Madho Lal Hussain

Shah Hussain was a 16th-century Punjabi Sufi poet who is regarded as a pioneer of the Kafi form of Punjabi poetry. Hussain's love for a Hindu boy named "Madho" has resulted in them being referred to as a single person with the composite name of "Madho Lal Hussain" .[1]

Madho Lal Hussain
مادھو لال حسین
The Shrine of Madho Lal Hussain in Lahore
BornHussain
945 AH or 1538
Lahore, Mughal Empire, now Punjab, Pakistan
Died1008 AH or 1599
near Ravi River, Lahore, Mughal Empire, now Punjab, Pakistan
Resting placeDurbar Madho Lal Hussain, Baghbanpura, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Pen nameShah Hussain, Hussain Faqir, Faqir Hussain Julaha, Hussain
OccupationSufi poet
LanguagePunjabi
PeriodMughal period 1538 to 1599
Notable worksKafiyan Shah Hussain

Name

Shah Hussain is also often known as Shah Hussain Faqir - Faqir meaning Dervish ( mendicant ) and Shah means King. So due to his extremely humble Sufi personality, people called him The Dervish King, a person who was a King and a Dervish at the same time.

Life

Shah Hussain is one of the most celebrated Sufi poets of Punjabi language, he is known to be as the father of Kafi style a genre in Punjabi poetry.

He was born in 945 AH (1538) in Lahore Punjab, his father was Sheikh Usman, he was a Kulsara (a clane of Rajput) and by occupation, he was a weaver(that is why in some of Shah Hussain poetic rhymes he used his pen name as Faqir Hussain Julaha that is Saint Hussain the weaver), his father in his early age enrolled him in a local school where he started to memorize Quran his teacher was Hafiz Abubakar, it was 955AH (1548) when at the age of 10 a renowned Sufi master Sheikh Bahlol Qadri (d.983AH/ 1575) met him who later became his mentor. One day in the month of Ramadan his mentor asked him to fetch water for him from river and there he met Al-Khidr (Green One) who blessed him and Shah Hussain recited the whole Quran in Tarawih prayer while he memorized only 7 parts of Quran,this miracle news spreaded in the city, Sheikh Bahlol after some time went to his town and directed Shah Hussain to regularly visit the Ali Hijwiri shrine in Lahore,Shah Hussain regularly at night stands in river ravi and recites whole Quran till Fajar prayer and then visits to the shrine of Ali Hijwiri and till Zohar prayer recites whole Quran and he never missed a single congregation prayer,he also studied Tafsir Quran from a famous scholar Sheikh Saadullah Lahori in the year 981AH (1573) while he was studying the tafsir he suddenly went out of mosque and abandoned the path of ascetic and stepped into the path of self blamers and became a self blamer Sufi,he started to dance and drink in public, some slandered him, some had faith, however numerous spiritual marvels are ascribed to him even emperor Akbar had great belief and honour for him and witnessed many supernatural marvels.

Sheikh Madho Lal the love of the life of Shah Hussain born in 983AH (1575), Shah when for the first time looked at his matchless beauty fallen for him, it was the love at first sight, Sheikh Madho was 16 years of age and Shah Hussain was 54 years and the year was 999AH (1590), Sheikh Madho at the age of 18 in 1002AH(1593) embraced Islam and became a Muslim, Shah Hussain raised him as his vicegerent and became his spiritual master. When Shah Hussain reached to 63 years of age in 1008AH (1599) he left this material world, before his death he predicted that my first shrine will be built in Shahdara ( located near river ravi) then after 12 years a flood will appear in the river that will reach to my shrine and then my grave will be shifted to Babu pura( now baghbanpura in Lahore; the Shalimar gardens) and my beloved Madho Lal will sit on my seat for 48 years after my death and it happened as the saint predicted, Sheikh Madho Lal in the rest of his life followed the footsteps of Shah Hussain completely secluded himself from the world and confined himself into the shrine of his master Shah Hussain and in 1056AH( 1647) at the age of 73 departed and buried next to Shah Hussain.

Two great Sufi saints; Syed Daud Bandagi Kirmani Qadri (899AH-982AH/1484-1574) and his disciple Syed Abu Ishaq Qadri(d.985AH/1577) were close friends of Shah Hussain and renowned scholars of his time Mullah Abdul Hakim Sialkoti and Sheikh Tahir Bandagi Naqshbandi had great honour and respect for him.

The notable books written on his life include; Risala Baharia (by Bahar Khan on the directions of emperor Jahangir), Hasanat ul Arifin (by prince Dara shiko in 1653), Haqiqat ul Fuqra (by Syed Sheikh Mahmood in 1662), Miftahul Arifin (by Abdul fatah Naqshbandi Mujadad in 1667) etc.

Shrine

His tomb and shrine is located at the Baghbanpura precincts, adjacent to the Shalimar Gardens Lahore, Pakistan. His Urs (annual death anniversary) is celebrated at his shrine every year during the "Mela Chiraghan" ("Festival of Lights").[2] Madho's tomb lies next to Hussain's in the shrine.[3]

Kafis of Shah Hussain

Hussain's poetry consists entirely of short poems known as Kafis.[4] A typical 'Hussain Kafi' contains a refrain and some rhymed lines. The number of rhymed lines is usually between four and ten. Only occasionally is a longer form adopted. Hussain's Kafis are also composed for, and the singing of them has been set to music based on Punjabi folk music. Many of his Kafis are part of the traditional Qawwali repertoire. His poems have been performed as songs by Kaavish, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Abida Parveen, Ghulam Ali, Hamid Ali Bela, Amjad Parvez, Junoon and Noor Jehan, among others.[5] "It may be asserted that poetry is often written to be sung. And all poetry carries, through manipulation of sound effects, some suggestion of music".[6]

Here are three examples, which draw on the famous love story of Heer Ranjha:

Ni Mai menoon Khedeyan di gal naa aakh
Ranjhan mera, main Ranjhan di,
Khedeyan noon koodi jhak
Lok janey Heer kamli hoi,
Heeray da var chak

Do not talk of the Khedas to me, mother.
I belong to Ranjha and he belongs to me.
And the Khedas dream idle dreams.
Let the people say, "Heer is crazy;
she has given herself to a cowherd."

Another Kafi:

Sajjan bin raatan hoiyan whadiyaan
Ranjha jogi, main jogiani, kamli kar kar sadiyaan
Maas jhurey jhur pinjer hoya, kadken lagiyaan haddiyaan
Main ayani niyoonh ki janan, birhon tannawan gadiyaan
Kahe Husain faqeer sain da, larr tere main lagiyaan

Main vi jaanaan jhok Ranjhan di, naal mere koi challey
Pairan paindi, mintaan kardi, jaanaan tan peya ukkaley
Neen vi dhoonghi, tilla purana, sheehan ney pattan malley
Ranjhan yaar tabeeb sadhendha, main tan dard awalley
Kahe Hussain faqeer namana, sain sunedha ghalley

The nights are long without my beloved.
Since Ranjha became a jogi, I have scarcely been my old self; people everywhere call me crazy.
My young flesh is all wrinkled, my bones are a creaking skeleton.
I was too young to understand love; and now as the nights swell and merge into each other,
I play host to that unkind guest – separation.

I have to go to Ranjha's hut, will someone go with me?
I have begged many to accompany me, but I had to set out alone.
The river is deep, and the shaky bridge creaks.
I am tortured by my wounds, but Ranjha my beloved is the doctor who can cure them.
Only my beloved can bring me comfort.

Two Kafis that are addressed to his Hindu disciple Madho Lal Hussain[7] need a special mention:

Madho Lal! Piyaare ki parwaasa dam da?
Udeyaa bhor theyaa pardesi aggey raah agam da!
Jinhaan saada shauh rijhaaya tinha nu bhow jam da?
Aakhey Hussain faqeer nimaana chhaddiye sareer bhasam da!

Ve Madho! Main wadda theyaa badnaam!
Raati pi ke dukh da piyaala tureyaa suwairon shaam!
Ki aakhaan main ki si peeti? Loki dassan haraam!
Kaafar aakhan saarey mainoon laawan sabh ilzaam!
Mukh fairan sabh maidey wallon naal kaddan dushnaam!
Rowey Hussain maidey Saain nu Madho chheti pej salaam!

Madho Lal! My dear what is this trust on life?
You fly out in the morning and become a stranger, to take on an unknown road!
Those that have pleased our Master in this life do they have to fear death which is the hereafter?
Says Hussain the pride less mendicant, cast off this body of ashes!

O Madho! I have been greatly defamed!
After drinking last night from my cup of sorrows, I have wandered from morning till evening.
What can I say that I had drunk of? People say it was the forbidden wine!
All here call me an infidel and accuse me of transgression!
They turn back their faces from me and abuse me!
Wails Hussain O Madho fast send my prayer to my Master!

See also
  • List of Punjabi language poets
  • Qawwali

References
  1. Sufis - Wisdom against Violence (profile of Madho Lal Hussain on the-south-asian.com website) Retrieved 5 November 2018
  2. Annual Mela Chiraghan (Festival of Lights) in Lahore, Pakistan Dawn (newspaper), Published 4 April 2016, Retrieved 5 November 2018
  3. Lal, Mohan. (2006) Encyclopaedia of Indian literature. Vol. 5, Sahitya Akademi, Delhi, p. 3940. ISBN 81-260-1221-8.
  4. Hussain, Shah (1987). Kafiyan Shah Hussain: Kalaam Aur Urdu Tarjumah.
  5. "Hamid Ali Bela sings Shah Hussain poem". dailymotion.com. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  6. "Profile of 'Shah Hussain'". travel-culture.com. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  7. Amin Naqshbandy, Sheikh Parvaiz (2001). Hazrat Maadho Laal Hussain. the University of Michigan: Umar Publications. p. 120.

Further reading
  • Great Sufi Poets of The Punjab, by R. M. Chopra, Iran Society, Kolkata, 1999.
  • Verses of a Lowly Fakir poetry of Madho Lal Hussein translated by Naveed Alam 2016. ISBN 0670088277


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