Of Sufism, animals and grief on September 14, 2017“Don’t grieve. Anything you lose comes back in another form”, said 13th century Sufi scholar Mavlana Rumi. His saying appears to be superficial, as if wishing to mollycoddle readers to blindly hope for some relief from their ordeal. This sort of consolation is something we offer people, without really meaning it, especially when they lose […]
Divine connections on August 3, 2017“Shirk mat karo, (don’t indulge in polytheism), ask Allah directly for what you want,” is how most people react when I tell them of my plans of visiting the dargah of a Sufi saint, one whose name or poetry I may have heard in a qawwali on YouTube, for instance. It is this attraction that […]
Murad Saeeds sisters and selective-feminism on March 17, 2017So I’m pretty certain that MNA Javed Latif must have mass-forwarded Women’s Day messages on his WhatsApp, the kind that call women a wonder of the world, worthy of utmost respect. It was only the day after that he revealed his inner self when he made disgusting insinuations about Murad Saeed’s sisters. People with the […]
A week full of the letter P on March 8, 2017When Najam Sethi took to the stage at the pompously held and brilliantly organized PSL finals in Lahore, a section of the crowd erupted into Go Nawaz Go slogans, evoking laughter and amusement from those sitting and watching the match on their TV screens at home. Come to think of it people have been chanting […]
Attacking Sufism on March 3, 2017‘Why do you visit dargahsyaar? it is shirk(idolatry)?’ is how most Pakistanis confront me when I tell them about my reverence for the Sufi saints of the sub-continent. They then proceed to rebuke me further reminding me that the traditions followed at these shrines have their origins in Hinduism; tabaruk(sweet offering) they tell me is […]
Stomachs filled with despair on February 22, 2017A cat followed me the other night and proceeded to enter through the gate as our car sprinted into the garage, then she stood patiently in a corner as I searched for my keys to make it inside. It was well past midnite, I lodged my keys into the door, moving my hand hurriedly that […]
Thank God Valentines day is over on February 15, 2017Valentine’s day may be over but the strife of our females in respect to the roadside Romeos is not yet done with. Yes, the heart-shaped crimson balloons, candies and the equally red, palpitating mullahs-against-Valentines are thankfully out of sight but the Majnus of lovey-dovey WhatsApp forwards are not. Desi men make such lousy lovers that […]
The unobtrusive saint of Lahore on February 8, 2017Near the overpopulated locality of Dharampura, Lahore, amidst dilapidated buildings and congested lanes lies the impeccable tomb of 17th century Sufi-scholar Mian Mir. He was also the spiritual master of Mughal prince and heir-apparent to Shah Jahan, Dara Shikoh. Lahore is largely recognized as Datas nagri, people who visit Lahore often feel compelled to visit […]
Lonely faces wearing forced smiles on February 1, 2017“For the quintessence of loneliness, for what is more alone than God himself,” asked the famous 14th-century Persian poet Hafiz in one his of Sufi poems. We understand God, the exalted one, the supreme one, as having no offspring or partners yet we haven’t tried to find solace in his aloneness to combat our own […]
Children of a lesser God on January 11, 2017The attitude in Pakistan towards child labour is a hypocritical one; everyone collectively (and rightfully so) raised a hue and cry when ten-year-old Tayyaba was found physically abused in the home of the additional sessions judge Raja Khurram Ali Khan, yet daily we encourage these innocent souls to keep on servicing us through various means. […]