Dr. Md. Arshadul Quadri is presently Assistant Professor in the Department of Persian, University of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. He obtained his M.A., M.Phil and Ph.D degrees from the Centre of Persian and Central Asian Studies, JNU. He has completed Ph.D from JNU on the topic entitled “Persian Studies in Calcutta.” He has worked on the Persian letters of Ghalib for his M.Phil dissertation. He has been the recipient of Jawahar Bhawan Merit-Cum-Means Scholarship for securing highest CGPA (8.64) in the School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, JNU. Dr. Quadri has presented several scholarly papers in the national and international seminars of India and abroad. He has presented a paper on “Reception of India in the Works of Sadeq Hedayat” in Iranian Studies Conference in Vienna in the year 2016. His paper on “Iqbal and Imperialism” in an international seminar at IIC in 2018 was highly appreciated in the seminar. He has been regularly contributing scholarly papers in the reputed journals of India and abroad. Dr. Quadri is a diligent researcher and has a flair for Indo-Persian literature. He has been actively engaged in organizing seminars, conferences and Symposia in his department. He has successfully organized an international seminar on Urfi Shirazi in the University of Lucknow in the year 2016. Dr. Quadri knows Urdu, Hindi, English and Persian. His area of interest includes Indo-Persian Literature with a focus on Ghalib and Iqbal.

POETIC MYSTICISM OF DARA SHIKOH (Published in the Journal Indo-Iranica, pp. 22-32, Vol.71, Nos. 1-4, 2018) Dr. Md. Arshadul Quadri Asstt. Professor Dept. Of Persian University of Lucknow Lucknow Mob: +91-9696360115 E-mail: qadri.arshad79@gmail.com ہزار بیت وغزل گفت قادری در عشق مگر چہ سود کسی منتبہ نمی گردد1 (A thousand verses and lyrics did Qadri write regarding love. But of what avail that no one listens to it) Shaikh Ali Hazin, one of the prominent representatives of the Indian style of Poetry (Sabk-e-Hindi) had once remarked that ‘tasawwuf’ is good for writing poetry’ (تصوف برای شعر گفتن خوب است2).The remark of Shaikh Ali Hazin at one place shows the importance of poetry in expressing mystical thoughts and experiences on the other hand it also describes the suitability and adaptability of tasawwuf to different literary genres. Shibli Nomani, a renowned critic, says that Persian poetry was a lifeless form until the element of Sufi poetry was included in it. Sufi poetry, according to Shibli, is meant for expressing mystical feelings and before tasawwuf was introduced in Persian poetry, there was no sign of sublime emotions in it.3 It is evident from the above sentences that tasawwuf is an important ingredient for poetry. Tasawwuf, per se, represents two categories of people: one practicing austerity by renouncing the worldly pleasures, the other remaining Sufi at heart and choosing tasawwuf as a vehicle for expressing mystic thoughts. In case of Dara Shikoh, he belongs to the latter category. Dara Shikoh was born at Ajmer after successive prayers and supplications for a baby boy by his father Shah Jahan at the shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti. “It is a happy coincidence that Dara who was born at the city of a great mystic and divine turned out to be a devout Sufi and a ‘man of the path’ throughout his life4.” Dara Shikuh’s early inclination towards Sufism can be traced out during the arrival of Sufi Saint Miyan Mir to the court of Shah Jahan. The emperor perturbed by the ill-health of Prince Dara sought the blessings of Miyan Mir for the overall health of the Prince. The Prince showing high regard for the saint went barefooted up to the second stair of the house where Miyan Mir was staying and picked up the foods left over by the saint with his hand and even touched his feet. It shows the mental propensity of Prince Dara Shikoh who had completely ignored his self, position and personality and trod on to the path of mystical journey. Besides his treatises on Sufism, viz. Safinat-ul-Auliya, Sakinat-ul-Auliya, Majmaul Bahrain, Sirr-i-Akbar etc., the expression of Sufistic thoughts is also discernible in Dara Shikoh’s poetic Diwan. The said Diwan comprises of 133 ghazals and 28 rubais. Generally the ghazals of Dara Shikoh are devoid of lyrical tinge, poetic emotionalism and rhythmic sensibilities but they present his perception of Sufism and his liberal outlook on life and religion. “Dara Shikuh’s poetry consists chiefly of two inter-related elements—Sufism and Qadirism; an undercurrent of didactic and ethical note, an echo of his association with saints and his intimate knowledge of the Persian literature on mysticism, runs through his Ghazals and Rubaiyat.”5 Moreover, criticism of the hypocrite mullahs, denunciation of outward life, the idea of a complete man are some of the topics frequently dealt with in his Diwan. The doctrine of Wahdatul Wujood or the Unity of Being forms the core of Dara Shikoh’s poetry. He sees the manifestation of God everywhere: ہر سو کہ نظر کنی ہمہ اوست وجہ اللہ عیانست روبرو را6 Look where you can, All is He: God’s face is ever face to face7 This very concept of ھمہ اوست or the Unity of being is the central philosophy of the doctrine of Wahdatul Wujood which signifies the existence of only One Being and the physical world being the manifestation of the One Being. Nothing exists besides the One Being. The following couplets of Dara Shikoh seem to be a complete interpretation of the above philosophy: ہر چہ بینی جز او این وہم تست غیر او دارد وجودی چون سراب بحر لامحدود ذات واحد است ما و تو چون نقش و چون موجی بر آب8 Whatever thou beholdest except Him, is the object of thy fancy; Things other than He have existence like a mirage. The existence of God is like a boundless ocean— Men are like forms and waves in its water 9 Ibn Arabi says that the One Being knows how to create pluarlity from its unity and such a form is known as Tayyun. The physical forms and manifestations begin to occur through this process of Tayyun. The manifestations of the One being in whichever form they appear are the representation of the one being in its entirety. یک ذرہ ندیدیم ز خورشید سوا ھر قطرہ آب ھست عین دریا حق را بچہ نام کس تواند خواندن ھر نام کہ ھست ھست از اسمای خدا10 We have not seen an atom separate from the Sun, Every drop of water is the sea in itself With what name should one call the Truth? --every name that exists is one of God’s names.11 According to a Divine Hadith, the God Himself says: I was a hidden treasure, I loved to be known, so I created the Universe so that they may know Me and the Universe be the manifestation of Me and My names. Dara Shikoh describes the reason behind the creation of the Universe as the Will of God to be known. It was with He that the love became apparent and everything existed with this very wish: کرد خواہش بدیدن رخ خویش چون کہ بر حسن گنج مخفی بود پس ز ھو عاشقی ھویدا شد از ھمین خواست جملہ شد موجود12 This plurality of physical forms based on the realization that it is truly one with the Divine, also strives to achieve union with the Being again. The driving force behind this movement towards union is love or Ishq. The crux of Sufism is love. Therefore, the concept of love, separation and union has been dealt with in most intense way in Persian Sufic poetry of Dara. Love also finds its boldest expressions in the poetry of Dara Shikoh. He admits of having tasted the sacred wine of love because for him it is unimaginable to think beyond love: خوردن می کار ما باشد مدام ترک از جام محبت عار ماست13 He openly declares his love as sacred in nature for the simple reason that the love of God towards his creatures is the real one; therefore, it would be ungrateful on the part of the subjects to show his love towards Him other than real: مجازی نباشد مرا عشق او حقیقی است عشقش مجازی کجاست14 Dara Shikoh appears to be intoxicated by the true feeling of Divine love or Ishq, so out of ecstasy, he declares that his soul is so much filled with love that if he says I am the truth he is justified: رگ و پی پر شدہ ز عشق دوست گر بگویم منم خدای رواست من نہ این نغمہ ساختم از خود ھمہ گفتند ھر چہ ھست خداست15 He asks people to seek God from within the self. Because in his opinion God dwells in the heart of every true believer and it is worthless to seek God in other than one’s own self. The poet says: ای آنکہ خدا را بجویٔ ہرجا تو عین خدایٔ نہ جدایٔ ز خدا این جستن تو ھمین بہ آن می ماند قطرہ بمیان آب و جوید دریا16 O, thou, who seekest God everywhere, Thou verily art the God and not separate from Him Already in the midst of a boundless ocean, Thy quest resembles the search of a drop for the ocean! 17 Self realization is an important aspect of Sufism. According to a Hadith, one who recognizes his Self recognizes his Lord. Like a true guide, Dara Shikoh advises his followers to search God in his heart. Because if one looks in his heart, he would soon know that he is not separated from God. Nothing is beyond the existence of the One Being. They are all themselves in their own right but one should also come out from his being to realize the existence of God: در دل خویش بین خدای خود تا بدانی کہ نیست از تو جدا از خدا ھیچ چیز بیرون نیست ھمہ عین است لیک تو بخود آ18 This very realization of self leads a person to declare that although he is not God yet he is not separate from Him: خویشتن را جدا نمی دانم لیک خودرا خدا نمی دانم قطرہ را نسبتی کہ با بحر است بیشتر زین روا نمی دانم۱۹ I do not think myself separate from Him; Nevertheless, I do not consider myself God Whatever relation the drop bears to the ocean, That I hold true in my belief and nothing beyond that20 Annihilation in God (Fana Fillah) is essential for a Sufi. This annihilation is in fact the sacrifice of one’s desire and want and worldly pleasures for the sake of God. Dara Shikoh also sees eternity in annihilation because for him every annihilation of self brings ultimate eternity: قادری گشت قادر مطلق از پی ھر فنا کمال بقاست21 Qadiri became the Almighty: In the wake of every annihilation lies the perfection of subsistence22 The sarcasm against the mullahs is a predominant theme in the poetry of Dara Shikoh. According to him, the mullahs follow Islam only in letters but not in true spirit. So, a person seeking true path should rather ask for guidance from the heart-rented sufis rather than the so called mullahs. He says: راہ حق ملّا چہ داند ای عزیز پرس این رہ عارف دلریش را23 Dara Shikoh’s poetry is replete with biting remarks against self procalimed, pseudo-mystic and ignorant mullahs and ascetics. In his opinion no mullah deserves a place in paradise so it would be a great relief not to be disturbed by the clamours of fatwa all around. Acording to him, wisdom and pseudo-mullahs never go hand in hand. He expresses this feeling in the following verses: بہشت آنجا کہ ملاي نباشد ز ملّا شور و غوغاي نباشد جہان خالی شود از شور ملّا ز فتوی ہاش پرواي نباشد در آن شہری کہ ملّا خانہ دارد در آنجا ہیچ داناي نباشد24 Paradise is there where no mullah abides, Where there is no argument and tumult with him. May the world free from the noise of the mullah! May no one pay heed to his fatwas! In a city where a Mullah resides, No wise man is ever found25 In his sarcasm against the so called mullahs or zohhad (the pious ones) Dara Shikoh maintains a fine line between orthodoxy and mysticism. He forewarns the orthodoxy of the consequences of treading on to the path of externalism. He feels that on the Day of Resurrection, the real lovers, the mystics according to the poet, would be rewarded for their actions while on the other hand the hypocrites would suffer a lot: روز محشر کہ روز عشاق است زاہدان را عتاب خواہد بود26 The poet feels that mere piety is not enough for salvation. He mocks at the people going on Haj (pilgrimage) from far-off places just for the sake of performing a ritual but nobody takes the pain of advancing a single step towards the Almighty to see the divine manifestation: بہر کعبہ روند راہ دراز کس برش یک قدم نمی پوید27 Dara Shikoh had a liberal outlook on different religions. He does not differentiate between the seekers of truth to whichever religious order they belong to. He believes that every religion propounds the Oneness of God but in different ways. If at one place the black spot on the forehead of a worshipper in Islam signifies his devotion to one and only Allah, similarly the marks on the forehead of a Hindu worshipper also conveys the same feeling which is evident from the Muslim worshipper. The following verse of Dara Shikoh proves the point in question: داغ وحدت در جبین زاہدان خط وحدت قشقۂ کفار ما28 The feeling of love and respect for every religion is again a central concept to Sufism. Persian poetry is replete with such instances where the poets do not differentiate between Ka’ba and Temple because for them the light emitting from such places of worship is the same. Dara Shikoh also admonishes people not to see anything in bad light because Divine manifestation is present everywhere including Somanth: بچشم بد مبین ای قادری ہیچ ہمہ جا اوست گرچہ سومنات است29 Although Dara Shikoh was born and brought up in a royal household, he remained a Sufi at heart till his last breath. To him, rugged mat of a Sufi attracted more than the bed made of muslin cloth. He always preferred poverty over riches. Poverty or faqr, the life and soul of majority of Sufis has always been dearer to Dara’s heart for he believed that poverty had the power of a boundless ocean so why should one waste himself over the petty matters of throne and empires: سلطنت سهل است خودرا آشنائ فقر کن قطره تا دریا تواند شد چرا گوهر شود30 Kingship is easy, acquaint thyself with poverty: Why should a drop become a pearl when it can transform itself into an Ocean? 31 The didactic nature of Dara Shikoh’s ghazals and rubaiyat is one of the features of his Sufi poetry. As mentioned above, spiritualism is Dara’s forte. He warns people against pursuing materialistic goals. When every material thing is bound to decay and people are destined to die, so why there is so much yearning for material gains? These views are reflected in the following quatrains of the Prince: دست زر آلود بدبو می شود جان زرآلود را احوال چیست روز و شب گوشت به مرگ مردم است مرترا مردن بود این حال چیست32 Hands soiled with gold begin to stink How (bad) would be plight of soul soiled with gold! Day and night thou hearest of people’s death, Thou hast also to die how strange this behavior is! 33 Dara Shikoh asks people to behave like a traveller in this world. Since a traveler has his eyes set on his destination, similary a person should also keep in mind his ultimate goal i.e. the life after death. A wise traveler never takes unnecessary baggages to spoil his journey likewise people set to travel to the next world should not take with them the unnecessary baggages of sins, transgressions or wrongdoings with them to avoid inconvenience in the hereafter journey. Dara Shikoh conveys this message in an allegorical way: مسافر هر قدر باشد سبکبار نیابد در سفر تصدیع و آزار تو هم اندر جهان هستی مسافر یقین میدان اگر هستی تو هشیار34 The more a traveler is unencumbered The less he feels worried and anxious in his journey Thou, too, art a traveler in this world, Take this as certain, if thou art wakeful35 From the above discussions it is evident that although Dara Shikoh’s Persian poetry may not have the same spontaneity and flair Persian poetry is known for, yet the message contained in his poetry is a treasure trove of Sufism for the seekers of truth. It also brings Dara Shikoh, as a Sufi preacher, philospher and saint to the fore whose poetry is a complete interpretation of love, harmony and brotherhood. The poetic mysticism of Dara Shikoh seeks to establish the brotherhood of all faiths and the unity of mankind. Nowadays, when religious disintegration is rife everywhere, the message of love promulgated by the Sufi Prince needs to be spread all around so that his dream of a secular living order may be translated into reality. References: 1. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-91 2. Kirmani, Waris, Dreams Forgotten, Kitabkhana-yi Shiraz, Allah-wali kothi, Aligarh, 1986, p-17 3. Nomani, Shibli, Sherul Ajam, Vol-V, Darul Mosannefin, Shibli Academy, Azamgarh, 6th edition, 2002, p-108 4. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works 5. Ibid, P-135 6. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-58 7. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-138 8. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-60 9. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-139 10. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-177 11. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-145 12. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-77 13. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-61 14. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-63 15. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-69 16. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-178 17. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-148 18. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-57 19. Ibid, 145 20. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-149 21. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-69 22. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-137 23. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-53 24. Ibid, p-104 25. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-139 26. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-84 27. Ibid, p-82 28. Ibid,p-52 29. Ibid, p-61 30. Ibid, p-108 31. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-142 32. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-65 33. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-142 34. Dara Shikoh, Diwan of Dara Shikoh, Ed. Khan, Ahmad Nabi, Research Society of Pakistan, Punjab, Lahore,1969, P-102 35. Hasrat, Bikrama Jit, Dara Shikuh: Life And Works, p-143

Indo-Persian Literature

CV_Md_Arshadul_Quadri_98986957951e80863fe37948afce7705.docx

Assistant Professor, University of Lucknow