When my grandfather uttered the Kashmiri phrase “Bayati –Peer” first time before me, a sense of curiosity developed in me to know more about this phrase. I requested him to throw light on it so that I knew its historical and etymological meaning. He gave due attention to my request and narrated a very beautiful story associated with it that I am going to share with my fellow readers through this brief write-up. According to him, our society had a very compact and comprehensive moral base. There was a zero crime rate- no killing or lynching cases, no drug addiction, no gambling, no liquor shops, and no looting. People were very close to nature. They knew the art of living in harmony with other creatures. There was proper coordination among the different institutions; one institution supplementing another in the execution of various processes. All those direct or indirect actions and their results were linked with a strong bond.
That particular bond was between the ancestral spiritual master (Bayeeti Peer) and the people living in the particular area. There were spiritual Saints and Khanqahs/Ribat in every nook and corner of Kashmir. The engagements of those Saintly persons and the Heads of those Khanqahs were to enlighten the masses about the basic teachings of Islam. It was their routine practice on their part of them to arrange frequent public meetings to warn the general public about the harmful effects of social evils in society. They played a pivotal role in building the moral character of an individual. They kept their doors open and anyone whatever maybe his/her religious background could avail the benefits of those meetings. When describing this relationship in the context of Kashmir valley, this relationship was purely based on mutual love and respect. Every individual endorsed their role as the guide or as the spiritual healer or sympathizer. I recalled the occasions when our elders asked anyone from the family member to keep the best quality of fruit or any other foodstuff that was grown in their fields or orchards for the Peer Sahab (Spiritual- Master). People gave them due respect, they gave them special
gifts, remembering them on happy occasions like the Birth of a child, circumcision of a child, first hair cutting of a child, marriage ceremony, construction of houses, etc and also they were invited on sad occasions like deaths, death anniversaries, or any natural calamity They conducted special prayers and by the grace of Almighty Allah, those odd situations went away.
Their spiritual actions or prayers (Duwa) which were abstract had a direct bearing on our physical actions. When we were busy in the fieldwork or any other work, they conducted special prayers in our favor and the result of those special prayers ( Duwas), was that they yielded the best fruit against our endeavors. Those Saintly persons believed in action. They remained all the time busy in intense practices- meditations and prayers to subdue the self, renounced all material interests about body and mind to strengthen their spiritual powers. They never believed in accumulating material assets instead they believed in the philosophy of Ehsan (Giving due respect to each creature and helping them in their hour of need without any bias). Their presence and their practice recalled us the companions of our beloved Prophet SWA who lived in the place of Suffah (sometimes referred to as ‘The People of the Bench or Veranda’) were those individuals who either had no family or were too poor to afford their accommodation. “They enjoyed the company of the Holy Prophet. Most of the time they occupied themselves with worship and the recitation of the Holy Qur’an.
Things have changed now; this sacred bond has completely slackened. It became the debatable topic of today whether the successors of those families or the Khanqahs as established by them fulfill their duties or obligations as rendered by their predecessors or not. Our common observation is that they mostly have deviated from their right path. They failed to sustain this rich legacy. They gave preference to materialism over spiritualism leaving the common people in a dilemma. Due to this abrupt changing attitude engulfed the general public went into deep anxiety. Will these families or Khanqahs re-establish that sacred connection once again with that of the common masses? I asked myself this question to my grandfather. He took a deep breath, maintained silence for a movement, and then uttered this short sentence; let us hope this rich tradition will revive once again. Religious values in the spiritual dimension can guide the sustainable lifestyle and well-being of society. The ultimate purpose of religion is not only about God and rituals, but also about a relationship with the environment, nature, and fellow human beings.
Author is a teacher and columnist. He can be mailed at minamharoon123@gmail.com
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