• Home
  • Contact Me
Wednesday, December 7, 2022
Rana Safvi
  • Home
  • About
  • Book & Publication
  • Culture & Heritage
    • Our Cultural Heritage
    • Sufi saints
  • Food
  • Hazrat-E-Dilli
  • Rana’s Space
    • Walks & Talks
    • Rana’s Space
    • Sher o Sukhan
  • Travel
    My favorite artworks from European Museums

    My favorite artworks from European Museums

    Gandhara Art in Humboldt Forum: Life of Lord Buddha

    Gandhara Art in Humboldt Forum: Life of Lord Buddha

    Jewish Heroes Square in Krakow, Poland

    Jewish Heroes Square in Krakow, Poland

    Block no. 4 in Auschwitz concentration camp

    Block no. 4 in Auschwitz concentration camp

    Ottoman tent in Princess Czartoryski Museum in Krakow, Poland

    Ottoman tent in Princess Czartoryski Museum in Krakow, Poland

    The Steam Engine Building, Potsdam, Germany

    The Steam Engine Building, Potsdam, Germany

    Assyrian human-headed winged bull from Nimrud; 9th cent. BCE; Pergamon Museum, Berlin

    Assyrian human-headed winged bull from Nimrud; 9th cent. BCE; Pergamon Museum, Berlin

    Catacombs in St Peter’s Abbey Salzburg, Austria

    Catacombs in St Peter’s Abbey Salzburg, Austria

    St Nicholas Church in #Leipzeg, #Germany

    St Nicholas Church in #Leipzeg, #Germany

    Gloriette, Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna,Austria

    Gloriette, Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna,Austria

    Matthias Church on Buda Castle Hill, Budapest

    Matthias Church on Buda Castle Hill, Budapest

    The Neptune fountain in Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna, Austria

    The Neptune fountain in Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna, Austria

    The Dohany Street synagogue in Budapest

    St Peter’s Abbey Church in Salzburg, Austria

    St Peter’s Abbey Church in Salzburg, Austria

    The Residence Fountain in Salzburg: Oundof Music

    The Residence Fountain in Salzburg: Oundof Music

    Sultana Daku and Raj Bhawan of Nainital

    Sultana Daku and Raj Bhawan of Nainital

    Sultana Daku and Raj Bhawan of Nainital

    Sultana Daku and Raj Bhawan of Nainital

    Jahan koshan cannon, Murshidabad

    Jahan koshan cannon, Murshidabad

    Takht-e Marar, Golestan Palance, Teheran, Iran

    Trending Tags

    • Contact Me
    No Result
    View All Result
    • Home
    • About
    • Book & Publication
    • Culture & Heritage
      • Our Cultural Heritage
      • Sufi saints
    • Food
    • Hazrat-E-Dilli
    • Rana’s Space
      • Walks & Talks
      • Rana’s Space
      • Sher o Sukhan
    • Travel
      My favorite artworks from European Museums

      My favorite artworks from European Museums

      Gandhara Art in Humboldt Forum: Life of Lord Buddha

      Gandhara Art in Humboldt Forum: Life of Lord Buddha

      Jewish Heroes Square in Krakow, Poland

      Jewish Heroes Square in Krakow, Poland

      Block no. 4 in Auschwitz concentration camp

      Block no. 4 in Auschwitz concentration camp

      Ottoman tent in Princess Czartoryski Museum in Krakow, Poland

      Ottoman tent in Princess Czartoryski Museum in Krakow, Poland

      The Steam Engine Building, Potsdam, Germany

      The Steam Engine Building, Potsdam, Germany

      Assyrian human-headed winged bull from Nimrud; 9th cent. BCE; Pergamon Museum, Berlin

      Assyrian human-headed winged bull from Nimrud; 9th cent. BCE; Pergamon Museum, Berlin

      Catacombs in St Peter’s Abbey Salzburg, Austria

      Catacombs in St Peter’s Abbey Salzburg, Austria

      St Nicholas Church in #Leipzeg, #Germany

      St Nicholas Church in #Leipzeg, #Germany

      Gloriette, Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna,Austria

      Gloriette, Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna,Austria

      Matthias Church on Buda Castle Hill, Budapest

      Matthias Church on Buda Castle Hill, Budapest

      The Neptune fountain in Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna, Austria

      The Neptune fountain in Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna, Austria

      The Dohany Street synagogue in Budapest

      St Peter’s Abbey Church in Salzburg, Austria

      St Peter’s Abbey Church in Salzburg, Austria

      The Residence Fountain in Salzburg: Oundof Music

      The Residence Fountain in Salzburg: Oundof Music

      Sultana Daku and Raj Bhawan of Nainital

      Sultana Daku and Raj Bhawan of Nainital

      Sultana Daku and Raj Bhawan of Nainital

      Sultana Daku and Raj Bhawan of Nainital

      Jahan koshan cannon, Murshidabad

      Jahan koshan cannon, Murshidabad

      Takht-e Marar, Golestan Palance, Teheran, Iran

      Trending Tags

      • Contact Me
      No Result
      View All Result
      Rana Safvi
      No Result
      View All Result

      Remembering Maulana Hasrat Mohani: A Celebration Of The Diverse And Secular Culture Of India

      inBook and Publication
      0

      Remembering Maulana Hasrat Mohani: A Celebration Of The Diverse And Secular Culture Of India

      His poetry reflected his passionate love for his country and his goal of total freedom from the British rule.

      By Rana Safvi On Aug 15, 2018

      For News Central

      B.R. Ambedkar with Maulana Hasrat Mohani at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s reception in 1949.

      On our 72nd Independence day, let us remember the freedom fighter, revolutionary, the poet, the maulana, and the Krishna bhakt: Maulana Hasrat Mohani and celebrate the diversity of India in all its glory.

      If the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the United States was fuelled by ‘We shall overcome’, in India that honour would go to ‘Inqilaab Zindabad’ coined by Hasrat Mohani (1875 – 1951). It became the chant of Indian revolutionaries.

      Though Mohani is remembered today for his romantic ghazal Chupke chupke raat din, his poetry reflected his passionate love for his country and his goal of total freedom from the British rule. He along with Ram Prasad Bismil got the proposal for Poorna Swaraj (complete Independence) accepted by the Indian National Congress in 1921.

      Rasm e jafa kaamyaab dekhiye kab tak rahe,
      Hubb e watan mast e khwaab dekhiye kab tak rahe,
      Daulat e Hindostan qabzah e aghyar mein
      Be adad o be hisaab dekhiye kab tak rahe!

      (How long will tyranny succeed, let us see
      Till when will freedom be a dream*, let us see
      Hindustan’s riches are in the clutches of plunderers
      Till When will this continue, let us see.)
      [*dream here alludes to awakening of Indians from their slumber]

      Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a very complex but extremely interesting personality. He was born in a zamindar family in Mohan near Unnao (Uttar Pradesh) in 1875, and was named Fazlul Hasan. ‘Hasrat’ (longing) was his nom de plume or ‘takhallus’ and Mohani as he hailed from the village Mohan. His early education was in his village and he matriculated from Government High School, Fatehpur. He went on to join the Mohammedan Anglo Oriental College, Aligarh (now Aligarh Muslim University).

      Hasrat Mohani was a very active participant in the freedom struggle and was jailed many times. A lot of his poetry is composed during his imprisonment.

      Hasrat Mohan was an ardent supporter of Bal Gangadhar Tilak and when he died, the poet penned these lines:

      Jab tak wo rahe dunyaa meN raha ham sab ke diloN par zor unka

      ab rah ke bahisht meN nizd-i-khuda huro’N pe kareNge raj Tilak –

      (As long as he stayed in this world he ruled our hearts

      Now in Paradise, closer to God, the houris will be his court.)

      Although Hasrat was a romantic poet, he was an active member of the Indian NationalCongress, the Muslim League and the Communist Party of India.

      One of his popular verses is:

      Gandhi ki tarah baith ke kaate’nge kyun charkh

      Lenin ki tarah de’nge duniya ko hila hum

      Why should we sit and spin yarn on the ‘charkha’

      Like Lenin we will shake the world.

      The revolutionary was also a romantic poet and today no ghazal mehfil is complete without a rendition of his evergreen couplet:

      “Chupke Chupke raat din aansoo bahana yaad hai

      Ham ko ab tak aashiqii kaa vo zamaanaa yaad hai”

      (Shedding tears in silence, day and night, I remember

      Those days of being in love, I still remember.)

      His appeal across nations can be judged from these two stamps by India and Pakistan.

      We often talk about his role in the Independence Movement, and his romantic ghazals but rarely do we talk of his devotion to Shri Krishna. According to Prof C.M. Naim, he wrote his first poem on Krishna in Urdu, when he was in Pune during Janmashthami in 1923.

      Hasrat Mohani also wrote many verses in praise of Shri Krishna in Bhasha. He visited Brindaban as many times as he went for Hajj to Mecca (11 times) such was his devotion to Shri Krishna.

      So while on the one hand, he wrote:

      Mose cheR karat nandlāl

      lie Thāre abīr gulāl

      DhīTh bha’ī jin kī barjorī

      auran par rang Dāl-Dāl

      ham-huN jo de’ī lipTā’e-ke Hasrat

      sārī ye chalbal nikāl

      Nandlal keeps teasing me without end;

      There he lurks, ready to pour colors on me.

      Having safely sprayed others so many times,

      He is now set in his bullying ways.

      But what if I should embrace him, Hasrat,

      Then squeeze him dry of his fancy tricks?

      ( verse and translation C M Naim’s article ‘the Maulana who loved Krishna)

      On the other hand, he wrote innumerable naats and munajats in praise of Prophet Mohammed.

      Khyaal e yaar ko dil se mita do Yaa Rasool Allah

      Khird ko apna diwaana bana do Yaa Rasool Allah

      Remove all thoughts of any other than you O Allah’s Prophet

      Make my intellect, crazy for you O Allah’s Prophet

      (The answer can be found in his Sufi leaning and learning. Sufism is the path of Bhakti, which has bound Hindus and Muslims together in a syncretic culture, which we call Ganga Jamuni.)

      He was a disciple of Hazrat Shah Abdur Razzaq Farangi Mahalli in the Qadria Sufi Order. Sufism believes in losing oneself in the Beloved to achieve salvation and the love of Radha Krishna is a beautiful example of the same.

      We can find the answer in the “introductory note to Dīvān 7 where he refers to the god Krishna as Hazrat Srī Krishna ‘Alaihi-Rahma and claims that in doing so he is follow- ing the path of his spiritual mentors, particularly Hazrat Sayyad Abdur Razzaq Bansawi, whom he mentions.”

      Hasrat’s poetry written near Makkah for pilgrimage:

      ek khalish hoti hai mehsoos rag o jaan ke qareeb

      Aan pahunche hai magar manzil e jaana’n ke qareeb

      (A strange pain near my jugular vein I can feel

      I have reached my destination near my Beloved)

      The music we hear comes from one source, it’s just that we are unable to hear beyond the first few notes. Let’s pause and listen today. To my heart, to your heart and our beloved nation’s heart. I am sure they all want the same thing: peace, prosperity and glory of our great nation where we can live without fear and hatred.

      Rana Safvi is an author, historian, blogger and is engaged in documenting of India’s Syncretic past.

      https://newscentral24x7.com/remembering-maulana-hasrat-mohani-a-celebration-of-the-diverse-and-secular-culture-of-india/

      Share this:

      • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
      • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

      Related Posts

      Siri the second city of Delhi
      Book and Publication

      Siri the second city of Delhi

      by ranasafvi
      January 23, 2022
      How Bahadur Shah Kept His Hindu And Muslim Subjects United [Book Excerpt]
      Book and Publication

      How Bahadur Shah Kept His Hindu And Muslim Subjects United [Book Excerpt]

      by ranasafvi
      November 24, 2020
      The Shah Burj in Red Fort, Delhi : Then and Now
      Book and Publication

      The Shah Burj in Red Fort, Delhi : Then and Now

      by ranasafvi
      November 9, 2020
      Twitter Facebook Instagram Youtube
      Rana Safvi

      Come, explore and fall in love the Beauties of Delhi (Dilli ki Ranaiya’n) and the World with me, Rana Safvi

      I have a masters in medieval history from the prestigious Centre for Advanced Studies, Dept. of History, AMU. A firm believer in our Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb, I am passionate about gaining and sharing knowledge and these days I am doing it via the social media platform.

      Browse by Category

      Currently Playing

      © 2018 Rana Safvi - A blog Exploring Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb of India, website handcrafted by Abu Sufiyan.

      No Result
      View All Result
      • Home
      • About
      • Book & Publication
      • Culture & Heritage
        • Our Cultural Heritage
        • Sufi saints
      • Food
      • Hazrat-E-Dilli
      • Rana’s Space
        • Walks & Talks
        • Rana’s Space
        • Sher o Sukhan
      • Travel
      • Contact Me

      © 2018 Rana Safvi - A blog Exploring Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb of India, website handcrafted by Abu Sufiyan.