#sufi music!!

[blackberrycat104]

literally any time i listen to coke studio

[thatstolenpayal]

how some songs be getting me like

[loneberry]

some notes on sufism

The other day I went to the Harvard Divinity School Muslims iftar (the meal that breaks the fast during Ramadan), which was followed by a concert of Turkish music that is traditionally performed in Sufi lodges in Istambul. Before the music began, the professor I’ve been auditing Islamic literature classes with read some verses from Rumi’s Masnavi and offered a meditation on fasting through an interpretation of the lines: “If you have closed this mouth, another mouth is opened, which becomes an eater of the morsels of mysteries.” That is the nature of mystical knowledge—gnosis (or maʿrifa) is not understood intellectually, but tasted (dhawq). The closing of the bodily mouth is an opening of the spiritual mouth. He asked us to listen to the music with the inner heart.

I went with my friend S, who has been nudging me toward conversion. I’ve been allergic to religion most of my life because I’m not really much of a joiner. I distinctly remember being in (Catholic) Sunday School as a child and thinking to myself: This sounds fake to me. As in, made-up, irrational. The people who treated the fanciful stories like fact seemed like crackpots to me, even to my child-mind. I don’t think I ever believed in Santa either—I guess my disposition was innately skeptical; perhaps that contributed to my identification with anarchism from when I was 13 or 14. Yet at the same time, my feeling for the invisible, for the world of the dead, was always quite strong, even when it was unstitched from a belief system. As a kid I would wander the house alone at night, thinking I could hear my dead parakeet chirping from a shoebox in the garage.  

I hated Sunday School. While I was always good at school-school (at least when I was a child, before I became an incorrigible truant), I was terrible at Sunday School. Because it seemed like hocus-pocus to me, none of it stuck. My classmates had internalized all the stories I thought were outlandish. During mass I would think exclusively about donuts, the ones we would buy from the ladies who would sell them as a fundraiser. I’ve thought about returning to Catholicism, but sadly, after the post-1970s political realignment in the US, all the leftist Catholics (the Marxists who loathed the Vietnam War and exposed the FBI’s COINTELPRO) are gone. As much as I love reading Catholic mystics (St Teresa of Avila, St John of the Cross, Angela of Foligno, Hildegard of Bingen, Meister Eckhart, Marguerite Porete, and others), Christian mysticism is more individualist than Islamic mysticism—asceticism and separation from the group is the way to commune with God, while Islamic mysticism is rooted in communal practices like sama (singing, dancing, reciting poetry, playing/listening to music) and dhikr (communal prayer for the remembrance of God). While Christian mysticism bears the imprint of the Neoplatonist trajectory of ascent, for Sufism, the trajectory is shaped like a paisley. After fana (annihilation of the ego/union with God/dying before you die), there is baqaa or subsistence, a return of sorts. 

I also much prefer the Islamic orientation to the created world than the Christian one, for in Islam, everything in creation can be understood as the breath or speech of God. The Hadith on which Sufi cosmology is based reads, “I was a hidden Treasure and Loved to be known, so I created the world that I might be known.” All of creation is a mirror to reflect God (this is why you must polish the rust from your heart, for the human heart can manifest all the names and qualities of God). In the Islamic mystical tradition there is an affirmation of the created world even though God and creation are not the same (as is the case in Pantheism). Everything has ontology. Nothing has ontology. The Sufi metaphysicians ask us to see with two eyes. The drop is not the ocean at the same time it cannot be separated from the ocean.

7 years ago I read Reza Aslan’s God: A Human History. After sampling the platter of world religions I joked to myself, Hmmm, if I had to pick the one I vibe with most, I guess it would be Sufism (Islamic mysticism). I didn’t know anything about Sufism other than the Rumi and Hafez poetry I read as a teenager, but the way Aslan described Ibn ‘Arabi’s concept of 'wahadat al-wujud' (or Unity of Being) reminded me of Spinozism. I guess what I’m trying to say is...I just think Sufi metaphysics is...right. Or, it speaks to how I tend to think about reality. It’s not something I can prove (that I don’t exist, while at the same time I am part of the ALL that is God), but it makes the most sense to me.

In the Sufi literature class, S jokes to me: “You’re the only non-Muslim in this class.” The same was probably true at the iftar + concert. S points to someone from the class: “The Maoist is a recent convert. This is their first time fasting for Ramadan.” “Is [our professor] fasting?” “Of course. I saw him at the iftar last night and talked to him about translation. I told him it’s ghastly to try to fit Persian verse into an English rhyme scheme. He agreed with me.” (We are clearly partisans of blank verse translations… yet so much of what’s out there has been poorly translated or not translated at all.) 

Much of the lyrics sung with the gorgeous music were verses written by the great Turkish-language Sufi poet and mystic Yunus Emre ("the Dante of Turkey," I whispered to S). S was ecstatic listening to the haunting ney (a kind of flute). We just so happened to be sitting in the same row as the professor. I tapped S and whispered that it looked like he was really enjoying the music. He was smiling with his eyes closed and swaying his head from side to side. He looked like he was having...a profound experience. This prof usually has what I guess you’d call ‘resting bitch face’ (which I always found funny because it runs counter to his sweet and gentle personality). But not at the concert. Pure bliss was painted on his face. It was then that it dawned on me that Sufism, for him, was probably something more than a scholarly interest. I thought about what it must have been like to discover something so beautiful and profound, and to know, in that moment, that your life will be changed forever—you might go off to Iran and devote your entire life to studying medieval texts. 

Of course this Ramadan I am thinking continuously about the genocide in Gaza, how an entire population is being starved to death by the sadistic leaders of Israel, how terrible it must be to be bombed and shot at during the holy month, or to break your fast with boiled grass and animal feed. I feel truly ashamed to come from a country that is complicit in this violence. I hope everyone continues to apply pressure to end this war—it feels hopeless now, but it is making a difference.

[youremyheaven]

Sufi Love Through the Lens of Bollywood Music

Bollywood music is heavily influenced by Sufism and Sufi notions of love permeate the lyrics of most romantic songs. I want to explore some important Sufi concepts and how they manifest themselves in these songs and within the context of these movies.

Chand Sifarish from the movie Fanaa

"Zid hain ab toh hain khud ko mitaana, hona hain tujh mein fanaa"

trans: "I insist on ridding myself of me, I want to annihilate myself in you"

Bollywood romantic songs often emphasize on yearning, seeking and longing for the lover and Sufi poetry which speaks of a soul's yearning to unite with God serves as a useful metaphor to speak of the same. The intense, maddening, spiritual kind of love, although seldom portrayed accurately on screen is ever present in song lyrics. The concept of "twin flames" has been popular in the West for the last couple of years and is by and large, very misunderstood. From a purely spiritual perspective, The Lover and The Beloved are in each other all along (similar to the Jungian concept of anima & animus but slightly different) and yearn to unite with each other. In order for union to be possible however, one must first destroy their "ego" which they call "self".

2. Raabta from Agent Vinod

"Tera milna hai us rab ka ishaara maanu, Mujhko banaya tere jaise hi kisi ke liye"

trans: Meeting you was a signal from God, that he had made me for someone like you

There is a lot of emphasis on the soul's innate knowing and its longing for love which is its longing for God and how seeking union with the Beloved is the inner knowing to realise one's God nature and unite with God in Sufism. This song captures that feeling of things being "destined" and how God has always guided your union.

3. Katra Katra from Alone

"Khud se khaali ho jaoon, aaja tujhse bhar jaoon. Tinka, tinka jal jaoon. Aise jala do"

trans: "let me empty myself, let me fill myself with you. i want to burn up, twig by twig and you burn me."

This is a very erotic song and speaks of love in a very carnal way. However, this idea of dissolving yourself in your lover is a very Sufi one. What is love, if not absolute submersion in the object of your desire?

4. Satrangi Re from Dil Se

This movie itself is very deeply spiritual and I suggest watching it. However this song beautifully captures the 7 stages of love and two people going through it, in a very poetic and profound way. Go watch it!!

Some poignant lyrics include:

Dil ka saaya humsaaya

trans: The shadow of my heart is your shadow

(In my post about twin flames, I had touched upon this but I'll make another post about how the Jungian concept of shadow work and integrating your shadow is to understand your twin and merge them within your consciousness)

Koi noor hai tu (Are you a light?)

Kyun door hai tu (Why are you so far away)

Jab paas hai tu (When you're near me)

Ehsaas hai tu (Then you're a feeling itself)

Koi khwaab hai ya parchai hai (Are you a dream or a shadow?)

These lines alone capture the bittersweet, all consuming, indescribable and maddening feelings that a twin triggers in us.

I also highly suggest reading the lyric translation of this song as a whole because it captures the twin flame experience so exquisitely.

5. Tujh mein rab dikhta hai from Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

"Tujh mein rab dikhta hai

Yaara main kya karoon

Sajde sar jhukta hai

Yaara main kya karoon"

trans: I see God in you my beloved, what do I do? My head bows down in worship to you my beloved, what do I do?

in my post I had mentioned the 7 stages of love, one of which is worship for the beloved. this song beautifully captures that feeling, of being absolutely devoted and enraptured by the beloved, that nothing less than worship could equate to how you feel for them. its beyond love, beyond admiration, its a holy kind of emotion, its devotion.

🧜🏼‍♀️🦢🦋👼🏼🧚🏼‍♀️🕊🐳👸🏼🧚🏼‍♂️🦋🦢🧜🏼‍♀️🕊🧚🏼‍♀️🦋👼🏼🐳🕊🕊🧚🏼‍♀️👸🏼🧚🏼‍♂️🧜🏼‍♀️🦢🦋

i wanted to keep this post brief so that it can be an accessible entry point but lmk if you want more posts of this kind!! i hope this was interesting💛💛

[y2kbeautyandother2000sstuff]

Encart 97 World Music Tour Sacred Sufi Music and Ney

1997

Stills taken from Youtube, user RollOnToVictory

I absolutely loved this one! My dad's side is Lebanese and Syrian and I swear my ears knew that because I've loved Middle Eastern music since I was a kid and before I delved into learning about my heritage.

[postpunkindustrial]

Master Musicians Of Jajouka – Tribe Ahl Serif: Master Musicians Of Jajouka

Musicians have been making fucking loud music for a long long time,.

Get it from my Google Drive HERE

[why-not-m-e]

sufi music would fix me

[kafi-farigh-yusra]

Saara music, sab singers aik taraf aur ABIDA PARVEEN aik taraf.

Literally nothing can match her voice.

💜🩷💜

[claudsville]

Dantain - Music for Tai Chi, Qi Gong & Flow

Rivers of melody. Album ‘Dantian’ by Earth Tree Healing.  Released 31st August 2024.  I’ve spent a number of years accompanying the practices at wellbeing shows with rhythm.  It’s allowed me to connect with the energies and witness these wonderful journeys.  This album is a continuance of the breath, to practice, relax and be peaceful.  The music speaks more than words. With oriental…

[eyeoftheheart]

Remembrance of Light: Zikr Nur-I-Muhammad

[urdubooks24]

Sufism, an ancient mystical tradition, transcends boundaries of time and space, encompassing poets, saints, and seekers of divine love. In this comprehensive guide, we embark on a journey through the rich tapestry of Sufinama, exploring its diverse facets, from poetry and music to spiritual teachings and stories. Let us delve deep into the essence of Sufism and unravel its timeless wisdom.

[transmaskedfag]

Thank queen Arooj Aftab for blessing my ears at work in the morning

Happy pride month stream Night Reign love peace and lots of cheese

[loneberry]

Recorded this snippet of the Al-Firdaus Ensemble, a Sufi music group influenced by the great Muslim poets of Al-Andalus, which I saw perform tonight for the Mawlid al-Nabi (birthday of the Prophet). Every time this singer opened his mouth to sing my eyes started welling up with tears… his voice was so beautiful. It touched me the same way Jeff Buckley’s soaring voice touches me.

[seendhoojaa]

“Her face is an artist’s thought as well as its translation.”

[livingpresence]

I only knew love when I knew love of Thee I sealed up my heart against Thy enemy

I stood long in converse with Thee, who doth see My heart's inner secrets, but Thou I don't see

My love is twin loves, yet the twain are for Thee The first's for Thy love, and the other's for Thee

And as for the first, which is love of Thy love: Remembrance complete, not distracted from Thee

And as for the second: my true love of Thee I see Thou as present in all that I see

All praise to Thy name, and no praises for me For Thine is the glory in all unity

'Araftul-hawā mudh 'araftu hawāk Wa-'aghlaqtu qalbī 'alā man 'ādāk

'Uḥibbuka ḥubbayni, ḥubba l-hawā Wa-ḥubban li-'annaka 'ahlu l-lidhāk

Fa-'amma l-ladhī huwa ḥubbul-hawā Fa-shughlī bitchdhikrika 'an man siwāk

Wa-'amma l-ladhī 'anta 'ahlu l-lahu Fa-lastu 'ara l-kawna ḥattā 'arāk

Fa-la l-ḥamdu fī dhā wa-lā dhāka lī Wa-lākin laka l-ḥamdu fī dhā wa-dhāk

— Poem by Rabi'a al-Basri, translated by Dr. Tim Winter for Sami Yusuf's composition "I Only Knew Love"

[daily-music-musings]

July 19th, 2024

Musings:

Sufi × Desi. Nothing else needs to be said. I first heard another iteration of this classic song at Global Village in Dubai. There were performances in the Pakistan Pavilion and they finished their show to this song. Transfixed is the word. The music and their coordinated Sufi dance, the costumes and the feel of the crowd. Even though just the song remains without all these other entrapments, I'm still transfixed.