Wandering Sufi musician
The qawwali of Khwaja Aslam Sabri has proven to be one
of the most popular posts over the past several months. Tonight I post 5 more lovely spiritual songs
in praise of Moin’uddin Chisti of
Ajmer, India’s greatest Sufi figure.
Wonderful stuff as usual.
As I’ve not been able to unearth any biographical
details about Khwaja sahib (always
open to readers steering me in the right direction!) I post some wonderful
Islamic popular art of the sort to be found for sale at all good dargahs across the subcontinent.
A poster of the name of Mohammad (PBUH). As depiction of the Prophet is forbidden in Islam
posters such as this are very common around shrines and mosques. The Prophet’s name is written in large
calligraphic style, but inscribed inside is a longer Quranic text called the Ayat-al-Kursi, a prayer for the
protection from evil and other purposes. The image serves the purposes of
decoration, veneration as well as protection.
Burraq. A
mythical beast that the Prophet Muhammad
(PBUH) rode to heaven during his Mi'raj or ascension. Notice the Indian
features of the women - she could be straight from the poster of a Hindu deity
- Radha, Sita, Saraswati... Animals or non-human creatures have a special place
in a devotee's mind.
Jamaat. A
gathering of people from different strata of society for a collective namaz (Muslim prayer). Notice the torn
and tattered clothes of a person (in white) standing next to a supposedly
wealthy nawab or a king. On the top
is the Urdu translation of a Quranic verse about obedience to God.
Meeting of the Saints: An
imaginary gathering of some important saints - clockwise from bottom left - Baba Farid, Khwaja Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, Hazrat Ghuas-e
Azam, Hazrat Bu Ali Sharif, and Hazrat
Nizamuddin Aulia.
Track Listing:
01 Ae Mere Haji Ali
02 Ajmer Nager Mein
03 Hai Kahan Koi Mustafa Ki T
04 Kya Haji Malang Ka
05 Mil Gaya Unka Dar Jisko Ta
Listen here.
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