This (Shrine) Is a House for Every Individual

IANS - Mangalorean Com - Mangalore, India

Thursday, May 10, 2007

As the shrine of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya reverberated with Qawwalis towards the end of the 703rd annual Urs, thousands of milling devotees - Muslims, Hindus and other faiths - were lost in a world of their own.

The ambience, called Mehfil-e-Sama, demanded so. Qawwali singers, tunefully shouting "Moula Ali Moula Moula", compelled every visitor to erase the concept of time from the minds and experience the spiritual ecstasy.

That is what precisely defines the goal of Sufism - a mystical belief and practice seeking the truth of divine love and knowledge.

Dargah Nizamuddin is thronged by tens of thousands from all over India and abroad too, particularly from South Asia. The shrine houses the graves of 13th century Muslim saints Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya and Amir-e-Khusrau - one of the greatest Sufi poets.

Thousands of devotees paid obeisance at the shrine in the just ended annual Urs - to earn the "blessings and peace of mind". The festival started May 5 and finished Tuesday evening.

"This (shrine) is a house for every individual. People come here from cross cultures and beliefs to get peace of mind," says Mohammed Hasnain Nizami, one of the priests. "The shrine, an abode of Sufism, metaphors for god's abode - where everyone is treated equal."

Nizami ridicules claims that Sufism isn't what "pure Islam" teaches.

"Sufism is a path that leads to Absolute Truth through divine love and wisdom," he explains. "And that is what Nizamuddin Auliya taught humanity."

"The central message of the Sufi saint is peace with all. Tell me, is the message of harmony and amity outside of Islam?" he asked.

"The orthodox want to interpret Islam in a literal way and the Sufis expand the boundaries of their faith to include all humanity."

While Nizami recited his prayers on the lawns of the mausoleum, on the other end Mohammed Ismail Qawwal of Ghaziabad and his team enthralled the devotees with a mystical combination of music and devotional lyrics.

"Barde Joli Meri Ya Mohammed - Laut Kar Main Na Jaaoonga Khali" (Fill my basket O Prophet Mohammed - Never Will I Leave Empty Handed) were the words sung by Ismail.

Narendra Kumar, 35, and his wife from Jaipur were all in tears - lost in meditation and seeking the Sufi saint's blessing. Despite the lyrics punctuated by liberal Persian being incomprehensible for him, Kumar was engrossed in the "supernatural ambience".

"I don't know what the words mean but it takes me closer to the god," Kumar later told IANS.
"I have come here to be blessed with a child," he said, after laying a traditional 'chadder' and flower wreath on the grave of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya.

While Qawwali drew the faithful, so did the 'langar' or common kitchen where devotees were served sweetened rice and halwa for free. At one time, there was a near stampede.
But truly in Sufi style, peace finally reigned.

[picture: http://www.chishti.ru/sufi_photos_p2.htm]