Page 60 - 31OCT2019E

Nizamuddin Dargah is a place

where tranquility finds home

Soulful Qawwalis at Delhi’s shrine of Sufi saint Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya have been creating an
atmosphere of social harmony among people for centuries, writes nibedita saha

he shrine of Sufi saint Haz- The shining expanse of the Dargah cal atmosphere of the place.
rat Nizamuddin Auliya is , the Farsi inscription on the shrine, “I have never experienced some-
one place where you can beautiful artwork crafted on the walls thing like this before in my life. It is
look for your kind of solace, and pillars make you fall in love with the best place I have visited in India
T alongside witnessing the the place instantly. so far. I would like to revisit this place,”
century-old tradition of Qawwali every Qawwali starts right after the shared John who has to the country for
Thursday night. maghrib namaz (the evening prayer). a month-long vacation.
Located in the narrow lanes of west The qawwals start with the intonations Another tourist, Pietro from Mi-
area of New Delhi, Hazrat Nizamuddin of ‘Allah Hu’ and soon the echoes of lan who is chef by profession said that
Aulia Dargah has carried on the tradi- some famous Qawwalis like Chap Tilak, “Food is the thing what brought me
tion of performing live music (Qawwali) Kun Faya Kun, Tajdare Haram, Aaj Rang here. I had one of the best kababs here
for 700 years now. Hai, and others, cheerfully start filling but then the Qawwali is just a cherry on
A part of popular culture now, these the place. the cake for my trip to India.”
Qawwalis have now contributed to The crowd starts gathering from ear- It is not just the Qawwali that brings
Hindi films like Rockstar, their con- ly evening, and sometimes the Dargah people of different religion and region
scientious mention in the book, City of gets so crowded that some of the peo- together at the Dargah, it is also the
Djinns, by William Dalrymple is heart- ple have to stand and enjoy the musical faith in Nizamuddin Auliya. Faith has
warming too. night. The crowd there also reflects the no religion at Nizamudin and you can
The Thursday night Qawwali or diversity of India. spot several no-Muslims offering cha-
‘Jummeraat’ attracts people, from all The Dargah is one of the most-vis- dar and rose petals to the Sufi saint’s
backgrounds, age and religion, and ited places among the tourists too. A tomb.
hence its ever-so growing popularity. group of four people from Australia, Asha Devi from Noida travels all the
It is the melody of Sufism that connects that I met recently, were shocked and way to Nizamuddin as she believes that
people to Nizamuddin Dargah . mesmerised by the magical and mysti- her prayers are always accepted at the
The country yard of Nizamuddin is Dargah .
a place for more than 70 graves of fa- She said, “I came here for the first
mous poets, saints and Mughal emper- The Thursday time years ago, when my father was not
ors, including Amir Khusrau; Jahanara, night Qawwali or well. Someone told me to offer chadar
daughter of Mughal emperor Shah Ja- to the shrine and I did the same. My
han; Muhammad Shah Rangeela and ‘Jummeraat’ attracts faith brings me here everytime time I
many more. people, from all am in trouble.”
My first visit to the Dargah, on a Qawwalis are like musical stories
chilly winter evening a couple of years backgrounds, age and and qawwals are the storytellers. They
back, changed into a habit, a routine, narrate stories through music, which
apart of my Thursday schedule, in no religion, and hence will surely touch your heart. It is truly
time. You have to take the narrow lanes its ever-so growing an incomprehensible experience.
dominated by the flower and chadar Amar Gujral, a footballer by profes-
sellers to find yourself finally to the popularity. It is the sion was on his first visit on Thursday a
Dargah entrance. As soon as you enter, melody of Sufism that few days back. He said, “I have been to
a sense a calmness overpowers your Dargah many times but this is the first
heart. Every corner of the Nizamuddin connects people to time I am listening the Qawwali. I have
Dargah smells of rose petals, offered by Nizamuddin Dargah always heard about it from people and
the devotees. now I understand why one shouldn’t

Tehelka / 31 october 2019 60 www.Tehelka.com