Jaam-e-Zargar ~ Abdul Ahad Zargar.

Since, my ears have touched Thy fervent voice,

Thence I threw away Kalima and cherished Zonnar,

Broke away from Kabba here I lay in the Infidel temple,

Lo, Thou looted away me, my faith, and my religion

Sema ; was bound to overtake the senses as the verses of this unsung mystic, flowed down the zealous strings of Rabab, to strike at heart and repose the tired soul into a neverland .Thin air was squeezing through the minds and souls were getting cleansed from worldly filth ,for Zargar’s ethereal verses were flying around the mountains .The gurgling springs and rivulets seemed to sing in unison with the eternal songs and exhilarating santoor sounds. Zargar is a desperate and inseparable moth to the glowing flame of mysticism. He is a mendicant that lies down at the door of mysticism -fakiri - and screams for the attainment of Divine. And rooh comes out of worldly cage to frolic around in the garden of Zargar.

an unseen realm ensues at the island of beauty,

the rivers of beloved flow everywhere, within me,

I saw him caress my painful sick heart,

and now he appears with his scimitar on my neck

I saw the kingly stay inside Kabba

and now he appears an infidel of the idol temple

I saw him shoot arrows of death

Ahad Zargar, I saw, offers his body to dwell them.

Abdul Ahad Zargar, the writer of codes, a philosopher, and a rebel who penned down most venomous verses was born in one of the most celebrated, fable piece of earth, the mysteriously unique picturesque valley often equated to heaven- Kashmir- in the year 1882. His father was a weaver, weaver of sophisticated wool – Pashmins – for which the weavers of vale have always been praised, everywhere, from ordinary home to royal palaces. And so was Ahad, he would weave the beauty of his land, soil filled with the linage of mystics, into his eternal words. He was multilingual in his verses and multi genera in expression, but his pyramid always strived in search of divine, the ultimate. His epigrams, couplets and Sufi Ghazals commingle three most ancient languages, that also form the languages of vast religious literature Arabic Sanskrit and Persian with native Kashmiri .Folk has it that, he started intensely fervent Sufi poetry at the age of 20. His early renuncification of the world and aristocracy enthralled the think tanks of all times. There are numerous enchanting hear-say tales attributed to this great mystic. For Zargar fakirii is -Kabba- the house of God, it is the name of beloved, it appears without and within as a vast treasure of knowledge, it is the crown of those who seek. Zargar strongly discerns Fakiri to be the only spiritual guide to the realm of supreme love – Ishq, in the full lyric Fakir.

In Kashmir where the concept of beauty and art has always been equated to godhood, Zargar proved the supernatural quality of his soil for producing Reshis and Sufis, by his ethereal Gnostic vision, ornate expression, skillful eulogy of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be Upon Him ) and  preaching of Love in the contemporary times. He was the shining stalwart to continue traditional Sufi poetry after centuries old mystics like Lalla Ded and Nund Reshi. The unique blend of romanticism, humanism enciphered for the attainment of divine with amazing rhetori makes Zargar a distinguished visionary and Philosopher.

Zargar always articulated and emphasized the need of peace and was an inciter of love and harmony even in the most turbulent time of Kashmir, the chaotic times when first mass uprising and freedom struggle against the Maharajas was on peak. He was a versified and gifted poet with a unique Sufi insight and would hardly come out of his Sufi realm. The Pursuit of knowledge and the quest for divine is all the book of Zargar. Zargar left this world and transcended to hereafter in 1973 leaving behind his rich poetic literature and Sufi concept. Each year Sufi festival called Sham-e-Zargar - is observed at his tomb, as a tribute to literary legend.

Here comes Zargar Ahah, wrapped in Toubah,

all embarrassed, takes the entry in divine court,

with the zealous request – Astagfirullah Al Azeem,

Accept my repentance, O’ the Nobel.

Back in the garden of Zargar, the Tasawuff filled verses made the numbed souls to experience exultation in the spiritual path, the path to inner self.

Tears were gushing forth, unabated, as his lyric of repentance -Astagfirullal Al Azeem- was tending to end the ecstatic rejuvenation of souls. His time passed but Zargar still stands out luminous in modern day Sufi poets for his contribution to Sufism, Kashmiri literature and Philosophy.

Fakiri

the Burning sun of me,

the house of God ,the only way

the supreme king who  appears now and then

the house of God, the only way

Fakiri

the exhilarating garden as it blossoms,

the colorful garments as they wrap around ,

the wine of truth for unity decanters,

the house of God, the only way

Fakiri

the heady fragrance for the panging flowers ,

the alluring ornaments for the ears in hay ,

the effulgent light for all the environ,

the house of God , the only way

 

Fakiri

the treasure of knowledge for learned ,

the crown for those who seek the truth,

the reward for those who are righteous ,

the house of God , the only way

 

Fakiri

the guide to the secret treasure,

the leader to the divine court of Love,

the king of the nib and slate ,

the house of God , the only way

 

Fakiri

the owner of secrets and the Pious,

the fearless vanquisher of materialism,

the ‘Kalima’ between two ‘Meem’s of Arabic,

the house of God , the only way

 

Fakiri

the “Hoo” I saw , that exhales,

the form of soul that enters my mortal cage ,

the ark of Prophet Noah,

the house of God the only way

 

Fakiri

has been and will endure till eternity,

intoxicates me and ‘saqi’, us both,

the name for master of every wine,

the house of God , the only Way

 

Fakiri

Ahad Zargar lays down at your door,

You appear gloriously within and without,

You dwell in every nook and cranny of me,

the house of God , the only way

Astagfirullah Al Azeem : I seek forgiveness from the Great Allah.

 

Sema: a Persian term that means listening^,it has been used since the 10th century to refer to a type of dhikr (remembrance of God), a spiritual concert, a musical ceremony used by various Sufi orders.

 

Rebab: a two-stringed fiddled musical instrument used in many Muslim countries.

 

Santoor: a Persian (Iranian) musical instrument.

 

Zonnar: were distinctive clothing that dhimmis — Christians and Jews — in the Levant under the Ottoman Empire were required to wear as part of Islamic law.

 

 

Dedicated to a wonderful flower, Daisy.

Copyrights reserved-2009 The Kashmir Shawl Inc.

Translations: EbnMushtaq Shah, Srinagar.

Sketch: Sarang Latif Qazi , Karachi .

 

 

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