That son actually lived at Sherborne, when I was at that school. And I think, I mean Mr Bennett used to say about children that they learn through their skin, so I don't think I would ever try and lead my children anywhere, they'll go where they'll go.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, you went on a pilgrimage recently to Mecca. Why did you want to do it?
Diane Cilento: I was invited, and I wasn't actually going to go at first, and then I knew I had to. And I really was very pleased that I did. It was quite an experience.
Rachael Kohn: Who went with you?
Diane Cilento: I went with my daughter, and the group of people that she lives with, who are an extraordinary group of people who live in Sydney, and theirs is a, I suppose you'd call it a tekya, a school of Sufism. But they're Islamic, they've got a Sheikh who is Egyptian, very nice and extraordinary man, who was strangely enough in the United Nations as well. And he invited all of us, and of course you can't go as a single woman, unless you've got a male person to look after you. My son-in-law did that, but I didn't take any notice of it much, I just went around anyway. I mean I'm certainly not nubile still, so it didn't really matter.
Rachael Kohn: What were you wearing?
Diane Cilento: I was wearing my hijab, which took me a while to get used to, especially as the temperature was 45, and I did lose a few pairs of sandals, because they were made of leather, I mean anything like that, leave outside it's all gone afterwards. So I learnt not to do that.
Rachael Kohn: How long was it?
Diane Cilento: I was there for three weeks. It was very extraordinarily momentous. You forget, it's like a dream. You forget about time, you don't know what day it is, or what time it is, because they do the circumambulation in the middle of the night, because it's too hot to do it.
Rachael Kohn: So that's the Kaaba, the great black stone.
Diane Cilento: The Kaaba is covered with beautifully embossed damask, it smells, if you put your nose against it it smells of attar of roses. People are trying to kiss this black stone. I didn't go near there, it was a bit like a sort of football scrum, but I did the whole circumambulation and went to see the feet of Abraham and I thought it was an extraordinary experience. It takes quite a while, and I did it more than once, I did it quite often.
Rachael Kohn: You've lectured on the Sufi saint, Shamseddin Mohammad Hafiz, who was also a poet. He was sort of quirky, and even ostracised by the Muslim clergy. Can you read from one of his poems?
Diane Cilento: Certainly.
Spill the oil lamp, set the boring place on fire!
If you've ever made wanton love with God,
Then you have ignited that brilliant light inside,
That every person needs.
So spill the oil! Set the boring place on fire!
Rachael Kohn: You know, when I read that, it made me think of perhaps how you might have felt as a school student in the boarding school, when you fled. Does that poem have a certain resonance or connection to your anarchic spirit?
Diane Cilento: Oh God yes. Anybody has got my tick if they have a bit of that sort of anarchy in them. I like - I think those sort of things are born in you, and I always have to have something that spills over, let's say. It's not that I try and create chaos or anything, it's just that life has to be sort of on the bubble, I think.
Rachael Kohn: Well there's something about love being at the centre of Sufism, which always contains an element of yearning for me.
Diane Cilento: Well of course. That's what it's all about. What people really want is to be embraced, it doesn't matter whether they want to go and - whatever they want to do, even if they're out to make a million bucks in a card game, it's still about being embraced. It's being approved of and loved. And that's what it is, it's the whole of life is this incredible love affair, which the last poem in that, that Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi poem, which is written as God speaking to those who will come after, or are here now, or have been, to say Why don't you see me? Why can't you hear me? I've only created you with perceptions so that I can be the object of your perception.
That's what I feel Sufism has. Instead of all that sort of knocking that goes on and dogma, it sort of says, Oh, don't worry about all that stuff, it's just a love affair. And that's what I think is, you know, that's it.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, it's been a joy talking to you, thank you so much for being on The Spirit of Things.
Diane Cilento: Thank you, it's been very lovely to talk to you too, Rachael.
Rachael Kohn: Diane Cilento has written about her life in a new book, just out, called My Nine Lives.
Title: My Nine Lives
Author : Diane Cilento
Publisher: Viking, 2006
Transcript from a recording of the program "The Spirit of Things"
Sunday 6pm, May 7 (repeated Monday 9pm and Friday 4am) 2006
She made it big in the movies in the 1950s and 60s, married 'James Bond', Sean Connery, but later turned her back on stardom to embark on a life of spiritual discovery. From Gurdjieff to Sufism, Diane's awakening has been profound.
Rachael Kohn: 'No Regrets' sang Edith Piaf, and for my guest today, it's probably a suitable anthem. Hello, I'm, Rachael Kohn. Welcome to The Spirit of Things on ABC Radio National. This is the second in our Epiphanies series, personal tales of courage, adventure and fulfillment.
My guest today is Diane Cilento, one of those rare people who's followed her heart, in love, in her profession, and in her spiritual life. If anyone's been on a journey, Diane has, leading her ever forward into new territory, even to Mecca, as a Sufi pilgrim.
She's an acclaimed actress in film and on stage, a writer and film maker, a spiritual seeker, and an owner and director of a theatre, and much more besides. She's had a couple of famous husbands: Sean Connery, the first James Bond, and Tony Shaffer, one of England's great playwrights. In all that, Diane's never lost her feisty personality which she had way back in boarding school in Queensland. All of which she's written about in her new autobiography, My Nine Lives.
I met her when she was down from Queensland to give a series of talks on Sufi Poetry and Sainthood for the Temenos Foundation at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney.
Diane Cilento, welcome to The Spirit of Things.
Diane Cilento: Thank you.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, you grew up in Brisbane, the daughter of two famous doctors, Lady Phyllis and Sir Raphael Cilento, and I think your father became the head of the World Health Organisation; were you expected to achieve great things?
Diane Cilento: Nooo! I'm in fact the only one except for a sister who didn't become a doctor. I have three brothers and a sister who was also married to a doctor, and in a way, it was expected that you would go into medicine and be part of the medical group that was our family. My mother and father, and all the rest of them.
Rachael Kohn: Goodness. So joining the theatre must have been a very rebellious thing to do.
Diane Cilento: Well I think they thought I was a bit stupid, actually. I mean, I didn't go to university, I think I'm the only member of my family that didn't. I did go to RADA and I did go to the American Academy of Dramatic Art, but that, I mean actually have you noticed that professional people don't take - I mean especially doctors - don't take other professions like acting seriously. They think it's sort of a bit of a joke.
Rachael Kohn: Do you think your family didn't take your profession seriously?
Diane Cilento: Well they didn't take it seriously until I started earning more money than they were! That's when they started taking me seriously. But I think even then it was a bit - no, I think that they began to think it was OK after that, now.
Rachael Kohn: Well you went on to have quite a significant career as an actress, playing some of the most memorable parts like Molly Seagram, the saucy wench in Tom Jones, that great film of the '60s. And not long after that your then husband, Sean Connery, I guess he was your second husband, became a superstar as James Bond. And that was in the mid-'60s. That must have been a terrific time for you, but also very challenging. What were the personal challenges of that kind of fame so early?
Diane Cilento: Well. I was more famous than him when we married, and then he got to be very, very famous, and we lived in a funny little house in the middle of Acton Common. And of course we had absolutely no protection, and nobody really knew about security and guards and people then, we never thought about it.
We had 17 robberies, and oh dear, it was very challenging, believe me, because see I think England at that time, I mean America had had Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra, but England suddenly got Bond and the Beatles, and they'd never really had any internationally ding-dong drag out celebrity type lifestyles. And it was a very, very swift learning process. And none of us knew that obviously it would cost so much money. And as Sean's Scottish, he didn't want to spend anything on guards coming around, and I didn't know anything about all that stuff. We were a bit Babes in the Wood about it.
Of course, after a while you get to not be, especially with the paparazzi who invade your space continuously.
Rachael Kohn: Did that spark some questions in you about what it is to be Diane Cilento?
Diane Cilento: Well it certainly sparked questions about the idea of being famous. Because when you're a working actor, what you're really entranced by is the skill of acting. And then suddenly, when you get into films, and I had a contract with Alexander Korda long ago before this, and he then died when I was in America, so I had been sort of passed on to the government; I was a civil servant.
British Lion was owned by the British government, so I was shoved into all these films, and suddenly the gilt goes off the gingerbread in the acting stakes, and you think, Oh God, not another one of these ghastly films. And you get put into - at least I did - at that time I didn't fit the mould, you see, never, of that sort of British type star, of Deborah Kerr 'arrive as a star', get your hair sort of done into these awful little globules and follow a formula which I wasn't good - I couldn't do it.
Rachael Kohn: Well I think you actually described yourself as a young woman, being impetuous and passionate and what else? Dramatic. Though I suppose that's predicable for an actress. Did that work for you, or against you, in what became a budding spiritual quest?
Diane Cilento: Well, first of all Sean didn't want me to work, because he had a very different idea of what wives do. They sit at home and they do other things than acting. So I thought that I'd be sitting at home and writing books. So I started writing and I did write two books actually. I wrote one called Hybrid, but the first one was called The Manipulator, and it was really because I'd been to the Mexican Film Festival with Tony Richardson. See, I was in the Royal Court and all that, too. And I'd seen the sort of manipulation that goes on in the film industry, and I suppose I began finally to actually begin to look at things in a more questing way.
Rachael Kohn: Well you got involved in the esoteric movement called the School of Philosophy that was begin by J.G. Bennett, and I think he was based in London, was he?
Diane Cilento: No, he was based in Gloucestershire. At first he was in London and in fact I knew him in London and used to go to meditational things at his place, which was in the next street from me in Kingston. But he started a great big school in Gloucestershire, which was in the same school that If - you know that film called If, where the boys from school revolted against their schoolmaster and threw him in Sherwater - it was called Sherborne - and the school was left empty, and then it was taken over by Bennett and called the School of Continuous Education, and that's where I lived for a year.
Rachael Kohn: Is that where your interest in Sufism first began?
Diane Cilento: Yes, it did, because Sufism really was the parent of I suppose you could say, Sufism was the parent of Gurdjieff, and the source from which he took a lot of his work, and although Bennett wasn't a complete Gurdjieffian, he did also go back, and I find myself going back to the source of where the knowledge came from.
And I found that it came from very much from a philosopher that lived in the 12th century called Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi, and I met the man who did translations, he was a Turkish gentleman, called Bulent Rauf, and then I was taken to the Whirling Dervishes to stay with them and do this film, and then I was taken to Turkey to help with the translations of Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi's work. So suddenly, I was taken into a different world, where the work went back to a very long time before.
Rachael Kohn: How did you find yourself making a film about the Whirling Dervishes? That couldn't have been easy in the first place to organise.
Diane Cilento: I know that this will sound very bizarre. First of all I had a dream that I saw this whirling white figure, and I wrote to Bulent, and I said, Look, I keep seeing this strange - and I thought he'd say, 'Go away and take a pill, or have a shower, or do something.' But he said, 'No, no, we'll go to the Turkish Embassy together, because I happen to know the Mevlevi, he was an archaeologist'.
Rachael Kohn: Who was that?
Diane Cilento: Rauf his name was. And he was also a great chef. We went to the Turkish Embassy and we did - I had just done a film for the BBC with the director, and that director was supposed to come with us and sign up, because at that time, they'd just done Midnight Express and no-one was allowed to go into Turkey to film, because they were terrified you were going to put a camera in a paper bag and get into their prisons and do some nasty stuff.
Anyway, this silly BBC director didn't come, so suddenly we all were there, and they wouldn't let him come because he hadn't signed on in the Embassy. So there was me who had to direct it. I would never have done it if I hadn't actually been to that school, because by that time, practically speaking, I'd tackle anything.
Rachael Kohn: I was going to say, Diane, you never recoil from a challenge, do you?
Diane Cilento: Well I couldn't. We were all there, nine people and a group of wonderful technicians and we were off down to stay with the Mevlevi and they were all ready to go, and the old Sheikh, Suleiman Dede, and Ahmed Becan and all these people were lined up. And I was sort of suddenly the director. What did happen though was it took me a long time to edit it. And that was very exciting. I loved that. But I mean, I promise you, the editing was together-together, and to do it right, I had to write the whole thing, then I had to get myself and Bulent to do the words. It won a few prizes and it is a lovely film, I think. And I suppose probably it's the only film which explains the ceremony of the Whirling Dervishes, the sema, in fact what's really happening.
I've often see a lot of films of people turning round and round, and it's very fascinating, but you don't know why they're doing it. That's what my film's about, why they're doing, what they're doing.
Rachael Kohn: Tell me about that, and why it affects you, why it's important to you.
Diane Cilento: Well it's important to anybody who's watching it because in fact they are taking part in it. It's called the sema and it's actually a meditational practice that, it's sort of like the transmission of blessings through - they raise their right hand and it comes through that place, then it goes through their heart and out their left hand, and it's actually a wonderful symbolic passing of the energies from one world to another, and I think really that's what happens.
It has the most extraordinary effect upon those people watching it, they are taken into it, it's wonderfully - it's with the music, and the music of the flute, and the music of the blind man, who sings the incantation, and the thing called the walk where they acknowledge the godhead of each one. It's a very, very complicated but beautiful ceremony from beginning to end.
I had one of the guys turn. I found a nightclub which had a square as a dance floor, and I put him in the middle of it as the circle within the square, and I put the camera right above his head and shot down on him. But he couldn't do it unless the whole of the incantation, this flute, and the whole thing was done, then he could do it. Without that, he couldn't actually turn properly. Odd that, wasn't it?
Rachael Kohn: Well there are no women dervishes are there?
Diane Cilento: Oh yes. Of course. But they don't turn like that, but there are really a lot of women dervishes, yes, and they've got a lot of Vroom. They're very powerful women, promise you.
At one time there was a woman dervish there who was extraordinary, her name was Madame Ayashler and she had a big turban on a big stick, and I was shooting in the tomb of Mevlâna Jalâluddîn Rumi and someone because we were supposed to be sort of non-Muslims, pulled out all the plugs and the light. And so suddenly the lights went tchiu! like that, and she knew, she'd been watching, and she went over and she tongue-lashed them with a big stick and they were all terrified. Up went the lights again in a flash!
Rachael Kohn: Diane, one of the great names associated with Konya in Turkey, is the Sufi poet Jalâluddîn Rumi who fled there with his family when he was a boy. And you've actually lectured on his poetry for the Temenos Institute. Would you read a bit of his poetry for us?
Diane Cilento: Well one of the names that Jalâluddîn Rumi had was the Master, Mevlana. And he was incredibly enamoured of poetry, calligraphy and especially that music of the ney, which is that reed flute that you hear that's so haunting. And his students were encouraged to go down to the river and pick their own reed and fashion it for themselves, for their own mouth and their own hands. And he wrote this poem about that.
Listen to the reed forlorn
Crying since it was torn
from its rushy bed
a song of love and pain.
The secret of my song, though near,
none can see and none can hear.
Oh, for a friend to know the sign
And mingle all his tears with mine.
'Tis the flame of love that fired me,
'Tis the wine of love inspired me.
Would you learn how lovers bleed?
Then listen, listen to the reed.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, Sufi poets are known for mixing up passion and love and divinity in this beautiful way. Is that what is so powerful for you, that mixture?
Diane Cilento: Oh yes. I mean the love affair's very powerful, but also the humour and the individuation, that the extraordinary advanced tastiness of most Sufi poets. Each one is different, and each one has their own sort of as though you know them, because they're so funny, some of them are very funny.
Rachael Kohn: Well you read that poem from memory. Do you read them as a kind of spiritual practice?
Diane Cilento: I don't know. I just do like them. I don't think you can segregate spiritual practices from anything, that's just it, it's just your life, and once you come across these poems, I mean I like lots of other poems, too. For my picture I used T.S. Eliot and different people, although strangely enough, T.S. Eliot was a pupil of J.G. Bennett's, did you know that?
Rachael Kohn: No.
Diane Cilento: Well, he was.
Rachael Kohn: Amazing.
Diane Cilento: And they were both Catholics. [T.S.Eliot was an Anglo-Catholic.] But you can be in the Sufi way and be any - although it is based in Islam. But I mean, it doesn't really matter what basically the religion is, it's all the same thing. It's all oneness. And I don't think you can divorce or segregate or pigeonhole life in that way much. It is just life, and poetry's part of that.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, you were married to the celebrated English playwright and screen writer, Tony Shaffer for many years. Did he share your spiritual interests?
Diane Cilento: Yes, he did, but he was more fascinated by the personalities. He loved Bulent Rauf for instance, he thought he was wonderful. He loved J.G. Bennett as well. Bulent had been married to King Farouk's sister. He was an extraordinary man, and he loved smoked salmon and that very black chocolate when it's dipped in grapefruit peel. And things like that. He was a wonderful sensualist. And Tony loved all that sort of thing too.
He did quite a lot of work with everyone, and he came when we did the translating bits, and when we went - there is a place in Scotland that is run, it's called Beshara, which is 'In this way', it's a school. And he came there and did a retreat and he was nearly always though more fascinated by the theatricality of it than the personalities, than in fact the idea of meditational practice. I don't think he had the gift of meditation. He used to think, not meditate.
Rachael Kohn: Did you ever want to convey or transmit your spiritual interests to your children?
Diane Cilento: I know that that's not possible. You can talk about it. One of my children lives in a Sufi group but the other, my son, doesn't. And I would never think of trying to proselytise anything to my children. That son actually lived at Sherborne, when I was at that school. And I think, I mean Mr Bennett used to say about children that they learn through their skin, so I don't think I would ever try and lead my children anywhere, they'll go where they'll go.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, you went on a pilgrimage recently to Mecca. Why did you want to do it?
Diane Cilento: I was invited, and I wasn't actually going to go at first, and then I knew I had to. And I really was very pleased that I did. It was quite an experience.
Rachael Kohn: Who went with you?
Diane Cilento: I went with my daughter, and the group of people that she lives with, who are an extraordinary group of people who live in Sydney, and theirs is a, I suppose you'd call it a tekya, a school of Sufism. But they're Islamic, they've got a Sheikh who is Egyptian, very nice and extraordinary man, who was strangely enough in the United Nations as well. And he invited all of us, and of course you can't go as a single woman, unless you've got a male person to look after you. My son-in-law did that, but I didn't take any notice of it much, I just went around anyway. I mean I'm certainly not nubile still, so it didn't really matter.
Rachael Kohn: What were you wearing?
Diane Cilento: I was wearing my hijab, which took me a while to get used to, especially as the temperature was 45, and I did lose a few pairs of sandals, because they were made of leather, I mean anything like that, leave outside it's all gone afterwards. So I learnt not to do that.
Rachael Kohn: How long was it?
Diane Cilento: I was there for three weeks. It was very extraordinarily momentous. You forget, it's like a dream. You forget about time, you don't know what day it is, or what time it is, because they do the circumambulation in the middle of the night, because it's too hot to do it.
Rachael Kohn: So that's the Kaaba, the great black stone.
Diane Cilento: The Kaaba is covered with beautifully embossed damask, it smells, if you put your nose against it it smells of attar of roses. People are trying to kiss this black stone. I didn't go near there, it was a bit like a sort of football scrum, but I did the whole circumambulation and went to see the feet of Abraham and I thought it was an extraordinary experience. It takes quite a while, and I did it more than once, I did it quite often.
Rachael Kohn: You've lectured on the Sufi saint, Shamseddin Mohammad Hafiz, who was also a poet. He was sort of quirky, and even ostracised by the Muslim clergy. Can you read from one of his poems?
Diane Cilento: Certainly.
Spill the oil lamp, set the boring place on fire!
If you've ever made wanton love with God,
Then you have ignited that brilliant light inside,
That every person needs.
So spill the oil! Set the boring place on fire!
Rachael Kohn: You know, when I read that, it made me think of perhaps how you might have felt as a school student in the boarding school, when you fled. Does that poem have a certain resonance or connection to your anarchic spirit?
Diane Cilento: Oh God yes. Anybody has got my tick if they have a bit of that sort of anarchy in them. I like - I think those sort of things are born in you, and I always have to have something that spills over, let's say. It's not that I try and create chaos or anything, it's just that life has to be sort of on the bubble, I think.
Rachael Kohn: Well there's something about love being at the centre of Sufism, which always contains an element of yearning for me.
Diane Cilento: Well of course. That's what it's all about. What people really want is to be embraced, it doesn't matter whether they want to go and - whatever they want to do, even if they're out to make a million bucks in a card game, it's still about being embraced. It's being approved of and loved. And that's what it is, it's the whole of life is this incredible love affair, which the last poem in that, that Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi poem, which is written as God speaking to those who will come after, or are here now, or have been, to say Why don't you see me? Why can't you hear me? I've only created you with perceptions so that I can be the object of your perception.
That's what I feel Sufism has. Instead of all that sort of knocking that goes on and dogma, it sort of says, Oh, don't worry about all that stuff, it's just a love affair. And that's what I think is, you know, that's it.
Rachael Kohn: Diane, it's been a joy talking to you, thank you so much for being on The Spirit of Things.
Diane Cilento: Thank you, it's been very lovely to talk to you too, Rachael.
Rachael Kohn: Diane Cilento has written about her life in a new book, just out, called My Nine Lives.
Title: My Nine Lives
Author : Diane Cilento
Publisher: Viking, 2006
Saturday, October 28, 2006
The Friends of God: Sufi Saints in Islam
By Saad Akhtar - Newsline - Karachi, Pakistan
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
"There is always a controversy about who has the right to define Islam but it is all about accepting differences"
- Prof. Dr. Jürgen Wasim Frembgen
Prof. Dr. Jürgen Wasim Frembgen recently launched his book and exhibition titled The Friends of God - Sufi Saints in Islam: Popular Poster Art from Pakistan at the Goethe Institut in Karachi. He is chief curator of the Oriental Department at the Museum of Ethnology in Munich as well as lecturer of anthropology and Islamic Studies at various universities in Germany. Dr. Frembgen has been working in Pakistan since 1981 and has conducted numerous researches and published books and papers regarding Islamic, particularly Sufi, belief in Pakistan. His latest book, published by the Oxford University Press, is a collection of posters of Sufi Saints from all across Pakistan.
What are your areas of interest?
Since the late 1970s, my areas of interest have generally been in Islam. However, since Islam has many facets and dimensions, my interest specifically has been the Sufi tradition and the veneration of Muslim saints. In addition, my work as the curator of the Museum of Ethnology in Munich, Germany, means that, because of the 'material culture' of the museum, I am also interested in Muslim art as well as the expression of art among the people - folk art, popular art - and the Sufi posters are in a way popular art in Pakistan.
What were your reasons for being attracted to Pakistan?
The seeds were sown in childhood. I had a very illustrious aunt, who was also my godmother. She embraced Islam and she married a Pukhtun Popalzai from Afghanistan and travelled across the world. Since childhood, my eyes were set towards Afghanistan and South Asia.
Initially, I wanted to do fieldwork in Afghanistan but due to the Soviet invasion this was not possible. So, I shifted my focus, initially, to the mountains of Hindukush, Karakoram and the Northern Areas of Pakistan.
Since 1981, I have been coming to Pakistan every year and, in the process, I have become 'Pakistanised.' Step by step I was socialised into Pakistani life. I embraced Islam in 1988 and changed my second name.
Pakistan, in addition, is extraordinary and unique. It is a meeting place of cultures and it offers everything a researcher could want. I was also attracted to Pakistan because it is in many ways still unknown, as compared to other parts of the world such as India and Iran. It provides a lot of chances for new discoveries.
Being a foreigner and coming here to work, what sort of barriers did you face initially?
It was really similar to learning like a child. You have to learn how to behave and adjust your personal habits, you have to adjust to the food and learn the language - at least to a certain extent. But adjusting to the society is always a challenge for an anthropologist doing fieldwork in a strange country.
What else have you researched on in Pakistan?
I originally started with anthropological fieldwork in Nager, which is opposite Hunza in the Karakorams. I did a general ethnography there and worked on political history.
The second fieldwork was in Hurbund valley in Indus-Kohistan. Hurbund was a very dangerous area to do fieldwork in because there is still blood revenge going on and there is no central authority. They have their jirga system and fortified villages, with watchtowers. I was working on Islam and the social system. The Tablighi Jamaat is very active there, not the Sufi tradition.
Then I kept coming to Punjab and to Sindh-to Sehwan Sharif-to attend melas and urs to see how the common people venerate the saints in the low-land provinces of Pakistan. The Sufi shrine is a sort of aesthetic space. It's such an interesting visual culture and it's appealing to the senses in that you can get some taste of paradise eating the sweets and eating at the lungar. There is also the auditory aspect. You are listening to Sufi music, to qawwali and kafian. In that way, all the senses of the human body are offered a lot and the whole experience gives sukoon to people. I wanted to see what the experience of the Pakistani people was as well as experience it myself. That was my initial interest. To live with the malangs - and not in the guest-houses and air-conditioned rooms of the Sajjada Nashin -to travel in a qafila, from Shah Jamal in Lahore, for example.
What problems have you faced during the research and in the time you have spent here?
There were hardships in the beginning during my early days in the Northern Areas, where I was starving due to the purdah system in Nager. I was not allowed to stay within the family, so I had made arrangements with a policeman to cook a bit of potatoes for me, but I went down to 48 kilograms during that time.
On the other hand, in Hurbund people showed me a lot of hospitality. They cared for me in a fantastic way and I can only praise the hospitality of people here. There were only a few ugly incidents. I remember coming back immediately after 9/11 and in 2002 there was a street urchin in Lahore who was throwing all sorts of dirty things at me. That was the single ugly incident, but that was my own fault because I was too visible as a foreigner taking a picture on that occasion.
You have probably travelled more of Pakistan than most people in this country. What are your perceptions and opinions about people and places?
I know about the problems and I see them-over-population, pollution, crime-but despite that there is so much warmth and emotional interest in other people; in communicating with other people. There is a different quality of friendship among Pakistanis and between me and my Pakistani friends.
If there was one thing I would single out from every part of Pakistan, it would be the character of Pakistani people which I really miss in Germany. The Balochis, Pukhtun, Sindhis and Punjabis all have their own characteristics. The Punjabis have a great sense of humour and their love of food.
If you had to name one of all the Sufi shrines you have visited in Pakistan, which is your favourite and why?
I don't want to name just one shrine. From the point of architecture, the shrine of Mian Mir in Lahore has a fantastic serenity and tranquillity around it and my mentor- she was not my teacher but my mentor- Prof. Dr. Annemarie Schimmel, the famous German scholar, that was also her favourite shrine. But because I love the practiced forms of Islam and the vivid life of devotion, my favorite shrine is that of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan Sharif. Although from an artistic point of view it does not offer much nowadays, it has this immense energy of life around the shrine during the urs.
How do Pakistani Sufi practices differ, in your opinion, from Sufi practices in Iran, Egypt or Turkey?
I think Sufism and Islamic mysticism is extremely vivid and colourful in Pakistan. The aspect of devotion is more emphasised here. The amount of emotional appeal is more intense than Afghanistan, Iran or Turkey. There it can be more intellectual, more sober and less colourful.
There is also the power of music. We should not forget that the most well-known and most well-respected exponents of Sufi music come from Pakistan-Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Mubarak Ali Khan and of course, Abida Perveen, the biggest and the best Sufi voice. This aspect of music and rendering the verses of the Sufi poets is a message that Pakistan can convey to the outside world. This sort of peaceful, soft approach to religion is really very much embedded here, even if it is contested.
There are those who frown upon the Sufi way of following Islam. As someone who came in as an objective observer and has embraced the faith and society, what is your opinion on this issue?
I know people frown upon the Sufi tradition and there are things which they don't consider Islamic. They say it is, so to speak, not 'true' Islam. But there is always the question of who has the authority to say what is Islam and what isn't. I think one should listen to the people themselves. The common people in the countryside, even among nomads, the Islam they are practicing, they are of the opinion that this is the right Islam. There are different dimensions. There is the official, normative, scriptural forms of Islam but there are also the more vernacular and popular forms of Islam as practiced at the shrines and in the villages and there is also the Sufi tradition.
Nowadays, there are very well-educated Sufis in western suits, carrying briefcases, going to London. They are members of Sufi tareeqas and silsilas. So I think the Sufi tradition is perfectly adjusted to the modern way of life. Now, we have a transnational Sufi network. In fact, this esoteric view of Islam is really at the core of Islam and the Sufis are much more into prayers and religious observances than 'normal' Muslims.
You mentioned that there are parallels in other religions in South Asia of the sort of popular art studied in your book. Why do you think this art form is so popular despite certain conservative views of Islam in Pakistan that despise figural representations?
Again the orthodox and official voices of Islam have always been critical of images. There is the so-called prohibition or ban on images in normative, official Islam. They are even sometimes considered haram. In effect, the hadith addressing this issue was concerned with the mosque and other religious places where it was not allowed to exhibit any paintings or depictions of human beings.
In the history of Muslim art you have figural representations all over, on carpets, in the courtly arts of the Mughals, Safawids and Ottomans, you have all these depictions of human beings in popular expressions of faith. Be it Islam or any other religion, there was always a demand on the popular level to make the saint more apparent, to bring him closer to the simpler minds of the people.
It was always controversial and there were also periods in Muslim history where there was more tolerance towards images. Then the Taliban were destroying the Buddha images in Bamiyan and there was a hue and cry raised against that.
There is always a controversy about who has the right to define Islam but it is all about accepting differences. I am just exhibiting the posters and researching them because they are part of a certain aspect of popular Islam. Not all the Muslims in Pakistan share these beliefs and, of course, it is more in the disprivileged social classes in Pakistan, the common people in the streets, they purchase and use these posters as a tabarruk to express their personal religious identity.
As a professor and teacher, what advice would you give students planning on doing similar research?
If I'm addressing a class of German students, I would advise them to try and convey sympathy and empathy. I think this is the order of the day: Muslims and people in western countries all have to realise that in this global age we all have to live with differences.
People like Baba Bullay Shah have given us examples and models in the way that people from different religions should sit together on equal terms. They should not develop hate and animosity and they can all benefit from meeting each other and exchanging views in a liberal way. That, in short, is my philosophy.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
"There is always a controversy about who has the right to define Islam but it is all about accepting differences"
- Prof. Dr. Jürgen Wasim Frembgen
Prof. Dr. Jürgen Wasim Frembgen recently launched his book and exhibition titled The Friends of God - Sufi Saints in Islam: Popular Poster Art from Pakistan at the Goethe Institut in Karachi. He is chief curator of the Oriental Department at the Museum of Ethnology in Munich as well as lecturer of anthropology and Islamic Studies at various universities in Germany. Dr. Frembgen has been working in Pakistan since 1981 and has conducted numerous researches and published books and papers regarding Islamic, particularly Sufi, belief in Pakistan. His latest book, published by the Oxford University Press, is a collection of posters of Sufi Saints from all across Pakistan.
What are your areas of interest?
Since the late 1970s, my areas of interest have generally been in Islam. However, since Islam has many facets and dimensions, my interest specifically has been the Sufi tradition and the veneration of Muslim saints. In addition, my work as the curator of the Museum of Ethnology in Munich, Germany, means that, because of the 'material culture' of the museum, I am also interested in Muslim art as well as the expression of art among the people - folk art, popular art - and the Sufi posters are in a way popular art in Pakistan.
What were your reasons for being attracted to Pakistan?
The seeds were sown in childhood. I had a very illustrious aunt, who was also my godmother. She embraced Islam and she married a Pukhtun Popalzai from Afghanistan and travelled across the world. Since childhood, my eyes were set towards Afghanistan and South Asia.
Initially, I wanted to do fieldwork in Afghanistan but due to the Soviet invasion this was not possible. So, I shifted my focus, initially, to the mountains of Hindukush, Karakoram and the Northern Areas of Pakistan.
Since 1981, I have been coming to Pakistan every year and, in the process, I have become 'Pakistanised.' Step by step I was socialised into Pakistani life. I embraced Islam in 1988 and changed my second name.
Pakistan, in addition, is extraordinary and unique. It is a meeting place of cultures and it offers everything a researcher could want. I was also attracted to Pakistan because it is in many ways still unknown, as compared to other parts of the world such as India and Iran. It provides a lot of chances for new discoveries.
Being a foreigner and coming here to work, what sort of barriers did you face initially?
It was really similar to learning like a child. You have to learn how to behave and adjust your personal habits, you have to adjust to the food and learn the language - at least to a certain extent. But adjusting to the society is always a challenge for an anthropologist doing fieldwork in a strange country.
What else have you researched on in Pakistan?
I originally started with anthropological fieldwork in Nager, which is opposite Hunza in the Karakorams. I did a general ethnography there and worked on political history.
The second fieldwork was in Hurbund valley in Indus-Kohistan. Hurbund was a very dangerous area to do fieldwork in because there is still blood revenge going on and there is no central authority. They have their jirga system and fortified villages, with watchtowers. I was working on Islam and the social system. The Tablighi Jamaat is very active there, not the Sufi tradition.
Then I kept coming to Punjab and to Sindh-to Sehwan Sharif-to attend melas and urs to see how the common people venerate the saints in the low-land provinces of Pakistan. The Sufi shrine is a sort of aesthetic space. It's such an interesting visual culture and it's appealing to the senses in that you can get some taste of paradise eating the sweets and eating at the lungar. There is also the auditory aspect. You are listening to Sufi music, to qawwali and kafian. In that way, all the senses of the human body are offered a lot and the whole experience gives sukoon to people. I wanted to see what the experience of the Pakistani people was as well as experience it myself. That was my initial interest. To live with the malangs - and not in the guest-houses and air-conditioned rooms of the Sajjada Nashin -to travel in a qafila, from Shah Jamal in Lahore, for example.
What problems have you faced during the research and in the time you have spent here?
There were hardships in the beginning during my early days in the Northern Areas, where I was starving due to the purdah system in Nager. I was not allowed to stay within the family, so I had made arrangements with a policeman to cook a bit of potatoes for me, but I went down to 48 kilograms during that time.
On the other hand, in Hurbund people showed me a lot of hospitality. They cared for me in a fantastic way and I can only praise the hospitality of people here. There were only a few ugly incidents. I remember coming back immediately after 9/11 and in 2002 there was a street urchin in Lahore who was throwing all sorts of dirty things at me. That was the single ugly incident, but that was my own fault because I was too visible as a foreigner taking a picture on that occasion.
You have probably travelled more of Pakistan than most people in this country. What are your perceptions and opinions about people and places?
I know about the problems and I see them-over-population, pollution, crime-but despite that there is so much warmth and emotional interest in other people; in communicating with other people. There is a different quality of friendship among Pakistanis and between me and my Pakistani friends.
If there was one thing I would single out from every part of Pakistan, it would be the character of Pakistani people which I really miss in Germany. The Balochis, Pukhtun, Sindhis and Punjabis all have their own characteristics. The Punjabis have a great sense of humour and their love of food.
If you had to name one of all the Sufi shrines you have visited in Pakistan, which is your favourite and why?
I don't want to name just one shrine. From the point of architecture, the shrine of Mian Mir in Lahore has a fantastic serenity and tranquillity around it and my mentor- she was not my teacher but my mentor- Prof. Dr. Annemarie Schimmel, the famous German scholar, that was also her favourite shrine. But because I love the practiced forms of Islam and the vivid life of devotion, my favorite shrine is that of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan Sharif. Although from an artistic point of view it does not offer much nowadays, it has this immense energy of life around the shrine during the urs.
How do Pakistani Sufi practices differ, in your opinion, from Sufi practices in Iran, Egypt or Turkey?
I think Sufism and Islamic mysticism is extremely vivid and colourful in Pakistan. The aspect of devotion is more emphasised here. The amount of emotional appeal is more intense than Afghanistan, Iran or Turkey. There it can be more intellectual, more sober and less colourful.
There is also the power of music. We should not forget that the most well-known and most well-respected exponents of Sufi music come from Pakistan-Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Mubarak Ali Khan and of course, Abida Perveen, the biggest and the best Sufi voice. This aspect of music and rendering the verses of the Sufi poets is a message that Pakistan can convey to the outside world. This sort of peaceful, soft approach to religion is really very much embedded here, even if it is contested.
There are those who frown upon the Sufi way of following Islam. As someone who came in as an objective observer and has embraced the faith and society, what is your opinion on this issue?
I know people frown upon the Sufi tradition and there are things which they don't consider Islamic. They say it is, so to speak, not 'true' Islam. But there is always the question of who has the authority to say what is Islam and what isn't. I think one should listen to the people themselves. The common people in the countryside, even among nomads, the Islam they are practicing, they are of the opinion that this is the right Islam. There are different dimensions. There is the official, normative, scriptural forms of Islam but there are also the more vernacular and popular forms of Islam as practiced at the shrines and in the villages and there is also the Sufi tradition.
Nowadays, there are very well-educated Sufis in western suits, carrying briefcases, going to London. They are members of Sufi tareeqas and silsilas. So I think the Sufi tradition is perfectly adjusted to the modern way of life. Now, we have a transnational Sufi network. In fact, this esoteric view of Islam is really at the core of Islam and the Sufis are much more into prayers and religious observances than 'normal' Muslims.
You mentioned that there are parallels in other religions in South Asia of the sort of popular art studied in your book. Why do you think this art form is so popular despite certain conservative views of Islam in Pakistan that despise figural representations?
Again the orthodox and official voices of Islam have always been critical of images. There is the so-called prohibition or ban on images in normative, official Islam. They are even sometimes considered haram. In effect, the hadith addressing this issue was concerned with the mosque and other religious places where it was not allowed to exhibit any paintings or depictions of human beings.
In the history of Muslim art you have figural representations all over, on carpets, in the courtly arts of the Mughals, Safawids and Ottomans, you have all these depictions of human beings in popular expressions of faith. Be it Islam or any other religion, there was always a demand on the popular level to make the saint more apparent, to bring him closer to the simpler minds of the people.
It was always controversial and there were also periods in Muslim history where there was more tolerance towards images. Then the Taliban were destroying the Buddha images in Bamiyan and there was a hue and cry raised against that.
There is always a controversy about who has the right to define Islam but it is all about accepting differences. I am just exhibiting the posters and researching them because they are part of a certain aspect of popular Islam. Not all the Muslims in Pakistan share these beliefs and, of course, it is more in the disprivileged social classes in Pakistan, the common people in the streets, they purchase and use these posters as a tabarruk to express their personal religious identity.
As a professor and teacher, what advice would you give students planning on doing similar research?
If I'm addressing a class of German students, I would advise them to try and convey sympathy and empathy. I think this is the order of the day: Muslims and people in western countries all have to realise that in this global age we all have to live with differences.
People like Baba Bullay Shah have given us examples and models in the way that people from different religions should sit together on equal terms. They should not develop hate and animosity and they can all benefit from meeting each other and exchanging views in a liberal way. That, in short, is my philosophy.
Friday, October 27, 2006
Musical tribute to a living legend -- Shah Abdul Karim
By Karim Waheed - The Daily Star - Bangladesh
Thursday, May 18, 2006
THE 90-year old 'Baul' Shah Abdul Karim has written and composed about 1500 songs. Six books of his songs -- Aftab Sangeet, Gano Sangeet, Kalnir Dheu, Dholmela, Bhatir Chithi and Kalnir Kooley -- have been published. Bangla Academy has translated 10 of his songs in English and he has been honoured with the prestigious national award -- Ekushey Padok in 2001.
Shah Abdul Karim's songs such as Maya lagaisey, Ami koolhara kolonkini and Gari choley na have attained popularity among music fans of this generation. Quite a few contemporary artistes and musicians have shot to fame rendering Abdul Karim's songs -- often re-arranged or remixed. His songs, following the trend of Sufism, stand out for their extraordinary metaphors, message of secularism and depiction of divine love in simple words; a reason why his music has a mass appeal.
As a tribute to the living legend, Sound Machine has released an album titled Jibonto Kingbodonti: Baul Shah Abdul Karim. The mixed album features renditions of Abdul Karim's familiar songs by celebrated as well as emerging artistes -- Bangla, Momotaz, Dalchhut, Maqsud, Dilruba Khan, Shandipon, Ajob, Oojaan, The London Underground and others.
The opening song Agey ki shundor din kataitham, re-arranged and performed by Oojaan gives the album a lukewarm start. This well-known song, addressing the once thriving harmony among Muslims and Hindus in the rural areas, is not slow paced but Oojan's rendition lacks the exuberance manifested in Abdul Karim's songs.
The next song, Ami tomar kaul-er gari however, sweeps one away. The song, re-arranged by Bappa Mazumdar and rendered by Momotaz, follows the genre of Dehotatwa, a sect of Murshidee. Much has been said about Momotaz and her "questionable" songs that have fetched her mass popularity but her performance in this song should be enough to demonstrate that given opportunities, she can work wonders. Her not so stereotypically melodious, yet powerful voice questions the divine will in the song.
Pradeep Kumar and The London Underground deliver a very appealing and hum-able version of Kano piritee barailarey bondhu. Pradeep's skillful vocals epitomise the eternal yearning for the beloved. The fusion number aptly uses several sounds effects and alaap.
Bangla performs Shokhi kunjo shajao. Anusheh's inimitable style and flawless rendition is nothing new to the listeners; only one predicament -- the number sounds more like the songs Bangla usually performs and less like a Shah Abdul Karim song.
Manush hoye talaash korley, re-arranged and rendered by Ajob highlights spirituality. Ajob uses the serene style of Lalon songs, which makes the song interesting and easy to the ear.
Dilruba Khan renders Ailaye na. The tune of the song sounds somewhat similar to another number in the album -- Bashonto batashey, rendered by Shandipon. Dilruba's breathy vocals and emotive expressions make her version memorable.
The album has 12 tracks in total and can be a treat for music aficionados of all cults. Different artistes, groups and musicians add their unique touch to the collection. Kudos to Sound Machine for putting together a quality production. Proceeds from the sales of the album will go to Shah Abdul Karim, who is suffering from age-related ailments.
A Very Complicated Frontier
by Sergei Markedonov - special to Russia Profile
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Caucasus Conflicts More Than a Clash of Civilizations
The North Caucasus is often automatically associated in people’s minds with Islamic extremism and 2005 was, indeed, a year of renewed violence as a form of political activity in the region. The tragic events of the October attack on Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, signalled for many that the Russian state’s main terrorist opponents are no longer secular ethno-nationalists, fighting for an independent Chechnya, but rather Caucasian Islamic terrorists, fighting the international war on terror.
In this sense, the Russian North Caucasus is following a road already taken by countries in the Middle East and North Africa. In these areas, the main proponents of terrorism from the 1960s to the 1980s were secular ethno-nationalists, like Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Liberation Organization, who made use of religious values and slogans as just one tool in their struggle. Beginning in the early 1980s, however, proponents of “true Islam,” like the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic Jihad, began playing an increasingly dominant role. The North Caucasus is now experiencing a similar evolution, as the second half of the 1990s saw ethno-nationalism begin to give way to the slogans of “pure Islam.”
Throughout the region’s history, non-religious considerations have had - and continue to have - a significant influence on the formation of values, norms, institutions and ways of thinking in the region. To begin with, self-identification in the Caucasus is based on the principle of blood - identity as connected to family and kinship groups such as clans. This is both a sub-ethnic and supra-ethnic identity. Clans are often divided along geographical lines, with groups that live in the mountains claiming allegiance to each other at the expense of groups who live in the valleys or on the plains. This type of division may also apply to the differences between rural and urban dwellers or nomads and farmers. Additionally, clans may identify with other, larger political or cultural structures that break down along regional lines or particular political beliefs. Clans may determine how open a group of people would be to a modernization project or how tied they are to traditional culture. Family loyalty is stronger than any adherence to aКlarger ethnic or regional grouping, including the nation state.
These divisions all have their roots in history and are not primarily based on religious differences. There have been numerous examples in the history of the Caucasus when ethnic identity or loyalties to different states have caused confrontation between two peoples sharing the same religion. Likewise, there have been cases when religious identity has divided members of the same ethnic group or, on the contrary, united peoples speaking different languages.
Moreover, the idea of a unified and monolithic civilization (Christian or Islamic) based on a common religion is, in many respects, a myth in the context of the Caucasus. Islam in the Caucasus has many faces. There are, for example, the Sufi brotherhoods in Dagestan, Ingushetia and Chechnya. Sufism, which is derived from the Arab word “Suf,” for the wool of the rough garments worn by hermits - is a mystical current in Islam that preaches humility and withdrawal from the vain pursuits of the world. The Sufi brotherhoods in the Caucasus are known as tarikat - from the Arab word Tarik, meaning road or path, as in the road to truth. The teacher, or “murshid,” plays a crucial role in Caucasian Sufism. The most influential Tarikats in the Caucasus are Nakhsbandia and Kadiria. Former Chechen separatist president Dzhokhar Dudayev belonged to Kadiria, as did former pro-Moscow Chechen president Akhmat Kadyrov. Doku Zavgayev, another pro-Russian Chechen leader, belonged, instead, to Nakhsbandia.
More dogmatic Islamic theology is also represented in the Caucasus republics of Kabardino-Balkaria, Adygeya and Karachayevo-Cherkessia, in the form of salifia, or Wahhabism. The Wahhabis oppose the adaptation of Islam to local traditions and denounce the cult of the teacher. One of the greatest political changes in the region since the collapse of the Soviet Union is the divide that has split Muslims into followers of traditional local Islam and supporters of the Wahhabi doctrines. Both sides have proven capable of extremist views.
The periodic flare-ups in the latent interethnic conflicts in the Caucasus have involved participants of many different ethnic groups, all sharing the Islamic faith. The Kabardis and Balkars in conflict in Kabardino-Balkaria are both Muslim peoples, as are the rival Karachais and Cherkesses, the Avars and the Chechen-Akkins, the Laks and the Kumyks. Splits between the followers of different sects in Islam have developed into sometimes ruthless and violent conflicts, with the most serious in Dagestan and Chechnya.
As for Christian representatives and groupings in the Caucasus, the leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church’s 98 dioceses in the region are much more prepared to engage in dialogue with representatives of traditional local Islam than with Catholic or Protestant preachers. The most consistent follower of this line is Metropolitan Feofan (Ashurkov) of Stavropol and Vladikavkaz. This speaks of a supra-religious identity shared by the traditional faiths and based on perceptions of the historical roots of a faith in the region. In this sense, “old Islam” and the Orthodox Church stand opposed to Wahhabism and Protestant groups such as the Seventh-Day Adventists, Baptists and Jehovah’s Witnesses, as well as groups like the Hare Krishnas.
Appeals to ethnic, religious or cultural identity have always been a response to situations determined by specific historical circumstances. The peoples of the Caucasus might see themselves as representatives of religious “civilizations” (Christian, Muslim, and Buddhist) and, at the same time, as defenders of ethnic interests, citizens of a particular state, participants in modernization or defenders of traditional values. Concepts of ethnic, religious, state and social identity in the Caucasus have always been in flux.
The Caucasus has always been a region of shifting borders and identities. A listing of the various state and administrative-territorial transformations in the region through history would fill a book. The region has never ceased to be a shifting frontier area - not even during the years of Soviet hegemony. In this respect, the ethno-political and religious processes in the Caucasus cannot be reduced to the clash of civilizations scheme involving a conflict between religions. Historically, the Caucasus has been a contact zone for different ethnic, religious, ethno-religious and ethno-social groups, and the interaction between all of these different groups over various historical periods has created the unique mosaic we see today.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Caucasus Conflicts More Than a Clash of Civilizations
The North Caucasus is often automatically associated in people’s minds with Islamic extremism and 2005 was, indeed, a year of renewed violence as a form of political activity in the region. The tragic events of the October attack on Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, signalled for many that the Russian state’s main terrorist opponents are no longer secular ethno-nationalists, fighting for an independent Chechnya, but rather Caucasian Islamic terrorists, fighting the international war on terror.
In this sense, the Russian North Caucasus is following a road already taken by countries in the Middle East and North Africa. In these areas, the main proponents of terrorism from the 1960s to the 1980s were secular ethno-nationalists, like Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Liberation Organization, who made use of religious values and slogans as just one tool in their struggle. Beginning in the early 1980s, however, proponents of “true Islam,” like the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic Jihad, began playing an increasingly dominant role. The North Caucasus is now experiencing a similar evolution, as the second half of the 1990s saw ethno-nationalism begin to give way to the slogans of “pure Islam.”
Throughout the region’s history, non-religious considerations have had - and continue to have - a significant influence on the formation of values, norms, institutions and ways of thinking in the region. To begin with, self-identification in the Caucasus is based on the principle of blood - identity as connected to family and kinship groups such as clans. This is both a sub-ethnic and supra-ethnic identity. Clans are often divided along geographical lines, with groups that live in the mountains claiming allegiance to each other at the expense of groups who live in the valleys or on the plains. This type of division may also apply to the differences between rural and urban dwellers or nomads and farmers. Additionally, clans may identify with other, larger political or cultural structures that break down along regional lines or particular political beliefs. Clans may determine how open a group of people would be to a modernization project or how tied they are to traditional culture. Family loyalty is stronger than any adherence to aКlarger ethnic or regional grouping, including the nation state.
These divisions all have their roots in history and are not primarily based on religious differences. There have been numerous examples in the history of the Caucasus when ethnic identity or loyalties to different states have caused confrontation between two peoples sharing the same religion. Likewise, there have been cases when religious identity has divided members of the same ethnic group or, on the contrary, united peoples speaking different languages.
Moreover, the idea of a unified and monolithic civilization (Christian or Islamic) based on a common religion is, in many respects, a myth in the context of the Caucasus. Islam in the Caucasus has many faces. There are, for example, the Sufi brotherhoods in Dagestan, Ingushetia and Chechnya. Sufism, which is derived from the Arab word “Suf,” for the wool of the rough garments worn by hermits - is a mystical current in Islam that preaches humility and withdrawal from the vain pursuits of the world. The Sufi brotherhoods in the Caucasus are known as tarikat - from the Arab word Tarik, meaning road or path, as in the road to truth. The teacher, or “murshid,” plays a crucial role in Caucasian Sufism. The most influential Tarikats in the Caucasus are Nakhsbandia and Kadiria. Former Chechen separatist president Dzhokhar Dudayev belonged to Kadiria, as did former pro-Moscow Chechen president Akhmat Kadyrov. Doku Zavgayev, another pro-Russian Chechen leader, belonged, instead, to Nakhsbandia.
More dogmatic Islamic theology is also represented in the Caucasus republics of Kabardino-Balkaria, Adygeya and Karachayevo-Cherkessia, in the form of salifia, or Wahhabism. The Wahhabis oppose the adaptation of Islam to local traditions and denounce the cult of the teacher. One of the greatest political changes in the region since the collapse of the Soviet Union is the divide that has split Muslims into followers of traditional local Islam and supporters of the Wahhabi doctrines. Both sides have proven capable of extremist views.
The periodic flare-ups in the latent interethnic conflicts in the Caucasus have involved participants of many different ethnic groups, all sharing the Islamic faith. The Kabardis and Balkars in conflict in Kabardino-Balkaria are both Muslim peoples, as are the rival Karachais and Cherkesses, the Avars and the Chechen-Akkins, the Laks and the Kumyks. Splits between the followers of different sects in Islam have developed into sometimes ruthless and violent conflicts, with the most serious in Dagestan and Chechnya.
As for Christian representatives and groupings in the Caucasus, the leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church’s 98 dioceses in the region are much more prepared to engage in dialogue with representatives of traditional local Islam than with Catholic or Protestant preachers. The most consistent follower of this line is Metropolitan Feofan (Ashurkov) of Stavropol and Vladikavkaz. This speaks of a supra-religious identity shared by the traditional faiths and based on perceptions of the historical roots of a faith in the region. In this sense, “old Islam” and the Orthodox Church stand opposed to Wahhabism and Protestant groups such as the Seventh-Day Adventists, Baptists and Jehovah’s Witnesses, as well as groups like the Hare Krishnas.
Appeals to ethnic, religious or cultural identity have always been a response to situations determined by specific historical circumstances. The peoples of the Caucasus might see themselves as representatives of religious “civilizations” (Christian, Muslim, and Buddhist) and, at the same time, as defenders of ethnic interests, citizens of a particular state, participants in modernization or defenders of traditional values. Concepts of ethnic, religious, state and social identity in the Caucasus have always been in flux.
The Caucasus has always been a region of shifting borders and identities. A listing of the various state and administrative-territorial transformations in the region through history would fill a book. The region has never ceased to be a shifting frontier area - not even during the years of Soviet hegemony. In this respect, the ethno-political and religious processes in the Caucasus cannot be reduced to the clash of civilizations scheme involving a conflict between religions. Historically, the Caucasus has been a contact zone for different ethnic, religious, ethno-religious and ethno-social groups, and the interaction between all of these different groups over various historical periods has created the unique mosaic we see today.
“Living Up to Ustad Nusrat’s Image is Tough”
Namita Kohli - Express Features Service, Delhi Newsline
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Talk: “Living Up to Ustad Nusrat’s Image is Tough” but Rahat Ali Khan is doing just fine without his illustrious uncle.
Life has not been easy, if not tough, for Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, the nephew and prodigy of Pakistani qawwali singer Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. He was only 24 when his uncle died, leaving him to take on the mantle of the 700-year-old musical legacy. Since then, the soft-spoken Faisalabad-based Khan has been trying to keep alive the qawwali tradition. He provided the soundtrack for Shekhar Kapur-directed The Four Feathers and his songs like Mann Ki Lagan in Paap and Jiya Dhadak Dhadak in Kalyug have made him a household name. He spoke to Namita Kohli about sufi music and his new album Charkha, The Circle of Life.
You’ve been carrying on the legacy of your illustrious uncle Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan since his death in 1997. How has the journey been?
It has only begun. Initially, it used to feel like a burden. But now things are more comfortable, though the pressure to live up to his image continues.
What projects are you working on currently?
My solo album Charkha will be out by June this year. The music will be a blend of Arabian, Latin and Spanish influences, but the beat will be ethnic. I have used Baba Bullehshah’s verses and the sufi shora for the lyrics. I also have a few proposals from Bollywood.
What about international projects?
In August, I will be touring Canada and America. I am trying to do something new by adding saxophone and guitar to my music to make it more accessible to people.
Do improvisations interfere with the essence of traditional music? Even Nusrat Khan was criticised for such experiments.
Even when we improvise, the base is always pure qawwali. Sufi music is spiritual music and it will end only when the link with the soul is absent. These days, the audience wants something different. In the West, I find that the NRI audience appreciates my music.
Are the audiences in Pakistan and India any different? Where do you enjoy performing more?
I enjoy performing in India as people understand my music. Many of the musical stalwarts are Indians and the industry here is alive. Also, I am a fan of musicians like Ustad Zakir Hussain and Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma.
You started performing with your uncle at the age of 10. Any childhood memories?
He is always there in my sur. But I feel the vaccum sometimes. My journey to reach him will continue till I meet him.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Talk: “Living Up to Ustad Nusrat’s Image is Tough” but Rahat Ali Khan is doing just fine without his illustrious uncle.
Life has not been easy, if not tough, for Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, the nephew and prodigy of Pakistani qawwali singer Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. He was only 24 when his uncle died, leaving him to take on the mantle of the 700-year-old musical legacy. Since then, the soft-spoken Faisalabad-based Khan has been trying to keep alive the qawwali tradition. He provided the soundtrack for Shekhar Kapur-directed The Four Feathers and his songs like Mann Ki Lagan in Paap and Jiya Dhadak Dhadak in Kalyug have made him a household name. He spoke to Namita Kohli about sufi music and his new album Charkha, The Circle of Life.
You’ve been carrying on the legacy of your illustrious uncle Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan since his death in 1997. How has the journey been?
It has only begun. Initially, it used to feel like a burden. But now things are more comfortable, though the pressure to live up to his image continues.
What projects are you working on currently?
My solo album Charkha will be out by June this year. The music will be a blend of Arabian, Latin and Spanish influences, but the beat will be ethnic. I have used Baba Bullehshah’s verses and the sufi shora for the lyrics. I also have a few proposals from Bollywood.
What about international projects?
In August, I will be touring Canada and America. I am trying to do something new by adding saxophone and guitar to my music to make it more accessible to people.
Do improvisations interfere with the essence of traditional music? Even Nusrat Khan was criticised for such experiments.
Even when we improvise, the base is always pure qawwali. Sufi music is spiritual music and it will end only when the link with the soul is absent. These days, the audience wants something different. In the West, I find that the NRI audience appreciates my music.
Are the audiences in Pakistan and India any different? Where do you enjoy performing more?
I enjoy performing in India as people understand my music. Many of the musical stalwarts are Indians and the industry here is alive. Also, I am a fan of musicians like Ustad Zakir Hussain and Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma.
You started performing with your uncle at the age of 10. Any childhood memories?
He is always there in my sur. But I feel the vaccum sometimes. My journey to reach him will continue till I meet him.
Urs of Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] begins in Pakistan
By Sufi Sikandar Ghani Sheikh - Pakistan Times
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
ISLAMABAD: The centuries-old ceremonies of the Urs of great spiritualist and saint Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] began at Noorpur, close to the capital city of Islamabad on Sunday.
Sweat mingles with tears on sun-darkened faces of pilgrims who walk miles, most of them barefoot and clad in rags, destine towards the shrine Hazrat Bari Sarkar [RA] in the hills, around Islamabad every year.
These are Pakistan’s colourful saint-worshippers, adherents of the Sufi branch of Islam. Almost one Million pilgrims from home and abroad arrive to pay homage at the silver-mirrored mausoleum of 17th century Sufi saint Hazrat Shah Abdul Latif Kazmi [RA], best known as Hazrat Bari Imam [RA].
People have been coming to the shrine of the great saint for centuries.
The annual pilgrimage to Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] is undertaken over five days surrounding the anniversary of the saint’s death each May. Each night at the shrine, a large number of pilgrims twirled to rapidly beating drums. Others carried miniature golden mausoleums garlanded with yellow and green streamers and triangular flags bearing verses from the Holy Quran.
The devotees come to make or fulfil “mannats” [pledges] that they would regularly visit the shrine, feed the poor or perform another act if their prayers are answered.
“My son wanted to go to Kuwait and he just came back. I promised I’d come to the shrine of Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] and donate rice to the poor when he came back,” said Budronisa Yacoub from Lahore to 'Pakistan Times' [Daily Web Newspaper] as she arrived at the shrine on Monday.
“If I hadn’t come, I would have been anxious. I would have worried because I made a promise to Allah,” she said, wiping away a tear. “I feel relaxed now.”
As is indexed in the history, Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] was one of the great preachers of Central Asian and Arab who for centuries travelled through South Asia spreading Islam.
During the 17th century, thieves and outcasts occupied Noorpur Shahan village at the edge of Islamabad. While travelling though the area, the great saint, who had migrated to the densely thick underwood isolated terrain, now known as Islamabad from his origin, a village in Chakwal area, was stunned by the habits of those living among the natural beauty of the Margalla Hills.
He decided to stay and teach the people about Islam. Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, who was devoted to spreading his empire, originally built the silver-mirrored shrine of Hazrat Bari Imam [RA].
It has been renovated and is now is maintained by the government. Inside the mausoleum, where the great saint rests, only men are permitted, a steady stream of worshippers enter and exit, most bending to kiss and strew rose petals on the green cloth covering the grave of Hazrat Bari Sarkar [RA].
Reciting verses from the Holy Quran, women view the grave through a glass window, which many touch and kiss while praying for the blessings of Almighty Allah.
The faithful read from one of the hundreds of the copies of the Holy Quran, the moment when one leaves after recitation. Some simply sit in silence as mark of respect for the great saint, taking a moment to say a final prayer and to collect the inspiration and strength to make the journey back home.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
ISLAMABAD: The centuries-old ceremonies of the Urs of great spiritualist and saint Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] began at Noorpur, close to the capital city of Islamabad on Sunday.
Sweat mingles with tears on sun-darkened faces of pilgrims who walk miles, most of them barefoot and clad in rags, destine towards the shrine Hazrat Bari Sarkar [RA] in the hills, around Islamabad every year.
These are Pakistan’s colourful saint-worshippers, adherents of the Sufi branch of Islam. Almost one Million pilgrims from home and abroad arrive to pay homage at the silver-mirrored mausoleum of 17th century Sufi saint Hazrat Shah Abdul Latif Kazmi [RA], best known as Hazrat Bari Imam [RA].
People have been coming to the shrine of the great saint for centuries.
The annual pilgrimage to Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] is undertaken over five days surrounding the anniversary of the saint’s death each May. Each night at the shrine, a large number of pilgrims twirled to rapidly beating drums. Others carried miniature golden mausoleums garlanded with yellow and green streamers and triangular flags bearing verses from the Holy Quran.
The devotees come to make or fulfil “mannats” [pledges] that they would regularly visit the shrine, feed the poor or perform another act if their prayers are answered.
“My son wanted to go to Kuwait and he just came back. I promised I’d come to the shrine of Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] and donate rice to the poor when he came back,” said Budronisa Yacoub from Lahore to 'Pakistan Times' [Daily Web Newspaper] as she arrived at the shrine on Monday.
“If I hadn’t come, I would have been anxious. I would have worried because I made a promise to Allah,” she said, wiping away a tear. “I feel relaxed now.”
As is indexed in the history, Hazrat Bari Imam [RA] was one of the great preachers of Central Asian and Arab who for centuries travelled through South Asia spreading Islam.
During the 17th century, thieves and outcasts occupied Noorpur Shahan village at the edge of Islamabad. While travelling though the area, the great saint, who had migrated to the densely thick underwood isolated terrain, now known as Islamabad from his origin, a village in Chakwal area, was stunned by the habits of those living among the natural beauty of the Margalla Hills.
He decided to stay and teach the people about Islam. Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, who was devoted to spreading his empire, originally built the silver-mirrored shrine of Hazrat Bari Imam [RA].
It has been renovated and is now is maintained by the government. Inside the mausoleum, where the great saint rests, only men are permitted, a steady stream of worshippers enter and exit, most bending to kiss and strew rose petals on the green cloth covering the grave of Hazrat Bari Sarkar [RA].
Reciting verses from the Holy Quran, women view the grave through a glass window, which many touch and kiss while praying for the blessings of Almighty Allah.
The faithful read from one of the hundreds of the copies of the Holy Quran, the moment when one leaves after recitation. Some simply sit in silence as mark of respect for the great saint, taking a moment to say a final prayer and to collect the inspiration and strength to make the journey back home.
Thousands throng Bari Imam’s shrine
Staff Reporter - Dawn.com
Monday - May 15, 2006/Rabi-us-Sani 16, 1427
Thousands of people thronged the shrine of Hazrat Shah Abdul Latif, better known as Bari Imam, on the first day of annual Urs at Noorpur Shahan Village here on Sunday.
The three-day Urs began with the beat of drum and Dhamals (dances) to pay tribute to the most famous and revered saint of Potohar region.
A ceremony of Chadarposhi was held in the shrine. National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain was the chief guest on the occasion. He was accompanied by caretaker of the shrine Raja Sarfaraz.
Senate Chairman Mohammadmian Soomro will be the chief guest at the concluding ceremony on 18th.
Some 500 ‘Dalian’ (rallies), each comprising about 50 people, reached the shrine from various parts of the country. Most of the devotees travelled on foot in memory of the saint who was famous for travelling long distances on foot.
The devotees, carrying the replica of the shrine, sang devotional songs and danced to the beats of the drums.
Some of the devotees were seen collecting ‘Langar’ (food) distributed at the shrine, while others were offering prayers.
According to a rough estimate, some 200,000 people, including women, children and aged persons, visited the shrine on the first day of Urs.
The Urs of Hazrat Bari Imam has become one of the major events of the capital as thousands of devotees from all over the country take part in it every year. A number of free medical camps have been set up on the premises of the shrine to provide first aid, if required. The Capital Development Authority has provided a tanker to provide drinking water to the devotees. Hundreds of tents and sheds have been installed in the open field around the shrine for providing accommodation to the devotees, who will stay for six days.
The capital administration has also made special arrangements. Close circuit cameras, scanners and walk-through gates had been installed at the entrance and other points of the shrine to keep a vigil on terrorists.
Monday - May 15, 2006/Rabi-us-Sani 16, 1427
Thousands of people thronged the shrine of Hazrat Shah Abdul Latif, better known as Bari Imam, on the first day of annual Urs at Noorpur Shahan Village here on Sunday.
The three-day Urs began with the beat of drum and Dhamals (dances) to pay tribute to the most famous and revered saint of Potohar region.
A ceremony of Chadarposhi was held in the shrine. National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain was the chief guest on the occasion. He was accompanied by caretaker of the shrine Raja Sarfaraz.
Senate Chairman Mohammadmian Soomro will be the chief guest at the concluding ceremony on 18th.
Some 500 ‘Dalian’ (rallies), each comprising about 50 people, reached the shrine from various parts of the country. Most of the devotees travelled on foot in memory of the saint who was famous for travelling long distances on foot.
The devotees, carrying the replica of the shrine, sang devotional songs and danced to the beats of the drums.
Some of the devotees were seen collecting ‘Langar’ (food) distributed at the shrine, while others were offering prayers.
According to a rough estimate, some 200,000 people, including women, children and aged persons, visited the shrine on the first day of Urs.
The Urs of Hazrat Bari Imam has become one of the major events of the capital as thousands of devotees from all over the country take part in it every year. A number of free medical camps have been set up on the premises of the shrine to provide first aid, if required. The Capital Development Authority has provided a tanker to provide drinking water to the devotees. Hundreds of tents and sheds have been installed in the open field around the shrine for providing accommodation to the devotees, who will stay for six days.
The capital administration has also made special arrangements. Close circuit cameras, scanners and walk-through gates had been installed at the entrance and other points of the shrine to keep a vigil on terrorists.
Bari Imam urs begins today
APP/Daily Times - Islamabad, Pakistan
Sunday, May 14, 2006
The five-day annual urs (death anniversary)
of Shah Latif Bari Qadri (Bari Imam) will begin today
(Sunday) in Islamabad, where the National Assembly
speaker will attend as chief guest.
Annually, thousands of people from all over the
country participate in the urs to pay homage to the
great Sufi saint who lies buried at the historical
mirror-studded shrine in Nurpur Shahan, a village at
the foot of the Margalla Hills. This year, the
Islamabad District Administration (IDA) and the
District Auqaf Directorate has made strict security
arrangements for the event.
Bari Imam, whose real name is Shah Abdul Latif Kazmi,
was born in 1617 AD (1026 Hijra). His father, Syed
Mehmood Shah, shifted his family from Jhelum district
to Baghan village (Aabpara), which was barren at the
time. Mehmood Shah began farming in the area, where he
also raised some domestic animals.
In his early years, Shah Latif helped his father in the small
establishment where he would take the animals for
grazing. When he reached the age of twelve, however,
he left his father and went to the village of Nurpur
Shahan, and later to Ghaur Ghashti (now Attock), where
he stayed for two years studying fiqh, hadith, logic,
mathematics, medicine and other disciplines, as Ghaur
Ghashti was an educational centre of its time.
To obtain spiritual knowledge and satiate his love for
Islam, Bari Imam visited many places such as Kashmir,
Badakhshan, Bukhara, Mashhad, Baghdad and Damascus,
where he met great scholars. Later, he went to Saudi
Arabia to perform Haj. Bari Imam’s spiritual mentor
was Hayatul Mir (Zinda Pir), who gave him the title of
‘Bari Imam’, which proved his link to the Syed family.
Through his Islamic lectures at Nurpur Shahan, Bari
Imam inspired thousands of Hindus to convert to Islam.
Legend has it that the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb
Alamgir had visited Nurpur Shahan to pay his respect
to Bari Imam.
Sunday, May 14, 2006
The five-day annual urs (death anniversary)
of Shah Latif Bari Qadri (Bari Imam) will begin today
(Sunday) in Islamabad, where the National Assembly
speaker will attend as chief guest.
Annually, thousands of people from all over the
country participate in the urs to pay homage to the
great Sufi saint who lies buried at the historical
mirror-studded shrine in Nurpur Shahan, a village at
the foot of the Margalla Hills. This year, the
Islamabad District Administration (IDA) and the
District Auqaf Directorate has made strict security
arrangements for the event.
Bari Imam, whose real name is Shah Abdul Latif Kazmi,
was born in 1617 AD (1026 Hijra). His father, Syed
Mehmood Shah, shifted his family from Jhelum district
to Baghan village (Aabpara), which was barren at the
time. Mehmood Shah began farming in the area, where he
also raised some domestic animals.
In his early years, Shah Latif helped his father in the small
establishment where he would take the animals for
grazing. When he reached the age of twelve, however,
he left his father and went to the village of Nurpur
Shahan, and later to Ghaur Ghashti (now Attock), where
he stayed for two years studying fiqh, hadith, logic,
mathematics, medicine and other disciplines, as Ghaur
Ghashti was an educational centre of its time.
To obtain spiritual knowledge and satiate his love for
Islam, Bari Imam visited many places such as Kashmir,
Badakhshan, Bukhara, Mashhad, Baghdad and Damascus,
where he met great scholars. Later, he went to Saudi
Arabia to perform Haj. Bari Imam’s spiritual mentor
was Hayatul Mir (Zinda Pir), who gave him the title of
‘Bari Imam’, which proved his link to the Syed family.
Through his Islamic lectures at Nurpur Shahan, Bari
Imam inspired thousands of Hindus to convert to Islam.
Legend has it that the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb
Alamgir had visited Nurpur Shahan to pay his respect
to Bari Imam.
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
First Moroccan Spanish Festival to take place in Madrid
MAP News/Morocco TIMES - Casablanca, Morocco
Friday, May 12,2006
The Spanish capital, Madrid, will host on May 19-28 the first Moroccan Spanish cultural festival, to reinforce cohabitation between the two peoples. Organised by a group of Moroccan associations in Spain, the event will take place under the theme “To Consolidate Cohabitation”.
The programme of the festival schedules round tables, Moroccan traditional and modern music concerts, fashion shows, sports competitions and activities for children.
According to the organizers, the festival aims at reinforcing cultural ties between Moroccans and Spaniards and creating a space of meeting and conviviality between the two cultures.
A large part of the festival is devoted to Moroccan music, with shows of Sufi, Gnawa, Malhoun, Rai and popular Music. Several music groups will participate in this cultural meeting, including Said Oughassal, Gnawa dar jamai, Nass El Ghiwane, Raiband and Jadwane.
The festival will be closed on May 28 with crowning moments with the Sufi group “Belkhayat” and the “Tetouani” group of Andalusian music.
The public will also have the opportunity to get to know the wonders of Moroccan fashion, through shows on May 20, 22 and 26. The organisers will spotlight the mixture of tradition and modernity of the uncontestable success Caftan.
William T. Hathaway's Summer Snow
by Milo Clark - Book Review - Swans.com
Monday, March 27, 2006
Summer Snow is a relatively simple novel crafted around universal themes: cross-cultural love, first loyalties, governmental duplicities, contemporary lists of nasties, and a chase in search of an errant nuke.
William T. Hathaway is a very interesting man, too. Tested as a special operations warrior in Vietnam and Panama, he is now a strong anti-war activist.He wrote Summer Snow during a year-and-a-half in the country that forms his stage.
That stage is Kyrgyzstan, a central Asian relic of the defunct Soviet Union. History is very deep out there. Mountains and crags and roadless wilds dominate the landscape. The Silk Road that once connected Europe to the silks and spices of Asia passes through. For most of modern history, little of note to outsiders happened there. Kyrgyzstan is on top of Afghanistan and provides funnels in and out of that troubled conglomerate of tribal allegiances so recently unknown to most Americans. The only bridge into northern Afghanistan leaves from Kyrgyz soil.
The Soviets had a number of missile silos in Kyrgyzstan. It is one leftover warhead that provides focus for Summer Snow's chase.
Add in one complexity to differentiate Summer Snow. The heroine, Cholpon, imbued with requisite dark-haired, dark-eyed exotic central Asian beauty is also a devotee of Djamila, an older woman and Shakya, head of an all woman order. Djamila has fashioned a fusion of Islamic Sufism, Hindu mysticism, and Transcendental Meditation (TM). Djamila knows how to save the world. Her women are both devoted and industrious.
The American protagonist, Jeff, is a battle-worn veteran of special operations, Vietnam and such, now retired somewhat. As a rather standard, densely-headed American, a bit on the "ugly" side, he needs some convincing that Djamila's version of TM will lead those who stole the nuke to give it back and go away quietly.
There are interludes with Cholpon, naturally.
For those, such as myself, fascinated with Central Asia and its spiritual disciplines, Summer Snow is a compendium. The mix of Sufi, Hindu, and TM ideas takes some suspension of credulity at the start but then flows relatively seamlessly to the denouement.
Whether Jeff or Djamila wins Cholpon, whether TM or Delta Force returns the nuke to safe hands, whether Jeff gets "it" are questions better left to the reading of Summer Snow.
Hathaway, William T.: Summer Snow, Avatar Publications, St. Albert, Alberta, Canada, 2005, ISBN 0-9738442-3-X (paperback) - E-book (pdf): ISBN 0-9738442-4-8, Microsoft Reader: ISBN 0-97388442-5-6.
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Maverick at work!
By Jhumari Nigam-Misra - The Times of India
Thursday, May 11, 2006
If you thought it was only his hairstyle that stands out in a crowd, wait till you actually speak to Makrand Deshpande. He thinks, acts and lives differently.
An actor par excellence, a Sufi at heart and a nonconformist to the core, Deshpande happily lives in his own world of fantasy while life happens to him. And on rare occasions when someone wakes up this dreamer, he shares his love for life and more...
Destiny's will: I was a cricketer. In fact, there was a time when my parents got quite worried because I'd got into college through sports quota but I graduated as a dramatist!
There was a room next to my college gym from where you could hear all sorts of noises coming out throughout the day. I was curious so I inquired and found out about a group rehearsing for a play. Somebody asked me to take a chance and I did it. I guess I was destined to be here.
Stage talk: Theatre is my highest priority. I enjoy being a part of any healthy creation, be it through acting or directing, writing or singing. For me, life matters more than a character.
So I've never aspired to be an important figure or waited to be a 'kalakar'. I was happy being a 'seh-kalakar' also. I believe, the more you live or the way you live is the way you create. I only do work that gives me pleasure.
Filmi funda: One good thing about Bollywood is that once you are in it, you never go out. But my love for theatre has restricted me to make long commitments anywhere. Bollywood was a sweet serendipity to me. It has given me popularity, money and recognition.
I was always called a good luck actor and in fact Mukesh Bhatt actually calls me a 'lucky mascot'. I am just choosy about time and not a character. If I have time and need the money, I will surely do a film.
Love bytes: I do believe in 'love at first sight'. There is a chemistry that's like lightening. I can see a photo and feel that chemistry, but I can't explain it to you. Of course, I've fallen in love, but I don't have a follow-up theory in life. I have a time theory. If time and situation favours you, it will work.
Fixed image: You can't help it if people slot you. After all, who has the time to understand you? It doesn't bother me. People often perceive me as a serious actor, an intellect... and turn quiet on the sets, only to realise that I am the first one to have some masti.
Soul curry: I am a Sufi in my approach but also a doer. Any fantasy that I have, (I don't just dream about it...) I turn it into reality. I love to absorb life and then project it my way. Though a little moody, I am otherwise a calm, fun-loving and private person. I like to live life and not analyse it.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
If you thought it was only his hairstyle that stands out in a crowd, wait till you actually speak to Makrand Deshpande. He thinks, acts and lives differently.
An actor par excellence, a Sufi at heart and a nonconformist to the core, Deshpande happily lives in his own world of fantasy while life happens to him. And on rare occasions when someone wakes up this dreamer, he shares his love for life and more...
Destiny's will: I was a cricketer. In fact, there was a time when my parents got quite worried because I'd got into college through sports quota but I graduated as a dramatist!
There was a room next to my college gym from where you could hear all sorts of noises coming out throughout the day. I was curious so I inquired and found out about a group rehearsing for a play. Somebody asked me to take a chance and I did it. I guess I was destined to be here.
Stage talk: Theatre is my highest priority. I enjoy being a part of any healthy creation, be it through acting or directing, writing or singing. For me, life matters more than a character.
So I've never aspired to be an important figure or waited to be a 'kalakar'. I was happy being a 'seh-kalakar' also. I believe, the more you live or the way you live is the way you create. I only do work that gives me pleasure.
Filmi funda: One good thing about Bollywood is that once you are in it, you never go out. But my love for theatre has restricted me to make long commitments anywhere. Bollywood was a sweet serendipity to me. It has given me popularity, money and recognition.
I was always called a good luck actor and in fact Mukesh Bhatt actually calls me a 'lucky mascot'. I am just choosy about time and not a character. If I have time and need the money, I will surely do a film.
Love bytes: I do believe in 'love at first sight'. There is a chemistry that's like lightening. I can see a photo and feel that chemistry, but I can't explain it to you. Of course, I've fallen in love, but I don't have a follow-up theory in life. I have a time theory. If time and situation favours you, it will work.
Fixed image: You can't help it if people slot you. After all, who has the time to understand you? It doesn't bother me. People often perceive me as a serious actor, an intellect... and turn quiet on the sets, only to realise that I am the first one to have some masti.
Soul curry: I am a Sufi in my approach but also a doer. Any fantasy that I have, (I don't just dream about it...) I turn it into reality. I love to absorb life and then project it my way. Though a little moody, I am otherwise a calm, fun-loving and private person. I like to live life and not analyse it.
Sufi, so good!
By Shridevi Keshavan - Daily News and Analysis - Mumbai, India
Thursday, May 11, 2006
What comes to your mind when you hear the term ‘Sufi’? Esoteric whirling dervishes, sacred saints or Abida Parveen? Well, Sufism seems to be the flavour of the moment. From Kailash Kher’s music to Manish Malhotra’s designs, everything seems to have a Sufi influence.
“Sufism has been in existence in the communication arts for a long time now. The trend is definitely spreading but doing it just as a fad makes no sense,” says director/designer Muzaffar Ali who is working on a script on the works of the Sufi poet Rumi.
According to him, even Rabindranath Tagore and Raja Ram Mohan Roy were influenced by the tenets of Sufism. “You need to have the passion to follow it, be it music or any other art,” he says.
Sufism can be traced back to the 8th century, when Sufis were known as individuals trying to connect with God without following any particular religion. It produced a large body of poetry, with poets like Bullehshah, Rumi and Amir Khusro being hailed as the icons of Sufism. “Sufism means eternal love. You can see madness in a pure Sufi’s work — be it music, painting or any other art,” says singer Kailash Kher.
Though he is now known more for playback singing, Kailash denies diverting from his Sufi style of singing. “You have to constantly evolve. I cannot restrict my music to a dargah by using only a tabla and a harmonium. But dressing in a jeans and a t-shirt and yelling at the top of your voice doesn’t make you a Sufi singer.”
For lyricist Prasoon Joshi, the concept of Sufism is very contemporary. “Sufism suspends the idea of logic. Today, the world is moving towards individualism; the herd mentality is slowly fading. It caters to people who do not believe in religion but feel the existence of a supreme power. I think it caters to the youth. It’s like hip-hop which talks about existence and not about change.”
As far as fashion goes, Manish Malhotra’s collection for Lakme Fashion Week showed Sufi influences. “A friend of mine introduced me to Sufi music, which I find very soulful. For LFW, my collection was a complete package of free-flowing whites with Sufi sounds to go with it,” he says, adding, “though I’m not sure if it will catch on as a trend.”
Thursday, May 11, 2006
What comes to your mind when you hear the term ‘Sufi’? Esoteric whirling dervishes, sacred saints or Abida Parveen? Well, Sufism seems to be the flavour of the moment. From Kailash Kher’s music to Manish Malhotra’s designs, everything seems to have a Sufi influence.
“Sufism has been in existence in the communication arts for a long time now. The trend is definitely spreading but doing it just as a fad makes no sense,” says director/designer Muzaffar Ali who is working on a script on the works of the Sufi poet Rumi.
According to him, even Rabindranath Tagore and Raja Ram Mohan Roy were influenced by the tenets of Sufism. “You need to have the passion to follow it, be it music or any other art,” he says.
Sufism can be traced back to the 8th century, when Sufis were known as individuals trying to connect with God without following any particular religion. It produced a large body of poetry, with poets like Bullehshah, Rumi and Amir Khusro being hailed as the icons of Sufism. “Sufism means eternal love. You can see madness in a pure Sufi’s work — be it music, painting or any other art,” says singer Kailash Kher.
Though he is now known more for playback singing, Kailash denies diverting from his Sufi style of singing. “You have to constantly evolve. I cannot restrict my music to a dargah by using only a tabla and a harmonium. But dressing in a jeans and a t-shirt and yelling at the top of your voice doesn’t make you a Sufi singer.”
For lyricist Prasoon Joshi, the concept of Sufism is very contemporary. “Sufism suspends the idea of logic. Today, the world is moving towards individualism; the herd mentality is slowly fading. It caters to people who do not believe in religion but feel the existence of a supreme power. I think it caters to the youth. It’s like hip-hop which talks about existence and not about change.”
As far as fashion goes, Manish Malhotra’s collection for Lakme Fashion Week showed Sufi influences. “A friend of mine introduced me to Sufi music, which I find very soulful. For LFW, my collection was a complete package of free-flowing whites with Sufi sounds to go with it,” he says, adding, “though I’m not sure if it will catch on as a trend.”
Impact of Bangladesh on Tagore's creativity
By Ershad Kamol with Sadi Mohammed - The Daily Star - Dhaka, Bangladesh
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Rabindranath Tagore spent the prime of his life at Patishar of Rajshahi, Shilaidah of Kustia and Shahjadpur of Pabna in Bangladesh. Though he came here to oversee his zamindari, these visits had immense impact on his thought, philosophy and creativity. The Tagore songs composed in this tradition are treasures of our music.
He spent most of the time watching the unique natural beauty, interacting with the bauls and rural bards as well as writing and composing. Most of his popular writings -- from Chhinnapatra to Nobel Prize-winning book Geetanjali -- have spontaneously overflowed through powerful emotions recollected from tranquility of these regions, especially in his poems and songs.
Eminent Tagore singer Sadi Mohammed, who after completing a Master's in Music in Rabindra Sangeet from Shantiniketan is currently teaching as the head of the department of Rabindra Sangeet at Government Music College, said, “Tagore claimed himself as 'Rabi Baul'. All of his devotional songs are based on Sufism. The philosophy and tune of 'baul songs' had an immense impact on Tagore songs. However, folk music of Bengal has been presented uniquely by Tagore like the other music genres, western music, north Indian raga and more, which have been followed in his songs. And the mastery of Tagore is that when he fused the folk music genres of Bengal in his songs, it was quite distinct from the original form. He extensively used tunes and styles from baul, kirtan, shyamasangeet, sari, bhatiali and even kathakata to give his songs a unique flavour and beauty."
Rabindranath was an adherent of 'Brahmo Samaj', to whom music is a kind of devotion. This is similar to 'doctrines of bauls', as the latter also offer the mystic songs as prayer for the supreme God. Tagore's intimacy with bauls such as Gagan Harkara, a disciple of great baul Lalon Shah, Khepa baul and others generated interest in Tagore about baul songs.
And like the bauls' quest for moner manush (urge for reunification of the soul and God), Tagore has also wandered in search of the supreme creator in his devotional songs. Sadi said, "After visiting the then East Bengal in the early 20th century, Tagore was greatly influenced by the bauls, who believe that the mystic creator lives in the soul of human beings. Tagore believed that love is devotion and nature is its background. That is why love, devotion and nature are interwoven in Tagore's songs.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Rabindranath Tagore spent the prime of his life at Patishar of Rajshahi, Shilaidah of Kustia and Shahjadpur of Pabna in Bangladesh. Though he came here to oversee his zamindari, these visits had immense impact on his thought, philosophy and creativity. The Tagore songs composed in this tradition are treasures of our music.
He spent most of the time watching the unique natural beauty, interacting with the bauls and rural bards as well as writing and composing. Most of his popular writings -- from Chhinnapatra to Nobel Prize-winning book Geetanjali -- have spontaneously overflowed through powerful emotions recollected from tranquility of these regions, especially in his poems and songs.
Eminent Tagore singer Sadi Mohammed, who after completing a Master's in Music in Rabindra Sangeet from Shantiniketan is currently teaching as the head of the department of Rabindra Sangeet at Government Music College, said, “Tagore claimed himself as 'Rabi Baul'. All of his devotional songs are based on Sufism. The philosophy and tune of 'baul songs' had an immense impact on Tagore songs. However, folk music of Bengal has been presented uniquely by Tagore like the other music genres, western music, north Indian raga and more, which have been followed in his songs. And the mastery of Tagore is that when he fused the folk music genres of Bengal in his songs, it was quite distinct from the original form. He extensively used tunes and styles from baul, kirtan, shyamasangeet, sari, bhatiali and even kathakata to give his songs a unique flavour and beauty."
Rabindranath was an adherent of 'Brahmo Samaj', to whom music is a kind of devotion. This is similar to 'doctrines of bauls', as the latter also offer the mystic songs as prayer for the supreme God. Tagore's intimacy with bauls such as Gagan Harkara, a disciple of great baul Lalon Shah, Khepa baul and others generated interest in Tagore about baul songs.
And like the bauls' quest for moner manush (urge for reunification of the soul and God), Tagore has also wandered in search of the supreme creator in his devotional songs. Sadi said, "After visiting the then East Bengal in the early 20th century, Tagore was greatly influenced by the bauls, who believe that the mystic creator lives in the soul of human beings. Tagore believed that love is devotion and nature is its background. That is why love, devotion and nature are interwoven in Tagore's songs.
Rockland peace delegation heads to Iran
By Khurram Saeed - The Journal News - Westchester, NY, U.S.A.
Monday, May 8, 2006
During the Cold War, Richard Deats led peace delegations to the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe to let ordinary people speak for themselves, instead of governments.
Now Deats is at it again.
The Nyack man will be part of a delegation leaving today for Iran sponsored by the Fellowship of Reconciliation. FOR is an Upper Nyack-based interfaith pacifist organization and Deats is the former editor of its Fellowship magazine.
"We believe in what we call people-to-people diplomacy," Deats said. "You know, when Eisenhower was president, he said, 'The people of the world want peace so much that some day the governments are going to have get out of the way and let them have it.' "
This will be FOR's second peace mission to Iran in six months. It comes at a time when tensions between the leaders of the United States and Iran are rising over Iran's nuclear power program. President Bush has threatened military action and economic sanctions, but Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has refused to back down.
"What we need right now is to defuse the hostile rhetoric," said Deats, a Methodist minister.
Deats will be joined by 23 others for the 12-day stay in Iran. They include a leaders of various Christian denominations, an expert of Sufism, an art professor from Philadelphia, a Middle East professor and graduate students.
Hossein Alizadeh, who heads FOR's Iran Initiative, said securing passage for the travelers wasn't easy. Some in Iran, an Islamic theocracy, are suspicious of Americans entering their country and influencing their citizens, he said.
But visas were issued, and the delegation plans to meet with Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Zoroastrian leaders, college students, journalists and nongovernment organizations, including one that serves women and another that focuses on the environment.
Monday, May 8, 2006
During the Cold War, Richard Deats led peace delegations to the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe to let ordinary people speak for themselves, instead of governments.
Now Deats is at it again.
The Nyack man will be part of a delegation leaving today for Iran sponsored by the Fellowship of Reconciliation. FOR is an Upper Nyack-based interfaith pacifist organization and Deats is the former editor of its Fellowship magazine.
"We believe in what we call people-to-people diplomacy," Deats said. "You know, when Eisenhower was president, he said, 'The people of the world want peace so much that some day the governments are going to have get out of the way and let them have it.' "
This will be FOR's second peace mission to Iran in six months. It comes at a time when tensions between the leaders of the United States and Iran are rising over Iran's nuclear power program. President Bush has threatened military action and economic sanctions, but Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has refused to back down.
"What we need right now is to defuse the hostile rhetoric," said Deats, a Methodist minister.
Deats will be joined by 23 others for the 12-day stay in Iran. They include a leaders of various Christian denominations, an expert of Sufism, an art professor from Philadelphia, a Middle East professor and graduate students.
Hossein Alizadeh, who heads FOR's Iran Initiative, said securing passage for the travelers wasn't easy. Some in Iran, an Islamic theocracy, are suspicious of Americans entering their country and influencing their citizens, he said.
But visas were issued, and the delegation plans to meet with Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Zoroastrian leaders, college students, journalists and nongovernment organizations, including one that serves women and another that focuses on the environment.
Concert with Molana lyrics
Iran-Music-US - IRNA, Islamic Republic News Agency
Sunday, May 7, 2006
The US Petersburg Symphonic Orchestra will, for the first time, perform a concert with lyrics composed of works of a renowned Iranian poet on May 12-14.
According to the English-language 'Iran Daily', the concert, with lyrics composed of works of the prominent Iranian mystic and poet Molana Jalaleddin Rumi is to be held in Pennsylvania.
The concert titled 'Essence of Love' was composed by a distinguished Iranian composer Reza Vaali who is a music instructor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania.
Vaali was a graduate from Tehran's Academy of Music when he moved to Austria in 1972 and succeeded to receive his PhD in theoretical music and composition from Petersburg University in 1985.
He composed 'Essence of Love' in form of five alternative songs based on Molana's poems.
Molana Jalaleddin Mohammad Rumi, is a 13th century Persian poet, jurist, theologian and teacher of Sufism. (1207-1273 CE), whose works are translated in many languages.
The concert, which will be held in Heinz Hall in the center of Petersburg, is expected to be a hit among the Americans in view of the universal fame of Molana in poetry and mysticism as well as Vaali's erudition in music.
An online poetry contest is also organized by the orchestra for those who buy tickets of the event.
The objective of the contest is to honor the great Iranian poet whose poems are at the core of the event, it said.
Sunday, May 7, 2006
The US Petersburg Symphonic Orchestra will, for the first time, perform a concert with lyrics composed of works of a renowned Iranian poet on May 12-14.
According to the English-language 'Iran Daily', the concert, with lyrics composed of works of the prominent Iranian mystic and poet Molana Jalaleddin Rumi is to be held in Pennsylvania.
The concert titled 'Essence of Love' was composed by a distinguished Iranian composer Reza Vaali who is a music instructor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania.
Vaali was a graduate from Tehran's Academy of Music when he moved to Austria in 1972 and succeeded to receive his PhD in theoretical music and composition from Petersburg University in 1985.
He composed 'Essence of Love' in form of five alternative songs based on Molana's poems.
Molana Jalaleddin Mohammad Rumi, is a 13th century Persian poet, jurist, theologian and teacher of Sufism. (1207-1273 CE), whose works are translated in many languages.
The concert, which will be held in Heinz Hall in the center of Petersburg, is expected to be a hit among the Americans in view of the universal fame of Molana in poetry and mysticism as well as Vaali's erudition in music.
An online poetry contest is also organized by the orchestra for those who buy tickets of the event.
The objective of the contest is to honor the great Iranian poet whose poems are at the core of the event, it said.
Mimetic Warfare: "Gnosticism" and "Traditionalism" as Weapons of Disinformation
By br Dr. Robert Dickson Crane - TAM The American Muslim
Sunday, May 7, 2006
Almost two thousand years ago, the entire known world, i.e., from India to Morocco, was convulsed with so-called Christian heresies. Allegedly the most vicious of them all was known in Rome and Constantinople as “gnosticism,” which taught that each individual person has access to God without going through mediation and redemption by Jesus Christ.
Many centuries later, in the 18th century after Christ a movement arose in England known eventually as philosophical “traditionalism” and in its political expression as Whigism. Its roots go back to the Glorious Revolution of 1688, when William of Orange and his wife, Mary, crossed the narrow seas between France and England to eliminate the English King Charles II and his alleged efforts to reimpose Vatican rule. It blossomed throughout the 18th century as the “Scottish Enlightenment” and laid the philosophical foundation toward the end of the century for the American Revolution and the American Constitution. The Scottish Enlightenment was the opposite of the European Enightenment because it served to revive a dying tradition of enlightened religion in human affairs rather than to introduce “enlightened” rational thought as a means to destroy the role of all religion in public life.
These two movements in the history of Western thought, so-called gnosticism and so-called traditionalism, are again being revived variously to attack Islam and to revive awareness of its contribution to Western civilization. Oddly, the ancient form of demonization known as “gnosticism” is being revived by “Paleo-Conservatives,” also known as self-proclaimed “modern traditionalists,” in their efforts to combat both Islam and Neo-Conservatism as the two twenty-first-century threats to order, justice, and liberty.
This complex phenomenon was raised but not addressed in a colloquium on The Nature of Evil published in the April, 2005, edition of the online journal, The American Muslim. This colloquium, in turn, triggered some emotional discussion of probably the best presentation of Islamic traditionalism ever drafted. This presentation, drafted by Shaykh Rashid al Ghanouchi, head of the illegal Nahda party in Tunisia, and others who no longer wish to be identified, is known as the platform of the Halaqa al Asala wa Taqadun (Circle of Tradition and Progress). The complete text is available on pages 79-81 in the chapter entitled “Ecumenical Justice Versus the Pagan Empire,” in my monograph, The Grand Strategy of Justice, Islamic Institute for Strategic Studies, Policy Paper No. 5, April 2000, P.O. Box 303, Washington, Virginia 22747.
This statement referred to the two giants of traditionalist thought, Edmund Burke and Russell Kirk, but included also Eric Voegelin and Gerhart Niemeyer as examples of traditionalist thinkers. This raised a highly controversial issue, because Voegelin is the most articulate modern thinker who condemns Gnosticism as the greatest threat to traditionalist thought. Whereas the traditionalist, Robert Strausz-Hupe, who is erroneously claimed by Daniel Pipes and other Neo-Cons as their original mentor, regarded Islam more than half a century ago as possibly America’s greatest ally against totalitarian systems, more recently key intellectuals are condemning Islam in the world today as the re-emergence of the deadly Gnostic pandemic.
In my follow-up emails to the colloquium on The Nature of Evil, I called attention to articles published in the Winter 2005 issue of Modern Age, which has been the intellectual mainstay of traditionalist thought in America ever since Russell Kirk founded it in 1957. Two articles attempt to turn gnosticism into a stalking horse as the opposite of traditionalism, when, in fact, gnosticism as I understand it is quite compatible with traditionalism and in many ways synonymous with it. These two are Michael Henry’s “Civil Theology in the Gnostic Age: Progress and Regress,” and R. V. Young’s “Harold Bloom: the Critic as Gnostic.”
My own writings on gnosticism have evolved over the decades, ever since I wrote a dissertation at Northwestern University in 1955-1956, entitled, The Political Origins of Heresy in the First Six Christian Centuries. My writings thirty and more years ago ascribed the secular utopias of Communism, Nazism, and Apocalyptic Zionism to a gnostic concept of human perfectability and to the resultant rationale for creating perfection through social engineering on earth. Further study, however, suggested to me that this negative view of Gonosticism is a direct descendent of the third-century and fourth-century efforts of Christian orthodox theologians to demonize those who denied the divinity of Christ. The charge was that these people believed salvation can come from direct knowledge of God and submission to God rather than only from joining the vicarious atonement of Jesus for one’s sins. The related charge was that such heretics deny original sin and therefore are vulnerable to utopian dreams of perfecting the material world through their own intellect rather than perfecting themselves through the grace of God.
The first charge about the direct relationship between the human person and the transcendent God is no doubt true, but the second charge of triumphalist utopianism does not accord with my understanding of gnosticism. Gnosticism in history accords with what we now call Sufism, and Sufis would be the last to reject transcendence in favor of immanence and to seek the City of God on earth.
Young writes that, “Gnosticism is a religious conspiracy theory ... based on a radical dualism ... that offers salvation on the basis of occult knowledge.” He quotes Han Jonas’ critique of gnosticism: “[In Gnosticism] the deity is absolutely Transmundane, its nature alien to that of the universe, which it neither created nor governs and to which it is the complete antithesis; to the divine realm of light, self-contained and remote, the cosmos is opposed as the realm of darkness. The world is the work of lowly powers which though they may mediately be descended from Him do not know the true God and obstruct knowledge of Him in the cosmos over which they rule.” This charge may be true concerning extremist elements in both Muslim Sufism and in the more generic phenomenon of Gnosticism, but it is totally off base in describing their classical expressions.
The evil nature of using the Gnostic analogy to demonize Islam is most strikingly brought out, as I have discussed it in many of my articles, in the assertion by Richard John Neuhaus, editor of the leading Neo-Conservative religious publication, First Things, that Muslims can have no personal relationship with God, that therefore they can have no understanding of human rights, and that accordingly they can not even understand what democracy is all about. This is a standard think-tank trick of taking the core of one’s opponents beliefs, turning them on their head, and then accusing one’s opponent of exactly the opposite of what the opponent actually believes. Such forms of deliberately reversing truth and falsehood are known as diabolism or as the Work of the Anti-Christ (the Messiah al Dajjal)..
The Gnostic disease that has caused evil in the modern world, according to anti-Islamic traditionalists (which should be recognized as an oxymoron), consists in rejecting St. Augustine’s emphasis on personal sin separating the person from God and repentance through the help of divine grace. Instead, says Young, “The Gnostics’ teaching places the origin of evil, of pain and suffering, in the conditions of the material creation; salvation involves overcoming ignorance and escaping these external conditions by finding divinity within.”
Young castigates Gnosticism further as follows: “The Gnostic finds the beginning of the path to salvation in the realization that the world is a great imposture, a prison of pain and frustration. His escape lies in recovering the intrinsic good within himself, the principle of
illumination that he shares with other enlightened spirits. ... What makes it possible for the self and God to commune so freely is that the self already is of God.” Perhaps Young is confusing panentheism with pantheism, i.e., the belief that the transcendent God is in the immanent universe with the belief that the universe is God and that nothing is transcendent.
He continues, “The ancient Gnostics, Sigmund Freud, and Harold Bloom all share a loathing of the Christian vision of reality, which sees mankind’s willful disobedience and fallen nature as the principal source of his misery and of the evil in a world created good. ... The alternative is the Gnostic and Freudian view, ... [whereby] our hope lies not in acknowledging and submitting to the moral reality of our situation, but in overcoming or even transforming it.” He then goes on to his paradigm-forming conclusion about the evils of the modern world: “Marxism is a good example of the similarity between Gnosticism and many modern ideologies.”
The impact on political thought of Gnosticism recreated as a bugbear of conservatism, is discussed in the second article, “Civil Theology in the Gnostic Age,” by Michael Henry, who teaches philosophy at St. John’s University in New York (not the St. John’s in Annapolis and Santa Fe) and is series editor of the Library of Conservative Thought of Transaction Publishers. He defines Gnosticism as “a somewhat deformed version of Christianity that seeks immanent salvation through human action in a redivinized world in which humanity is the locus of the divine.”
Henry then develops his well-based traditionalist critique of Neo-Conservatives, whose mission to perfect the world represents a “re-irruption” of Gnosticism in the concept of “enlightened liberty [consisting in] an emphasis on personal gratification and the isolation of individual desires rather than the community of shared participation in transcendence. Americans came to see themselves as the saviors of the world through their achievement of the most rational order that maximizes individual freedom and earthly happiness ... guaranteeing earthly happiness through democracy.”
He then writes, quite soundly in reference to Neo-Conservatism but quite erroneously in reference to Gnosticism, that, “As Voegelin has pointed out, positivism is another variety of Gnosticism through its reduction of reality to the immanent. ... If the public philosophy means that liberty is the possession of rights determined by the citizens’ preferences, then order is merely the absence of chaos but has no positive content or meaning. ... Having no substantial truth in itself [democracy] worships freedom, which means that it appeals to relativism and the related skepticism - which is quite the opposite of Voegelin’s characterization of the nature of man as ‘openness to transcendence’.”
Since the term “Gnosticism” is central to the apologetics of American traditionalist savants, we, as traditionalists from the Islamic tradition, should address what we have in common with the Christian traditionalists. This does not include the demonization of Gnosticism, which suggests that we need to use other terms that have less historical baggage.
Rather than throwing the baby out with the bathwater, perhaps we should change the bathtub. Whether we call the paradigm liberalism, conservatism, or neo this or paleo that, is not as important as the content of the terms we are using. I abandoned my self-description as conservative a long time ago, because most people who like this term are simply reactionary. Facetiously, I call my self a prolicon, as in lepracon, meaning progressive, liberal, conservative. But actually I am none of those.
Why abandon the term traditionalism merely because it has been hijacked by people who do not understand it and have perverted it into a neo-traditionalism, the way the neo-conservatives have perverted their origins? I have no problem with “classical liberalism,” but only if we understand that classical liberalism is similar to what I call classical traditionalism, which is quite the opposite of modern libertarianism and its opposite, neo-traditionalism.
Libertarianism refuses to recognize any transcendent framework for either human responsibilities or human rights. Classical liberalism, on the other hand, can recognize freedom as both the purpose and product of transcendent justice. The highest goal, however, as propounded throughout the Qur’an, is truth and justice.
The weakness of the so-called traditionalism of Voegelin is that he seems to reject anything similar in any religion other than Christianity, but at the same time rejects Christianity as anything more than an imperfect expression of his own ideas. His followers attack the triumphalism of the Neo-Cons but seem to replace it with their own brand.
Perhaps we need a better word to describe what classical Islam and classical Christianity share. Frithjof Schuon uses the term philosophia perennis, and this has been translated as universal traditionalism because it is the substance of what is traditional, perennial, or enduring in all religions. My suggestion is that we rescue the term traditionalism from those who would hijack it, rather than surrendering to the hijackers.
At a less philosophical level and even more profoundly the battle of the intellectual titans is really about the role of justice in the Plan of Allah. Justice divorced from the “Agenda of Allah” is self-referential and can amount to totalitarian self-worship. Worship of Allah divorced from justice is un-Islamic because it results in the same thing. This, of course, is why the third element of the Shi’i creed is so important, namely, nubuwiya, which serves to provide the wisdom necessary to maintain a mutually reinforcing balance between the first two elements.
All of this, unfortunately, has been totally missing from most Sunni thought for many centuries, which may be why the world of Sunni Islam has been so devastated by Western solypsism. Recovery and renewal are possible only by intra-faith cooperation among Muslims, which should be the basis of inter-faith cooperation with those of other religions who are being hijacked by their own forms of ultra- or neo-conservatism and ultra- or neo-liberalism.
We are engaged in mimetic warfare, which is the use of mimes in the form of words or symbols, to capture the sub-conscious of others without them knowing that they have been hijacked. The first rule of warfare is to know your enemy. The second is to know his strategy. Only then can we know better the nature good and evil.
Sunday, May 7, 2006
Almost two thousand years ago, the entire known world, i.e., from India to Morocco, was convulsed with so-called Christian heresies. Allegedly the most vicious of them all was known in Rome and Constantinople as “gnosticism,” which taught that each individual person has access to God without going through mediation and redemption by Jesus Christ.
Many centuries later, in the 18th century after Christ a movement arose in England known eventually as philosophical “traditionalism” and in its political expression as Whigism. Its roots go back to the Glorious Revolution of 1688, when William of Orange and his wife, Mary, crossed the narrow seas between France and England to eliminate the English King Charles II and his alleged efforts to reimpose Vatican rule. It blossomed throughout the 18th century as the “Scottish Enlightenment” and laid the philosophical foundation toward the end of the century for the American Revolution and the American Constitution. The Scottish Enlightenment was the opposite of the European Enightenment because it served to revive a dying tradition of enlightened religion in human affairs rather than to introduce “enlightened” rational thought as a means to destroy the role of all religion in public life.
These two movements in the history of Western thought, so-called gnosticism and so-called traditionalism, are again being revived variously to attack Islam and to revive awareness of its contribution to Western civilization. Oddly, the ancient form of demonization known as “gnosticism” is being revived by “Paleo-Conservatives,” also known as self-proclaimed “modern traditionalists,” in their efforts to combat both Islam and Neo-Conservatism as the two twenty-first-century threats to order, justice, and liberty.
This complex phenomenon was raised but not addressed in a colloquium on The Nature of Evil published in the April, 2005, edition of the online journal, The American Muslim. This colloquium, in turn, triggered some emotional discussion of probably the best presentation of Islamic traditionalism ever drafted. This presentation, drafted by Shaykh Rashid al Ghanouchi, head of the illegal Nahda party in Tunisia, and others who no longer wish to be identified, is known as the platform of the Halaqa al Asala wa Taqadun (Circle of Tradition and Progress). The complete text is available on pages 79-81 in the chapter entitled “Ecumenical Justice Versus the Pagan Empire,” in my monograph, The Grand Strategy of Justice, Islamic Institute for Strategic Studies, Policy Paper No. 5, April 2000, P.O. Box 303, Washington, Virginia 22747.
This statement referred to the two giants of traditionalist thought, Edmund Burke and Russell Kirk, but included also Eric Voegelin and Gerhart Niemeyer as examples of traditionalist thinkers. This raised a highly controversial issue, because Voegelin is the most articulate modern thinker who condemns Gnosticism as the greatest threat to traditionalist thought. Whereas the traditionalist, Robert Strausz-Hupe, who is erroneously claimed by Daniel Pipes and other Neo-Cons as their original mentor, regarded Islam more than half a century ago as possibly America’s greatest ally against totalitarian systems, more recently key intellectuals are condemning Islam in the world today as the re-emergence of the deadly Gnostic pandemic.
In my follow-up emails to the colloquium on The Nature of Evil, I called attention to articles published in the Winter 2005 issue of Modern Age, which has been the intellectual mainstay of traditionalist thought in America ever since Russell Kirk founded it in 1957. Two articles attempt to turn gnosticism into a stalking horse as the opposite of traditionalism, when, in fact, gnosticism as I understand it is quite compatible with traditionalism and in many ways synonymous with it. These two are Michael Henry’s “Civil Theology in the Gnostic Age: Progress and Regress,” and R. V. Young’s “Harold Bloom: the Critic as Gnostic.”
My own writings on gnosticism have evolved over the decades, ever since I wrote a dissertation at Northwestern University in 1955-1956, entitled, The Political Origins of Heresy in the First Six Christian Centuries. My writings thirty and more years ago ascribed the secular utopias of Communism, Nazism, and Apocalyptic Zionism to a gnostic concept of human perfectability and to the resultant rationale for creating perfection through social engineering on earth. Further study, however, suggested to me that this negative view of Gonosticism is a direct descendent of the third-century and fourth-century efforts of Christian orthodox theologians to demonize those who denied the divinity of Christ. The charge was that these people believed salvation can come from direct knowledge of God and submission to God rather than only from joining the vicarious atonement of Jesus for one’s sins. The related charge was that such heretics deny original sin and therefore are vulnerable to utopian dreams of perfecting the material world through their own intellect rather than perfecting themselves through the grace of God.
The first charge about the direct relationship between the human person and the transcendent God is no doubt true, but the second charge of triumphalist utopianism does not accord with my understanding of gnosticism. Gnosticism in history accords with what we now call Sufism, and Sufis would be the last to reject transcendence in favor of immanence and to seek the City of God on earth.
Young writes that, “Gnosticism is a religious conspiracy theory ... based on a radical dualism ... that offers salvation on the basis of occult knowledge.” He quotes Han Jonas’ critique of gnosticism: “[In Gnosticism] the deity is absolutely Transmundane, its nature alien to that of the universe, which it neither created nor governs and to which it is the complete antithesis; to the divine realm of light, self-contained and remote, the cosmos is opposed as the realm of darkness. The world is the work of lowly powers which though they may mediately be descended from Him do not know the true God and obstruct knowledge of Him in the cosmos over which they rule.” This charge may be true concerning extremist elements in both Muslim Sufism and in the more generic phenomenon of Gnosticism, but it is totally off base in describing their classical expressions.
The evil nature of using the Gnostic analogy to demonize Islam is most strikingly brought out, as I have discussed it in many of my articles, in the assertion by Richard John Neuhaus, editor of the leading Neo-Conservative religious publication, First Things, that Muslims can have no personal relationship with God, that therefore they can have no understanding of human rights, and that accordingly they can not even understand what democracy is all about. This is a standard think-tank trick of taking the core of one’s opponents beliefs, turning them on their head, and then accusing one’s opponent of exactly the opposite of what the opponent actually believes. Such forms of deliberately reversing truth and falsehood are known as diabolism or as the Work of the Anti-Christ (the Messiah al Dajjal)..
The Gnostic disease that has caused evil in the modern world, according to anti-Islamic traditionalists (which should be recognized as an oxymoron), consists in rejecting St. Augustine’s emphasis on personal sin separating the person from God and repentance through the help of divine grace. Instead, says Young, “The Gnostics’ teaching places the origin of evil, of pain and suffering, in the conditions of the material creation; salvation involves overcoming ignorance and escaping these external conditions by finding divinity within.”
Young castigates Gnosticism further as follows: “The Gnostic finds the beginning of the path to salvation in the realization that the world is a great imposture, a prison of pain and frustration. His escape lies in recovering the intrinsic good within himself, the principle of
illumination that he shares with other enlightened spirits. ... What makes it possible for the self and God to commune so freely is that the self already is of God.” Perhaps Young is confusing panentheism with pantheism, i.e., the belief that the transcendent God is in the immanent universe with the belief that the universe is God and that nothing is transcendent.
He continues, “The ancient Gnostics, Sigmund Freud, and Harold Bloom all share a loathing of the Christian vision of reality, which sees mankind’s willful disobedience and fallen nature as the principal source of his misery and of the evil in a world created good. ... The alternative is the Gnostic and Freudian view, ... [whereby] our hope lies not in acknowledging and submitting to the moral reality of our situation, but in overcoming or even transforming it.” He then goes on to his paradigm-forming conclusion about the evils of the modern world: “Marxism is a good example of the similarity between Gnosticism and many modern ideologies.”
The impact on political thought of Gnosticism recreated as a bugbear of conservatism, is discussed in the second article, “Civil Theology in the Gnostic Age,” by Michael Henry, who teaches philosophy at St. John’s University in New York (not the St. John’s in Annapolis and Santa Fe) and is series editor of the Library of Conservative Thought of Transaction Publishers. He defines Gnosticism as “a somewhat deformed version of Christianity that seeks immanent salvation through human action in a redivinized world in which humanity is the locus of the divine.”
Henry then develops his well-based traditionalist critique of Neo-Conservatives, whose mission to perfect the world represents a “re-irruption” of Gnosticism in the concept of “enlightened liberty [consisting in] an emphasis on personal gratification and the isolation of individual desires rather than the community of shared participation in transcendence. Americans came to see themselves as the saviors of the world through their achievement of the most rational order that maximizes individual freedom and earthly happiness ... guaranteeing earthly happiness through democracy.”
He then writes, quite soundly in reference to Neo-Conservatism but quite erroneously in reference to Gnosticism, that, “As Voegelin has pointed out, positivism is another variety of Gnosticism through its reduction of reality to the immanent. ... If the public philosophy means that liberty is the possession of rights determined by the citizens’ preferences, then order is merely the absence of chaos but has no positive content or meaning. ... Having no substantial truth in itself [democracy] worships freedom, which means that it appeals to relativism and the related skepticism - which is quite the opposite of Voegelin’s characterization of the nature of man as ‘openness to transcendence’.”
Since the term “Gnosticism” is central to the apologetics of American traditionalist savants, we, as traditionalists from the Islamic tradition, should address what we have in common with the Christian traditionalists. This does not include the demonization of Gnosticism, which suggests that we need to use other terms that have less historical baggage.
Rather than throwing the baby out with the bathwater, perhaps we should change the bathtub. Whether we call the paradigm liberalism, conservatism, or neo this or paleo that, is not as important as the content of the terms we are using. I abandoned my self-description as conservative a long time ago, because most people who like this term are simply reactionary. Facetiously, I call my self a prolicon, as in lepracon, meaning progressive, liberal, conservative. But actually I am none of those.
Why abandon the term traditionalism merely because it has been hijacked by people who do not understand it and have perverted it into a neo-traditionalism, the way the neo-conservatives have perverted their origins? I have no problem with “classical liberalism,” but only if we understand that classical liberalism is similar to what I call classical traditionalism, which is quite the opposite of modern libertarianism and its opposite, neo-traditionalism.
Libertarianism refuses to recognize any transcendent framework for either human responsibilities or human rights. Classical liberalism, on the other hand, can recognize freedom as both the purpose and product of transcendent justice. The highest goal, however, as propounded throughout the Qur’an, is truth and justice.
The weakness of the so-called traditionalism of Voegelin is that he seems to reject anything similar in any religion other than Christianity, but at the same time rejects Christianity as anything more than an imperfect expression of his own ideas. His followers attack the triumphalism of the Neo-Cons but seem to replace it with their own brand.
Perhaps we need a better word to describe what classical Islam and classical Christianity share. Frithjof Schuon uses the term philosophia perennis, and this has been translated as universal traditionalism because it is the substance of what is traditional, perennial, or enduring in all religions. My suggestion is that we rescue the term traditionalism from those who would hijack it, rather than surrendering to the hijackers.
At a less philosophical level and even more profoundly the battle of the intellectual titans is really about the role of justice in the Plan of Allah. Justice divorced from the “Agenda of Allah” is self-referential and can amount to totalitarian self-worship. Worship of Allah divorced from justice is un-Islamic because it results in the same thing. This, of course, is why the third element of the Shi’i creed is so important, namely, nubuwiya, which serves to provide the wisdom necessary to maintain a mutually reinforcing balance between the first two elements.
All of this, unfortunately, has been totally missing from most Sunni thought for many centuries, which may be why the world of Sunni Islam has been so devastated by Western solypsism. Recovery and renewal are possible only by intra-faith cooperation among Muslims, which should be the basis of inter-faith cooperation with those of other religions who are being hijacked by their own forms of ultra- or neo-conservatism and ultra- or neo-liberalism.
We are engaged in mimetic warfare, which is the use of mimes in the form of words or symbols, to capture the sub-conscious of others without them knowing that they have been hijacked. The first rule of warfare is to know your enemy. The second is to know his strategy. Only then can we know better the nature good and evil.
Sufi Insight
Sacred Space - The Times of India
Sunday, May 7, 2006
Not Christian, Jew or Muslim, not Hindu, Buddhist, Sufi or Zen. Not any religion, or cultural system. I am not from the East or the West, nor out of the ocean or up from the ground, not natural or ethereal, not composed of elements at all.
I do not exist, am not an entity in this world or the next, did not descend from Adam and Eve or any origin story. My place is placeless, a trace of the traceless. Neither body nor soul.
I belong to the beloved have seen the two worlds as one and that one call to and know, First, last, outer, inner, only that breath breathing human being.
Jalaluddin Rumi
Whatever you have in your mind — forget it; Whatever you have in your hand — give it; Whatever is to be your fate — face it!
Abu Sa'id
A seeker went to ask a sage for guidance on the Sufi way. The sage counselled, "If you have never trodden the path of love, go away and fall in love; then come back and see us".
Jami
Sunday, May 7, 2006
Not Christian, Jew or Muslim, not Hindu, Buddhist, Sufi or Zen. Not any religion, or cultural system. I am not from the East or the West, nor out of the ocean or up from the ground, not natural or ethereal, not composed of elements at all.
I do not exist, am not an entity in this world or the next, did not descend from Adam and Eve or any origin story. My place is placeless, a trace of the traceless. Neither body nor soul.
I belong to the beloved have seen the two worlds as one and that one call to and know, First, last, outer, inner, only that breath breathing human being.
Jalaluddin Rumi
Whatever you have in your mind — forget it; Whatever you have in your hand — give it; Whatever is to be your fate — face it!
Abu Sa'id
A seeker went to ask a sage for guidance on the Sufi way. The sage counselled, "If you have never trodden the path of love, go away and fall in love; then come back and see us".
Jami
Sufism - Its Origin and Impact on Indian Islam
By Asghar Ali Engineer - TAM The American Muslim
Thursday, May 4, 2006
Sufism has recently gained in popularity outside Muslim circles, particularly Sufi music. Sufi music is attracting attention internationally. Sufi music congregations are taking place in several western countries, particularly in USA. Maulana Rumi, a great Sufi saint has become tremendously popular in USA in post-9/11 situation when Islam is being targeted as religion of jihad.
What is Sufism and when did it originate? What are its doctrines? What is its relation with orthodox Islam? Does it reconcile with it or not? These are some important questions we will take up in this article.
Sufism, some scholars maintain during the Prophet’s (PBUH) life- time itself. It is not something different from Islam or different from Islamic teachings. It is more a question of attitude than teachings. Then the question arises is it in any way different from Islam and if so, in what respect?
Due to historical circumstances of Islam’s origin, it got associated with state power and some even began to theorise that political power cannot be separated from Islam. The two must go together. Thus struggles for political power unfortunately became part of Islamic state and this created a sense of alienation among many Muslims who did not see approvingly of these kept themselves aloof from power struggles and were instead drawn to spiritual side of Islam.
The Prophet (PBUH) of Islam himself was a unique combination of statecraft and spiritualism. For him statecraft was not meant for domination or exploitation but for providing just rule. However, this could not be expected of other Muslim rulers. Lust for power became their goal. Thus in a way Sufism originated with the Prophet himself as spiritual aspect dominated his life.
In fact some scholars have suggested that the word Sufism has its origin in suffa – a piece of rock – on which some of his followers used to sit outside his mosque and discuss religious matters. Some consider them as the first Sufis who were deeply concerned about spiritual aspects of life and were known in Islamic history as ahl-i-suffa.
Some Sufis were also concerned with just governance and setting up just social order in keeping with the Qur’anic teachings and hence participated in political struggles for this purpose but not in a struggle for political power. However, most of the Sufi saints maintained their distance from political Islam and concentrated on spiritual side.
As Sufis had maintained distance from political Islam, there were also differences with orthodox Ulama who concentrated on Shari’ah Islam i.e. legal Islam. The orthodox Ulama were so rigid that anyone who deviated from Shari’ah (i.e. from a particular legal school) was considered as kafir. Thus to these Ulama legal Islam was central, not spiritual Islam. Though many Sufis followed Shari’ah their emphasis was spiritual, not legal. Thus Sufis chose spiritual rather than political or legal Islam.
Since Sufis were concerned with spiritual more than legal, they were much more open to other spiritual traditions. Religion ultimately results in forming a community of believers and hence it leads to formation of an identity whereas spiritualism is not confined to any narrow boundary and does not result in identity formation. Sufis never hesitated in accepting other spiritual traditions.
In India too Sufis who mainly came from Central Asian regions whole-heartedly accepted Indian spiritual tradition and cultural practices. Many of them like Baba Farid preferred to write in local languages instead of Arabic or Persian. They even adopted local rituals and tradition. This made them quite popular among people and that is why they attracted Hindu masses.
Since these Sufi saints preferred to be in the company of poor and weaker sections of society instead of courtiers and upper class nobles, and they did not observe religious boundaries, they could acquire much popularity and they came to be deeply venerated by the masses both Muslim as well as Hindu. It is due to them that many low caste Hindus converted to Islam as they found more dignity and acceptability at their hands.
The Sufis became bridge between Hindus and Muslims and brought about the birth of composite culture at lower rungs of society. The Sufis of Chishti silsila (chain) believed in the doctrines of wahdat al-wujud (unity of Being) and sulh-i-kul (total peace, peace with all) and both these doctrines are quite helpful in building bridges between the communities. In fact the doctrine of wahdat al-wujud demolished all barriers between communities as real Being is One and all human beings are manifestation of this Real Being.
Sulh-i-kul (total peace and peace with all) was another doctrine that brought about cordial relations with all communities. No doubt than Sufis commanded respect from all communities and their dargahs (hospices) and their mausoleums became centres of attraction for people of all communities, especially the poor and downtrodden. The Sufi mausoleums even today attract large number of Hindus along with Muslims, be it dargah of Ajmer Sharif or dargah of Baba Gesu Daraz or that of Nizamuddin Awliya in Delhi.
Sufi Music
The orthodox Ulama considered music as haram (forbidden) but music was an integral part of Sufi Islam. The Sufis developed a special genre of music known as qawwali. Khusrau, the celebrated disciple of Nizamuddin Awliya composed qawwalis and Nizamuddin would listen to these qawwalis and fall into a trance. Khusrau was a great poet as well as musician. Qawwali became the powerful instrument of inducing spiritual trance. It is so soothing to the human soul. It transports one into inner world.
More the Sufis acquired popularity, more they came to be opposed by the orthodox Ulama. In fact orthodox Ulama considered them to be heretics. Moreover the Ulama jockeyed for positions in king’s court and maintained their distance from the poorer masses denouncing them as ‘impure’ and bad Muslims. They held these Sufi saints responsible for keeping them ‘impure’ and polluted with un-Islamic way of life. They also denounced the doctrine of wahdat al-wujud (Unity of Being) as un-Islamic as it demolished religious boundaries between Muslims and Non-Muslims.
Also, the Wahabi Islam, founded by Abdul Wahab in 18th century in what is now known as Saudi Arabia (Najd), opposed Sufi Islam and denounced it as kufr (unbelief) and all those Muslims who visit Sufi mausoleums as kafirs. Abdul Wahab played same role in Arabia as in 19th century India, played by founder of Arya Samaj Dayananda Saraswati. Dayanand denounced idol worship and gave slogan for back to Vedas. Abdul Wahab, denounced visit to dargahs and mausoleums and gave slogan for back to the Qur’an.
Thus there is direct clash between Wahabis and Sufis. Wahabi doctrines are rigid, narrow and lay stress on ‘purity’ and denounce any deviation for rigid dogmas as kufr. It is interesting to note that poor masses never accepted narrowly interpreted Wahabi Islam but readily accepted Sufi Islam with all its openness and liberality. Thus Sufi dargahs, as pointed out above, till today remain shared sacred spaces.
Since Sufi Islam lays stress on spiritualism, rather than on rigid dogmas it is becoming more acceptable in western countries despite their hatred of political Islam. The Sufi music because of its strong appeal to heart and soul is becoming so popular. As bhakti always attracted lower caste Hindus throughout ages in history, Sufism appealed to the poorer masses.
The fast and tense pace of life in modern societies makes sufism a soothing balm for the soul. Consumerism of modern capitalist society brings more tension rather than happiness in life. Instant pleasure of modern consumerism cannot provide inner and lasting happiness. Thus Sufism becomes popular both for idle classes in modern society as well as to poor suffering masses.
To both these classes Sufism acts as a soothing balm and much more so the Sufi music. Sufi singers like Abida Parveen and Nusrat Fatehally have made Sufi singing tremendously popular and their cassettes and CDs sell by thousands in the market. There are also groups like Junun from Pakistan, which combine Sufi music with today’s pop appeal.
In USA Maulana Rum’s Mathnavi (long epic poem) is selling briskly. Rumi is a Sufi poet and his poetry is full of spirituality and wisdom. Maulana Rumi was a great scholar and an Alim but one spiritual encounter with Shams Tabriz, a wandering Sufi from Persia, transformed Rumi completely. Rumi gave up his high status as an alim and began to roam around madly in love with Shams Tabriz and it was in this state of total involvement with Shams Tabriz he composed his Mathnavi.
Thus Sufi Islam which is opposite of political and legal Islam, is much more appealing to the people than rigid, doctrinaire orthodox Islam. And it is this spiritual appeal of Sufi music, which stirs our soul.
Thursday, May 4, 2006
Sufism has recently gained in popularity outside Muslim circles, particularly Sufi music. Sufi music is attracting attention internationally. Sufi music congregations are taking place in several western countries, particularly in USA. Maulana Rumi, a great Sufi saint has become tremendously popular in USA in post-9/11 situation when Islam is being targeted as religion of jihad.
What is Sufism and when did it originate? What are its doctrines? What is its relation with orthodox Islam? Does it reconcile with it or not? These are some important questions we will take up in this article.
Sufism, some scholars maintain during the Prophet’s (PBUH) life- time itself. It is not something different from Islam or different from Islamic teachings. It is more a question of attitude than teachings. Then the question arises is it in any way different from Islam and if so, in what respect?
Due to historical circumstances of Islam’s origin, it got associated with state power and some even began to theorise that political power cannot be separated from Islam. The two must go together. Thus struggles for political power unfortunately became part of Islamic state and this created a sense of alienation among many Muslims who did not see approvingly of these kept themselves aloof from power struggles and were instead drawn to spiritual side of Islam.
The Prophet (PBUH) of Islam himself was a unique combination of statecraft and spiritualism. For him statecraft was not meant for domination or exploitation but for providing just rule. However, this could not be expected of other Muslim rulers. Lust for power became their goal. Thus in a way Sufism originated with the Prophet himself as spiritual aspect dominated his life.
In fact some scholars have suggested that the word Sufism has its origin in suffa – a piece of rock – on which some of his followers used to sit outside his mosque and discuss religious matters. Some consider them as the first Sufis who were deeply concerned about spiritual aspects of life and were known in Islamic history as ahl-i-suffa.
Some Sufis were also concerned with just governance and setting up just social order in keeping with the Qur’anic teachings and hence participated in political struggles for this purpose but not in a struggle for political power. However, most of the Sufi saints maintained their distance from political Islam and concentrated on spiritual side.
As Sufis had maintained distance from political Islam, there were also differences with orthodox Ulama who concentrated on Shari’ah Islam i.e. legal Islam. The orthodox Ulama were so rigid that anyone who deviated from Shari’ah (i.e. from a particular legal school) was considered as kafir. Thus to these Ulama legal Islam was central, not spiritual Islam. Though many Sufis followed Shari’ah their emphasis was spiritual, not legal. Thus Sufis chose spiritual rather than political or legal Islam.
Since Sufis were concerned with spiritual more than legal, they were much more open to other spiritual traditions. Religion ultimately results in forming a community of believers and hence it leads to formation of an identity whereas spiritualism is not confined to any narrow boundary and does not result in identity formation. Sufis never hesitated in accepting other spiritual traditions.
In India too Sufis who mainly came from Central Asian regions whole-heartedly accepted Indian spiritual tradition and cultural practices. Many of them like Baba Farid preferred to write in local languages instead of Arabic or Persian. They even adopted local rituals and tradition. This made them quite popular among people and that is why they attracted Hindu masses.
Since these Sufi saints preferred to be in the company of poor and weaker sections of society instead of courtiers and upper class nobles, and they did not observe religious boundaries, they could acquire much popularity and they came to be deeply venerated by the masses both Muslim as well as Hindu. It is due to them that many low caste Hindus converted to Islam as they found more dignity and acceptability at their hands.
The Sufis became bridge between Hindus and Muslims and brought about the birth of composite culture at lower rungs of society. The Sufis of Chishti silsila (chain) believed in the doctrines of wahdat al-wujud (unity of Being) and sulh-i-kul (total peace, peace with all) and both these doctrines are quite helpful in building bridges between the communities. In fact the doctrine of wahdat al-wujud demolished all barriers between communities as real Being is One and all human beings are manifestation of this Real Being.
Sulh-i-kul (total peace and peace with all) was another doctrine that brought about cordial relations with all communities. No doubt than Sufis commanded respect from all communities and their dargahs (hospices) and their mausoleums became centres of attraction for people of all communities, especially the poor and downtrodden. The Sufi mausoleums even today attract large number of Hindus along with Muslims, be it dargah of Ajmer Sharif or dargah of Baba Gesu Daraz or that of Nizamuddin Awliya in Delhi.
Sufi Music
The orthodox Ulama considered music as haram (forbidden) but music was an integral part of Sufi Islam. The Sufis developed a special genre of music known as qawwali. Khusrau, the celebrated disciple of Nizamuddin Awliya composed qawwalis and Nizamuddin would listen to these qawwalis and fall into a trance. Khusrau was a great poet as well as musician. Qawwali became the powerful instrument of inducing spiritual trance. It is so soothing to the human soul. It transports one into inner world.
More the Sufis acquired popularity, more they came to be opposed by the orthodox Ulama. In fact orthodox Ulama considered them to be heretics. Moreover the Ulama jockeyed for positions in king’s court and maintained their distance from the poorer masses denouncing them as ‘impure’ and bad Muslims. They held these Sufi saints responsible for keeping them ‘impure’ and polluted with un-Islamic way of life. They also denounced the doctrine of wahdat al-wujud (Unity of Being) as un-Islamic as it demolished religious boundaries between Muslims and Non-Muslims.
Also, the Wahabi Islam, founded by Abdul Wahab in 18th century in what is now known as Saudi Arabia (Najd), opposed Sufi Islam and denounced it as kufr (unbelief) and all those Muslims who visit Sufi mausoleums as kafirs. Abdul Wahab played same role in Arabia as in 19th century India, played by founder of Arya Samaj Dayananda Saraswati. Dayanand denounced idol worship and gave slogan for back to Vedas. Abdul Wahab, denounced visit to dargahs and mausoleums and gave slogan for back to the Qur’an.
Thus there is direct clash between Wahabis and Sufis. Wahabi doctrines are rigid, narrow and lay stress on ‘purity’ and denounce any deviation for rigid dogmas as kufr. It is interesting to note that poor masses never accepted narrowly interpreted Wahabi Islam but readily accepted Sufi Islam with all its openness and liberality. Thus Sufi dargahs, as pointed out above, till today remain shared sacred spaces.
Since Sufi Islam lays stress on spiritualism, rather than on rigid dogmas it is becoming more acceptable in western countries despite their hatred of political Islam. The Sufi music because of its strong appeal to heart and soul is becoming so popular. As bhakti always attracted lower caste Hindus throughout ages in history, Sufism appealed to the poorer masses.
The fast and tense pace of life in modern societies makes sufism a soothing balm for the soul. Consumerism of modern capitalist society brings more tension rather than happiness in life. Instant pleasure of modern consumerism cannot provide inner and lasting happiness. Thus Sufism becomes popular both for idle classes in modern society as well as to poor suffering masses.
To both these classes Sufism acts as a soothing balm and much more so the Sufi music. Sufi singers like Abida Parveen and Nusrat Fatehally have made Sufi singing tremendously popular and their cassettes and CDs sell by thousands in the market. There are also groups like Junun from Pakistan, which combine Sufi music with today’s pop appeal.
In USA Maulana Rum’s Mathnavi (long epic poem) is selling briskly. Rumi is a Sufi poet and his poetry is full of spirituality and wisdom. Maulana Rumi was a great scholar and an Alim but one spiritual encounter with Shams Tabriz, a wandering Sufi from Persia, transformed Rumi completely. Rumi gave up his high status as an alim and began to roam around madly in love with Shams Tabriz and it was in this state of total involvement with Shams Tabriz he composed his Mathnavi.
Thus Sufi Islam which is opposite of political and legal Islam, is much more appealing to the people than rigid, doctrinaire orthodox Islam. And it is this spiritual appeal of Sufi music, which stirs our soul.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Apolitical Sufis at Peace in Uzbekistan
May 2006 by By Igor Rotar, Forum 18 News Service. This is an excerpt from a longer article on Religion in Uzbekistan.
In Kokand (in the Uzbek section of the Fergana [Farghona] valley) there is an unregistered kanaka (Sufi monastery), where the leader of the Sufi Nakshbandi tarikat in Uzbekistan, Sheikh Ibrahim, teaches his murids (Sufi pupils). "We don't have any problems with the authorities," Sheikh Ibrahim told Forum 18 last November. "We are poets and mystics and are quite uninterested in political issues. Anyone who is interested in politics is not a Sufi follower. The state understands that we don't represent any danger to it, and doesn't touch us."
Forum 18 has established that the authorities generally do not prevent Sufi believers from meeting in private apartments to perform the zikr (a ritual dance). "After the terrorist attacks in March and April, many Sufi believers were called in to the NSS offices and asked about our meetings. But we were left in peace once they understood that we are removed from politics," Sabir Tokhirov, a surgeon and a Sufi follower, told Forum 18 on 28 March in the southern town of Karshi [Qarshi]. One explanation for the authorities' tolerant attitude towards Sufism is that this movement, in which regional customs are quite closely intertwined, is a reasonably effective alternative to fundamentalism – the main "enemy" of the authorities.
In Kokand (in the Uzbek section of the Fergana [Farghona] valley) there is an unregistered kanaka (Sufi monastery), where the leader of the Sufi Nakshbandi tarikat in Uzbekistan, Sheikh Ibrahim, teaches his murids (Sufi pupils). "We don't have any problems with the authorities," Sheikh Ibrahim told Forum 18 last November. "We are poets and mystics and are quite uninterested in political issues. Anyone who is interested in politics is not a Sufi follower. The state understands that we don't represent any danger to it, and doesn't touch us."
Forum 18 has established that the authorities generally do not prevent Sufi believers from meeting in private apartments to perform the zikr (a ritual dance). "After the terrorist attacks in March and April, many Sufi believers were called in to the NSS offices and asked about our meetings. But we were left in peace once they understood that we are removed from politics," Sabir Tokhirov, a surgeon and a Sufi follower, told Forum 18 on 28 March in the southern town of Karshi [Qarshi]. One explanation for the authorities' tolerant attitude towards Sufism is that this movement, in which regional customs are quite closely intertwined, is a reasonably effective alternative to fundamentalism – the main "enemy" of the authorities.
Moderate Muslims Seek Help From the Dalai Lama
Moderate Muslims Seek Help From the Dalai Lama
LA Times[Sunday, April 16, 2006 17:15]
By Louis Sahagun,
Times Staff Writer
THINKING GLOBALLY: The Dalai Lama, [above] right, listens to Imam Mehdi Khorasani of the Islamic Society of California during a discussion of ways to promote understanding and lessen religious intolerance among Muslims and people of other religious faiths. (Genaro Molina / LAT)
SAN FRANCISCO, April 16 — Prominent Muslim dignitaries on Saturday met for the first time with the world's most influential Buddhist, the Dalai Lama, enlisting his help in quelling fanatical ideologies within Islamic communities and improving the faith's declining image in the West.
The summit was a measure of the desperate concern among moderate Muslim leaders and scholars about religious extremism and increasingly negative views of their faith arising from Western concerns about terrorism. Indeed, Islam traditionally has not recognized Buddhism.
"The main issue of this conference is to provide a platform to teach that there is no room today to say or invest in anything but love," said Imam Mehdi Khorasani of Marin County, who had extended the invitation to the Dalai Lama. "We are happy and grateful for His Holiness' decision to lend his energy to this cause."
Appearing comfortable and jovial in his maroon and saffron robe before a crowd of about 600, the Dalai Lama, 71, was true to his image as one of the world's most avid advocates for peace.
"Some people have an impression that Islam is militant," he said, seated in lotus position on a center-stage baronial chair at the InterContinental Mark Hopkins hotel. "I think that is totally wrong. Islam is one of the world's great religions and it carries, basically, a message of love and compassion."
PEACE TALKS: The Dalai Lama meets with religious leaders from around the world in San Francisco. (Genaro Molina / LAT)
He pointed to his homeland of Tibet as an example of a place where Buddhists and Muslims have existed together in peace for centuries.
In an interview earlier, the Nobel laureate and religious leader of Tibetan Buddhism said, "Promoting the genuine message of Islam and the proper impression of the Muslim world — that is my hope.
"Some of my Muslim friends have told me that those people who claim to be Muslims, if they create bloodshed, that is not genuine Islam," he said. "Those few mischievous ones do not represent the whole Muslim community."
Some of those in attendance suggested that the open display of mutual support might not play well with more extreme members of either Islam or Buddhism.
"It's a brave thing for imams to reach out to the Dalai Lama — it's likely to be seen in some circles as an act of weakness and undignified of their own traditions," said Caner Dagli, assistant professor of religion at Roanoke College in Salem, Va.
"The Dalai Lama is also putting himself out on a limb by standing with his Muslim brothers and sisters," he said. "But I'm happy about all that. It's right that they should be allies."
One difference is that although the Dalai Lama holds an unquestioned position as spiritual and temporal leader of Tibet, Islam has no similar central authority uniting its members. Hence, Muslims around the globe interpret the faith quite differently and are more divided among themselves.
That the meeting came together at all was remarkable, coming near the date of the prophet Muhammad's birthday, as well as during Passover and Easter weekend. It also followed the release last week of the recorded sounds of struggle and panic when Sept. 11 hijackers took control of United Airlines Flight 93 and screamed, "Allah is the greatest," as the plane went down.
But the Dalai Lama, who normally books his appearances seven years in advance, and the Muslim leaders and scholars from around the world broke their holiday commitments to attend the hastily organized event.
"This meeting had to happen," said Dan Kranzler, a philanthropist and one of the gathering's sponsors.
"The 90% of the Muslim world that is moderate and peace-loving wants to overcome the radical ideologies of the rest," said Kranzler, who is Jewish but refers to himself as a "universalist." "If there is anyone in the world who can cheat the odds and make that happen it's the Dalai Lama."
Organizers called it an extraordinary convergence.
Essentially, Muslim leaders were seeking the Dalai Lama's rock-star status, broad appeal and skills as a neutral conciliator in dealing with divisiveness within their faith, deepened by worldwide media attention. Even moderate Muslims, who make up most believers, are not united enough to impose their visions of peace and tolerance on those who are intolerant or promote violence.
Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, founder of the Zaytuna Institute in Hayward, which is dedicated to reviving the sciences of classical Islam, pointed out another reason for wanting the Dalai Lama on their side.
"Buddhism gets the best press of any religion in the world," he said. "Islam gets the worst press because it's associated with war and belligerence.
"When a recent Gallup Poll asked Americans what they respected about Islam, 38% answered not a thing, and 12 % said they weren't sure," he said. "Yet one-fifth of humanity is Muslim.
"So we are delighted that the Dalai Lama wants to understand how we view this situation and assess what his own community can do to alleviate the problems," he said.
Under tight security, the Dalai Lama initially met privately with 40 leaders, including Mahmud Kilic, a professor of Sufism and president of the Turkish and Islamic Art Museum in Istanbul; Sayyid M. Syeed, head of the Islamic Society of North America, the largest umbrella organization of Islamic centers in the United States; and Ahmad Al-Hashimi, president of the Ihsan Muslim Heritage Society of Ontario, Canada.
One proposal that emerged from the discussions was a possible visit by the Dalai Lama to Saudi Arabia.
Later, on stage, he was flanked by religious leaders and scholars including Huston Smith, emeritus professor of religion at UC Berkeley; Thomas Cleary, a Harvard professor whose interpretation of the ancient Chinese "Art of War" became a bestseller; and Robert Thurman, a Columbia University professor known as the Billy Graham of Buddhism.
In an interview, Smith said the meeting was in direct response to the violent exploitation of one of the great traditions.
"The world is in flames. We are at war with Islam," he said. "The Muslim leaders here wanted to talk to the Dalai Lama about what they could do to persuade terrorists that their terrorism only increases terrorism."
Though Muslim leaders called for the gathering, it was organized and funded by a coalition that included film producer Steven Reuther and Kranzler, who made his fortune in the computer software industry.
In an effort to make Muslim guests feel as comfortable as possible in their daily prayers, the organizing team determined the exact direction of Mecca from the Nob Hill hotel — 15 degrees east of north. Receptions were alcohol-free and vegetarian, in keeping with practices of Islam and Buddhism. Dozens of participants wore white scarfs that had been draped around their necks by the Dalai Lama in private sessions.
Muslim, Christian priests to be paid remuneration
Muslim, Christian priests to be paid remuneration
Newindpress - Southern News - Karnataka
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
DHARWAD: Muslim and Christian priests will be paid remuneration and other privileges on lines of Hindu priests, said Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.
Replying a felicitation to him by Jamia Masjid, Chief Minister said Hindu priests were paid through Mujrai Department, likewise steps would be taken to release remuneration to Pesh Imam and his assistants through the Wakf Board.
Christian priests will also be paid remuneration through the constitution of separate department.
M.P. Prakash, president of JD(S) State unit, said BJP-JD (S) coalition government in State was following the footsteps of Sufi saints.
Muslim community of India had largely been influenced by Sufism. Muslims impressed by Sufism had developed Urdu language. Urdu language had been patronised by kings irrespective of religion in the past.
The State government is taking such kings as models to run the government while safeguarding the interests of minorities, he added.
Minister Basavaraj Horatti, Moulana Kaisar Mohammed Khatheeb, Rasheed Byali and Gururaj Hunasimarad were present.
Newindpress - Southern News - Karnataka
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
DHARWAD: Muslim and Christian priests will be paid remuneration and other privileges on lines of Hindu priests, said Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.
Replying a felicitation to him by Jamia Masjid, Chief Minister said Hindu priests were paid through Mujrai Department, likewise steps would be taken to release remuneration to Pesh Imam and his assistants through the Wakf Board.
Christian priests will also be paid remuneration through the constitution of separate department.
M.P. Prakash, president of JD(S) State unit, said BJP-JD (S) coalition government in State was following the footsteps of Sufi saints.
Muslim community of India had largely been influenced by Sufism. Muslims impressed by Sufism had developed Urdu language. Urdu language had been patronised by kings irrespective of religion in the past.
The State government is taking such kings as models to run the government while safeguarding the interests of minorities, he added.
Minister Basavaraj Horatti, Moulana Kaisar Mohammed Khatheeb, Rasheed Byali and Gururaj Hunasimarad were present.
From Islam with Love
By Tony Evans - Boise Weekly - ID, U.S.A.
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Coleman Barks will present a reading of 13th Century Sufi mystic poet Jellaludin Rumi with musicians Barry Phillips on cello and Shelley Phillips on harp and woodwinds as a keynote presentation at The Sun Valley Wellness Festival on Sunday, May 28, at 7 p.m., in Sun Valley. Barks' free-verse translations have made Rumi the most read poet in America over the last decade.
"I just love to experiment with putting the spoken word to music," Barks tells BW. "I'm trying to do what the Sufi's call 'Sema,' which is a deep listening. It's a way of letting the words and the images go deeper into the heart where they can become of some use for you."
Born in 1207 in Balkh, Afghanistan, Rumi was a sheikh and scholar who lived during the time of St. Francis of Assisi. His poetry was born of a profound friendship with a mysterious, older wise man named Shams of Tabriz, who lived on the outskirts of society in Konya, Turkey. Legend has it the powerful Shams threw Rumi's books into a fountain, transforming years of religious study into a living mystical reality through long spiritual conversation called "sohbet." When Shams disappeared, perhaps murdered by jealous rivals for Rumi's attention, Rumi entered a deep, ecstatic longing, which resulted in an out-pouring of thousands of poems, including the six volume Matthnavi, which transcended Christian, Jewish and Muslim doctrines, attaining a universal significance which has lasted more than 700 years.
A university professor and poet in his own right, Barks undertook the work of translating Rumi after meeting Sufi holy man Bawa Muhawadeen in a dream in 1977. Over the next nine years, he spent time with Bawa in Philadelphia. "The only authority I have for working on Rumi's poetry is my friendship with Bawa," says Barks. "It's an amazing thing to see. We are not discreet individuals in the presence of an enlightened being, because his knowledge is of the Oneness."
"Religion and poetry both remind us of what is sacred," says Barks, who has studied Rumi's mystical message for more than 30 years. "Spontaneity is more important than coherence. There are as many kinds of mysticism as there are mystics. It has to do with one's personal, unique response to the mystery of being alive and to the mystery we are living within. I think of mystics as mostly being ecstatic," he says. "They feel, like some children do, that just being in a body and sentient is a state of pure rapture. Laughter is real important to these people. The whole thing is so hilarious. They are partial to boomerangs."
The religious scholar Huston Smith describes the Sufis as "spiritually impatient." Rumi's poetry reaches from Koranic and Biblical references to an alchemical symbology which provokes an immediate encounter with the divine. These references include Moses, Jesus, Mohammad and Hallaj, along with many details of the physical world--melting snow, wine, a ruby or reed flute; all resonate with meaning and provide pathways through the endless web of human desires to direct encounter with God.
Rumi's poetry is a call to and through the senses, poking fun at those who would "think" their way to God. In one story he likens theologians and philosophers to a group of fish schooling in the sea to debate the likelihood of the ocean. "When you look for God, God is in the look of your eyes," says Barks. "So close that if we really knew it we would just scream or go quiet, or something. It's almost a joke-- It's so simple that you can hardly say it."
And yet he does:
"Out beyond ideas of wrong-doing and right doing
There is a field. I'll meet you there.
I am so small I can barely be seen.
How can this great love be inside me?
Look at your eyes. They are small, but see enormous things."
"It's not really an entertainment or concert I'm doing," says Barks. "It's some kind of a practice, really. I'm trying to let the transmission of Rumi's poetry and Shams' presence come into this century. Yeah, so I'm hoping for big stuff, but I think it can happen."
Barks recently traveled to Afghanistan as part of a U.S. State Department delegation, reading his translations and networking with Afghan poetry lovers. While reading to a group of government officials in Kabul, a passionate argument broke out among the listeners over Rumi's use of the metaphor of "drunkenness" or ecstatic love, as opposed to that used by the poet Hafiz.
"The culture of poetry in that country is just astonishing," says Barks. "It's just unimaginable in this country that our cabinet members would get in an argument over, say, the difference between Robert Frost and Wallace Stevens. I wish the world leaders would read Rumi, especially this guy that's the head of Iran now. He needs to get a little more gentleness and ecstatic vision in his life. For Rumi, warfare is just unthinkable. It devalues and brutalizes the human psyche so much."
While in Afghanistan, Barks encountered a 95-year old Sufi named Oman Justi who had been teaching Rumi's master work, The Matthnavi for 75 years. "I just leaned against him and said, 'Who is Shams?' He said, 'Shams is the doctor. He comes when you hurt enough. When Rumi was alive the longing was intense enough so that Shams came, but now it is not fiery enough to bring Shams.'"
Rumi is good medicine in these days of crazy religious violence and confusion between nations. Perhaps our own longings have brought us Coleman Barks.
Conscience Before Deadlines
By Stephen Schwartz - TCS Daily - Washington DC, U.S.A.
Monday, May 8, 2006
Shkodra, Albania --Does the mainstream media (MSM) incite the clash of civilizations (COC) between the Judeo-Christian world and Islam? At times, it seems so.
A recent example involves the small country of Albania, which is mysterious to most foreigners. I have published much on the history of mutual interfaith respect among Albanians, who are 70 percent Muslim (mainly Sunnis, but with at least a third comprising Europe's only indigenous Shias). The institution I have founded, the Center for Islamic Pluralism (CIP), seeks to promote the common interest of all monotheistic believers.
Some argue that CIP's efforts to oppose Muslim radicals when they attack other religions are meaningless, because according to such instant experts, nobody in the Muslim world listens to me or to CIP. While I do not intend this commentary as mere self-promotion, since CIP was founded last year, I have met repeatedly with Islamic clerics in the Balkans and Southeast Asia, and, as in the past, with dissident Saudis -- and I sincerely believe our work has a positive effect.
But let me not stray too far from what brought me to Albania. The April 2006 issue of First Things, an American Christian magazine of considerable influence, printed an article of mine calling on the Vatican to do more to help Albanian Catholics preserve their cultural heritage -- not in the face of Muslim aggression, but against the remnants of Communist corruption in politics and legal standards
The article called forth a generous comment from the editor of First Things, Jody Bottum, who also, however, mentioned news reports of Muslim-Catholic conflict in the northern Albanian city of Shkodra, in which Catholics were historically a majority and now make up half the population.
Given the seriousness of the matter, and the unfortunate fact that I have been repeatedly and vehemently accused of hiding the bad face of Islam, I took an opportunity -- an invitation to Britain for an event cosponsored by the Organization for the Islamic Conference (OIC), the Saudi-based international body of 57 Muslim-majority states, including the Palestinian Authority -- and have spent a week in Albania, investigating the situation for myself. (I have the further pleasure of announcing that my book The Two Faces of Islam has come out in Albanian, and used the occasion for a launch and interviews regarding it.)
In a visit to a place sacred to every friend of Albanians -- the Franciscan Library of Shkodra, which was destroyed and pillaged under Communism -- I interviewed an avid young man in the brown cloth of the order. Our talk followed an afternoon mass crowded with children and adults, including men -- the latter rare in "Catholic" Spain or Italy. I had earlier heard the church bells, and as we spoke, I listened to the adhan or Muslim call to prayer, from a large mosque nearby -- the Balkan experience par excellence. An Orthodox Christian church stands only a block or two away, although the Orthodox have never had a large presence in the town.
The young Franciscan described to me how Catholics and Muslims in Shkodra, as they have for generations, join together for the holidays of each faith, and how priests in training visit mosques. And he showed me a wondrous thing: Qur'an, the sacred book of Islam, translated and printed in Albanian by Catholics early in the 20th century. They wanted to advance the literacy of all Albanians, so the Catholics printed Qur'an!
The next day I went to Tirana, where I met with a leading Sufi, shaykh Ali Pazari of the Halveti order of Islamic spirituality. The shaykh told me an equally remarkable story: in the 1920s, in poor, isolated, exotic Albania, his grandfather, who was also a leading mystic, was called the "Catholic Sufi" because he called on women to take off their hijab and go to school! Shaykh Ali repeated something I have heard from many Albanians -- that religious leaders must put the national interest first, ahead of religious issues. And he underscored that Sufism, like Catholicism, had its strongest historic roots in Shkodra.
So why should random comments in Shkodra, a town most people in the leading countries never heard of, have elicited the interest of the MSM? Rumors of an interreligious battle in a distant corner of the globe came after the scandal of the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, the global outcry over persecution of a Christian convert in Afghanistan, and similar "big stories" that present Islam in the worst possible light, as well as consistent propagandist "journalism" about Iraq -- ignoring the Saudi role in the violence there, and presenting bloodthirsty terrorists as "insurgents." These offerings by the MSM typically embody misinformation if not disinformation -- Islam does NOT ban the depiction of the Prophet, and Islam lacks a body of consistent practice regarding changes and fusions between religions, as I recently noted in TCS Daily. I have repeatedly pointed out, here and elsewhere, that Iraqis themselves do not view the killers of the innocent in Iraq as a "resistance," but as Saudi-financed Sunni aggression.
Could it be that the cynical principle, "if it bleeds it leads," and a desire to make the global situation worse -- since efforts toward its betterment would presumably conflict with the supposed "objectivity" of the MSM -- have made journalists more complicit than any government in the worldwide nightmare we all face? I am a journalist, and do not want to believe this. I have argued that reporters are "first responders" and cannot be expected to understand the nuances of Islam. But I increasingly feel I am wrong about that, because I am also a Muslim, and an American, and I want to prevent the clash of civilizations, not stand aside as more people fight and die. Nobody accepted such neutral conduct by journalists in the late 1930s, facing the challenge of fascism; nobody should accept it in the context of a planetary struggle against Islamofascism or its mirror-image, Islamophobia.
Before deadlines, there is, or must be, conscience.
Monday, May 8, 2006
Shkodra, Albania --Does the mainstream media (MSM) incite the clash of civilizations (COC) between the Judeo-Christian world and Islam? At times, it seems so.
A recent example involves the small country of Albania, which is mysterious to most foreigners. I have published much on the history of mutual interfaith respect among Albanians, who are 70 percent Muslim (mainly Sunnis, but with at least a third comprising Europe's only indigenous Shias). The institution I have founded, the Center for Islamic Pluralism (CIP), seeks to promote the common interest of all monotheistic believers.
Some argue that CIP's efforts to oppose Muslim radicals when they attack other religions are meaningless, because according to such instant experts, nobody in the Muslim world listens to me or to CIP. While I do not intend this commentary as mere self-promotion, since CIP was founded last year, I have met repeatedly with Islamic clerics in the Balkans and Southeast Asia, and, as in the past, with dissident Saudis -- and I sincerely believe our work has a positive effect.
But let me not stray too far from what brought me to Albania. The April 2006 issue of First Things, an American Christian magazine of considerable influence, printed an article of mine calling on the Vatican to do more to help Albanian Catholics preserve their cultural heritage -- not in the face of Muslim aggression, but against the remnants of Communist corruption in politics and legal standards
The article called forth a generous comment from the editor of First Things, Jody Bottum, who also, however, mentioned news reports of Muslim-Catholic conflict in the northern Albanian city of Shkodra, in which Catholics were historically a majority and now make up half the population.
Given the seriousness of the matter, and the unfortunate fact that I have been repeatedly and vehemently accused of hiding the bad face of Islam, I took an opportunity -- an invitation to Britain for an event cosponsored by the Organization for the Islamic Conference (OIC), the Saudi-based international body of 57 Muslim-majority states, including the Palestinian Authority -- and have spent a week in Albania, investigating the situation for myself. (I have the further pleasure of announcing that my book The Two Faces of Islam has come out in Albanian, and used the occasion for a launch and interviews regarding it.)
In a visit to a place sacred to every friend of Albanians -- the Franciscan Library of Shkodra, which was destroyed and pillaged under Communism -- I interviewed an avid young man in the brown cloth of the order. Our talk followed an afternoon mass crowded with children and adults, including men -- the latter rare in "Catholic" Spain or Italy. I had earlier heard the church bells, and as we spoke, I listened to the adhan or Muslim call to prayer, from a large mosque nearby -- the Balkan experience par excellence. An Orthodox Christian church stands only a block or two away, although the Orthodox have never had a large presence in the town.
The young Franciscan described to me how Catholics and Muslims in Shkodra, as they have for generations, join together for the holidays of each faith, and how priests in training visit mosques. And he showed me a wondrous thing: Qur'an, the sacred book of Islam, translated and printed in Albanian by Catholics early in the 20th century. They wanted to advance the literacy of all Albanians, so the Catholics printed Qur'an!
The next day I went to Tirana, where I met with a leading Sufi, shaykh Ali Pazari of the Halveti order of Islamic spirituality. The shaykh told me an equally remarkable story: in the 1920s, in poor, isolated, exotic Albania, his grandfather, who was also a leading mystic, was called the "Catholic Sufi" because he called on women to take off their hijab and go to school! Shaykh Ali repeated something I have heard from many Albanians -- that religious leaders must put the national interest first, ahead of religious issues. And he underscored that Sufism, like Catholicism, had its strongest historic roots in Shkodra.
So why should random comments in Shkodra, a town most people in the leading countries never heard of, have elicited the interest of the MSM? Rumors of an interreligious battle in a distant corner of the globe came after the scandal of the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, the global outcry over persecution of a Christian convert in Afghanistan, and similar "big stories" that present Islam in the worst possible light, as well as consistent propagandist "journalism" about Iraq -- ignoring the Saudi role in the violence there, and presenting bloodthirsty terrorists as "insurgents." These offerings by the MSM typically embody misinformation if not disinformation -- Islam does NOT ban the depiction of the Prophet, and Islam lacks a body of consistent practice regarding changes and fusions between religions, as I recently noted in TCS Daily. I have repeatedly pointed out, here and elsewhere, that Iraqis themselves do not view the killers of the innocent in Iraq as a "resistance," but as Saudi-financed Sunni aggression.
Could it be that the cynical principle, "if it bleeds it leads," and a desire to make the global situation worse -- since efforts toward its betterment would presumably conflict with the supposed "objectivity" of the MSM -- have made journalists more complicit than any government in the worldwide nightmare we all face? I am a journalist, and do not want to believe this. I have argued that reporters are "first responders" and cannot be expected to understand the nuances of Islam. But I increasingly feel I am wrong about that, because I am also a Muslim, and an American, and I want to prevent the clash of civilizations, not stand aside as more people fight and die. Nobody accepted such neutral conduct by journalists in the late 1930s, facing the challenge of fascism; nobody should accept it in the context of a planetary struggle against Islamofascism or its mirror-image, Islamophobia.
Before deadlines, there is, or must be, conscience.
University of Tehran to grant honorary doctorate to Coleman Barks
RM/HG - Mehrnews Agency
Monday, May 8, 2006
The University of Tehran will be presenting an honorary doctorate in Persian language and literature to the renowned American poet Coleman Barks on May 17, the Persian service of IRNA reported on Monday.
The director of the Public Relations Office of the University of Tehran said that the honorary doctorate will be presented to Barks for his years of efforts writing books on Molana Jalal al-Din Rumi and translating Rumi’s poetry.
Ahmadreza Khezri added that several Iranian professors residing in the U.S., Iranian academic figures, and foreign ambassadors have been invited to participate in the ceremony, which will be held at Ferdowsi Hall of the University of Tehran, Faculty of Literature and Humanities.
Coleman Barks was born and raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and was educated at the University of North Carolina and the University of California at Berkeley. He has been teaching poetry and creative writing at the University of Georgia for thirty years. He is the author of numerous Rumi translations and has been a student of Sufism since 1977.
“The Essential Rumi”, “The Drowned Book”, “Rumi: The Book of Love”, “The Soul of Rumi”, and “The Juice” are some of the books written or translated by Barks.
Monday, May 8, 2006
The University of Tehran will be presenting an honorary doctorate in Persian language and literature to the renowned American poet Coleman Barks on May 17, the Persian service of IRNA reported on Monday.
The director of the Public Relations Office of the University of Tehran said that the honorary doctorate will be presented to Barks for his years of efforts writing books on Molana Jalal al-Din Rumi and translating Rumi’s poetry.
Ahmadreza Khezri added that several Iranian professors residing in the U.S., Iranian academic figures, and foreign ambassadors have been invited to participate in the ceremony, which will be held at Ferdowsi Hall of the University of Tehran, Faculty of Literature and Humanities.
Coleman Barks was born and raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and was educated at the University of North Carolina and the University of California at Berkeley. He has been teaching poetry and creative writing at the University of Georgia for thirty years. He is the author of numerous Rumi translations and has been a student of Sufism since 1977.
“The Essential Rumi”, “The Drowned Book”, “Rumi: The Book of Love”, “The Soul of Rumi”, and “The Juice” are some of the books written or translated by Barks.
Mysticism and Sufism in Iran and Central Asia Seminar in Kazakhstan
ISNA, Tehran - Service: Literary - News Code: 8502-12353
Monday, May 8, 2006
The international "Mysticism and Sufism in Iran and Central Asia" seminar was held in Iran and Central Asia research center in Kazakhstan.
According to ISNA, scholars from Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan presented their articles in this seminar on various aspects of Mysticism and Sufism in Iran and Central Asia.
In the opening ceremony of this seminar the Iranian Ambassador to Kazakhstan, Mehmanparast, in his lecture stated that at present mysticism could solve many of the human beings' problems which had been occurred due to lack of spirituality in the world.
Monday, May 8, 2006
The international "Mysticism and Sufism in Iran and Central Asia" seminar was held in Iran and Central Asia research center in Kazakhstan.
According to ISNA, scholars from Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan presented their articles in this seminar on various aspects of Mysticism and Sufism in Iran and Central Asia.
In the opening ceremony of this seminar the Iranian Ambassador to Kazakhstan, Mehmanparast, in his lecture stated that at present mysticism could solve many of the human beings' problems which had been occurred due to lack of spirituality in the world.
Yunus Emre Week Celebrated
By Osman Arslan - Zaman online - Eskisehir, Turkey
Monday, May 08, 2006
Activities as part of the International Yunus Emre Culture and Art Week have begun in Eskisehir. An opening ceremony was held at the grave of the renowned Anatolian humanist and poet at Yunus Emre town in Eskisehir for the festival activities that will continue until May 10.
Following the speeches and readings, a concert of Sufi and folk music was given.
The Yunus Emre exhibition, comprising of natural stones, was opened at Eskisehir Gallery of Fine Arts were visitors were served "Yunus Pilaf (rice)"
In the evening, Turkish singer Ahmet Ozhan performed a Sufi concert at Eskisehir Osmangazi University’s Sports Arena.
The audience accompanied Ozhan while he sang Yunus hymns.
A Sama, whirling dervishes ceremony, was performed by members of the Tourism Ministry’s Historical Turkish Music Chorus.
Monday, May 08, 2006
Activities as part of the International Yunus Emre Culture and Art Week have begun in Eskisehir. An opening ceremony was held at the grave of the renowned Anatolian humanist and poet at Yunus Emre town in Eskisehir for the festival activities that will continue until May 10.
Following the speeches and readings, a concert of Sufi and folk music was given.
The Yunus Emre exhibition, comprising of natural stones, was opened at Eskisehir Gallery of Fine Arts were visitors were served "Yunus Pilaf (rice)"
In the evening, Turkish singer Ahmet Ozhan performed a Sufi concert at Eskisehir Osmangazi University’s Sports Arena.
The audience accompanied Ozhan while he sang Yunus hymns.
A Sama, whirling dervishes ceremony, was performed by members of the Tourism Ministry’s Historical Turkish Music Chorus.
Sacred Dance
By Mary Adamski - Honolulu Star Bulletin - HI, U.S.A.
Saturday, May 6, 2006
The gentle circle dancing by the Prayer Cluster at Calvary-by-the-Sea Lutheran Church Tuesday felt like a throwback to the '60s, where interfaith sharing of sacred dance has its roots.
"My idea was to have something on the way home from work that reconnects you with God," said Pulelehua Quirk, who started the group a year ago. As a participant for years in the Sacred Dance Guild, her idea for a devotional experience just naturally had to include dance.
With the dance comes music "which resonates for so many" followed by shared prayer intentions typical of all small prayer groups. People reveal their vulnerabilities as they lay out their worries and frustrations; it can be a relief when it is done among friends.
The group clasped hands in a circle as Fatah Borsos called them to focus on their feet "connected to Mother Earth. Bring energy up from the earth." Next, "Open the top of our heads to the heavens and bring that energy down. Let what we do be in remembrance of the one holy being."
The words come from his Sufi studies, he said later. The Sufi tradition is a mystical branch of Islamic belief, with practices of combined meditation, chanting and dance -- the extreme end of which is the mesmerizing turning, spinning of "whirling dervishes" of Turkey.
"We need a direct, pure connection with nature and its elements," said Borsos. He is a participant in the Dances of Universal Peace, a movement that was started in the 1960s by a Sufi teacher and a Buddhist Zen master. Ecumenical groups worldwide gather to share ethnic and sacred dances, including a group that meets at 7 p.m. on the first Saturday of every month at Niu Valley Intermediate School.
Saturday, May 6, 2006
The gentle circle dancing by the Prayer Cluster at Calvary-by-the-Sea Lutheran Church Tuesday felt like a throwback to the '60s, where interfaith sharing of sacred dance has its roots.
"My idea was to have something on the way home from work that reconnects you with God," said Pulelehua Quirk, who started the group a year ago. As a participant for years in the Sacred Dance Guild, her idea for a devotional experience just naturally had to include dance.
With the dance comes music "which resonates for so many" followed by shared prayer intentions typical of all small prayer groups. People reveal their vulnerabilities as they lay out their worries and frustrations; it can be a relief when it is done among friends.
The group clasped hands in a circle as Fatah Borsos called them to focus on their feet "connected to Mother Earth. Bring energy up from the earth." Next, "Open the top of our heads to the heavens and bring that energy down. Let what we do be in remembrance of the one holy being."
The words come from his Sufi studies, he said later. The Sufi tradition is a mystical branch of Islamic belief, with practices of combined meditation, chanting and dance -- the extreme end of which is the mesmerizing turning, spinning of "whirling dervishes" of Turkey.
"We need a direct, pure connection with nature and its elements," said Borsos. He is a participant in the Dances of Universal Peace, a movement that was started in the 1960s by a Sufi teacher and a Buddhist Zen master. Ecumenical groups worldwide gather to share ethnic and sacred dances, including a group that meets at 7 p.m. on the first Saturday of every month at Niu Valley Intermediate School.
Murder Of Sufi Soul
By Teesta Setalvad - The Times of India
Friday, March 5, 2006
Thirty-eight-year-old Rafik Abdul Ghani Vohra was set upon by a mob, led by Ashok Thakur and other well-known VHP activists, and burnt to death in his car, at Ajwa Road, while returning from Gujarat Refineries on May 2.
The 1,000-strong mob gathered at Ajwa Road — unstopped by the police despite curfew — for two hours or so before the attack took place. Despite repeated calls by his family and neighbours to the police control and Deepak Swaroop, commissioner of police (CP), Vadodara, a callous administration did not respond.
Some family members told the national media and television channels that when they did connect with the police, they were told 'to go to Pakistan'. Local social activists feel that the response of the CP, chief minister's office and state home secretary's office since the outbreak of violence was worse than in 2002.
The CP simply kept disconnecting his mobile, according to agitated residents and social activists who made over 200 calls while the mob was building up. But for pressure exercised by the government at the Centre, the Gujarat state, its executive and its administration would not have been compelled to act immediately, without fear or favour.
The trouble began in Vadodara on May 1, with the demolition launched by Vadodara municipal administration, aided by police, in violation of the 'compromise' formula worked between the administration and minorities that two and a half feet of the shrine were to be 'sacrificed' for 'deve-lopment'.
The shrine in question was the Dargah Hazrat Rashiuddin, a target of communal forces since 1969. At least 385 years old, its existence is recorded in the first city survey carried out by Sayaji Rao Maharaj in 1912.
On the morning of May 1, the police and corporation demolished the shrine and by afternoon in a swift military-like action even paved a road over it.
Ghastly memories of 2002 were invoked when over 270 minority shrines were destroyed in just the first six days of post-Godhra premeditated violence, including the Wali Dakhani's mazhar just outside the CP's office at Shahi Baug in Ahmedabad on March 1, 2002. Ustad Faiz Khan's tomb in Vadodara also had its facade destroyed then. All signs of the remains of Wali Dakhani's tomb in Ahmedabad were removed by the wee hours of the next morning, again by politicians aided by the administration — a tar road was paved over the spot.
Four years later, in Vadodara, BJP leaders who are also VHP and Bajrang Dal office bearers, assisted the administration in paving a road over the destroyed shrine. Dargahs, or the mazars (graves) of Sufi saints are visited by worshippers belonging to different communities.
The mujawar (caretakers) are often Hindus. Dargahs are and have been for decades a threat to the narrow sectarian worldview of Hindu communalists. The fast-growing Muslim communal worldview also dislikes dargahs because they affect the 'purity' of Islam. Haji Malang in Thane, north of Mumbai, and Baba Boudhangiri shrine in Chikmagalur district of Andhra Pradesh are two that have been targets of physical attacks by the wider conglomerate of the Hindu communalists.
RSS has allegedly compiled and circulated a secret list of over 400 such shrines (that include churches) that need to be recaptured or taken over or destroyed.
It is this deeper motive behind the May 1 attack on the Vadodara shrine, aspects of which were a chilling reminder of the pogrom of 2002, that needs to be showcased in public memory today.
Many of Gujarat's cities are today segregated and ghettoised, dividing civic existence and living into an Us versus Them. This makes any political project of divide and rule, however unconstitutional, easier.
The destruction of dargahs is a pre-requisite for complete division and polarisation among Gujaratis. Police firing after the demolition in Vadodara — television shots clearly show — was aimed to kill, not disperse.
Worse, this was not a neutral administrative action. Present at the site were mayor of the city, Sushil Solanki, BJP leader(s) Nalin Bhatt and councillors Rakesh Patel, Arvind Patel, Chandrakant Thakkar, Lalit Raj, Harish Shevani, Yogesh Patel and Mahesh Rana.
Incidentally, both Bhatt and Patel have been identified by citizens' groups as allegedly responsible for the vicious violence in Vadodara in 2002.
Provocative slogans like, 'destroy the mini-Babri' and 'if the VMC will not demolish, the VHP and Bajrang Dal will' proved to be the last straw. Three persons died in police firing, and 27 were injured.
Two innocent members of the majority Hindu community were killed in retaliatory stabbings later. The burning alive of Rafik was the fifth life lost 36 hours after the first killings.
Friday, March 5, 2006
Thirty-eight-year-old Rafik Abdul Ghani Vohra was set upon by a mob, led by Ashok Thakur and other well-known VHP activists, and burnt to death in his car, at Ajwa Road, while returning from Gujarat Refineries on May 2.
The 1,000-strong mob gathered at Ajwa Road — unstopped by the police despite curfew — for two hours or so before the attack took place. Despite repeated calls by his family and neighbours to the police control and Deepak Swaroop, commissioner of police (CP), Vadodara, a callous administration did not respond.
Some family members told the national media and television channels that when they did connect with the police, they were told 'to go to Pakistan'. Local social activists feel that the response of the CP, chief minister's office and state home secretary's office since the outbreak of violence was worse than in 2002.
The CP simply kept disconnecting his mobile, according to agitated residents and social activists who made over 200 calls while the mob was building up. But for pressure exercised by the government at the Centre, the Gujarat state, its executive and its administration would not have been compelled to act immediately, without fear or favour.
The trouble began in Vadodara on May 1, with the demolition launched by Vadodara municipal administration, aided by police, in violation of the 'compromise' formula worked between the administration and minorities that two and a half feet of the shrine were to be 'sacrificed' for 'deve-lopment'.
The shrine in question was the Dargah Hazrat Rashiuddin, a target of communal forces since 1969. At least 385 years old, its existence is recorded in the first city survey carried out by Sayaji Rao Maharaj in 1912.
On the morning of May 1, the police and corporation demolished the shrine and by afternoon in a swift military-like action even paved a road over it.
Ghastly memories of 2002 were invoked when over 270 minority shrines were destroyed in just the first six days of post-Godhra premeditated violence, including the Wali Dakhani's mazhar just outside the CP's office at Shahi Baug in Ahmedabad on March 1, 2002. Ustad Faiz Khan's tomb in Vadodara also had its facade destroyed then. All signs of the remains of Wali Dakhani's tomb in Ahmedabad were removed by the wee hours of the next morning, again by politicians aided by the administration — a tar road was paved over the spot.
Four years later, in Vadodara, BJP leaders who are also VHP and Bajrang Dal office bearers, assisted the administration in paving a road over the destroyed shrine. Dargahs, or the mazars (graves) of Sufi saints are visited by worshippers belonging to different communities.
The mujawar (caretakers) are often Hindus. Dargahs are and have been for decades a threat to the narrow sectarian worldview of Hindu communalists. The fast-growing Muslim communal worldview also dislikes dargahs because they affect the 'purity' of Islam. Haji Malang in Thane, north of Mumbai, and Baba Boudhangiri shrine in Chikmagalur district of Andhra Pradesh are two that have been targets of physical attacks by the wider conglomerate of the Hindu communalists.
RSS has allegedly compiled and circulated a secret list of over 400 such shrines (that include churches) that need to be recaptured or taken over or destroyed.
It is this deeper motive behind the May 1 attack on the Vadodara shrine, aspects of which were a chilling reminder of the pogrom of 2002, that needs to be showcased in public memory today.
Many of Gujarat's cities are today segregated and ghettoised, dividing civic existence and living into an Us versus Them. This makes any political project of divide and rule, however unconstitutional, easier.
The destruction of dargahs is a pre-requisite for complete division and polarisation among Gujaratis. Police firing after the demolition in Vadodara — television shots clearly show — was aimed to kill, not disperse.
Worse, this was not a neutral administrative action. Present at the site were mayor of the city, Sushil Solanki, BJP leader(s) Nalin Bhatt and councillors Rakesh Patel, Arvind Patel, Chandrakant Thakkar, Lalit Raj, Harish Shevani, Yogesh Patel and Mahesh Rana.
Incidentally, both Bhatt and Patel have been identified by citizens' groups as allegedly responsible for the vicious violence in Vadodara in 2002.
Provocative slogans like, 'destroy the mini-Babri' and 'if the VMC will not demolish, the VHP and Bajrang Dal will' proved to be the last straw. Three persons died in police firing, and 27 were injured.
Two innocent members of the majority Hindu community were killed in retaliatory stabbings later. The burning alive of Rafik was the fifth life lost 36 hours after the first killings.
Friday, October 20, 2006
Mir Blooms In Thar Again
By Rahul Ghai - Tehelka - India
Saturday, May 13, 2006
A morning bus from Bikaner traversing the slopes of the undulating road slithering through the yellow glistening desert for around two hours finally reaches Pugal, a village on the Indira Gandhi canal and an old mandi of considerable historical importance. As one approaches the Mirasi mohalla, the sound of music, loud and intense, reverberations of drums and lilting melodies on the bagpipe and the Algoza engulf the atmosphere. Passers by have been wondering if there is a marriage in one of the houses. The Mirs keep singing till late in the night, as if possessed. The mohalla with its narrow lanes and closely-huddled-up houses is full of activity and bears a look of exuberance and festivity. Children, women and men of all ages are excited. Around 20-odd Mir musicians from about seven villages around Pugal have come together to participate in a month long collective riyaz (practice) session. The sessions began in the last week of January, 2005 and continued till the end of March.
Yasin from Sattasar exclaims that this is the first time in so many years that they have got an opportunity to practice together. “Leave aside practicing as a team, even doing riyaz at an individual level has not been possible. The leisure and surplus it demands are out of reach for most of us,” adds Mohammad Saddiq from Ghulamwala. The crisis of livelihoods and resources in and around the scrawny command area of the Indira Gandhi canal has forced most of the Mir singers into abject poverty and destitution. The recurrent droughts in the 20th century have forced many to eke out their living as casual daily wage hunters in nearby mandis, towns and even as far as Bikaner city. Years of hardship and gruelling labour have flattened Waris Ali and Fattu Khan from becoming promising Mir musicians.
The Mirs more respectfully called Mir-i-Alam, have been the ecstatic singers of the Sufiyana kalam of Sufi mystics of northwest Indian sub-continent like Baba Bulle Shah, Hazrat Shah Hussain, Hazrat Sultan Bahu and Khwaja Ghulam Farid, the great wandering fakir of the blazing desert between Pugal and Multan whose compositions are vivid descriptions of the majestic serenity of the desert and blossoming of the pastoral landscape during brief spells of rains. In these interiors of the Thar desert the mehfils of Mir-i-Alam, during the urs at dargahs or auspicious occasions in households, have been the sole sources of entertainment and of soul-stirring mystical experience. This once-vibrant tradition of singing in Pugal has been waning over the last half-a-century. Decline of traditional patronage of the Rajputs and Muslim pastoralists, displacement of traditional livelihoods, degradation of natural common property resources- aggravated with the coming of the Indira Gandhi Canal since the late 1970s, are some of the main reasons. The Mirs have also been victims of bans, with several villages in the region boycotting them. These bans have been imposed by the orthodox maulvis, who regard singing of any sort as heretical. This has directly affected the livelihoods of the Mirs.
The interest shown in collective riyaz sessions displays the passion and perseverance of the Mir musicians to polish their tradition and bring it alive from the clutches of decay. Undeterred by adversity, the Mirs carry on with their ideological role of being marfat singers, moving from the high moments of ecstasy to detached serenity, a beautiful and tangential medium for intense mystical experiences. The quest for revival is also a quest to survive in the desert against all odds — to preserve their forgotten heritage.
Fattu Khan, whose father was an acclaimed Mir singer, sees a possibility of regaining his confidence to hone his hereditary musical skills. For budding singers like Basu Khan, the days of riyaz hold a promise of intense music sessions and an exposure to styles of singing many old kalam. Even the old ustads have cleared their throats to teach the new Mir singers the finer nuances of rendering Sufiyana kalam. Children have been enthusiastically participating in these sessions and are trying their hands at singing. The riyaz sessions have elicited positive response from listeners in the region; many have encouraged Mirs to continue their pursuit.
What began as a journey of discovering the power of their Sufiyana tradition by Mukthiyar Ali and Abdul Jabbar around two years ago is now the collective striving of many musicians of the Mir community. The collective riyaz session is part of a fellowship given to Mukhtiyar and Abdul by the Bangalore-based India Foundation for the Arts for reinvigorating the Sufiyana kalam tradition in the Pugal region. Hope and passion keep these subaltern musicians endeavouring to revive their Sufiyana tradition: a tradition that sings of love, compassion and harmony.
Saturday, May 13, 2006
A morning bus from Bikaner traversing the slopes of the undulating road slithering through the yellow glistening desert for around two hours finally reaches Pugal, a village on the Indira Gandhi canal and an old mandi of considerable historical importance. As one approaches the Mirasi mohalla, the sound of music, loud and intense, reverberations of drums and lilting melodies on the bagpipe and the Algoza engulf the atmosphere. Passers by have been wondering if there is a marriage in one of the houses. The Mirs keep singing till late in the night, as if possessed. The mohalla with its narrow lanes and closely-huddled-up houses is full of activity and bears a look of exuberance and festivity. Children, women and men of all ages are excited. Around 20-odd Mir musicians from about seven villages around Pugal have come together to participate in a month long collective riyaz (practice) session. The sessions began in the last week of January, 2005 and continued till the end of March.
Yasin from Sattasar exclaims that this is the first time in so many years that they have got an opportunity to practice together. “Leave aside practicing as a team, even doing riyaz at an individual level has not been possible. The leisure and surplus it demands are out of reach for most of us,” adds Mohammad Saddiq from Ghulamwala. The crisis of livelihoods and resources in and around the scrawny command area of the Indira Gandhi canal has forced most of the Mir singers into abject poverty and destitution. The recurrent droughts in the 20th century have forced many to eke out their living as casual daily wage hunters in nearby mandis, towns and even as far as Bikaner city. Years of hardship and gruelling labour have flattened Waris Ali and Fattu Khan from becoming promising Mir musicians.
The Mirs more respectfully called Mir-i-Alam, have been the ecstatic singers of the Sufiyana kalam of Sufi mystics of northwest Indian sub-continent like Baba Bulle Shah, Hazrat Shah Hussain, Hazrat Sultan Bahu and Khwaja Ghulam Farid, the great wandering fakir of the blazing desert between Pugal and Multan whose compositions are vivid descriptions of the majestic serenity of the desert and blossoming of the pastoral landscape during brief spells of rains. In these interiors of the Thar desert the mehfils of Mir-i-Alam, during the urs at dargahs or auspicious occasions in households, have been the sole sources of entertainment and of soul-stirring mystical experience. This once-vibrant tradition of singing in Pugal has been waning over the last half-a-century. Decline of traditional patronage of the Rajputs and Muslim pastoralists, displacement of traditional livelihoods, degradation of natural common property resources- aggravated with the coming of the Indira Gandhi Canal since the late 1970s, are some of the main reasons. The Mirs have also been victims of bans, with several villages in the region boycotting them. These bans have been imposed by the orthodox maulvis, who regard singing of any sort as heretical. This has directly affected the livelihoods of the Mirs.
The interest shown in collective riyaz sessions displays the passion and perseverance of the Mir musicians to polish their tradition and bring it alive from the clutches of decay. Undeterred by adversity, the Mirs carry on with their ideological role of being marfat singers, moving from the high moments of ecstasy to detached serenity, a beautiful and tangential medium for intense mystical experiences. The quest for revival is also a quest to survive in the desert against all odds — to preserve their forgotten heritage.
Fattu Khan, whose father was an acclaimed Mir singer, sees a possibility of regaining his confidence to hone his hereditary musical skills. For budding singers like Basu Khan, the days of riyaz hold a promise of intense music sessions and an exposure to styles of singing many old kalam. Even the old ustads have cleared their throats to teach the new Mir singers the finer nuances of rendering Sufiyana kalam. Children have been enthusiastically participating in these sessions and are trying their hands at singing. The riyaz sessions have elicited positive response from listeners in the region; many have encouraged Mirs to continue their pursuit.
What began as a journey of discovering the power of their Sufiyana tradition by Mukthiyar Ali and Abdul Jabbar around two years ago is now the collective striving of many musicians of the Mir community. The collective riyaz session is part of a fellowship given to Mukhtiyar and Abdul by the Bangalore-based India Foundation for the Arts for reinvigorating the Sufiyana kalam tradition in the Pugal region. Hope and passion keep these subaltern musicians endeavouring to revive their Sufiyana tradition: a tradition that sings of love, compassion and harmony.
Iranian regime sentences 52 dervishes (sufi) to flogging and imprisonment
NCRI Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
Friday, May 5, 2006
The Iranian regime has in the past two days intensified a crackdown on members of the Iranian dervish community, according to state-controlled papers. Last February, State Security Forces (SSF) and paramilitary Basij forces brutally suppressed Nematollahi dervishes in Qom, and burned their center and mosque in the city to the ground.
On May 4, the mullahs’ judiciary sentenced 52 of the dervishes on charges of public “intrusion” and civil “disobedience” to imprisonment, flogging and fines, according to the government-controlled Kargozaran daily.
The sentenced dervishes are among the nearly 2000 people who were arrested in February in the course of the demolition of the Nematollahi dervishes’ Mosque in Qom.
In an unprecedent move, the dervishes' lawyers were fined, sentenced to five years in prison and disbarred by the clerical regime for defending dervishes.
The Iranian Resistance urges all human rights organizations and the UN’s Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and Beliefs to condemn the crackdown on the Nematollahi Dervishes and take action in freeing those in custody.
Friday, May 5, 2006
The Iranian regime has in the past two days intensified a crackdown on members of the Iranian dervish community, according to state-controlled papers. Last February, State Security Forces (SSF) and paramilitary Basij forces brutally suppressed Nematollahi dervishes in Qom, and burned their center and mosque in the city to the ground.
On May 4, the mullahs’ judiciary sentenced 52 of the dervishes on charges of public “intrusion” and civil “disobedience” to imprisonment, flogging and fines, according to the government-controlled Kargozaran daily.
The sentenced dervishes are among the nearly 2000 people who were arrested in February in the course of the demolition of the Nematollahi dervishes’ Mosque in Qom.
In an unprecedent move, the dervishes' lawyers were fined, sentenced to five years in prison and disbarred by the clerical regime for defending dervishes.
The Iranian Resistance urges all human rights organizations and the UN’s Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and Beliefs to condemn the crackdown on the Nematollahi Dervishes and take action in freeing those in custody.
In Saudi Arabia, a Resurgence of Sufism
By Faiza Saleh Ambah - Jiddah, Saudi Arabia - Special to The Washington Post
Tuesday, May 2, 2006
A hush came over the crowd as the young man sitting cross-legged on the floor picked up the microphone and sang, a cappella, a poem about Islam's prophet Muhammad. His eyes shut tight, his head covered by an orange-and-white turban, he crooned with barely contained ardor of how the world rejoiced and lights filled the skies the day the prophet was born.
The men attending the mawlid -- a celebration of the birth and life of Muhammad -- sat on colorful rugs, rocking gently back and forth, while the women, on the upper floor watching via a large projection screen, passed around boxes of tissues and wiped tears from their eyes.
The centuries-old mawlid, a mainstay of the more spiritual and often mystic Sufi Islam, was until recently viewed as heretical and banned by Saudi Arabia's official religious establishment, the ultraconservative Wahhabis. But a new atmosphere of increased religious tolerance has spurred a resurgence of Sufism and brought the once-underground Sufis and their rituals out in the open.
Analysts and some Sufis partly credit reaction to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States for the atmosphere that has made the changes possible. When it was discovered that 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi, the kingdom's strict Wahhabi doctrine -- which had banned all other sects and schools of thought -- came under intense scrutiny from inside and outside the country. The newfound tolerance Sufis have come to enjoy is perhaps one of the most concrete outcomes of that shift.
"This is one of the blessings of September 11. It put the brakes on the [Wahhabi] practice of takfir , excommunicating everyone who didn't exactly follow their creed," said Sayed Habib Adnan, a 33-year-old Sufi teacher. The government "realized that maybe enforcing one religious belief over all others was not such a good idea."
Sufis here say they are not a separate sect or followers of a separate religion, but adherents to a way of life based on the Muslim concept of ihsan . Muhammad explained ihsan to the angel Gabriel as "worshiping God as if you see Him. Because if you don't see Him, He sees you." Another Sufi characteristic is a strong belief in the power of blessings from the prophet, his close relatives and his companions.
Sufism had previously been predominant in Hejaz, the western region of Saudi Arabia, which includes Muhammad's birthplace, Mecca; Medina, where he is buried; and the Red Sea port city of Jiddah. Muslims prayed often at shrines where the prophet's daughter Fatima, his wife Khadija and his companions were buried. Mawlids were public affairs with entire cities decked out in lights, and parades and festivities commemorating the prophet's birthday and his ascension to Jerusalem.
When the al-Saud family that would later come to rule Saudi Arabia took over Hejaz in the 1920s, the Wahhabis banned mawlids as a form of heresy and destroyed the historic shrines of Khadija, Fatima and the prophet's companions, fearing they would lead to idolatry and polytheism.
Discrimination against Sufis, among others, intensified after armed Wahhabi extremists took over Mecca's Grand Mosque in 1979, demanding that a more puritanical form of Islam be applied in the country. Though the government quelled the uprising and executed its leaders, authorities were shaken by the incident, and lest other Wahhabis defy them, they allowed them more rein.
Soon after, extremist clerics issued a religious edict, or fatwa, declaring Sufi's spiritual leader, Muhammad Alawi Malki, a nonbeliever. He was removed from his teaching position, banned from giving lessons at the Grand Mosque, where both his father and grandfather had taught, and interrogated by the religious police and the Interior Ministry. After Malki was later attacked by a throng of radicals incensed at his presence in the mosque, he could pray there only under armed guard.
Meanwhile, thousands of cassettes and booklets circulated calling Sufis "grave-lovers" and dangerous infidels who had to be stopped before they made a comeback. Their salons were raided, and those caught with Sufi literature were often arrested or jailed.
The tide finally turned in 2003, with the new atmosphere that took hold following the Sept. 11 attacks, when the future King Abdullah, then the crown prince, held a series of meetings to acknowledge the country's diverse sects and schools of thought. One of the guests was Sufi leader Malki. When he died the following year, Abdullah and the powerful defense and interior ministers attended his funeral. The rehabilitation of his legacy was almost complete.
But many Sufis complain that despite outward appearances, Wahhabis continue to destroy shrines in and around their holy places, their salons continue to be raided and their literature is still banned.
Muhammad Jastaniya, a 20-year-old economics major and part of a new wave of young Saudis who have embraced Sufism, said what drew him was the focus on God.
On a recent moonlit evening, Jastaniya sipped sugary mint tea with his friends on rugs spread on the rooftop of a Zawiya, or lodge where Sufis go to meditate, chant or sit in on lessons. The words 'God' and 'Muhammad' were written in green neon lights, and Islam's 99 names for God were stenciled in black paint around the wall. "To be a Sufi is to clear your heart of everything but God," he explained. "The Islam we were taught here is like a body without a soul. Sufism is the soul. It's not an alternative religion -- it can contain all Muslims."
That thought seems to be taking hold, even in faraway corners.
Salman al-Odah, the country's most popular puritanical cleric, who was jailed in the 1990s for opposing the presence of U.S. troops in the kingdom, accepted an invitation to visit Sufi cleric Abdallah Fadaaq's mawlid and lesson last week. The scene at Fadaaq's house was an obvious sign of conciliation.
Tuesday, May 2, 2006
A hush came over the crowd as the young man sitting cross-legged on the floor picked up the microphone and sang, a cappella, a poem about Islam's prophet Muhammad. His eyes shut tight, his head covered by an orange-and-white turban, he crooned with barely contained ardor of how the world rejoiced and lights filled the skies the day the prophet was born.
The men attending the mawlid -- a celebration of the birth and life of Muhammad -- sat on colorful rugs, rocking gently back and forth, while the women, on the upper floor watching via a large projection screen, passed around boxes of tissues and wiped tears from their eyes.
The centuries-old mawlid, a mainstay of the more spiritual and often mystic Sufi Islam, was until recently viewed as heretical and banned by Saudi Arabia's official religious establishment, the ultraconservative Wahhabis. But a new atmosphere of increased religious tolerance has spurred a resurgence of Sufism and brought the once-underground Sufis and their rituals out in the open.
Analysts and some Sufis partly credit reaction to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States for the atmosphere that has made the changes possible. When it was discovered that 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi, the kingdom's strict Wahhabi doctrine -- which had banned all other sects and schools of thought -- came under intense scrutiny from inside and outside the country. The newfound tolerance Sufis have come to enjoy is perhaps one of the most concrete outcomes of that shift.
"This is one of the blessings of September 11. It put the brakes on the [Wahhabi] practice of takfir , excommunicating everyone who didn't exactly follow their creed," said Sayed Habib Adnan, a 33-year-old Sufi teacher. The government "realized that maybe enforcing one religious belief over all others was not such a good idea."
Sufis here say they are not a separate sect or followers of a separate religion, but adherents to a way of life based on the Muslim concept of ihsan . Muhammad explained ihsan to the angel Gabriel as "worshiping God as if you see Him. Because if you don't see Him, He sees you." Another Sufi characteristic is a strong belief in the power of blessings from the prophet, his close relatives and his companions.
Sufism had previously been predominant in Hejaz, the western region of Saudi Arabia, which includes Muhammad's birthplace, Mecca; Medina, where he is buried; and the Red Sea port city of Jiddah. Muslims prayed often at shrines where the prophet's daughter Fatima, his wife Khadija and his companions were buried. Mawlids were public affairs with entire cities decked out in lights, and parades and festivities commemorating the prophet's birthday and his ascension to Jerusalem.
When the al-Saud family that would later come to rule Saudi Arabia took over Hejaz in the 1920s, the Wahhabis banned mawlids as a form of heresy and destroyed the historic shrines of Khadija, Fatima and the prophet's companions, fearing they would lead to idolatry and polytheism.
Discrimination against Sufis, among others, intensified after armed Wahhabi extremists took over Mecca's Grand Mosque in 1979, demanding that a more puritanical form of Islam be applied in the country. Though the government quelled the uprising and executed its leaders, authorities were shaken by the incident, and lest other Wahhabis defy them, they allowed them more rein.
Soon after, extremist clerics issued a religious edict, or fatwa, declaring Sufi's spiritual leader, Muhammad Alawi Malki, a nonbeliever. He was removed from his teaching position, banned from giving lessons at the Grand Mosque, where both his father and grandfather had taught, and interrogated by the religious police and the Interior Ministry. After Malki was later attacked by a throng of radicals incensed at his presence in the mosque, he could pray there only under armed guard.
Meanwhile, thousands of cassettes and booklets circulated calling Sufis "grave-lovers" and dangerous infidels who had to be stopped before they made a comeback. Their salons were raided, and those caught with Sufi literature were often arrested or jailed.
The tide finally turned in 2003, with the new atmosphere that took hold following the Sept. 11 attacks, when the future King Abdullah, then the crown prince, held a series of meetings to acknowledge the country's diverse sects and schools of thought. One of the guests was Sufi leader Malki. When he died the following year, Abdullah and the powerful defense and interior ministers attended his funeral. The rehabilitation of his legacy was almost complete.
But many Sufis complain that despite outward appearances, Wahhabis continue to destroy shrines in and around their holy places, their salons continue to be raided and their literature is still banned.
Muhammad Jastaniya, a 20-year-old economics major and part of a new wave of young Saudis who have embraced Sufism, said what drew him was the focus on God.
On a recent moonlit evening, Jastaniya sipped sugary mint tea with his friends on rugs spread on the rooftop of a Zawiya, or lodge where Sufis go to meditate, chant or sit in on lessons. The words 'God' and 'Muhammad' were written in green neon lights, and Islam's 99 names for God were stenciled in black paint around the wall. "To be a Sufi is to clear your heart of everything but God," he explained. "The Islam we were taught here is like a body without a soul. Sufism is the soul. It's not an alternative religion -- it can contain all Muslims."
That thought seems to be taking hold, even in faraway corners.
Salman al-Odah, the country's most popular puritanical cleric, who was jailed in the 1990s for opposing the presence of U.S. troops in the kingdom, accepted an invitation to visit Sufi cleric Abdallah Fadaaq's mawlid and lesson last week. The scene at Fadaaq's house was an obvious sign of conciliation.
A Proverb with a Life of Its Own
By Manny Frishberg - Vision Magazine
Monday, May 01, 2006
Art springs up from all sorts of sources. Sometimes it's a product of chance occurrences and opportunities–call it “Kismet.” That is how two rabbis, a Protestant editor, a Muslim painter and a nonprofit publisher in Tennessee came together to create a work of love called The Animal's Lawsuit Against Humanity, updating a 10th century Islamic fable for the 21st.
Versions of the tale of how the animals came together to protest their treatment by humans had been told from India across the ancient trade roots west, but the first written version was penned by members of a Sufi sect somewhere around Basra, in Iraq, about 1100 years ago.
“In their version,” said Laytner, “it was the 25th of 51 letters which described the mysteries and meanings of life.”
Pakistani artist Kulsum Begum illustrated the story with about a dozen paintings that are reproduced in color plates throughout the book, commissioned by her patron, Princess Maha Muhammad al-Faisal of Saudi Arabia.
“We are friends with a lot of the King Faisal family in Arabia,” said Gray Henry, director of Fons Vitae, the nonprofit publisher that has produced the lavishly illustrated paperback. “One of his granddaughters... took over the expense and effort of getting all these illustrations, which took a really long time.”
“It's really a collective endeavor, ”said Rabbi Laytner. “An Arabic Sufi tale that was translated by a rabbi into Hebrew in the Middle Ages and was translated by us, with a Sufi publisher and a Pakistani Muslim artist.”
To learn more about The Animal's Lawsuit Against Humanity, including to order copies, go to www.fonsvitae.com.
We were forced to fire: Vadodara police
By Sheela Bhatt - Rediff.com - New Delhi, India
Monday, May 1, 2006
Following the communal tension at Fatehpur, near the Champaner Gates in Vadodara, a large part of the old city has been placed under curfew. Two people have been killed and seven injured in the violence.
"We were forced to fire at the crowd," said Deepak Swaroop, Vadodara city police commissioner, while talking to rediff.com.
While giving chronology of the events, Swaroop said, "The demolition drive has been on for the last 15 days, as per the master plan of the city. There were orders to demolish any kind of encroachment, whether it's a temple or a mosque or any illegal construction in the house of a senior officer."
He added, "As per the order, some temples, too, have been demolished. Today it was the turn of the dargah of Rashidudin Rahimtullah, a Sufi saint." He said no-one knows exactly how old the dargah is but 'it has been here for many decades'.
Since the Muslim community had been agitated over the possibility of the demolitions, Swaroop had arranged meetings between Muslim leaders, the city mayor and the municipal commissioner. However, no consensus was reached and the court did not give a stay order on the demolitions.
"We were compelled to use force as a crowd of over 3000 people gheraoed the dargah. We first used tear gas, then we lathi-charged and only then did we fire, before the demolition work was completed," he said.
When asked why he did not delay the demolition, Swaroop said, "I used to pray at a Sai Baba temple right across from my house. Even that was demolished a few days back and I could do nothing about it."
Hemant Gandhi, a resident of Vadodara who witnessed the tussle around the dargah said, "We expect more tension because there are two other dargahs on the list to be demolished and one of them is in the middle of a road. We expect the tension to continue if the city corporation does not delay the demolition drive."
Monday, May 1, 2006
Following the communal tension at Fatehpur, near the Champaner Gates in Vadodara, a large part of the old city has been placed under curfew. Two people have been killed and seven injured in the violence.
"We were forced to fire at the crowd," said Deepak Swaroop, Vadodara city police commissioner, while talking to rediff.com.
While giving chronology of the events, Swaroop said, "The demolition drive has been on for the last 15 days, as per the master plan of the city. There were orders to demolish any kind of encroachment, whether it's a temple or a mosque or any illegal construction in the house of a senior officer."
He added, "As per the order, some temples, too, have been demolished. Today it was the turn of the dargah of Rashidudin Rahimtullah, a Sufi saint." He said no-one knows exactly how old the dargah is but 'it has been here for many decades'.
Since the Muslim community had been agitated over the possibility of the demolitions, Swaroop had arranged meetings between Muslim leaders, the city mayor and the municipal commissioner. However, no consensus was reached and the court did not give a stay order on the demolitions.
"We were compelled to use force as a crowd of over 3000 people gheraoed the dargah. We first used tear gas, then we lathi-charged and only then did we fire, before the demolition work was completed," he said.
When asked why he did not delay the demolition, Swaroop said, "I used to pray at a Sai Baba temple right across from my house. Even that was demolished a few days back and I could do nothing about it."
Hemant Gandhi, a resident of Vadodara who witnessed the tussle around the dargah said, "We expect more tension because there are two other dargahs on the list to be demolished and one of them is in the middle of a road. We expect the tension to continue if the city corporation does not delay the demolition drive."
Iraqi Sufi dervishes gather, chant, dance, pierce selves
By Yahya Barzanji - Associated Press/Wilmington Morning Star
Tuesday, 25 April, 2006
In Barzanja (Iraq), a mystical Sufi adherent aims to show that in his enrapture with God he is beyond pain.
The dervishes swayed with the drumbeat, flinging their long hair and chanting "Allah, Allah." Nearby others were showing, as one put it, their "passion for God": one drove a skewer through his cheek, another chewed on a light bulb, crunching the glass in his mouth. The aim is for the Sufi – an adherent to Islam’s mystical branch – to show that in his enrapture with God he is beyond pain.
They were among more than 1,000 men and women from across northern Iraq’s Kurdistan region and from Kurdish towns in neighboring Iran who came for an annual gathering in this town 15 miles east of Sulaimaniyah. The gathering has grown since last year, when several hundred showed up – a sign that adherents are less afraid of Islamic militants who have harassed Sufis in the past because they consider their practices heretical.
"The growth has been continual since the acts of violence have eased," Sheik Qader Kakhama al-Kasnazani, the spiritual leader of the Kasnazaniyah Sufi order, said at Friday’s "hadra," a gathering to honor a revered religious figure.
The autonomous Kurdish region in Iraq’s north has been largely spared from the violent insurgency that has bloodied the rest of the country, although the area has seen activity in the past by Islamic militants, some with suspected al-Qaida links.
The Sufis also have encouragement from the Kurdistan regional government, which supports Sufi groups because they are apolitical and are seen as a counterbalance to extremists. Among the populace, the groups draw followers from educated upper classes down to the impoverished.
"The soul always needs elevating," said Ahmed Rahman, 24, an engineering student. "So when I become an engineer, I’ll remain a dervish. Even if I became president, I’d remain a dervish."
Hundreds of thousands of Sufis across the Islamic world – both Sunnis and Shiites, since the mystical trend crosses Islam’s sectarian divide – adhere to numerous orders and suborders, each following a particular sheik or spiritual teacher.
Though each school has its own practices, most seek a mystical closeness to God through meditative chants and dancing. Some, like the Kasnazaniyah, also pierce their bodies with skewers, knives and glass. One man at Friday’s ceremony drove a skewer through the bottom of his mouth and out his chin. Others had shirts stained with their own blood from cuts on their tongue.
The ceremony was held throughout the day in an outdoor sports center.
To the beat of drums, dervishes – some dressed in traditional Kurdish garb – swayed to and fro, repeating God’s name, in a circle called a "halqa." The 67-year-old Sheik Qader threw himself among them, joining the chant. Nearby, several dozen women were holding their own, separate halqa.
Ibrahim Por-Maliki, the youngest dervish at 16, had come from the Iranian town of Marivan, about 30 miles away, to join the halqa – though he was staying away from the knives. "I’d like to get to that stage," he said. "But my mother let my come only on condition I don’t hit or cut myself."
Tuesday, 25 April, 2006
In Barzanja (Iraq), a mystical Sufi adherent aims to show that in his enrapture with God he is beyond pain.
The dervishes swayed with the drumbeat, flinging their long hair and chanting "Allah, Allah." Nearby others were showing, as one put it, their "passion for God": one drove a skewer through his cheek, another chewed on a light bulb, crunching the glass in his mouth. The aim is for the Sufi – an adherent to Islam’s mystical branch – to show that in his enrapture with God he is beyond pain.
They were among more than 1,000 men and women from across northern Iraq’s Kurdistan region and from Kurdish towns in neighboring Iran who came for an annual gathering in this town 15 miles east of Sulaimaniyah. The gathering has grown since last year, when several hundred showed up – a sign that adherents are less afraid of Islamic militants who have harassed Sufis in the past because they consider their practices heretical.
"The growth has been continual since the acts of violence have eased," Sheik Qader Kakhama al-Kasnazani, the spiritual leader of the Kasnazaniyah Sufi order, said at Friday’s "hadra," a gathering to honor a revered religious figure.
The autonomous Kurdish region in Iraq’s north has been largely spared from the violent insurgency that has bloodied the rest of the country, although the area has seen activity in the past by Islamic militants, some with suspected al-Qaida links.
The Sufis also have encouragement from the Kurdistan regional government, which supports Sufi groups because they are apolitical and are seen as a counterbalance to extremists. Among the populace, the groups draw followers from educated upper classes down to the impoverished.
"The soul always needs elevating," said Ahmed Rahman, 24, an engineering student. "So when I become an engineer, I’ll remain a dervish. Even if I became president, I’d remain a dervish."
Hundreds of thousands of Sufis across the Islamic world – both Sunnis and Shiites, since the mystical trend crosses Islam’s sectarian divide – adhere to numerous orders and suborders, each following a particular sheik or spiritual teacher.
Though each school has its own practices, most seek a mystical closeness to God through meditative chants and dancing. Some, like the Kasnazaniyah, also pierce their bodies with skewers, knives and glass. One man at Friday’s ceremony drove a skewer through the bottom of his mouth and out his chin. Others had shirts stained with their own blood from cuts on their tongue.
The ceremony was held throughout the day in an outdoor sports center.
To the beat of drums, dervishes – some dressed in traditional Kurdish garb – swayed to and fro, repeating God’s name, in a circle called a "halqa." The 67-year-old Sheik Qader threw himself among them, joining the chant. Nearby, several dozen women were holding their own, separate halqa.
Ibrahim Por-Maliki, the youngest dervish at 16, had come from the Iranian town of Marivan, about 30 miles away, to join the halqa – though he was staying away from the knives. "I’d like to get to that stage," he said. "But my mother let my come only on condition I don’t hit or cut myself."
Seeking the Beloved
NDTV.com - Books
Wednesday, 26 April, 2006
Known as one of the greatest Sufi works in history, Shah Abdul Latif's Shah Jo Risalo is a prayer, a cry for the Beloved.
Written more than 250 years ago, Latif's poetry is deeply rooted in the human experience of searching for the self - a self that is one with the nirakaar, the omnipresent, centred within yet diffuse as attar.
About the author (from The Indian Express):
"By the end of the 17th century, there appeared the greatest Sufi poet of Sindh, Shah Abdul Latif..who infused new life into the desert..."
Katha proudly presents the first ever English translation of the Risalo in India:
Category: Non-Fiction
Author: Shah Abdul Latif
Publisher: Katha
Price: Rs 295
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Lisa Ross: Traces of Devotion
By Holland Cotter - The New York Times - New York, New York, U.S.A.
Friday, April 21, 2006
Nelson Hancock Gallery could not observe its first anniversary with a more beautiful and auspicious show than this one of photographs by Lisa Ross.
Although based in New York, Ms. Ross traveled far for these pictures, to the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang, the region in western China. The area is home to the Uighurs, a Turkic-speaking people who largely practice Sufism, a mystical, pacifistic form of Islam.
Sufi devotion focuses on generations of saints, "friends of God," and specifically on their burial sites. Such graves dot the Taklamakan, indicated by the most fragile of markers: dried branches staked vertically in the ground or piled up to serve as prayer huts. What makes the markers visually distinctive is the way they are ornamented by visiting pilgrims with amulets, dolls and ribbon-like strips of bright-colored cloth, brilliant against a landscape of unbroken sand-brown.
An awareness of transience lies at the heart of all devotion, and it finds an apt emblem in these grave markers, bent and tattered by the wind. Ms. Ross's photographs hint at a less elemental source of destruction, too. The Chinese government, intent on making the area accessible to the rest of the country, is building new roads. And as they pave the desert, they suppress the religious traditions that have, against all odds, flourished there. Politics is its own functionalist faith, a powerfully coercive one. In time, and not much time, it could transform Ms. Ross's exquisite anthropological images of living monuments into documents of relics.
Islam and the path of the heart
By Sa'diyya Shaikh - Mail&Guardian online - South Africa
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
In describing Islam to others, some Muslim scholars use the analogy of a walnut. The practical, ritual and legal dimensions of the Islamic faith are likened to the outer shell. Inside this shell one finds the animating spiritual core, also known as the Sufi path, which is signified by the inner kernel. The oil that permeates all parts of the walnut represents the all-encompassing nature of Ultimate Reality, or God.
In the same manner that the shell provides protection to the kernel, the legal and obligatory rituals provide the form within which the spiritual life is allowed to ripen. Simultaneously, the kernel gives life to the shell without which it would be an empty form, barren and purposeless.
I use this image to convey the integral position of Sufism within Islam. Inside the nurturing boundaries of Islamic practice, the Sufi tradition fosters forms of spirituality that allow the seeker of God to embark on the journey of self-transformation. Based on the Islamic belief that human beings are created in the image of God, the objective of the Sufi is to cultivate and embody a perfect balance of divine qualities. To do so, the seeker needs to undertake a journey from a life characterised by thoughtlessness and egotism to one that is permeated by God-consciousness.
So what is the nature of this God that the Muslim mystic yearns for? The driving force of creation and human life is divine love and mercy. For the Sufi it is divine love that beckons her along the path of spiritual devotion. She longs for an intimate experience of the divine presence that brings her into direct contact with her true and most fundamental nature.
Sufi devotion has not only been reflected in sublime love poetry, but also in rigorous spiritual practices that overcome all that veils the lover from the Beloved. In diligently following the various techniques of self-cultivation, the seeker “polishes the mirror of the heart”. The human heart in the Islamic tradition is the most encompassing abode of the divine. Passing through a number of stages, often guided by a spiritual teacher, the seeker’s spiritual evolution ideally culminates in a state of being in which there is a collapse of boundaries between the seeker and the Sought. Here the Sufi holds sacrosanct God’s promise: “My servant continues to draw near me through free acts of devotion until I love him. When I love him, I am the eye with which he sees, the hearing with which he hears, the tongue with which he speaks and the hand with which he grasps.”
In this harmonised state of Oneness, the actions of the Sufi in the world reflect the beautiful qualities of God. Given the focus on love, intimacy and union with God, Sufism has often been described as the “path of the heart” or the “path of true knowledge”.
Sufism is commonly misunderstood as an asocial and personal experiential endeavor. In fact, for an individual on this path, spiritual transformation also significantly occurs through embodying certain types of behaviour in relation to other people.
To enable refinement of the character, the Sufi is encouraged to cultivate social interactions based on, among other things, qualities of love, mercy, justice, compassion, generosity and gentleness.
The goal of a Sufi is “to love every life as your own”. Thus, spiritual development demands an ethics of care that is socially engaged.
Taming, mastering and purifying the various inclinations of the lower self is not simply an individualistic spirituality but also one that intrinsically breaks down barriers between self and “other”, thus demanding a spiritually-imbued communal ethics.
The authoritative ninth-century Sufi teacher, Junaid of Baghdad, states that it was not the individual state of mystical annihilation that was the ultimate mystical state but rather that of subsistence in the world. So the true Sufi sage serves the lives of others.
Sufism has historically focused on the Qur’anic teaching that men and women have equal capacity for attaining spiritual development. Indeed, the mystical path by definition is more concerned with the inner state than with the outer signifiers of difference, gender or otherwise.
As Sufism has never been monolithic this has often meant -- although not always -- that women Sufis were recognised on the basis of their spiritual station rather than their gender. Some women Sufis were accepted as spiritual authorities and had male and female disciples, even in societies that were otherwise fairly patriarchal.
In fact, the central love motif of early Sufism dates back to the most famous eighth-century woman Sufi, Rabia Al-Adawiyya. Rabia is seen as the model mystic who ran down the streets of the Basra of present-day Iraq carrying a torch in one hand and a bucket of water in the other, saying that she wanted to set fire to Heaven and extinguish the flames of Hell, so that the seekers of God could rip down the veils of distraction, and so focus on the true goal that was the Divine Beloved. When Sufism reflects radical forms of gender equality, this is because gender is considered irrelevant to the ultimate goal of the mystical path, which makes equal demands on men and women.
In Sufi writings, there are extra-ordinary narratives of love and sexuality between human beings. In the 15th century Abd al-Rahman Jami reflects on the spiritual and pedagogic value of human love as a ladder by which humans ascend to an experience of divine love. The 13th century Andalusian Sufi mystic Muhyideen Ibn Arabi states more radically that sexual union provides the Sufi with a taste of mystical annihilation and is a locus for the disclosure of the divine.
These Sufi imaginations of gender highlight the spiritual value of love relationships and create expansive possibilities for re-thinking gender ethics in Muslim societies.
Within a worldview where love relationships are intrinsic to the refinement of character, where love and sexuality are regarded as sacrosanct, where the criteria for value are equally applied to men and women, where spiritual perfection is the goal of human life, then hierarchical male domination becomes an anathema.
I have presented some of the normative and ideal visions of Sufism. In reality, of course, one finds all shades of Sufi aspirants. There are those who embody beautiful character, and diligently strive to embody the divine attributes, those who are socially engaged, those who withdraw from society, those who are gender egalitarian, those who are sexist, those whose socio-political engagements emerge from their commitment to Sufi virtues, those who use Sufism for particular vested socio-political interests, and those who are charlatans.
Ultimately, however, the criterion for distinguishing a true Sufi must be sought in the normative standards of the Sufi paradigm. Here the simple yet profound tradition of the Prophet Muhammad is most insightful: “Among the best of you is the one most beautiful in character.”
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
In describing Islam to others, some Muslim scholars use the analogy of a walnut. The practical, ritual and legal dimensions of the Islamic faith are likened to the outer shell. Inside this shell one finds the animating spiritual core, also known as the Sufi path, which is signified by the inner kernel. The oil that permeates all parts of the walnut represents the all-encompassing nature of Ultimate Reality, or God.
In the same manner that the shell provides protection to the kernel, the legal and obligatory rituals provide the form within which the spiritual life is allowed to ripen. Simultaneously, the kernel gives life to the shell without which it would be an empty form, barren and purposeless.
I use this image to convey the integral position of Sufism within Islam. Inside the nurturing boundaries of Islamic practice, the Sufi tradition fosters forms of spirituality that allow the seeker of God to embark on the journey of self-transformation. Based on the Islamic belief that human beings are created in the image of God, the objective of the Sufi is to cultivate and embody a perfect balance of divine qualities. To do so, the seeker needs to undertake a journey from a life characterised by thoughtlessness and egotism to one that is permeated by God-consciousness.
So what is the nature of this God that the Muslim mystic yearns for? The driving force of creation and human life is divine love and mercy. For the Sufi it is divine love that beckons her along the path of spiritual devotion. She longs for an intimate experience of the divine presence that brings her into direct contact with her true and most fundamental nature.
Sufi devotion has not only been reflected in sublime love poetry, but also in rigorous spiritual practices that overcome all that veils the lover from the Beloved. In diligently following the various techniques of self-cultivation, the seeker “polishes the mirror of the heart”. The human heart in the Islamic tradition is the most encompassing abode of the divine. Passing through a number of stages, often guided by a spiritual teacher, the seeker’s spiritual evolution ideally culminates in a state of being in which there is a collapse of boundaries between the seeker and the Sought. Here the Sufi holds sacrosanct God’s promise: “My servant continues to draw near me through free acts of devotion until I love him. When I love him, I am the eye with which he sees, the hearing with which he hears, the tongue with which he speaks and the hand with which he grasps.”
In this harmonised state of Oneness, the actions of the Sufi in the world reflect the beautiful qualities of God. Given the focus on love, intimacy and union with God, Sufism has often been described as the “path of the heart” or the “path of true knowledge”.
Sufism is commonly misunderstood as an asocial and personal experiential endeavor. In fact, for an individual on this path, spiritual transformation also significantly occurs through embodying certain types of behaviour in relation to other people.
To enable refinement of the character, the Sufi is encouraged to cultivate social interactions based on, among other things, qualities of love, mercy, justice, compassion, generosity and gentleness.
The goal of a Sufi is “to love every life as your own”. Thus, spiritual development demands an ethics of care that is socially engaged.
Taming, mastering and purifying the various inclinations of the lower self is not simply an individualistic spirituality but also one that intrinsically breaks down barriers between self and “other”, thus demanding a spiritually-imbued communal ethics.
The authoritative ninth-century Sufi teacher, Junaid of Baghdad, states that it was not the individual state of mystical annihilation that was the ultimate mystical state but rather that of subsistence in the world. So the true Sufi sage serves the lives of others.
Sufism has historically focused on the Qur’anic teaching that men and women have equal capacity for attaining spiritual development. Indeed, the mystical path by definition is more concerned with the inner state than with the outer signifiers of difference, gender or otherwise.
As Sufism has never been monolithic this has often meant -- although not always -- that women Sufis were recognised on the basis of their spiritual station rather than their gender. Some women Sufis were accepted as spiritual authorities and had male and female disciples, even in societies that were otherwise fairly patriarchal.
In fact, the central love motif of early Sufism dates back to the most famous eighth-century woman Sufi, Rabia Al-Adawiyya. Rabia is seen as the model mystic who ran down the streets of the Basra of present-day Iraq carrying a torch in one hand and a bucket of water in the other, saying that she wanted to set fire to Heaven and extinguish the flames of Hell, so that the seekers of God could rip down the veils of distraction, and so focus on the true goal that was the Divine Beloved. When Sufism reflects radical forms of gender equality, this is because gender is considered irrelevant to the ultimate goal of the mystical path, which makes equal demands on men and women.
In Sufi writings, there are extra-ordinary narratives of love and sexuality between human beings. In the 15th century Abd al-Rahman Jami reflects on the spiritual and pedagogic value of human love as a ladder by which humans ascend to an experience of divine love. The 13th century Andalusian Sufi mystic Muhyideen Ibn Arabi states more radically that sexual union provides the Sufi with a taste of mystical annihilation and is a locus for the disclosure of the divine.
These Sufi imaginations of gender highlight the spiritual value of love relationships and create expansive possibilities for re-thinking gender ethics in Muslim societies.
Within a worldview where love relationships are intrinsic to the refinement of character, where love and sexuality are regarded as sacrosanct, where the criteria for value are equally applied to men and women, where spiritual perfection is the goal of human life, then hierarchical male domination becomes an anathema.
I have presented some of the normative and ideal visions of Sufism. In reality, of course, one finds all shades of Sufi aspirants. There are those who embody beautiful character, and diligently strive to embody the divine attributes, those who are socially engaged, those who withdraw from society, those who are gender egalitarian, those who are sexist, those whose socio-political engagements emerge from their commitment to Sufi virtues, those who use Sufism for particular vested socio-political interests, and those who are charlatans.
Ultimately, however, the criterion for distinguishing a true Sufi must be sought in the normative standards of the Sufi paradigm. Here the simple yet profound tradition of the Prophet Muhammad is most insightful: “Among the best of you is the one most beautiful in character.”
Growing popularity of Sufism in Iran
Roxana Saberi - BBC News Tehran
Saturday, April 15, 2006
The lights are dimmed in a home in northern Tehran. The men, women and teenagers gathered in the large living room close their eyes and rock back and forth to the beat of live music. As the tambourine and drums beat louder and faster, some members of the group climb to their feet. They begin to swirl slowly in circles and raise their hands to the ceiling. A few fall into trances.
"You can somehow touch relaxation," says 22-year-old Mahsa, who believes that music and dance can provide a direct route to Allah. "It's a very good sensation, and you think your soul is flying, that somehow you're not in your body."
These Iranians consider themselves Shia Muslims, as do most Iranians, and look to the first Shia Imam, Ali, as a spiritual guide. But they also call themselves Sufis.
Sufis believe that at the core of all religions lies the same truth and that God is the only reality behind all forms of existence. They also believe that the individual, through his or her own efforts, can reach spiritual union with God.
Sufism, or Islamic mysticism, appeared in the eighth century in present-day Iraq.
Iranian Sufis say Islamic mysticism has become more and more popular in the country in recent years. No official statistics are available, but Heshmatollah Riazi, a former professor of philosophy and theology in Iran, believes two to five million Iranians practice Sufism today - compared to only about 100,000 before Iran's Islamic Revolution of 1979. "The authorities are concerned that Sufis will do something against them, while on the contrary, Sufis don't interfere in politics at all. They follow the law and are not opposed to the Islamic Republic" he says.
He also says Iran is home to the largest number of Sufis in the Middle East.
Nowadays, hundreds of young Iranians are increasingly joining Sufi groups.
"Sufis have nothing to gain from superficial religious thoughts, and they seek spirituality," says Mr Riazi "They need something to develop love and their internal sense of freedom."
Some Iranians who are attracted to Sufi sessions say their gatherings provide entertainment and camaraderie. Others say they like Sufism for its liberal view of religion. "Official religion has a series of limitations, and its limitations are much stricter than in Sufism," says 20-year-old Ashkan, a member of the New World Unity Sufi group in Iran.
Many Iranian Sufis also report that the growing popularity of Sufism has contributed to greater tensions between them and certain elements of the Islamic regime.
"[The authorities] are concerned that Sufis will do something against them, while on the contrary, Sufis don't interfere in politics at all," says Mr Riazi, a member of the Gonabadi group, which does not have music or dancing at its gatherings. "They follow the law and are not opposed to the Islamic Republic."
In the past, certain Sufi groups have come into conflict with orthodox Islam. They caused concern among some clergy over the observance of practices that departed from traditional ritual. Some Sufis say before Iran's Islamic Revolution, Mohammad Reza Shah imprisoned some Sufi leaders. They say in the early years after the revolution, the new regime also confronted some Sufi groups - detaining some leaders and shutting down their gatherings.
Sufis look to their own spiritual leaders, while Iran's official version of Islam advocates the practice of following a Marja-e taqlid, or a cleric who is an expert in Islamic jurisprudence. And in contrast to Sufis, orthodox Muslims believe that a person can never "become" God or be united with Him.
Javad Arianmanesh, a member of the Cultural Commission in Iran's parliament, says the government does not limit Sufi activities. "Iran - contrary to the propaganda that the world spreads against it - is one of the freest countries of the world, and Sufis also are part of this country and are completely free," he says. "They can, based on their own beliefs, perform their own ceremonies."
But a government official who preferred to remain unidentified says the regime's treatment of Sufis is not always consistent because it is based on ambiguous laws.
He explains that on the one hand, Sufi meetings should not be disrupted, but on the other hand, Sufis should not proselytize.
"We asked both the previous and the current governments to have more concrete laws and to form a commission to oversee Sufis' activities because regulations about their activities are contradictory," says the official, who worked for both the previous, reformist President Mohammad Khatami and the current, conservative President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Saturday, April 15, 2006
The lights are dimmed in a home in northern Tehran. The men, women and teenagers gathered in the large living room close their eyes and rock back and forth to the beat of live music. As the tambourine and drums beat louder and faster, some members of the group climb to their feet. They begin to swirl slowly in circles and raise their hands to the ceiling. A few fall into trances.
"You can somehow touch relaxation," says 22-year-old Mahsa, who believes that music and dance can provide a direct route to Allah. "It's a very good sensation, and you think your soul is flying, that somehow you're not in your body."
These Iranians consider themselves Shia Muslims, as do most Iranians, and look to the first Shia Imam, Ali, as a spiritual guide. But they also call themselves Sufis.
Sufis believe that at the core of all religions lies the same truth and that God is the only reality behind all forms of existence. They also believe that the individual, through his or her own efforts, can reach spiritual union with God.
Sufism, or Islamic mysticism, appeared in the eighth century in present-day Iraq.
Iranian Sufis say Islamic mysticism has become more and more popular in the country in recent years. No official statistics are available, but Heshmatollah Riazi, a former professor of philosophy and theology in Iran, believes two to five million Iranians practice Sufism today - compared to only about 100,000 before Iran's Islamic Revolution of 1979. "The authorities are concerned that Sufis will do something against them, while on the contrary, Sufis don't interfere in politics at all. They follow the law and are not opposed to the Islamic Republic" he says.
He also says Iran is home to the largest number of Sufis in the Middle East.
Nowadays, hundreds of young Iranians are increasingly joining Sufi groups.
"Sufis have nothing to gain from superficial religious thoughts, and they seek spirituality," says Mr Riazi "They need something to develop love and their internal sense of freedom."
Some Iranians who are attracted to Sufi sessions say their gatherings provide entertainment and camaraderie. Others say they like Sufism for its liberal view of religion. "Official religion has a series of limitations, and its limitations are much stricter than in Sufism," says 20-year-old Ashkan, a member of the New World Unity Sufi group in Iran.
Many Iranian Sufis also report that the growing popularity of Sufism has contributed to greater tensions between them and certain elements of the Islamic regime.
"[The authorities] are concerned that Sufis will do something against them, while on the contrary, Sufis don't interfere in politics at all," says Mr Riazi, a member of the Gonabadi group, which does not have music or dancing at its gatherings. "They follow the law and are not opposed to the Islamic Republic."
In the past, certain Sufi groups have come into conflict with orthodox Islam. They caused concern among some clergy over the observance of practices that departed from traditional ritual. Some Sufis say before Iran's Islamic Revolution, Mohammad Reza Shah imprisoned some Sufi leaders. They say in the early years after the revolution, the new regime also confronted some Sufi groups - detaining some leaders and shutting down their gatherings.
Sufis look to their own spiritual leaders, while Iran's official version of Islam advocates the practice of following a Marja-e taqlid, or a cleric who is an expert in Islamic jurisprudence. And in contrast to Sufis, orthodox Muslims believe that a person can never "become" God or be united with Him.
Javad Arianmanesh, a member of the Cultural Commission in Iran's parliament, says the government does not limit Sufi activities. "Iran - contrary to the propaganda that the world spreads against it - is one of the freest countries of the world, and Sufis also are part of this country and are completely free," he says. "They can, based on their own beliefs, perform their own ceremonies."
But a government official who preferred to remain unidentified says the regime's treatment of Sufis is not always consistent because it is based on ambiguous laws.
He explains that on the one hand, Sufi meetings should not be disrupted, but on the other hand, Sufis should not proselytize.
"We asked both the previous and the current governments to have more concrete laws and to form a commission to oversee Sufis' activities because regulations about their activities are contradictory," says the official, who worked for both the previous, reformist President Mohammad Khatami and the current, conservative President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Mystic music continues to delight audience
By Shoaib Ahmed - Daily Times - Pakistan
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Sufi music enthusiasts were treated to another night of the International Mystic Music Sufi Festival at Alhamra Cultural Complex on Friday, with delightful performances by many artistes; the main attractions of the night were folk singer Abida Parveen and the whirling dervishes from Turkey.
Abida mesmerised the audience with her melodious voice and captivatingly repetitive tune. Belonging to a music family from Larkana, one of the homes of Sufism, Abida was brought up listening to the deep mysticism of Sufi poetry and music. Accompanied by harmoniums, the tabla and dholak, her fervid and inspirational singing was an experience the audience will never forget. She sang the qawwali and kafis of great poets. The mystic singers from Afghanistan did well also. Group leader Ustad Wali Mohammad started his career from Radio Pakistan in 1996 and has travelled around the world. He is teaching tabla at the Agha Khan Music Initiative for Central Asia in Kabul.
The whirling dervishes from the Galat Mevlevi Music and Sema Ensemble of Turkey were brilliant and spun the audience’s emotions into a vortex of spirituality. Group leader Nail Kesova told Daily Times that the real message behind the whirling dervishes was peace and humanity. He said Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi gave the same message 700 years ago. He said the dance was based on the movements of the universe, as everything was constantly turning in a certain direction and that dervishes copied the motion in God’s remembrance. “It is not a dance, as called by the West. It is the remembrance of God,” he said, adding the West had its own materialistic image about the dance, as they did not understand spiritualism.
He said Sufism had given birth to poets, musicians, theologians and politicians. He said travellers noticed the Mevlevis mainly because of their Sema (the ritual whirling dance). He said the ‘Sema’ ceremony signified man’s spiritual journey to heaven. “It is one’s disappearance into Allah, leaving one’s own self. The ‘Semazen’ while standing with his arms crossed depicts the apparent figure ‘one’, thereby signifying the unity of God in the beginning. Later, he stretches out his arms as he starts whirling with his right hand extended towards the sky, as if waiting to receive the ‘Kereem-e-Ilahi’,” he added.
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Sufi music enthusiasts were treated to another night of the International Mystic Music Sufi Festival at Alhamra Cultural Complex on Friday, with delightful performances by many artistes; the main attractions of the night were folk singer Abida Parveen and the whirling dervishes from Turkey.
Abida mesmerised the audience with her melodious voice and captivatingly repetitive tune. Belonging to a music family from Larkana, one of the homes of Sufism, Abida was brought up listening to the deep mysticism of Sufi poetry and music. Accompanied by harmoniums, the tabla and dholak, her fervid and inspirational singing was an experience the audience will never forget. She sang the qawwali and kafis of great poets. The mystic singers from Afghanistan did well also. Group leader Ustad Wali Mohammad started his career from Radio Pakistan in 1996 and has travelled around the world. He is teaching tabla at the Agha Khan Music Initiative for Central Asia in Kabul.
The whirling dervishes from the Galat Mevlevi Music and Sema Ensemble of Turkey were brilliant and spun the audience’s emotions into a vortex of spirituality. Group leader Nail Kesova told Daily Times that the real message behind the whirling dervishes was peace and humanity. He said Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi gave the same message 700 years ago. He said the dance was based on the movements of the universe, as everything was constantly turning in a certain direction and that dervishes copied the motion in God’s remembrance. “It is not a dance, as called by the West. It is the remembrance of God,” he said, adding the West had its own materialistic image about the dance, as they did not understand spiritualism.
He said Sufism had given birth to poets, musicians, theologians and politicians. He said travellers noticed the Mevlevis mainly because of their Sema (the ritual whirling dance). He said the ‘Sema’ ceremony signified man’s spiritual journey to heaven. “It is one’s disappearance into Allah, leaving one’s own self. The ‘Semazen’ while standing with his arms crossed depicts the apparent figure ‘one’, thereby signifying the unity of God in the beginning. Later, he stretches out his arms as he starts whirling with his right hand extended towards the sky, as if waiting to receive the ‘Kereem-e-Ilahi’,” he added.
The patron saint of Kaka Nagar
By Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan - Delhi Newsline - Express India
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Saeed, the caretaker, pushes his mop across the marble floors and raises his hand in a lazy salaam to Bibi Fatima Mai. Who is reposing, gently, under a purple silk sheet with gold stars on it, which is thrown grandly over her tomb. She is Saeed’s pal, he tells me as I enter, ‘‘We have chats at midnight or one in the morning, where I tell her what everyone wants.’’ It must be a long list though. For Hazrat Bibi Fatima, Sufi saint in her time, is also endowed with that most magical of talents — being able to grant wishes.
A friend of Nizamuddin Aulia, Bibi Fatima was known in her time for her incredible maternal instincts. She loved to feed and nurture several people and even now, while most dargahs are filled with rather strong and strange spirits — certainly no one you’d like to be chatting with at midnight — her spirit is gentler and kinder. And ‘‘has a direct connection to God’’ Saeed tells us, so he is happy working there.
But unlike Nizamuddin’s polished tomb, Bibi Fatima’s is easy to miss unless you’re looking for it. It has high whitewashed walls on all sides, a green plastic shed-like roof, near the higher dome and also, a very imposing message saying, ‘‘Wakf Land, Encroachers Will Be Prosecuted.’’ No wonder the place is a well-kept secret, in a city full of secrets.
According to legend, there was a prophecy made about Bibi Fatima saying that for many years her tomb would be in a state of disrepair until finally it gained recognition and renown again. And, true to this foretelling, her renovated dargah with a chandelier and electric fans and marble flooring was only built a couple of years ago, over the site of the original stone and mud tomb.
But even in the days of stone and mud, Bibi granted wishes and hopeful people lit candles on her tomb and scattered flowers around her. Now this new and probably much more comfortable dwelling has qawwali singers every Saturday night with crowds and crowds of people. But as I leave, there is only Saeed, watering a plant, unhurriedly, despite the fact that he’s already very late for his afternoon namaaz at the mosque. It’s the way he likes it, just him and Bibi and the sound of a koel in the neem tree.
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Saeed, the caretaker, pushes his mop across the marble floors and raises his hand in a lazy salaam to Bibi Fatima Mai. Who is reposing, gently, under a purple silk sheet with gold stars on it, which is thrown grandly over her tomb. She is Saeed’s pal, he tells me as I enter, ‘‘We have chats at midnight or one in the morning, where I tell her what everyone wants.’’ It must be a long list though. For Hazrat Bibi Fatima, Sufi saint in her time, is also endowed with that most magical of talents — being able to grant wishes.
A friend of Nizamuddin Aulia, Bibi Fatima was known in her time for her incredible maternal instincts. She loved to feed and nurture several people and even now, while most dargahs are filled with rather strong and strange spirits — certainly no one you’d like to be chatting with at midnight — her spirit is gentler and kinder. And ‘‘has a direct connection to God’’ Saeed tells us, so he is happy working there.
But unlike Nizamuddin’s polished tomb, Bibi Fatima’s is easy to miss unless you’re looking for it. It has high whitewashed walls on all sides, a green plastic shed-like roof, near the higher dome and also, a very imposing message saying, ‘‘Wakf Land, Encroachers Will Be Prosecuted.’’ No wonder the place is a well-kept secret, in a city full of secrets.
According to legend, there was a prophecy made about Bibi Fatima saying that for many years her tomb would be in a state of disrepair until finally it gained recognition and renown again. And, true to this foretelling, her renovated dargah with a chandelier and electric fans and marble flooring was only built a couple of years ago, over the site of the original stone and mud tomb.
But even in the days of stone and mud, Bibi granted wishes and hopeful people lit candles on her tomb and scattered flowers around her. Now this new and probably much more comfortable dwelling has qawwali singers every Saturday night with crowds and crowds of people. But as I leave, there is only Saeed, watering a plant, unhurriedly, despite the fact that he’s already very late for his afternoon namaaz at the mosque. It’s the way he likes it, just him and Bibi and the sound of a koel in the neem tree.
UP to build sufi tourist circuit
Bureau Report - Zee News - Jaunpur, India
Friday, April 14, 2006
Embarking on a unique initiative of secular tourism, the Uttar Pradesh government has decided to develop a sufi tourist circuit, connecting all major sites associated with sufism in the state.
The `mazars` of sufi saints like Deva Shariff in Barabanki district are frequented by people from all religious affiliations,and developing prominent sites of Sufism will attract tourists from all communities, up minister of tourism Kokab Hamid said here today.
The sufi circuit plan, to be launched soon, will not only help increase tourist inflow to the state, but also ensure the maintainance of the sufi sites, which were growing old, he added.
The search for meaning
By Alexandra Roginski - The Age - Australia
Monday, April 10, 2006
On-campus religious groups are thriving, and Tuesday can be a hectic day at the University of Melbourne if you're spiritually inclined. Lunchtime spells the tough choice between unwinding at the devotional gatherings of the Baha'i Society, scrutinising the scriptures with the Christian Union, or understanding more about Judaism thanks to Chabad on Campus. With 10 religious groups operating under its clubs and societies umbrella, students at the university needn't just restrict themselves to one weekday, though, and can continue their spiritual immersion throughout the week by delving into Sufism, Islam, and Seventh Day Adventism.
"Social scientists like me, we believed for a century that societies were becoming more secular with the triumph of science and rationalism. Now, in fact, we're recognising that the world is not becoming more secular," says Kevin McDonald, senior lecturer in sociology at the University of Melbourne.
Mr McDonald believes disillusionment with consumer culture, along with an erosion of the traditional pathways into adulthood, is opening young people's minds towards a search for meaning. Among other things, the notion of "spiritual journey" and the "search for wonder" are changing the face of religion from one based on cognitive principles, to one based on personal mystical experiences.
"Religion is less and less (about) religious institutions and more and more political and cultural movements," Mr McDonald says. "They're the ones shaping religions. We see it in Christianity and we see it in Hinduism and Islam as well. More and more their religious beliefs are becoming a personal trajectory and a personal quest, and less and less handed down to people."
Meanwhile, clubs such as University of Melbourne's MTO (Maktab Tarighat Oveyssi) Sufi Association fit perfectly under the model of the personal journey. Although stemming from eighth-century Islam, the contemporary form of Sufism on offer is open to students of all religious convictions for just a humble $4 membership fee.
Club president, Bahar Jamshidi, says: "During O Week when we were actually trying to promote it and get members, we were telling them that Sufism is self-knowledge. Through Sufism you get to know yourself better, through activities we organise like meditation.
"(That's) the main activity that grabs people - meditation. People want to relax. Students want to take it easy, and through meditation, a lot of students become members. We have regular book fairs, and at the workshops we also provide them with food," she says.
Faiths of all kinds are openly accepted at university, but the daily operations of a religious society usually require more than a mere prayer to get moving.
"I applied for the club at the start of last year and only managed to get everything through and approved at the start of this year," says Ms Jamshidi of the University of Melbourne's fledgling Sufi club. "I think starting a club is a very exhausting exercise."
Monday, April 10, 2006
On-campus religious groups are thriving, and Tuesday can be a hectic day at the University of Melbourne if you're spiritually inclined. Lunchtime spells the tough choice between unwinding at the devotional gatherings of the Baha'i Society, scrutinising the scriptures with the Christian Union, or understanding more about Judaism thanks to Chabad on Campus. With 10 religious groups operating under its clubs and societies umbrella, students at the university needn't just restrict themselves to one weekday, though, and can continue their spiritual immersion throughout the week by delving into Sufism, Islam, and Seventh Day Adventism.
"Social scientists like me, we believed for a century that societies were becoming more secular with the triumph of science and rationalism. Now, in fact, we're recognising that the world is not becoming more secular," says Kevin McDonald, senior lecturer in sociology at the University of Melbourne.
Mr McDonald believes disillusionment with consumer culture, along with an erosion of the traditional pathways into adulthood, is opening young people's minds towards a search for meaning. Among other things, the notion of "spiritual journey" and the "search for wonder" are changing the face of religion from one based on cognitive principles, to one based on personal mystical experiences.
"Religion is less and less (about) religious institutions and more and more political and cultural movements," Mr McDonald says. "They're the ones shaping religions. We see it in Christianity and we see it in Hinduism and Islam as well. More and more their religious beliefs are becoming a personal trajectory and a personal quest, and less and less handed down to people."
Meanwhile, clubs such as University of Melbourne's MTO (Maktab Tarighat Oveyssi) Sufi Association fit perfectly under the model of the personal journey. Although stemming from eighth-century Islam, the contemporary form of Sufism on offer is open to students of all religious convictions for just a humble $4 membership fee.
Club president, Bahar Jamshidi, says: "During O Week when we were actually trying to promote it and get members, we were telling them that Sufism is self-knowledge. Through Sufism you get to know yourself better, through activities we organise like meditation.
"(That's) the main activity that grabs people - meditation. People want to relax. Students want to take it easy, and through meditation, a lot of students become members. We have regular book fairs, and at the workshops we also provide them with food," she says.
Faiths of all kinds are openly accepted at university, but the daily operations of a religious society usually require more than a mere prayer to get moving.
"I applied for the club at the start of last year and only managed to get everything through and approved at the start of this year," says Ms Jamshidi of the University of Melbourne's fledgling Sufi club. "I think starting a club is a very exhausting exercise."
King's new gems
Metro Plus Chennai - The Hindu - India
Monday, April 10, 2006
Daler Mehndi on films, Sufi singing and more:
Daler Mehndi is back in action with the title song of "Rang De Basanti" that continues to rule the charts. The man who once made Bhangra a household name across the country and changed tack with Maqbool, seems to be getting selective these days.
The pop star says he was initially tense about the success of "Rang De Basanti." "Rakeysh Mehra and I were apprehensive about the box office results of the album. But we were overjoyed when the numbers topped all music charts."
The quality of lyrics in today's songs has degenerated, he feels. "It is mostly communicative and abusive language that is used in the lyrics. There is absence of inner meaning and emotions."
As for his recent appearance at the Jahan-e-Khusrau festival where he sang Sufi songs, he said he would always treasure the experience, especially the moments he spent with Sufi singer Abida Parveen.
The singer feels the advent of techno music has not just revolutionised music, but has also given rise to many challenging avenues in the field.
Playback singing or stage shows, which does he prefer? Pat comes the reply, "Stage shows. For a stage show, I practise rigorously, as the scope for errors is minimal."
Valley remembers ‘Shair-e-Kashmir’ Mehjoor
INF - Srinagar - Greater Kashmir Online Edition - India
Sunday, April 9, 2006
“The Valley of Kashmir has not only been bestowed with divine and celestial beauty but the great sons of the soil have demonstrated their intellect through poetry, philosophy, Sufism and other forms of art which have been acknowledged world wide,” was the unanimous opinion of scholars, renowned poets and administrators at the Mehjoor Conference held in the premises of Divisional Commissioner/Deputy Commissioner’s Srinagar office on Sunday.
Mayor, Srinagar Municipal Corporation, Ghulam Mustafa Bhat presided over the Conference while Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir Basharat Ahmed was the chief guest on this occasion. The function was organized by the Department of Information and Public Relations in collaboration with Radio Listeners Association on the eve of 54th death anniversary of Shair-e- Kashmir Mehjoor.
[Ghulam Ahmad Mehjoor popularly known as Shair-e-Kashmir (the poet of Kashmir) was born at Mitrigam on Ist August, 1887.]
Sunday, April 9, 2006
“The Valley of Kashmir has not only been bestowed with divine and celestial beauty but the great sons of the soil have demonstrated their intellect through poetry, philosophy, Sufism and other forms of art which have been acknowledged world wide,” was the unanimous opinion of scholars, renowned poets and administrators at the Mehjoor Conference held in the premises of Divisional Commissioner/Deputy Commissioner’s Srinagar office on Sunday.
Mayor, Srinagar Municipal Corporation, Ghulam Mustafa Bhat presided over the Conference while Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir Basharat Ahmed was the chief guest on this occasion. The function was organized by the Department of Information and Public Relations in collaboration with Radio Listeners Association on the eve of 54th death anniversary of Shair-e- Kashmir Mehjoor.
[Ghulam Ahmad Mehjoor popularly known as Shair-e-Kashmir (the poet of Kashmir) was born at Mitrigam on Ist August, 1887.]
Gujjars save the shared tradition in remote hills of J&K
By Luv Puri - The Milli Gazette Online - India
Sunday, April 9, 2006
Bafliaz (Surankote): Continuing the family tradition every Thursday evening Qasim Mohammad Kassana and his family go to the mazaar of Sufi saint Saidnoor and pay their obeisance at a place, which is thronged by the people of all faiths.It is the same place where five years ago, Lashkar area commander Kamal Zaki had asked the local people mostly Muslims not to go to the mazaar, as it was heretic to go to such shrines in Islam.
For centuries, the mazaars of the Sufi saints in the remote areas of Jammu and Kashmir or even along the Line of Control or the Indo-Pak International Border have stood out as the common and natural bond between the people of different cultures, ethnic races and different religious groups. Gujjar community, which inhabits every part of the state, is in the forefront of preserving the Sufi tradition in Jammu and Kashmir despite several odds.The Sufi mazaar of Sai Illahi Baksh situated along the Line of Control in Mandi area of Poonch district was one of the most volatile areas which saw intense shelling before the 26th November, 2003 Eid ceasefire.Even then,the Gujjar families who inhabit the belt looked after the mazaar at great risks to their lives.
The real challenge to save the Sufi heritage for the Gujjar Muslims was in the remote hills of Jammu and Kashmir, where the presence of Sufi shrines was to the disliking of some of the militants outfits as according to them it infringed with the basic tenets of Islam. But these groups made little headway as the Gujjar Muslims openly revolted against their diktat and saved the centuries old shared tradition. In 2000,a group of Lashkar militants descended on the Sufi shrine of Saidnoor in Bafliaz and burnt the fabrics,which are hung on the branches of the tree as part of the local custom. Similarly in the Chariwali area of Surankote, a foreign militant showed disrespect to the Sufi shrine of Banalidapir revered by the local people. This provoked an instant reaction among the locals, who took out a protest demonstration against the militants. This was the first recorded protest by the local people against the militants in an area which was termed their hotbed.Similar backlash was witnessed in the area when militants criticised the serving of food at an Urs ceremony, terming it un-Islamic.But the people could do little in the area where the militants writ ran.In many ways Surankote was known as a liberated zone in the security circles.In the towns also Shahdara Sharief shrine located in the highly militant infested belt of Thanna Mandi area of Rajouri district was targeted by the militants and there were attempts by some extremists to project the Ziarats (Sufi shrines) as anti-Islamic.
In real terms, militancy in Rajouri-Poonch belt lacked an ideological appeal unlike valley due to a different ethnic base of the people living here. The only common aspect between the people of this belt and valley populace was a common religion and therefore the militancy here had a religious character that started taking extremist tendencies against the moderate spirit of Islam. Later it was reflected in militants issuing diktats against the Sufi shrines which was one of the reasons for the first organised revolt of Gujjar Muslims who decided to take up arms against the militants to defend their culture. Mohammad Qasim, a Saudi Arabia returned Gujjar expatriate along with three men decided to form Village Defence Committee to defend themselves. In the last five years the number of such Gujjar Muslims in the belt has increased to over 200.Mohammad Qasim says, “When the militants started telling the people not to go to the shrines there was no option for us but to rebel. For us these shrines are precious as our entire lifestyle revolves around it and it is part of our centuries old heritage.We have lived in the holiest of places of Islam i.e., Mecca and it was certainly hurting when somebody tried to teach us our religion.” Resentful locals provoked a backlash against the militants and this saw the formation of the several Village Defence Committees in the terror zone. And it was the first time when local people gave tip off to the security forces resulting in the killing of the militants.
Mohammad Aslam, another Saudi returned expatriate says, “Sufi Shrines are our heritage and this is what binds the society together. And at no cost we would allow this heritage to be lost and we have given high priority to save this heritage.” Success is clearly witnessed by the efforts of the local population since they first revolted against the militants as all Sufi Shrines in the belt have witnessed huge rush particularly in the last one-year. In many ways, courage of the Gujjar Muslims has remained unacknowledged as many of them lost their lives while fighting with the militants. Qasim Mohammad says, “We fought for the nation voluntarily with ideological commitment towards saving the secular fabric of country and spirit of Islam which teaches equality and respect towards other faiths. Though we did not demand any awards,it did pain us when people in the security setup started taking credit for the work we had done at great risk to our lives.”
Padam Bhushan awardee, Balraj Puri, an authority on Jammu and Kashmir and has written extensively on Gujjars in the last six decades strongly believes in the vitality of little traditions. He says,“The Gujjar Muslims of the state of J&K are the prime example of the fact that the great religion of Islam is assimilative in nature and it also shows the importance of little traditions. The community not only takes prides in being Muslim but it is also proud of its cultural identity. In-fact both identities enrich each other and are not antagonistic in nature.”
What makes the Gujjars such an interesting community for the scholars while studying the shared or little traditions of Muslims and Hindus which have bonded the society at grass root level. The shared tradition of the Gujjar community can be gauged from the fact that though it is hundred percent Muslims it has unique ethnic affiliations with the Hindu Gujjars of neighbouring states like Rajasthan, Delhi or even Haryana. Besides sharing a common caste lineage, the Gojri language spoken by the Gujjars of the state is similar to Mewar dialect of Rajasthani.Sub-caste like Kassana, Baddana, Deddar, Chauhan, Paswal, Kataria, Kohli are common among Muslims as well as Hindu Gujjars in rest of the country. Every sub caste has a mazaar of its patron saint (pir); for instance, Kassana sub caste of Gujjars has its mazaar at Marote area of Surankote.
Sunday, April 9, 2006
Bafliaz (Surankote): Continuing the family tradition every Thursday evening Qasim Mohammad Kassana and his family go to the mazaar of Sufi saint Saidnoor and pay their obeisance at a place, which is thronged by the people of all faiths.It is the same place where five years ago, Lashkar area commander Kamal Zaki had asked the local people mostly Muslims not to go to the mazaar, as it was heretic to go to such shrines in Islam.
For centuries, the mazaars of the Sufi saints in the remote areas of Jammu and Kashmir or even along the Line of Control or the Indo-Pak International Border have stood out as the common and natural bond between the people of different cultures, ethnic races and different religious groups. Gujjar community, which inhabits every part of the state, is in the forefront of preserving the Sufi tradition in Jammu and Kashmir despite several odds.The Sufi mazaar of Sai Illahi Baksh situated along the Line of Control in Mandi area of Poonch district was one of the most volatile areas which saw intense shelling before the 26th November, 2003 Eid ceasefire.Even then,the Gujjar families who inhabit the belt looked after the mazaar at great risks to their lives.
The real challenge to save the Sufi heritage for the Gujjar Muslims was in the remote hills of Jammu and Kashmir, where the presence of Sufi shrines was to the disliking of some of the militants outfits as according to them it infringed with the basic tenets of Islam. But these groups made little headway as the Gujjar Muslims openly revolted against their diktat and saved the centuries old shared tradition. In 2000,a group of Lashkar militants descended on the Sufi shrine of Saidnoor in Bafliaz and burnt the fabrics,which are hung on the branches of the tree as part of the local custom. Similarly in the Chariwali area of Surankote, a foreign militant showed disrespect to the Sufi shrine of Banalidapir revered by the local people. This provoked an instant reaction among the locals, who took out a protest demonstration against the militants. This was the first recorded protest by the local people against the militants in an area which was termed their hotbed.Similar backlash was witnessed in the area when militants criticised the serving of food at an Urs ceremony, terming it un-Islamic.But the people could do little in the area where the militants writ ran.In many ways Surankote was known as a liberated zone in the security circles.In the towns also Shahdara Sharief shrine located in the highly militant infested belt of Thanna Mandi area of Rajouri district was targeted by the militants and there were attempts by some extremists to project the Ziarats (Sufi shrines) as anti-Islamic.
In real terms, militancy in Rajouri-Poonch belt lacked an ideological appeal unlike valley due to a different ethnic base of the people living here. The only common aspect between the people of this belt and valley populace was a common religion and therefore the militancy here had a religious character that started taking extremist tendencies against the moderate spirit of Islam. Later it was reflected in militants issuing diktats against the Sufi shrines which was one of the reasons for the first organised revolt of Gujjar Muslims who decided to take up arms against the militants to defend their culture. Mohammad Qasim, a Saudi Arabia returned Gujjar expatriate along with three men decided to form Village Defence Committee to defend themselves. In the last five years the number of such Gujjar Muslims in the belt has increased to over 200.Mohammad Qasim says, “When the militants started telling the people not to go to the shrines there was no option for us but to rebel. For us these shrines are precious as our entire lifestyle revolves around it and it is part of our centuries old heritage.We have lived in the holiest of places of Islam i.e., Mecca and it was certainly hurting when somebody tried to teach us our religion.” Resentful locals provoked a backlash against the militants and this saw the formation of the several Village Defence Committees in the terror zone. And it was the first time when local people gave tip off to the security forces resulting in the killing of the militants.
Mohammad Aslam, another Saudi returned expatriate says, “Sufi Shrines are our heritage and this is what binds the society together. And at no cost we would allow this heritage to be lost and we have given high priority to save this heritage.” Success is clearly witnessed by the efforts of the local population since they first revolted against the militants as all Sufi Shrines in the belt have witnessed huge rush particularly in the last one-year. In many ways, courage of the Gujjar Muslims has remained unacknowledged as many of them lost their lives while fighting with the militants. Qasim Mohammad says, “We fought for the nation voluntarily with ideological commitment towards saving the secular fabric of country and spirit of Islam which teaches equality and respect towards other faiths. Though we did not demand any awards,it did pain us when people in the security setup started taking credit for the work we had done at great risk to our lives.”
Padam Bhushan awardee, Balraj Puri, an authority on Jammu and Kashmir and has written extensively on Gujjars in the last six decades strongly believes in the vitality of little traditions. He says,“The Gujjar Muslims of the state of J&K are the prime example of the fact that the great religion of Islam is assimilative in nature and it also shows the importance of little traditions. The community not only takes prides in being Muslim but it is also proud of its cultural identity. In-fact both identities enrich each other and are not antagonistic in nature.”
What makes the Gujjars such an interesting community for the scholars while studying the shared or little traditions of Muslims and Hindus which have bonded the society at grass root level. The shared tradition of the Gujjar community can be gauged from the fact that though it is hundred percent Muslims it has unique ethnic affiliations with the Hindu Gujjars of neighbouring states like Rajasthan, Delhi or even Haryana. Besides sharing a common caste lineage, the Gojri language spoken by the Gujjars of the state is similar to Mewar dialect of Rajasthani.Sub-caste like Kassana, Baddana, Deddar, Chauhan, Paswal, Kataria, Kohli are common among Muslims as well as Hindu Gujjars in rest of the country. Every sub caste has a mazaar of its patron saint (pir); for instance, Kassana sub caste of Gujjars has its mazaar at Marote area of Surankote.
Echoes of fascism in Rajasthan
Staff Report - The Milli Gazette Online - India
Sunday, April 9, 2006
Bhanwar Meghvanshi is a native of Bhilwara (Rajasthan). He feels sad to see that this place where Hindus and Muslims had been living peacefully for centuries has now become a hotbed of communal politics which gives rise to hate, communal tension and conflicts have become the order of the day; through a 32 page booklet Meghvanshi has tried to warn the country about the impending storm which the activities of these organisations will lead to.
As many as 16 minor and major cases of rioting, stone pelting, looting, burning of shops and houses took place during March and April this year in different towns of Bhilwara district like Mandal, Bagor, Krera, Sujat etc, instigated mainly on mere doubts and suspicion by these groups. Victims in almost all cases were Muslims.
For example, a major incident took place on 17 March this year when green flags were found planted in 5 different temples in Krera. Some animal bones were also found there. In some temples “786” was also daubed. Muslims were the obvious suspects. Hindus became furious. They observed a three-day ‘bandh’. A sufi, Mohammad Hanif Shah Sailani Sarkar, and his disciples were held responsible for this ‘provocation’. Hindu communal leaders demanded a search of the sufi’s Dargah, otherwise they threatened to repeat “Gujarat”. The sufi had a farmhouse where illegal activities were alleged to take place like smuggling, manufacture of arms. It was claimed that the place is a den of anti socials, anti nationals and criminal elements, Pak and ISI agents etc. No one was allowed to go there. All this was however mere concoction. Police already knew the truth but on persistent demands made a formal search and, as expected, all accusations turned out to be a bundle of lies. The real culprit was a Shiv Sena leader called Ram Ratan Jhanwar alias Sintial who confessed that he had done all this to provoke a communal riot. The damage had been done.
Riots broke out and as expected, Muslims were the victims and sufferers. Not only this, their social and economic boycott was enforced. Nobody was allowed to purchase anything from their shops and no commodities were sold to them. No one was allowed to talk to them. All this made the lives of Muslims very difficult. Many of them left that place as a result.
Sunday, April 9, 2006
Bhanwar Meghvanshi is a native of Bhilwara (Rajasthan). He feels sad to see that this place where Hindus and Muslims had been living peacefully for centuries has now become a hotbed of communal politics which gives rise to hate, communal tension and conflicts have become the order of the day; through a 32 page booklet Meghvanshi has tried to warn the country about the impending storm which the activities of these organisations will lead to.
As many as 16 minor and major cases of rioting, stone pelting, looting, burning of shops and houses took place during March and April this year in different towns of Bhilwara district like Mandal, Bagor, Krera, Sujat etc, instigated mainly on mere doubts and suspicion by these groups. Victims in almost all cases were Muslims.
For example, a major incident took place on 17 March this year when green flags were found planted in 5 different temples in Krera. Some animal bones were also found there. In some temples “786” was also daubed. Muslims were the obvious suspects. Hindus became furious. They observed a three-day ‘bandh’. A sufi, Mohammad Hanif Shah Sailani Sarkar, and his disciples were held responsible for this ‘provocation’. Hindu communal leaders demanded a search of the sufi’s Dargah, otherwise they threatened to repeat “Gujarat”. The sufi had a farmhouse where illegal activities were alleged to take place like smuggling, manufacture of arms. It was claimed that the place is a den of anti socials, anti nationals and criminal elements, Pak and ISI agents etc. No one was allowed to go there. All this was however mere concoction. Police already knew the truth but on persistent demands made a formal search and, as expected, all accusations turned out to be a bundle of lies. The real culprit was a Shiv Sena leader called Ram Ratan Jhanwar alias Sintial who confessed that he had done all this to provoke a communal riot. The damage had been done.
Riots broke out and as expected, Muslims were the victims and sufferers. Not only this, their social and economic boycott was enforced. Nobody was allowed to purchase anything from their shops and no commodities were sold to them. No one was allowed to talk to them. All this made the lives of Muslims very difficult. Many of them left that place as a result.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Conference on Islam
Staff Report - Marin Independent Journal - San Rafael, CA, U.S.A.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
A conference on understanding Islam is scheduled for March 11 in the Creekside Room at Dominican University.
Topics and their presenters include: Women in Islam by Maha el Genaidi, president of Islamic Networks Group; Civil Rights in Islam by Suleiman Ghali, president of the Islamic Society of San Francisco; Message of Islam by Seyed Ali Kianfar, co-director of the International Association of Sufism; Beliefs in Islam by Ebrahim Nana, member of the board of the Islamic Center and Masjid of Mill Valley; Islamic Architecture by Michael Schwartzer, professor of art and architectural history at the California College of the Arts; and Islamic Mysticism by Dominican teacher Saleh Arthur Kane Scott.
Sufi musicians, including the Taneen Sufi Music Ensemble and singer Pir Shabda Kahn, are scheduled to perform.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
A conference on understanding Islam is scheduled for March 11 in the Creekside Room at Dominican University.
Topics and their presenters include: Women in Islam by Maha el Genaidi, president of Islamic Networks Group; Civil Rights in Islam by Suleiman Ghali, president of the Islamic Society of San Francisco; Message of Islam by Seyed Ali Kianfar, co-director of the International Association of Sufism; Beliefs in Islam by Ebrahim Nana, member of the board of the Islamic Center and Masjid of Mill Valley; Islamic Architecture by Michael Schwartzer, professor of art and architectural history at the California College of the Arts; and Islamic Mysticism by Dominican teacher Saleh Arthur Kane Scott.
Sufi musicians, including the Taneen Sufi Music Ensemble and singer Pir Shabda Kahn, are scheduled to perform.
Where Religion knows no Boundary
By Shubha Chacko and Sanjay Biswas - Deccan Herald - India
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Post Babri Masjid and the genocide at Gujarat, the tag of an uncivilised intolerant India haunts many of us. Stunned and ashamed we are; but despair we need not, if we recognise that such acts are motivated politically and thrust on an India which has also worked out, through centuries, complex methods of encouraging diverse cultural and religious expressions within the broad unity of the country.
Ilkal is the microcosm of this India where a unique experiment in syncretism had begun some nine hundred years ago and that tradition continues till date.
The tea shop at the Ilkal bus station is highly recommended to all intrepid travellers. Half the Hindu pantheon, of Gods and Goddesses, bedeck the wall, but the centre stage is held by a man dressed in white. If the weavers have given this little dusty town a strong economy it is this man Mahanta Swamy, with his friend Hazarat Sayyed Shah Murtaza Qadri, who have made this town in central Karnataka a synonym for harmony and peace. For the hundreds of thousands who, like us, flock to Ilkal every year - it is a pilgrimage, a refuge to seek during troubled times. So when we asked the owner of the teashop the direction to the dargha he becomes animated in talking to us of this friend of the Mahanta who lies buried there.
We made our way to the dargha a whitewashed large structure with an immense courtyard where kids played, cooks sweated over huge pots and the faithful offered prayers. We were chatting with the mullah in front of the building when a group came up to make an offering of coconuts. The mullah broke open the coconut and the water was used to bless the devotees. There are curious features in the dargha. There is a small shrine dedicated to a lingayat disciple of the Sufi where we found a flock of recently bathed Bengalis worshipping, eating and, of course, talking politics. Each feast day a procession from either the math or the dargha winds its way through the town to celebrate the festival of the other. On the annual festival day — the Urs a pot of sandalwood paste and a piece of green silk cloth is taken in a procession from the house of one Nar Singh Chauhan to the dargha where he, the Chauhan, places a crown on the head of the resident mullah.
This tradition of syncretism did not take root overnight. It has had a tortuous journey of nine hundred years where internal struggles and external influences have tried to derail the dreams and visions of Basava, the Sufis and most of their followers. It is heartening that the people of the area have stuck together through these vicissitudes to internalise a harmonious existence and culture.
From the Heart
Staff Report - Pune Newsline - Express India
Monday , February 27, 2006
It was one evening packed to full house. Ruhaniyat, the Sufi and mystic music festival that took place at Poona Club on Saturday evening left the audience, comprising a heady mix of corporates, tourists and celebrities, in a trance and asking for more of the soulful music by various artistes from across India.
Be it Aisa Hai Maska Mera sung by the Fakirs from Hyderabad, or Har Rang De Vich Vasda, Baba Bulle Shah’s Sufi qalam presented by Kachra Khan of Rajasthan or Iqbal Banda Nawazi’s Sufiana qawwali Tera Karam Duniya Ka Karam, the event was a sure shot success.
While the much-famed Baul songs by Parvathy Baul and Madan Vairagya from West Bengal further captivated the audience, Sufi songs by Punjab’s Nanak and Manak Brothers, the African Siddhi Goma drummers and Delhi’s Nizami brothers— Ghulam Sabi and Ghulam Waris added to the evening’s trance element.
Monday , February 27, 2006
It was one evening packed to full house. Ruhaniyat, the Sufi and mystic music festival that took place at Poona Club on Saturday evening left the audience, comprising a heady mix of corporates, tourists and celebrities, in a trance and asking for more of the soulful music by various artistes from across India.
Be it Aisa Hai Maska Mera sung by the Fakirs from Hyderabad, or Har Rang De Vich Vasda, Baba Bulle Shah’s Sufi qalam presented by Kachra Khan of Rajasthan or Iqbal Banda Nawazi’s Sufiana qawwali Tera Karam Duniya Ka Karam, the event was a sure shot success.
While the much-famed Baul songs by Parvathy Baul and Madan Vairagya from West Bengal further captivated the audience, Sufi songs by Punjab’s Nanak and Manak Brothers, the African Siddhi Goma drummers and Delhi’s Nizami brothers— Ghulam Sabi and Ghulam Waris added to the evening’s trance element.
Dance of Ecstasy
By Manjula Negi - The Times of India
Monday, February 27, 2006
When the acclaimed Kathak danseuse Manjari Chaturvedi takes the stage at the Khajuraho Dance Festival (2 - 5 March) for the first time this year, she will not just be performing Sufi Kathak.
It will be an affirmation and recognition towards what Manjari has managed to achieve for the unique art form that she has developed and honed over the last decade and a half. She had been training in the classical dance form of Kathak for 11 years before that.
"In an effort to rediscover Kathak from its classical form, I have introduced the mystique of Sufism." Her meditative moving form on stage is akin to the whirling dervishes in the Sufi tradition and merely attempts to give expression to the 'formlessness' of the Almighty.
"In Kathak stories are recited about Radha-Krishna while in the Sufi traditions – the lyrics render the love for the Almighty. My base remains Kathak for there is always a story-telling aspect in my dance. The concept of nirvana in Hindu philosophy and fanaah in Islamic philosophy is the same.
Since it is easier to relate to a form, I have developed new movements, which will convey that sense of ecstasy that the Sufiana kalam expresses through music.
Trained in the pure classical traditions of Kathak under Pandit Arjun Mishra, of the Lucknow gharana, Manjari chose to blend her love for the qawaali with Kathak way back in 1995-96 when she was given a chance to perform at Neemrana.
She launched it formally in Delhi in the year 2000. "I perform ghazals, holi and tarana in Sufi Kathak which were also originally a part of Kathak. Both are in praise of the Almighty, thus both are closely interwoven. "In a classical dance performance the spotlight remains on the dancer. But in my case, I often have to tell the light man to concentrate on creating an atmosphere on stage, that it's alright if my face is not seen for five minutes in a performance lasting an hour."
Manjari prefers the chauda pyjamas and flowing kurtas compared to the tight-fitting churidaar and angkharkha, which highlight the form of a dancer.
"My concept is clear. I don't dance to entertain. I dance in praise of the Almighty so the attention has to be taken away from me." She always has two sets of musicians (folk and classical) on stage "who enable me to find that perfect sync."
The young dancer has always shied away from teaching Sufi Kathak until now. "I can only teach the form that I learnt, which is Kathak. The love for the Almighty has to come from within. It's only now, after all these years that there is a defined structure in place and I can initiate others into it, just as I was initiated.
He made it happen for me, He influenced me. I can't just do Tere ishq mein (the music video by Vishal Bhardwaj set to lyrics of Gulzar) and renditions of Baba Bulle Shah without doing justice to the thought they put into the love for Him. That has to come through in my performances or I shouldn't be doing it all."
Manjari has performed with Abida Parveen, the Sabri brothers, the Manginniaars of Rajasthan and with musicians from Iran and Turkmenistan apart from performing worldwide including Zurich, Tashkent, Kualalumpur, Kuwait, Portugal, Sydney and Colombo to name some.
Now, it is only befitting that she lay bare her devotion in the untarnished precincts of the temples of Khajuraho.
Monday, February 27, 2006
When the acclaimed Kathak danseuse Manjari Chaturvedi takes the stage at the Khajuraho Dance Festival (2 - 5 March) for the first time this year, she will not just be performing Sufi Kathak.
It will be an affirmation and recognition towards what Manjari has managed to achieve for the unique art form that she has developed and honed over the last decade and a half. She had been training in the classical dance form of Kathak for 11 years before that.
"In an effort to rediscover Kathak from its classical form, I have introduced the mystique of Sufism." Her meditative moving form on stage is akin to the whirling dervishes in the Sufi tradition and merely attempts to give expression to the 'formlessness' of the Almighty.
"In Kathak stories are recited about Radha-Krishna while in the Sufi traditions – the lyrics render the love for the Almighty. My base remains Kathak for there is always a story-telling aspect in my dance. The concept of nirvana in Hindu philosophy and fanaah in Islamic philosophy is the same.
Since it is easier to relate to a form, I have developed new movements, which will convey that sense of ecstasy that the Sufiana kalam expresses through music.
Trained in the pure classical traditions of Kathak under Pandit Arjun Mishra, of the Lucknow gharana, Manjari chose to blend her love for the qawaali with Kathak way back in 1995-96 when she was given a chance to perform at Neemrana.
She launched it formally in Delhi in the year 2000. "I perform ghazals, holi and tarana in Sufi Kathak which were also originally a part of Kathak. Both are in praise of the Almighty, thus both are closely interwoven. "In a classical dance performance the spotlight remains on the dancer. But in my case, I often have to tell the light man to concentrate on creating an atmosphere on stage, that it's alright if my face is not seen for five minutes in a performance lasting an hour."
Manjari prefers the chauda pyjamas and flowing kurtas compared to the tight-fitting churidaar and angkharkha, which highlight the form of a dancer.
"My concept is clear. I don't dance to entertain. I dance in praise of the Almighty so the attention has to be taken away from me." She always has two sets of musicians (folk and classical) on stage "who enable me to find that perfect sync."
The young dancer has always shied away from teaching Sufi Kathak until now. "I can only teach the form that I learnt, which is Kathak. The love for the Almighty has to come from within. It's only now, after all these years that there is a defined structure in place and I can initiate others into it, just as I was initiated.
He made it happen for me, He influenced me. I can't just do Tere ishq mein (the music video by Vishal Bhardwaj set to lyrics of Gulzar) and renditions of Baba Bulle Shah without doing justice to the thought they put into the love for Him. That has to come through in my performances or I shouldn't be doing it all."
Manjari has performed with Abida Parveen, the Sabri brothers, the Manginniaars of Rajasthan and with musicians from Iran and Turkmenistan apart from performing worldwide including Zurich, Tashkent, Kualalumpur, Kuwait, Portugal, Sydney and Colombo to name some.
Now, it is only befitting that she lay bare her devotion in the untarnished precincts of the temples of Khajuraho.
Multifaith Banquet
By David Yonke - Toledo Blade - Ohio, U.S.A.
Friday, February 24, 2006
About 240 people attended the banquet and panel discussion held in the Genesis Dreamplex and sponsored by the MultiFaith Council of Northwest Ohio. Display tables offering information on Sikhism, Sufism, Judaism, Jainism, and about 15 other faiths or social service agencies were set up in the banquet hall.
Friday, February 24, 2006
About 240 people attended the banquet and panel discussion held in the Genesis Dreamplex and sponsored by the MultiFaith Council of Northwest Ohio. Display tables offering information on Sikhism, Sufism, Judaism, Jainism, and about 15 other faiths or social service agencies were set up in the banquet hall.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Repression of Iranian Sufis continues
Persian Journal - Iran News
Thursday, Feb 23, 2006
Following the violent raid and destruction of the Sufi hosseiniyeh in Qom on February 13, and the arrest of an estimated 1,000 followers, Grand Ayatollah Montazeri and former Majles speaker Mehdi Karrubi condemned the regime on Monday for the attack and called for an apology and compensation to the Sufi community.
The regime has acknowledged the arrests, and said that 200 people had been injured. Opposition sources tell FDI that 3 women were killed when they tried to flee Revolutionary Guards troops and their car overturned, while a man was shot dead, apparently by Pasdaran troops. 150 people remain in custody.
Thursday, Feb 23, 2006
Following the violent raid and destruction of the Sufi hosseiniyeh in Qom on February 13, and the arrest of an estimated 1,000 followers, Grand Ayatollah Montazeri and former Majles speaker Mehdi Karrubi condemned the regime on Monday for the attack and called for an apology and compensation to the Sufi community.
The regime has acknowledged the arrests, and said that 200 people had been injured. Opposition sources tell FDI that 3 women were killed when they tried to flee Revolutionary Guards troops and their car overturned, while a man was shot dead, apparently by Pasdaran troops. 150 people remain in custody.
Baul songs, Sufi quawwali for a spiritual high
By Laxmi Birajdar - Pune Newsline - Express India
Friday, February 24, 2006
Puneites have a fine sense of Sufiana quawwali and that makes our job as artistes much easier. The city is oozing with culture and I have always enjoyed performing here,’’ says quawwal Mohmmaded Iqbal Hussain Khan Banda Nawazi. In Pune for the sixth time, he is part of Ruhaniyat, the five-year-old Sufi and Mystic music festival that will unfold on Saturday at Poona Club.
“Sufiana quawwali requires understanding of the shers and the music that accompanies it,” says Nawazi who, with his son Ateeq Hussain Khan, will present Sufi qalams (or writings) by Amir Khusro. ‘‘A sher is sung in a characteristic musical style,’’ he explains.
At the festival, voices of the fakirs from Hyderabad, Sufi songs by Nanak and Manak Brothers from Punjab, the African Siddhi Goma drummers, Baul songs by Parvathy Baul and Madan Vairagya from Bengal, Sufi Kalam and mystic compositions by Kachra Khan from Rajasthan and the Nizami brothers— Ghulam Sabi and Ghulam Waris from Delhi will be heard.
The festival that started in Mumbai is the brainchild of Mahesh Babu who plans to help them financially. “We will set up a fund for these Sufi artistes to help them showcase their talent,” he says. While most have performed in Pune, Parvathy Baul will take stage here for the first time. “I have heard about the city’s cultural and spiritual background and am looking forward to performing here. Each time, I try to seek a new dialogue with my audience through performance,” she says.
The festival has loyal listeners. For banker Sudha Ravi, a regular at Ruhaniyat, the experience is unusual. ‘‘You get to hear so many different genres of Sufi music. I had never known that the African Siddhi Goma drums were a part of Sufi music,” she says. For homemaker Anuradha Toshniwal, Ruhaniyat is a rich experience that transports her to a different world. “ One needs to understand the words and the feelings that are sung.”
Friday, February 24, 2006
Puneites have a fine sense of Sufiana quawwali and that makes our job as artistes much easier. The city is oozing with culture and I have always enjoyed performing here,’’ says quawwal Mohmmaded Iqbal Hussain Khan Banda Nawazi. In Pune for the sixth time, he is part of Ruhaniyat, the five-year-old Sufi and Mystic music festival that will unfold on Saturday at Poona Club.
“Sufiana quawwali requires understanding of the shers and the music that accompanies it,” says Nawazi who, with his son Ateeq Hussain Khan, will present Sufi qalams (or writings) by Amir Khusro. ‘‘A sher is sung in a characteristic musical style,’’ he explains.
At the festival, voices of the fakirs from Hyderabad, Sufi songs by Nanak and Manak Brothers from Punjab, the African Siddhi Goma drummers, Baul songs by Parvathy Baul and Madan Vairagya from Bengal, Sufi Kalam and mystic compositions by Kachra Khan from Rajasthan and the Nizami brothers— Ghulam Sabi and Ghulam Waris from Delhi will be heard.
The festival that started in Mumbai is the brainchild of Mahesh Babu who plans to help them financially. “We will set up a fund for these Sufi artistes to help them showcase their talent,” he says. While most have performed in Pune, Parvathy Baul will take stage here for the first time. “I have heard about the city’s cultural and spiritual background and am looking forward to performing here. Each time, I try to seek a new dialogue with my audience through performance,” she says.
The festival has loyal listeners. For banker Sudha Ravi, a regular at Ruhaniyat, the experience is unusual. ‘‘You get to hear so many different genres of Sufi music. I had never known that the African Siddhi Goma drums were a part of Sufi music,” she says. For homemaker Anuradha Toshniwal, Ruhaniyat is a rich experience that transports her to a different world. “ One needs to understand the words and the feelings that are sung.”
Syria witnesses Islamist revival
By Kim Ghattas - BBC News, Damascus
Wednesday, 22 February 2006
For centuries, the traditional sound of Islam coming from the northern Syrian town of Aleppo, has been the rhythmical chanting of the word "Allah", as men young and old rock back and forth in a small room in the back of a house.
Beating their drums, chanting faster and faster, the men hope to achieve a trance that will bring them closer to God in the traditions of the mystical or Sufi Islam.
The musical capital of the Arab world in many ways, Aleppo's song and dance have been heavily influenced by Sufism.
But today, it is mostly a very austere call to prayer that can be heard around the city as a growing number of women adopt the full Islamic cover, hiding their hands and faces behind back cloth.
Religion is making a comeback in Syria, where people feel the state's socialist and pan-Arab ideologies have failed for the last four decades.
"We have a phenomenon of radicalisation taking place in schools and university," said Salam Kawakibi, a political analyst in Aleppo.
After ruthlessly crushing a Muslim Brotherhood rebellion in 1982, the Syrian government has found it is unable to contain the rise of religion.
So instead, the authorities have decided to go with the trend and co-opt the symbols of Islam.
"After the clashes of 1980, the state tried to create an official Islam. They encouraged the building of mosques and the creation of religious schools. They think it is a way to control society," Mr Kawakibi said.
Muhammad Habash, the only Islamist MP in the Syrian parliament, says the Baath party has not allowed the emergence of any real Islamist leaders, but pressure is growing.
"Personally, I don't see the need for Islamist parties and I don't think there will be an Islamic state in Syria if there is full democracy," Mr Habash said.
"But conservative Islamists have the right to ask for Islamist parties."
And while the Syrian government thinks it can maintain control over the increasing religious trend, many analysts now believe the Islamists could outsmart the state.
Wednesday, 22 February 2006
For centuries, the traditional sound of Islam coming from the northern Syrian town of Aleppo, has been the rhythmical chanting of the word "Allah", as men young and old rock back and forth in a small room in the back of a house.
Beating their drums, chanting faster and faster, the men hope to achieve a trance that will bring them closer to God in the traditions of the mystical or Sufi Islam.
The musical capital of the Arab world in many ways, Aleppo's song and dance have been heavily influenced by Sufism.
But today, it is mostly a very austere call to prayer that can be heard around the city as a growing number of women adopt the full Islamic cover, hiding their hands and faces behind back cloth.
Religion is making a comeback in Syria, where people feel the state's socialist and pan-Arab ideologies have failed for the last four decades.
"We have a phenomenon of radicalisation taking place in schools and university," said Salam Kawakibi, a political analyst in Aleppo.
After ruthlessly crushing a Muslim Brotherhood rebellion in 1982, the Syrian government has found it is unable to contain the rise of religion.
So instead, the authorities have decided to go with the trend and co-opt the symbols of Islam.
"After the clashes of 1980, the state tried to create an official Islam. They encouraged the building of mosques and the creation of religious schools. They think it is a way to control society," Mr Kawakibi said.
Muhammad Habash, the only Islamist MP in the Syrian parliament, says the Baath party has not allowed the emergence of any real Islamist leaders, but pressure is growing.
"Personally, I don't see the need for Islamist parties and I don't think there will be an Islamic state in Syria if there is full democracy," Mr Habash said.
"But conservative Islamists have the right to ask for Islamist parties."
And while the Syrian government thinks it can maintain control over the increasing religious trend, many analysts now believe the Islamists could outsmart the state.
Iranian reformist speaks out against sectarian violence
By Gareth Smyth in Tehran - Financial Times
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Mehdi Karrubi, Iran’s former parliamentary speaker and a veteran of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, has criticised Shia Muslim radicals who last week destroyed a religious building belonging to Islamic mystics in the holy city of Qom.
His comments – prominent in reformist newspapers – reflect concern about Shia militants stirring conflict as Iran’s fundamentalist president, Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, tries to radicalise Islam at home and abroad, and as Sunni militants provoke sectarian violence in neighbouring Iraq with attacks like Wednesday’s on the Askariyeh holy Shia shrine in Samarra.
Mr Karrubi was responding to violence in Qom last week when radicals destroyed a meeting house used by Sufis, an Islamic order viewed with suspicion by some Shia.
The clashes – which led to hundreds of arrests and the use of tear gas by police – arose from a four-year dispute over ownership of the building, where Sufis practised religious rites.
The governor-general of Qom told Jomhuri-ye Eslami, a conservative newspaper, the Sufis were part of a “foreign plot …[by] arrogant powers exploiting every opportunity to create insecurity.”
Some conservative ayatollahs have in recent months criticised the growth of Sufism, which sometimes involves music and dance, as a threat to Islam.
But Mr Karrubi argued the authorities should “find ways to criticise schools of thought … without violating human rights”.
He argued that “real Islam is powerful and broadminded enough to be capable of resolving sectarian disputes”. Mr Karrubi has written to the “sources of emulation” – the most senior Shia clergy – in Qom asking them to “show the reality of religious freedom”.
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Mehdi Karrubi, Iran’s former parliamentary speaker and a veteran of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, has criticised Shia Muslim radicals who last week destroyed a religious building belonging to Islamic mystics in the holy city of Qom.
His comments – prominent in reformist newspapers – reflect concern about Shia militants stirring conflict as Iran’s fundamentalist president, Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, tries to radicalise Islam at home and abroad, and as Sunni militants provoke sectarian violence in neighbouring Iraq with attacks like Wednesday’s on the Askariyeh holy Shia shrine in Samarra.
Mr Karrubi was responding to violence in Qom last week when radicals destroyed a meeting house used by Sufis, an Islamic order viewed with suspicion by some Shia.
The clashes – which led to hundreds of arrests and the use of tear gas by police – arose from a four-year dispute over ownership of the building, where Sufis practised religious rites.
The governor-general of Qom told Jomhuri-ye Eslami, a conservative newspaper, the Sufis were part of a “foreign plot …[by] arrogant powers exploiting every opportunity to create insecurity.”
Some conservative ayatollahs have in recent months criticised the growth of Sufism, which sometimes involves music and dance, as a threat to Islam.
But Mr Karrubi argued the authorities should “find ways to criticise schools of thought … without violating human rights”.
He argued that “real Islam is powerful and broadminded enough to be capable of resolving sectarian disputes”. Mr Karrubi has written to the “sources of emulation” – the most senior Shia clergy – in Qom asking them to “show the reality of religious freedom”.
What is problem of Sufis in Iran?
By Bahman Aghai Diba - Persian Journal
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
The Islamic-Arabic (sic) [Ed. note: it is Islamic-Persian] government of Iran has recently attacked the center of Sufis in Qom, and arrested a number of Dervishes (Iranian Sufis). Although arresting the Iranian Sufis by the Islamic regime is a new move, bothering the Sufis in the last 27 years is nothing new.
The regime of Iran has always looked with suspicion and sometimes disgust to the Sufis because the Dervishes do not believe in any role for the Mullahs. They believe that people do not need any middleman for contacting God. The Dervishes are very devoted to their way of life. They see the religious zealots as corrupt people. However, these are not the reason of the recent attacks against them
The real reason is that the people of Iran, especially younger generations, out of desperation or any other reason, are welcoming the Sufi gathering more am more. The Sufis had their gathering in the past and they tried to stay away from politics. However, the welcoming of the Sufi ways of life and the Sufi type of approach to the religion (especially towards Islam) has found a new wave during the last years. Every year, more and more people try to have gathering under the name of Sufis.
The new stage of Islamic fundamentalism, after the election of the new president by the Islamic-Arabic regime of the Iranian Mullahs' Mafia, has opened the way for trouble making of the organized street thugs (like Baseejis) and the disciplinary forces for the Sufi gatherings. Although Sufi Muslims strictly observe Islamic practices and beliefs, some conservative Muslim clerics see it as a danger to Islam.
Some even argue that Sufism is a deviation of Islam. "Unfortunately under the years of the rule of the Islamic government we have seen limitations on non-Muslims -- above all, Baha'is, Jews, and also Christians -- and on Sufi groups, and their meetings have been disrupted," says Lahidji Iran's hard-line daily "Kayhan" on 14 February quoted senior clerics in Qom as saying that "Sufism should be eradicated...".
Sufis have always been respected in Iran because of their humble and down to earth behavior. Definitely their approach to life is different from the dictatorial imposition of the special interpretation of Islam by the Mullahs of Iran.
Some of the people in Iran have found a way of getting away from the rulings of the Mullahs through the adherence to Sufi practices. The Sufis are among the most peace-loving and tolerant people in Iran and probably in the world. They are suffering under the Iranian regime and they consider such suffering as part of the duty that they owe to their faith.
Wedded bliss, at long last
By Bala Chauhan - Deccan Herald - Bangalore, India
Saturday, April 8, 2006
They began their journey at an evening at the dargah of Sufi Saint Nizamuddin Chishti in Delhi in November 2005. They had come there to offer prayers. “We met each other and exchanged cards. Thereafter, we kept in touch and on February 2 this year, we tied the knot,” says danseuse Pratibha Prahlad.
A single parent of eight-year-old twins Chirayu and Chirantan, Pratibha got married to Congress politician and a Delhiite Sandeep Chandra.
“I have had a very stressful life. I was always lonely and wanted to get married. It’s just that I didn’t find the right person till now. So when Sandeep proposed to me I agreed. I told my sons that I am getting married and they would have a father,” she says.
Saturday, April 8, 2006
They began their journey at an evening at the dargah of Sufi Saint Nizamuddin Chishti in Delhi in November 2005. They had come there to offer prayers. “We met each other and exchanged cards. Thereafter, we kept in touch and on February 2 this year, we tied the knot,” says danseuse Pratibha Prahlad.
A single parent of eight-year-old twins Chirayu and Chirantan, Pratibha got married to Congress politician and a Delhiite Sandeep Chandra.
“I have had a very stressful life. I was always lonely and wanted to get married. It’s just that I didn’t find the right person till now. So when Sandeep proposed to me I agreed. I told my sons that I am getting married and they would have a father,” she says.
Say it with sufism
By Mariam Mushtaq - Daily Times - Pakistan
Saturday, April 8, 2006
LAHORE: Sometimes all it takes for decades-old prejudices to melt away is a car ride and an open mind. No one would agree more than Dr Fatima Hussain, eminent Indian scholar, who first visited Pakistan in April last year at the invitation of the World Punjabi Congress.
A perfectly safe drive around the streets of Lahore that deposited her and her luggage intact at her destination was enough to quell such fears. Moreover, finding a noticeable lack of the burqa-clad female forms she had been expecting to see, it did not take long for Dr Hussain to realise how similar Lahore and Delhi really were.
Stereotypes do not sit well with Dr Hussain in any case, which is probably why she found it so easy to discard her own. Born and raised within New Delhi’s Muslim community, she became used to having her progressive outlook challenged by outsiders who expected her to behave a certain way because of her religion. Her choice of attire, often western, her career and her forthrightness became cause for many a raised eyebrow but that did not deter her from building a formidable resumé.
A masters degree in History from the Delhi University was followed by a PhD from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, dubbed the Harvard of South Asia by some. Her doctoral thesis was a study of sufism during the Delhi Sultanate. She has also published two books, The Palestine Question: A Historical Perspective and Relations between the Sufis and the Sultanate as well as numerous articles and reviews in international academic journals.
Dr Hussain finds it easy to forgive her detractors because she realises that their biases stem more from insecurity than anything else. “Muslim societies all over the world are susceptible to stereotypical thinking and the major factor for this is the rivalry between the East and the West that can be traced back to the golden age of Islam”.
The unity displayed by the Muslim world can also be a cause of insecurity, says Dr Hussain. “That acts of namaaz and Haj, that bring together Muslims across all divides, are examples of our solidarity and can often cause unease among outsiders.” The answer, according to her, lies in setting minds at ease and tackling mutual insecurities by keeping one’s faith to oneself, and not brandishing it like a sword at the slightest provocation. She heard her views echoed by President Musharraf while attending a conference in Lahore, where he proclaimed that we needed to emphasise the essence of Islam and not its ritualism, and was more than a little impressed.
In town to attend an international conference on the sufi poet Shah Hussain organised by the WPC, she stresses the importance of sufism in bringing about peace between the two countries. The subject is specially pertinent in the context of bridging the gulf between the Muslim and western worlds. “The beauty of sufism is that it transcends formal religion. Islam might be perceived as orthodox and regimented by some but Sufism, despite being a part of Islam, is more open and inclusive. And its message, of love, humanity and peace, is universal.”
Saturday, April 8, 2006
LAHORE: Sometimes all it takes for decades-old prejudices to melt away is a car ride and an open mind. No one would agree more than Dr Fatima Hussain, eminent Indian scholar, who first visited Pakistan in April last year at the invitation of the World Punjabi Congress.
A perfectly safe drive around the streets of Lahore that deposited her and her luggage intact at her destination was enough to quell such fears. Moreover, finding a noticeable lack of the burqa-clad female forms she had been expecting to see, it did not take long for Dr Hussain to realise how similar Lahore and Delhi really were.
Stereotypes do not sit well with Dr Hussain in any case, which is probably why she found it so easy to discard her own. Born and raised within New Delhi’s Muslim community, she became used to having her progressive outlook challenged by outsiders who expected her to behave a certain way because of her religion. Her choice of attire, often western, her career and her forthrightness became cause for many a raised eyebrow but that did not deter her from building a formidable resumé.
A masters degree in History from the Delhi University was followed by a PhD from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, dubbed the Harvard of South Asia by some. Her doctoral thesis was a study of sufism during the Delhi Sultanate. She has also published two books, The Palestine Question: A Historical Perspective and Relations between the Sufis and the Sultanate as well as numerous articles and reviews in international academic journals.
Dr Hussain finds it easy to forgive her detractors because she realises that their biases stem more from insecurity than anything else. “Muslim societies all over the world are susceptible to stereotypical thinking and the major factor for this is the rivalry between the East and the West that can be traced back to the golden age of Islam”.
The unity displayed by the Muslim world can also be a cause of insecurity, says Dr Hussain. “That acts of namaaz and Haj, that bring together Muslims across all divides, are examples of our solidarity and can often cause unease among outsiders.” The answer, according to her, lies in setting minds at ease and tackling mutual insecurities by keeping one’s faith to oneself, and not brandishing it like a sword at the slightest provocation. She heard her views echoed by President Musharraf while attending a conference in Lahore, where he proclaimed that we needed to emphasise the essence of Islam and not its ritualism, and was more than a little impressed.
In town to attend an international conference on the sufi poet Shah Hussain organised by the WPC, she stresses the importance of sufism in bringing about peace between the two countries. The subject is specially pertinent in the context of bridging the gulf between the Muslim and western worlds. “The beauty of sufism is that it transcends formal religion. Islam might be perceived as orthodox and regimented by some but Sufism, despite being a part of Islam, is more open and inclusive. And its message, of love, humanity and peace, is universal.”
Monday, October 16, 2006
Amarnath yatra to begin
IANS Indo-Asian News Service - Jammu, Kashmir
Friday, April 7, 2006
The annual Hindu pilgrimage to the Himalayan cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir will begin on June 11 and last for almost two months.
The pilgrimage, which is expected to attract over 500,000 pilgrims, will conclude Aug 9, said a spokesman of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB).
The board has drawn up a detailed programme to raise a temporary environmental-friendly infrastructure to lodge pilgrims, whose number is expected to touch half a million mark this year, the spokesman said.
The cave shrine situated at the height of 13,500 feet above sea level was discovered by a Muslim shepherd more than a century ago. Since then Hindus have been visiting the shrine during summers to pay obeisance at the cave where a natural ice-made 'lingam' (stalagmite), seen as an icon of lord Shiva, is formed.
The yatra will start with the hosting of Sufiana music festivals in Srinagar and some district headquarters. Reputed Sufi artists of the country and Pakistan are likely to participate in the festival.
Friday, April 7, 2006
The annual Hindu pilgrimage to the Himalayan cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir will begin on June 11 and last for almost two months.
The pilgrimage, which is expected to attract over 500,000 pilgrims, will conclude Aug 9, said a spokesman of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB).
The board has drawn up a detailed programme to raise a temporary environmental-friendly infrastructure to lodge pilgrims, whose number is expected to touch half a million mark this year, the spokesman said.
The cave shrine situated at the height of 13,500 feet above sea level was discovered by a Muslim shepherd more than a century ago. Since then Hindus have been visiting the shrine during summers to pay obeisance at the cave where a natural ice-made 'lingam' (stalagmite), seen as an icon of lord Shiva, is formed.
The yatra will start with the hosting of Sufiana music festivals in Srinagar and some district headquarters. Reputed Sufi artists of the country and Pakistan are likely to participate in the festival.
Soorya Dance and Music Festival on April 17
Staff - Times of Oman - Muscat, Oman
Friday, April 7, 2006
MUSCAT — Soorya Stage and Film Society is presenting its first programme of the year, Soorya Dance and Music Festival, at the Le Grand Hall of Al Falaj Hotel, on April 17. The programme is brought to Oman by Al Falaj Hotel in association with Oman UAE Exchange Centre.
This time the public will be blessed with an opportunity to experience a unique and innovative combination of two of the world’s richest dance art forms — Bharatanatyam and Sufi Kathak. This will be a very rare, perhaps, once in a life time opportunity exploring the natya, bhava and abhinaya of Bharatanatyam and experiencing the sublime movements of Sufi Kathak with its richly poetic beauty of Sufi poems. These mesmerising moments will be brought to the community by two of India’s topmost dancer-choreographers — Priyadarshini Govind in Bharatanatyam and Manjari Chaturvedi in Sufi Kathak.
After her arangettam in 1974 under the auspices of the Mylapore Fine Arts Club, Chennai, Priyadarshini Govind has been performing in all the major centres in India.
Manjari Chaturvedi, classical Kathak danseuse and a performing artiste for over a decade, is an extraordinary young dancer, adding subtle innovations to the Kathak repertoire while preserving the tenets of the classical style.
Friday, April 7, 2006
MUSCAT — Soorya Stage and Film Society is presenting its first programme of the year, Soorya Dance and Music Festival, at the Le Grand Hall of Al Falaj Hotel, on April 17. The programme is brought to Oman by Al Falaj Hotel in association with Oman UAE Exchange Centre.
This time the public will be blessed with an opportunity to experience a unique and innovative combination of two of the world’s richest dance art forms — Bharatanatyam and Sufi Kathak. This will be a very rare, perhaps, once in a life time opportunity exploring the natya, bhava and abhinaya of Bharatanatyam and experiencing the sublime movements of Sufi Kathak with its richly poetic beauty of Sufi poems. These mesmerising moments will be brought to the community by two of India’s topmost dancer-choreographers — Priyadarshini Govind in Bharatanatyam and Manjari Chaturvedi in Sufi Kathak.
After her arangettam in 1974 under the auspices of the Mylapore Fine Arts Club, Chennai, Priyadarshini Govind has been performing in all the major centres in India.
Manjari Chaturvedi, classical Kathak danseuse and a performing artiste for over a decade, is an extraordinary young dancer, adding subtle innovations to the Kathak repertoire while preserving the tenets of the classical style.
Iranian Zurkhaneh Sports to be Studied at British Academy
CHN Staff - CHN Cultural Heritage News Agency
Tehran, 6 April 2006
The present condition of Zurkhaneh Sports as Iranian ancient sports will be studied in British Academy with the attendance of experts in Iranian studies. According to British Institute of Persian Studies, on Thursday 29 June 2006 at 5.15 pm, Prof. Lloyed Ridgeon will present his lecture on the topic of “The Zurkhaneh between Tradition and Change” at the British Academy in London.
Lloyd Ridgeon is a professor of Islamic studies who teaches classical Islamic studies, Islamic movements of the 19th and 20th centuries, and Sufism in Department of Theology and Religious Studies of the University of Glasgow.
He has several researches about Islamic history, theology and politics; classical and modern Sufism; Iranian history and culture; and Persian literature.
Iranians were the first nation in the world who attached great importance to their health, burly figure, and strength; they carried out body building exercises and trained their offspring to practice them as well.
Zurkhaneh (house of strength) is the Iranian traditional gymnasium, in which the national Iranian sport is practiced. It is a covered structure lit by a single opening in the ceiling. The exercise is very formal and the moves are carried out to the rhythm of the drum and a singer reciting traditional verses. Zourkhaneh is not only a place for physical exercises but also a place for learning chivalrous behaviors. The Zourkhaneh-sportsman is first expected to be pure, truthful and good tempered and then strong in body.
The first International Festival of Zurkhaneh Sports of Urbans of the World was held in the city of Mashhad in Khorasan Razavi province from 11-16 November 2005 with the attendance of 33 countries.
Tehran, 6 April 2006
The present condition of Zurkhaneh Sports as Iranian ancient sports will be studied in British Academy with the attendance of experts in Iranian studies. According to British Institute of Persian Studies, on Thursday 29 June 2006 at 5.15 pm, Prof. Lloyed Ridgeon will present his lecture on the topic of “The Zurkhaneh between Tradition and Change” at the British Academy in London.
Lloyd Ridgeon is a professor of Islamic studies who teaches classical Islamic studies, Islamic movements of the 19th and 20th centuries, and Sufism in Department of Theology and Religious Studies of the University of Glasgow.
He has several researches about Islamic history, theology and politics; classical and modern Sufism; Iranian history and culture; and Persian literature.
Iranians were the first nation in the world who attached great importance to their health, burly figure, and strength; they carried out body building exercises and trained their offspring to practice them as well.
Zurkhaneh (house of strength) is the Iranian traditional gymnasium, in which the national Iranian sport is practiced. It is a covered structure lit by a single opening in the ceiling. The exercise is very formal and the moves are carried out to the rhythm of the drum and a singer reciting traditional verses. Zourkhaneh is not only a place for physical exercises but also a place for learning chivalrous behaviors. The Zourkhaneh-sportsman is first expected to be pure, truthful and good tempered and then strong in body.
The first International Festival of Zurkhaneh Sports of Urbans of the World was held in the city of Mashhad in Khorasan Razavi province from 11-16 November 2005 with the attendance of 33 countries.
U.S. decries human rights violations in Iran
Iran News - London
Thursday, April 6, 2006
In its annual report on U.S. efforts at encouraging human rights worldwide, entitled "Supporting Human Rights and Democracy: The U.S. Record 2005 - 2006", the U.S. State Department accused Iran of carrying out “summary executions, discrimination based on ethnicity and religion, harassment and arrest of journalists and bloggers, disappearances, extremist vigilantism, widespread use of torture, and other degrading treatment”.
It charged that the hard-line iranian government continued to discriminate against and arrest members of the Baha’i religious community. Other religious and ethnic minority groups, including Jews, Christians, and Sunni and Sufi Muslims faced continued social, political, and economic discrimination, it said.
Thursday, April 6, 2006
In its annual report on U.S. efforts at encouraging human rights worldwide, entitled "Supporting Human Rights and Democracy: The U.S. Record 2005 - 2006", the U.S. State Department accused Iran of carrying out “summary executions, discrimination based on ethnicity and religion, harassment and arrest of journalists and bloggers, disappearances, extremist vigilantism, widespread use of torture, and other degrading treatment”.
It charged that the hard-line iranian government continued to discriminate against and arrest members of the Baha’i religious community. Other religious and ethnic minority groups, including Jews, Christians, and Sunni and Sufi Muslims faced continued social, political, and economic discrimination, it said.
Jordan to Host Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Summit
Royal Hashemite Court, Communication & Information Division
Amman, Jordan - Wednesday, April 5, 2006
Under the patronage of His Majesty King Abdullah II, a large number of senior Iraqi religious and tribal leaders - both Sunnis and Shi'is, Arabs and Kurds - will gather in Amman on April 22, 2006 for The Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Summit. The meeting, organized in cooperation between Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought and the Arab League, will provide a forum for Iraqi leaders to take a crucial step towards stemming the violence in Iraq.
During the summit, King Abdullah will join the delegates in a call for an end to bloodshed and religious tension in Iraq. The summit is expected to culminate in a signed declaration stating that fighting between Shi'is and Sunnis has no legitimate religious basis.
The Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Summit builds upon The International Islamic Conference on “True Islam and its Role in Modern Society” hosted by King Abdullah in July 2005. In the final conference declaration, over 180 scholars representing 45 countries signed the final declaration condemning the practice known as takfir (calling others “apostates”) that is used by extremists to justify violence.
They were supported by fatwas from 20 of the world's most senior Islamic scholars, including the Shaykh Al-Azhar, Grand Ayatollah Sistani, the Muftis of Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Jordan and Oman and Sheikh Yusif Al-Qardawi.
The declaration also recognized the legitimacy of all eight of the traditional schools of Islamic religious law (madhhabs): the Sunni, Shi'i and Ibadi branches of Islam, as well as traditional Asharite theology, Islamic mysticism (Sufism) and moderate Salafi thought.
This historical Islamic consensus was adopted by the entire Islamic world at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit at Mecca in December 2005. This agreement on religious principles will form the doctrinal basis for the Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Summit's final declaration.
Amman, Jordan - Wednesday, April 5, 2006
Under the patronage of His Majesty King Abdullah II, a large number of senior Iraqi religious and tribal leaders - both Sunnis and Shi'is, Arabs and Kurds - will gather in Amman on April 22, 2006 for The Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Summit. The meeting, organized in cooperation between Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought and the Arab League, will provide a forum for Iraqi leaders to take a crucial step towards stemming the violence in Iraq.
During the summit, King Abdullah will join the delegates in a call for an end to bloodshed and religious tension in Iraq. The summit is expected to culminate in a signed declaration stating that fighting between Shi'is and Sunnis has no legitimate religious basis.
The Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Summit builds upon The International Islamic Conference on “True Islam and its Role in Modern Society” hosted by King Abdullah in July 2005. In the final conference declaration, over 180 scholars representing 45 countries signed the final declaration condemning the practice known as takfir (calling others “apostates”) that is used by extremists to justify violence.
They were supported by fatwas from 20 of the world's most senior Islamic scholars, including the Shaykh Al-Azhar, Grand Ayatollah Sistani, the Muftis of Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Jordan and Oman and Sheikh Yusif Al-Qardawi.
The declaration also recognized the legitimacy of all eight of the traditional schools of Islamic religious law (madhhabs): the Sunni, Shi'i and Ibadi branches of Islam, as well as traditional Asharite theology, Islamic mysticism (Sufism) and moderate Salafi thought.
This historical Islamic consensus was adopted by the entire Islamic world at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit at Mecca in December 2005. This agreement on religious principles will form the doctrinal basis for the Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Summit's final declaration.
Iranian Sufi Muslim protesters still detained
Amnesty International USA News
AI Index: NWS 21/003/2006 - The Wire
April 2006 Vol. 36. No. 03
Hundreds of demonstrators, including women and children, were injured when police and organized pro-government groups broke up a peaceful protest by Nematollahi Sufi Muslims in Qom, Iran, on 13 February.
At the beginning of March at least 173 people were still detained, including lawyer Bahman Nazari, himself a Sufi Muslim, who reportedly travelled from the city of Tabriz in north-west Iran to Qom in order to try and represent the detainees. He was arrested as soon as he approached officials and presented his practice licence. The detainees’ families have been unable to obtain information about their whereabouts, legal status, health or conditions.
There appears to be increasing "demonization" of the Sufi Muslim group in Iran.
AI Index: NWS 21/003/2006 - The Wire
April 2006 Vol. 36. No. 03
Hundreds of demonstrators, including women and children, were injured when police and organized pro-government groups broke up a peaceful protest by Nematollahi Sufi Muslims in Qom, Iran, on 13 February.
At the beginning of March at least 173 people were still detained, including lawyer Bahman Nazari, himself a Sufi Muslim, who reportedly travelled from the city of Tabriz in north-west Iran to Qom in order to try and represent the detainees. He was arrested as soon as he approached officials and presented his practice licence. The detainees’ families have been unable to obtain information about their whereabouts, legal status, health or conditions.
There appears to be increasing "demonization" of the Sufi Muslim group in Iran.
Bollywood cries for little hearts
Staff report - India Daily
Wednesday, Apr. 5, 2006
When Bollywood's Sanjna Kapoor and Kunal Kapoor joined musician Rabbi Shergill on the same dais, anybody could have mistaken it for the launch of a latest video or a preview meet of a new movie. But it was a different afternoon. They were there for a special cause -- a noble one -- to endorse children's education. With a mission to make a difference to the lives of hundreds of children who are unable to access education, CRY (Child Rights and You), India's premier child relief organisation, joined hands with Procter and Gamble (P&G) to participate in ''Shiksha'' -- a programme to help educate children across India.
Rabbi Shergill, the Sufi singer, strongly believes that education is an issue that has to be dealt from a broader perspective. He says, "The initiative by CRY gladdens me as well as saddens me. I just have the pop star's grasp of social activism. Education is an issue that needs to be handled collectively instead of individually."
The versatile theatre personality Sanjna says that corporate groups providing assistance to such missions should make this as their mandate and not an exception. "When little hearts CRY, I''m on the verge of tears. When you put faith, hope and love together, you can raise positive kids in a negative world," expresses Sanjna.
Wednesday, Apr. 5, 2006
When Bollywood's Sanjna Kapoor and Kunal Kapoor joined musician Rabbi Shergill on the same dais, anybody could have mistaken it for the launch of a latest video or a preview meet of a new movie. But it was a different afternoon. They were there for a special cause -- a noble one -- to endorse children's education. With a mission to make a difference to the lives of hundreds of children who are unable to access education, CRY (Child Rights and You), India's premier child relief organisation, joined hands with Procter and Gamble (P&G) to participate in ''Shiksha'' -- a programme to help educate children across India.
Rabbi Shergill, the Sufi singer, strongly believes that education is an issue that has to be dealt from a broader perspective. He says, "The initiative by CRY gladdens me as well as saddens me. I just have the pop star's grasp of social activism. Education is an issue that needs to be handled collectively instead of individually."
The versatile theatre personality Sanjna says that corporate groups providing assistance to such missions should make this as their mandate and not an exception. "When little hearts CRY, I''m on the verge of tears. When you put faith, hope and love together, you can raise positive kids in a negative world," expresses Sanjna.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Kosovo's Dervishes dance toward salvation
By AFP Agence France-Presse, Prizren (Pristina), Serbia-Montenegro
Kim Info-service, News from Kosovo and Metohija
Tuesday, April 4, 2006
Every spring the Dervishes of Kosovo -- among the last in Europe -- dance, chant and push knives into their bodies in a quest for heavenly salvation.
They are shunned by many fellow Muslims as starry-eyed mystics, but the Dervishes who gathered recently in Prizen for a centuries-old celebration do not see themselves as outside the Islamic pale.
"We are the avant garde of the Muslim religion," says Shejh Adrihusejn, a leader of the mystical order, playing down the dramatic extremes to which Dervishes go to attain religious fulfillment. "We do not accept being presented as a Muslim mystic sect or an extreme branch of our religion," says the Shejh, a title given to Dervish community leaders.
A fraternity of Sufi Islam famous for both their asceticism and their hypnotic, trance-inducing dances, the Dervish community in Kosovo is a legacy of the Ottoman empire that once held sway over this Serbian province. While 95 percent of Kosovo's two million inhabitants are Muslim, only a tiny fraction -- some 50,000 -- are Dervishes. There are also Sufi communities in neighboring Albania and Macedonia.
At the end of March the 5,000 Dervishes of Prizen in southern Kosovo celebrate the Spring equinox festival of "Sultan Nevruz," the moment when the sun begins to favor the Northern Hemisphere and day become longer than night.
The ceremony unfolds in the hilly suburbs of this picture-postcard town in special ampitheatre, or "teqe," that bears little resemblance to a traditional Muslim mosque.Some 60 dervishes of all ages dressed in black and white waistcoats and flat hats, including a few children, begin chanting before an overflowing crowd. Women, guests and journalists are kept to the side or observe from a small wooden balcony.
What is about to unfold is so dramatic as to shock the uninitiated, and even shake one's understanding of medical science.
"La-illaha-illallah" ("There is no god but God") the Dervishes intone in a subdued prayer, forming a semi-circle around Shejh Adrihusejn.
Bobbing their heads, they slowly up the tempo and volume of the prayer from a deep murmur into full-throated howl, praying for their past sins to be pardoned.The crescendo mounts for two hours until the Dervishes are swaying in a state of mystical ecstasy. "Allah Hu" (he is God), they chant in perfect unison.
That is when the skewers and knives appear.
The Shejh leads the way, coating 15-centimetre (six inch) long needles with his saliva and then piercing his two young sons. He does the same to three other children.
Miraculously, there is no blood, and the children show no sign of fear or pain, swaying silently as they hold the needles pierced through one side of their mouths.
Next come the blades: Shejh slowly eases 40-centimetre ( 1.3-foot) knives with rounded, pearl-coated stems through both cheeks of the Dervishes, one-by-one.
Driven by the rhythm of kettledrums and tambourines, the entranced worshipers sway in a semi-conscious state, repeating their calls to "Allah" over and over.
Next they begin piercing their necks with knives, proudly displaying the wounds.
"The knives symbolize the healing of all wounds. This is the blessing of God and the power of the order," says an elderly, high-ranking Dervish after the ceremony.
Finally, the intensity subsides into a prayer for the souls of all prophets and believers, as the Dervishes remove the knives and return them to the Shejh, kissing his hands.
Later, the 44-year-old Shejh talks about his flock's esoteric tradition, insisting that it has a place in modern society.
"We propagandize love among people. Belief is, in essence, love towards God, towards others and towards life," he says.
"I am against any extremism. I am a Muslim and a European of the 21st Century -- Internet is an important part of my life," he says.
Kim Info-service, News from Kosovo and Metohija
Tuesday, April 4, 2006
Every spring the Dervishes of Kosovo -- among the last in Europe -- dance, chant and push knives into their bodies in a quest for heavenly salvation.
They are shunned by many fellow Muslims as starry-eyed mystics, but the Dervishes who gathered recently in Prizen for a centuries-old celebration do not see themselves as outside the Islamic pale.
"We are the avant garde of the Muslim religion," says Shejh Adrihusejn, a leader of the mystical order, playing down the dramatic extremes to which Dervishes go to attain religious fulfillment. "We do not accept being presented as a Muslim mystic sect or an extreme branch of our religion," says the Shejh, a title given to Dervish community leaders.
A fraternity of Sufi Islam famous for both their asceticism and their hypnotic, trance-inducing dances, the Dervish community in Kosovo is a legacy of the Ottoman empire that once held sway over this Serbian province. While 95 percent of Kosovo's two million inhabitants are Muslim, only a tiny fraction -- some 50,000 -- are Dervishes. There are also Sufi communities in neighboring Albania and Macedonia.
At the end of March the 5,000 Dervishes of Prizen in southern Kosovo celebrate the Spring equinox festival of "Sultan Nevruz," the moment when the sun begins to favor the Northern Hemisphere and day become longer than night.
The ceremony unfolds in the hilly suburbs of this picture-postcard town in special ampitheatre, or "teqe," that bears little resemblance to a traditional Muslim mosque.Some 60 dervishes of all ages dressed in black and white waistcoats and flat hats, including a few children, begin chanting before an overflowing crowd. Women, guests and journalists are kept to the side or observe from a small wooden balcony.
What is about to unfold is so dramatic as to shock the uninitiated, and even shake one's understanding of medical science.
"La-illaha-illallah" ("There is no god but God") the Dervishes intone in a subdued prayer, forming a semi-circle around Shejh Adrihusejn.
Bobbing their heads, they slowly up the tempo and volume of the prayer from a deep murmur into full-throated howl, praying for their past sins to be pardoned.The crescendo mounts for two hours until the Dervishes are swaying in a state of mystical ecstasy. "Allah Hu" (he is God), they chant in perfect unison.
That is when the skewers and knives appear.
The Shejh leads the way, coating 15-centimetre (six inch) long needles with his saliva and then piercing his two young sons. He does the same to three other children.
Miraculously, there is no blood, and the children show no sign of fear or pain, swaying silently as they hold the needles pierced through one side of their mouths.
Next come the blades: Shejh slowly eases 40-centimetre ( 1.3-foot) knives with rounded, pearl-coated stems through both cheeks of the Dervishes, one-by-one.
Driven by the rhythm of kettledrums and tambourines, the entranced worshipers sway in a semi-conscious state, repeating their calls to "Allah" over and over.
Next they begin piercing their necks with knives, proudly displaying the wounds.
"The knives symbolize the healing of all wounds. This is the blessing of God and the power of the order," says an elderly, high-ranking Dervish after the ceremony.
Finally, the intensity subsides into a prayer for the souls of all prophets and believers, as the Dervishes remove the knives and return them to the Shejh, kissing his hands.
Later, the 44-year-old Shejh talks about his flock's esoteric tradition, insisting that it has a place in modern society.
"We propagandize love among people. Belief is, in essence, love towards God, towards others and towards life," he says.
"I am against any extremism. I am a Muslim and a European of the 21st Century -- Internet is an important part of my life," he says.
Indian Islamic schools offer lesson in harmony
By Bappa Majumdar - Reuters - WorldWide Religious News
Monday, April 03, 2006
Kolkata, India - Indian schoolgirl Julita Oraon, a devout Christian, never misses Sunday mass, but the rest of her week is spent studying Arabic and Sufi literature among other subjects at an Islamic religious school, or madrasa.
Oraon is one of tens of thousands of Hindu and Christian students in the state of West Bengal now attending such schools: in this part of India, madrasas are emerging as beacons of tolerance. While a predominantly Hindu state, a quarter of West Bengal's population of 80 million are Muslims and one percent are Christians.
After a Hindu mob destroyed a mosque in the northern holy city of Ayodhya in 1992 much of India was wracked by deadly communal riots. But in Bengal students from madrasas, both Muslims and Hindus, led processions denouncing the demolition.
"People find it difficult to believe, but our madrasas ... are reflecting modern aspirations and expectations of the community irrespective of religion," Kanti Biswas, the state's education minister, told Reuters.
"We had carefully planned the madrasa reforms to make young minds understand the values of religious tolerance and it is finally paying off."
Monday, April 03, 2006
Kolkata, India - Indian schoolgirl Julita Oraon, a devout Christian, never misses Sunday mass, but the rest of her week is spent studying Arabic and Sufi literature among other subjects at an Islamic religious school, or madrasa.
Oraon is one of tens of thousands of Hindu and Christian students in the state of West Bengal now attending such schools: in this part of India, madrasas are emerging as beacons of tolerance. While a predominantly Hindu state, a quarter of West Bengal's population of 80 million are Muslims and one percent are Christians.
After a Hindu mob destroyed a mosque in the northern holy city of Ayodhya in 1992 much of India was wracked by deadly communal riots. But in Bengal students from madrasas, both Muslims and Hindus, led processions denouncing the demolition.
"People find it difficult to believe, but our madrasas ... are reflecting modern aspirations and expectations of the community irrespective of religion," Kanti Biswas, the state's education minister, told Reuters.
"We had carefully planned the madrasa reforms to make young minds understand the values of religious tolerance and it is finally paying off."
Alternative Music featured at Moksha Jemal concert
By Scarr - UNM Today - University of New Mexico, USA
April 03, 2006
New England musical ensemble HuDost featuring two core members, singer/songwriters Moksha Sommer and JemalWade Hines, present acoustic-based music on Thursday, May 4 at 7 p.m. in the Student Union ballroom.
Their music includes an ethereal ambience mixed with hints of pop, sacred chant, Sufi poetry, experimental electronic and other world music with lovely layers and beautiful harmonies.
Moksha Sommer, graduate of Concordia University in Montreal, is a well-seasoned vocalist who has studied 12 different vocal styles worldwide. Gainesville, Fla. guitarist, singer/songwriter, percussionist and producer JemalWade Hines has been writing, recording and performing music for 17 years.
HuDost’s original work ranges in style from alternative world music to their own country and eastern fusion, and atmospheric, experimental sound. This is mixed with the rich, eclectic, blending of traditional Sufi music, Bulgarian and Balkan translations, Farsi, Turkish, Arabic and Southern Gospel.
Their debut CD, “In an Eastern Rose Garden,” was released in 2005 to rave reviews. They are currently putting the finishing touches on their first CD of all original material with engineer/producer Gil Morales for a projected June release.
A U.S. tour will follow the release of the new CD in the spring summer and autumn with plans to go international in 2007. See: www.hudost.com.
Joining Moksha and JemalWade for this special evening is Roshan Jennifer Ferraro presenting poetry and sacred dance and Zakir Marc McCamey on frame drum. Ferraro is a poet, author and dancer who performs with the Latif Bolat Ensemble playing frame drum and reciting poetry with devotional dance.
This event is sponsored by UNM’s Turkish Student Association, UNM’s Institute for Medieval Studies, Desert Rose Center, Sufi Order International and the Nur-Ashki Jerrahi Sufi Order.
April 03, 2006
New England musical ensemble HuDost featuring two core members, singer/songwriters Moksha Sommer and JemalWade Hines, present acoustic-based music on Thursday, May 4 at 7 p.m. in the Student Union ballroom.
Their music includes an ethereal ambience mixed with hints of pop, sacred chant, Sufi poetry, experimental electronic and other world music with lovely layers and beautiful harmonies.
Moksha Sommer, graduate of Concordia University in Montreal, is a well-seasoned vocalist who has studied 12 different vocal styles worldwide. Gainesville, Fla. guitarist, singer/songwriter, percussionist and producer JemalWade Hines has been writing, recording and performing music for 17 years.
HuDost’s original work ranges in style from alternative world music to their own country and eastern fusion, and atmospheric, experimental sound. This is mixed with the rich, eclectic, blending of traditional Sufi music, Bulgarian and Balkan translations, Farsi, Turkish, Arabic and Southern Gospel.
Their debut CD, “In an Eastern Rose Garden,” was released in 2005 to rave reviews. They are currently putting the finishing touches on their first CD of all original material with engineer/producer Gil Morales for a projected June release.
A U.S. tour will follow the release of the new CD in the spring summer and autumn with plans to go international in 2007. See: www.hudost.com.
Joining Moksha and JemalWade for this special evening is Roshan Jennifer Ferraro presenting poetry and sacred dance and Zakir Marc McCamey on frame drum. Ferraro is a poet, author and dancer who performs with the Latif Bolat Ensemble playing frame drum and reciting poetry with devotional dance.
This event is sponsored by UNM’s Turkish Student Association, UNM’s Institute for Medieval Studies, Desert Rose Center, Sufi Order International and the Nur-Ashki Jerrahi Sufi Order.
Muslim march
LET newsdesk/Lancashire Telegraph
Monday, 3 April 2006
THOUSANDS of East Lancashire's Muslims took to the streets of Blackburn to celebrate the birth of the Holy Prophet Muhammad with a walk through the town.
Police estimated that at least 6,000 Muslim men braved the pouring rain yesterday for the holy march from Oak Street, Bastwell, to the Cutchi Muslim Association Hall at Newton Street for celebration prayers and refreshments.
The march also celebrated the teachings of Khawaja Sufi Mohammad Aslam, a grand spiritual master who moved to Blackburn in the 1980s and died in 1999.
'Lataji can give anybody a complex'
By Vandana Soni Bakshi - The Times of India
Monday, 3 Apr, 2006
Celebrated sufi singer Rekha Bharadwaj shares her mysticism with us.
You would probably expect her to turn up her nose at the mention of Bollywood numbers, but Rekha Bharadwaj likes to spring surprises. The celebrated sufi singer loves to dance to Kajra re..., Dhoom macha le, Pathshala and "all those racy tracks."
"There are songs which you sit and listen to - like Chupke se.. from Saathiya and others which get you dancing and I enjoy both immensely," says the classical singer who is in the city to perform at Daaman-e-Lucknow along with Sufi Kathak exponent Manjari Chaturvedi.
Incidentally, the event which is Manjari's brainchild is slated to become an annual event wherein artists of Lucknow, who've made it big nationally and internationally will be invited to perform.
Rekha rose out of the shadow of her husband Vishal Bharadwaj following the release of a Sufi music album, 'Ishqa Ishqa' whose lyrics were composed by none other than Gulzar. "It was an 11-year-long wait during which the venture witnessed many flips-flops and it was only in 2003 that the album finally saw the light of day," she says. With singing being a childhood passion, Rekha started striking the high notes "soon as I started speaking. Initially my sister tutored me and then I trained under Pt Amarnathji."
With Begum Akhtar and Mehdi Hasan being all time favourites, "Ghazals were a passion with me. However, after marriage I did dabble in Bollywood singing. There was Abhay in which I rendered a Lohri, Woh din bhi tha... in Chachi 420, Meri jaan... in Bhaggmati. In fact, I sang with Usha Uthup and Kavita Krishnamurthy for Godmother too but playback singing is a different ball game. The songs have to contribute to making the movie a commercial success and the stress is not on the purity of gayaki." The realisation made Rekha return to the classical fold as she felt she was "Not ready for the Hindi film industry. Now I am singing for Piyush Kanojia and Sameer Tandon."
One wonders why she never thought of singing for Maachis which had music by Vishal? "Lataji can give anybody a complex. I never thought (and still don't think) I could match up to her. Who would listen to me once she started to sing?" she questions with good-hearted laughter. "Besides I never thought of taking advantage of being Vishal's wife," she adds as an after thought.
Ready to cross borders now, Rekha will soon be singing for a Pakistani serial Tere Ishq Mein. "The compositions will be sufiana. This is the form of gayaki which has helped me evolve as a person and connect with God and my loved ones better. Now, it is an integral part of my personality," says the gifted singer who is currently compiling verses of Sultan Bahu and Baba Bulle Shah for her next album.
As far her association with Manjari goes, Rekha says, "When I saw her whirling (a form of meditation) for a particular number, I was awe-struck by the ease with which she glided over the sand. The love for sufi compositions connects us and the bonding has helped us grow as artistes."
Some associations are indeed God made!
Monday, 3 Apr, 2006
Celebrated sufi singer Rekha Bharadwaj shares her mysticism with us.
You would probably expect her to turn up her nose at the mention of Bollywood numbers, but Rekha Bharadwaj likes to spring surprises. The celebrated sufi singer loves to dance to Kajra re..., Dhoom macha le, Pathshala and "all those racy tracks."
"There are songs which you sit and listen to - like Chupke se.. from Saathiya and others which get you dancing and I enjoy both immensely," says the classical singer who is in the city to perform at Daaman-e-Lucknow along with Sufi Kathak exponent Manjari Chaturvedi.
Incidentally, the event which is Manjari's brainchild is slated to become an annual event wherein artists of Lucknow, who've made it big nationally and internationally will be invited to perform.
Rekha rose out of the shadow of her husband Vishal Bharadwaj following the release of a Sufi music album, 'Ishqa Ishqa' whose lyrics were composed by none other than Gulzar. "It was an 11-year-long wait during which the venture witnessed many flips-flops and it was only in 2003 that the album finally saw the light of day," she says. With singing being a childhood passion, Rekha started striking the high notes "soon as I started speaking. Initially my sister tutored me and then I trained under Pt Amarnathji."
With Begum Akhtar and Mehdi Hasan being all time favourites, "Ghazals were a passion with me. However, after marriage I did dabble in Bollywood singing. There was Abhay in which I rendered a Lohri, Woh din bhi tha... in Chachi 420, Meri jaan... in Bhaggmati. In fact, I sang with Usha Uthup and Kavita Krishnamurthy for Godmother too but playback singing is a different ball game. The songs have to contribute to making the movie a commercial success and the stress is not on the purity of gayaki." The realisation made Rekha return to the classical fold as she felt she was "Not ready for the Hindi film industry. Now I am singing for Piyush Kanojia and Sameer Tandon."
One wonders why she never thought of singing for Maachis which had music by Vishal? "Lataji can give anybody a complex. I never thought (and still don't think) I could match up to her. Who would listen to me once she started to sing?" she questions with good-hearted laughter. "Besides I never thought of taking advantage of being Vishal's wife," she adds as an after thought.
Ready to cross borders now, Rekha will soon be singing for a Pakistani serial Tere Ishq Mein. "The compositions will be sufiana. This is the form of gayaki which has helped me evolve as a person and connect with God and my loved ones better. Now, it is an integral part of my personality," says the gifted singer who is currently compiling verses of Sultan Bahu and Baba Bulle Shah for her next album.
As far her association with Manjari goes, Rekha says, "When I saw her whirling (a form of meditation) for a particular number, I was awe-struck by the ease with which she glided over the sand. The love for sufi compositions connects us and the bonding has helped us grow as artistes."
Some associations are indeed God made!
'Chhaiyan Chhaiyan' in a Spike Lee film
By Nikhil Kumar - Apun Ka Choice - Berkeley, Ca, USA
03rd Apr 2006 17.30 IST
We have already seen Nicole Kidman jiving to Indian song Chhamma Chhamma in ‘Moulin Rouge’. Now, American independent filmmaker Spike Lee’s first Hollywood project features Chhaiyan Chhaiyan.
Composed by A R Rahman and written by Gulzar for Mani Ratnam’s movie Dil Se, Chhaiyan Chhaiyan had Shah Rukh Khan dancing atop a moving train with Malaika Arora .
The song is basically inspired from a traditional Sufi qawwali called Tere Ishq Ne Nachaya, Thaiyya Thaiyya by the Sufi mystic, Baba Bulleh Shah. Rahman himself is a big fan of Sufi music.
Reports have it that Chhaiyan Chhaiyan appears in Spike Lee’s latest movie ‘Inside Man’. The song appears in the background at the movie’s beginning and its end.
‘Inside Man’ is a heist thriller starring Jodie Foster, Denzel Washington and Clive Owen. According to reports, after seeing the movie at a recent preview, American audience seemed to have taken a fancy to the song.
03rd Apr 2006 17.30 IST
We have already seen Nicole Kidman jiving to Indian song Chhamma Chhamma in ‘Moulin Rouge’. Now, American independent filmmaker Spike Lee’s first Hollywood project features Chhaiyan Chhaiyan.
Composed by A R Rahman and written by Gulzar for Mani Ratnam’s movie Dil Se, Chhaiyan Chhaiyan had Shah Rukh Khan dancing atop a moving train with Malaika Arora .
The song is basically inspired from a traditional Sufi qawwali called Tere Ishq Ne Nachaya, Thaiyya Thaiyya by the Sufi mystic, Baba Bulleh Shah. Rahman himself is a big fan of Sufi music.
Reports have it that Chhaiyan Chhaiyan appears in Spike Lee’s latest movie ‘Inside Man’. The song appears in the background at the movie’s beginning and its end.
‘Inside Man’ is a heist thriller starring Jodie Foster, Denzel Washington and Clive Owen. According to reports, after seeing the movie at a recent preview, American audience seemed to have taken a fancy to the song.
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Festival of Punjab offers delights
By John Reid Blackwell - Richmond Times-Dispatch
Sunday, April 2, 2006
On weekdays, Dr. Gurpal S. Bhuller is an orthopedic surgeon. Yesterday, he was a reciter of mystic Sufi poetry and a server of samosas and chicken biryani.
The dishes were among a cornucopia of Indian foods - some spicy and some not - served during the Festival of Punjab at the Cultural Center of India in Chesterfield County. The poetry, written by the 18th-century Islamic poet Bulleh Shah, who was also from Punjab, was part of the festival's entertainment and reflected its cultural diversity.
About 2,000 people were expected to attend the fourth annual Festival of Punjab, or Punjabi Mela, which celebrates the food, music, dance, and art of the state in northwest India whose name means "Land of the Five Rivers."
As the festival's opening prayer showed, the Indian community includes people of many faiths. During the prayer, children stood on the cultural center's stage holding placards with the symbols of Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism and other world religions. "In this country, we have got to learn that we are part of a global culture," said Bhuller, who has lived in the United States for 26 years. "It will make this country a much richer place, not monetarily, but in the wealth of resources we have."
Sunday, April 2, 2006
On weekdays, Dr. Gurpal S. Bhuller is an orthopedic surgeon. Yesterday, he was a reciter of mystic Sufi poetry and a server of samosas and chicken biryani.
The dishes were among a cornucopia of Indian foods - some spicy and some not - served during the Festival of Punjab at the Cultural Center of India in Chesterfield County. The poetry, written by the 18th-century Islamic poet Bulleh Shah, who was also from Punjab, was part of the festival's entertainment and reflected its cultural diversity.
About 2,000 people were expected to attend the fourth annual Festival of Punjab, or Punjabi Mela, which celebrates the food, music, dance, and art of the state in northwest India whose name means "Land of the Five Rivers."
As the festival's opening prayer showed, the Indian community includes people of many faiths. During the prayer, children stood on the cultural center's stage holding placards with the symbols of Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism and other world religions. "In this country, we have got to learn that we are part of a global culture," said Bhuller, who has lived in the United States for 26 years. "It will make this country a much richer place, not monetarily, but in the wealth of resources we have."
A Chicago Poet Takes on the Bush Administration
Staff - PRWeb Newswire
Sunday, April 2, 2006
Poet Gugo Veles pays tribute to the great Sufi poet, Rumi, and indicts the Bush administration in Rumiyat, a stellar collection of poems about politics, life and romance, set against metropolitan Chicago.
The parallels between Veles and Rumi are clear and to the point. As Rumi searched for harmony, enlightenment and moral certitude in a world threatened by intolerance and oppression, Veles is acutely aware of our own current challenges.
In poem after poem, Veles limns our longing for inner peace and understanding. He delves into the failure of international human rights. And he points out how our blind adherence to philosophy and religion has led us not into enlightenment, but on to a dark, dangerous and tragic path. Intolerance, bigotry, shifty double standards, force-fed organized religion and fundamentalism, Veles urges, are the road to ruin. Instead of blindly following, we should start to find our own pathways.
Written with the same unexpected imagery that Rumi was known for, Veles’ perfectly pared-down verses shimmer with the capacity to uplift our consciousness. Reading these poems, Veles hopes, will awaken readers to their deeper, more spiritual selves. “To see myself, I open wide my eyes,” he writes, advising readers to think harder, look deeper, and be more aware. What the world needs now is Rumi…and Rumiyat.
Sunday, April 2, 2006
Poet Gugo Veles pays tribute to the great Sufi poet, Rumi, and indicts the Bush administration in Rumiyat, a stellar collection of poems about politics, life and romance, set against metropolitan Chicago.
The parallels between Veles and Rumi are clear and to the point. As Rumi searched for harmony, enlightenment and moral certitude in a world threatened by intolerance and oppression, Veles is acutely aware of our own current challenges.
In poem after poem, Veles limns our longing for inner peace and understanding. He delves into the failure of international human rights. And he points out how our blind adherence to philosophy and religion has led us not into enlightenment, but on to a dark, dangerous and tragic path. Intolerance, bigotry, shifty double standards, force-fed organized religion and fundamentalism, Veles urges, are the road to ruin. Instead of blindly following, we should start to find our own pathways.
Written with the same unexpected imagery that Rumi was known for, Veles’ perfectly pared-down verses shimmer with the capacity to uplift our consciousness. Reading these poems, Veles hopes, will awaken readers to their deeper, more spiritual selves. “To see myself, I open wide my eyes,” he writes, advising readers to think harder, look deeper, and be more aware. What the world needs now is Rumi…and Rumiyat.
Islam is Islam here, there and everywhere
By Ajaz-Ul-Haque - Greater Kashmir
Sunday, 2 April, 2006
'Sufi Islam’ or what they conveniently call as ‘Kashmiri Islam’ is a sweet but deceptive combination of words which blends mysticism with politics such a way that we can’t decipher what is what? As if Islam alone draws a void, so paring it with Sufism widens the canvass of acceptability. Typical to Kashmir only, it has enjoyed a good reception amongst a particular class of scholars who put a history behind their argument to make it sound more philosophical than it actually is. Borrowing ingredients from what they call a Sufi past, their theory is not too beside the point. With components like communal harmony, religious tolerance and universal brotherhood, there is no scope for even a god defying atheists to deny the message. Unity in diversity has been the human quest since ages. That is an urge which transcends all belief and dogma. So once the message is bruited about, we take it unmistakably as the message of humanity which everyone is in dire need of. But in all this we miss a point that Islam comfortably houses the philosophy of Sufism as an indispensable part of it. The mere use of the term Sufi Islam takes Sufism as a separate slice which it’s not.
Islam, surpassing all dogmatic bindings, sees mysticism as a share of spirit. Those who practiced were the real beatified souls who sought bliss and blessings from one God with whom they were in communion with. Their fight against evil was from within and without both. Those mystics, whichever part of the earth they belonged to, had realized the truth of life. Leaving a lesson of self realization for us, the nobility of their mission, is above board. Holding their bodily desires subservient to the quest of their soul, they embarked on the path of salvation. So the life of Sufis itself was a practical example of what Islam exhorts us to be. May their souls rest in eternal peace.
The West worked hard to divorce politics from Islam and succeeded in coining ‘political Islam’ as the brand of religion which aspires for power and authority. Whether this can be put as a blissful ignorance on their part or a malicious intent to mislead the rest of the world about the universal message of Islam, can be debated.
A sustained intellectual and ideological attempt to denounce Islam erupted in many forms which fall a little beyond the ambit of our discussion right now.
Back home, the problem with us is of a peculiar nature. There have been attempts on intellectual plane to justify pure militarisation of a people by drumming about spirituality and other-word-liness. Well that worked sometimes as an effective sedative to lull a battered lot back to sleep. Kashmiriyat, acted an instant therapy for all abnormal behavior of a nation to have it normalised. Islam in Kashmir was presented ‘mystically different’ from Islam elsewhere. A history of pluralism and tolerance which Kashmir has been known for, was hijacked for a pure political interest. Peace has been our love, no doubt. But we weren’t allowed to be at peace. Who denies the philosophy of co-existence, but for that you need to exist first. Lessons of brotherhood are nothing new, but for that you need not take the trouble of axing it out from a bigger whole which it makes a part of. Islam is Sufism included, Kashmir or outside. Subjecting it to an enforced obedience to a geography is inimical to the very spirit which it stands for.
Iqbal’s Iblees suggests a double strength capsule of melody and mysticism which successfully takes away the joy of a real life from the one it’s practiced on.
Hai vohi shair-o-tassawuf is kay haq main khoob tar
Jo chupa dhey is ki aankhoon say tamashay-e-hayaat
The ‘noble endeavor’ of presenting ‘Sufi Islam’ or ‘Kashmiri Islam’ is directed towards the same end. We are slowly but surely losing the wealth of consciousness without which a nation is more dead than alive. Let’s believe in universal lessons of love, peace and amity, but let not those assets be allowed to count against us. Kashmir may be known for its different crop, different weather and different landscape, but Islam as a universal message of peace remains same here as it’s elsewhere in the world.
Sunday, 2 April, 2006
'Sufi Islam’ or what they conveniently call as ‘Kashmiri Islam’ is a sweet but deceptive combination of words which blends mysticism with politics such a way that we can’t decipher what is what? As if Islam alone draws a void, so paring it with Sufism widens the canvass of acceptability. Typical to Kashmir only, it has enjoyed a good reception amongst a particular class of scholars who put a history behind their argument to make it sound more philosophical than it actually is. Borrowing ingredients from what they call a Sufi past, their theory is not too beside the point. With components like communal harmony, religious tolerance and universal brotherhood, there is no scope for even a god defying atheists to deny the message. Unity in diversity has been the human quest since ages. That is an urge which transcends all belief and dogma. So once the message is bruited about, we take it unmistakably as the message of humanity which everyone is in dire need of. But in all this we miss a point that Islam comfortably houses the philosophy of Sufism as an indispensable part of it. The mere use of the term Sufi Islam takes Sufism as a separate slice which it’s not.
Islam, surpassing all dogmatic bindings, sees mysticism as a share of spirit. Those who practiced were the real beatified souls who sought bliss and blessings from one God with whom they were in communion with. Their fight against evil was from within and without both. Those mystics, whichever part of the earth they belonged to, had realized the truth of life. Leaving a lesson of self realization for us, the nobility of their mission, is above board. Holding their bodily desires subservient to the quest of their soul, they embarked on the path of salvation. So the life of Sufis itself was a practical example of what Islam exhorts us to be. May their souls rest in eternal peace.
The West worked hard to divorce politics from Islam and succeeded in coining ‘political Islam’ as the brand of religion which aspires for power and authority. Whether this can be put as a blissful ignorance on their part or a malicious intent to mislead the rest of the world about the universal message of Islam, can be debated.
A sustained intellectual and ideological attempt to denounce Islam erupted in many forms which fall a little beyond the ambit of our discussion right now.
Back home, the problem with us is of a peculiar nature. There have been attempts on intellectual plane to justify pure militarisation of a people by drumming about spirituality and other-word-liness. Well that worked sometimes as an effective sedative to lull a battered lot back to sleep. Kashmiriyat, acted an instant therapy for all abnormal behavior of a nation to have it normalised. Islam in Kashmir was presented ‘mystically different’ from Islam elsewhere. A history of pluralism and tolerance which Kashmir has been known for, was hijacked for a pure political interest. Peace has been our love, no doubt. But we weren’t allowed to be at peace. Who denies the philosophy of co-existence, but for that you need to exist first. Lessons of brotherhood are nothing new, but for that you need not take the trouble of axing it out from a bigger whole which it makes a part of. Islam is Sufism included, Kashmir or outside. Subjecting it to an enforced obedience to a geography is inimical to the very spirit which it stands for.
Iqbal’s Iblees suggests a double strength capsule of melody and mysticism which successfully takes away the joy of a real life from the one it’s practiced on.
Hai vohi shair-o-tassawuf is kay haq main khoob tar
Jo chupa dhey is ki aankhoon say tamashay-e-hayaat
The ‘noble endeavor’ of presenting ‘Sufi Islam’ or ‘Kashmiri Islam’ is directed towards the same end. We are slowly but surely losing the wealth of consciousness without which a nation is more dead than alive. Let’s believe in universal lessons of love, peace and amity, but let not those assets be allowed to count against us. Kashmir may be known for its different crop, different weather and different landscape, but Islam as a universal message of peace remains same here as it’s elsewhere in the world.
Among mystics
By Khushwant Singh - Hindustan Times
Friday, March 31, 2006
Professor Coleman Barks who teaches poetry in the University of Georgia (US) is today regarded as the authority on the poetry of Jelaluddin Rumi (1201-1273). When starting on his translations Barks thought it wise to seek the guidance of the best-known Sufi teacher of the time, Bawa Muhaijudeen of Sri Lanka. As he introduced himself, his mentor asked him what his name meant. Barks told him. Whereupon Bawa started howling like a dog and then laughed.
The professor was not in the least offended because he knew that childlike behaviour is part of Sufi character. Howling is both an expression of pain and a cry for help. Rumi had written “the grief you cry out from draws you towards union; your pure sadness that wants help is the secret cup. Listen to the moan of a dog for its master, the whining, is the connection. There are love dogs no one knows the name of. Give your life to be one of them.”
I confess I am as out of my depth with this kind of dogma as I am with the writings of our own mystics, the Bhaktas. However, I persisted in my reading of Rumi for two reasons. The Essential Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks and John Moyne, was gifted to me by a close friend, Samia Moosa, an attractive Afghan lady who spends her time equally between Kabul and California. And I wanted to know what was so great about Jelaluddin Rumi after whom a cult of dancing dervishes has been established.
I was fully rewarded: there are gems of wisdom strewn in a lot of tales.
Friday, March 31, 2006
Professor Coleman Barks who teaches poetry in the University of Georgia (US) is today regarded as the authority on the poetry of Jelaluddin Rumi (1201-1273). When starting on his translations Barks thought it wise to seek the guidance of the best-known Sufi teacher of the time, Bawa Muhaijudeen of Sri Lanka. As he introduced himself, his mentor asked him what his name meant. Barks told him. Whereupon Bawa started howling like a dog and then laughed.
The professor was not in the least offended because he knew that childlike behaviour is part of Sufi character. Howling is both an expression of pain and a cry for help. Rumi had written “the grief you cry out from draws you towards union; your pure sadness that wants help is the secret cup. Listen to the moan of a dog for its master, the whining, is the connection. There are love dogs no one knows the name of. Give your life to be one of them.”
I confess I am as out of my depth with this kind of dogma as I am with the writings of our own mystics, the Bhaktas. However, I persisted in my reading of Rumi for two reasons. The Essential Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks and John Moyne, was gifted to me by a close friend, Samia Moosa, an attractive Afghan lady who spends her time equally between Kabul and California. And I wanted to know what was so great about Jelaluddin Rumi after whom a cult of dancing dervishes has been established.
I was fully rewarded: there are gems of wisdom strewn in a lot of tales.
Friday, October 13, 2006
Sufism: Fountainhead of India's composite culture
By Pranav Khullar - The New Nation - Bangladesh
Fri, 31 Mar 2006
In India, Sufism has been typically Indian and more typically - Sindhi, both in content and quality. A thoroughly indigenous movement, it absorbed the finest in Islam and Hinduism, thereby laying the foundations of what is today called the composite culture of India to which we, as a nation, are culturally and Constitutionally committed. Sindhi Sufism stood for raising the quality of life through realisation of God, as influenced it was by Vedanta.
Sindhi Sufi poetry is traceable to the seven baits (slokas) of Mamoi saints of the 14th century. There are some baits of Qazi Qadan (died 1551) which talk of Tauhid (Unity of Being). The 16th century produced a great Sufi poet, Shah Abdul Karim 0536-1622), known for his learning and piety. His 92 baits proclaiming the brotherhood of man and the unity of god are recited by the devout even till this day. His son Shah Habib was a perfect man of God who served the sick and the poor. Towards the middle of the 17th century Sind produced another great Sufi saint Shah Inayat 0656-1718). Popularly known as Shah Inayat of Jhok, his baits and boys (verses) enthralled the desert. Through his Sufi hymns he inspired the people to revolt against the unjust Zamindari (land holding) system and asked his fellow beings not to pay taxes. A God-intoxicated man, he was executed by the corrupt Governor of Thatta. Saintmartyr, he is hero of many a Sindhi legend and folklore.
By the end of the 17th century there appeared the greatest Sindhi Sufi poet who infused a new life and gave a new hope to his people. His name was Shah Abdul Latif, meaning the Gracious of the Gracious 0689-1752). Well versed in Quranic traditions and Vedantic thought, the Shah knew seven languages and was called 'Sufi-e-Haft Zaban '. Shah Abdul Latif's greatest contribution to the Sufi thought are his spiritual sermons which have been compiled by his disciples and are called 'Shah Jo Risalo' (The Message of Shah). Risalo is neither a philosophical treatise nor a literary masterpiece, but it transports the readers to new spiritual heights.
Shah Abdul Latif was a Sufi poet in the ancient Vedic traditions where the saints and sages possessed nothing and whom nothing possessed except the name of God, the service of the poor and welfare of humanity. Shah believed that while intellect is bondage, faith is the liberator; while the mystics learn from God, the Ulema learn from books. Shah liked the company of Hindu saints and visted Hindu centres of pilgrimage. At Dwaraka, he danced reciting the name of Lord Krishna. In spite of his vast erudition he found comfort in mysticism than in theology.
In a larger analysis Shah Abdul Latif was a part of Bhakti movement which swept the country from 13th to the 19th century in one form or the other. He adopted the Hindu ritual of 'shaving the head' for every new entrant in the 'Khanqah' (Hospice), offering Sherbet (sweetened water) to every visitor in the monastery. Even the 40-day ritual of suspending the body in a well, known as 'Chillae-Makus' was a Hindu institution known to the 'Ardh-mukhi'sect. Accordingly, Shah Abdul Latif made no distinction between a 'Gurukul' and a 'Khanqah', between a Mandir and a Masjid. His Surs (musical notes) are musical compositions which fit into the Indian classical mould. According to Captain Alexander Hamilton, the Surs of Shah are a thing of beauty and a joy forever. Hamilton was the only European who visited Sind during the Shah's lifetime. As a poet of nature, he was even greater. He wrote of the rainy seasons, the cranes of Sind, of the crows...
And lastly, we have Sachal Sarmast. Kalyan B. Advani, author of a beautiful monograph on Sarmast, said: "He remained throughout his life under the wonderous spell of that great mystic martyr, Mansoor, although he himself did not adorn the gibbet, much as he coveted it. He proclaimed his Master's message to the world, like a Muezzin from a Tower, crying Anal Haq (I am the God/I am the Truth)". He wrote nearly one lakh vesses.
Sachal's tradition was carried on by a number of Hindu Sufi poets, particularly Bhai Chainrai 07431850), popularly known as Sami. He is the first Sindhi Vedantic poet who wrote 15,000 Sufi hymns in the form of Slokas. Bhai Dalpatram 0769-1841) is another Vedantic who remained unsurpassed in devotional poetry.
Rohal was yet another who carried on the tradition of Shah Inayat. He wrote Bhakti verses in Hindi besides in Sindhi and Saraiki. Qadir Baksh 'Bedil' and Mohammad Mohsin 'Bekas' in the late 19th century were also Sufi poets of high order and elegance. Both of them were prolific writers who wrote in Sindhi, Hindi and Persian.
The Sindhi Sufi ghazal compares favourably with the Kashmiri Sufiana Kalam, known for its dulcet music and spiritual notes. In prose, Sindhis translated 'Quran Sharif'in 1746 and the Bible in 1825 into Sindhi - much before the British conqurered Sind in 1843. Sindhi is written both in Devanagari as well as in Arabic script.
Recently even the love legend of Sassi-Punnu was given a Sufi touch when Sassi sings Sachal in gay abandon in the desert before her union with Punnu...
Fri, 31 Mar 2006
In India, Sufism has been typically Indian and more typically - Sindhi, both in content and quality. A thoroughly indigenous movement, it absorbed the finest in Islam and Hinduism, thereby laying the foundations of what is today called the composite culture of India to which we, as a nation, are culturally and Constitutionally committed. Sindhi Sufism stood for raising the quality of life through realisation of God, as influenced it was by Vedanta.
Sindhi Sufi poetry is traceable to the seven baits (slokas) of Mamoi saints of the 14th century. There are some baits of Qazi Qadan (died 1551) which talk of Tauhid (Unity of Being). The 16th century produced a great Sufi poet, Shah Abdul Karim 0536-1622), known for his learning and piety. His 92 baits proclaiming the brotherhood of man and the unity of god are recited by the devout even till this day. His son Shah Habib was a perfect man of God who served the sick and the poor. Towards the middle of the 17th century Sind produced another great Sufi saint Shah Inayat 0656-1718). Popularly known as Shah Inayat of Jhok, his baits and boys (verses) enthralled the desert. Through his Sufi hymns he inspired the people to revolt against the unjust Zamindari (land holding) system and asked his fellow beings not to pay taxes. A God-intoxicated man, he was executed by the corrupt Governor of Thatta. Saintmartyr, he is hero of many a Sindhi legend and folklore.
By the end of the 17th century there appeared the greatest Sindhi Sufi poet who infused a new life and gave a new hope to his people. His name was Shah Abdul Latif, meaning the Gracious of the Gracious 0689-1752). Well versed in Quranic traditions and Vedantic thought, the Shah knew seven languages and was called 'Sufi-e-Haft Zaban '. Shah Abdul Latif's greatest contribution to the Sufi thought are his spiritual sermons which have been compiled by his disciples and are called 'Shah Jo Risalo' (The Message of Shah). Risalo is neither a philosophical treatise nor a literary masterpiece, but it transports the readers to new spiritual heights.
Shah Abdul Latif was a Sufi poet in the ancient Vedic traditions where the saints and sages possessed nothing and whom nothing possessed except the name of God, the service of the poor and welfare of humanity. Shah believed that while intellect is bondage, faith is the liberator; while the mystics learn from God, the Ulema learn from books. Shah liked the company of Hindu saints and visted Hindu centres of pilgrimage. At Dwaraka, he danced reciting the name of Lord Krishna. In spite of his vast erudition he found comfort in mysticism than in theology.
In a larger analysis Shah Abdul Latif was a part of Bhakti movement which swept the country from 13th to the 19th century in one form or the other. He adopted the Hindu ritual of 'shaving the head' for every new entrant in the 'Khanqah' (Hospice), offering Sherbet (sweetened water) to every visitor in the monastery. Even the 40-day ritual of suspending the body in a well, known as 'Chillae-Makus' was a Hindu institution known to the 'Ardh-mukhi'sect. Accordingly, Shah Abdul Latif made no distinction between a 'Gurukul' and a 'Khanqah', between a Mandir and a Masjid. His Surs (musical notes) are musical compositions which fit into the Indian classical mould. According to Captain Alexander Hamilton, the Surs of Shah are a thing of beauty and a joy forever. Hamilton was the only European who visited Sind during the Shah's lifetime. As a poet of nature, he was even greater. He wrote of the rainy seasons, the cranes of Sind, of the crows...
And lastly, we have Sachal Sarmast. Kalyan B. Advani, author of a beautiful monograph on Sarmast, said: "He remained throughout his life under the wonderous spell of that great mystic martyr, Mansoor, although he himself did not adorn the gibbet, much as he coveted it. He proclaimed his Master's message to the world, like a Muezzin from a Tower, crying Anal Haq (I am the God/I am the Truth)". He wrote nearly one lakh vesses.
Sachal's tradition was carried on by a number of Hindu Sufi poets, particularly Bhai Chainrai 07431850), popularly known as Sami. He is the first Sindhi Vedantic poet who wrote 15,000 Sufi hymns in the form of Slokas. Bhai Dalpatram 0769-1841) is another Vedantic who remained unsurpassed in devotional poetry.
Rohal was yet another who carried on the tradition of Shah Inayat. He wrote Bhakti verses in Hindi besides in Sindhi and Saraiki. Qadir Baksh 'Bedil' and Mohammad Mohsin 'Bekas' in the late 19th century were also Sufi poets of high order and elegance. Both of them were prolific writers who wrote in Sindhi, Hindi and Persian.
The Sindhi Sufi ghazal compares favourably with the Kashmiri Sufiana Kalam, known for its dulcet music and spiritual notes. In prose, Sindhis translated 'Quran Sharif'in 1746 and the Bible in 1825 into Sindhi - much before the British conqurered Sind in 1843. Sindhi is written both in Devanagari as well as in Arabic script.
Recently even the love legend of Sassi-Punnu was given a Sufi touch when Sassi sings Sachal in gay abandon in the desert before her union with Punnu...
Konya to be seminar topic in US
Elif Özmenek - New York- Turkish Daily News/Referans
Thursday, March 30, 2006
The University of Utah is hosting a seminar on Konya to study its model of local governance. The mayor of Konya will explain his city to American audiences, adding a taste of whirling dervishes and Sufism to his speech
The Central Anatolian city of Konya, after being listed among the 14 cities in the world that the Financial Times ranked as qualified for direct investment, is now being studied as a role model by an American university. The University of Utah is organizing a seminar titled “Understanding Globalization in Turkish Periphery: The Spirit of Konya” March 29-30.
From the effects of Sufism on urbanization to the role of whirling dervishes in globalization, diverse themes from Konya are to be discussed at the seminar. Konya Mayor Tahir Akyürek is among 25 speakers invited for the event.
The seminar is aimed at discussing the question of how the Islamic world will adapt to the globalization process in general from a “conservative” model such as Konya. The main reason Konya was selected as a role model is the city's financing of its development model through its own resources. In other words, Konya is being studied because it has succeeded in developing without loans; it has almost no bank debt; 70 percent of its budget is secured for investment; and it has been listed as the top city in intercity performance ratings for producing its own non-Treasury resources.
In 2005 Konya's whirling dervish ceremony was selected for the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) cultural heritage list. 2007 has also been declared the “Year of Mevlana.”
Thursday, March 30, 2006
The University of Utah is hosting a seminar on Konya to study its model of local governance. The mayor of Konya will explain his city to American audiences, adding a taste of whirling dervishes and Sufism to his speech
The Central Anatolian city of Konya, after being listed among the 14 cities in the world that the Financial Times ranked as qualified for direct investment, is now being studied as a role model by an American university. The University of Utah is organizing a seminar titled “Understanding Globalization in Turkish Periphery: The Spirit of Konya” March 29-30.
From the effects of Sufism on urbanization to the role of whirling dervishes in globalization, diverse themes from Konya are to be discussed at the seminar. Konya Mayor Tahir Akyürek is among 25 speakers invited for the event.
The seminar is aimed at discussing the question of how the Islamic world will adapt to the globalization process in general from a “conservative” model such as Konya. The main reason Konya was selected as a role model is the city's financing of its development model through its own resources. In other words, Konya is being studied because it has succeeded in developing without loans; it has almost no bank debt; 70 percent of its budget is secured for investment; and it has been listed as the top city in intercity performance ratings for producing its own non-Treasury resources.
In 2005 Konya's whirling dervish ceremony was selected for the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) cultural heritage list. 2007 has also been declared the “Year of Mevlana.”
WPC demands jobs for 10,000 MA Punjabi students
Staff Report - Daily Times - Pakistan
Thursday, March 30, 2006
LAHORE: The government should create job vacancies for 10,000 Punjabi Master’s degree holders, said World Punjabi Congress (WPC) Chairman Fakhar Zaman addressing the inaugural session of the International conference on Sufi poet Shah Hussain on Wednesday.
Fakhar Zaman said the Punjab Institute of Art was a result of the WPC’s effort and the organisation now aimed to set up a Punjabi University in which students, lecturers and researchers would work for promotion of Punjabi and other languages.
Punjab Education Minister Mian Imran Masood said the Punjab government would take measures to create vacancies for Punjabi students and said new Punjabi newspapers, magazines and TV channels were the result of the government’s policies.
He said the Indian Punjab government’s proposal of setting up a Guru Nanak Punjabi University in Lahore was being considered.
WPC India President Satya Pal said Pakistani students must learn the Gurmukhi script along with the Shahmukhi script, to be able to read Sufi poetry and Punjabi literature of both countries. He said Punjabi was taught in schools from class 1 in the Indian Punjab.
A large number of delegates from India, England, the US, France, Germany, Sweden, Austria and Canada participated in the conference.
Thursday, March 30, 2006
LAHORE: The government should create job vacancies for 10,000 Punjabi Master’s degree holders, said World Punjabi Congress (WPC) Chairman Fakhar Zaman addressing the inaugural session of the International conference on Sufi poet Shah Hussain on Wednesday.
Fakhar Zaman said the Punjab Institute of Art was a result of the WPC’s effort and the organisation now aimed to set up a Punjabi University in which students, lecturers and researchers would work for promotion of Punjabi and other languages.
Punjab Education Minister Mian Imran Masood said the Punjab government would take measures to create vacancies for Punjabi students and said new Punjabi newspapers, magazines and TV channels were the result of the government’s policies.
He said the Indian Punjab government’s proposal of setting up a Guru Nanak Punjabi University in Lahore was being considered.
WPC India President Satya Pal said Pakistani students must learn the Gurmukhi script along with the Shahmukhi script, to be able to read Sufi poetry and Punjabi literature of both countries. He said Punjabi was taught in schools from class 1 in the Indian Punjab.
A large number of delegates from India, England, the US, France, Germany, Sweden, Austria and Canada participated in the conference.
From Brazil To Mongolia, Sun Dances With Moon
By Joanne Omang - Special to The Washington Post
Thursday, March 30, 2006
KONYA, Turkey, March 29-- As the sun went dark here Wednesday, a dervish mystic whirled in a garden, one hand pointing to the earth, the other to the sky. "The solar system turns like the dervish, a cosmic dance," said Bekir Sahin, director of rare books and manuscripts in this provincial center of Islamic study. "Konya today is the center of the universe."
A total eclipse of the sun drew thousands of astronomers, eclipse groupies and tourists to this town for a glimpse of the cosmic dance that began at sunrise in Brazil and ended at sunset in northern Mongolia.
For many people, the journey here was spiritual. This ancient center of scholarship and the Sufi branch of Islam welcomed more than 3,000 foreign visitors to a day of contemplation mixed with science and a picnic holiday.
"We have busloads of people from Egypt, from Germany, from Japan," said Mevlut Bektas, director of tourism and culture. Every hotel room in the city was taken, he said. The Turkish government was expecting more than the 3.5 million visitors who came to the country for another total eclipse in 1999, and special festivals and tours were set up nationwide.
At the tomb of the 13th-century philosopher and mystic Celaleddin Rumi, who is known as Mevlana, villagers peered at the vanishing sun through special glasses distributed free by the local government. A chattering crowd in the garden outside the tomb fell quiet as the warm, clear day slowly turned wintry in thinning sunlight. They gasped as one at the moment of totality: Twilight surged around the horizon, Venus appeared in a midnight sky, and a ring of fire circled the black hole where the sun had been.
Sahin, the manuscript scholar, directed visitors to the nearby museum's display of astronomical equipment and documents dating from the Seljuk empire of the 11th to 13th centuries. "We believe the eclipse has an effect on the human heart, whether we feel it or not," he said.
From Turkey, the total eclipse moved across the Black Sea, then Georgia and southern Russia. In Baghdad, outside the path of totality, residents were briefly diverted from the continuing trauma of war as they looked aloft to see a partial obscuring of the sun, a crescent. In Bangladesh, the moon took a mere bite off the edge of the solar disk. Finally, at dusk over Asia, the sun and the moon parted ways.
Women dance and sing for Madhu Lal Hussain
Staff Report - Daily Times - Pakistan
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
LAHORE: About 6,000 women devotees of Madhu Lal Hussain wore colourful shawls, sang Sufi poetry and did the traditional dhamal to pay homage to the Muslim saint on the final day of his 418th Urs (anniversary).
The day, which was reserved for women, began with a ‘mehfil-e-milad’ from 9am to 1pm during which drums and dhamal were stopped and men were not allowed to enter the shrine. Mrs Abid from Lahore said it was a good idea to reserve the last day for women because it allowed women to show their affection for the saint uninhibited. She said she went to the shrine regularly and she loved to recite poetry.
Heleema Naz, a Rawalpindi resident, said she attended the Urs every year and would continue visiting the shrine for as long as she lived.
A woman from Multan said she had arrived in Lahore the previous night to attend the Urs. She said she had been visiting the shrine on the last day of the Urs for long, as her mother and father were devotees of the saint.
A number of women said shopping was one of the attractions of the anniversary. The ceremony concluded after Asr prayers. Allama Maqsood Ahmed and thousands of devotees prayed for Pakistan’s solidarity. The cleric urged people to follow the saint’s teachings.
Shah Hussain was born in 1538 and is a prominent Muslim saint in the subcontinent.
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
LAHORE: About 6,000 women devotees of Madhu Lal Hussain wore colourful shawls, sang Sufi poetry and did the traditional dhamal to pay homage to the Muslim saint on the final day of his 418th Urs (anniversary).
The day, which was reserved for women, began with a ‘mehfil-e-milad’ from 9am to 1pm during which drums and dhamal were stopped and men were not allowed to enter the shrine. Mrs Abid from Lahore said it was a good idea to reserve the last day for women because it allowed women to show their affection for the saint uninhibited. She said she went to the shrine regularly and she loved to recite poetry.
Heleema Naz, a Rawalpindi resident, said she attended the Urs every year and would continue visiting the shrine for as long as she lived.
A woman from Multan said she had arrived in Lahore the previous night to attend the Urs. She said she had been visiting the shrine on the last day of the Urs for long, as her mother and father were devotees of the saint.
A number of women said shopping was one of the attractions of the anniversary. The ceremony concluded after Asr prayers. Allama Maqsood Ahmed and thousands of devotees prayed for Pakistan’s solidarity. The cleric urged people to follow the saint’s teachings.
Shah Hussain was born in 1538 and is a prominent Muslim saint in the subcontinent.
An Unearthly Sufi Novel: Irving Karchmar's "Master of the Jinn"
By Ali Eteraz - alt.muslim
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Irving Karchmar's debut Sufi novel, "Master of the Jinn", heralds the arrival of a fresh literary voice to Islam and America. It also signals the revival of Sufism.
Although initially a bit off-putting due to a narratorial voice that's more Sir Walter Scott (Ivanhoe), than anything post-modern, this Sufi novel is a subtle creation twelve years in the making. Not a novel; it is layered cake.
For the mystics and the metaphysicians, this story is, through and through, a meditation on Love, the mercy of God, and spiritual discipline. The Sufi Master speaks on matters of the soul with the authority that Zorba the Greek reserved for matters of lust. The journey can be read allegorically, and many secrets meanings may be unearthed in later reads. Occassionally Karchmar gives a hint of the matter being touched upon by dropping quotes from the poetry of innumerable Sufi poets. He also brings in quotations from Plato and the Psalms of David. These quotes were a favorite part of the experience.
The story can also be read as nothing more than an adventure. As such, it can make for interesting bed time reading for children and adults alike. The innocence of Karchmar's writing (his characters sure do weep with joy a lot), suggests that perhaps that there is something important in the adventure worth analyzing.
However, in my opinion, this novel contains far more. I should like to posit that in an age where the primary association of Islam is with rage, Karchmar's novel is a conscious counterbalance to the Zarqawis and al-Sadrs of the world. It seems no accident that the novel is set in Jerusalem, or that the chosen is a former agent of the Mossad (that bugaboo that haunts radical Islam), or that the archaeologist is a holocaust survivor, or that the star of David is a part of the mystery. Karchmar seems to be using theology to open doors.
You can order the book on http://www.masterofthejinn.com or on amazon.com
Malhotra's clothes spell Freedom
By: Sandipan Dalal - Mid-Day Mumbai - India
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
After experimenting with gold coins and coral, designer Manish Malhotra has brought out an all-white collection, titled Freedom, to showcase at the Lakme Fashion Week 2006.
As far as the theme is concerned, the designer says he’s inspired by the soul-liberating philosophy of Sufism.
Says Malhotra, “My clothes celebrate the spirit of the modern woman who does not carry the baggage of accepted norms to look beautiful".
It’s all about tapping the natural world and getting tuned to world music — that’s Malhotra’s mantra this year. “I’m very fond of Sufi music. And I have used a few Abida Parveen tracks for the ramp shows,” he adds.
Conference on Shah Hussain starts tomorrow
Staff Report - Daily Times - Pakistan
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
LAHORE: The World Punjabi Congress (WPC) has announced the schedule of a three-day international conference on renowned Sufi poet Shah Hussain starting tomorrow (Wednesday).
Addressing a press conference on Monday, WPC Chairman Fakhar Zaman said that Sufism was now getting considerable attention from the world, as this was “the only way to identify the roots of every human”. He said that more than 250 delegates from nine countries, including Sweden, the US, Canada, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Austria and India, would participate in the conference. Over 80 scholars, journalists, writers, intellectuals, educationists and artists from India would participate in the conference, he said.
Outlining the schedule, Zaman said that the conference would be inaugurated tomorrow with welcome speeches from heads of visiting delegations followed by a reception and a musical show at the Fountain House. On the second day of the conference, research papers would be read out on ‘Sufi tradition in the subcontinent’, ‘Relevance of the Sufi message in the present global context’, ‘Humanism in Shah Hussain’s poetry’, ‘The life and poetry of Shah Hussain’, ‘Poetry pre and post-Shah Hussain period — patterns and trends’, and ‘Shah Hussain’s poetry and Raagas’. Later, the delegates would visit a farmhouse on Raiwind Road.
Papers on ‘Sufism and peace’, ‘Sufism — a source of enlightenment in South Asia’, ‘Wahdatul Insaan in Sufi poetry’, ‘Woman referent in Sufi poetry’, ‘Shah Hussain’s lyricism’, ‘Recurring themes in Sufi poetry’ and ‘Symbolism in Shah Hussain’s poetry’ would be read out on the third day of the conference.
Zaman would then announce the ‘Lahore Declaration’, followed by a visit by the delegation to the shrine of Shah Hussain.
Zaman said that the speakers from India would include Dr SS Noor, Kashmiri Lal Zakir, Dr Fatima Hussain, Dr Deepak Manmohan, Dr Satish Verma, Dr Vanita, Dr Jagbir Singh, Dr Davinder Singh, Kamlesh Mohan and Dr Ravel Singh. The WPC chairman said that three books written on past conferences would also be launched on the final day. An exhibition on the ecology and architecture of Lahore during Shah Hussain’s time would also be held, he said.
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
LAHORE: The World Punjabi Congress (WPC) has announced the schedule of a three-day international conference on renowned Sufi poet Shah Hussain starting tomorrow (Wednesday).
Addressing a press conference on Monday, WPC Chairman Fakhar Zaman said that Sufism was now getting considerable attention from the world, as this was “the only way to identify the roots of every human”. He said that more than 250 delegates from nine countries, including Sweden, the US, Canada, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Austria and India, would participate in the conference. Over 80 scholars, journalists, writers, intellectuals, educationists and artists from India would participate in the conference, he said.
Outlining the schedule, Zaman said that the conference would be inaugurated tomorrow with welcome speeches from heads of visiting delegations followed by a reception and a musical show at the Fountain House. On the second day of the conference, research papers would be read out on ‘Sufi tradition in the subcontinent’, ‘Relevance of the Sufi message in the present global context’, ‘Humanism in Shah Hussain’s poetry’, ‘The life and poetry of Shah Hussain’, ‘Poetry pre and post-Shah Hussain period — patterns and trends’, and ‘Shah Hussain’s poetry and Raagas’. Later, the delegates would visit a farmhouse on Raiwind Road.
Papers on ‘Sufism and peace’, ‘Sufism — a source of enlightenment in South Asia’, ‘Wahdatul Insaan in Sufi poetry’, ‘Woman referent in Sufi poetry’, ‘Shah Hussain’s lyricism’, ‘Recurring themes in Sufi poetry’ and ‘Symbolism in Shah Hussain’s poetry’ would be read out on the third day of the conference.
Zaman would then announce the ‘Lahore Declaration’, followed by a visit by the delegation to the shrine of Shah Hussain.
Zaman said that the speakers from India would include Dr SS Noor, Kashmiri Lal Zakir, Dr Fatima Hussain, Dr Deepak Manmohan, Dr Satish Verma, Dr Vanita, Dr Jagbir Singh, Dr Davinder Singh, Kamlesh Mohan and Dr Ravel Singh. The WPC chairman said that three books written on past conferences would also be launched on the final day. An exhibition on the ecology and architecture of Lahore during Shah Hussain’s time would also be held, he said.
Sufi, so good!
By Rituparna Som - Daily News and Analysis -Mumbai, India
Monday, March 27, 2006
MTV head honcho William H. Roedy grooves to the mystical music form
He’s a self-confessed chronic zapper jumping from channel to channel before you can say MTV, and currently hopelessly addicted to singer Kailash Kher. We would expect nothing less from the chairman, MTV Networks and President, MTV Networks International, William H Roedy. “My biggest priority in India is to get Kailash Kher’s CDs,” he states. “Sufi and Indian fusion - that’s the sort of thing I love. I bring it home, play it until my wife gets tired of it. I get so addicted that it’s hard to get off it.”
Monday, March 27, 2006
MTV head honcho William H. Roedy grooves to the mystical music form
He’s a self-confessed chronic zapper jumping from channel to channel before you can say MTV, and currently hopelessly addicted to singer Kailash Kher. We would expect nothing less from the chairman, MTV Networks and President, MTV Networks International, William H Roedy. “My biggest priority in India is to get Kailash Kher’s CDs,” he states. “Sufi and Indian fusion - that’s the sort of thing I love. I bring it home, play it until my wife gets tired of it. I get so addicted that it’s hard to get off it.”
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Afghanistan: Film revisits destruction of Bamiyan Buddhas
By Andrew Tully - Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Five years ago this month, the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan blew up the two Bamiyan Buddhas -- one of them more than 50 meters tall and believed to be the world's largest representation of Buddha. The Taliban deemed the effigies offensive to Islam and carried out the destruction despite pleas from leaders around the world -- including UNESCO, the government of neighboring Pakistan and the grand mufti of Egypt. Swiss filmmaker Christian Frei has produced "The Giant Buddhas," a documentary about this great cultural loss and what it says about tolerance and cultural diversity.
"The Giant Buddhas" is 95 minutes long, and the destruction of the statues doesn't come until about 35 minutes into the film. Frei says his work isn't about the destruction, but rather it documents the importance of these Buddhist icons and how they figure in the clash of the Western and Islamic cultures.
Frei says it is right for those outside Afghanistan to be angry about the destruction of the statues. But he argues that, in many cases, the Western reaction was to view all Muslims as being as intolerant as the Taliban.
Not Black And White
In fact, Frei says, Islam has many faces. He points to the tolerance of the residents of the Bamiyan Valley, and that of a Sufi, or Islamic mystic, who was interviewed in his film.
"The motivation for me to make a film is always to show that the world is multifaceted and not that simple, not that black and white," Frei said. "Of course, it was an act of ignorance to destroy the Buddhas, but for example in the film I have a Sufi sequence -- you know Sufism? The tolerant Islam. So you get away from the film I think with this information: OK, but it's not all about fundamentalism, in this film there's a lot of beauty."
Information Is The Key
Frei says he hopes his documentary will show audiences around the world -- especially Western audiences -- ways to break out of their cultural shells and realize that they live in a world that is less polarized than they may believe.
"It's always about information," he says. "I think the lack of information leads to preconceptions and stereotypes and ignorance, finally. And the best way to counter it is information and emotion and maybe documentary film, I don't know. I hope so."
"The Giant Buddhas" was presented on March 26 at the National Gallery of Art in Washington. The showing is part of the Environmental Film Festival, which features 100 productions over two weeks in various settings around the American capital.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Five years ago this month, the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan blew up the two Bamiyan Buddhas -- one of them more than 50 meters tall and believed to be the world's largest representation of Buddha. The Taliban deemed the effigies offensive to Islam and carried out the destruction despite pleas from leaders around the world -- including UNESCO, the government of neighboring Pakistan and the grand mufti of Egypt. Swiss filmmaker Christian Frei has produced "The Giant Buddhas," a documentary about this great cultural loss and what it says about tolerance and cultural diversity.
"The Giant Buddhas" is 95 minutes long, and the destruction of the statues doesn't come until about 35 minutes into the film. Frei says his work isn't about the destruction, but rather it documents the importance of these Buddhist icons and how they figure in the clash of the Western and Islamic cultures.
Frei says it is right for those outside Afghanistan to be angry about the destruction of the statues. But he argues that, in many cases, the Western reaction was to view all Muslims as being as intolerant as the Taliban.
Not Black And White
In fact, Frei says, Islam has many faces. He points to the tolerance of the residents of the Bamiyan Valley, and that of a Sufi, or Islamic mystic, who was interviewed in his film.
"The motivation for me to make a film is always to show that the world is multifaceted and not that simple, not that black and white," Frei said. "Of course, it was an act of ignorance to destroy the Buddhas, but for example in the film I have a Sufi sequence -- you know Sufism? The tolerant Islam. So you get away from the film I think with this information: OK, but it's not all about fundamentalism, in this film there's a lot of beauty."
Information Is The Key
Frei says he hopes his documentary will show audiences around the world -- especially Western audiences -- ways to break out of their cultural shells and realize that they live in a world that is less polarized than they may believe.
"It's always about information," he says. "I think the lack of information leads to preconceptions and stereotypes and ignorance, finally. And the best way to counter it is information and emotion and maybe documentary film, I don't know. I hope so."
"The Giant Buddhas" was presented on March 26 at the National Gallery of Art in Washington. The showing is part of the Environmental Film Festival, which features 100 productions over two weeks in various settings around the American capital.
Emotionally charged postcard from afar
Review by Alan Cheuse - San Francisco Chronicle
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Camilla Gibb is a Toronto fiction writer who originally trained in social anthropology. If her latest novel, "Sweetness in the Belly," is any evidence, her fieldwork in Ethiopia seems to have paid off in surprising ways. This engrossing book -- the story of Lilly, an English-born nurse who, after the death of her hippie parents in North Africa, is raised by a Moroccan Sufi scholar and then emigrates to Harar, Ethiopia -- seems utterly convincing and authentic.
"Each morning ... we sat in the doorway of the dark room ... and recited quietly for an hour against the rhythmic sounds of Nouria on her knees scrubbing clothes in a big metal basin. ... It was here that we began in earnest. Listen and repeat. Listen and repeat. Line by line, verse by verse, just the way the Great Abdal had taught me."
The glimpse "Sweetness in the Belly" offers into the intimate lives of Muslim women and Ethiopian life and clan and national politics is sharp and moving, an unexpected book-length postcard from a part of the world most of us have never visited.
Camilla Gibb
Sweetness in the Belly
THE PENGUIN PRESS; 352 PAGES; $23.95
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Camilla Gibb is a Toronto fiction writer who originally trained in social anthropology. If her latest novel, "Sweetness in the Belly," is any evidence, her fieldwork in Ethiopia seems to have paid off in surprising ways. This engrossing book -- the story of Lilly, an English-born nurse who, after the death of her hippie parents in North Africa, is raised by a Moroccan Sufi scholar and then emigrates to Harar, Ethiopia -- seems utterly convincing and authentic.
"Each morning ... we sat in the doorway of the dark room ... and recited quietly for an hour against the rhythmic sounds of Nouria on her knees scrubbing clothes in a big metal basin. ... It was here that we began in earnest. Listen and repeat. Listen and repeat. Line by line, verse by verse, just the way the Great Abdal had taught me."
The glimpse "Sweetness in the Belly" offers into the intimate lives of Muslim women and Ethiopian life and clan and national politics is sharp and moving, an unexpected book-length postcard from a part of the world most of us have never visited.
Camilla Gibb
Sweetness in the Belly
THE PENGUIN PRESS; 352 PAGES; $23.95
Dancing to the tune of the poet of love
By Rana Kashif - Daily Times - Pakistan
Sunday, March 26, 2006
LAHORE: The first day of Saint Mahdu Lal Hussain’s Urs, also called Mela Charaghan, was celebrated by people dancing (dhamal) to drumbeats around lit oil lamps. Around 450,000 people are expected to attend the three-day urs, the last day of which is reserved for women.
The Auqaf Department has organised a Mehfil-e-Sama and meetings to highlight various aspects of the saint’s life. Punjab Religious Affairs Minister Sahibzada Saeedul Hassan Shah inaugurated the urs on Friday, saying he was pleased with the arrangements and the government was providing maximum facilities to devotees. He said Sufis had helped promote Islam in the sub-continent and they were a source of guidance for people. Devotees honour Madhu Lal Hussain by lighting oil lamps at his shrine near Shalimar Gardens in Baghbanpura.
Several devotees could be seen dancing around a fire lit in the courtyard of the Sufi’s shrine on the first day. Some people were also singing the saint’s kafees and trying to get as close to the fire because of their belief that prayers were answered more quickly this way. Roads leading to the saint’s shrine were packed with pilgrims and food stalls.
Madhu Lal Hussain, the poet of love, was born in 1538 and his family lived outside Taxali Gate along River Ravi, which flowed near Lahore Fort at that time but some researchers differ with this view and say that the saint was born in ‘Dhadhi Village’ in Pind Dadan Khan (Jhelum). Kalsrai Rajputs, forefathers of Madhu Lal, embraced Islam in Feroze Shah Tughlaq’s reign. He started his formal education at the age of 10 when he was sent to Hafiz Abu Bakar at a mosque and some people say that Madhu Lal had memorised the Quran by heart.
Madhu Lal’s life changed when Sufi Behlol Daryai visited Lahore and met him while searching for water for ablution. Madhu Lal rushed to River Ravi and fetched water for Behlol Daryai, at which he accepted Madhu Lal as his disciple. It is also said that Madhu Lal was a Malamati, a school of Sufi thought that acts against societies’ ethical standards to make societies hate them in their effort to develop self-control.
He believed in love for humanity and his disciples included a Hindu boy Madhu, Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s brother and several princes. The Hindu boy had left his family for the Sufi, who loved him so much that he put the boy’s name before his own. He was the first Punjabi Sufi whose Punjabi poetry contained words from other languages like Pothohari, Hindi, Persian and Arabic, but his poetry is extremely easy to understand. The Sufi also called himself Hussain Julaha, Hussain Namana, Hussain Faqeer and Shah Hussain in his verses. The theme of his poetry is Knowing God by Knowing Ourselves. He wrote almost 163 kafees and according to researchers, Madhu Lal was a true scholar and intellectual. Madhu Lal died in 1599 at the age of 63 and was buried in Shahdara, but his body was exhumed and buried at Baghbanpura where the Hindu boy Madhu is also buried. Madhu Lal’s famous kafees include Rabba Meray Hal Da Mehram Toon, Mein Vi Jhok Ranjhan Di Jana Nal Meray Koi Challay, Mahi Mahi Kookdi and Mandi Han Kay Changi Han Sahab Teri Bandi Han.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
LAHORE: The first day of Saint Mahdu Lal Hussain’s Urs, also called Mela Charaghan, was celebrated by people dancing (dhamal) to drumbeats around lit oil lamps. Around 450,000 people are expected to attend the three-day urs, the last day of which is reserved for women.
The Auqaf Department has organised a Mehfil-e-Sama and meetings to highlight various aspects of the saint’s life. Punjab Religious Affairs Minister Sahibzada Saeedul Hassan Shah inaugurated the urs on Friday, saying he was pleased with the arrangements and the government was providing maximum facilities to devotees. He said Sufis had helped promote Islam in the sub-continent and they were a source of guidance for people. Devotees honour Madhu Lal Hussain by lighting oil lamps at his shrine near Shalimar Gardens in Baghbanpura.
Several devotees could be seen dancing around a fire lit in the courtyard of the Sufi’s shrine on the first day. Some people were also singing the saint’s kafees and trying to get as close to the fire because of their belief that prayers were answered more quickly this way. Roads leading to the saint’s shrine were packed with pilgrims and food stalls.
Madhu Lal Hussain, the poet of love, was born in 1538 and his family lived outside Taxali Gate along River Ravi, which flowed near Lahore Fort at that time but some researchers differ with this view and say that the saint was born in ‘Dhadhi Village’ in Pind Dadan Khan (Jhelum). Kalsrai Rajputs, forefathers of Madhu Lal, embraced Islam in Feroze Shah Tughlaq’s reign. He started his formal education at the age of 10 when he was sent to Hafiz Abu Bakar at a mosque and some people say that Madhu Lal had memorised the Quran by heart.
Madhu Lal’s life changed when Sufi Behlol Daryai visited Lahore and met him while searching for water for ablution. Madhu Lal rushed to River Ravi and fetched water for Behlol Daryai, at which he accepted Madhu Lal as his disciple. It is also said that Madhu Lal was a Malamati, a school of Sufi thought that acts against societies’ ethical standards to make societies hate them in their effort to develop self-control.
He believed in love for humanity and his disciples included a Hindu boy Madhu, Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s brother and several princes. The Hindu boy had left his family for the Sufi, who loved him so much that he put the boy’s name before his own. He was the first Punjabi Sufi whose Punjabi poetry contained words from other languages like Pothohari, Hindi, Persian and Arabic, but his poetry is extremely easy to understand. The Sufi also called himself Hussain Julaha, Hussain Namana, Hussain Faqeer and Shah Hussain in his verses. The theme of his poetry is Knowing God by Knowing Ourselves. He wrote almost 163 kafees and according to researchers, Madhu Lal was a true scholar and intellectual. Madhu Lal died in 1599 at the age of 63 and was buried in Shahdara, but his body was exhumed and buried at Baghbanpura where the Hindu boy Madhu is also buried. Madhu Lal’s famous kafees include Rabba Meray Hal Da Mehram Toon, Mein Vi Jhok Ranjhan Di Jana Nal Meray Koi Challay, Mahi Mahi Kookdi and Mandi Han Kay Changi Han Sahab Teri Bandi Han.
Energy and aromatherapy
By Dr. Amir Farid Isahak - The Star - Malaysia
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Aromatherapy is a holistic healing method that combines the science of essential oils with the art of listening to the body, and applying the appropriate essences to re-harmonise the imbalances. The oils can be sniffed directly, sprayed, taken as inhalation, or more usually, diffused into the air using a burner or diffuser. They can also be used as direct applications to the body, as massage oil, or incorporated into soaps, body care items and even in household sprays and insect repellents.
Because the resources (mostly flowers, herbs, seeds and spices) are readily available, aromatherapy has been practised for thousands of years. However, very little scientific study has been done until recently.
Being a medical doctor, I was very sceptical of aromatherapy. My attitude changed after learning through Sufi Healing that aromatherapy was first used by Prophet Sulaiman (King Solomon) and that some Sufi healers still use rose essential oil as the mainstay of their treatments.
The rose is a very special flower. Thousands of flowers are used to extract its essence and it remains the mainstay of Sufi essential oils.
Energy healers know that the essential oils have a very strong life-force (qi) that can influence the various energy systems in the body. Since certain plants have high levels of qi, they are more suitable to be used for healing.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Aromatherapy is a holistic healing method that combines the science of essential oils with the art of listening to the body, and applying the appropriate essences to re-harmonise the imbalances. The oils can be sniffed directly, sprayed, taken as inhalation, or more usually, diffused into the air using a burner or diffuser. They can also be used as direct applications to the body, as massage oil, or incorporated into soaps, body care items and even in household sprays and insect repellents.
Because the resources (mostly flowers, herbs, seeds and spices) are readily available, aromatherapy has been practised for thousands of years. However, very little scientific study has been done until recently.
Being a medical doctor, I was very sceptical of aromatherapy. My attitude changed after learning through Sufi Healing that aromatherapy was first used by Prophet Sulaiman (King Solomon) and that some Sufi healers still use rose essential oil as the mainstay of their treatments.
The rose is a very special flower. Thousands of flowers are used to extract its essence and it remains the mainstay of Sufi essential oils.
Energy healers know that the essential oils have a very strong life-force (qi) that can influence the various energy systems in the body. Since certain plants have high levels of qi, they are more suitable to be used for healing.
Sufi Songs at the Bardavon
By Sandy Tomcho - Times Herald-Record
Sunday, March 26, 2006
"Songs of the Sufi Brotherhood," featuring Hassan Hakmoun and Hamza el Din, will be performed at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Bardavon.
Hamza el Din plays the oud (string instrument) and tar (ancient drum), and his music has appeared in such movies as the "Black Stallion" and "Passion in the Desert."
Hassan Hakmoun plays the sintir, an African bass drum.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
"Songs of the Sufi Brotherhood," featuring Hassan Hakmoun and Hamza el Din, will be performed at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Bardavon.
Hamza el Din plays the oud (string instrument) and tar (ancient drum), and his music has appeared in such movies as the "Black Stallion" and "Passion in the Desert."
Hassan Hakmoun plays the sintir, an African bass drum.
Devotees stopped from performing rituals
Source: newindpress.com - Southern news- Karnataka
Saturday, March 25, 2006
CHIKMAGALUR: Karnataka Komu Sowharda Vedike leaders alleged that the district administration had restrained devotees from performing rituals as per the Sufi customs during the recently-concluded three-day Urs at the cave shrine Datta Peeta atop Bababudangiri hills.
Talking to reporters here on Thursday, Komu Sowharda Vedike state secretary K.L. Ashok pointed out that the district administration and State government had not permitted religious head Sha Quadri to smear sandal paste and cover tombs with new green cloth (gilf) as per the Sufi custom. K.L. Ashok complained that the Janata Dal-Secular was systematically attacking minorities with the backing of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The administration had restricted religious performances on the pretext of court direction, he added.
Recalling that the Court had asked the district administration to allow all customs that prevailed prior to 1975, he claimed that smearing sandal paste and covering the tomb with new cloth was the custom earlier too.
Without following these rites the Urs was not complete. So Sha Quadri was forced to postpone the Urs date. Gouse Moiddin clarified that another day for the Urs would be fixed after collecting the opinion of minority community.
Komu Sowharda Vedike leader Ahobalpathi, district secretary Puttaswamy and Mahila Jagarthi leader Shantha were present.
Saturday, March 25, 2006
CHIKMAGALUR: Karnataka Komu Sowharda Vedike leaders alleged that the district administration had restrained devotees from performing rituals as per the Sufi customs during the recently-concluded three-day Urs at the cave shrine Datta Peeta atop Bababudangiri hills.
Talking to reporters here on Thursday, Komu Sowharda Vedike state secretary K.L. Ashok pointed out that the district administration and State government had not permitted religious head Sha Quadri to smear sandal paste and cover tombs with new green cloth (gilf) as per the Sufi custom. K.L. Ashok complained that the Janata Dal-Secular was systematically attacking minorities with the backing of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The administration had restricted religious performances on the pretext of court direction, he added.
Recalling that the Court had asked the district administration to allow all customs that prevailed prior to 1975, he claimed that smearing sandal paste and covering the tomb with new cloth was the custom earlier too.
Without following these rites the Urs was not complete. So Sha Quadri was forced to postpone the Urs date. Gouse Moiddin clarified that another day for the Urs would be fixed after collecting the opinion of minority community.
Komu Sowharda Vedike leader Ahobalpathi, district secretary Puttaswamy and Mahila Jagarthi leader Shantha were present.
Isabelle Wen the fabric speak
By Jules Quartly, staff reporter - Taipei Times
Thursday, Mar 23, 2006
The "Twirling Sofi" show at the designer's restaurant/lounge bar in Taipei was inspired by sufism and the dance of the whirling dervishes that is said to represent a spiritual journey to perfection. Isabelle Wen's (溫慶珠) latest spring/summer offering on the weekend was her favored combination of feminine frills and sequins; there was an edge that had observers saying it was one of her best collections yet.
And since this year is the 20th anniversary of the founding of her design company, the collection was an achievement that deserved all the applause it got. The Taipei fashionista has hit a high point in her career and the only problem is keeping up the momentum. But behind success there is sometimes sadness. A brush with a life-threatening illness and overcoming a creative hiatus six years ago has made Wen more appreciative of life's blessings and drove her to reach greater heights. Even so, she said her public image was "a shell."
"Though I may be sick and tired it is my job to make people happy. I don't want them to see just the horrible side of life, it is my job to reveal beauty," Wen said in an interview on Tuesday at her studio and workshop in Shihlin. Wen said her current collection was, to an extent, the result of overcoming problems. In fashion as in art, there is no gain without pain.
"I was listening to a midnight radio station called Ai Yue Diantai (愛樂電台) at my house. There was this music and the announcer said it was from a whirling dervish dance. It spoke to me of religion, prayers, layers of white and spirituality. There seemed to be a rainbow in my mind. It made me forget the pain."
Like the dervish who attains a zen-like state, Wen said the music had helped her put "spiritual and material together" to come up with a concept for her show, "which is a way of letting fabric tell the story."
Thursday, Mar 23, 2006
The "Twirling Sofi" show at the designer's restaurant/lounge bar in Taipei was inspired by sufism and the dance of the whirling dervishes that is said to represent a spiritual journey to perfection. Isabelle Wen's (溫慶珠) latest spring/summer offering on the weekend was her favored combination of feminine frills and sequins; there was an edge that had observers saying it was one of her best collections yet.
And since this year is the 20th anniversary of the founding of her design company, the collection was an achievement that deserved all the applause it got. The Taipei fashionista has hit a high point in her career and the only problem is keeping up the momentum. But behind success there is sometimes sadness. A brush with a life-threatening illness and overcoming a creative hiatus six years ago has made Wen more appreciative of life's blessings and drove her to reach greater heights. Even so, she said her public image was "a shell."
"Though I may be sick and tired it is my job to make people happy. I don't want them to see just the horrible side of life, it is my job to reveal beauty," Wen said in an interview on Tuesday at her studio and workshop in Shihlin. Wen said her current collection was, to an extent, the result of overcoming problems. In fashion as in art, there is no gain without pain.
"I was listening to a midnight radio station called Ai Yue Diantai (愛樂電台) at my house. There was this music and the announcer said it was from a whirling dervish dance. It spoke to me of religion, prayers, layers of white and spirituality. There seemed to be a rainbow in my mind. It made me forget the pain."
Like the dervish who attains a zen-like state, Wen said the music had helped her put "spiritual and material together" to come up with a concept for her show, "which is a way of letting fabric tell the story."
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Unless It's Value-Added, Religion's a Non-Starter These Days
By Russ Wellen - Freezerbox
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Worshippers are no longer content to take their religion straight anymore. They need a chaser. And that chaser is oppositional defiance.
Building a denomination or congregation today requires rallying it around the forces of evil -usually more imagined than real?
In America, congregations are pitted against other segments of America; the only religions where most of the worshippers commune with a higher power as opposed to raging against sinners are the activist and monastic branches of Christianity and the meditative traditions of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam (Sufism).
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Worshippers are no longer content to take their religion straight anymore. They need a chaser. And that chaser is oppositional defiance.
Building a denomination or congregation today requires rallying it around the forces of evil -usually more imagined than real?
In America, congregations are pitted against other segments of America; the only religions where most of the worshippers commune with a higher power as opposed to raging against sinners are the activist and monastic branches of Christianity and the meditative traditions of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam (Sufism).
Sufism Symposium: Understanding Islam from the Sufi Perspective in San Jose, California
Press release from: IAS
Open PR - 03-23-2006
Learn about Islam at Sufism Symposium
Scholars from around the world will make presentations to promote the understanding of Islam at the International Sufism Symposium at the Hilton Hotel, 300 Almaden Boulevard, San Jose, Friday through Sunday, May 5 - 7.
The weekend will include a Sufi psychology panel presentation on Friday afternoon at 3:00 pm offering CEUs for therapists. Workshops and lectures will take place on Saturday and Sunday beginning at 9:00 am each day. A Saturday evening prayer gathering will include Sufi zekr. Taneen Sufi Music Ensemble will present an interfaith concert with Ya Elah, Jewish Music Ensemble, on Friday, May 5 at 8 pm.
The Sufi Women’s Organization will bring together women from many countries and the young adult program, “Voices for Justice” will hold an open meeting.
This multi-cultural celebration is sponsored by the International Association of Sufism, headquartered in Novato. The weekend is open to the public with registration available for one, two or three days. Discounts are available for students and seniors and all programs are wheelchair accessible.
Open PR - 03-23-2006
Learn about Islam at Sufism Symposium
Scholars from around the world will make presentations to promote the understanding of Islam at the International Sufism Symposium at the Hilton Hotel, 300 Almaden Boulevard, San Jose, Friday through Sunday, May 5 - 7.
The weekend will include a Sufi psychology panel presentation on Friday afternoon at 3:00 pm offering CEUs for therapists. Workshops and lectures will take place on Saturday and Sunday beginning at 9:00 am each day. A Saturday evening prayer gathering will include Sufi zekr. Taneen Sufi Music Ensemble will present an interfaith concert with Ya Elah, Jewish Music Ensemble, on Friday, May 5 at 8 pm.
The Sufi Women’s Organization will bring together women from many countries and the young adult program, “Voices for Justice” will hold an open meeting.
This multi-cultural celebration is sponsored by the International Association of Sufism, headquartered in Novato. The weekend is open to the public with registration available for one, two or three days. Discounts are available for students and seniors and all programs are wheelchair accessible.
Pakistani court sentences two militants to death
Bureau Report - Zeenews.com - Quetta, Pakistan
Thursday, March 23, 2006
A Pakistani court today sentenced to death two bomb-makers involved in a sectarian attack that killed 43 people at Muslim shrine in southwest Pakistan a year ago, lawyers said.
While receiving life terms for their role in the attack on the shrine near Gandhawa town in the southwestern province of Baluchistan, the two men were sentenced to death after being found guilty of a subsequent attempt to assemble a bomb.
The anti-terrorism court in Sibi district, where Gandhawa is located, also sentenced three other men to life in prison for the attack on the shrine dedicated to a Muslim saint.
The convicted men were all members of the banned Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (Pakistan Army of the companions of the prophet) militant organisation. Sipah-e-Sahaba is a radical Sunni Muslim group which opposes Sufism, a mystical version of Islam propagated by saints. The group was banned by the government in 2002 as part of Pakistan's campaign to rein in Islamist militants.
Thousands of people had gathered at the shrine for an annual celebration when the blasts occurred.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
A Pakistani court today sentenced to death two bomb-makers involved in a sectarian attack that killed 43 people at Muslim shrine in southwest Pakistan a year ago, lawyers said.
While receiving life terms for their role in the attack on the shrine near Gandhawa town in the southwestern province of Baluchistan, the two men were sentenced to death after being found guilty of a subsequent attempt to assemble a bomb.
The anti-terrorism court in Sibi district, where Gandhawa is located, also sentenced three other men to life in prison for the attack on the shrine dedicated to a Muslim saint.
The convicted men were all members of the banned Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (Pakistan Army of the companions of the prophet) militant organisation. Sipah-e-Sahaba is a radical Sunni Muslim group which opposes Sufism, a mystical version of Islam propagated by saints. The group was banned by the government in 2002 as part of Pakistan's campaign to rein in Islamist militants.
Thousands of people had gathered at the shrine for an annual celebration when the blasts occurred.