Ankhiyan Udeek Thiyyaan (My Eyes Long for You)

Berthea Snark, Ph.D. (Psychology)  in McCall Smith’s ‘A Conspiracy of Friends’ tells us that the best thing one can ever do is to follow one’s heart.

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan similarly sang about one’s overall growth that results from not being a slave to reason and conventionalism.

                   One of my friends said the other day, “The final destination is the same no matter what path you take. It all evens out. Materially and spiritually.”

                    I’m not sure if it all does even out for everyone materially given that we are all governed (in a way) by different factors that have brought us to wherever we are at present. Not everyone dies middle-class, and leaves the same estate behind. Even if ‘estate’ could encompass life skills/children’s education and accomplishments/children’s estates…I think equalizing everyone might be stretching it a bit. How about comparing a successful Egyptian goatherd with a Nebraskan real estate agent or a Singaporean insurance ‘Hall of Fame’-er? I guess it’s a matter of perspective. At the end of the day, one can’t take one’s possessions over to the afterlife…so I agree in that particular aspect, we are all even for sure.

                    I’m also not sure if we even out spiritually at the end, because we all have our own definitions of what constitutes spirituality.

                   But let’s assume the word spirituality in its entirety and wholeness refers to a heightened consciousness of a life-affirming, positive, higher being – the creator, Brahma, Allah – however we know this being or power by our different perceptions. Then I dare to suppose my friend could be correct. Why? Because one can’t assume or judge another person, him/her being as much God’s creation as one is, never mind his/her faith. 

                    Remember the story of the Buddhist monk who realized that he had been wrong to judge a butcher harshly when he himself was in the wrong as an unfilial son? Remember Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) who pointed out that a prostitute feeding water to a stray dog would enter heaven, and not a believer who practiced his faith only outwardly, with a cold heart?

                    I suppose my friend could be also considered wrong, depending on how righteous one is about one’s faith…I mean, since each religion seems to consider itself the ‘true’ and absolute message, it would deem all other religions to be simply invalid.

                    The common thread among all our faiths, though, no matter which one is right or wrong (only God knows, after all) is the journey of all souls towards the divine, consciously or unconsciously. The Buddhist monk made a conscious choice upon his enlightenment, while the butcher was living it, unconsciously.

                    The seeking of union with the divine as a means of attaining a higher consciousness both to appreciate and to deal with the physical/material/emotional challenges of this earthly life, is a common yearning. We see it in Christian liturgies and hymns, in Bhakti and Sufi poetry, in qawwalis…In Asia – the Indian Sub-continent specifically – since the 6^th century.

                    Bhakti poetry was originally marked by the preponderance of women poets who sang/chanted their passionate devotion for the divine. Many of these women were of lower castes (Mirabai being one exception), and not always formally educated (some not at all – which makes their talent for poetry and composition all the more surprising…this could spark off a discussion about the poet as 'oracle', Plato and most religions' disapproval of poets as 'dangerous' persons, reason/emotion/regulation/experession, and so on...hmm).

                    These women poet-saints were housewives and mothers (this is 1400 years ago), who exhibited a tendency to disregard cultural ‘rules’ and ‘regulations’ (formulated by upper-caste men). They also disdained the calcification of religion into meaningless rituals in a language inaccessible to the masses. They insisted upon living the ‘householder’ (Grihasta) phase of their lives and shunned celibacy, showing their devotion to the divine through earthly service to their loved ones, with humility and selflessness.

                    Going by French feminist theory, I suppose one could say that these women poets were, in a way, torchbearers for modern day feminists. They questioned religious/social mores, and doggedly sang/wrote their life narratives in their own languages, as per their own rules. In this, they were highly inspirational.

                    During the Mughal rule between 1500-1850, Hindu devotional poetry influenced Muslim poets and musicians to incorporate this poet/saint voice into their writing/song. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the product of 6 centuries of classical professional musicians, distilled the singer’s and the listener’s participation in the performance into one trance through his rhetorical Qawwali lyrics. Here is one popular favorite whose translation I got off the net. I’m not sure if it is accurate as I don’t speak Punjabi. I’ve only copied a portion:

Ankhiyan Udeek Thiyyaan (My Eyes Long for You)

"O my Friend, come to my home,
I’ll welcome You with open arms.

My eyes are longing to see You,
My heart pines for You.

Ever since You have been cross with me,
Even the crows have fallen silent on my threshold.

All the joys have vanished,
The merriment’s gone.

Today I have learnt the meaning of parting.

O my Friend, without You I’m lonely.
What have You where You dwell?

I pace up and down the terrace to look for You.
My soul is without peace and my eyes, worn of patience.

…
Though He is the Creator, He has come to me in human form.

My heart has been conquered and I still pine for love."

                    In my experience, when one plays NFAK’s rendition of this song – even the pop version – it is easy to forget oneself in the beauty of the classical music, the singer’s vehemence, and the message.

                    I hope in 2013, we will grow our inner selves as we progress materially, Ameen. At the risk of sounding stuffy, I dare say the world needs love and ethics, compassion and mercy, the seeking of a higher purpose amidst mindless consumerism and hoarding, as it always has…perhaps now more so.