Interesting article. Reminds me of the waves of revivalism that sweep the US every couple of decades, or so:
Pakistanis Turn To Mystics To Evade Worldly Pressures
The shrine of Bari Imam has hundreds of daily visitors from all over the country
By Asif Farouqi, IOL Correspondent
ISLAMABAD, September 17 (IslamOnline.net) - Faced with growing economic hardships, political instability and plethora of social problems, Pakistanis are fast turning to saints and shrines in pursuance of peace of mind as well as emotional and spiritual guidance, with solutions to problems like social injustice not in sight.
Every day thousands of Pakistanis flock to shrines of Muslim saints across the country.
They reportedly go to commune with Allah, seek the blessings of the saint and to have their problems solved through mystical intervention.
Many other devotees visit living saints, believing they have magical powers.
People visit saints and shrines with an eye on worldly desires, not as part of religious duty.
Precarious economic conditions, absence of justice and opportunities as well as other social imbalances have left the Pakistani people with no choice but to seek such help.
Most Muslim scholars believe that seeking the blessings of pious people or saints is not forbidden but people should avoid going round the grave because it is an imitation of circumambulating the Ka`bah, or touching, or directing du`a’ (supplications) to the righteous rather than Allah Who alone is capable of granting help and warding off harm.
Bari Imam
Located in the heart of the federal capital Islamabad, the shrine of Bari Imam has hundreds of daily visitors from all over the country, coming in droves to pay homage to Shah Abdul Latif, the saint buried here.
Like hundreds of Central Asian and Arab preachers who came to South Asia during the last fourteen hundred years to spread Islam, the ancestors of Shah Abdul Latif migrated from Iraq to settle in this part of the Indian sub-continent.
Abdul Latif, later known as the mystic Bari Imam among his followers, traveled through the region, spreading Islam’s message of love, peace and universal tolerance.
He finally settled in the foothills encircling Islamabad and was buried here 350 years ago.
Like many others in Pakistan, the shine of Bari Imam is frequented by people from every walk of life.
From poor peasants of the Punjab to businessmen of Karachi, people come to this shrine in the hundreds every day.
As it is located in the heart of Islamabad, the shrine also attracts followers from the power corridors of the country.
Religious Education
In the past, these shrines used to serve as centers of formal and religious education.
People would come to these shrines even from foreign countries to take advantage of the excellent boarding facilities offered by the schools affiliated to these shrines.
For centuries these places also served as a source of spiritual enlightenment and cultural interaction, with people coming from far and wide to participate in poetry recitals or Sufi music concerts.
But it is different now. Today, most people flock to the shrines of these Sufi mystics with an eye towards achieving worldly desires with the blessings of these men of God.
“My daughter suffers from chronic headache. I am taking this oil with me to apply to her head. God would bless her because of this saint, I am sure He will, because this saint is a holy man” said Muhammad Ramzan, an elderly man who came all the way from Sahiwal, a small town in the Punjab hundreds of miles away from Islamabad, to take back oil out of a burning lamp over the grave of the saint.
There are many like him. Some lighting lamps and a few tying threads to the branches of an old looking tree as an expression of wishing blessings from the saint.
Dr Khalid Iqbal, a member of the management committee of the shrines told Islamonline.net that this tree was one of the most revered things in the compound.
Bari Imam is said to have sat under this centuries-old-tree during his long years of meditation.
And now people believe the essence of his kindness and blessings can still be found there.
Many believe it is almost certain that the wishes and desires uttered under this tree while lighting a lamp or tying a thread will come true.
This is known as making a “mannat.” Once a wish is fulfilled, the devotee comes back to the shrine to offer thanks and to untie his or her ribbon.
An elderly woman was a typical example of how people used the shrine to vent their feelings of social injustice.
“They have killed my son by torture in the police station. Nobody listens to me now, wherever I go for seeking justice. I came to Islamabad to meet President Musharraf but no one allows me to see him and now Bari Imam is my last hope” said Manzooran Bibi.
There is no specific way of paying tributes to a shrine. Everyone has their own way of expressing spiritual freedom and devotion.
People would queue up outside a huge fireplace to collect the ashes of burnt wood and flower petals which devotees shower over the graves.
All these petals are collected and burnt in this fireplace which is kept going round the clock by the attendant.
According to Dr. Iqbal this was a tradition set by Bari Imam himself. Apparently, during his time of meditation he never let this fire burn out and it has supposedly been burning continuously for the last four centuries.
The shrine, like many others, also serves as shelter to many homeless people. A round the clock public kitchen or “lungar” serves hundreds of devotees every day, most of whom come to the shrine for a day-long visit.
But there are some, several dozens to be precise, who live in the shrine because they simply have no other place to live like.
Living Saints
Not all the saints from whom people seek blessings and guidance are dead.
Some 250 kilometers north of Islamabad on a high hilltop lives Baba Dhanakka who is renowned for his political influence.
The living saint or “Pir” of Dhanakka Sharif, as he is known, is perhaps the most frequently visited mystic by top politicians.
He lives on top of a high mountain to which access is difficult and it needs hours of driving on narrow mountainous roads to get there.
Still, every day, he is visited by hundreds of devotes who come to pay their respects from all over the country.
But the old man or “Baba” of Dhanakka has developed something of a reputation among politicians and government functionaries who frequently visit him in search of blessings.
From young rising politicians to aspiring ministers, all come to the Baba Dhanakka to be beaten by his stick.
He doesn’t oblige everyone. Two politicians he beat with his “magical” stick became prime ministers.
A smooth and well carpeted road from Islamabad to Dhanakka Sharif is a rare thing for a small village.
But this village has this unusual privilege which no other village has in this area.
It was built by the former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto as a gesture of gratitude to the Pir of Dhannaka, who Benazir believed helped her to become the prime minister by beating her with a stick.
Just besides the road, a helipad is also marked out, to facilitate the visits of VIPs such as Benazir herself.
The road is a potent reminder of the reverence with which many people hold such pirs and also the power and influence wielded by superstitions. |
