By Mayank Austen Soofi, *Delhi's cool retreat* Hindustan Times - New Delhi, India; Thursday, January 13, 2011
The chilla, or retreat, of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya is Delhi's most serene monument. Here, the city's iconic 14th cenury Sufi saint lived, meditated, and died. This was his khanqah -a monastery- where he used to perform chilla-kashi, the spiritual practice in which a secluded sufi goes without food or sleep for 40 days.
In Hazrat Nizamuddin's time, the khanqah was in wilderness. The Yamuna flowed a stone's throw away. Down the centuries, the river's course shifted further east; a railway line came up in its place. Despite the rumble of trains, the khanqah feels remote. Surrounded by trees, it is flanked on one side by the stony ramparts of Humayun's Tomb, and on the other, by the white dome of Gurudwara Damdama Sahib. Dozens of well-kept graves dot the slope behind.
Built on a stone platform, the khanqah has a vaulted veranda leading to a domed chamber, where Hazrat Nizamuddin prayed. In a recent renovation, the grassy yard was laid with marble. Battered walls and rubble masonry were partially painted white. New lamps were installed. The chamber's grilled door was done in green; it remains locked. Sitting on the veranda's velvety durree, the detached world of the kanqah grows intimate and hypnotic.
The resident fakir lives in a neighbouring ruin with seven cats. His chamber has an alcove in which believers light candles to wish away personal distresses. Pointing to a cell in the adjacent Humayun Tomb complex, the fakir tells us that it was Hazrat Nizamuddin's original hujra, or chamber, where he would withdraw from the world.
According to him, the kanqah was raised by a court noble named Ziauddeen Wakeel. When Wakeel offered to build a new chamber, Hazrat Nizamuddin warned that the person commissioning it would not live for long. Wakeel went on with the project, saying that everyone has to die someday. The kahanqah took 30 days to finish.
On the first evening of its completion, a mehfil was organised. As the songs and dance started, Wakeel's ecstatic soul left his body. His grave lies in the courtyard.
The graveyard in the backyard is as peaceful. In the evening, devotional songs waft over from the gurudwara. The effect is calming.
Where: Near Humayun's Tomb -drive straight past it towards Gurudara Damdama Sahib. Nearest Metro Station: Khan Market.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Chilla-kashi
The chilla, or retreat, of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya is Delhi's most serene monument. Here, the city's iconic 14th cenury Sufi saint lived, meditated, and died. This was his khanqah -a monastery- where he used to perform chilla-kashi, the spiritual practice in which a secluded sufi goes without food or sleep for 40 days.
In Hazrat Nizamuddin's time, the khanqah was in wilderness. The Yamuna flowed a stone's throw away. Down the centuries, the river's course shifted further east; a railway line came up in its place. Despite the rumble of trains, the khanqah feels remote. Surrounded by trees, it is flanked on one side by the stony ramparts of Humayun's Tomb, and on the other, by the white dome of Gurudwara Damdama Sahib. Dozens of well-kept graves dot the slope behind.
Built on a stone platform, the khanqah has a vaulted veranda leading to a domed chamber, where Hazrat Nizamuddin prayed. In a recent renovation, the grassy yard was laid with marble. Battered walls and rubble masonry were partially painted white. New lamps were installed. The chamber's grilled door was done in green; it remains locked. Sitting on the veranda's velvety durree, the detached world of the kanqah grows intimate and hypnotic.
The resident fakir lives in a neighbouring ruin with seven cats. His chamber has an alcove in which believers light candles to wish away personal distresses. Pointing to a cell in the adjacent Humayun Tomb complex, the fakir tells us that it was Hazrat Nizamuddin's original hujra, or chamber, where he would withdraw from the world.
According to him, the kanqah was raised by a court noble named Ziauddeen Wakeel. When Wakeel offered to build a new chamber, Hazrat Nizamuddin warned that the person commissioning it would not live for long. Wakeel went on with the project, saying that everyone has to die someday. The kahanqah took 30 days to finish.
On the first evening of its completion, a mehfil was organised. As the songs and dance started, Wakeel's ecstatic soul left his body. His grave lies in the courtyard.
The graveyard in the backyard is as peaceful. In the evening, devotional songs waft over from the gurudwara. The effect is calming.
Where: Near Humayun's Tomb -drive straight past it towards Gurudara Damdama Sahib. Nearest Metro Station: Khan Market.
Labels:
saints and shrines
By Mayank Austen Soofi, *Delhi's cool retreat* Hindustan Times - New Delhi, India; Thursday, January 13, 2011The chilla, or retreat, of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya is Delhi's most serene monument. Here, the city's iconic 14th cenury Sufi saint lived, meditated, and died. This was his khanqah -a monastery- where he used to perform chilla-kashi, the spiritual practice in which a secluded sufi goes without food or sleep for 40 days.
In Hazrat Nizamuddin's time, the khanqah was in wilderness. The Yamuna flowed a stone's throw away. Down the centuries, the river's course shifted further east; a railway line came up in its place. Despite the rumble of trains, the khanqah feels remote. Surrounded by trees, it is flanked on one side by the stony ramparts of Humayun's Tomb, and on the other, by the white dome of Gurudwara Damdama Sahib. Dozens of well-kept graves dot the slope behind.
Built on a stone platform, the khanqah has a vaulted veranda leading to a domed chamber, where Hazrat Nizamuddin prayed. In a recent renovation, the grassy yard was laid with marble. Battered walls and rubble masonry were partially painted white. New lamps were installed. The chamber's grilled door was done in green; it remains locked. Sitting on the veranda's velvety durree, the detached world of the kanqah grows intimate and hypnotic.
The resident fakir lives in a neighbouring ruin with seven cats. His chamber has an alcove in which believers light candles to wish away personal distresses. Pointing to a cell in the adjacent Humayun Tomb complex, the fakir tells us that it was Hazrat Nizamuddin's original hujra, or chamber, where he would withdraw from the world.
According to him, the kanqah was raised by a court noble named Ziauddeen Wakeel. When Wakeel offered to build a new chamber, Hazrat Nizamuddin warned that the person commissioning it would not live for long. Wakeel went on with the project, saying that everyone has to die someday. The kahanqah took 30 days to finish.
On the first evening of its completion, a mehfil was organised. As the songs and dance started, Wakeel's ecstatic soul left his body. His grave lies in the courtyard.
The graveyard in the backyard is as peaceful. In the evening, devotional songs waft over from the gurudwara. The effect is calming.
Where: Near Humayun's Tomb -drive straight past it towards Gurudara Damdama Sahib. Nearest Metro Station: Khan Market.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment