The anchor of any
society lies in spirituality, the thoughts and feelings of the people determine
what sort of life and society they build. Mahatma Gandhi fought for the freedom
but was against violence and hatred. He stressed on love and service to
humanity.
Indian society has
been very fortunate to have great Spiritual leaders like Buddha and Guru Nanak
who have founded religions. Adi Shankara reorganized Hinduism.
One of the Sufi saints
who has impressed me a lot was Nund Rishi – founder of Rishi Sufi Silsilah a
funny name which came to my mind repeatedly and I was forced to write about him.
Nund Rishi or Sheikh Noor-ud-din-Wali lived between 1379 and 1438 and is known
as the patron saint of Kashmir and had his Khanqah at Charar-e-Sharif near
Srinagar.
Nund Rishi is
unique because he inherited the spiritual legacy of Lalla Arifa, a Shavite
female mystic when he was born. Nund Rishi belonged to the family of Raja of
Kishtwar, they had embraced Islam at the hands of Sufi saint Yasman Rishi ,
spiritual preceptor of Nund Rishi also. Nund Rishi founded the Rishi order or
Silsilah Rishian which is indigenous to Kashmir.
Kashmir had
witnessed a unique amalgamation of three prominent cultures and religion – The Shaiva
Philosophy of Rishis of the ancient traditional followers of Lord Shiva, the
Sufi mystic movement which came from Arabia through Central Asia, Iran,
Afghanistan and Buddhism which was a remnant of the ancient Silk Trade Route as
Buddhism had entered China through the Silk Trade Route.
The Buddhist monasteries
had become centers of literacy, culture with well organized marketplaces,
lodging and storage, but the Silk Road transmission of Buddhism ended with rise
of Islam in Central Asia and the Sufi Khanqahs replaced the monasteries.The
Sufi Khanqahs became something like Caravan Sarais where merchants often rested
in their travels along the Silk Route. Any progressive society apart from
Spirituality needs a strong network for trading and a robust economy for
progress.
Nund Rishi used
poetry as a tool to spread knowledge of the absolute. He was a revolutionary
and taught love for humanity along with tolerance and service. His poems and
clarity of his teachings that Islam crusaded against social injustice and
stressed on love, tolerance and service impressed a large number of people who
embraced Islam.
Nund Rishi or
Sheikh Noor-ud-din Wali played the role of a social reformer and raised his
voice against oppression.
Today we need to
understand our history and culture and work towards building a better future
with love and tolerance. The society will always evolve as per the thoughts and
feelings of the majority of the people and Spiritual thrust and strength is
only provided by God.
No comments:
Post a Comment