The Indian sub-continent, especially the provinces of Punjab and Sindh, are rich in Sufi heritage and tradition. Sufi shrines honoring the spirit, poetry, dance and music of great Sufi saints are found in abundance in these areas. Sufi mystics have made rich contributions to the arts rendering some of the most beautiful poetry and music known to mankind, its philosophy being the driving force behind many lives, irrespective of race, religion and gender.
Hazrat Moinudin Chishti, Hazrat Khwaja Bakhtiar Khaki, Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya, Baba Farid and Amir Khusrau are all great Sufi poets who spread their message through hymns and qawwalis (sufi music). Their work is venerated as the greatest example of religious tolerance and universal brotherhood and is the inspiration for the Sufi musicians of today.
With the aim of elevating this divine art form to the status it deserves the 4th International Mystic Sufi Festival is currently being held in Karachi, Pakistan (3-7 May, 2007).
The festival will feature, for five consecutive days, groups from Bosnia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Afghanistan, Egypt, Senegal, Algeria, Turkey, India, Uzbekistan, Morocco, Holland, Syria and Pakistan. Dance, music and poetry will form the essential elements of the performances which will highlight the eternal wisdom and mesmerizing beauty of the Sufi message. The festival will feature over 300 Sufi music artists from all over the world. Abida Parveen, Fateh Ali Khan, Sabri Qawal, Raza Alan Fakir, Sain Zahoor, Najam Sheraz are among the artists from Pakistan.
"The main purpose of this festival is to communicate the spirit of Islam as a proponent of peace and love to a wide audience." credit
Hazrat Moinudin Chishti, Hazrat Khwaja Bakhtiar Khaki, Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya, Baba Farid and Amir Khusrau are all great Sufi poets who spread their message through hymns and qawwalis (sufi music). Their work is venerated as the greatest example of religious tolerance and universal brotherhood and is the inspiration for the Sufi musicians of today.
With the aim of elevating this divine art form to the status it deserves the 4th International Mystic Sufi Festival is currently being held in Karachi, Pakistan (3-7 May, 2007).
The festival will feature, for five consecutive days, groups from Bosnia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Afghanistan, Egypt, Senegal, Algeria, Turkey, India, Uzbekistan, Morocco, Holland, Syria and Pakistan. Dance, music and poetry will form the essential elements of the performances which will highlight the eternal wisdom and mesmerizing beauty of the Sufi message. The festival will feature over 300 Sufi music artists from all over the world. Abida Parveen, Fateh Ali Khan, Sabri Qawal, Raza Alan Fakir, Sain Zahoor, Najam Sheraz are among the artists from Pakistan.
"The main purpose of this festival is to communicate the spirit of Islam as a proponent of peace and love to a wide audience." credit
:: References
[] INTERNATIONAL MYSTIC SUFI FESTIVAL 2007
[] Bilal Zuberi has a sum up on it as well, so does Blog Bharti.
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