agey chino Muhammadi Nur
o mon, agey chino Muhammadi Nur
dhuriley bondhurey paiba
asoin bondhu sereepur
behold the Light Muhammadan!
o heart of mine, recognize first - the Light Muhammadan
seek and behold! the friend is found
abiding at the beauteous land
sereepur desher majhe,
nanan rongey bondhu shajey go
singhason roy monipurey
tar niche Muhammadpur
amidst the beauteous land
infinite hues the friend reflect
the divine throne is at the pureland
followed by the Muhammadan land
Muhmmadpur er kachey
lahut er bazar ache
lahut er bazar ache
diba nishi shei bazarey
huhu shobdey uthey shur
by the Muhammadan kingdom
a marketplace of the divine realm (lahut)
day and night therein
emanates the sound of Hu
oporup shei bazarey
shonar moyur pekham dhorey
hostee baaghey khela korey
shorpo thakey adampur
a golden peacock spread its wings,
a tiger and an elephant dances
at the Adamic kingdom the snake roams
lahut er bazar er majhe
ruper ghorey ghonta bajey
ghur ghur shurey donka bajey
bashi bajey sultanpur
within the divine realm's house of beauty
mystic bells chime*
sonorous drum-beat rises,
from the highest kingdom a flute plays
ruper ghorey ajob leela
chander majhe bondher khela
je dekhaiasey raza hoisey
mrittu nai tar jagatpur
divine sport in play at the house of beauty
the full moon beholds the friend's face
one who glanced at it once^ has become a king
death is not for him in this world
lahut er bepari jara
saburpurey thakey tara
omullo ratan chiney
bandhiya kam shomundur
those who seek the divine realm
the land of patience is their address,
purchasing the pearls of great price
they sail across the sensual oceans
lahut ero biki kini
heera lal poroshmoni
jaitey parey shei bazar
je thakey amanatpur
are of priceless gems and philosopher's stone
only they can enter that bazar,
who guards their sacred trust**
Shitalang faqir e boley
shashuri nonodi jaley go
dubailam amar bhora
shagoro kaminipur
Faqir Shitalang is now singing
inside the web of maya of apparent relations,
upon the ocean of desires
my fisherman's net is now cast
agey chino Muhammadi Nur
O mon, agey chino Muhammadi Nur
dhuriley bondhure paiba
asoin bondhu sreepur
agey chino Muhammadi Nur
agey chino Muhammadi Nur
agey chino Muhammadi Nur
agey chino Muhammadi Nur
behold the Light Muhammadan!
o heart of mine, recognize first the Light Muhammadan
seek and behold! the friend is found
abiding at the beauteous land
o heart of mine, recognize first the Light Muhammadan
o heart of mine, recognize first the Light Muhammadan
~ A Sufi Baul song original by Shitalang Shah, translated in English by Sadiq M. Alam
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Click on the Sound Cloud to listen to this song |
Some Footnotes in Reference to Sacred Traditions of Islam
Below are 3 references used in the song which I am explaining very briefly to give an idea how the Sufi Baul songs are permeated with haqiqat, mystical vision and truth of highest order through very concise words that carry ocean of meanings.
lahut er bazar er majhe
ruper ghorey ghonta bajey
within the divine realm's house of beauty
mystic bells chime*
* A companion once asked the Holy Prophet, upon him blessings and peace, as to how wahi or divine revelation came to him. The Holy Prophet replied that “there are times when I hear something like the chiming of bells and this mode of wahi is the hardest on me. After that, when this chime-sequence ends, that which has been said by the sound seems to have been committed to my memory. And then there are times when the angel appears before me in the shape of a man.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 2:1)
jaitey parey shei bazar
je thakey amanatpur
only they can enter that bazar,
who guards their sacred trust**
** Allah bestowed the Sacred Trust to Humanity, the Secret of secrets within the breasts of Man
The Quran says: "We offered Divine Responsibilities to the heavenly and earthly planes and to the primordial mountains, but they all refused it, overwhelmed with awe. Only humanity, although outwardly lacking in mastery and knowledge, dared to accept this most profound responsibility." ~ Quran 33:72
The sacred trust point to a number of realities such: Man bear the responsibility to be the most complete image of God, thus Man is the representative of God, man has the consciousness and knowledge of good and evil, man has the responsibility to know God and become godly (rabbani), man has the final accountability, Man within carries the Spirit of God, the Sirr inside when God breathed His Spirit inside Adam.
chander majhe bondher khela
je dekhaiasey raza hoisey
the full moon beholds the friend's face
^ Even though we have eyes to see the world of appearances, hardly we employ the eyes of the heart to see things as they truly are. We are mostly blind to the haqiqat, the inner reality. Uwais Qarni, a mystic follower of the Prophet who in his life time couldn't meet the Prophet eye to eye, yet was a very ardent lover of the Prophet. Before his death, the Prophet's asked his companions to find Uwais and carry some of his belongings to him as gift.
Upon meeting Prophet's ambassadors Uwais Qarni asked the intimate companion Ali:
'Ya 'Ali, how many times did you see the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihe-e-Wa-Sallam?'
Hazrat Ali instantly knew what he meant, he understood that Uwais is not asking an ordinary question. Uwais was asking how many times really Ali beheld the Prophet with his eyes of the heart, had glanced at his haqiqat. A deep silence fell over everyone present.
After a while Sayyidina Ali raised his lowered head which bowed down at the deep remembrance of his beloved master, teacher, (spiritual) father and life long companion. And Ali replied, 'Ya Uwais in my life I only saw the Prophet one time.'
Sayyidina 'Umar, who was also present, was looking at Ali in amazement. Ali continued, 'I saw him one time. The Prophet called me and told me, 'Look at me from my navel and above.
I looked and I saw that the Prophet from his navel up filled the universes and the Seven Heavens.
From his neck and up, I was unable to see, but it was above the Sidratul Muntaha (Furthermost Limit).
Then he told me, 'Look from my navel and down.'
I looked and I saw all these universes, all these worlds, stars and planets had disappeared and all that I saw was the Prophet from his waist to his knees filling up that entire space.
And from his knees down to his feet I was unable to see.
Then He said, 'Look at all of me, from top to bottom.'
I looked at him, and the Sidratul Muntaha and all these universes disappeared, and all I saw was Hazrat Muhammad everywhere.
At that time I knew that Hazrat Muhammad is the Heart of the Divine Presence.'
Then Sayyidina Uwais looked at me and confirmed, 'You really saw the Prophet with haqq (truth) in that one time.'
This is the sacred glance of beholding the friend only once that makes one king above all the worlds. Even true vision of the form of the Prophet (in dream) is a sign of confirmed grace of God.
About the Author: Shitalang Shah
Shitalang Shah Munshi, son of Diya Bakhsh hailed from Tarinipur, Sialtic, Cachar, Assam. His father came from Dhaka, Bangladesh and settled in Assam. He was a great Sufi poet of his time and was a disciple of Maulana Abdul Wahab Mian Sahib of Sylhet town, a renowned Sufi of Naqshabandiya order. He became a murid of Sufi Abdul Qadir Saheb of Chishtiya order at Sylhet to attain perfection. Having become a perfect Sufi under the able guidance of his preceptor, he was able to perform various miracles, which are testified by the people even today.
He composed many songs in Sylheti Nagri a popular script of that time. His poems and songs comprising of praises of God, praises of the Prophet, Sufi thoughts and Islamic theology. Most of songs are at Cachar, Sylhet and remains to be unpublished because of the position of his disciples who believe the songs are to be transmitted verbally and its spiritual message to be transmitted from heart to heart.
Shitalang Shah's teaching was responsible for transmitting Sufism in the entire region of South-east Sylhet (now part of Bangladesh) and Cachar, Assam (India). His influence on the people made a remarkable change on the Muslim way of life and gave a new impetus to Sufism. He composed a large number of songs of inspiration in the spiritual aspects of Islam. His famous rags are, even today, recited by the people.
Shitalang Shah was a great scholar and had deep knowledge of Islamic learning. Hence, his songs are characterised by high creative imagination and depth of vision that speaks of his poetic excellence. The intellectuals are bound to look on his songs with an eye of reverence as they contain a rich store of Sufi elements.
The mortal body of the saint is resting at Bara Takri in the district of Sylhet, Bangladesh and still visited by many pilgrims with hope to receive baraka from him. (from Biographical Encyclopaedia of Sufis: South Asia - N. Hanif)
# References:
* Spiritual Songs of Sylhet
* Biographical Encyclopaedia of Sufis: South Asia By N. Hanif
* Nature of Divine Revelation
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