The Rubaiyat of Sarmad

by Sarmad Shaheed, Syeda Saiyidain Hameed

Genres: Poetry

93 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Sarmad was born a Jew in Kashan (in modern-day Iran), around 1590. He became a trader and acquired knowledge of mystic traditions and of Arabic and Persian poetry. Before he arrived in the port city of Thatta (in modern-day Sindh) in 1632, he had converted to Islam. In Thatta he met a Hindu boy named Abhai Chand. The attraction was mutual and soon after meeting him, Sarmad abandoned his trade and became a naked fakir.

Sarmad arrived in Delhi in 1654. He stayed with Khwaja Syed Abul Qasim Hare Bhare, a Qadri Sufi, and became his disciple. Prince Dara Shikoh was amongst the devotees of Sarmad.

It is believed that Sarmad was executed on the orders of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb Alamgir in the year 1660.

Reviews

[Zeeshan Ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sufi Sarmad or Sarmad Kashani, the martyr. The enigmatic 'naked' ascetic who had this strange way of life. A 'mad' poet.

I have always had this admiration for Sarmad, and I still find him as someone who was a rebel in every sense of the word. This short book contained selected poetry of Sarmad, and included a profound biographical essay on Sarmad by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.

Aurangzeb and Sarmad stand on the opposite ends of the spectrum. One known for his rigidness in terms of religion, and using 'faith' as a vehicle for political manipulation; the other, known for his all-encompassing faith, tolerant faith. The latter was executed by the former: a harmless mystic killed by a ruthless emperor. This mystic also paid the price for his association with Aurangzeb arch-rival, his own brother, Dara Shukoh. Aurangzeb did get rid of Sarmad, as well as Dara. But what he could not get rid of were their respective legacies and the ideas that they stood for. The differences between both legacies quite clear.


This is a must read book particularly for those who want to know about Sarmad, and also get a glimpse of his brilliant poetry.

"I am the king of kings
O Sheikh! Not naked like you,
I love madness, dynamism, but I am not distraught
An infidel, an idolator,
I am not one of the pious.
I am going towards the mosque
But I am not a Muslim."

"Although hundreds of friends
Have become my foes,
The friendship of One
Has given security to my soul.
Rejecting many I have embraced the One-
At last
I am He and He is me."

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful.

When the ulema (scholars) asked Sarmad to wear his robes and Sarmad did not comply, the Emperor said, "Nudity is not fit cause for execution, ask him to recite the shahada." The Emperor had heard that Sarmad never recited more than the first two words of the shahada "La ilah" (no God). On this occasion, too, Sarmad adhered to his practice and recited "La ilah." The ulema raised a howl of protest. Sarmad said "I am still at the stage of "No", I have not yet reached the "Yes". If I say "Illalah", it will be a lie. How can I say what does not rise from within?"

-

When Sarmad was taken to the execution ground, the entire city crowded the streets.

"For my crime of loving you I am dragged into the marketplace,
Noise and excitement resounds,
O come to the terrace,
To watch this splendid spectacle!"

That moment occurred when his executioner moved forward flashing his sword. He is said to have smiled, looked straight into his executioner's eyes, and spoken the following words:

"Come,
O come, I implore you!
In whatever guise you come, I know you well."

Miratul Khayal records that as he spoke these lines, he placed his neck under the executioner's sword, and surrendered his life to his creator.

[p. 37-38]

Khalifa Ibrahim narrates that Sarmad had never recited the shahadah beyond the first two syllables. But after his martyrdom people heard from his severed head the sound of the remaining two syllables 'Illalah' recited thrice.

Daghistani writes that a group of elite passers-by reported that Sarmad's lips moved not only with words of the shahadah, but also ḥāmdulilah

[Danish Pastry · Rating 2 out of 5]

The moth should seek the flame, if it is desirous of the lamp which is lit only in the mosque, its desire for self-immolation is not complete"
^This was my favorite line

I wasn't really a fan of Sarmad's poetry (could be my lack of understanding, a poor translation, or I just dont like it. Maybe some more explicit exegesis may have helped?), and I am really only giving 2 stars because I liked the "Sarmad Shaheed" by Azad which prefaced the actual quatrains. otherwise i would give it 1 star. If I could rate the character Sarmad himself I would give him 5 stars.


i read this because I heard of Sarmad in the Qawwali "Mein Sharabi" by Aziz Mian when he says "Sarmad ne masjid mein sar ko kata ke pi". The story of Sarmad's life and death is fascinating. To have become enamored by a hindu boy, to have lived naked, and to have the guts to say what he truly felt in the face of death, he embodied the rebellious spirit. I liked the explanation of him only saying "la ilaha" and not "ilallah" because he felt he had not yet found God, though he was desperately seeking Him. He would not lie out of hypocrisy or to meet some arbitrary dogmatic standard of religiosity. I think we all can learn from this. I also was blown away by the observation that the urdu word for god "khuda" can be deconstructred into "khud-aa" (come yourself). I think this is a really poetic observation, that you have to find God yourself.

[ari :) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sarmad Kāšānī was a character: born an Armenian Jew in the Persian city of Kāšān, learned in the finest of Persianate letters, enamored with a Hindu boy while in Sindh as a merchant, turned naked dervish and wanderer in the desert, risen in the court of crown prince Dārā Šukōh, and executed under Awrangzēb for refusing to complete the šahādah (‘there is no God… nu, i haven’t gotten to the second half yet’). his poetry has become a favorite.

the translation and edition leaves a lot to be desired. while it is—thankfully—bilingual, the Persian text is given in a woefully unsystematic Latin transcription which confuses as much as it illuminates. the translation is in halfway-decent free verse. like most English versions of Sufi poetry, it struggles to render the Islam of it all: is a xirqah just a cloak? (this is for the most part a consequence of there not really being an Islamic register of English, like there might be in Hindustani—or Spanish, for that matter.) the introductory essay was fine, though the translation is palpably worse than that of the poetry.

in any event, go read Sarmad, and find a better translation than this one.

[Anup]

His fate was hitched to the market of love and beauty, where the accepted currency is not gold and silver but the fragments of broken hearts - এই বাজারের নিয়ম হল একটি মানুষের সমস্ত বুদ্ধি এবং বোধের বিনিময়ে, একটি সুন্দর দৃষ্টির বা গর্বিত মণিব্রতের ধন বিনিময় করা - Even at such a profound investment, the transaction is still regarded a cheap bargain. The buyer wants the lover’s soul with love as broker.

Where Beauty first unveiled his self. That it happened, is no wonder! When a heart is vulnerable to love, the darner’s needle acts as efficaciously as the executioner’s axe in slicing it down the middle. In this trade, the buyer is indifferent and careless, while the seller is desperate to sell his wares. Those who wear their hearts on their sleeves, do not look for special qualities in the buyers.

পৃথিবীর প্রতিটি স্থানে বৃষ্টি পড়ে, কিন্তু প্রতিটি স্থান ফল এবং ফুলের উদ্যান হয় না কেন? Grasp and reach have been Interdependent since times past. Had it fallen it would have become a pearl in the eye it is a tear.

[Nazmi Yaakub · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mengenal ahli sufi berlatarkan zaman getir peralihan kuasa dari Shah Jehan kepada Aurangzeb Alamgir yang rapat dengan seorang tokoh yang tidak kurang kontroversi, Dara Shikoh. Esei pengenalan Malauna Abul Kalam Azad yang rapat dengan Ghandi dan menjadi antara negarawan India, memperlihatkan bagaimana tokoh awal dunia Islam menggauli pelbagai sisi ilmu dalam membentuk keintelektualan yang sekarang ini menjadi ramuan yang nadir dapat ditemui pada ahli politik.

[Vinay Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

the book in itself is amazing with transliterated text and translation. Introductory essay by Shankar Dayal Sharma and Abul Kalam Azad were both beautifully rendered.