The literary festival of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) is unique in a way that it the first such festival of India being organized solely by the student community sans any corporate aid or sponsorship.

University Debating and Literary Club (UDLC) of AMU presents its 5th edition of AMU Literary Festival in March 2019.

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India has been assimilating the enigma of Sufism and its charm into her composite culture for centuries, and hence we have entire sub continent dotted with Sufi shrines promoting peace, tranquil, harmony and socio-cultural exchanges.

Nobody would ever find any difference among devotees at the Sufi shrines. What all could be found here is just faith, as pure as the morning mist. A faith to which belongs every visitor who steps here, a faith that is deeper than the oceans, dedicated, enchanting, ageless, timeless, palpable, gentle, submissive, and enduringly true.

Discriminations and differences of caste, creed, colour and religion crumble to dust in the courtyards of Sufi saints. Seekers embark on thousands of journeys from here to unknown distances, unknown to places unheard of, adding to the glory and legend of these courtyards where all are equal and all are same, what connects them all is the love for divinity and the charisma of the saints.

Amidst the woods of yet another North Indian district of Bulandshahr in the state of Uttar Pradesh, rests a Qadri Saint, who is revered by the locales as the spiritual heir of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani (r.a.) (1077–1166) the founder of Qadiriyyah school of Sufism.

Not very far away from the suburbs of Aligarh, situated on the left bank of Kali Nadi or the Black River, lies Banneyr Shareef, a Sufi shrine in Bulandshahr district near the erstwhile prominent princely estate of Chattari. A thirty minute drive from the heart of Aligarh lands you straight into the heart of a Qadri Zawiya or the courtyard of Qadriyyah school of Sufism.

The abode of Hazrat Bahauddin Badrul Hind (r.a.), arrived in India during the last decade of 17th century, from Baghdad, the capital city of Iraq. He was the disciple of Hazrat Mustafa Baghdadi and migrated to India to spread teachings and messages of Qadriyyah school of thought of Sufism, the principal mystical approach of Islam.

The first Qadri saint in the Indian sub continent was Sultan Bahoo (r.a.)(1630-1691) who was once stationed in Delhi. A spiritual master of Qadriyyah tradition, he contributed greatly to the advancement of spiritual literature available in those times and made Sufism flourish in India.

After Hazrat Sultan Bahoo, Hazrat Bahauddin Badrul Hind has the honour of being the second Saint of Qadriyyah school of thought in India, his shrine at Banneyr Shareef is known as a spiritual asylum among the masses, the experiences here might send chills to many.

People who are believed to be possessed by djinns, spirits and ghosts are brought here for spiritual treatments, and such patients usually outnumber those who come here for seeking solace, the shrine was unnoticed for long until 1902, when the present structure of it was built by the followers of the Saint.

People who are believed to be under the supernatural influences swarm around the shrine on every Thursday for the Haziri, which is considered their summoning from the Saint himself. Those disappointed by the general medical practices for their ailments come here for superior healing in hope of cure and to no surprise of theirs and others as well, most of them have been cured, attributing the healing to the fame of shrine and the spiritual powers of Hazrat Bahauddin Badrul Hind (r.a.). Often the healing is believed to be a gift from the Saint but sometimes it’s mere the effect of an alluring pilgrimage to this place, that healing begins spontaneously.

Popular belief is that Hazrat Badrul Hind died four times during his lifespan of 750 years, each time, he was buried in a different site and in a different city. Once buried, he was mysteriously spotted at a different place and therefore it is believed that he has four burial sites spread from Sindh to Deccan.

It is thus believed that the last time he was buried at Banneyr Shareef near Chhatari. Although there are no official records of the lifetime of this great Sufi saint, his legend continues to exist through the spiritual descendants of him, who inherited this place through a chain of spiritual masters, yet there are some writings in Urdu like Hayat-e-Wali and Hayat-e-Qudsi which have him mentioned.

Those who have spiritual yearnings, regardless of being strong or subtle, if the dedication to seek solace is true, this is place could be a delight. Banneyr Shareef is the metropolis of ensnaring sacredness, a visit to the shrine is worth all calm one can think of, so as to touch divinity and experience transcendence.

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The tomb of Hazrat Shah Jamal adorns the skyline on Khair road; the adjacent localities received their name Shah Jamal from the Sufi saint unarguably, another very densely populated Muslim neighbourhood, Jamalpur has come up in the civil lines area, owing its name to Hazrat Shah Jamal.

Sufi shrines quintessentially create a cosmos around a saintly person in which solace seekers exist much like the revolving planets, which orbit around the sun, rarely crossing paths with each other. Then there are convergence and divergence over spiritual matters which are seemingly political, inclination and deviation which are largely philosophical.

But what surmounts these misnomers is the glory and sacredness attached to these citadels of veiled and unveiled charisma of Sufi saints. These shrines constitute a very significant part of the usual lives of orthodox Muslims, significantly influenced by tasawwuf or in other words, Sufism.  At present, when being Jamalpuri is more of an abuse than demonym in Aligarh, the name Shah Jamal means nothing more than a Muslim ghetto, while Jamalpur remains a frugal suburb of it, there is a need to look back and beyond.

On the west end of the city of Aligarh, lies a grove of graves, the central tomb houses the grave of a Sufi mendicant, Hazrat Shah Jamal Shamsul Arifeen (R.A.). Hazrat Shah Jamal was a Sufi saint of Chishti tradition, popularly known as Shamsul Arifeen meaning ‘the sun of piety’, because of this title he has been regarded the light of this town.

Spiritually inclined people of the city visit the shrine in the morning hours for reciting fateha for the saint, by doing so they seek blessings of the saint before they set off to face the world. Thursdays and Fridays are two important days when solace seekers throng the shrine making wishes and paying homage to the saint.

Hazrat Shah Jamal is among the first Sufis who settled at Aligarh, so he could be well credited as the fountainhead of Chishti tradition in this region of the country. He is also mentioned by Ibne Batuta in his book Travels of Ibne Batuta (Rihla), which holds him in high reverence in Aligarh and the areas nearby.

The tomb of Hazrat Shah Jamal adorns the skyline on Khair road; the adjacent localities received their name Shah Jamal from the Sufi saint unarguably, another very densely populated Muslim neighbourhood, Jamalpur has come up in the civil lines area, owing its name to Hazrat Shah Jamal.

The elevation of tomb puts before an amalgamation of ancient and modern building styles, going by the arches and engravings. It is built with red sandstone and is identifiable with the popular patterns of sultanate period having beautiful engravings in Arabic, most prominent of them being the sacred name of lord, ‘Allah’, engraved on all its arches. Besides the central tomb there are graves which tell a different story, upon a closer look, the scenery brings back to life the times which would have been.

The trail of these graves hints towards some ballistic aggression involving Muslims which could have probably taken place much before they began to settle down in the town. The sheikh community in Aligarh traces its lineage to Hazrat Shah Jamal, supporting their claim with a conviction that Hazrat Shah Jamal was a Tatar dervish who had Turco-Mongol origins.

He migrated to Aligarh and made this place his abode before the invasion of India by the Ghurids or Ghoris during the mid 12^th century. Although the reign of Ghoris was not long-lived, yet their slaves became the rulers of Indian sub-continent. Feeble and at the verge of collapse, Ghoris states managed to remain in power until the arrival of the Timurids, the conquests of Mohammed Ghori are believed to have laid the foundations of Muslim rule in India. Qutbu l-Din Aibak, a former slave or Mamluk of Ghori, became the first Sultan of Delhi, marking the beginning of the Delhi Sultanate.

Legend has it that Hazrat had predicted the invasion much before it actually happened, further referring this story to the mention of two disciples of the saint, who lost their lives in the battles that followed the invasion. Often attributed to the testimonies of two of his disciples whose graves are located in the Balai Qila area also known as Upper Fort, the miracles of Hazrat Shah Jamal have lived beyond life and times. One of those disciples was buried in the Mamu Bhanja locality of Aligarh town whilst the tomb of the other disciple overlooks the city, situated near the railway station, popularly known as Amba Aulia.

During the Ghori invasion, several other disciples died and their graves are spread all across the city, adding glory to the courtyards of Sufism. Most of these graves ushered as noted shrines as the times changed and were awarded endowments by the rulers and patrons of those times but due to the lacunae in handling the affairs of these spiritual citadels, the ilk of servants of these shrines fell prey to greed and misery and subsequently all the properties which were attached to these shrines today stands disposed of.

The shrine of Hazrat Shah Jamal is no exception to this ignorance; it has gotten into delirious condition and needs immediate attention. The central tomb has fallen into a ramshackle, having no real means of repair or rehabilitation and there seems to be almost no hope for it, as the grove of graves has condensed into a mere graveyard.

The unsubstantiated social stratification across the Muslim society has barely spared anyone as there remains a conflict of identities among the custodians of these spiritual centers, and for conflict like those to exist; there are more reasons than one. Considering the case of this 12th century shrine, the journey of inheritance has not been very smooth ever since the saint left for his heavenly abode. The later citizens of this insomniac town could not keep up with the spiritual legacy of Hazrat Shah Jamal Shamsul Arifeen (R.A.).

Initially the communities of weavers and artisans looked after the shrine, with their socio-economic progression and newly acquired status of theirs; they went up to overthrow the hereditary caretakers of the shrines, the traders and merchants. As a result the disagreements turned into resentment and over time it grew into a trench between these two communities so much so that they ended up having two parallel celebrations of Urs festivals.

Consequentially the shrine bore the brunt of these insignificant things in terms of the loss of identity and credit, while a comparatively newer shrine was rising to prominence. Also the drastic change in the spiritual obedience of the citizens of this town, in terms of ideologies, as a consistent assertion has been running through the beliefs and practices among the mutual coreligionists. Sufism has suffered irreparable losses due to such events of past and impact of those losses are imminent across the Muslim diasporas of the present day Aligarh.

It is a moment of introspection for every sensitive person that the shrine of a saint who is considered the king of beauty and piety rests in ruins and ignorance. Though the shrine needs patrons for its upheaval more than anything at the moment, yet it is a serenading retreat to have the candles and incense lit at the shrine of Hazrat Shah Jamal, adding more fragrance and the light to its ambience full of divinity, piety and enlightenment.

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“From complete ignorance of 70s to vague indifference of 80s to creeping curiosity of 90s to growing familiarity of the first decade to the inevitable acceptance of the second decade of the 21st century-the perception of ‘Chaath’ outside Bihar has undergone a complete metamorphosis.

Even within Bihar, it used to be a mostly localised affair before turning into a marker of Bihari cultural identity. How and why did this transformation come about?

Historically, Bihar has been bereft of an overarching and dominant great tradition in the cultural realm. Be it dance or music or art or architecture or painting or other cultural aspects, the scale was essentially local. This could mainly be attributed to the absence of princely states in Bihar who patronized culture elsewhere leading to cultural efflorescence.

The pathological impact of the permanent settlement meant the emergence of a hierarchy of exploitative zamindars who had neither the wherewithal nor the inclination to promote culture. Rent- seeking, brutal and philistine, it was beyond them to patronize culture.

In an era of increased interaction, exposure and migration, the absence of a great cultural tradition would become a sore point. Against this background, the festival of ‘ Chhath’ with its geo-cultural specificities moved to the fore as a reference point, a rallying point to emphasise on its uniqueness and a cultural marker of Bihari identity.

The transition was also facilitated by the Bihari migration, exodus and diaspora. Denied of a terra firma beneath their feet, often at the receiving end of manifest or subterranean xenophobia and often adrift in alien and alienating places, they would cling to their cultural- religious resources with tenacity. The observance of ‘Chhath festival with its demonstrative rituals sought to fulfil this need.

Migration and politics or vote-bank politics to be precise- go together. As our metropolises became demographically more and more diffuse and electoral politics became fiercer and as the traditionally decisive core constituency lost its mojo, it was only inevitable for cultural sensitivities of the migrants to be assaulted on the one hand but pandered to on the other hand. As the former has limitations in a democracy, the latter would gain traction. The increasing primacy being accorded to ‘Chhath’ could be understood in this context.

All the same, Hinduism is a god-hungry religion with multiplicity of ever increasing beliefs and rituals marking its existence. This explains cross- cultural exchanges. If the words about efficacy of a God or even a Godman spread around, the instinctive response is of acceptance and not resistance or rejection. It is as much true in the case of Sai Baba as Nirmal Baba. The same holds true for Chhath too. With insistence on the purity of observances and wish- fulfilling intimations, its appeal only gets magnified even for those who have had nothing to do with it.

The crystallization of Bihari identity around Chhath gained critical mass in the 90s. As Bihar remained politically adrift in the turbulent decade and as the jokes went around that Pakistan could take Kashmir but with Bihar as collateral liability, there would be inevitable closing of ranks. The festival of ‘Chhath’ with emphasis on community and togetherness of solidarity fulfilled this need.

And social media with its demonstrative effect, dissemination of news, views and images and popularization of exotica does the rest. As the non- Biharis wait anxiously for their Bihari friends to return with ‘thekua’ likening it to hard-sweet cake and even donuts, it becomes increasingly clear that the transformation of a little into a potentially great tradition is well underway.”

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Aligarh is mentioned as Sabzabad in the travelogues of 14th century traveller Ibn Batuta, sabz means green and abad refers to habitat place. It was later known as Koil during the 16th century India when emperor Akbar ruled the subcontinent and beyond.

Subsequently popularised by the name, Allygurh in the 18th century, when the French inhabitants of this mango grove colonnade ploughed its terrains. Once upon a time, the home to indigo planters from France and Britain, Aligarh rose to eminence during the 19^th century on world’s map.

From becoming the dreamland of Scindias, to the garrison of Perron and fortress of pride of the British, the story of Aligarh’s becoming has been imprinted on the casket of times, times which would never return but always remembered, lest we forget.

Aligarh has been a citadel of Sufism ever since it stepped in India during 12^th century, the doting shrines in the city confirms this premise, throwing their gates open to everyone. Sufism or the popular Islam in India has been welcoming followers of all religions and faith on the pedestal of humanity for it believes in a higher plane of consciousness where entire humanity is one.

By the rails in this sleepy town, sleeps a saint who saw it all and became an enclosure into the unseen but ecstatic past of a modern day smart city of north India. Hazrat Sayyid Tahabbul Husain, popularly known as Barchhi Bahadur, a 12th century Sufi saint, who was initiated into the Chishti order by Hazrat Sayyid Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki of Mehrauli, Delhi which had him into the company of Faridudduin Ganjshakar, the master of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya.

Chishti Sufi order has been the most popular Sufi school of thought across all the orders in India because of the phenomenal philanthropy done by its founder Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmer. Chishti doctrine has many spiritual practices through which a solace seeker attempts to build a bridge between him and the supreme lord, qawwali is the most enigmatic experience amongst all those practices.

It has a celestial attraction which takes aback the listener to a state of trance and realise the ultimate truth and meaning of life, passing through the labyrinths of ecstasy and mysticism. Sufis are believed to be the persons who can experience something more complete, to whom death is a festival of annihilation into the eternal illume of the supreme. The Urs festival held at Sufi shrines supports the conviction that death is an occasion of rejoicing and being lost into the creator’s aurora forever.

Barchhi Bahadur used to carry a spear with him which gave him the name by which he has been popularly known to the present day. The erstwhile town of Koil wasn’t densely populated until the French made this town an important garrison for multiplying their arsenal, eventually British took over this town during the siege of Allygurh and began the developmental work in and around the town.

It was the time when they were laying down the rail track that they encountered a situation that was incomprehensible, the track laying process had partially damaged the shrine of Barchhi Bahadur. It was then believed to have angered the saint, tired with their efforts they consulted the elderly and the clergy, who advised them to not to do any damage to the shrine and get the repairs done immediately.

The British engineers followed the advice and got the shrine repaired, following which the track was successfully laid. The city then began swarming around the saint’s courtyard and in early 19th century, Hazrat Zorar Husain alias Zorar Shah, a noble from Aligarh visited the shrine and meditated therein.

During the much asserted spiritual dialogue between him and the Saint, he found a talisman which transformed the shrine on the outskirts of the city into an ever evolving centre stage of spiritual retreat. The Urs of Barchhi Bahadur is an annual event observed with great zeal and festive fervour and the ambience of the shrine is inexplicably divine.

With years passing by the popularity of Barchhi Bahadur has grown many folds and intrigues every passerby with its enchanting and enigmatic pull.

Legend has it that when the master of Barchhi Bahadur, Hazrat Khwaja Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki was nearing his annihilation into the supreme master, so he made a will which had some conditions, it  was then read publicly after Khwaja passed away.

The will emphasised that the Janazah prayers would only be performed by the person who has done no haraam in his life and has never left the sunnah of asr prayers. The teary eyed sultan of Delhi, Iltutmish came out of the congregation, saying that,  “I never wanted to reveal myself to anybody but the will of Khwaja Bakhtiyar Kaki wants so”. Barchhi Bahadur was favourite disciple of Khwaja, so he was made the prime spiritual guide for the Mamluk Sultanate of Delhi.

Iltutmish and Barchhi Bahadur epitaphed their affection onto the times by spearheading the construction of Qutub Minar in Delhi, honouring their spiritual master by naming it after him.

So it could be correctly said about the saint that he once ruled India, though this reign was not political but spiritual. The reason that his story must be told is that amidst changing lifestyles of modern civilisation, religiosity is fading and spirituality is blooming. The shrine of Barchhi Bahadur is the perfect example of India’s composite culture as evident from the multicultural attendance of solace seekers from near and far.

Two of my personal experiences have inspired me to pen down this ode to yet another star of Chishti constellation. The first being a close friend whose father stopped his mother from paying homage to the saint as they came from another sect, following by his father’s  illness which wasn’t treatable and then his mother asked his father for repentance. My friend’s father went to the shrine and offered apologetically repentance and with that he walked home healthy.

Another memoir is from a college senior whose non-Muslim family living in Punjab asked him to visit Barchhi Bahadur without a miss to convey their Salaam, while he was visiting me in Aligarh. Dotted extravagantly by spiritual pilgrims on Thursdays, this Chishti shrine serves as a refuge from the chaos of everyday life, and in the quiet of a person’s singularity enlightens him to a new dimensions of being and not being.

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सम्पादक महोदय,
मार्डन रिव्यू।

आपने अपने सम्मानित पत्र के दिसम्बर, 1929 के अंक में एक टिप्पणी ‘इन्क़लाब ज़िन्दाबाद’ शीर्षक से लिखी है और इस नारे को निरर्थक ठहराने की चेष्टा की है। आप सरीखे परिपक्व विचारक तथा अनुभवी और यशस्वी सम्पादक की रचना में दोष निकालना तथा उसका प्रतिवाद करना, जिसे प्रत्येक भारतीय सम्मान की दृष्टि से देखता है, हमारे लिए एक बड़ी धृष्टता होगी। तो भी इस प्रश्न का उत्तर देना हम अपना कर्तव्य समझते हैं कि इस नारे से हमारा क्या अभिप्राय है।

यह आवश्यक है, क्योंकि इस देश में इस समय इस नारे को सब लोगों तक पहुँचाने का कार्य हमारे हिस्से में आया है। इस नारे की रचना हमने नहीं की है। यही नारा रूस के क्रांतिकारी आंदोलन में प्रयोग किया गया है। प्रसिद्ध समाजवादी लेखक अप्टन सिंक्लेयर ने अपने उपन्यासों ‘बोस्टन’ और ‘आईल’ में यही नारा कुछ अराजकतावादी क्रान्तिकारी पात्रों के मुख से प्रयोग कराया है। इसका अर्थ क्या है? इसका यह अर्थ कदापि नहीं है कि सशस्त्र संघर्ष सदैव जारी रहे और कोई भी व्यवस्था अल्प समय के लिए भी स्थाई न रह सके। दूसरे शब्दों में, देश और समाज में अराजकता फैली रहे।

दीर्घकाल से प्रयोग में आने के कारण इस नारे को एक ऐसी विशेष भावना प्राप्त हो चुकी है, जो संभव है कि भाषा के नियमों एवं कोष के आधार पर इसके शब्दों से उचित तर्कसम्मत रूप में सिद्ध न हो पाए, परन्तु इसके साथ ही इस नारे से उन विचारों को पृथक नहीं किया जा सकता, जो इसके साथ जुड़े हुए हैं। ऐसे समस्त नारे एक ऐसे स्वीकृत अर्थ के द्योतक हैं, जो एक सीमा तक उनमें उत्पन्न हो गए हैं तथा एक सीमा तक उसमें निहित है।

उदाहरण के लिए हम यतीन्द्रनाथ ज़िन्दाबाद का नारा लगाते हैं। इससे हमारा तात्पर्य यह होता है कि उनके जीवन के महान आदर्शों तथा उस अथक उत्साह को सदा-सदा के लिए बनायें रखें, जिसने इस महानतम बलिदानी को उस आदर्श के लिए अकथनीय कष्ट झेलने एवं असीम बलिदान करने की प्रेरणा दी। यह नारा लगाने से हमारी यह लालसा प्रकट होती है कि हम भी अपने आदर्शों के लिए अचूक उत्साह को अपनाएँ। यही वह भावना है, जिसकी हम प्रशंसा करते हैं। इसी प्रकार ‘इन्क़लाब’ शब्द का अर्थ भी कोरे शाब्दिक रूप में नहीं लगाना चाहिए। इस शब्द का उचित एवं अनुचित प्रयोग करने वाले लोगों के हितों के आधार पर इसके साथ विभिन्न अर्थ एवं विभिन्न विशेषताएँ जोड़ी जाती हैं। क्रान्तिकारियों की दृष्टि में यह एक पवित्र वाक्य है। हमने इस बात को ट्रिब्यूनल के सम्मुख अपने वक्तव्य में स्पष्ट करने का प्रयास किया था।

इस वक्तव्य में हमने कहा था कि क्रांति (इन्क़लाब) का अर्थ अनिवार्य रूप से सशस्त्र आन्दोलन नहीं होता। बम और पिस्तौल कभी-कभी क्रांति को सफल बनाने के साधन मात्र हो सकते हैं। इसमें भी सन्देह नहीं है कि कुछ आन्दोलनों में बम एवं पिस्तौल एक महत्वपूर्ण साधन सिद्ध होते हैं, परन्तु केवल इसी कारण से बम और पिस्तौल क्रांति के पर्यायवाची नहीं हो जाते। विद्रोह को क्रांति नहीं कहा जा सकता, यद्यपि हो सकता है कि विद्रोह का अन्तिम परिणाम क्रांति हो।

एक वाक्य में क्रान्ति शब्द का अर्थ ‘प्रगति के लिए परिवर्तन की भावना एव आकांक्षा’ है। लोग साधारणतया जीवन की परम्परागत दशाओं के साथ चिपक जाते हैं और परिवर्तन के विचार से ही काँपने लगते हैं। यही एक अकर्मण्यता की भावना है, जिसके स्थान पर क्रान्तिकारी भावना जाग्रत करने की आवश्यकता है। दूसरे शब्दों में कहा जा सकता है कि अकर्मण्यता का वातावरण निर्मित हो जाता है और रूढ़िवादी शक्तियाँ मानव समाज को कुमार्ग पर ले जाती हैं। यही परिस्थितियाँ मानव समाज की उन्नति में गतिरोध का कारण बन जाती हैं।

क्रान्ति की इस भावना से मनुष्य जाति की आत्मा स्थाई तौर पर ओतप्रोत रहनी चाहिए, जिससे कि रूढ़िवादी शक्तियाँ मानव समाज की प्रगति की दौड़ में बाधा डालने के लिए संगठित न हो सकें। यह आवश्यक है कि पुरानी व्यवस्था सदैव न रहे और वह नयी व्यवस्था के लिए स्थान रिक्त करती रहे, जिससे कि एक आदर्श व्यवस्था संसार को बिगड़ने से रोक सके। यह है हमारा अभिप्राय जिसको हृदय में रख कर हम ‘इन्क़लाब ज़िन्दाबाद’ का नारा ऊँचा करते हैं।

भगतसिंह, बी. के. दत्त
22 दिसम्बर, 1929

स्रोत: भगतसिंह और उनके साथियों के सम्पूर्ण उपलब्ध दस्तावेज़, राहुल फाउंडेशन, लखनऊ. (संपादक: सत्यम)

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आदरणीय ख़ां साहब,

सोचा आपको एक ख़त लिखूँ। मैं आपकी मज़ार पर गया था। सहयोगी अजय सिंह की वजह से। अजय ने कहा कि वो मुझे कुछ याद दिलाना चाहते हैं। थोड़ी देर के लिए बिस्मिल्लाह ख़ान की मज़ार पर ले चलते हैं। दिलों दिमाग़ पर स्मृतियों की इतनी परतें हो गई हैं कि उनकी तह तक पहुँचने के लिए किसी पुरातत्ववेत्ता की ज़रूरत पड़ती है। अजय ने वही किया। उस साल की याद दिला दी जब आसमान बरस रहा था और नीचे खड़ा मैं माइक लिये दुनिया को बता रहा था कि बिस्मिल्लाह ख़ान को अपने बदन पर पड़ने वाली मिट्टी खुरदरी न लगे, कोई सख़्त टुकड़ा चुभ न जाए इसलिए आसमान बरस कर नम कर रहा है। रो रहा है। हम सब अगस्त की बारिश में भींग कर आपके चले जाने का शोक मना रहे थे।

वो 2006 का साल था और ये 2014 का है। नेता आपकी मज़ार पर आने लगे हैं। शायद आप उन्हें मुसलमान नज़र आए हैं। राजनीति में कोई शहनाई के लिए नहीं आता। अख़बारों और टीवी पर खूब ख़बरें देखीं। अरविंद केजरीवाल आपकी मज़ार पर गए हैं। नरेंद्र मोदी के लोग आपके बेटों के पास गए हैं ताकि वे प्रस्तावक बन जायें। आपके बेटों ने मना कर दिया है। चर्चा चल रही है कि आपके ज़रिये “गंगा जमुनी” टाइप संकेत देने की कोशिश में आप ध्यान में आए हैं। शहनाई वाले में एक मुसलमान दिखा है। आप तो जानते ही हैं कि हमारी राजनीति ऐसे ही बिस्मिल्लाह करती है।

हाँ तो मैं आपसे मज़ार पर जाने की बात कह रहा था। “भारत रत्न बिस्मिल्लाह ख़ान” की मज़ार पर। सोचा जो हिन्दुस्तान जिस बिस्मिल्लाह को हथेलियों पर रखता था वो उसकी ख़ाक को मोतियों की माला में जड़ कर पहनता ही होगा। भारत में ज़िंदा बच गए लोग कई लोगों के लिए भारत रत्न की मांग करते हैं। ख़ूब सियासत होती है। अब तो भारत रत्न की मांग का लाइव कवरेज होता है। जिसे मिलता है वो बैटरियों का विज्ञापन करता है। आपने तो ऐसा कुछ किया नहीं। कभी कभार टहलने के लिए राज्य सभा की मेंबरी नहीं माँगी।

इन्हीं सब बातों को सोचते हुए अब मैं पूरी तरह आपके पास लौट आया था। याद आने लगी वो बात जब आपके पास मनाने गया था। आप ग़ुस्से में थे। गालियाँ दे रहे थे। मैंने तो इतना सा अर्ज़ किया था। कोई बुज़ुर्ग जब गाली देता है तो वो गाली नहीं होती आशीर्वाद है। ख़ां साहिब, मैं आने वाली पीढ़ी को बताऊँगा कि दुनिया ने बिस्मिल्लाह से शहनाई सुनी लेकिन मैंने गालियाँ सुनी हैं। आप हंस दिये। आपकी शक्ल मेरे नाना जैसी मिलती थी। हमने अपने नाना-नानी को कम देखा जीया है। आपसे बातें होने लगी थी। आप इस बात पर भी शर्मा से गए थे।आपका ग़ुस्सा शहनाई पर धुन बनने के लिए बेचैन हो रहा था। आप ही ने कहा कि आजतक किसी के लिए अकेले नहीं बजाया। तुमको सुनाता हूँ। कैमरा चालू था। कमरे से बाक़ी लोग बाहर कर दिये गए। आपका फेंफड़ा हाँफने लगा। मैं मना करने लगा तो आपने कहा कि कई दिनों से नहीं बजाया है इसलिए शहनाई रूठ गई है। मान जायेगी। एक बाप की तरह आप मेरे लिए बेचैन हो गए थे।

तो आपकी मज़ार पर मैं खड़ा था। शाम हो गई थी। अजय वहाँ तक ले गए जहाँ तक आपका हिस्सा इस लोक की मिट्टी में बचा हुआ था । दीवार पर भारत रत्न बिस्मिल्लाह ख़ान का पोस्टर। दिलफेंक मुस्कुराहट। आपकी हँसी का कोई मुक़ाबला नहीं। ऐसा लगा जैसे पूछ रहे हों कि बताओ ये धुन कैसी लगी। सुनी तुमने बिस्मिल्लाह की शहनाई। आपकी शरारती आँखें। उफ्फ!! जिस बनारस का आप क़िस्सा सुनाते रहें उसी बनारस में आप एक क़िस्सा हैं। लेकिन उसी बनारस में दस साल में भी आपकी मज़ार पूरी नहीं हो सकी। एक तस्वीर है और घेरा ताकि पता चले कि जिसकी शहनाई से आज भी हिन्दुस्तान का एक हिस्सा जागता है वो यहाँ सो रहा है। जो रेडियो सुनते हैं वो ये बात जानते हैं। मज़ार के पास खड़े एक शख़्स ने बताया कि आपकी मज़ार इसलिए कच्ची है क्योंकि इस जगह को लेकर शिया और सुन्नी में विवाद है। मुक़दमा चल रहा है। फ़ैसला आ जाए तो आज बना दें।

ये आपकी नहीं इस मुल्क की बदनसीबी है कि आपको एक अदद क़ब्र भी नसीब नहीं हुई। इसके लिए भी किसी जज की क़लम का इंतज़ार है। हम किस लिए किसी को भारत रत्न देते हैं। भारत रत्न देकर भी गोतिया पट्टीदार की पोलटिक्स से मुक्ति मिलेगी कि नहीं। क्या शिया और सुन्नी आपकी शहनाई में नहीं हैं। क्या वो दो गज ज़मीन आपके नाम पर नहीं छोड़ सकते। क्या बनारस आपके लिए पहल नहीं कर सकता। किस बात का बनारस के लोग बनारस बनारस गाते फिरते हैं।

आपकी शख़्सियत और शहनाई पर लिखने के क़ाबिल नहीं हूँ। इसलिए सोचा कि आपको ख़त लिखूँ। इस बात की माफ़ी माँगते हुए कि आपको मैं भी भूल गया हूँ। आप याद आते हैं पर कभी आपकी ख़बर नहीं ली। आपसे मिलकर लौटते हुए यही सोच रहा था कि कितना कम मिला आपसे मगर कितना ज़्यादा दे दिया है आपने। ठीक ठीक तो नहीं पर मुझे कुछ कुछ याद आ रहा है। जो मैं आपके निधन पर लाइव प्रसारण में बोल रहा था। बिस्मिल्लाह ख़ान बनारस के बाप थे। आज बनारस से उसके बाप का साया उठ गया है। हम सब ऐसे ही हैं ख़ां साहिब। आप जानते ही हैं। इसलिए आपको मुस्कुराता देख अच्छा लगा। इस बाप ने जीते जी कुछ नहीं चाहा तो एक क़ब्र या एक मज़ार की क्या बिसात। मैंने भी एक तस्वीर खिंचा ली।

आपका
रवीश कुमार, एनडीटीवी वाला ।

नोट: 2014 में प्रकाशित यह पत्र रवीश के फेसबुक पटल से साभार लिया गया है।

The post रवीश कुमार: आपकी शख़्सियत और शहनाई पर लिखने के क़ाबिल नहीं हूँ। appeared first on Awaam India.

Siloti (Sylheti) is a language which is placed at the 81st position among the world’s top 100 languages yet is unknown to many, and the speakers are 11.8 million as per a survey of 2007.

Language is the carrier of culture, and for sure any language carries and conveys its own culture which in turn reflects its background and other possible fields of anthropological concerns. It is very much known that without literature a language cannot be preserved and without a script, a literature cannot be composed or compiled.

Without the presence of its own script a language may flourish but cannot survive for long or may not hold on throughout the ages its prestige and resilient sublimity of its very own culture. Records in terms of manuscripts must be present to support this existence of a language and Siloti (Sylheti) fulfils this criteria supporting its origin and existence and survival through ages. With its literary evidences in terms of “futhis”, and evidences of official documents in erstwhile British India as well as within ‘folk literatures’ of religion and various other topics and philosophies found in its preserved manuscripts, Siloti has grandeur cultural legacy.

The language has its own script (written in Siloti Nagori/Sylheti Nagari), its rich literature (sometimes in manuscripts called “futhi”) but devoid of any big stock of works (though considerable literary works and compositions, translations, compilations and poems are available) only because of its own people, who, from quondam days carry on rural lifestyle and very few of them focused educating their offspring. But again you will find a good number of them very much satisfied and comfortable with a fake identity which they perceive or claim.

Many of them have English as their native or functional language as they are settled abroad, many again have Bengali, Meitei or Assamese or any other available language as they found those languages around them in function since childhood. Because their community megrely paid heed to the matter of preserving their script through writings or in official documenting activities as of how it was prevalent earlier, before the dawning of 20th Century.

Political partitions can do a little harm to a vast, unpartitioned culture and culturally connected people! This very dignified and culturally rich language, Siloti (Sylheti), is spoken in India, Bangladesh, United Kingdom, United States of America, Rome, Malaysia, Singapore, Berlin, in various places within Australia, as well as in Middle East and in many small and large countries of this modern-day world. During the partition in 1947, Silotis (Sylhetis) were part of Assam in North-Eastern British India, as it then was. It must be known that Sylhet at present is a big division consisting of four districts. Along with these four districts of Sylhet, Sylheti is spoken in various other parts of present Bangladesh.

Siloti (Sylheti) is spoken by the people of three districts (Cachar, Hailakandi, Karimganj) of “Barak Valley” in Assam and in parts of Tripura (notably Dholai) , in Meghalaya (notably Shillong) in India. A good number of speakers are spread across India, in various institutions, offices, fields and universities, especially in Aligarh Muslim University where this author is currently pursuing Bachelors, more than 100 speakers of the same ethnicity pursue various courses.

It is said that among every ten Bengalis (British Bengali, Bangladeshi Bengali, Indian Bengali) in London 8-9 are Siloti (Sylheti) speaking in several day-to-day activities of life. The data and various surveys says that sailing or seafaring has been in the blood of Silotis (Sylhetis), because their imprints are found in the annals and archives of British India, where in British ships, most probably between 1850-1945, they were recruited as sailors or lascars and by the course of time they settled there in a far land.

Thus, as per one survey report, about 500,000 Silotis (Sylhetis) , or even more are perceived, are presently residing in United Kingdom, who for lack of documentation and teaching materials among other reasons, simply call it ‘Bengali’, where Siloti (Sylheti) is an independent language with ample evidences, rich literary documents, and its own script!

Another source says the possible number of speakers vary from 450,000/500,000 in the USA/Canada, 150,000 or more in Middle East, 300,000 in Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Rome and Berlin collectively, and about 150,000 in various cities of India.

Views expressed by the author are personal.

The post Siloti: Story of a rich but obscured language appeared first on Awaam India.

Acoustical Society of India is hosting its 46th annual National Symposium on Acoustics (NSA 2017) at AMU. The symposium is being organized by the department of Mechanical Engineering, Zakir Husain College of Engineering & Technology, AMU. The musical evening was scheduled to the end of the inaugural day of the National Symposium 2017.

The guest of the evening was Azeem Ahmed Alvi, who is a very promising and talented young Sitar player of the present generation. He is the disciple of the famous sitar maestro Ustad Shahid Parvez Khan. Also, he was joined by young Sarangi player and his sibling Sameer Ahmed Alvi. The evening was well orchestrated by the bands of Hindustani, Fusion, Western and folk& Traditional music clubs of CEC.

Amaan Ali Shah of western music club gave a sparkling performance with the song Man In The Box (Alice In Chains). Female vocalist Ila Khalid performed solo songs like Allahu and Ankhiya Milake. The attraction of the evening was sitar performance by Alvi brothers. The evening ended with a qawwali, “Andhere Mein Dil Ke Chiragh E Mohabbat” performed by the members of Hindustani Music Club.

The event was hosted by Omair Iftikhar, General Secretary CEC, while Talib Husain, a student from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, AMU proposed the vote of thanks to the audience.

Photo by: Sarim Ashrafi

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