By Vimla Patil - Sunday Deccan Herald
Sunday, 12 March, 2006
Hori Khelat Nandalal Birajamein; Shyam Tose Hori Nahin Khelungi, Mori Angiya Bhigoi Deeni; Natkhat Sawariya, Rang Det Chunariya” – these and thousands of more similar ditties in the classical and folk music of India ring in the newly fragrant air when the first blossoms of spring begin to appear on trees and creepers in the gardens and forests across the country.
The coming of this procession of flowers is, in every Indian mind, likened to the coming of that inimitable God of love, Krishna, into the waiting hearts of all Indians, who display an unbeatable spirit of energy and flamboyance around this time! And thus, is the season of spring celebrated all over India. The Krishna and Holi theme not only pervades the music of India in every village, but also brings new life and deeper meaning to all spiritual thought and action.
The Holi theme also influences Indian classical and folk dance of all styles all over the country and has been responsible for the creation of some of the finest miniature paintings of several schools in North India and Tanjore paintings in South India. How did the theme of Holi become omnipresent in Indian life and art?
Many scholars believe that somewhere in the remote past, this celebration of the love of Radha and Krishna has a patina of Sufi thought. The Sufis came to India from the 11th century onwards and brought with them the refreshing philosophy that the devotee and God share the passionate relationship of two lovers.
Many of them believed in the beautiful concept of ‘raising the veil and seeing the luminescent face of the beloved’ and expressed this longing through their songs and dances. Sufi poetry and paintings naturally chose famous pair of lovers like Laila Majnu, Shirin Farhad and finally Radha and Krishna as their subjects.
The result was that the courts of nawabs and kings of all states in North India patronised artists, musicians and dancers who brought alive the Krishna-Radha romance theme in every art center.
Secondly, side by side with Sufism, the cult of Madhurabhakti grew in India during the middle ages. Many saints like Surdas, Chaintanya Mahaprabhu, Chandidas, Vidyapati, Meerabai and others composed love songs of Radha and Krishna and took the romance of the divine lovers to newer heights.
Holi thus became not only the festival of colours but also the celebration of love, passion and exuberance.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Sharing the true values of Sharia
By Irfan Yusuf - ON LINE opinion - Australia
Friday, 10 March 2006
On Thursday, February 23, 2006 Treasurer and Prime Ministerial aspirant Peter Costello delivered a speech to an audience at the Sydney Institute. Mr Costello provided some personal reflections on Australia’s developing culture and citizenship. Within a few hours, a veritable media circus began.
Sadly, most migrant Muslim leaders bought into the circus, many expressing views on Mr Costello’s comments without having read his speech.
I read Mr Costello’s actual speech: Peter Costello said anyone who believes Sharia can co-exist with Australian law and Australian values should leave the country. But if one compares the five basic principles of Sharia to the six values espoused by Mr Costello, one finds they are virtually identical. Perhaps this is what Australian imams mean when they state in their sermons that Australia is a more Islamic country than most Muslim-majority states.
Some pseudo-conservative commentators present Sharia as a system of medieval criminal punishments. But for some 300,000 Australian Muslims, Sharia represents little more than ethics (including honesty and enterprise) and liturgy (how to perform prayers, weddings and funerals).
As shown above, the ethics of Sharia do not pose a problem for Australia. Further, Sharia liturgy has been practised in Australia for over a century. Indeed, Australia law allows a number of religious legal systems (such as Jewish religious law) to operate in the contexts of family law, estates and other areas.
Muslims believe the Prophet Mohammed brought Sharia as the outer manifestation of religious values. He also brought an inner manifestation, which has been given a variety of labels by Muslims but which is commonly known in the West as Sufism.
A tiny minority of Muslims seek to establish Sharia across the world without Sufism. They are the source of virtually all terrorist groups in the Muslim world. Their theology is regarded by mainstream Muslims as isolationist and fringe. They distort Sharia by imposing it on people without the inner discipline of Sufism. They are openly hostile to Sufi tradition.
These people seek to destroy Islam from within. They are arguably more of a threat to Muslims than non-Muslims. Hence, the majority of their victims are Muslims. Mr Costello would like to see such people leave Australia. Most Muslims, on the other hand, would prefer to see these people leave our planet. These people distort our perceptions about Sharia. Most Australians regard Sharia as purely consisting of draconian medieval punishments. Mr Costello’s own inaccurate comments about Sharia are a manifestation of distorted perceptions. Instead of criticising inevitable and understandable ignorance, Muslim leaders need to educate the community about their faith and values.
Friday, 10 March 2006
On Thursday, February 23, 2006 Treasurer and Prime Ministerial aspirant Peter Costello delivered a speech to an audience at the Sydney Institute. Mr Costello provided some personal reflections on Australia’s developing culture and citizenship. Within a few hours, a veritable media circus began.
Sadly, most migrant Muslim leaders bought into the circus, many expressing views on Mr Costello’s comments without having read his speech.
I read Mr Costello’s actual speech: Peter Costello said anyone who believes Sharia can co-exist with Australian law and Australian values should leave the country. But if one compares the five basic principles of Sharia to the six values espoused by Mr Costello, one finds they are virtually identical. Perhaps this is what Australian imams mean when they state in their sermons that Australia is a more Islamic country than most Muslim-majority states.
Some pseudo-conservative commentators present Sharia as a system of medieval criminal punishments. But for some 300,000 Australian Muslims, Sharia represents little more than ethics (including honesty and enterprise) and liturgy (how to perform prayers, weddings and funerals).
As shown above, the ethics of Sharia do not pose a problem for Australia. Further, Sharia liturgy has been practised in Australia for over a century. Indeed, Australia law allows a number of religious legal systems (such as Jewish religious law) to operate in the contexts of family law, estates and other areas.
Muslims believe the Prophet Mohammed brought Sharia as the outer manifestation of religious values. He also brought an inner manifestation, which has been given a variety of labels by Muslims but which is commonly known in the West as Sufism.
A tiny minority of Muslims seek to establish Sharia across the world without Sufism. They are the source of virtually all terrorist groups in the Muslim world. Their theology is regarded by mainstream Muslims as isolationist and fringe. They distort Sharia by imposing it on people without the inner discipline of Sufism. They are openly hostile to Sufi tradition.
These people seek to destroy Islam from within. They are arguably more of a threat to Muslims than non-Muslims. Hence, the majority of their victims are Muslims. Mr Costello would like to see such people leave Australia. Most Muslims, on the other hand, would prefer to see these people leave our planet. These people distort our perceptions about Sharia. Most Australians regard Sharia as purely consisting of draconian medieval punishments. Mr Costello’s own inaccurate comments about Sharia are a manifestation of distorted perceptions. Instead of criticising inevitable and understandable ignorance, Muslim leaders need to educate the community about their faith and values.
Sedaghat Jabbari Kalkhoran and the "Holy Names"
By Ershad Kamol - The Daily Star - Bangladesh
Saturday March 11, 2006
Iranian artist Sedaghat Jabbari Kalkhoran is one of the winners of the 'Grand Prize' at the 12th Asian Art Biennale, Bangladesh '06. He received the prestigious award for his mixed media work titled Holy Names.
Kalkhoran likes to portray the magnificence of Allah by decorating His names repeatedly on the canvas. In this sense his approach to art is a kind of 'Sufism'. He says, "I like to address spirituality by writing the 'Holy Names' repeatedly in different styles and shades. I never do any 'exercise' before my final work. It comes spontaneously and I won't be able to make copies of my work."
Saturday March 11, 2006
Iranian artist Sedaghat Jabbari Kalkhoran is one of the winners of the 'Grand Prize' at the 12th Asian Art Biennale, Bangladesh '06. He received the prestigious award for his mixed media work titled Holy Names.
Kalkhoran likes to portray the magnificence of Allah by decorating His names repeatedly on the canvas. In this sense his approach to art is a kind of 'Sufism'. He says, "I like to address spirituality by writing the 'Holy Names' repeatedly in different styles and shades. I never do any 'exercise' before my final work. It comes spontaneously and I won't be able to make copies of my work."
Radicalism and the construction of civilizations
By M Hilaly Basya - The Jakarta Post.com
Friday, March 10, 2006
The reconstruction of civilizations is meant to enable us to review the world-view of both Islam (the East) and the West. Some Western scholars have criticized and reconstructed the fundamentals of their civilization. The Post-modernist movement, represented by reconstructive thinkers such as Paul Ricouer, Gadamer, Fritchof Chapra, Gary Zukav, has made a significant contribution to that revision, but without a significant impact.
In Islam, we have to criticize "Islamic reason" (nalar Islam). It is meant as a deconstruction of "ancient reason" (nalar klasik), the epistemology that is used to construct Islamic teaching. Several prominent Islamic thinkers, such as Mohammad Abed Al-Jabiri, Mohammed Arkoun, Nashr Hamid Abu Zayd, Abdullahi Ahmed An-Naim, have promoted this movement. They have especially tried to reinterpret Islamic law, theology, Sufism and philosophy.
Friday, March 10, 2006
The reconstruction of civilizations is meant to enable us to review the world-view of both Islam (the East) and the West. Some Western scholars have criticized and reconstructed the fundamentals of their civilization. The Post-modernist movement, represented by reconstructive thinkers such as Paul Ricouer, Gadamer, Fritchof Chapra, Gary Zukav, has made a significant contribution to that revision, but without a significant impact.
In Islam, we have to criticize "Islamic reason" (nalar Islam). It is meant as a deconstruction of "ancient reason" (nalar klasik), the epistemology that is used to construct Islamic teaching. Several prominent Islamic thinkers, such as Mohammad Abed Al-Jabiri, Mohammed Arkoun, Nashr Hamid Abu Zayd, Abdullahi Ahmed An-Naim, have promoted this movement. They have especially tried to reinterpret Islamic law, theology, Sufism and philosophy.
Right Moves
By Sumati Mehrishi Sharma - Ahmedabad Newsline
cities.expressindia.com - Saturday, March 11, 2006
After performing to sufi chants, Bharatnatyam exponent Rama Vaidyanathan wants to experiment with thumris.
For a classical dancer, Rama Vaidyanathan doesn’t make quite the right moves sometimes. Like performing Bharatnatyam to sufi music or doing so wearing a black veil at the recent Jahen-e-Khusro Festival — the first exponent to do so. But then, this is what makes for a perfect profile if you are participating in the Seventh National Festival of New Choreography beginning on April 11 at the India Habitat Centre in Delhi.
“If you are intimidated by what others have to say about your imagination, you’ll never grow beyond the traditional idiom and nayikas. In that case, choreographies will not happen,” says Vaidyanathan, who believes that after a certain stage dancers should not hesitate to experiment.
cities.expressindia.com - Saturday, March 11, 2006
After performing to sufi chants, Bharatnatyam exponent Rama Vaidyanathan wants to experiment with thumris.
For a classical dancer, Rama Vaidyanathan doesn’t make quite the right moves sometimes. Like performing Bharatnatyam to sufi music or doing so wearing a black veil at the recent Jahen-e-Khusro Festival — the first exponent to do so. But then, this is what makes for a perfect profile if you are participating in the Seventh National Festival of New Choreography beginning on April 11 at the India Habitat Centre in Delhi.
“If you are intimidated by what others have to say about your imagination, you’ll never grow beyond the traditional idiom and nayikas. In that case, choreographies will not happen,” says Vaidyanathan, who believes that after a certain stage dancers should not hesitate to experiment.
Getting Intoxicated with The Love of God
Discourse: Avatar Meher Baba - The Times of India
Friday, 10 March 2006
Sufi poets often compare love with wine because both intoxicate. However, while wine causes self-forgetfulness, love leads to Self-realisation.
The behaviour of the intoxicated and the lover are similar; each disregards the world's standards of conduct and each is indiffe-rent to the opinion of the world.
But there is a world of difference between the course and the goal of the two: One leads to subterranean darkness and denial; the other, love, gives wings to the soul for its flight to freedom.
The drunkenness of the drunkard begins with a glass of wine which elates his spirit and loosens his inhibitions. It gives him a new view of life that promises forgetfulness from his daily worries. He goes on from one glass to two glasses, to a bottle; from companionship to isolation, from forgetfulness to oblivion which in reality, is the original state of God, but which, with the drunkard, is an empty stupor.
And he awakens in a dawn of futility, an object of disgust and ridicule. The lover's drunkenness begins with a drop of God's love which makes him forget the world.
The more he drinks the closer he draws to the Beloved, and the more unworthy he feels of the Beloved's love; and he longs to sacrifice his very life at his Beloved's feet.
He, too, does not know whether he sleeps on a bed or in a gutter, and becomes an object of ridicule; but he rests in bliss, and God the Beloved takes care of him. One out of many such lovers sees God face-to-face. His longing becomes infinite; he is like a fish thrown upon the beach, leaping and squirming to regain the ocean. He sees God everywhere and in everything, but he cannot find the gate of union.
The 'wine' that he drinks turns into 'fire' in which he continuously burns in blissful agony. And the fire eventually becomes the ocean of infinite consciousness in which he drowns.
In love there can never be satisfaction, for longing increases till it becomes an agony which ceases only in Union. Nothing but union with the Beloved can satisfy the lover.
The way of love is continual sacrifice; and what gets sacrificed are the lover's thoughts of 'I', until at last comes the time when the lover says, "O Beloved! Will I ever become one with you and so lose myself forever? But let this be only if it is your Will". This is the stage of love enlightened by obedience. Now the lover continuously witnesses the glory of the Beloved's will; and in the witnessing does not even think of union.
He willingly surrenders his entire being to the Beloved, and has no thought of self left. This is the stage when love is illumined by surrender. Out of millions, only one loves God; and out of millions of lovers, only one succeeds in obeying, and finally in surrendering his whole being to God the Beloved.
Greater than love is obedience. Greater than obedience is surrender. All three arise out of, and remain contained in, the ocean of divine love.
Friday, 10 March 2006
Sufi poets often compare love with wine because both intoxicate. However, while wine causes self-forgetfulness, love leads to Self-realisation.
The behaviour of the intoxicated and the lover are similar; each disregards the world's standards of conduct and each is indiffe-rent to the opinion of the world.
But there is a world of difference between the course and the goal of the two: One leads to subterranean darkness and denial; the other, love, gives wings to the soul for its flight to freedom.
The drunkenness of the drunkard begins with a glass of wine which elates his spirit and loosens his inhibitions. It gives him a new view of life that promises forgetfulness from his daily worries. He goes on from one glass to two glasses, to a bottle; from companionship to isolation, from forgetfulness to oblivion which in reality, is the original state of God, but which, with the drunkard, is an empty stupor.
And he awakens in a dawn of futility, an object of disgust and ridicule. The lover's drunkenness begins with a drop of God's love which makes him forget the world.
The more he drinks the closer he draws to the Beloved, and the more unworthy he feels of the Beloved's love; and he longs to sacrifice his very life at his Beloved's feet.
He, too, does not know whether he sleeps on a bed or in a gutter, and becomes an object of ridicule; but he rests in bliss, and God the Beloved takes care of him. One out of many such lovers sees God face-to-face. His longing becomes infinite; he is like a fish thrown upon the beach, leaping and squirming to regain the ocean. He sees God everywhere and in everything, but he cannot find the gate of union.
The 'wine' that he drinks turns into 'fire' in which he continuously burns in blissful agony. And the fire eventually becomes the ocean of infinite consciousness in which he drowns.
In love there can never be satisfaction, for longing increases till it becomes an agony which ceases only in Union. Nothing but union with the Beloved can satisfy the lover.
The way of love is continual sacrifice; and what gets sacrificed are the lover's thoughts of 'I', until at last comes the time when the lover says, "O Beloved! Will I ever become one with you and so lose myself forever? But let this be only if it is your Will". This is the stage of love enlightened by obedience. Now the lover continuously witnesses the glory of the Beloved's will; and in the witnessing does not even think of union.
He willingly surrenders his entire being to the Beloved, and has no thought of self left. This is the stage when love is illumined by surrender. Out of millions, only one loves God; and out of millions of lovers, only one succeeds in obeying, and finally in surrendering his whole being to God the Beloved.
Greater than love is obedience. Greater than obedience is surrender. All three arise out of, and remain contained in, the ocean of divine love.
Cal Performances offers one-world vision
By Sam Prestianni - Sentinel correspondent
Santa Cruz Sentinel - March 9, 2006
Cal Performances celebrates its 100th anniversary this year as one of the San Francisco Bay Area's top promoters of the performing arts. Since its inception with a high-profile benefit gig for victims of the 1906 earthquake, featuring the superstar French actress Sarah Bernhardt, the UC Berkeley-based presenting organization has advocated a global vision.
Today, this includes productions by musicians, dancers, writers and theatrical performers from every continent save Antarctica. Upcoming concerts by the Masters of Persian Classical Music, Cesaria Evora and Ladysmith Black Mambazo exemplify Cal Performances' commitment to showcasing the planet's dynamic music-making traditions.
The appearance of the Persian Masters, arguably Iran's premier cultural ambassadors to the United States, couldn't come at a more crucial time. After all, an ancient people's sacred art provides a welcome alternative to the chest-thumping politics of the day. The internationally renowned combo of Kayhan Kalhor on kamancheh spiked fiddle, Hossein Alizadeh on tar long-necked lute, Mohammad Reza Shajarian vocals, and his son Homayoun on tombak hand drum has already proven to be a hit among U.S. audiences: The quartet sold out a string of shows on the first leg of its recent Stateside tour and its two recordings, 2001's "Without You" and last year's "Faryad," were both nominated for Grammy awards.
Not unlike the Indian classical repertoire, traditional Persian music derives its power from improvisations on precise scales, rhythms, and phrases, which provide a common language pool for all the bandmates to draw from. The virtuosic instrumentalists of the Masters take their cues from the subtly shifting melodies of the singer Shajarian, who combines the rich meters and passionate verses of both ancient and modern Sufi poetry. Thus, the band's original voice is deeply tied to the mystic fringe of Islam in a spellbinding update on a very old-school sound.
Santa Cruz Sentinel - March 9, 2006
Cal Performances celebrates its 100th anniversary this year as one of the San Francisco Bay Area's top promoters of the performing arts. Since its inception with a high-profile benefit gig for victims of the 1906 earthquake, featuring the superstar French actress Sarah Bernhardt, the UC Berkeley-based presenting organization has advocated a global vision.
Today, this includes productions by musicians, dancers, writers and theatrical performers from every continent save Antarctica. Upcoming concerts by the Masters of Persian Classical Music, Cesaria Evora and Ladysmith Black Mambazo exemplify Cal Performances' commitment to showcasing the planet's dynamic music-making traditions.
The appearance of the Persian Masters, arguably Iran's premier cultural ambassadors to the United States, couldn't come at a more crucial time. After all, an ancient people's sacred art provides a welcome alternative to the chest-thumping politics of the day. The internationally renowned combo of Kayhan Kalhor on kamancheh spiked fiddle, Hossein Alizadeh on tar long-necked lute, Mohammad Reza Shajarian vocals, and his son Homayoun on tombak hand drum has already proven to be a hit among U.S. audiences: The quartet sold out a string of shows on the first leg of its recent Stateside tour and its two recordings, 2001's "Without You" and last year's "Faryad," were both nominated for Grammy awards.
Not unlike the Indian classical repertoire, traditional Persian music derives its power from improvisations on precise scales, rhythms, and phrases, which provide a common language pool for all the bandmates to draw from. The virtuosic instrumentalists of the Masters take their cues from the subtly shifting melodies of the singer Shajarian, who combines the rich meters and passionate verses of both ancient and modern Sufi poetry. Thus, the band's original voice is deeply tied to the mystic fringe of Islam in a spellbinding update on a very old-school sound.
The Stillness Of Sound
Rajiv Vijayakar - Screen India
Friday, March 10, 2006 - MUSIC REVIEWS
The Stillness Of Sound
Sony-BMG, Rs 299 (CD)
An outstanding Sufi album composed by Satish Sharma who writes four of the six songs too. Included are the much-used classics by Hazrat Amir Khusrau, ‘Chhap tilak...’ and ‘Piya ghar aaye...’. The vocals by Shujaat Khan are as spellbinding as his sitar. A must-buy.
Friday, March 10, 2006 - MUSIC REVIEWS
The Stillness Of Sound
Sony-BMG, Rs 299 (CD)
An outstanding Sufi album composed by Satish Sharma who writes four of the six songs too. Included are the much-used classics by Hazrat Amir Khusrau, ‘Chhap tilak...’ and ‘Piya ghar aaye...’. The vocals by Shujaat Khan are as spellbinding as his sitar. A must-buy.
My Spirits, My Cravings, My Garden, My Spring!
By Greg Burk - LAWeekly
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Masters of Persian Music at UCLA - Transcendent sound is the rarest kind. Dedicated musicians are always striving to get past the body, above the mud, and have a cup of tea with the infinite. But transcendence doesn’t come cheap. First you need something to transcend.
Pain, that is. Like John Coltrane, playing through rotted teeth and liver failure on A Love Supreme. Or Charles Lloyd, who melted into advanced degrees of transparency in the ’90s following a near fatal illness. Or Leni Stern, who dodged cancer and found new heights/depths in her songs and sounds. Or Etta James in R&B, or Schubert in classical music, or keep listing till you’re tired.
The subject crops up because Masters of Persian Music are coming. These four pull off quite a feat: They tap and transcend the pain of a whole culture through modern interpretations of its classical tradition. You’d almost think they were present during the many centuries when Persia/Iran, formerly the world’s greatest empire, underwent its stages of enslavement and revival. Sufism flourished and was repressed and rose again; Arabs, Afghans and Mongols invaded; Western influences ebbed and flowed like an acid tide; respites from war were brief. How can musicians reflect all that?
Obviously they’ve got to be proficient, and the Masters aren’t called that for nothing. A tougher trick: They can’t sound slick. The lyrics of the Sufi poet Rumi (“My spirits and my cravings, my garden and my spring!”) gush from the heart, and vocalist Mohammad Reza Shajarian never comes off like a trained classical gymnast — he means it, man! On tombak, Homayoun Shajarian shoulders the roles of drum, foundation and unifier — one guy, slapping whole and solid. Kayhan Kalhor’s kamancheh (spike fiddle) must have gut strings, ’cause guts is what he’s got, delivering the grandeur with roughspun folkiness and genuine heat. And the great, great Hossein Alizadeh plucks his tar with a mixture of dynamism and passion that makes you forget how damn difficult his runs are; let’s hope he gets some serious solo space, because this blazer’s improvisations can get you crawling up your own spine.
Since the Iran-hatin’ pendulum has swung ’round again, it’s interesting to note that Alizadeh’s last album, Endless Vision, was denied release in his home country because a woman sang on it alongside men. Two years later, the decision was reversed. Iran, you see, experiences a range of opinions.
Iran’s classical repertoire runs intricate and deep, offering up its arabesque symmetries as an abstraction of emotion, a prayer for transcendence. One of these millennia, America will boast a classical tradition to match it. But before then, we’ll have to face a world of hurt.
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Masters of Persian Music at UCLA - Transcendent sound is the rarest kind. Dedicated musicians are always striving to get past the body, above the mud, and have a cup of tea with the infinite. But transcendence doesn’t come cheap. First you need something to transcend.
Pain, that is. Like John Coltrane, playing through rotted teeth and liver failure on A Love Supreme. Or Charles Lloyd, who melted into advanced degrees of transparency in the ’90s following a near fatal illness. Or Leni Stern, who dodged cancer and found new heights/depths in her songs and sounds. Or Etta James in R&B, or Schubert in classical music, or keep listing till you’re tired.
The subject crops up because Masters of Persian Music are coming. These four pull off quite a feat: They tap and transcend the pain of a whole culture through modern interpretations of its classical tradition. You’d almost think they were present during the many centuries when Persia/Iran, formerly the world’s greatest empire, underwent its stages of enslavement and revival. Sufism flourished and was repressed and rose again; Arabs, Afghans and Mongols invaded; Western influences ebbed and flowed like an acid tide; respites from war were brief. How can musicians reflect all that?
Obviously they’ve got to be proficient, and the Masters aren’t called that for nothing. A tougher trick: They can’t sound slick. The lyrics of the Sufi poet Rumi (“My spirits and my cravings, my garden and my spring!”) gush from the heart, and vocalist Mohammad Reza Shajarian never comes off like a trained classical gymnast — he means it, man! On tombak, Homayoun Shajarian shoulders the roles of drum, foundation and unifier — one guy, slapping whole and solid. Kayhan Kalhor’s kamancheh (spike fiddle) must have gut strings, ’cause guts is what he’s got, delivering the grandeur with roughspun folkiness and genuine heat. And the great, great Hossein Alizadeh plucks his tar with a mixture of dynamism and passion that makes you forget how damn difficult his runs are; let’s hope he gets some serious solo space, because this blazer’s improvisations can get you crawling up your own spine.
Since the Iran-hatin’ pendulum has swung ’round again, it’s interesting to note that Alizadeh’s last album, Endless Vision, was denied release in his home country because a woman sang on it alongside men. Two years later, the decision was reversed. Iran, you see, experiences a range of opinions.
Iran’s classical repertoire runs intricate and deep, offering up its arabesque symmetries as an abstraction of emotion, a prayer for transcendence. One of these millennia, America will boast a classical tradition to match it. But before then, we’ll have to face a world of hurt.
In communion with God
Prof. Muhammad Ishaq Khan - Greater Kashmir online edition
Thu 09 March 2006
The tazkira literature in Sufism provides us an ample information about numerous Sufis of the subcontinent who performed Hajj in spite of the hazards of journey in medieval times. They undertook pilgrimage to Makkah not merely as a matter of religious duty, but, also, as seekers of exoteric and esoteric knowledge. My forthcoming Biographical Dictionary of Sufism in South Asia shows that in medieval times Makkah and Madina were not only great centres of Hadis learning but, also, hubs of Islamic spirituality (tasawwuf). Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Haqq Muhaddis Dihlawi who spent considerable time in Makkah bears an elaborate testimony to the excellence of the learning of the Indian Sufi scholars, settled in Makkah, like Shaikh ‘Ali Mutaqqi and Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab and their impact on the ‘ulama and masha’ikh of the Holy Land. Although Shaikh ‘Ali initially learnt at the feet of the acknowledged Arab scholar and theologian, Shaikh Ibn Hajar ‘Asqalani, later the latter himself took pride in calling himself a pupil of his erstwhile student. So much impressed was ‘Asqalani by the learning of his Indian born pupil that he enrolled himself as the disciple of Shaikh ‘Ali. Under the guidance of Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab Muttaqi al-Qadiri al-Shazili in Makkah, Shaikh ‘Adu’l-Haqq not only mastered the Sahi Muslim and Sahih Bukhari, but, also, Sufism.
Although the serene intellectual and spiritual environment of Makkah suited the temperament of Abd’ul-Haqq, he was advised by his spiritual preceptor to return home, both on the grounds of his obligations to his family and India. He was advised not to be in a hurry to denounce a believer as “infidel or a heretic”, if, even while performing fundamental religious duties, the latter was apparently found guilty of violating the Shari‘ah.
Today, there is no scope for the dissemination of a true spiritual knowledge in Sa‘udi Arabia given the official attempts at promoting a superficial understanding of Tawhid. Gone are the days when the ‘ulama of Makkah and Madina sent ripples to the pilgrims with an insatiable quest for a true spiritual knowledge. Not only, Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Haqq Muhaddis Dihlawi, but, later, Shah Waliu’llah, also, after their return from the Holy Land, proved themselves to be beacons of light in the profoundest sense of the term. They did not simply strengthen the roots of Islam in the subcontinent within the broader framework of Shari‘ah and Sufism, but, more importantly, contributed a great deal to the development of Hadis learning in the subcontinent. One may ask why Shah Waliu’llah, a contemporary of Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab ___ whose sources of knowledge as well as a teacher were the same in the Holy Land - led their followers in two different directions. While Shah Waliu’llah, in the best tradition of the Hujjatu’l-Islam Imam-i Ghazzali, sought to reconcile Shari‘ah and Sufism, Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab did not merely reject Sufism but even the recognized four schools of Islamic law. Notwithstanding the reformatory zeal of Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab, his interpretation of Islam was mainly prompted by the exigencies of the atrophied social environment of Arabia of his time, rather than by spiritio-historical profundities of Islam.
Although there is no marked distinction between the so-called “Arab Islam” and “Sufi Islam”, nonetheless, the Sa‘udi version of Islam is devoid of a deeper sense of spirituality and history. True, Ka‘ba is central to their thinking; but I have earlier shown that millions of pilgrims are also deeply conscious of the centrality of the Ka‘ba. Why does the Sa‘udi government, then, make a fetish of Tawhid by underestimating the Tawhidic consciousness of the pilgrims with strong roots in Sufism? Is it that the antipathy of Muhammad bin Abdu’l-Wahhab and his followers to Sufism has produced such a mind-set?
Historically, it has been the solemn practice with most pilgrims not only to perform the fundamental duty of Hajj, but, also, to visit the heritage sites of spiritual and historical importance. This fact did not merely revitalize the faith of individual believers in the eternity of spiritual Truth, but also led to the development of spiritual knowledge on sound Quranic, Sunnatic and historical foundations. The profuse Sufi literature on the Oneness of Allah and veneration of Muhammad (PBUH) would not have been produced without the spiritual experiences of the Sufis in the wake of their meditations at the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in Madina or, for that matter, at other heritage sites of spiritual and historical importance. The Awrad-i Fathiyya of Mir Saiyid ‘Ali Hamadani, the most popular invocatory prayer in Kashmir for over six centuries, though for the most part, based on the Quranic verses and the prayers of the Prophet (PBUH), was, in essence, the product of the Sufi’s spiritual strivings elsewhere but, finally, in the Holy Land. Likewise, several other Sufis were directed by the Prophet (PBUH) to carry on the mission of ennobling human souls in different parts of the globe in various spiritual states of their communion with him.
Against the background of sturdy spiritual and historical foundations of Sufism, several observations vis-à-vis orchestrated heresy (shirk) in several official booklets, published and distributed by Ministry of Islamic Affairs Endowments, Da‘wah and Guidance, Kingdom of Sa‘udi Arabia, sound hollow. First, shirk in the strictest Quranic sense is related to the Jahilliya belief in the tribal gods that the Ka‘ba housed. Second, the pilgrim’s veneration of Muhammad (PBUH) does not amount to shirk in the original sense of the word. No pilgrim consciously regards the Prophet as God or demi-god. Certainly, however, he is superbly aware of the eternal spiritual and historical role of the Prophet as the Grace of the Worlds. A believer with such supernal Quranic consciousness cannot be a robot but an elevated human soul with the never ceasing yearning for spiritio-historical unicity characterising the relationship between the Prophet (pbuh) and his followers. Equally important, therefore, are the ties of spiritual bonds between the Sufis and their adherents within the framework of the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
Notwithstanding the total neglect of the Sa‘udi government in preserving the cave of Hira as a heritage site, or, for that matter, several other places of spiritual and historical importance, the pilgrims with deep-rooted Sufi traditions, particularly, from Turkey and South Asia, throng Hira where the Prophet (PBUH) first received the Revelation. It was a heart-rending experience for me to see them burst into tears and loud cries while offering durud and salam to the Prophet (SAW) at Hira. What is more, the volitional acts of the pilgrims at Masjid-i Nabwi, Mazar-i Baq‘i, Jannatu’l-Mawa, Uhad and even at the site where the Prophet (PBUH) resided, testify to a certain kind of their abundant mystical love for the Prophet (PBUH), ahl-i bait, Companions, followers of the Companions and their followers. Such a phenomenon may be reprehensible to the Sa‘udis, but, by no stretch of the imagination, do the pilgrims with a burning love for Allah and His true servants dilute the essential spirit of Tawhid. Perhaps ‘Allama Iqbal in Asrar-i Khudi refers to such pilgrims of love in these words: (Translated by: Nicholson’s tr.)
“Be a lover constant in devotion to thy beloved,
That thou mayst cast thy noose and capture God.
Sojourn for a while on the Hira of the heart,
Abandon self and flee to God.
Strengthened by God, return to thy self
And break the heads of Lat and Uzza of sensuality.
By the might of Love evoke an army,
Reveal thyself on the Faran of Love,
That the Lord of the Ka‘bah may show thee favour
And interpret to thee the text, ‘Lo I will appoint a vicegerent on the earth’.”
Thu 09 March 2006
The tazkira literature in Sufism provides us an ample information about numerous Sufis of the subcontinent who performed Hajj in spite of the hazards of journey in medieval times. They undertook pilgrimage to Makkah not merely as a matter of religious duty, but, also, as seekers of exoteric and esoteric knowledge. My forthcoming Biographical Dictionary of Sufism in South Asia shows that in medieval times Makkah and Madina were not only great centres of Hadis learning but, also, hubs of Islamic spirituality (tasawwuf). Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Haqq Muhaddis Dihlawi who spent considerable time in Makkah bears an elaborate testimony to the excellence of the learning of the Indian Sufi scholars, settled in Makkah, like Shaikh ‘Ali Mutaqqi and Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab and their impact on the ‘ulama and masha’ikh of the Holy Land. Although Shaikh ‘Ali initially learnt at the feet of the acknowledged Arab scholar and theologian, Shaikh Ibn Hajar ‘Asqalani, later the latter himself took pride in calling himself a pupil of his erstwhile student. So much impressed was ‘Asqalani by the learning of his Indian born pupil that he enrolled himself as the disciple of Shaikh ‘Ali. Under the guidance of Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab Muttaqi al-Qadiri al-Shazili in Makkah, Shaikh ‘Adu’l-Haqq not only mastered the Sahi Muslim and Sahih Bukhari, but, also, Sufism.
Although the serene intellectual and spiritual environment of Makkah suited the temperament of Abd’ul-Haqq, he was advised by his spiritual preceptor to return home, both on the grounds of his obligations to his family and India. He was advised not to be in a hurry to denounce a believer as “infidel or a heretic”, if, even while performing fundamental religious duties, the latter was apparently found guilty of violating the Shari‘ah.
Today, there is no scope for the dissemination of a true spiritual knowledge in Sa‘udi Arabia given the official attempts at promoting a superficial understanding of Tawhid. Gone are the days when the ‘ulama of Makkah and Madina sent ripples to the pilgrims with an insatiable quest for a true spiritual knowledge. Not only, Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Haqq Muhaddis Dihlawi, but, later, Shah Waliu’llah, also, after their return from the Holy Land, proved themselves to be beacons of light in the profoundest sense of the term. They did not simply strengthen the roots of Islam in the subcontinent within the broader framework of Shari‘ah and Sufism, but, more importantly, contributed a great deal to the development of Hadis learning in the subcontinent. One may ask why Shah Waliu’llah, a contemporary of Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab ___ whose sources of knowledge as well as a teacher were the same in the Holy Land - led their followers in two different directions. While Shah Waliu’llah, in the best tradition of the Hujjatu’l-Islam Imam-i Ghazzali, sought to reconcile Shari‘ah and Sufism, Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab did not merely reject Sufism but even the recognized four schools of Islamic law. Notwithstanding the reformatory zeal of Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab, his interpretation of Islam was mainly prompted by the exigencies of the atrophied social environment of Arabia of his time, rather than by spiritio-historical profundities of Islam.
Although there is no marked distinction between the so-called “Arab Islam” and “Sufi Islam”, nonetheless, the Sa‘udi version of Islam is devoid of a deeper sense of spirituality and history. True, Ka‘ba is central to their thinking; but I have earlier shown that millions of pilgrims are also deeply conscious of the centrality of the Ka‘ba. Why does the Sa‘udi government, then, make a fetish of Tawhid by underestimating the Tawhidic consciousness of the pilgrims with strong roots in Sufism? Is it that the antipathy of Muhammad bin Abdu’l-Wahhab and his followers to Sufism has produced such a mind-set?
Historically, it has been the solemn practice with most pilgrims not only to perform the fundamental duty of Hajj, but, also, to visit the heritage sites of spiritual and historical importance. This fact did not merely revitalize the faith of individual believers in the eternity of spiritual Truth, but also led to the development of spiritual knowledge on sound Quranic, Sunnatic and historical foundations. The profuse Sufi literature on the Oneness of Allah and veneration of Muhammad (PBUH) would not have been produced without the spiritual experiences of the Sufis in the wake of their meditations at the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in Madina or, for that matter, at other heritage sites of spiritual and historical importance. The Awrad-i Fathiyya of Mir Saiyid ‘Ali Hamadani, the most popular invocatory prayer in Kashmir for over six centuries, though for the most part, based on the Quranic verses and the prayers of the Prophet (PBUH), was, in essence, the product of the Sufi’s spiritual strivings elsewhere but, finally, in the Holy Land. Likewise, several other Sufis were directed by the Prophet (PBUH) to carry on the mission of ennobling human souls in different parts of the globe in various spiritual states of their communion with him.
Against the background of sturdy spiritual and historical foundations of Sufism, several observations vis-à-vis orchestrated heresy (shirk) in several official booklets, published and distributed by Ministry of Islamic Affairs Endowments, Da‘wah and Guidance, Kingdom of Sa‘udi Arabia, sound hollow. First, shirk in the strictest Quranic sense is related to the Jahilliya belief in the tribal gods that the Ka‘ba housed. Second, the pilgrim’s veneration of Muhammad (PBUH) does not amount to shirk in the original sense of the word. No pilgrim consciously regards the Prophet as God or demi-god. Certainly, however, he is superbly aware of the eternal spiritual and historical role of the Prophet as the Grace of the Worlds. A believer with such supernal Quranic consciousness cannot be a robot but an elevated human soul with the never ceasing yearning for spiritio-historical unicity characterising the relationship between the Prophet (pbuh) and his followers. Equally important, therefore, are the ties of spiritual bonds between the Sufis and their adherents within the framework of the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
Notwithstanding the total neglect of the Sa‘udi government in preserving the cave of Hira as a heritage site, or, for that matter, several other places of spiritual and historical importance, the pilgrims with deep-rooted Sufi traditions, particularly, from Turkey and South Asia, throng Hira where the Prophet (PBUH) first received the Revelation. It was a heart-rending experience for me to see them burst into tears and loud cries while offering durud and salam to the Prophet (SAW) at Hira. What is more, the volitional acts of the pilgrims at Masjid-i Nabwi, Mazar-i Baq‘i, Jannatu’l-Mawa, Uhad and even at the site where the Prophet (PBUH) resided, testify to a certain kind of their abundant mystical love for the Prophet (PBUH), ahl-i bait, Companions, followers of the Companions and their followers. Such a phenomenon may be reprehensible to the Sa‘udis, but, by no stretch of the imagination, do the pilgrims with a burning love for Allah and His true servants dilute the essential spirit of Tawhid. Perhaps ‘Allama Iqbal in Asrar-i Khudi refers to such pilgrims of love in these words: (Translated by: Nicholson’s tr.)
“Be a lover constant in devotion to thy beloved,
That thou mayst cast thy noose and capture God.
Sojourn for a while on the Hira of the heart,
Abandon self and flee to God.
Strengthened by God, return to thy self
And break the heads of Lat and Uzza of sensuality.
By the might of Love evoke an army,
Reveal thyself on the Faran of Love,
That the Lord of the Ka‘bah may show thee favour
And interpret to thee the text, ‘Lo I will appoint a vicegerent on the earth’.”
Sunday, October 08, 2006
No Strings Attached?
By GIULIANA VETRANO Contributing Writer
The Harvard Crimson - Wednesday, March 08, 2006
The Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC) has its offices at the Semitic Museum on 6 Divinity Avenue, while the Center for Middle Eastern Studies are located at 1430 Mass. Ave., above CVS. A narrow corridor leads to closet-sized rooms just big enough to fit a professor and an FM reporter. Framed, dusty posters in Arabic from the eighties line the dull white walls, and the sounds of a Middle Eastern chant play softly from a distant corner.
This is where Harvard directs students interested in studying Islam.
Compared to the open atrium and plush conference rooms of, say, the Barker Center (where some NELC professors have attic offices), NELC’s space appears shabby and decrepit. And like its physical surroundings, the department itself could use an upgrade.
Funding for that improvement has arrived in the form of Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud’s $20 million gift announced this past November. The Saudi Arabian prince—also the world’s fifth richest man—designated the donation specifically for Islamic Studies. However, despite the improvement the gift guaranteed, critics inside and outside the Harvard community—still reeling from the events of Sept. 11, 2001—said they were suspicious of his background and presumed intentions and questioned whether or not the University should accept the donation.
While Harvard has received prior gifts from other Saudi Arabian and Middle Eastern donors, there is no common formula for accepting or rejecting a gift. Rather, Harvard has chosen to evaluate the gifts, in accordance with the University’s extensive gift policy, on a case-by-case basis.
The University has outlined the major goals of The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Program for Islamic Studies, but deliberations continue as to the details of its structure and personnel. Faculty point-man Roy P. Mottahedeh, Gurney professor of history, will work along with the Office of Alumni Affairs and Development to advance the program.
Currently, Islamic Studies is mostly confined to the religious and historical aspects of the faith, and especially to Islam in the Middle East. At this point, undergrads study Islam through NELC or the Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Professors like Granara and Susan G. Miller, a senior lecturer in Islamic civilizations, stress the need for a more multidisciplinary program. “This is a disgrace,” says Granara. “Our field is vastly underrepresented...and increases [in funding] are very much necessary.” Ahmed points to Sufism, Islamic mysticism, as a key area in which Harvard has no specialist.
The Harvard Crimson - Wednesday, March 08, 2006
The Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC) has its offices at the Semitic Museum on 6 Divinity Avenue, while the Center for Middle Eastern Studies are located at 1430 Mass. Ave., above CVS. A narrow corridor leads to closet-sized rooms just big enough to fit a professor and an FM reporter. Framed, dusty posters in Arabic from the eighties line the dull white walls, and the sounds of a Middle Eastern chant play softly from a distant corner.
This is where Harvard directs students interested in studying Islam.
Compared to the open atrium and plush conference rooms of, say, the Barker Center (where some NELC professors have attic offices), NELC’s space appears shabby and decrepit. And like its physical surroundings, the department itself could use an upgrade.
Funding for that improvement has arrived in the form of Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud’s $20 million gift announced this past November. The Saudi Arabian prince—also the world’s fifth richest man—designated the donation specifically for Islamic Studies. However, despite the improvement the gift guaranteed, critics inside and outside the Harvard community—still reeling from the events of Sept. 11, 2001—said they were suspicious of his background and presumed intentions and questioned whether or not the University should accept the donation.
While Harvard has received prior gifts from other Saudi Arabian and Middle Eastern donors, there is no common formula for accepting or rejecting a gift. Rather, Harvard has chosen to evaluate the gifts, in accordance with the University’s extensive gift policy, on a case-by-case basis.
The University has outlined the major goals of The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Program for Islamic Studies, but deliberations continue as to the details of its structure and personnel. Faculty point-man Roy P. Mottahedeh, Gurney professor of history, will work along with the Office of Alumni Affairs and Development to advance the program.
Currently, Islamic Studies is mostly confined to the religious and historical aspects of the faith, and especially to Islam in the Middle East. At this point, undergrads study Islam through NELC or the Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Professors like Granara and Susan G. Miller, a senior lecturer in Islamic civilizations, stress the need for a more multidisciplinary program. “This is a disgrace,” says Granara. “Our field is vastly underrepresented...and increases [in funding] are very much necessary.” Ahmed points to Sufism, Islamic mysticism, as a key area in which Harvard has no specialist.
Whither ghazals of Ghalib?
The Daily Star - Cultural Correspondent
Thu. March 09, 2006
Enayat-e-Moula Jinnah, is a singer of ghazals and modern Bangla songs, apart from being a music director of the Shilpakala Academy for decades. Amplifying on the music scene, he says, "Ghazals, which have come down from Amir Khusru and Ghalib, are popular at clubs, and private houses. However, they are not heard on our local TV or radio. This also applies to Rabindra Sangeet that includes words referring to Hindu mythology."
At present Jinnah is an enlisted singer of Nazrul Sangeet, and modern Bangla songs on radio and TV. He had his initial training in music under Ustad Siddiqur Rahman and next with Ustad Saimud Ali Khan, of Banaras gharana, who himself was a student of Pandit Bishek Shebak Misra. He began with sargam, went into classical training and then progressed to Nazrul Sangeet. In Dinajpur, in his youth, he was attracted to the songs of Mehdi Hassan, which were popular in the homes of his friends of the then East Pakistan Rifles. This saw an ebb even though the ghazals originated from Mirza Ghalib and Bahadur Shah Zafar, who were from India.
Dwelling on this genre of songs, Jinnah says that these ghazals are a combination of Persian and Urdu. Today in India, he says, people sometimes confuse bhajans of Anup Jalota -- which include tales of Krishna and Ram, for ghazals. The famed ghazal writer, Amir Khusru, was originally Turkish. Mirza Ghalib's family, in India, too had its roots in Turkey. Ghalib combined Persian, Arabic and Urdu, he says. "Modern writers of this genre include Mazrul Sultanpuri and Javed Akhter from India. But these writers have not, in any way, been able to surpass Amir Khusru, Bahadur Shah Zafar. Mirza Ghalib or even Allama Iqbal. "I like the ghazals of Bahadur Shah Zafar best because of their poignancy and passion. Their lyricism and moving lines can't help but touch your heart. Their rhythm and clarity communicates with the listener without any effort," says Jinnah.
Ghazals, he says, are not necessarily love poems. "Like qawwalis, they were immersed in Sufism and had a religious nature, as in the case of the early ghazals of Amir Khusru," he says. "They were always based on a raga. In India they are confusing ghazals with bhajans and thumris, such as in the case of Bare Ghulam Ali's Ae na balam, keya kare sajni (a thumri) or Begum Akhter's Jochhona korechhi ari, asheyna amar bari (a dadra). Kazi Nazrul Islam also wrote a large number of Bangla ghazals," he adds.
Thu. March 09, 2006
Enayat-e-Moula Jinnah, is a singer of ghazals and modern Bangla songs, apart from being a music director of the Shilpakala Academy for decades. Amplifying on the music scene, he says, "Ghazals, which have come down from Amir Khusru and Ghalib, are popular at clubs, and private houses. However, they are not heard on our local TV or radio. This also applies to Rabindra Sangeet that includes words referring to Hindu mythology."
At present Jinnah is an enlisted singer of Nazrul Sangeet, and modern Bangla songs on radio and TV. He had his initial training in music under Ustad Siddiqur Rahman and next with Ustad Saimud Ali Khan, of Banaras gharana, who himself was a student of Pandit Bishek Shebak Misra. He began with sargam, went into classical training and then progressed to Nazrul Sangeet. In Dinajpur, in his youth, he was attracted to the songs of Mehdi Hassan, which were popular in the homes of his friends of the then East Pakistan Rifles. This saw an ebb even though the ghazals originated from Mirza Ghalib and Bahadur Shah Zafar, who were from India.
Dwelling on this genre of songs, Jinnah says that these ghazals are a combination of Persian and Urdu. Today in India, he says, people sometimes confuse bhajans of Anup Jalota -- which include tales of Krishna and Ram, for ghazals. The famed ghazal writer, Amir Khusru, was originally Turkish. Mirza Ghalib's family, in India, too had its roots in Turkey. Ghalib combined Persian, Arabic and Urdu, he says. "Modern writers of this genre include Mazrul Sultanpuri and Javed Akhter from India. But these writers have not, in any way, been able to surpass Amir Khusru, Bahadur Shah Zafar. Mirza Ghalib or even Allama Iqbal. "I like the ghazals of Bahadur Shah Zafar best because of their poignancy and passion. Their lyricism and moving lines can't help but touch your heart. Their rhythm and clarity communicates with the listener without any effort," says Jinnah.
Ghazals, he says, are not necessarily love poems. "Like qawwalis, they were immersed in Sufism and had a religious nature, as in the case of the early ghazals of Amir Khusru," he says. "They were always based on a raga. In India they are confusing ghazals with bhajans and thumris, such as in the case of Bare Ghulam Ali's Ae na balam, keya kare sajni (a thumri) or Begum Akhter's Jochhona korechhi ari, asheyna amar bari (a dadra). Kazi Nazrul Islam also wrote a large number of Bangla ghazals," he adds.
UNESCO to declare 2007 'The Year of Mevlana'
ANKARA - Turkish Daily News
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
A proposal by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry to declare 2007 as the “The Year of Mevlana” to mark the 800th anniversary of Mevlana Jelaladdin Rumi's birth was accepted by UNESCO, the Anatolia news agency reported on Monday.
Culture and Tourism Ministry Undersecretary Mustafa İsen said 2007 was the 800th anniversary of the birth of famous Turkish philosopher and poet Mevlana, and therefore they submitted a proposal to UNESCO to officially declare 2007 as the “Year of Mevlana” to mark the 800th anniversary of his birth.
“UNESCO gave a positive response to our proposal and decided Mevlana to be commemorated next year in all countries. 2007 was declared as the Year of Mevlana,” he said.
Noting that they have intensified commemoration works after this decision, İsen said the commemoration activities to be held in Konya next year would be expanded throughout 2007 all over the world.
He also said they established a committee for organization of the commemorative events under the direction of the ministry and, likewise, some works were being conducted by the Konya Governor's Office and local municipalities.
Support from Iran and Afghanistan:
Meanwhile, International Mevlana Foundation Chairman Faruk Çelebi, who is Mevlana's 22nd generation grandchild, said he was pleased for the decision of UNESCO, which also had included Sufism culture into the world's cultural heritages.
He said they received great support from Iran and Afghanistan for the Year of Mevlana. “It is indeed a positive development for Mevlana culture to be protected and commemorated by UNESCO. Activities will be held worldwide throughout 2007 and Mevlana as well as his philosophy will be conveyed to all humanity in the proper sense.”
Associate Professor Nuri Şimşekler, Selçuk University's Mevlana Research Center director, said UNESCO's decision was an important step in terms of conveying Mevlana and his philosophy to the next generations without having it become degenerated.
Stating that 2007 will also be an important occasion in scientific examination of Mevlana and the related documents on his philosophy as well as introducing this wealth of knowledge to people in Turkey and all of humanity, Şimşekler said, “We will have an opportunity to exhibit the beauty of our religion to other people, highlighting the humanistic and peaceful aspects of Mevlana, who is considered to be one of the best interpreters of Islam, a religion wrongfully associated with terrorism.”
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
A proposal by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry to declare 2007 as the “The Year of Mevlana” to mark the 800th anniversary of Mevlana Jelaladdin Rumi's birth was accepted by UNESCO, the Anatolia news agency reported on Monday.
Culture and Tourism Ministry Undersecretary Mustafa İsen said 2007 was the 800th anniversary of the birth of famous Turkish philosopher and poet Mevlana, and therefore they submitted a proposal to UNESCO to officially declare 2007 as the “Year of Mevlana” to mark the 800th anniversary of his birth.
“UNESCO gave a positive response to our proposal and decided Mevlana to be commemorated next year in all countries. 2007 was declared as the Year of Mevlana,” he said.
Noting that they have intensified commemoration works after this decision, İsen said the commemoration activities to be held in Konya next year would be expanded throughout 2007 all over the world.
He also said they established a committee for organization of the commemorative events under the direction of the ministry and, likewise, some works were being conducted by the Konya Governor's Office and local municipalities.
Support from Iran and Afghanistan:
Meanwhile, International Mevlana Foundation Chairman Faruk Çelebi, who is Mevlana's 22nd generation grandchild, said he was pleased for the decision of UNESCO, which also had included Sufism culture into the world's cultural heritages.
He said they received great support from Iran and Afghanistan for the Year of Mevlana. “It is indeed a positive development for Mevlana culture to be protected and commemorated by UNESCO. Activities will be held worldwide throughout 2007 and Mevlana as well as his philosophy will be conveyed to all humanity in the proper sense.”
Associate Professor Nuri Şimşekler, Selçuk University's Mevlana Research Center director, said UNESCO's decision was an important step in terms of conveying Mevlana and his philosophy to the next generations without having it become degenerated.
Stating that 2007 will also be an important occasion in scientific examination of Mevlana and the related documents on his philosophy as well as introducing this wealth of knowledge to people in Turkey and all of humanity, Şimşekler said, “We will have an opportunity to exhibit the beauty of our religion to other people, highlighting the humanistic and peaceful aspects of Mevlana, who is considered to be one of the best interpreters of Islam, a religion wrongfully associated with terrorism.”
ETC Punjabi to telecast live Music Awards 2006
Indiantelevision.com Team - Mumbai, 8 March 2006
With the live telecast of ETC Channel Punjabi Music Awards 2006, ETC is once again all set to enhance and applaud the efforts of musicians and their music through various categories including even Sufi and overseas Punjabi singers.
Badman of Bollywood Gulshan Grover will anchor the awards along with Rajeshwari Sachdev.
The awards show loaded with music, fun, dancing, dread, anticipation, joy and elation will be telecast live simultaneously on ETC Channel Punjabi, Zee Punjabi and Alpha ETC Punjabi on the evening of Saturday 18 March, states an official release.
ETC Channel Punjabi and Zee Punjabi president Rabindra Narayan and programming head Rajiee B. Shinde are confident of delivering another winning show for their viewers.
With the live telecast of ETC Channel Punjabi Music Awards 2006, ETC is once again all set to enhance and applaud the efforts of musicians and their music through various categories including even Sufi and overseas Punjabi singers.
Badman of Bollywood Gulshan Grover will anchor the awards along with Rajeshwari Sachdev.
The awards show loaded with music, fun, dancing, dread, anticipation, joy and elation will be telecast live simultaneously on ETC Channel Punjabi, Zee Punjabi and Alpha ETC Punjabi on the evening of Saturday 18 March, states an official release.
ETC Channel Punjabi and Zee Punjabi president Rabindra Narayan and programming head Rajiee B. Shinde are confident of delivering another winning show for their viewers.
Enjoy the Soothing Effect of Sufiana
By Syed Wajid Ali - The Times Of India
Mon 06 March, 2006
Sufism is a mystical dimension of Islam, transcending all religions. It is a way of experiencing truth and self-realisation and in the process takes the seeker on a path of serenity, piety and divinity by means of love and devotion to God.
Truth is the substance. Truth is the courage of each, it is the power of flight; some fly and some remain in the garden, some go beyond the stars.
Sufi music is evolved and illuminated. It is the enchanting outcome of the interface between Hinduism and Islam. The word ‘sufi’ comes from the Arabic word ‘suf’ which means pure.
Sufi music is all about the relationship between the moods of the lover-poet-saint and the beloved. Sufism originated with the foundation of the Chishti order in Khorasam, Persia. Sufi compositions contain effusive verses with an esoteric dimension written in an ornate language.
Sufi poetry has found expression in several languages like Persian, Arabic, Awadhi Bruj, Khariboli and Punjabi. Hazrat Amir Khusrau, Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi, Baba Bulle Shah, Ghulam Farid and Allama-Iqbal were some of the finest Sufi exponents.
Dargah Sharif at Ajmer resting place of Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti is renowned for its qawwals and is a popular pilgrimage destination. It is where one can feel intensely the Sufi experience.
Particularly on Thursdays, the entire area of the Dargah Sharif is suffused with spirituality. Qawwalis, raga-based compositions, are sung in tandem with the combination of harmonium and tabla. This is followed by ecstatic and vigorous clapping, repetitive and forceful, making the listener experience a spiritual high.
Renowned qawwals like Farid and Chand Nizami, Ghulam and Sultan Hussain Niyazi and Hamsar from the Delhi Gharana display the art with perfect synchronisation of percussionists in a chorus, transporting the audience out of the world.
Experiencing limitlessness, participants and listeners sway some even announce that they are renouncing all possessions and relate to the beats of the chorus, a blending of sufi art and music, what is called sufiana.
Amir Khusrau’s poetry straddles the earthy Hindi, Bruj, and sophisticated Persian, unravelling layers of meaning and nuances. His poetry provides the base to thirsty wanderers, to rejoice and meditate on the fundamental mystery of life.
He created divine musical poetry that reached out to truth. His interest in Indian ragas created mesmeric blends of Arabic and Iranian compositions.
Sufism transcends all boundaries of language and religion. Sufi music has the power to heal and its philosophy has a soothing effect. Qawwali is an expression of love between the lover and the beloved that elevates the spirit, bringing God and performer together.
It deepens love and devotion to God, making the listener exalt in spiritual ecstasy and frenzy. In such exaltations, the listener could slip into a mystical trance.
Qawwali recitals whether of Qual, Basant, Rang, Kaafi, Hamd or Naat incorporate classical and folk music, borrowing from forms like tarana, dadra, thumri and khyal. The eclectic synthesis produces a mesmerising effect, generating a feeling of tranquillity.
Mon 06 March, 2006
Sufism is a mystical dimension of Islam, transcending all religions. It is a way of experiencing truth and self-realisation and in the process takes the seeker on a path of serenity, piety and divinity by means of love and devotion to God.
Truth is the substance. Truth is the courage of each, it is the power of flight; some fly and some remain in the garden, some go beyond the stars.
Sufi music is evolved and illuminated. It is the enchanting outcome of the interface between Hinduism and Islam. The word ‘sufi’ comes from the Arabic word ‘suf’ which means pure.
Sufi music is all about the relationship between the moods of the lover-poet-saint and the beloved. Sufism originated with the foundation of the Chishti order in Khorasam, Persia. Sufi compositions contain effusive verses with an esoteric dimension written in an ornate language.
Sufi poetry has found expression in several languages like Persian, Arabic, Awadhi Bruj, Khariboli and Punjabi. Hazrat Amir Khusrau, Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi, Baba Bulle Shah, Ghulam Farid and Allama-Iqbal were some of the finest Sufi exponents.
Dargah Sharif at Ajmer resting place of Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti is renowned for its qawwals and is a popular pilgrimage destination. It is where one can feel intensely the Sufi experience.
Particularly on Thursdays, the entire area of the Dargah Sharif is suffused with spirituality. Qawwalis, raga-based compositions, are sung in tandem with the combination of harmonium and tabla. This is followed by ecstatic and vigorous clapping, repetitive and forceful, making the listener experience a spiritual high.
Renowned qawwals like Farid and Chand Nizami, Ghulam and Sultan Hussain Niyazi and Hamsar from the Delhi Gharana display the art with perfect synchronisation of percussionists in a chorus, transporting the audience out of the world.
Experiencing limitlessness, participants and listeners sway some even announce that they are renouncing all possessions and relate to the beats of the chorus, a blending of sufi art and music, what is called sufiana.
Amir Khusrau’s poetry straddles the earthy Hindi, Bruj, and sophisticated Persian, unravelling layers of meaning and nuances. His poetry provides the base to thirsty wanderers, to rejoice and meditate on the fundamental mystery of life.
He created divine musical poetry that reached out to truth. His interest in Indian ragas created mesmeric blends of Arabic and Iranian compositions.
Sufism transcends all boundaries of language and religion. Sufi music has the power to heal and its philosophy has a soothing effect. Qawwali is an expression of love between the lover and the beloved that elevates the spirit, bringing God and performer together.
It deepens love and devotion to God, making the listener exalt in spiritual ecstasy and frenzy. In such exaltations, the listener could slip into a mystical trance.
Qawwali recitals whether of Qual, Basant, Rang, Kaafi, Hamd or Naat incorporate classical and folk music, borrowing from forms like tarana, dadra, thumri and khyal. The eclectic synthesis produces a mesmerising effect, generating a feeling of tranquillity.
N.Y. State Tries To Close TriBeCa Bars For Being Too Close to a Mosque
By DAVID LOMBINO - Staff Reporter of the Sun
The New York Sun, March 7, 2006
Some established TriBeCa bar owners are scrambling to find a legal loophole that will allow them to hold onto their liquor licenses after the State Liquor Authority moved to revoke the licenses upon learning that the bars are within 200 feet of a mosque.
The neighbors who informed the State Liquor Authority about the mosque's presence, Peter and Janna Townsend, are owners and residents of the building at 1 White St., a four-story townhouse about a half a block from the mosque, surrounded by bars and restaurants. The Townsends discovered the state's 200-foot regulation on the Internet as they were mounting a challenge to the Liquor Store Bar, which was seeking a license to reopen nearby. Its application was rejected by the state, and the bar now sits dark and empty despite a costly interior renovation.
Ms. Townsend defended her actions. "I want this to be about quality of life in a neighborhood that is mixed use. There are businesses here and residents here. There needs to be a balance of uses. Those of us that need to sleep here should be able to sleep here," she said.
As part of the process of applying for a liquor license, prospective bar owners must assert that they are in compliance with the law. The owner of the Bubble Lounge, a 10-year old bar whose license is being challenged, Eric Benn, said his establishment is 192 feet from the mosque. Mr. Benn said his business is in jeopardy.
"We're looking forward to the government getting off our case. It's getting to be rather repetitive - they take a great deal of money from us and then we get harassment," Mr. Benn said. "It is impossible to detect that there is a mosque there; not even the Community Board knew."
Since 1990, the two-story white-painted building at 245 West Broadway with drawn Venetian blinds and a locked gate has housed the Sufi mosque, Masjid al-Farah. The gold lettering on the front door does not contain the word "mosque," but it is registered as a religious not-for-profit corporation with the state and federal government.
An administrator for the mosque, Kris Jones, said a lawyer representing the mosque submitted a letter to the state clarifying the uses of the building. She said that in addition to being a place of worship, the building serves as a space to feed the homeless and host interfaith meetings.
"We don't have a dispute with any of the neighbors. We are here to support them. Our main thing is to be neutral," Ms. Jones told The New York Sun. "We don't want anyone to lose their jobs."
The state also moved to revoke the license of Cercle Rouge, a French bistro that shares a wall with the mosque. There are mixed reports about whether the state also issued a summons to Tribeca Tavern. The highly rated restaurant Montrachet did not receive a summons because it predates the mosque.
The New York Sun, March 7, 2006
Some established TriBeCa bar owners are scrambling to find a legal loophole that will allow them to hold onto their liquor licenses after the State Liquor Authority moved to revoke the licenses upon learning that the bars are within 200 feet of a mosque.
The neighbors who informed the State Liquor Authority about the mosque's presence, Peter and Janna Townsend, are owners and residents of the building at 1 White St., a four-story townhouse about a half a block from the mosque, surrounded by bars and restaurants. The Townsends discovered the state's 200-foot regulation on the Internet as they were mounting a challenge to the Liquor Store Bar, which was seeking a license to reopen nearby. Its application was rejected by the state, and the bar now sits dark and empty despite a costly interior renovation.
Ms. Townsend defended her actions. "I want this to be about quality of life in a neighborhood that is mixed use. There are businesses here and residents here. There needs to be a balance of uses. Those of us that need to sleep here should be able to sleep here," she said.
As part of the process of applying for a liquor license, prospective bar owners must assert that they are in compliance with the law. The owner of the Bubble Lounge, a 10-year old bar whose license is being challenged, Eric Benn, said his establishment is 192 feet from the mosque. Mr. Benn said his business is in jeopardy.
"We're looking forward to the government getting off our case. It's getting to be rather repetitive - they take a great deal of money from us and then we get harassment," Mr. Benn said. "It is impossible to detect that there is a mosque there; not even the Community Board knew."
Since 1990, the two-story white-painted building at 245 West Broadway with drawn Venetian blinds and a locked gate has housed the Sufi mosque, Masjid al-Farah. The gold lettering on the front door does not contain the word "mosque," but it is registered as a religious not-for-profit corporation with the state and federal government.
An administrator for the mosque, Kris Jones, said a lawyer representing the mosque submitted a letter to the state clarifying the uses of the building. She said that in addition to being a place of worship, the building serves as a space to feed the homeless and host interfaith meetings.
"We don't have a dispute with any of the neighbors. We are here to support them. Our main thing is to be neutral," Ms. Jones told The New York Sun. "We don't want anyone to lose their jobs."
The state also moved to revoke the license of Cercle Rouge, a French bistro that shares a wall with the mosque. There are mixed reports about whether the state also issued a summons to Tribeca Tavern. The highly rated restaurant Montrachet did not receive a summons because it predates the mosque.
Eastern Sudan tempts Darfurian fate
By ISN Security Watch staff in Nairobi and Khartoum (07/03/06)
International Relations and Security Network - Zurich - Switzerland
With conflict rife in Sudan’s troubled Darfur, and peace still tenuous in the south, another of Sudan’s marginalized regions could be set to erupt. Eastern Sudan ostensibly exhibits many of the same traits that led to war in Darfur since 2003 and in southern Sudan from 1983-2005.
On 24 January 2005, three weeks after the Sudanese government and the southern-based Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), the Sudanese army opened fire on a demonstration in the eastern city of Port Sudan, on the Red Sea coast. At least 20 people were killed.
This incident plus the ongoing government clampdown, tensions both generated and exacerbated by the signing of the CPA, and the potent example of government tactics in Darfur all contributed to the formation of the Eastern Front in February 2005. The newly formed and relatively unexamined movement promises to forcibly resist Khartoum’s likely attempt to retake the Hameshkoreb enclave in eastern Sudan, near the Eritrean border, once the former SPLM/A withdraws.
Eastern Sudan comprises three states: Kassala, Gedaref, and Red Sea State. It has a population of around four million people. The main ethnic groups are the Beja and the Rashaida. The Beja are the largest group in the region, comprising numerous subdivisions. Indigenous to the area, they adhere to a Sufi brand of Islam that fits uneasily with the Wahhabite-influenced National Islamic Front (NIF), which forms the backbone of the National Congress Party (NCP) elite that now dominates the Khartoum government.
The Beja Congress is an established political-military force in eastern Sudan, contesting elections in the post-independence era, but mostly losing out locally to the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which is the political front for the local Sufi Khatmiyya sect to which most Beja adhere.
The Rashaida are nomadic descendants of Bedouin immigrants into the area from the Arabian Peninsula in the 19th Century. Retaining links to the Gulf and adhering to their traditional lifestyle, the relatively wealthy group remains simultaneously more marginalized, as government agricultural and pipeline policies cut into the land used for nomadic lifestyle. The Rashaida Free Lions, the other constituent part of the Eastern Front, is a relatively new entity.
Local grievances can be traced directly back to the aftermath of the 1989 NIF coup in Khartoum. Land expropriation in the name of larger agricultural schemes has seen many Beja move to the slums of Kassala and Port Sudan. Much of the land was given over to local and River Nile-based elites linked to the ruling regime.
In 1990, the extrajudicial execution of Mohammed Karrar, the Beja governor of the region, was seen as a direct attack on Beja consciousness and lay at the backdrop of a Beja Congress decision to join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) armed struggle, linking northern opposition groups to the southern rebellion led by the SPLM/A. The Beja Congress joined the NDA in 1995 as it saw the need to push for greater self-rule for the Beja in particular and the east in general.
International Relations and Security Network - Zurich - Switzerland
With conflict rife in Sudan’s troubled Darfur, and peace still tenuous in the south, another of Sudan’s marginalized regions could be set to erupt. Eastern Sudan ostensibly exhibits many of the same traits that led to war in Darfur since 2003 and in southern Sudan from 1983-2005.
On 24 January 2005, three weeks after the Sudanese government and the southern-based Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), the Sudanese army opened fire on a demonstration in the eastern city of Port Sudan, on the Red Sea coast. At least 20 people were killed.
This incident plus the ongoing government clampdown, tensions both generated and exacerbated by the signing of the CPA, and the potent example of government tactics in Darfur all contributed to the formation of the Eastern Front in February 2005. The newly formed and relatively unexamined movement promises to forcibly resist Khartoum’s likely attempt to retake the Hameshkoreb enclave in eastern Sudan, near the Eritrean border, once the former SPLM/A withdraws.
Eastern Sudan comprises three states: Kassala, Gedaref, and Red Sea State. It has a population of around four million people. The main ethnic groups are the Beja and the Rashaida. The Beja are the largest group in the region, comprising numerous subdivisions. Indigenous to the area, they adhere to a Sufi brand of Islam that fits uneasily with the Wahhabite-influenced National Islamic Front (NIF), which forms the backbone of the National Congress Party (NCP) elite that now dominates the Khartoum government.
The Beja Congress is an established political-military force in eastern Sudan, contesting elections in the post-independence era, but mostly losing out locally to the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which is the political front for the local Sufi Khatmiyya sect to which most Beja adhere.
The Rashaida are nomadic descendants of Bedouin immigrants into the area from the Arabian Peninsula in the 19th Century. Retaining links to the Gulf and adhering to their traditional lifestyle, the relatively wealthy group remains simultaneously more marginalized, as government agricultural and pipeline policies cut into the land used for nomadic lifestyle. The Rashaida Free Lions, the other constituent part of the Eastern Front, is a relatively new entity.
Local grievances can be traced directly back to the aftermath of the 1989 NIF coup in Khartoum. Land expropriation in the name of larger agricultural schemes has seen many Beja move to the slums of Kassala and Port Sudan. Much of the land was given over to local and River Nile-based elites linked to the ruling regime.
In 1990, the extrajudicial execution of Mohammed Karrar, the Beja governor of the region, was seen as a direct attack on Beja consciousness and lay at the backdrop of a Beja Congress decision to join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) armed struggle, linking northern opposition groups to the southern rebellion led by the SPLM/A. The Beja Congress joined the NDA in 1995 as it saw the need to push for greater self-rule for the Beja in particular and the east in general.
Sufi shrine damaged
Bahrain News Agency - date: 07 03, 2006
Baghdad , March . 7 (BNA)
Yesterday night an explosive device damaged the Sufi shrine of Mahdi al-Jabr on in the north Iraqi city of Tikrit. No injuries were reported.
Baghdad , March . 7 (BNA)
Yesterday night an explosive device damaged the Sufi shrine of Mahdi al-Jabr on in the north Iraqi city of Tikrit. No injuries were reported.
Demystifying Islam
Beth Ashley - Marin Independent Journal - marinij.com
March 7, 2006
At 1 p.m. on a recent afternoon, 20 men came one by one into the brown stucco Islamic Center on a side street in Mill Valley and silently prostrated themselves on a huge red carpet in the otherwise barren main room.
Later, the men stood quietly in front of their imam, listening to his prayers.
Ten minutes later, they were gone. Many would return for evening prayer in the late afternoon, part of their five-times-a-day commitment to prayer.
Islam may seem like a "foreign" religion to some, but it's a way of life for hundreds of people in Marin. Several of them will discuss their beliefs Saturday in a daylong symposium at Dominican University called "Understanding Islam." The conference is open to the public.
Ebrahim Nana, who is on the board of directors of the Islamic Center, will discuss Islam's basic beliefs.
Ali Kianfar, co-director and co-founder of the International Association of Sufism (headquarters are in Novato), will talk about the "message" of Islam, which directs his religious practice.
Arthur Kane Scott, a professor at Dominican University, will discuss the mysticism of Islam, which was what drew him to Islamic studies eight years ago and sent him - impatiently, he says - on a quest to find his true self.
They will be joined by other lecturers, discussing women in Islam, civil rights in Islam and Islamic architecture.
All three men say Marin is unusually accepting of the Muslim faith - "Marin is probably the most liberal county in the country," says Nana - but all say the conference will help clear up what Scott calls "a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding.
Sufism, a branch of Islam, is thriving in Marin, too. Kianfar estimates there are more than 1,000 practicing Sufis in Marin, and he emphasizes that their faith centers on a personal journey rather than any partisan, sectarian view of Islam.
It was the variety of practice among Sufis that led him to found the international organization that now holds an annual convention in the Bay Area of Sufi groups from around the world. Kianfar came to Marin from his native Iran in 1987. He runs a print shop in San Rafael.
Followers of Sufism focus on their individual experiences and look inside to find who they truly are - apart from their names, jobs, language, personality and Social Security numbers, says Scott.
Kianfar sees Islam as a religion of peace. "If a man's religion becomes a cause for differences, I prefer not to call him a religious person."
Nana, who was born in India, grew up in Thailand and came here in 1969, says the masjid (place of worship) in Mill Valley has a Sufi imam, but Shi'ites and believers of all kinds are welcome, including Christians or Jews who just want to meditate.
"It is a returning to our own heart, where the deeper reality lies."
Scott, who was raised a Catholic, explored Buddhism and Hinduism before he found Kianfar and Sufism eight years ago. "I knew right away I was at home." Now he incorporates a spiritual perspective into his Dominican University classes in history, sociology, anthropology and religion. "My students are hungry for this information." He says his quest for his inner truth - his "purity" - is ongoing.
Students meet with Kianfar twice a month in group meetings, have individual consultations, and "do a lot of things together." Kianfar says he is on a journey of exploration that never ends.
"We are all passengers to eternity," he says. "We have to prepare for a long, long journey."
March 7, 2006
At 1 p.m. on a recent afternoon, 20 men came one by one into the brown stucco Islamic Center on a side street in Mill Valley and silently prostrated themselves on a huge red carpet in the otherwise barren main room.
Later, the men stood quietly in front of their imam, listening to his prayers.
Ten minutes later, they were gone. Many would return for evening prayer in the late afternoon, part of their five-times-a-day commitment to prayer.
Islam may seem like a "foreign" religion to some, but it's a way of life for hundreds of people in Marin. Several of them will discuss their beliefs Saturday in a daylong symposium at Dominican University called "Understanding Islam." The conference is open to the public.
Ebrahim Nana, who is on the board of directors of the Islamic Center, will discuss Islam's basic beliefs.
Ali Kianfar, co-director and co-founder of the International Association of Sufism (headquarters are in Novato), will talk about the "message" of Islam, which directs his religious practice.
Arthur Kane Scott, a professor at Dominican University, will discuss the mysticism of Islam, which was what drew him to Islamic studies eight years ago and sent him - impatiently, he says - on a quest to find his true self.
They will be joined by other lecturers, discussing women in Islam, civil rights in Islam and Islamic architecture.
All three men say Marin is unusually accepting of the Muslim faith - "Marin is probably the most liberal county in the country," says Nana - but all say the conference will help clear up what Scott calls "a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding.
Sufism, a branch of Islam, is thriving in Marin, too. Kianfar estimates there are more than 1,000 practicing Sufis in Marin, and he emphasizes that their faith centers on a personal journey rather than any partisan, sectarian view of Islam.
It was the variety of practice among Sufis that led him to found the international organization that now holds an annual convention in the Bay Area of Sufi groups from around the world. Kianfar came to Marin from his native Iran in 1987. He runs a print shop in San Rafael.
Followers of Sufism focus on their individual experiences and look inside to find who they truly are - apart from their names, jobs, language, personality and Social Security numbers, says Scott.
Kianfar sees Islam as a religion of peace. "If a man's religion becomes a cause for differences, I prefer not to call him a religious person."
Nana, who was born in India, grew up in Thailand and came here in 1969, says the masjid (place of worship) in Mill Valley has a Sufi imam, but Shi'ites and believers of all kinds are welcome, including Christians or Jews who just want to meditate.
"It is a returning to our own heart, where the deeper reality lies."
Scott, who was raised a Catholic, explored Buddhism and Hinduism before he found Kianfar and Sufism eight years ago. "I knew right away I was at home." Now he incorporates a spiritual perspective into his Dominican University classes in history, sociology, anthropology and religion. "My students are hungry for this information." He says his quest for his inner truth - his "purity" - is ongoing.
Students meet with Kianfar twice a month in group meetings, have individual consultations, and "do a lot of things together." Kianfar says he is on a journey of exploration that never ends.
"We are all passengers to eternity," he says. "We have to prepare for a long, long journey."
Because sufism sells
By JYOTHI PRABHAKAR - The Times of India
6 Mar 2006
Thanks to fusion bands, sufi music is a rage these days. From college-goers to the chic socialite, everyone's tuning in.
Attend a sufi music concert - just understanding the rhythm will do, no need to understand every word of what the singer on stage is singing. And just like that, you've arrived. "Sufism has, over the years, become like a popular bestseller that everyone wants to read. Not because you like the author, or even the genre, but because you don't want to be the only one to be left out of conversations over coffee,"says well-known sufi singer Shafqat Ali Khan.
So today, sufi music can join the upmarket, elite bracket of a U2 best seller album, or a Robbie Williams live concert.
As Neeraj Saha, who manages a popular music store says, "These days, everyone wants sufi music CDs. And they usually end up buying Pakistani fusion bands, whose music seems to be quite popular."Agrees Abida Parveen, the Pakistani sufi singer, "The demand for sufi music concerts has grown over the last few years.
Ever since the legendary Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan became popular because he mixed his classical renditions with modern instruments, everyone wants to listen to this kind of music."
But then, there are people who argue that it is the music per se, and not the attached snob value that attracts listeners. According to singer Daler Mehndi, sufi music is becoming popular "thanks to many fusion bands who have made sufi very rhythm-friendly.
Those 'into' sufi music argue their case differently. Muzzafar Ali, who's done a lot in popularising pure forms of sufi music says, "You don't need a trained ear to listen to a sufi rendition, just a heart full of music.
Adds designer Puja Nayyar who listens to sufi music, "I love its folksy abandon. I do not understand the language much, nor do I have a classical ear. But still, it attracts me." However, Shafqat Ali Khan cautions, "These days, everything sells under the 'sufi fusion' label. Fusion does not mean that you add two western guitars to your troupe, or have a singer who is clad in a kurta pyjama, and another who sports jeans.
In fact, the minute sufism became a money spinner, it lost all its original tenets - that of commitment, purity of thought and action, and a total abandon from selfish motives."
6 Mar 2006
Thanks to fusion bands, sufi music is a rage these days. From college-goers to the chic socialite, everyone's tuning in.
Attend a sufi music concert - just understanding the rhythm will do, no need to understand every word of what the singer on stage is singing. And just like that, you've arrived. "Sufism has, over the years, become like a popular bestseller that everyone wants to read. Not because you like the author, or even the genre, but because you don't want to be the only one to be left out of conversations over coffee,"says well-known sufi singer Shafqat Ali Khan.
So today, sufi music can join the upmarket, elite bracket of a U2 best seller album, or a Robbie Williams live concert.
As Neeraj Saha, who manages a popular music store says, "These days, everyone wants sufi music CDs. And they usually end up buying Pakistani fusion bands, whose music seems to be quite popular."Agrees Abida Parveen, the Pakistani sufi singer, "The demand for sufi music concerts has grown over the last few years.
Ever since the legendary Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan became popular because he mixed his classical renditions with modern instruments, everyone wants to listen to this kind of music."
But then, there are people who argue that it is the music per se, and not the attached snob value that attracts listeners. According to singer Daler Mehndi, sufi music is becoming popular "thanks to many fusion bands who have made sufi very rhythm-friendly.
Those 'into' sufi music argue their case differently. Muzzafar Ali, who's done a lot in popularising pure forms of sufi music says, "You don't need a trained ear to listen to a sufi rendition, just a heart full of music.
Adds designer Puja Nayyar who listens to sufi music, "I love its folksy abandon. I do not understand the language much, nor do I have a classical ear. But still, it attracts me." However, Shafqat Ali Khan cautions, "These days, everything sells under the 'sufi fusion' label. Fusion does not mean that you add two western guitars to your troupe, or have a singer who is clad in a kurta pyjama, and another who sports jeans.
In fact, the minute sufism became a money spinner, it lost all its original tenets - that of commitment, purity of thought and action, and a total abandon from selfish motives."
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Monday, October 09, 2006
Feasting on colours
By Vimla Patil - Sunday Deccan Herald
Sunday, 12 March, 2006
Hori Khelat Nandalal Birajamein; Shyam Tose Hori Nahin Khelungi, Mori Angiya Bhigoi Deeni; Natkhat Sawariya, Rang Det Chunariya” – these and thousands of more similar ditties in the classical and folk music of India ring in the newly fragrant air when the first blossoms of spring begin to appear on trees and creepers in the gardens and forests across the country.
The coming of this procession of flowers is, in every Indian mind, likened to the coming of that inimitable God of love, Krishna, into the waiting hearts of all Indians, who display an unbeatable spirit of energy and flamboyance around this time! And thus, is the season of spring celebrated all over India. The Krishna and Holi theme not only pervades the music of India in every village, but also brings new life and deeper meaning to all spiritual thought and action.
The Holi theme also influences Indian classical and folk dance of all styles all over the country and has been responsible for the creation of some of the finest miniature paintings of several schools in North India and Tanjore paintings in South India. How did the theme of Holi become omnipresent in Indian life and art?
Many scholars believe that somewhere in the remote past, this celebration of the love of Radha and Krishna has a patina of Sufi thought. The Sufis came to India from the 11th century onwards and brought with them the refreshing philosophy that the devotee and God share the passionate relationship of two lovers.
Many of them believed in the beautiful concept of ‘raising the veil and seeing the luminescent face of the beloved’ and expressed this longing through their songs and dances. Sufi poetry and paintings naturally chose famous pair of lovers like Laila Majnu, Shirin Farhad and finally Radha and Krishna as their subjects.
The result was that the courts of nawabs and kings of all states in North India patronised artists, musicians and dancers who brought alive the Krishna-Radha romance theme in every art center.
Secondly, side by side with Sufism, the cult of Madhurabhakti grew in India during the middle ages. Many saints like Surdas, Chaintanya Mahaprabhu, Chandidas, Vidyapati, Meerabai and others composed love songs of Radha and Krishna and took the romance of the divine lovers to newer heights.
Holi thus became not only the festival of colours but also the celebration of love, passion and exuberance.
Read More
Sunday, 12 March, 2006
Hori Khelat Nandalal Birajamein; Shyam Tose Hori Nahin Khelungi, Mori Angiya Bhigoi Deeni; Natkhat Sawariya, Rang Det Chunariya” – these and thousands of more similar ditties in the classical and folk music of India ring in the newly fragrant air when the first blossoms of spring begin to appear on trees and creepers in the gardens and forests across the country.
The coming of this procession of flowers is, in every Indian mind, likened to the coming of that inimitable God of love, Krishna, into the waiting hearts of all Indians, who display an unbeatable spirit of energy and flamboyance around this time! And thus, is the season of spring celebrated all over India. The Krishna and Holi theme not only pervades the music of India in every village, but also brings new life and deeper meaning to all spiritual thought and action.
The Holi theme also influences Indian classical and folk dance of all styles all over the country and has been responsible for the creation of some of the finest miniature paintings of several schools in North India and Tanjore paintings in South India. How did the theme of Holi become omnipresent in Indian life and art?
Many scholars believe that somewhere in the remote past, this celebration of the love of Radha and Krishna has a patina of Sufi thought. The Sufis came to India from the 11th century onwards and brought with them the refreshing philosophy that the devotee and God share the passionate relationship of two lovers.
Many of them believed in the beautiful concept of ‘raising the veil and seeing the luminescent face of the beloved’ and expressed this longing through their songs and dances. Sufi poetry and paintings naturally chose famous pair of lovers like Laila Majnu, Shirin Farhad and finally Radha and Krishna as their subjects.
The result was that the courts of nawabs and kings of all states in North India patronised artists, musicians and dancers who brought alive the Krishna-Radha romance theme in every art center.
Secondly, side by side with Sufism, the cult of Madhurabhakti grew in India during the middle ages. Many saints like Surdas, Chaintanya Mahaprabhu, Chandidas, Vidyapati, Meerabai and others composed love songs of Radha and Krishna and took the romance of the divine lovers to newer heights.
Holi thus became not only the festival of colours but also the celebration of love, passion and exuberance.
Sharing the true values of Sharia
By Irfan Yusuf - ON LINE opinion - Australia
Friday, 10 March 2006
On Thursday, February 23, 2006 Treasurer and Prime Ministerial aspirant Peter Costello delivered a speech to an audience at the Sydney Institute. Mr Costello provided some personal reflections on Australia’s developing culture and citizenship. Within a few hours, a veritable media circus began.
Sadly, most migrant Muslim leaders bought into the circus, many expressing views on Mr Costello’s comments without having read his speech.
I read Mr Costello’s actual speech: Peter Costello said anyone who believes Sharia can co-exist with Australian law and Australian values should leave the country. But if one compares the five basic principles of Sharia to the six values espoused by Mr Costello, one finds they are virtually identical. Perhaps this is what Australian imams mean when they state in their sermons that Australia is a more Islamic country than most Muslim-majority states.
Some pseudo-conservative commentators present Sharia as a system of medieval criminal punishments. But for some 300,000 Australian Muslims, Sharia represents little more than ethics (including honesty and enterprise) and liturgy (how to perform prayers, weddings and funerals).
As shown above, the ethics of Sharia do not pose a problem for Australia. Further, Sharia liturgy has been practised in Australia for over a century. Indeed, Australia law allows a number of religious legal systems (such as Jewish religious law) to operate in the contexts of family law, estates and other areas.
Muslims believe the Prophet Mohammed brought Sharia as the outer manifestation of religious values. He also brought an inner manifestation, which has been given a variety of labels by Muslims but which is commonly known in the West as Sufism.
A tiny minority of Muslims seek to establish Sharia across the world without Sufism. They are the source of virtually all terrorist groups in the Muslim world. Their theology is regarded by mainstream Muslims as isolationist and fringe. They distort Sharia by imposing it on people without the inner discipline of Sufism. They are openly hostile to Sufi tradition.
These people seek to destroy Islam from within. They are arguably more of a threat to Muslims than non-Muslims. Hence, the majority of their victims are Muslims. Mr Costello would like to see such people leave Australia. Most Muslims, on the other hand, would prefer to see these people leave our planet. These people distort our perceptions about Sharia. Most Australians regard Sharia as purely consisting of draconian medieval punishments. Mr Costello’s own inaccurate comments about Sharia are a manifestation of distorted perceptions. Instead of criticising inevitable and understandable ignorance, Muslim leaders need to educate the community about their faith and values.
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Friday, 10 March 2006
On Thursday, February 23, 2006 Treasurer and Prime Ministerial aspirant Peter Costello delivered a speech to an audience at the Sydney Institute. Mr Costello provided some personal reflections on Australia’s developing culture and citizenship. Within a few hours, a veritable media circus began.
Sadly, most migrant Muslim leaders bought into the circus, many expressing views on Mr Costello’s comments without having read his speech.
I read Mr Costello’s actual speech: Peter Costello said anyone who believes Sharia can co-exist with Australian law and Australian values should leave the country. But if one compares the five basic principles of Sharia to the six values espoused by Mr Costello, one finds they are virtually identical. Perhaps this is what Australian imams mean when they state in their sermons that Australia is a more Islamic country than most Muslim-majority states.
Some pseudo-conservative commentators present Sharia as a system of medieval criminal punishments. But for some 300,000 Australian Muslims, Sharia represents little more than ethics (including honesty and enterprise) and liturgy (how to perform prayers, weddings and funerals).
As shown above, the ethics of Sharia do not pose a problem for Australia. Further, Sharia liturgy has been practised in Australia for over a century. Indeed, Australia law allows a number of religious legal systems (such as Jewish religious law) to operate in the contexts of family law, estates and other areas.
Muslims believe the Prophet Mohammed brought Sharia as the outer manifestation of religious values. He also brought an inner manifestation, which has been given a variety of labels by Muslims but which is commonly known in the West as Sufism.
A tiny minority of Muslims seek to establish Sharia across the world without Sufism. They are the source of virtually all terrorist groups in the Muslim world. Their theology is regarded by mainstream Muslims as isolationist and fringe. They distort Sharia by imposing it on people without the inner discipline of Sufism. They are openly hostile to Sufi tradition.
These people seek to destroy Islam from within. They are arguably more of a threat to Muslims than non-Muslims. Hence, the majority of their victims are Muslims. Mr Costello would like to see such people leave Australia. Most Muslims, on the other hand, would prefer to see these people leave our planet. These people distort our perceptions about Sharia. Most Australians regard Sharia as purely consisting of draconian medieval punishments. Mr Costello’s own inaccurate comments about Sharia are a manifestation of distorted perceptions. Instead of criticising inevitable and understandable ignorance, Muslim leaders need to educate the community about their faith and values.
Sedaghat Jabbari Kalkhoran and the "Holy Names"
By Ershad Kamol - The Daily Star - Bangladesh
Saturday March 11, 2006
Iranian artist Sedaghat Jabbari Kalkhoran is one of the winners of the 'Grand Prize' at the 12th Asian Art Biennale, Bangladesh '06. He received the prestigious award for his mixed media work titled Holy Names.
Kalkhoran likes to portray the magnificence of Allah by decorating His names repeatedly on the canvas. In this sense his approach to art is a kind of 'Sufism'. He says, "I like to address spirituality by writing the 'Holy Names' repeatedly in different styles and shades. I never do any 'exercise' before my final work. It comes spontaneously and I won't be able to make copies of my work."
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Saturday March 11, 2006
Iranian artist Sedaghat Jabbari Kalkhoran is one of the winners of the 'Grand Prize' at the 12th Asian Art Biennale, Bangladesh '06. He received the prestigious award for his mixed media work titled Holy Names.
Kalkhoran likes to portray the magnificence of Allah by decorating His names repeatedly on the canvas. In this sense his approach to art is a kind of 'Sufism'. He says, "I like to address spirituality by writing the 'Holy Names' repeatedly in different styles and shades. I never do any 'exercise' before my final work. It comes spontaneously and I won't be able to make copies of my work."
Radicalism and the construction of civilizations
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politics
By M Hilaly Basya - The Jakarta Post.com
Friday, March 10, 2006
The reconstruction of civilizations is meant to enable us to review the world-view of both Islam (the East) and the West. Some Western scholars have criticized and reconstructed the fundamentals of their civilization. The Post-modernist movement, represented by reconstructive thinkers such as Paul Ricouer, Gadamer, Fritchof Chapra, Gary Zukav, has made a significant contribution to that revision, but without a significant impact.
In Islam, we have to criticize "Islamic reason" (nalar Islam). It is meant as a deconstruction of "ancient reason" (nalar klasik), the epistemology that is used to construct Islamic teaching. Several prominent Islamic thinkers, such as Mohammad Abed Al-Jabiri, Mohammed Arkoun, Nashr Hamid Abu Zayd, Abdullahi Ahmed An-Naim, have promoted this movement. They have especially tried to reinterpret Islamic law, theology, Sufism and philosophy.
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Friday, March 10, 2006
The reconstruction of civilizations is meant to enable us to review the world-view of both Islam (the East) and the West. Some Western scholars have criticized and reconstructed the fundamentals of their civilization. The Post-modernist movement, represented by reconstructive thinkers such as Paul Ricouer, Gadamer, Fritchof Chapra, Gary Zukav, has made a significant contribution to that revision, but without a significant impact.
In Islam, we have to criticize "Islamic reason" (nalar Islam). It is meant as a deconstruction of "ancient reason" (nalar klasik), the epistemology that is used to construct Islamic teaching. Several prominent Islamic thinkers, such as Mohammad Abed Al-Jabiri, Mohammed Arkoun, Nashr Hamid Abu Zayd, Abdullahi Ahmed An-Naim, have promoted this movement. They have especially tried to reinterpret Islamic law, theology, Sufism and philosophy.
Right Moves
By Sumati Mehrishi Sharma - Ahmedabad Newsline
cities.expressindia.com - Saturday, March 11, 2006
After performing to sufi chants, Bharatnatyam exponent Rama Vaidyanathan wants to experiment with thumris.
For a classical dancer, Rama Vaidyanathan doesn’t make quite the right moves sometimes. Like performing Bharatnatyam to sufi music or doing so wearing a black veil at the recent Jahen-e-Khusro Festival — the first exponent to do so. But then, this is what makes for a perfect profile if you are participating in the Seventh National Festival of New Choreography beginning on April 11 at the India Habitat Centre in Delhi.
“If you are intimidated by what others have to say about your imagination, you’ll never grow beyond the traditional idiom and nayikas. In that case, choreographies will not happen,” says Vaidyanathan, who believes that after a certain stage dancers should not hesitate to experiment.
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cities.expressindia.com - Saturday, March 11, 2006
After performing to sufi chants, Bharatnatyam exponent Rama Vaidyanathan wants to experiment with thumris.
For a classical dancer, Rama Vaidyanathan doesn’t make quite the right moves sometimes. Like performing Bharatnatyam to sufi music or doing so wearing a black veil at the recent Jahen-e-Khusro Festival — the first exponent to do so. But then, this is what makes for a perfect profile if you are participating in the Seventh National Festival of New Choreography beginning on April 11 at the India Habitat Centre in Delhi.
“If you are intimidated by what others have to say about your imagination, you’ll never grow beyond the traditional idiom and nayikas. In that case, choreographies will not happen,” says Vaidyanathan, who believes that after a certain stage dancers should not hesitate to experiment.
Getting Intoxicated with The Love of God
Discourse: Avatar Meher Baba - The Times of India
Friday, 10 March 2006
Sufi poets often compare love with wine because both intoxicate. However, while wine causes self-forgetfulness, love leads to Self-realisation.
The behaviour of the intoxicated and the lover are similar; each disregards the world's standards of conduct and each is indiffe-rent to the opinion of the world.
But there is a world of difference between the course and the goal of the two: One leads to subterranean darkness and denial; the other, love, gives wings to the soul for its flight to freedom.
The drunkenness of the drunkard begins with a glass of wine which elates his spirit and loosens his inhibitions. It gives him a new view of life that promises forgetfulness from his daily worries. He goes on from one glass to two glasses, to a bottle; from companionship to isolation, from forgetfulness to oblivion which in reality, is the original state of God, but which, with the drunkard, is an empty stupor.
And he awakens in a dawn of futility, an object of disgust and ridicule. The lover's drunkenness begins with a drop of God's love which makes him forget the world.
The more he drinks the closer he draws to the Beloved, and the more unworthy he feels of the Beloved's love; and he longs to sacrifice his very life at his Beloved's feet.
He, too, does not know whether he sleeps on a bed or in a gutter, and becomes an object of ridicule; but he rests in bliss, and God the Beloved takes care of him. One out of many such lovers sees God face-to-face. His longing becomes infinite; he is like a fish thrown upon the beach, leaping and squirming to regain the ocean. He sees God everywhere and in everything, but he cannot find the gate of union.
The 'wine' that he drinks turns into 'fire' in which he continuously burns in blissful agony. And the fire eventually becomes the ocean of infinite consciousness in which he drowns.
In love there can never be satisfaction, for longing increases till it becomes an agony which ceases only in Union. Nothing but union with the Beloved can satisfy the lover.
The way of love is continual sacrifice; and what gets sacrificed are the lover's thoughts of 'I', until at last comes the time when the lover says, "O Beloved! Will I ever become one with you and so lose myself forever? But let this be only if it is your Will". This is the stage of love enlightened by obedience. Now the lover continuously witnesses the glory of the Beloved's will; and in the witnessing does not even think of union.
He willingly surrenders his entire being to the Beloved, and has no thought of self left. This is the stage when love is illumined by surrender. Out of millions, only one loves God; and out of millions of lovers, only one succeeds in obeying, and finally in surrendering his whole being to God the Beloved.
Greater than love is obedience. Greater than obedience is surrender. All three arise out of, and remain contained in, the ocean of divine love.
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Friday, 10 March 2006
Sufi poets often compare love with wine because both intoxicate. However, while wine causes self-forgetfulness, love leads to Self-realisation.
The behaviour of the intoxicated and the lover are similar; each disregards the world's standards of conduct and each is indiffe-rent to the opinion of the world.
But there is a world of difference between the course and the goal of the two: One leads to subterranean darkness and denial; the other, love, gives wings to the soul for its flight to freedom.
The drunkenness of the drunkard begins with a glass of wine which elates his spirit and loosens his inhibitions. It gives him a new view of life that promises forgetfulness from his daily worries. He goes on from one glass to two glasses, to a bottle; from companionship to isolation, from forgetfulness to oblivion which in reality, is the original state of God, but which, with the drunkard, is an empty stupor.
And he awakens in a dawn of futility, an object of disgust and ridicule. The lover's drunkenness begins with a drop of God's love which makes him forget the world.
The more he drinks the closer he draws to the Beloved, and the more unworthy he feels of the Beloved's love; and he longs to sacrifice his very life at his Beloved's feet.
He, too, does not know whether he sleeps on a bed or in a gutter, and becomes an object of ridicule; but he rests in bliss, and God the Beloved takes care of him. One out of many such lovers sees God face-to-face. His longing becomes infinite; he is like a fish thrown upon the beach, leaping and squirming to regain the ocean. He sees God everywhere and in everything, but he cannot find the gate of union.
The 'wine' that he drinks turns into 'fire' in which he continuously burns in blissful agony. And the fire eventually becomes the ocean of infinite consciousness in which he drowns.
In love there can never be satisfaction, for longing increases till it becomes an agony which ceases only in Union. Nothing but union with the Beloved can satisfy the lover.
The way of love is continual sacrifice; and what gets sacrificed are the lover's thoughts of 'I', until at last comes the time when the lover says, "O Beloved! Will I ever become one with you and so lose myself forever? But let this be only if it is your Will". This is the stage of love enlightened by obedience. Now the lover continuously witnesses the glory of the Beloved's will; and in the witnessing does not even think of union.
He willingly surrenders his entire being to the Beloved, and has no thought of self left. This is the stage when love is illumined by surrender. Out of millions, only one loves God; and out of millions of lovers, only one succeeds in obeying, and finally in surrendering his whole being to God the Beloved.
Greater than love is obedience. Greater than obedience is surrender. All three arise out of, and remain contained in, the ocean of divine love.
Cal Performances offers one-world vision
By Sam Prestianni - Sentinel correspondent
Santa Cruz Sentinel - March 9, 2006
Cal Performances celebrates its 100th anniversary this year as one of the San Francisco Bay Area's top promoters of the performing arts. Since its inception with a high-profile benefit gig for victims of the 1906 earthquake, featuring the superstar French actress Sarah Bernhardt, the UC Berkeley-based presenting organization has advocated a global vision.
Today, this includes productions by musicians, dancers, writers and theatrical performers from every continent save Antarctica. Upcoming concerts by the Masters of Persian Classical Music, Cesaria Evora and Ladysmith Black Mambazo exemplify Cal Performances' commitment to showcasing the planet's dynamic music-making traditions.
The appearance of the Persian Masters, arguably Iran's premier cultural ambassadors to the United States, couldn't come at a more crucial time. After all, an ancient people's sacred art provides a welcome alternative to the chest-thumping politics of the day. The internationally renowned combo of Kayhan Kalhor on kamancheh spiked fiddle, Hossein Alizadeh on tar long-necked lute, Mohammad Reza Shajarian vocals, and his son Homayoun on tombak hand drum has already proven to be a hit among U.S. audiences: The quartet sold out a string of shows on the first leg of its recent Stateside tour and its two recordings, 2001's "Without You" and last year's "Faryad," were both nominated for Grammy awards.
Not unlike the Indian classical repertoire, traditional Persian music derives its power from improvisations on precise scales, rhythms, and phrases, which provide a common language pool for all the bandmates to draw from. The virtuosic instrumentalists of the Masters take their cues from the subtly shifting melodies of the singer Shajarian, who combines the rich meters and passionate verses of both ancient and modern Sufi poetry. Thus, the band's original voice is deeply tied to the mystic fringe of Islam in a spellbinding update on a very old-school sound.
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Santa Cruz Sentinel - March 9, 2006
Cal Performances celebrates its 100th anniversary this year as one of the San Francisco Bay Area's top promoters of the performing arts. Since its inception with a high-profile benefit gig for victims of the 1906 earthquake, featuring the superstar French actress Sarah Bernhardt, the UC Berkeley-based presenting organization has advocated a global vision.
Today, this includes productions by musicians, dancers, writers and theatrical performers from every continent save Antarctica. Upcoming concerts by the Masters of Persian Classical Music, Cesaria Evora and Ladysmith Black Mambazo exemplify Cal Performances' commitment to showcasing the planet's dynamic music-making traditions.
The appearance of the Persian Masters, arguably Iran's premier cultural ambassadors to the United States, couldn't come at a more crucial time. After all, an ancient people's sacred art provides a welcome alternative to the chest-thumping politics of the day. The internationally renowned combo of Kayhan Kalhor on kamancheh spiked fiddle, Hossein Alizadeh on tar long-necked lute, Mohammad Reza Shajarian vocals, and his son Homayoun on tombak hand drum has already proven to be a hit among U.S. audiences: The quartet sold out a string of shows on the first leg of its recent Stateside tour and its two recordings, 2001's "Without You" and last year's "Faryad," were both nominated for Grammy awards.
Not unlike the Indian classical repertoire, traditional Persian music derives its power from improvisations on precise scales, rhythms, and phrases, which provide a common language pool for all the bandmates to draw from. The virtuosic instrumentalists of the Masters take their cues from the subtly shifting melodies of the singer Shajarian, who combines the rich meters and passionate verses of both ancient and modern Sufi poetry. Thus, the band's original voice is deeply tied to the mystic fringe of Islam in a spellbinding update on a very old-school sound.
The Stillness Of Sound
Rajiv Vijayakar - Screen India
Friday, March 10, 2006 - MUSIC REVIEWS
The Stillness Of Sound
Sony-BMG, Rs 299 (CD)
An outstanding Sufi album composed by Satish Sharma who writes four of the six songs too. Included are the much-used classics by Hazrat Amir Khusrau, ‘Chhap tilak...’ and ‘Piya ghar aaye...’. The vocals by Shujaat Khan are as spellbinding as his sitar. A must-buy.
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Friday, March 10, 2006 - MUSIC REVIEWS
The Stillness Of Sound
Sony-BMG, Rs 299 (CD)
An outstanding Sufi album composed by Satish Sharma who writes four of the six songs too. Included are the much-used classics by Hazrat Amir Khusrau, ‘Chhap tilak...’ and ‘Piya ghar aaye...’. The vocals by Shujaat Khan are as spellbinding as his sitar. A must-buy.
My Spirits, My Cravings, My Garden, My Spring!
By Greg Burk - LAWeekly
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Masters of Persian Music at UCLA - Transcendent sound is the rarest kind. Dedicated musicians are always striving to get past the body, above the mud, and have a cup of tea with the infinite. But transcendence doesn’t come cheap. First you need something to transcend.
Pain, that is. Like John Coltrane, playing through rotted teeth and liver failure on A Love Supreme. Or Charles Lloyd, who melted into advanced degrees of transparency in the ’90s following a near fatal illness. Or Leni Stern, who dodged cancer and found new heights/depths in her songs and sounds. Or Etta James in R&B, or Schubert in classical music, or keep listing till you’re tired.
The subject crops up because Masters of Persian Music are coming. These four pull off quite a feat: They tap and transcend the pain of a whole culture through modern interpretations of its classical tradition. You’d almost think they were present during the many centuries when Persia/Iran, formerly the world’s greatest empire, underwent its stages of enslavement and revival. Sufism flourished and was repressed and rose again; Arabs, Afghans and Mongols invaded; Western influences ebbed and flowed like an acid tide; respites from war were brief. How can musicians reflect all that?
Obviously they’ve got to be proficient, and the Masters aren’t called that for nothing. A tougher trick: They can’t sound slick. The lyrics of the Sufi poet Rumi (“My spirits and my cravings, my garden and my spring!”) gush from the heart, and vocalist Mohammad Reza Shajarian never comes off like a trained classical gymnast — he means it, man! On tombak, Homayoun Shajarian shoulders the roles of drum, foundation and unifier — one guy, slapping whole and solid. Kayhan Kalhor’s kamancheh (spike fiddle) must have gut strings, ’cause guts is what he’s got, delivering the grandeur with roughspun folkiness and genuine heat. And the great, great Hossein Alizadeh plucks his tar with a mixture of dynamism and passion that makes you forget how damn difficult his runs are; let’s hope he gets some serious solo space, because this blazer’s improvisations can get you crawling up your own spine.
Since the Iran-hatin’ pendulum has swung ’round again, it’s interesting to note that Alizadeh’s last album, Endless Vision, was denied release in his home country because a woman sang on it alongside men. Two years later, the decision was reversed. Iran, you see, experiences a range of opinions.
Iran’s classical repertoire runs intricate and deep, offering up its arabesque symmetries as an abstraction of emotion, a prayer for transcendence. One of these millennia, America will boast a classical tradition to match it. But before then, we’ll have to face a world of hurt.
Read More
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Masters of Persian Music at UCLA - Transcendent sound is the rarest kind. Dedicated musicians are always striving to get past the body, above the mud, and have a cup of tea with the infinite. But transcendence doesn’t come cheap. First you need something to transcend.
Pain, that is. Like John Coltrane, playing through rotted teeth and liver failure on A Love Supreme. Or Charles Lloyd, who melted into advanced degrees of transparency in the ’90s following a near fatal illness. Or Leni Stern, who dodged cancer and found new heights/depths in her songs and sounds. Or Etta James in R&B, or Schubert in classical music, or keep listing till you’re tired.
The subject crops up because Masters of Persian Music are coming. These four pull off quite a feat: They tap and transcend the pain of a whole culture through modern interpretations of its classical tradition. You’d almost think they were present during the many centuries when Persia/Iran, formerly the world’s greatest empire, underwent its stages of enslavement and revival. Sufism flourished and was repressed and rose again; Arabs, Afghans and Mongols invaded; Western influences ebbed and flowed like an acid tide; respites from war were brief. How can musicians reflect all that?
Obviously they’ve got to be proficient, and the Masters aren’t called that for nothing. A tougher trick: They can’t sound slick. The lyrics of the Sufi poet Rumi (“My spirits and my cravings, my garden and my spring!”) gush from the heart, and vocalist Mohammad Reza Shajarian never comes off like a trained classical gymnast — he means it, man! On tombak, Homayoun Shajarian shoulders the roles of drum, foundation and unifier — one guy, slapping whole and solid. Kayhan Kalhor’s kamancheh (spike fiddle) must have gut strings, ’cause guts is what he’s got, delivering the grandeur with roughspun folkiness and genuine heat. And the great, great Hossein Alizadeh plucks his tar with a mixture of dynamism and passion that makes you forget how damn difficult his runs are; let’s hope he gets some serious solo space, because this blazer’s improvisations can get you crawling up your own spine.
Since the Iran-hatin’ pendulum has swung ’round again, it’s interesting to note that Alizadeh’s last album, Endless Vision, was denied release in his home country because a woman sang on it alongside men. Two years later, the decision was reversed. Iran, you see, experiences a range of opinions.
Iran’s classical repertoire runs intricate and deep, offering up its arabesque symmetries as an abstraction of emotion, a prayer for transcendence. One of these millennia, America will boast a classical tradition to match it. But before then, we’ll have to face a world of hurt.
In communion with God
Prof. Muhammad Ishaq Khan - Greater Kashmir online edition
Thu 09 March 2006
The tazkira literature in Sufism provides us an ample information about numerous Sufis of the subcontinent who performed Hajj in spite of the hazards of journey in medieval times. They undertook pilgrimage to Makkah not merely as a matter of religious duty, but, also, as seekers of exoteric and esoteric knowledge. My forthcoming Biographical Dictionary of Sufism in South Asia shows that in medieval times Makkah and Madina were not only great centres of Hadis learning but, also, hubs of Islamic spirituality (tasawwuf). Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Haqq Muhaddis Dihlawi who spent considerable time in Makkah bears an elaborate testimony to the excellence of the learning of the Indian Sufi scholars, settled in Makkah, like Shaikh ‘Ali Mutaqqi and Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab and their impact on the ‘ulama and masha’ikh of the Holy Land. Although Shaikh ‘Ali initially learnt at the feet of the acknowledged Arab scholar and theologian, Shaikh Ibn Hajar ‘Asqalani, later the latter himself took pride in calling himself a pupil of his erstwhile student. So much impressed was ‘Asqalani by the learning of his Indian born pupil that he enrolled himself as the disciple of Shaikh ‘Ali. Under the guidance of Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab Muttaqi al-Qadiri al-Shazili in Makkah, Shaikh ‘Adu’l-Haqq not only mastered the Sahi Muslim and Sahih Bukhari, but, also, Sufism.
Although the serene intellectual and spiritual environment of Makkah suited the temperament of Abd’ul-Haqq, he was advised by his spiritual preceptor to return home, both on the grounds of his obligations to his family and India. He was advised not to be in a hurry to denounce a believer as “infidel or a heretic”, if, even while performing fundamental religious duties, the latter was apparently found guilty of violating the Shari‘ah.
Today, there is no scope for the dissemination of a true spiritual knowledge in Sa‘udi Arabia given the official attempts at promoting a superficial understanding of Tawhid. Gone are the days when the ‘ulama of Makkah and Madina sent ripples to the pilgrims with an insatiable quest for a true spiritual knowledge. Not only, Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Haqq Muhaddis Dihlawi, but, later, Shah Waliu’llah, also, after their return from the Holy Land, proved themselves to be beacons of light in the profoundest sense of the term. They did not simply strengthen the roots of Islam in the subcontinent within the broader framework of Shari‘ah and Sufism, but, more importantly, contributed a great deal to the development of Hadis learning in the subcontinent. One may ask why Shah Waliu’llah, a contemporary of Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab ___ whose sources of knowledge as well as a teacher were the same in the Holy Land - led their followers in two different directions. While Shah Waliu’llah, in the best tradition of the Hujjatu’l-Islam Imam-i Ghazzali, sought to reconcile Shari‘ah and Sufism, Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab did not merely reject Sufism but even the recognized four schools of Islamic law. Notwithstanding the reformatory zeal of Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab, his interpretation of Islam was mainly prompted by the exigencies of the atrophied social environment of Arabia of his time, rather than by spiritio-historical profundities of Islam.
Although there is no marked distinction between the so-called “Arab Islam” and “Sufi Islam”, nonetheless, the Sa‘udi version of Islam is devoid of a deeper sense of spirituality and history. True, Ka‘ba is central to their thinking; but I have earlier shown that millions of pilgrims are also deeply conscious of the centrality of the Ka‘ba. Why does the Sa‘udi government, then, make a fetish of Tawhid by underestimating the Tawhidic consciousness of the pilgrims with strong roots in Sufism? Is it that the antipathy of Muhammad bin Abdu’l-Wahhab and his followers to Sufism has produced such a mind-set?
Historically, it has been the solemn practice with most pilgrims not only to perform the fundamental duty of Hajj, but, also, to visit the heritage sites of spiritual and historical importance. This fact did not merely revitalize the faith of individual believers in the eternity of spiritual Truth, but also led to the development of spiritual knowledge on sound Quranic, Sunnatic and historical foundations. The profuse Sufi literature on the Oneness of Allah and veneration of Muhammad (PBUH) would not have been produced without the spiritual experiences of the Sufis in the wake of their meditations at the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in Madina or, for that matter, at other heritage sites of spiritual and historical importance. The Awrad-i Fathiyya of Mir Saiyid ‘Ali Hamadani, the most popular invocatory prayer in Kashmir for over six centuries, though for the most part, based on the Quranic verses and the prayers of the Prophet (PBUH), was, in essence, the product of the Sufi’s spiritual strivings elsewhere but, finally, in the Holy Land. Likewise, several other Sufis were directed by the Prophet (PBUH) to carry on the mission of ennobling human souls in different parts of the globe in various spiritual states of their communion with him.
Against the background of sturdy spiritual and historical foundations of Sufism, several observations vis-à-vis orchestrated heresy (shirk) in several official booklets, published and distributed by Ministry of Islamic Affairs Endowments, Da‘wah and Guidance, Kingdom of Sa‘udi Arabia, sound hollow. First, shirk in the strictest Quranic sense is related to the Jahilliya belief in the tribal gods that the Ka‘ba housed. Second, the pilgrim’s veneration of Muhammad (PBUH) does not amount to shirk in the original sense of the word. No pilgrim consciously regards the Prophet as God or demi-god. Certainly, however, he is superbly aware of the eternal spiritual and historical role of the Prophet as the Grace of the Worlds. A believer with such supernal Quranic consciousness cannot be a robot but an elevated human soul with the never ceasing yearning for spiritio-historical unicity characterising the relationship between the Prophet (pbuh) and his followers. Equally important, therefore, are the ties of spiritual bonds between the Sufis and their adherents within the framework of the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
Notwithstanding the total neglect of the Sa‘udi government in preserving the cave of Hira as a heritage site, or, for that matter, several other places of spiritual and historical importance, the pilgrims with deep-rooted Sufi traditions, particularly, from Turkey and South Asia, throng Hira where the Prophet (PBUH) first received the Revelation. It was a heart-rending experience for me to see them burst into tears and loud cries while offering durud and salam to the Prophet (SAW) at Hira. What is more, the volitional acts of the pilgrims at Masjid-i Nabwi, Mazar-i Baq‘i, Jannatu’l-Mawa, Uhad and even at the site where the Prophet (PBUH) resided, testify to a certain kind of their abundant mystical love for the Prophet (PBUH), ahl-i bait, Companions, followers of the Companions and their followers. Such a phenomenon may be reprehensible to the Sa‘udis, but, by no stretch of the imagination, do the pilgrims with a burning love for Allah and His true servants dilute the essential spirit of Tawhid. Perhaps ‘Allama Iqbal in Asrar-i Khudi refers to such pilgrims of love in these words: (Translated by: Nicholson’s tr.)
“Be a lover constant in devotion to thy beloved,
That thou mayst cast thy noose and capture God.
Sojourn for a while on the Hira of the heart,
Abandon self and flee to God.
Strengthened by God, return to thy self
And break the heads of Lat and Uzza of sensuality.
By the might of Love evoke an army,
Reveal thyself on the Faran of Love,
That the Lord of the Ka‘bah may show thee favour
And interpret to thee the text, ‘Lo I will appoint a vicegerent on the earth’.”
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Thu 09 March 2006
The tazkira literature in Sufism provides us an ample information about numerous Sufis of the subcontinent who performed Hajj in spite of the hazards of journey in medieval times. They undertook pilgrimage to Makkah not merely as a matter of religious duty, but, also, as seekers of exoteric and esoteric knowledge. My forthcoming Biographical Dictionary of Sufism in South Asia shows that in medieval times Makkah and Madina were not only great centres of Hadis learning but, also, hubs of Islamic spirituality (tasawwuf). Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Haqq Muhaddis Dihlawi who spent considerable time in Makkah bears an elaborate testimony to the excellence of the learning of the Indian Sufi scholars, settled in Makkah, like Shaikh ‘Ali Mutaqqi and Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab and their impact on the ‘ulama and masha’ikh of the Holy Land. Although Shaikh ‘Ali initially learnt at the feet of the acknowledged Arab scholar and theologian, Shaikh Ibn Hajar ‘Asqalani, later the latter himself took pride in calling himself a pupil of his erstwhile student. So much impressed was ‘Asqalani by the learning of his Indian born pupil that he enrolled himself as the disciple of Shaikh ‘Ali. Under the guidance of Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab Muttaqi al-Qadiri al-Shazili in Makkah, Shaikh ‘Adu’l-Haqq not only mastered the Sahi Muslim and Sahih Bukhari, but, also, Sufism.
Although the serene intellectual and spiritual environment of Makkah suited the temperament of Abd’ul-Haqq, he was advised by his spiritual preceptor to return home, both on the grounds of his obligations to his family and India. He was advised not to be in a hurry to denounce a believer as “infidel or a heretic”, if, even while performing fundamental religious duties, the latter was apparently found guilty of violating the Shari‘ah.
Today, there is no scope for the dissemination of a true spiritual knowledge in Sa‘udi Arabia given the official attempts at promoting a superficial understanding of Tawhid. Gone are the days when the ‘ulama of Makkah and Madina sent ripples to the pilgrims with an insatiable quest for a true spiritual knowledge. Not only, Shaikh ‘Abdu’l-Haqq Muhaddis Dihlawi, but, later, Shah Waliu’llah, also, after their return from the Holy Land, proved themselves to be beacons of light in the profoundest sense of the term. They did not simply strengthen the roots of Islam in the subcontinent within the broader framework of Shari‘ah and Sufism, but, more importantly, contributed a great deal to the development of Hadis learning in the subcontinent. One may ask why Shah Waliu’llah, a contemporary of Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab ___ whose sources of knowledge as well as a teacher were the same in the Holy Land - led their followers in two different directions. While Shah Waliu’llah, in the best tradition of the Hujjatu’l-Islam Imam-i Ghazzali, sought to reconcile Shari‘ah and Sufism, Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab did not merely reject Sufism but even the recognized four schools of Islamic law. Notwithstanding the reformatory zeal of Muhammad bin ‘Abdu’l-Wahhab, his interpretation of Islam was mainly prompted by the exigencies of the atrophied social environment of Arabia of his time, rather than by spiritio-historical profundities of Islam.
Although there is no marked distinction between the so-called “Arab Islam” and “Sufi Islam”, nonetheless, the Sa‘udi version of Islam is devoid of a deeper sense of spirituality and history. True, Ka‘ba is central to their thinking; but I have earlier shown that millions of pilgrims are also deeply conscious of the centrality of the Ka‘ba. Why does the Sa‘udi government, then, make a fetish of Tawhid by underestimating the Tawhidic consciousness of the pilgrims with strong roots in Sufism? Is it that the antipathy of Muhammad bin Abdu’l-Wahhab and his followers to Sufism has produced such a mind-set?
Historically, it has been the solemn practice with most pilgrims not only to perform the fundamental duty of Hajj, but, also, to visit the heritage sites of spiritual and historical importance. This fact did not merely revitalize the faith of individual believers in the eternity of spiritual Truth, but also led to the development of spiritual knowledge on sound Quranic, Sunnatic and historical foundations. The profuse Sufi literature on the Oneness of Allah and veneration of Muhammad (PBUH) would not have been produced without the spiritual experiences of the Sufis in the wake of their meditations at the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in Madina or, for that matter, at other heritage sites of spiritual and historical importance. The Awrad-i Fathiyya of Mir Saiyid ‘Ali Hamadani, the most popular invocatory prayer in Kashmir for over six centuries, though for the most part, based on the Quranic verses and the prayers of the Prophet (PBUH), was, in essence, the product of the Sufi’s spiritual strivings elsewhere but, finally, in the Holy Land. Likewise, several other Sufis were directed by the Prophet (PBUH) to carry on the mission of ennobling human souls in different parts of the globe in various spiritual states of their communion with him.
Against the background of sturdy spiritual and historical foundations of Sufism, several observations vis-à-vis orchestrated heresy (shirk) in several official booklets, published and distributed by Ministry of Islamic Affairs Endowments, Da‘wah and Guidance, Kingdom of Sa‘udi Arabia, sound hollow. First, shirk in the strictest Quranic sense is related to the Jahilliya belief in the tribal gods that the Ka‘ba housed. Second, the pilgrim’s veneration of Muhammad (PBUH) does not amount to shirk in the original sense of the word. No pilgrim consciously regards the Prophet as God or demi-god. Certainly, however, he is superbly aware of the eternal spiritual and historical role of the Prophet as the Grace of the Worlds. A believer with such supernal Quranic consciousness cannot be a robot but an elevated human soul with the never ceasing yearning for spiritio-historical unicity characterising the relationship between the Prophet (pbuh) and his followers. Equally important, therefore, are the ties of spiritual bonds between the Sufis and their adherents within the framework of the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
Notwithstanding the total neglect of the Sa‘udi government in preserving the cave of Hira as a heritage site, or, for that matter, several other places of spiritual and historical importance, the pilgrims with deep-rooted Sufi traditions, particularly, from Turkey and South Asia, throng Hira where the Prophet (PBUH) first received the Revelation. It was a heart-rending experience for me to see them burst into tears and loud cries while offering durud and salam to the Prophet (SAW) at Hira. What is more, the volitional acts of the pilgrims at Masjid-i Nabwi, Mazar-i Baq‘i, Jannatu’l-Mawa, Uhad and even at the site where the Prophet (PBUH) resided, testify to a certain kind of their abundant mystical love for the Prophet (PBUH), ahl-i bait, Companions, followers of the Companions and their followers. Such a phenomenon may be reprehensible to the Sa‘udis, but, by no stretch of the imagination, do the pilgrims with a burning love for Allah and His true servants dilute the essential spirit of Tawhid. Perhaps ‘Allama Iqbal in Asrar-i Khudi refers to such pilgrims of love in these words: (Translated by: Nicholson’s tr.)
“Be a lover constant in devotion to thy beloved,
That thou mayst cast thy noose and capture God.
Sojourn for a while on the Hira of the heart,
Abandon self and flee to God.
Strengthened by God, return to thy self
And break the heads of Lat and Uzza of sensuality.
By the might of Love evoke an army,
Reveal thyself on the Faran of Love,
That the Lord of the Ka‘bah may show thee favour
And interpret to thee the text, ‘Lo I will appoint a vicegerent on the earth’.”
Sunday, October 08, 2006
No Strings Attached?
By GIULIANA VETRANO Contributing Writer
The Harvard Crimson - Wednesday, March 08, 2006
The Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC) has its offices at the Semitic Museum on 6 Divinity Avenue, while the Center for Middle Eastern Studies are located at 1430 Mass. Ave., above CVS. A narrow corridor leads to closet-sized rooms just big enough to fit a professor and an FM reporter. Framed, dusty posters in Arabic from the eighties line the dull white walls, and the sounds of a Middle Eastern chant play softly from a distant corner.
This is where Harvard directs students interested in studying Islam.
Compared to the open atrium and plush conference rooms of, say, the Barker Center (where some NELC professors have attic offices), NELC’s space appears shabby and decrepit. And like its physical surroundings, the department itself could use an upgrade.
Funding for that improvement has arrived in the form of Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud’s $20 million gift announced this past November. The Saudi Arabian prince—also the world’s fifth richest man—designated the donation specifically for Islamic Studies. However, despite the improvement the gift guaranteed, critics inside and outside the Harvard community—still reeling from the events of Sept. 11, 2001—said they were suspicious of his background and presumed intentions and questioned whether or not the University should accept the donation.
While Harvard has received prior gifts from other Saudi Arabian and Middle Eastern donors, there is no common formula for accepting or rejecting a gift. Rather, Harvard has chosen to evaluate the gifts, in accordance with the University’s extensive gift policy, on a case-by-case basis.
The University has outlined the major goals of The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Program for Islamic Studies, but deliberations continue as to the details of its structure and personnel. Faculty point-man Roy P. Mottahedeh, Gurney professor of history, will work along with the Office of Alumni Affairs and Development to advance the program.
Currently, Islamic Studies is mostly confined to the religious and historical aspects of the faith, and especially to Islam in the Middle East. At this point, undergrads study Islam through NELC or the Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Professors like Granara and Susan G. Miller, a senior lecturer in Islamic civilizations, stress the need for a more multidisciplinary program. “This is a disgrace,” says Granara. “Our field is vastly underrepresented...and increases [in funding] are very much necessary.” Ahmed points to Sufism, Islamic mysticism, as a key area in which Harvard has no specialist.
Read More
The Harvard Crimson - Wednesday, March 08, 2006
The Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC) has its offices at the Semitic Museum on 6 Divinity Avenue, while the Center for Middle Eastern Studies are located at 1430 Mass. Ave., above CVS. A narrow corridor leads to closet-sized rooms just big enough to fit a professor and an FM reporter. Framed, dusty posters in Arabic from the eighties line the dull white walls, and the sounds of a Middle Eastern chant play softly from a distant corner.
This is where Harvard directs students interested in studying Islam.
Compared to the open atrium and plush conference rooms of, say, the Barker Center (where some NELC professors have attic offices), NELC’s space appears shabby and decrepit. And like its physical surroundings, the department itself could use an upgrade.
Funding for that improvement has arrived in the form of Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud’s $20 million gift announced this past November. The Saudi Arabian prince—also the world’s fifth richest man—designated the donation specifically for Islamic Studies. However, despite the improvement the gift guaranteed, critics inside and outside the Harvard community—still reeling from the events of Sept. 11, 2001—said they were suspicious of his background and presumed intentions and questioned whether or not the University should accept the donation.
While Harvard has received prior gifts from other Saudi Arabian and Middle Eastern donors, there is no common formula for accepting or rejecting a gift. Rather, Harvard has chosen to evaluate the gifts, in accordance with the University’s extensive gift policy, on a case-by-case basis.
The University has outlined the major goals of The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Program for Islamic Studies, but deliberations continue as to the details of its structure and personnel. Faculty point-man Roy P. Mottahedeh, Gurney professor of history, will work along with the Office of Alumni Affairs and Development to advance the program.
Currently, Islamic Studies is mostly confined to the religious and historical aspects of the faith, and especially to Islam in the Middle East. At this point, undergrads study Islam through NELC or the Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Professors like Granara and Susan G. Miller, a senior lecturer in Islamic civilizations, stress the need for a more multidisciplinary program. “This is a disgrace,” says Granara. “Our field is vastly underrepresented...and increases [in funding] are very much necessary.” Ahmed points to Sufism, Islamic mysticism, as a key area in which Harvard has no specialist.
Whither ghazals of Ghalib?
The Daily Star - Cultural Correspondent
Thu. March 09, 2006
Enayat-e-Moula Jinnah, is a singer of ghazals and modern Bangla songs, apart from being a music director of the Shilpakala Academy for decades. Amplifying on the music scene, he says, "Ghazals, which have come down from Amir Khusru and Ghalib, are popular at clubs, and private houses. However, they are not heard on our local TV or radio. This also applies to Rabindra Sangeet that includes words referring to Hindu mythology."
At present Jinnah is an enlisted singer of Nazrul Sangeet, and modern Bangla songs on radio and TV. He had his initial training in music under Ustad Siddiqur Rahman and next with Ustad Saimud Ali Khan, of Banaras gharana, who himself was a student of Pandit Bishek Shebak Misra. He began with sargam, went into classical training and then progressed to Nazrul Sangeet. In Dinajpur, in his youth, he was attracted to the songs of Mehdi Hassan, which were popular in the homes of his friends of the then East Pakistan Rifles. This saw an ebb even though the ghazals originated from Mirza Ghalib and Bahadur Shah Zafar, who were from India.
Dwelling on this genre of songs, Jinnah says that these ghazals are a combination of Persian and Urdu. Today in India, he says, people sometimes confuse bhajans of Anup Jalota -- which include tales of Krishna and Ram, for ghazals. The famed ghazal writer, Amir Khusru, was originally Turkish. Mirza Ghalib's family, in India, too had its roots in Turkey. Ghalib combined Persian, Arabic and Urdu, he says. "Modern writers of this genre include Mazrul Sultanpuri and Javed Akhter from India. But these writers have not, in any way, been able to surpass Amir Khusru, Bahadur Shah Zafar. Mirza Ghalib or even Allama Iqbal. "I like the ghazals of Bahadur Shah Zafar best because of their poignancy and passion. Their lyricism and moving lines can't help but touch your heart. Their rhythm and clarity communicates with the listener without any effort," says Jinnah.
Ghazals, he says, are not necessarily love poems. "Like qawwalis, they were immersed in Sufism and had a religious nature, as in the case of the early ghazals of Amir Khusru," he says. "They were always based on a raga. In India they are confusing ghazals with bhajans and thumris, such as in the case of Bare Ghulam Ali's Ae na balam, keya kare sajni (a thumri) or Begum Akhter's Jochhona korechhi ari, asheyna amar bari (a dadra). Kazi Nazrul Islam also wrote a large number of Bangla ghazals," he adds.
Read More
Thu. March 09, 2006
Enayat-e-Moula Jinnah, is a singer of ghazals and modern Bangla songs, apart from being a music director of the Shilpakala Academy for decades. Amplifying on the music scene, he says, "Ghazals, which have come down from Amir Khusru and Ghalib, are popular at clubs, and private houses. However, they are not heard on our local TV or radio. This also applies to Rabindra Sangeet that includes words referring to Hindu mythology."
At present Jinnah is an enlisted singer of Nazrul Sangeet, and modern Bangla songs on radio and TV. He had his initial training in music under Ustad Siddiqur Rahman and next with Ustad Saimud Ali Khan, of Banaras gharana, who himself was a student of Pandit Bishek Shebak Misra. He began with sargam, went into classical training and then progressed to Nazrul Sangeet. In Dinajpur, in his youth, he was attracted to the songs of Mehdi Hassan, which were popular in the homes of his friends of the then East Pakistan Rifles. This saw an ebb even though the ghazals originated from Mirza Ghalib and Bahadur Shah Zafar, who were from India.
Dwelling on this genre of songs, Jinnah says that these ghazals are a combination of Persian and Urdu. Today in India, he says, people sometimes confuse bhajans of Anup Jalota -- which include tales of Krishna and Ram, for ghazals. The famed ghazal writer, Amir Khusru, was originally Turkish. Mirza Ghalib's family, in India, too had its roots in Turkey. Ghalib combined Persian, Arabic and Urdu, he says. "Modern writers of this genre include Mazrul Sultanpuri and Javed Akhter from India. But these writers have not, in any way, been able to surpass Amir Khusru, Bahadur Shah Zafar. Mirza Ghalib or even Allama Iqbal. "I like the ghazals of Bahadur Shah Zafar best because of their poignancy and passion. Their lyricism and moving lines can't help but touch your heart. Their rhythm and clarity communicates with the listener without any effort," says Jinnah.
Ghazals, he says, are not necessarily love poems. "Like qawwalis, they were immersed in Sufism and had a religious nature, as in the case of the early ghazals of Amir Khusru," he says. "They were always based on a raga. In India they are confusing ghazals with bhajans and thumris, such as in the case of Bare Ghulam Ali's Ae na balam, keya kare sajni (a thumri) or Begum Akhter's Jochhona korechhi ari, asheyna amar bari (a dadra). Kazi Nazrul Islam also wrote a large number of Bangla ghazals," he adds.
UNESCO to declare 2007 'The Year of Mevlana'
ANKARA - Turkish Daily News
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
A proposal by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry to declare 2007 as the “The Year of Mevlana” to mark the 800th anniversary of Mevlana Jelaladdin Rumi's birth was accepted by UNESCO, the Anatolia news agency reported on Monday.
Culture and Tourism Ministry Undersecretary Mustafa İsen said 2007 was the 800th anniversary of the birth of famous Turkish philosopher and poet Mevlana, and therefore they submitted a proposal to UNESCO to officially declare 2007 as the “Year of Mevlana” to mark the 800th anniversary of his birth.
“UNESCO gave a positive response to our proposal and decided Mevlana to be commemorated next year in all countries. 2007 was declared as the Year of Mevlana,” he said.
Noting that they have intensified commemoration works after this decision, İsen said the commemoration activities to be held in Konya next year would be expanded throughout 2007 all over the world.
He also said they established a committee for organization of the commemorative events under the direction of the ministry and, likewise, some works were being conducted by the Konya Governor's Office and local municipalities.
Support from Iran and Afghanistan:
Meanwhile, International Mevlana Foundation Chairman Faruk Çelebi, who is Mevlana's 22nd generation grandchild, said he was pleased for the decision of UNESCO, which also had included Sufism culture into the world's cultural heritages.
He said they received great support from Iran and Afghanistan for the Year of Mevlana. “It is indeed a positive development for Mevlana culture to be protected and commemorated by UNESCO. Activities will be held worldwide throughout 2007 and Mevlana as well as his philosophy will be conveyed to all humanity in the proper sense.”
Associate Professor Nuri Şimşekler, Selçuk University's Mevlana Research Center director, said UNESCO's decision was an important step in terms of conveying Mevlana and his philosophy to the next generations without having it become degenerated.
Stating that 2007 will also be an important occasion in scientific examination of Mevlana and the related documents on his philosophy as well as introducing this wealth of knowledge to people in Turkey and all of humanity, Şimşekler said, “We will have an opportunity to exhibit the beauty of our religion to other people, highlighting the humanistic and peaceful aspects of Mevlana, who is considered to be one of the best interpreters of Islam, a religion wrongfully associated with terrorism.”
Read More
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
A proposal by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry to declare 2007 as the “The Year of Mevlana” to mark the 800th anniversary of Mevlana Jelaladdin Rumi's birth was accepted by UNESCO, the Anatolia news agency reported on Monday.
Culture and Tourism Ministry Undersecretary Mustafa İsen said 2007 was the 800th anniversary of the birth of famous Turkish philosopher and poet Mevlana, and therefore they submitted a proposal to UNESCO to officially declare 2007 as the “Year of Mevlana” to mark the 800th anniversary of his birth.
“UNESCO gave a positive response to our proposal and decided Mevlana to be commemorated next year in all countries. 2007 was declared as the Year of Mevlana,” he said.
Noting that they have intensified commemoration works after this decision, İsen said the commemoration activities to be held in Konya next year would be expanded throughout 2007 all over the world.
He also said they established a committee for organization of the commemorative events under the direction of the ministry and, likewise, some works were being conducted by the Konya Governor's Office and local municipalities.
Support from Iran and Afghanistan:
Meanwhile, International Mevlana Foundation Chairman Faruk Çelebi, who is Mevlana's 22nd generation grandchild, said he was pleased for the decision of UNESCO, which also had included Sufism culture into the world's cultural heritages.
He said they received great support from Iran and Afghanistan for the Year of Mevlana. “It is indeed a positive development for Mevlana culture to be protected and commemorated by UNESCO. Activities will be held worldwide throughout 2007 and Mevlana as well as his philosophy will be conveyed to all humanity in the proper sense.”
Associate Professor Nuri Şimşekler, Selçuk University's Mevlana Research Center director, said UNESCO's decision was an important step in terms of conveying Mevlana and his philosophy to the next generations without having it become degenerated.
Stating that 2007 will also be an important occasion in scientific examination of Mevlana and the related documents on his philosophy as well as introducing this wealth of knowledge to people in Turkey and all of humanity, Şimşekler said, “We will have an opportunity to exhibit the beauty of our religion to other people, highlighting the humanistic and peaceful aspects of Mevlana, who is considered to be one of the best interpreters of Islam, a religion wrongfully associated with terrorism.”
ETC Punjabi to telecast live Music Awards 2006
Indiantelevision.com Team - Mumbai, 8 March 2006
With the live telecast of ETC Channel Punjabi Music Awards 2006, ETC is once again all set to enhance and applaud the efforts of musicians and their music through various categories including even Sufi and overseas Punjabi singers.
Badman of Bollywood Gulshan Grover will anchor the awards along with Rajeshwari Sachdev.
The awards show loaded with music, fun, dancing, dread, anticipation, joy and elation will be telecast live simultaneously on ETC Channel Punjabi, Zee Punjabi and Alpha ETC Punjabi on the evening of Saturday 18 March, states an official release.
ETC Channel Punjabi and Zee Punjabi president Rabindra Narayan and programming head Rajiee B. Shinde are confident of delivering another winning show for their viewers.
Read More
With the live telecast of ETC Channel Punjabi Music Awards 2006, ETC is once again all set to enhance and applaud the efforts of musicians and their music through various categories including even Sufi and overseas Punjabi singers.
Badman of Bollywood Gulshan Grover will anchor the awards along with Rajeshwari Sachdev.
The awards show loaded with music, fun, dancing, dread, anticipation, joy and elation will be telecast live simultaneously on ETC Channel Punjabi, Zee Punjabi and Alpha ETC Punjabi on the evening of Saturday 18 March, states an official release.
ETC Channel Punjabi and Zee Punjabi president Rabindra Narayan and programming head Rajiee B. Shinde are confident of delivering another winning show for their viewers.
Enjoy the Soothing Effect of Sufiana
By Syed Wajid Ali - The Times Of India
Mon 06 March, 2006
Sufism is a mystical dimension of Islam, transcending all religions. It is a way of experiencing truth and self-realisation and in the process takes the seeker on a path of serenity, piety and divinity by means of love and devotion to God.
Truth is the substance. Truth is the courage of each, it is the power of flight; some fly and some remain in the garden, some go beyond the stars.
Sufi music is evolved and illuminated. It is the enchanting outcome of the interface between Hinduism and Islam. The word ‘sufi’ comes from the Arabic word ‘suf’ which means pure.
Sufi music is all about the relationship between the moods of the lover-poet-saint and the beloved. Sufism originated with the foundation of the Chishti order in Khorasam, Persia. Sufi compositions contain effusive verses with an esoteric dimension written in an ornate language.
Sufi poetry has found expression in several languages like Persian, Arabic, Awadhi Bruj, Khariboli and Punjabi. Hazrat Amir Khusrau, Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi, Baba Bulle Shah, Ghulam Farid and Allama-Iqbal were some of the finest Sufi exponents.
Dargah Sharif at Ajmer resting place of Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti is renowned for its qawwals and is a popular pilgrimage destination. It is where one can feel intensely the Sufi experience.
Particularly on Thursdays, the entire area of the Dargah Sharif is suffused with spirituality. Qawwalis, raga-based compositions, are sung in tandem with the combination of harmonium and tabla. This is followed by ecstatic and vigorous clapping, repetitive and forceful, making the listener experience a spiritual high.
Renowned qawwals like Farid and Chand Nizami, Ghulam and Sultan Hussain Niyazi and Hamsar from the Delhi Gharana display the art with perfect synchronisation of percussionists in a chorus, transporting the audience out of the world.
Experiencing limitlessness, participants and listeners sway some even announce that they are renouncing all possessions and relate to the beats of the chorus, a blending of sufi art and music, what is called sufiana.
Amir Khusrau’s poetry straddles the earthy Hindi, Bruj, and sophisticated Persian, unravelling layers of meaning and nuances. His poetry provides the base to thirsty wanderers, to rejoice and meditate on the fundamental mystery of life.
He created divine musical poetry that reached out to truth. His interest in Indian ragas created mesmeric blends of Arabic and Iranian compositions.
Sufism transcends all boundaries of language and religion. Sufi music has the power to heal and its philosophy has a soothing effect. Qawwali is an expression of love between the lover and the beloved that elevates the spirit, bringing God and performer together.
It deepens love and devotion to God, making the listener exalt in spiritual ecstasy and frenzy. In such exaltations, the listener could slip into a mystical trance.
Qawwali recitals whether of Qual, Basant, Rang, Kaafi, Hamd or Naat incorporate classical and folk music, borrowing from forms like tarana, dadra, thumri and khyal. The eclectic synthesis produces a mesmerising effect, generating a feeling of tranquillity.
Read More
Mon 06 March, 2006
Sufism is a mystical dimension of Islam, transcending all religions. It is a way of experiencing truth and self-realisation and in the process takes the seeker on a path of serenity, piety and divinity by means of love and devotion to God.
Truth is the substance. Truth is the courage of each, it is the power of flight; some fly and some remain in the garden, some go beyond the stars.
Sufi music is evolved and illuminated. It is the enchanting outcome of the interface between Hinduism and Islam. The word ‘sufi’ comes from the Arabic word ‘suf’ which means pure.
Sufi music is all about the relationship between the moods of the lover-poet-saint and the beloved. Sufism originated with the foundation of the Chishti order in Khorasam, Persia. Sufi compositions contain effusive verses with an esoteric dimension written in an ornate language.
Sufi poetry has found expression in several languages like Persian, Arabic, Awadhi Bruj, Khariboli and Punjabi. Hazrat Amir Khusrau, Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi, Baba Bulle Shah, Ghulam Farid and Allama-Iqbal were some of the finest Sufi exponents.
Dargah Sharif at Ajmer resting place of Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti is renowned for its qawwals and is a popular pilgrimage destination. It is where one can feel intensely the Sufi experience.
Particularly on Thursdays, the entire area of the Dargah Sharif is suffused with spirituality. Qawwalis, raga-based compositions, are sung in tandem with the combination of harmonium and tabla. This is followed by ecstatic and vigorous clapping, repetitive and forceful, making the listener experience a spiritual high.
Renowned qawwals like Farid and Chand Nizami, Ghulam and Sultan Hussain Niyazi and Hamsar from the Delhi Gharana display the art with perfect synchronisation of percussionists in a chorus, transporting the audience out of the world.
Experiencing limitlessness, participants and listeners sway some even announce that they are renouncing all possessions and relate to the beats of the chorus, a blending of sufi art and music, what is called sufiana.
Amir Khusrau’s poetry straddles the earthy Hindi, Bruj, and sophisticated Persian, unravelling layers of meaning and nuances. His poetry provides the base to thirsty wanderers, to rejoice and meditate on the fundamental mystery of life.
He created divine musical poetry that reached out to truth. His interest in Indian ragas created mesmeric blends of Arabic and Iranian compositions.
Sufism transcends all boundaries of language and religion. Sufi music has the power to heal and its philosophy has a soothing effect. Qawwali is an expression of love between the lover and the beloved that elevates the spirit, bringing God and performer together.
It deepens love and devotion to God, making the listener exalt in spiritual ecstasy and frenzy. In such exaltations, the listener could slip into a mystical trance.
Qawwali recitals whether of Qual, Basant, Rang, Kaafi, Hamd or Naat incorporate classical and folk music, borrowing from forms like tarana, dadra, thumri and khyal. The eclectic synthesis produces a mesmerising effect, generating a feeling of tranquillity.
N.Y. State Tries To Close TriBeCa Bars For Being Too Close to a Mosque
By DAVID LOMBINO - Staff Reporter of the Sun
The New York Sun, March 7, 2006
Some established TriBeCa bar owners are scrambling to find a legal loophole that will allow them to hold onto their liquor licenses after the State Liquor Authority moved to revoke the licenses upon learning that the bars are within 200 feet of a mosque.
The neighbors who informed the State Liquor Authority about the mosque's presence, Peter and Janna Townsend, are owners and residents of the building at 1 White St., a four-story townhouse about a half a block from the mosque, surrounded by bars and restaurants. The Townsends discovered the state's 200-foot regulation on the Internet as they were mounting a challenge to the Liquor Store Bar, which was seeking a license to reopen nearby. Its application was rejected by the state, and the bar now sits dark and empty despite a costly interior renovation.
Ms. Townsend defended her actions. "I want this to be about quality of life in a neighborhood that is mixed use. There are businesses here and residents here. There needs to be a balance of uses. Those of us that need to sleep here should be able to sleep here," she said.
As part of the process of applying for a liquor license, prospective bar owners must assert that they are in compliance with the law. The owner of the Bubble Lounge, a 10-year old bar whose license is being challenged, Eric Benn, said his establishment is 192 feet from the mosque. Mr. Benn said his business is in jeopardy.
"We're looking forward to the government getting off our case. It's getting to be rather repetitive - they take a great deal of money from us and then we get harassment," Mr. Benn said. "It is impossible to detect that there is a mosque there; not even the Community Board knew."
Since 1990, the two-story white-painted building at 245 West Broadway with drawn Venetian blinds and a locked gate has housed the Sufi mosque, Masjid al-Farah. The gold lettering on the front door does not contain the word "mosque," but it is registered as a religious not-for-profit corporation with the state and federal government.
An administrator for the mosque, Kris Jones, said a lawyer representing the mosque submitted a letter to the state clarifying the uses of the building. She said that in addition to being a place of worship, the building serves as a space to feed the homeless and host interfaith meetings.
"We don't have a dispute with any of the neighbors. We are here to support them. Our main thing is to be neutral," Ms. Jones told The New York Sun. "We don't want anyone to lose their jobs."
The state also moved to revoke the license of Cercle Rouge, a French bistro that shares a wall with the mosque. There are mixed reports about whether the state also issued a summons to Tribeca Tavern. The highly rated restaurant Montrachet did not receive a summons because it predates the mosque.
Read More
The New York Sun, March 7, 2006
Some established TriBeCa bar owners are scrambling to find a legal loophole that will allow them to hold onto their liquor licenses after the State Liquor Authority moved to revoke the licenses upon learning that the bars are within 200 feet of a mosque.
The neighbors who informed the State Liquor Authority about the mosque's presence, Peter and Janna Townsend, are owners and residents of the building at 1 White St., a four-story townhouse about a half a block from the mosque, surrounded by bars and restaurants. The Townsends discovered the state's 200-foot regulation on the Internet as they were mounting a challenge to the Liquor Store Bar, which was seeking a license to reopen nearby. Its application was rejected by the state, and the bar now sits dark and empty despite a costly interior renovation.
Ms. Townsend defended her actions. "I want this to be about quality of life in a neighborhood that is mixed use. There are businesses here and residents here. There needs to be a balance of uses. Those of us that need to sleep here should be able to sleep here," she said.
As part of the process of applying for a liquor license, prospective bar owners must assert that they are in compliance with the law. The owner of the Bubble Lounge, a 10-year old bar whose license is being challenged, Eric Benn, said his establishment is 192 feet from the mosque. Mr. Benn said his business is in jeopardy.
"We're looking forward to the government getting off our case. It's getting to be rather repetitive - they take a great deal of money from us and then we get harassment," Mr. Benn said. "It is impossible to detect that there is a mosque there; not even the Community Board knew."
Since 1990, the two-story white-painted building at 245 West Broadway with drawn Venetian blinds and a locked gate has housed the Sufi mosque, Masjid al-Farah. The gold lettering on the front door does not contain the word "mosque," but it is registered as a religious not-for-profit corporation with the state and federal government.
An administrator for the mosque, Kris Jones, said a lawyer representing the mosque submitted a letter to the state clarifying the uses of the building. She said that in addition to being a place of worship, the building serves as a space to feed the homeless and host interfaith meetings.
"We don't have a dispute with any of the neighbors. We are here to support them. Our main thing is to be neutral," Ms. Jones told The New York Sun. "We don't want anyone to lose their jobs."
The state also moved to revoke the license of Cercle Rouge, a French bistro that shares a wall with the mosque. There are mixed reports about whether the state also issued a summons to Tribeca Tavern. The highly rated restaurant Montrachet did not receive a summons because it predates the mosque.
Eastern Sudan tempts Darfurian fate
By ISN Security Watch staff in Nairobi and Khartoum (07/03/06)
International Relations and Security Network - Zurich - Switzerland
With conflict rife in Sudan’s troubled Darfur, and peace still tenuous in the south, another of Sudan’s marginalized regions could be set to erupt. Eastern Sudan ostensibly exhibits many of the same traits that led to war in Darfur since 2003 and in southern Sudan from 1983-2005.
On 24 January 2005, three weeks after the Sudanese government and the southern-based Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), the Sudanese army opened fire on a demonstration in the eastern city of Port Sudan, on the Red Sea coast. At least 20 people were killed.
This incident plus the ongoing government clampdown, tensions both generated and exacerbated by the signing of the CPA, and the potent example of government tactics in Darfur all contributed to the formation of the Eastern Front in February 2005. The newly formed and relatively unexamined movement promises to forcibly resist Khartoum’s likely attempt to retake the Hameshkoreb enclave in eastern Sudan, near the Eritrean border, once the former SPLM/A withdraws.
Eastern Sudan comprises three states: Kassala, Gedaref, and Red Sea State. It has a population of around four million people. The main ethnic groups are the Beja and the Rashaida. The Beja are the largest group in the region, comprising numerous subdivisions. Indigenous to the area, they adhere to a Sufi brand of Islam that fits uneasily with the Wahhabite-influenced National Islamic Front (NIF), which forms the backbone of the National Congress Party (NCP) elite that now dominates the Khartoum government.
The Beja Congress is an established political-military force in eastern Sudan, contesting elections in the post-independence era, but mostly losing out locally to the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which is the political front for the local Sufi Khatmiyya sect to which most Beja adhere.
The Rashaida are nomadic descendants of Bedouin immigrants into the area from the Arabian Peninsula in the 19th Century. Retaining links to the Gulf and adhering to their traditional lifestyle, the relatively wealthy group remains simultaneously more marginalized, as government agricultural and pipeline policies cut into the land used for nomadic lifestyle. The Rashaida Free Lions, the other constituent part of the Eastern Front, is a relatively new entity.
Local grievances can be traced directly back to the aftermath of the 1989 NIF coup in Khartoum. Land expropriation in the name of larger agricultural schemes has seen many Beja move to the slums of Kassala and Port Sudan. Much of the land was given over to local and River Nile-based elites linked to the ruling regime.
In 1990, the extrajudicial execution of Mohammed Karrar, the Beja governor of the region, was seen as a direct attack on Beja consciousness and lay at the backdrop of a Beja Congress decision to join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) armed struggle, linking northern opposition groups to the southern rebellion led by the SPLM/A. The Beja Congress joined the NDA in 1995 as it saw the need to push for greater self-rule for the Beja in particular and the east in general.
Read More
International Relations and Security Network - Zurich - Switzerland
With conflict rife in Sudan’s troubled Darfur, and peace still tenuous in the south, another of Sudan’s marginalized regions could be set to erupt. Eastern Sudan ostensibly exhibits many of the same traits that led to war in Darfur since 2003 and in southern Sudan from 1983-2005.
On 24 January 2005, three weeks after the Sudanese government and the southern-based Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), the Sudanese army opened fire on a demonstration in the eastern city of Port Sudan, on the Red Sea coast. At least 20 people were killed.
This incident plus the ongoing government clampdown, tensions both generated and exacerbated by the signing of the CPA, and the potent example of government tactics in Darfur all contributed to the formation of the Eastern Front in February 2005. The newly formed and relatively unexamined movement promises to forcibly resist Khartoum’s likely attempt to retake the Hameshkoreb enclave in eastern Sudan, near the Eritrean border, once the former SPLM/A withdraws.
Eastern Sudan comprises three states: Kassala, Gedaref, and Red Sea State. It has a population of around four million people. The main ethnic groups are the Beja and the Rashaida. The Beja are the largest group in the region, comprising numerous subdivisions. Indigenous to the area, they adhere to a Sufi brand of Islam that fits uneasily with the Wahhabite-influenced National Islamic Front (NIF), which forms the backbone of the National Congress Party (NCP) elite that now dominates the Khartoum government.
The Beja Congress is an established political-military force in eastern Sudan, contesting elections in the post-independence era, but mostly losing out locally to the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which is the political front for the local Sufi Khatmiyya sect to which most Beja adhere.
The Rashaida are nomadic descendants of Bedouin immigrants into the area from the Arabian Peninsula in the 19th Century. Retaining links to the Gulf and adhering to their traditional lifestyle, the relatively wealthy group remains simultaneously more marginalized, as government agricultural and pipeline policies cut into the land used for nomadic lifestyle. The Rashaida Free Lions, the other constituent part of the Eastern Front, is a relatively new entity.
Local grievances can be traced directly back to the aftermath of the 1989 NIF coup in Khartoum. Land expropriation in the name of larger agricultural schemes has seen many Beja move to the slums of Kassala and Port Sudan. Much of the land was given over to local and River Nile-based elites linked to the ruling regime.
In 1990, the extrajudicial execution of Mohammed Karrar, the Beja governor of the region, was seen as a direct attack on Beja consciousness and lay at the backdrop of a Beja Congress decision to join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) armed struggle, linking northern opposition groups to the southern rebellion led by the SPLM/A. The Beja Congress joined the NDA in 1995 as it saw the need to push for greater self-rule for the Beja in particular and the east in general.
Sufi shrine damaged
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Bahrain News Agency - date: 07 03, 2006
Baghdad , March . 7 (BNA)
Yesterday night an explosive device damaged the Sufi shrine of Mahdi al-Jabr on in the north Iraqi city of Tikrit. No injuries were reported.
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Baghdad , March . 7 (BNA)
Yesterday night an explosive device damaged the Sufi shrine of Mahdi al-Jabr on in the north Iraqi city of Tikrit. No injuries were reported.
Demystifying Islam
Beth Ashley - Marin Independent Journal - marinij.com
March 7, 2006
At 1 p.m. on a recent afternoon, 20 men came one by one into the brown stucco Islamic Center on a side street in Mill Valley and silently prostrated themselves on a huge red carpet in the otherwise barren main room.
Later, the men stood quietly in front of their imam, listening to his prayers.
Ten minutes later, they were gone. Many would return for evening prayer in the late afternoon, part of their five-times-a-day commitment to prayer.
Islam may seem like a "foreign" religion to some, but it's a way of life for hundreds of people in Marin. Several of them will discuss their beliefs Saturday in a daylong symposium at Dominican University called "Understanding Islam." The conference is open to the public.
Ebrahim Nana, who is on the board of directors of the Islamic Center, will discuss Islam's basic beliefs.
Ali Kianfar, co-director and co-founder of the International Association of Sufism (headquarters are in Novato), will talk about the "message" of Islam, which directs his religious practice.
Arthur Kane Scott, a professor at Dominican University, will discuss the mysticism of Islam, which was what drew him to Islamic studies eight years ago and sent him - impatiently, he says - on a quest to find his true self.
They will be joined by other lecturers, discussing women in Islam, civil rights in Islam and Islamic architecture.
All three men say Marin is unusually accepting of the Muslim faith - "Marin is probably the most liberal county in the country," says Nana - but all say the conference will help clear up what Scott calls "a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding.
Sufism, a branch of Islam, is thriving in Marin, too. Kianfar estimates there are more than 1,000 practicing Sufis in Marin, and he emphasizes that their faith centers on a personal journey rather than any partisan, sectarian view of Islam.
It was the variety of practice among Sufis that led him to found the international organization that now holds an annual convention in the Bay Area of Sufi groups from around the world. Kianfar came to Marin from his native Iran in 1987. He runs a print shop in San Rafael.
Followers of Sufism focus on their individual experiences and look inside to find who they truly are - apart from their names, jobs, language, personality and Social Security numbers, says Scott.
Kianfar sees Islam as a religion of peace. "If a man's religion becomes a cause for differences, I prefer not to call him a religious person."
Nana, who was born in India, grew up in Thailand and came here in 1969, says the masjid (place of worship) in Mill Valley has a Sufi imam, but Shi'ites and believers of all kinds are welcome, including Christians or Jews who just want to meditate.
"It is a returning to our own heart, where the deeper reality lies."
Scott, who was raised a Catholic, explored Buddhism and Hinduism before he found Kianfar and Sufism eight years ago. "I knew right away I was at home." Now he incorporates a spiritual perspective into his Dominican University classes in history, sociology, anthropology and religion. "My students are hungry for this information." He says his quest for his inner truth - his "purity" - is ongoing.
Students meet with Kianfar twice a month in group meetings, have individual consultations, and "do a lot of things together." Kianfar says he is on a journey of exploration that never ends.
"We are all passengers to eternity," he says. "We have to prepare for a long, long journey."
Read More
March 7, 2006
At 1 p.m. on a recent afternoon, 20 men came one by one into the brown stucco Islamic Center on a side street in Mill Valley and silently prostrated themselves on a huge red carpet in the otherwise barren main room.
Later, the men stood quietly in front of their imam, listening to his prayers.
Ten minutes later, they were gone. Many would return for evening prayer in the late afternoon, part of their five-times-a-day commitment to prayer.
Islam may seem like a "foreign" religion to some, but it's a way of life for hundreds of people in Marin. Several of them will discuss their beliefs Saturday in a daylong symposium at Dominican University called "Understanding Islam." The conference is open to the public.
Ebrahim Nana, who is on the board of directors of the Islamic Center, will discuss Islam's basic beliefs.
Ali Kianfar, co-director and co-founder of the International Association of Sufism (headquarters are in Novato), will talk about the "message" of Islam, which directs his religious practice.
Arthur Kane Scott, a professor at Dominican University, will discuss the mysticism of Islam, which was what drew him to Islamic studies eight years ago and sent him - impatiently, he says - on a quest to find his true self.
They will be joined by other lecturers, discussing women in Islam, civil rights in Islam and Islamic architecture.
All three men say Marin is unusually accepting of the Muslim faith - "Marin is probably the most liberal county in the country," says Nana - but all say the conference will help clear up what Scott calls "a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding.
Sufism, a branch of Islam, is thriving in Marin, too. Kianfar estimates there are more than 1,000 practicing Sufis in Marin, and he emphasizes that their faith centers on a personal journey rather than any partisan, sectarian view of Islam.
It was the variety of practice among Sufis that led him to found the international organization that now holds an annual convention in the Bay Area of Sufi groups from around the world. Kianfar came to Marin from his native Iran in 1987. He runs a print shop in San Rafael.
Followers of Sufism focus on their individual experiences and look inside to find who they truly are - apart from their names, jobs, language, personality and Social Security numbers, says Scott.
Kianfar sees Islam as a religion of peace. "If a man's religion becomes a cause for differences, I prefer not to call him a religious person."
Nana, who was born in India, grew up in Thailand and came here in 1969, says the masjid (place of worship) in Mill Valley has a Sufi imam, but Shi'ites and believers of all kinds are welcome, including Christians or Jews who just want to meditate.
"It is a returning to our own heart, where the deeper reality lies."
Scott, who was raised a Catholic, explored Buddhism and Hinduism before he found Kianfar and Sufism eight years ago. "I knew right away I was at home." Now he incorporates a spiritual perspective into his Dominican University classes in history, sociology, anthropology and religion. "My students are hungry for this information." He says his quest for his inner truth - his "purity" - is ongoing.
Students meet with Kianfar twice a month in group meetings, have individual consultations, and "do a lot of things together." Kianfar says he is on a journey of exploration that never ends.
"We are all passengers to eternity," he says. "We have to prepare for a long, long journey."
Because sufism sells
By JYOTHI PRABHAKAR - The Times of India
6 Mar 2006
Thanks to fusion bands, sufi music is a rage these days. From college-goers to the chic socialite, everyone's tuning in.
Attend a sufi music concert - just understanding the rhythm will do, no need to understand every word of what the singer on stage is singing. And just like that, you've arrived. "Sufism has, over the years, become like a popular bestseller that everyone wants to read. Not because you like the author, or even the genre, but because you don't want to be the only one to be left out of conversations over coffee,"says well-known sufi singer Shafqat Ali Khan.
So today, sufi music can join the upmarket, elite bracket of a U2 best seller album, or a Robbie Williams live concert.
As Neeraj Saha, who manages a popular music store says, "These days, everyone wants sufi music CDs. And they usually end up buying Pakistani fusion bands, whose music seems to be quite popular."Agrees Abida Parveen, the Pakistani sufi singer, "The demand for sufi music concerts has grown over the last few years.
Ever since the legendary Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan became popular because he mixed his classical renditions with modern instruments, everyone wants to listen to this kind of music."
But then, there are people who argue that it is the music per se, and not the attached snob value that attracts listeners. According to singer Daler Mehndi, sufi music is becoming popular "thanks to many fusion bands who have made sufi very rhythm-friendly.
Those 'into' sufi music argue their case differently. Muzzafar Ali, who's done a lot in popularising pure forms of sufi music says, "You don't need a trained ear to listen to a sufi rendition, just a heart full of music.
Adds designer Puja Nayyar who listens to sufi music, "I love its folksy abandon. I do not understand the language much, nor do I have a classical ear. But still, it attracts me." However, Shafqat Ali Khan cautions, "These days, everything sells under the 'sufi fusion' label. Fusion does not mean that you add two western guitars to your troupe, or have a singer who is clad in a kurta pyjama, and another who sports jeans.
In fact, the minute sufism became a money spinner, it lost all its original tenets - that of commitment, purity of thought and action, and a total abandon from selfish motives."
Read More
6 Mar 2006
Thanks to fusion bands, sufi music is a rage these days. From college-goers to the chic socialite, everyone's tuning in.
Attend a sufi music concert - just understanding the rhythm will do, no need to understand every word of what the singer on stage is singing. And just like that, you've arrived. "Sufism has, over the years, become like a popular bestseller that everyone wants to read. Not because you like the author, or even the genre, but because you don't want to be the only one to be left out of conversations over coffee,"says well-known sufi singer Shafqat Ali Khan.
So today, sufi music can join the upmarket, elite bracket of a U2 best seller album, or a Robbie Williams live concert.
As Neeraj Saha, who manages a popular music store says, "These days, everyone wants sufi music CDs. And they usually end up buying Pakistani fusion bands, whose music seems to be quite popular."Agrees Abida Parveen, the Pakistani sufi singer, "The demand for sufi music concerts has grown over the last few years.
Ever since the legendary Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan became popular because he mixed his classical renditions with modern instruments, everyone wants to listen to this kind of music."
But then, there are people who argue that it is the music per se, and not the attached snob value that attracts listeners. According to singer Daler Mehndi, sufi music is becoming popular "thanks to many fusion bands who have made sufi very rhythm-friendly.
Those 'into' sufi music argue their case differently. Muzzafar Ali, who's done a lot in popularising pure forms of sufi music says, "You don't need a trained ear to listen to a sufi rendition, just a heart full of music.
Adds designer Puja Nayyar who listens to sufi music, "I love its folksy abandon. I do not understand the language much, nor do I have a classical ear. But still, it attracts me." However, Shafqat Ali Khan cautions, "These days, everything sells under the 'sufi fusion' label. Fusion does not mean that you add two western guitars to your troupe, or have a singer who is clad in a kurta pyjama, and another who sports jeans.
In fact, the minute sufism became a money spinner, it lost all its original tenets - that of commitment, purity of thought and action, and a total abandon from selfish motives."
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