Jhulelal, Sindhi Community Diety
Mohammad Rafi was
one of the holy trinity of Indian playback singers that genuinely formed the
soundtrack to India’s first thirty years of Independence. From the late 40’s to
the late 70’s Rafi’s voice along
with those of Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar filled not only every cinema but bounced off every narrow gali, blasted from every café and
barbershop and wedding celebration across India. And beyond, to Russia, the
Middle East and Africa.
Mohammad Rafi |
Born near Amritsar but raised in Lahore Rafi was an improbable superstar. His family was not a traditional
musical one and though he began singing publicly at a young age it was not
until he moved to Bombay in the early 1940s that he received training from some
of the greats of Indian khayal
including Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. But
what he lacked in pedigree he made up for in capability. His first film work was in 1944. Four years
later he was invited by the first PM of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, to sing
at his home.
From then on film work increased with Rafi recording thousands of songs for the Bollywood musical
directors. Some, such as O.P Nayyar,
Naushad and Shankar-Jaikishan
used Rafi almost exclusively at
various stages in their own glorious careers.
I’ve posted some of Rafi
sahib’s film work before and more
will come. But tonight’s post is a record of devotional and spiritual music
sung in Sindhi. As such it is a delightful detour away from
the filmi world with which he is
almost always associated.
The lyrics of these songs comes from some of Sindh’s great
folk and mystical poets: Bulleh Shah,
Shah Latif and Dharamdas. The
music is composed by one of Sindh’s most beloved patriots Dr Ram Panjwani. He’s pictured on the front of the album with Rafi.
Ram Panjwani (playing drum) |
Panjwani was born in Larkana, the same
district that was the stomping ground of Pakistan’s great Bhutto political dynasty. At
Independence he, with hundreds of thousands other Hindu Sindhis, fled to
India. Pajwani (who was a writer, musician and activist) became a great
organiser of the displaced Sindhis in Bombay and across India. To assist him he
used the Sindhis’ community god, Jhulelal
as a cultural touchstone to give them hope and solace in their ‘exile’.
Dr Panjwani with Abida Parveen
The (very crudely paraphrased) story of Jhulelal is a tale of deux–ex-machina. In the early days of Muslim penetration of
India the Hindu residents of Thatta in Sindh had the misfortune of being ruled
by a Muslim ruler, Mirkshah, who was
aggressive about converting the local population….by force if necessary. Given 40 days to agree to abandon their faith
and convert to Islam, the people of Thatta beseeched their gods for a way out.
On the 40th day a local woman became pregnant and eventually gave
birth to a boy child. From the infant’s mouth flowed the Indus River and on the
river riding a fish was an old man with a long beard.
The child/man was able to convince the Mirkshah’s vizier that he was indeed a spiritual being and
eventually when confronted with Jhulelal’s
powers Mirkshah himself relented and
let the people keep their Hindu faith.
When Jhulelal, also
known as Uderolal, died Muslims
insisted upon erecting a mini ‘kaba’
in his honor. The Hindus insisted upon a temple. Fighting ensued. Suddenly from
on high a voice was heard, “ Behold! You shall make my shrine acceptable to
both Hindus and Muslims. Let one face be a temple and the other a dargah (Sufi shrine).”
The story is rich with Sindhi syncretic thinking. Indeed,
the vast countryside of what is now Pakistan was for centuries the home of a
highly syncretic culture and religious practice. Sufi poetry is appreciated by
Hindu Sindhis as much as Muslims and Jhulelal
is so revered by Sindhis of all persuasions, the phrase “Jhulelal beera hee paar” is a standard
greeting between Sindhis wherever they are in the world.
And
of especial interest to the Washerman’s
Dog is the frequent reference to Jhulelal in that great Sufi qawwali Dama Dam Mast Qalandar.
So
it is with great pleasure tonight I post Hindu and Muslim spirituals from Sindh
sung by a Muslim set to music composed by a Hindu who revered the tolerant diety
of Sindh who wanted his resting place to be half Hindu half Muslim.
The
Wonder That Was Sindh!
Track Listing:
01
Kahdi Karyan Mahmani (Sachal)
02 Badal Aaaya Bahar
Miyan (Bhojal)
03 Jeko Sabhai Siyaka
Satte (Roshan)
04 Hee Aashikan Ja Insaf
(Dharmdas)
05 Tu Aheen Sahib
(Sachal)
06 Dardan Ji Mari (Shah)
07 Kiya Janey Dum Koi
(Bulleh Shah)
08 Kalangi Wara Lal
(Ram)
4 comments:
What a wonderful way to start my day, listening to this. Thanks! :)
Oh my is this spectacular! Many thanks. One thing, though. There seems to be a pronounced hum throughout all the files. If you were able to re-up this material, I would be grateful. (Actually, I'm already grateful. I would just be MORE grateful.) I am deeply digging your wonderful music and thoughtful commentary.
Gil, yes there is. sorry about that. I'll try to upload soon.
The link is now fresh and there should be no hum. Please let me know if there is. Apologies.
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