Today is 45th wedding anniversary of Wahaj and Sarwat but both of them are doing nothing because of Travel to Pakistan
I am writing actually very different subject
I have written the following blogs on religion-related subjects that you may find helpful:
2/22/09 Islam and Taliban
8/21/09 Deen/Religion
2/19/14 Religion and filmland
4/17/14 Commercialization of religious acts
10/8/19 Hippies and MAZARS
10/11/19 Taliban and Waziristan
12/29/19 Extremism in religion
Now this extremism and Mazars is my topic along with 'filmland' effect. For one thing I have had my personal "lock down " for over 5 years now due to my acoustic disability. It forced me to reduce my social activities experiencing social distance sitting within parties of all kinds. So I have watched all old and not so old Bollywood and Lolliwood or Pakiwood movies and dramas and have developed a critical analysis of my own on a variety of social events depicted on the screen like a few days back I wrote about weddings in films. About various religions I wrote on 2/19/14 how Hinduism Islam or Christianity is shown. My current note will be limited to Islam. Masjid is hardly ever shown except sometimes on Eid type of subject. Filmi writers are more interested in " show" and best shows of Islam tend to be in Mazars/dergah shreef where qawwals with long hair and a lot of unusual acting is usual so that is shown with obvious advantage Here both Hindu and Muslims (visitors) combine to do the same thing The ritual is more akin to Hinduism and so has more universal appeal. That is depicted without exaggeration or may be slight exaggeration. Dergah most well-known is that of Ajmer shareef, but most dergahs mazars have the same components. Here is is what I have seen
Young and old men and women Hindu or Muslim all enter there with a handkerchief tied on their heads. People sitting and enjoying qawwals (who steal the show anyway) with all musical instruments and then a grave of the saint covered with lot of flowers and a big sheet (chader) of flowers is spread on it and more flowers spread on the grave top. A Mujawar or two standing near that and carrying a big sweeper like ( JhaRoo) thing in their hand The visitor bows down in front of that fellow who will touch or strike with the bunch side first and then with handle side on the back of the visitor and this is to represent the blessing on behalf of the saint who of course has been dead long time earlier. The visitor then bows down further in almost complete sajda putting forehead on the grave and kissing once or twice as thanks that now his wish has been fulfilled. he goes back out happy. There may also be another thing which I am less familiar with and a wall with holes where hundreds of red or some color threads tied to these holes representing wishes of the visitors (I have no idea where this tying threads originated from, may be some Hindu place where some offerings and such things are placed before a moorty)
Had to read more about dergahs on Google and found that there may be some part hidden behind all this show a small masjid for Muslims to pray (not very important?) and possibly a madrissa for children to read Quran maybe is seen behind the mazar/grave.
I am not very educated in this part of Islam but I have not seen much written in Hadeeth or Fiqh or tradition books about this Islam which seems to be more related to soofi traditions which I am not very familiar with . The graves mazar dergah are that of a soofi saint and that is all I know to be Islamic but rest of the things are perhaps add-ons or exaggerations borrowed from other traditions I find so many of these things depicted as Islamic being unIslamic that makes me very uncomfortable. That is my reason of writing this note today
Please visit my Urdu blog at خیالات و احساسات
2/22/09 Islam and Taliban
8/21/09 Deen/Religion
2/19/14 Religion and filmland
4/17/14 Commercialization of religious acts
10/8/19 Hippies and MAZARS
10/11/19 Taliban and Waziristan
12/29/19 Extremism in religion
Now this extremism and Mazars is my topic along with 'filmland' effect. For one thing I have had my personal "lock down " for over 5 years now due to my acoustic disability. It forced me to reduce my social activities experiencing social distance sitting within parties of all kinds. So I have watched all old and not so old Bollywood and Lolliwood or Pakiwood movies and dramas and have developed a critical analysis of my own on a variety of social events depicted on the screen like a few days back I wrote about weddings in films. About various religions I wrote on 2/19/14 how Hinduism Islam or Christianity is shown. My current note will be limited to Islam. Masjid is hardly ever shown except sometimes on Eid type of subject. Filmi writers are more interested in " show" and best shows of Islam tend to be in Mazars/dergah shreef where qawwals with long hair and a lot of unusual acting is usual so that is shown with obvious advantage Here both Hindu and Muslims (visitors) combine to do the same thing The ritual is more akin to Hinduism and so has more universal appeal. That is depicted without exaggeration or may be slight exaggeration. Dergah most well-known is that of Ajmer shareef, but most dergahs mazars have the same components. Here is is what I have seen
Young and old men and women Hindu or Muslim all enter there with a handkerchief tied on their heads. People sitting and enjoying qawwals (who steal the show anyway) with all musical instruments and then a grave of the saint covered with lot of flowers and a big sheet (chader) of flowers is spread on it and more flowers spread on the grave top. A Mujawar or two standing near that and carrying a big sweeper like ( JhaRoo) thing in their hand The visitor bows down in front of that fellow who will touch or strike with the bunch side first and then with handle side on the back of the visitor and this is to represent the blessing on behalf of the saint who of course has been dead long time earlier. The visitor then bows down further in almost complete sajda putting forehead on the grave and kissing once or twice as thanks that now his wish has been fulfilled. he goes back out happy. There may also be another thing which I am less familiar with and a wall with holes where hundreds of red or some color threads tied to these holes representing wishes of the visitors (I have no idea where this tying threads originated from, may be some Hindu place where some offerings and such things are placed before a moorty)
Had to read more about dergahs on Google and found that there may be some part hidden behind all this show a small masjid for Muslims to pray (not very important?) and possibly a madrissa for children to read Quran maybe is seen behind the mazar/grave.
I am not very educated in this part of Islam but I have not seen much written in Hadeeth or Fiqh or tradition books about this Islam which seems to be more related to soofi traditions which I am not very familiar with . The graves mazar dergah are that of a soofi saint and that is all I know to be Islamic but rest of the things are perhaps add-ons or exaggerations borrowed from other traditions I find so many of these things depicted as Islamic being unIslamic that makes me very uncomfortable. That is my reason of writing this note today
Please visit my Urdu blog at خیالات و احساسات
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