Bahar Ayee (Spring Has Come)
Spring has come So have returned suddenly from the past * * All those dreams, all that beauty That on your lips had died…
Festival of Lights at Madhu Lal’s Urs, 2010
The 3-days Urs of Hazrat Shah Hussain (March 27-29, 2010), radical Sufi saint of Punjab, gained momentum on the weekend as thousands of devotees…
Baba Najmi’s little poem
Iko Tera mera payu Iko teri meri maan Iko saadi janam bhon Tu Sardar tey mein kammi kiyon? ___________________________ You and I share the…
Abida Parveen sings Faraz’s poem
Found this enchanting piece of music here: In his latest double CD “Paigham-e-Muhabbat” composer Muzaffar Ali, who has brought so much pleasure to our…
Saadat Hasan Manto – part II
After partition of India Saadat Hassan Manto arrived in Lahore sometime in early 1948. In Bombay his friends had tried to stop him from…
A red card for the Secular Indian Muslim
I am posting a brilliant piece (published by Indian Express) by my dear friend Rakhshanda Jalil – she is a bold yet sensitive writer…
K K Aziz: Historian Extraordinaire
The state, society and intelligentsia in Pakistan had forgotten about this towering scholar of our times. His books on Chaudhry Rehmat Ali, Sir Agha…
Pak Nobel laureate’s Ahmedi status hurdle for documentary
I was quoted in this story – a slight spin but an important point nevertheless.. Two young Pakistanis are battling all odds to make…
Step across this Line
Quite a readable piece published by CARAVAN – thanks to Fizza Ishaq for sending me the link AS MUCH AS SHE MAY HAVE wanted…
The golden voice of Asha Bhosle (2008 concert in LA, USA)
NPR has featured Asha Bhosle (12,000 songs and the greatest of Bollywood divas) and her fabulous voice – this is what the text has…
I am enslaved to fate, of all else say no more – Rumi
” I am enslaved to fate, of all else say no more With a sweet tongue speak, else I plea say no more Speak…
A few Gems From Muhammad (P.B.U.H)
On the blessed day of birth of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), I am posting some of his sayings as we…
In memoriam – Asim Butt (1978-2010)
But it was Asim’s venture into public art and his subsequent adoption of the Stuckist creed that turned him into a major figure at…
Mystical Form of Islam Suits Sufis in Pakistan
A NYT piece where I was quoted. By SABRINA TAVERNISE – LAHORE, Pakistan For those who think Pakistan is all hard-liners, all the time,…
Lovers have nothing to do with existence
The lover’s food is the love of the bread; no bread need be at hand: no one who is sincere in his love is…
Two years and counting…
My piece published in The News The obvious fallout of the media-government war has been a virtual blackout of what the civilian governments have…
Writing fiction
I loved Guardian’s feature on Ten rules for writing fiction. Elmore Leonard: Using adverbs is a mortal sin 1 Never open a book with…
I become like a pen
Ghazal 2530 from the Diwan-e Shams, in a version by Coleman Barks, in translation by Annemarie Schimmel, and in translation by A.J. Arberry: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~…
This thirst in our souls
No sound of clapping comes from only one hand. The thirsty man is moaning, “O delicious water!” The water is calling, “Where is the…
His form has passed away and he has become a mirror (Rumi)
Sunlight has recently offered two versions/translations of Rumi’s Mathnawi story of the dervish Bayazid Bestami ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BESTAMI That magnificent dervish, Bayazid Bestami, came to…