FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

Many times when I saw the Cross, I wondered about the love God has for us. How do men reciprocate that kind of love.  In words and deeds. To be a follower of a religion, we have to follow the rituals and rites as mentioned in the religious texts. But the love of God is sometimes above man made religions and cults. Therefore, we have Raskhaan, a muslim by birth writing praises of Lord Krishna in Brij Bhaasha. I was reading through the Sufi poets and was touched by the poetry of Rumi, the 13th century persian poet.

In your light I learn how to love.

In your beauty, how to make poems.

You dance inside my chest,

where no one sees you,

but sometimes I do,

and that sight becomes this art.

Sufism according to one scholar is "a science through which one can know how to travel into the presence of the Divine, purify one’s inner self from filth, and beautify it with a variety of praiseworthy traits." They view God. as their beloved, the same way as in the Songs of Solomon or the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.  Amir Khusrow was born in Etah district of India in the 13th century. He is known as the father of 'Qawalli', a sufi style of singing. Among his most famous works is the ghazal which follows. Read it and feel the love flow through you.

You've taken away my looks, my identity,

by just a glance.
By making me drink the wine from the distillery of love

You've intoxicated me

by just a glance;
My fair, delicate wrists with green bangles in them,
Have been held tightly by you

with just a glance.
I give my life to you, Oh my cloth-dyer,
You've dyed me in yourself,

by just a glance.
I give my whole life to you Oh, Nijam,
You've made me your bride,

by just a glance.

I feel like asking a stupid question. Have you heard of Late Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan? If the answer is yes, I have no words to describe the greatest voice in recent times. Another great voice among Sufi singers is Abida Parveen. Sufism also deals with looking into one's own self and realising its flaws. Hear her sing the kalaam of Bulle Shah, a Sufi from Bahawalpur, Punjab in Pakistan. The lyrics are there.