The Social Side of Hajj

Hajj is one of the basic fundamental principle of Islam, and at least once in their lifetime every Muslim should perform it. Like every religious duty, this also has many interesting social aspects attached to it. Everybody from my family, from my late parents to my elder brother and his wife have been on Hajj, except me! So, I cannot talk about the ritualistic aspects related with Hajj, but interesting social situations around it.

Great and Little traditions of Islam, the local Islam and what the 'religion' prescribes one to do, can sometimes be very different.

Social conventions start when people start congratulating (with a dabba of sweets) those who apply for Hajj pilgrimage (supported by state run Hajj Committee), and find their names on the Committee list.

The pilgrims then start their preparations for the 40-day long tour, and even start attending classes run by various groups like Tablighi Jamaat/ Hajj committee/ local Madarsas, etc.Hajj Manzil at Turkman Gate gets busy and crowded and roads around that area get traffic jams every year as a routine around this time of the year.

 In India, Hajj pilgrimage gets some subsidy from the government (something which BJP criticizes as 'minority appeasement', and scholars like Imtiaz Ahmad say it is too less, and should be done away with completely. As people who can afford it, should go on it paying for it entirely from their 'honest/ halal' earnings!).

 A few days prior to the pilgrimage, pilgrims start visiting their relatives and friends, etc. to ask for forgiveness for hurting them (knowingly/unknowingly) and try to clear any guilty conscience, and repair all broken relationships. The reason may well be historical, as in earlier times, people who went on a long and difficult journey like Hajj to Saudi Arabia, sometimes never even came back alive. As those friends/ relatives who do not get a visit from to be Hajjis, can also take offense at being ignored, so it is imperative for the Hajjis to visit or meet every important relative/ friend/ acquaintance etc. before they leave for the pilgrimage. 

 Couple of days before the actual trip, relatives/ friends/ acquaintances visit the homes of Hajjis with dry eatables, etc. so that it can help them deal with food issues in a foreign land (those who can afford eat in Indian/ Pakistani restaurants, etc.). Some get clothes, and other gifts too (sometimes useful, sometimes bizarre!) to help them in the journey. Also, all those who give gifts also have a list of 'duaas' that they want the Hajjis to pray for them (as they are nearer to Allah, and have more chances of getting their prayers accepted and answered!), or sometimes even list of things that they would like Hajjis to bring for them from the developed Middle East (simple give and take of gifts). A farewell feast is organized for the Hajjis and for their near family members and friends/ neighbors, etc.

 At the Delhi International airport, there is a separate Hajj terminal to deal with crowds who come to drop/ receive Hajjis. It is usually madness/ mayhem at the Hajj terminal.

Hajj Committe website says 170,025 seats for India for Hajj, (of which 125,025 seats for Hajj Committee of India (HCOI) and 45,000 for Private Tour Operators (PTOs)).

To drop one haji, buses full of enthusiasts come from far off areas as relatives get a free trip to Delhi and its airport (plus, sawab too!). Airport terminal becomes a carnival/mela, with lots of people and Biryani, nahari, qorma, halwa, pakora stalls! Hajj terminal gets volunteers from Tablighi Jamaat and Hajj Committee officials who help with paperwork and other routine things.

 Once, they go on Hajj everyone keeps asking from the family about their well-being at different stages of the journey.

 Once, they come back from the pilgrimage the scene at the airport gets worse. As, it is believed that those who meet pilgrims first after their Hajj get a lot of 'sawaab', so now the numbers double up with everybody getting emotional after meeting their loved ones after so many days.

 There is not just rush but a traffic jam on road around the airport in post- Hajj days (Muslims with car stickers shouting Hajj Mubarak on their cars/ buses).

Once, Hajjis reach their homes,a  feast is organized to welcome them back  with usual qorma, biryani (no, we do not get tired of eating these two favourite Mughlai dishes on every occasion, ranging from birth, or marriage to death!)

Hajjis again receive lots of  visits from friends/ family relatives/ neighbors who come to listen to Hajj stories, along with gifts for Hajjis as appreciation of their new 'respectable status', as Muslims who have washed away all their sins by bearing and overcoming the hardships of the pilgrimage and its different rituals. Poor pilgrims do not even get a chance to relax and everybody starts asking them for 'tabarruq' or dates and Zamzam, holy water from the Holy land.

Now, it is the duty of the Hajjis to re-pay for all the gifts that they had received from their 'well-wishers' apart from dates and zamzam. Also they have to  bring some authentic stuff from the Holy land, which could be janamaaz/ prayer mat, topi, tasbeeh, burqa, scarf, some also get electronics or watches, etc to give away as gifts.

People even get upset if they do not get gifts at par with what they had given to the Hajis pre- and post their pilgrimage. Although with hajjis, religiously speaking everything is attributed to gaining sawab, but it has interesting social  norms attached to it as well (and of course, there is a class thing too, as poor people cannot afford it!)

Hope

And I walked....
Until my feet hurt..
Until my shoes broke..
Until the blisters came..
Until my throat choked..
Until the lights burnt..
Until the road turned..
Until my heart broke..
Until my lessons learnt..
Until the pain was no more..
Till my hope lived!

The Adaabs, Tasleems and the Salaams

It is interesting to see how Muslim forms of greetings have changed over the years, especially in the Indian sub-continent. Recently, I went for a classical music concert where the Ustad/ musician greeted the audience with Adaab (along with the usual Good Evenings, namaskars, etc).

Adaab means Hello in a very formal way, and is a polite form of 'secular greeting'. It is followed by a gesture where you take your right hand towards your forehead, with back of the hand showing and the palm spooning towards your face (unlike the Army salam, which is your palm outwards touching your forehead!). Adaab literally means 'etiquette'. Even non- Muslims who are connoisseurs of Urdu language, practice 'adaab' in their formal greetings (poets like Gulzar, late Anand Bakhshi, etc.). Tasleem is also very similar to Adaab as a form of greeting. Literally it means 'to accept'. 

It is very rare to hear Adaabs/ Tasleems these days. Adaab and Tasleem are cultural greetings whereas Salam  is religious. Salam means 'peace' (Assalamalaikum/ walaikum-as-salalm, literally meaning 'May peace be upon you'). Adaabs and tasleems have been taken over by Salam now amongst the Muslims. The new generation of Muslims may not even have heard of the previous forms of greetings.
  Salam is Arabic and Adaab/ tasleem trace their origin in Urdu/ Persian tradition. The prevalence of Arabic Salam now, also points at the way Muslim identity is being constructed now, leaning more towards the larger Muslim 'Ummah'/ community. Adaabs and tasleems prevailed when the Hindu/ Muslim composite culture was at its height. Nowadays, Urdu is not the court/state language anymore. Thus the greetings which formed the bridge between the Muslims and non- Muslims, have been replaced by more casual 'Hello/ Hi', which also, points at the English languages' dominance in present times.

 The form of greetings' reflect the prevalent norms and dominance of a particular language' in the society. Prevalence of Adaabs/ tasleems reflected prominence of Urdu, and importance of the Ganga- Jamuni tehzeeb (Hindu/ Muslim mixed culture). Religious identities are more sharp and more symbolic these days (Jai Mata Di, Har Har Mahadev, Jai Ramji, etc.) and therefore, Arabic Salam which stresses more on the universal identity of being a Muslim.
(Although, salam has a better literal meaning of wishing peace upon the other!)
   

Rejection in Interviews!!

 There may be many self- help books telling you how to crack your interviews. After a Doctorate, publications, almost three years teaching experience, almost five years  experience of research (excluding PhD research), I imagined interviews would be nothing less than a cakewalk! But, I was so  wrong. (And, mind you, these are not even permanent posts, thanks to the job crisis in academics in Delhi, these interviews are for temporary posts of four- five months or one semester!!) In this post, I am going to share after many interviews, my personal experiences of, you guessed it right, rejections. How to clinch defeat from the jaws of victory! Special gifts require special skills, you see. Its difficult, but it seems that I have made a habit of it. Let me list a few pointers, based on my experiences.

1) Dressing up/ dressing down- First things first, your impression or how you present yourself! There is a very thin line on getting it right or wrong. I almost thought, that I had a particular dress which I somehow assumed was lucky for me! Alas, I wore it for every interview for almost a year, until it became the most unlucky dress anybody could have ever worn!

2) Be submissive/ argumentative- Its an interview, so there are bound to be questions. It is up to you if you show too much passion, then discussion can easily become an argument. If you show too much respect, and do not speak much or question the interviewer, you will be labelled as dumb, or as having no opinion! During the defense of my  thesis, my examiner (whom I respected too much) severely criticized my approach and ravaged a one-sided war on me. At that moment in my head, I kept arguing with myself how disrespectful it will be,  if I talk back and argue. And even before I could settle the debate with myself, it was over! I got my degree, but it left some unfinished business lingering, some loose ends untied! I still have nightmares about the unsaid things, how I could have argued with him!

3) Long/short interviews- I had gone recently for an interview in a DU College, where I had the longest chat with the panel as compared to the rest of the candidates. I told my friends and family, that I enthralled everyone (all panelists) with my performance, and everybody was spell bound looking at me. Long chats do not always get you the job , was my lesson here!

4) Conservative/ technology- In some interviews the questioners usually try and gauge your technical abilities. Some may even ask you to show a few practical tricks by naming the most recent mumbo-jumbo and explain your hold over them. But, the glitch here is technology is forever changing bhai. How much can you keep up?? If you know the basics, you can adapt to anything, but who can explain this to these impatient people, who want to employ a mix of Superman/woman and Iron Man/woman!

5) Familiar/ Unknown- It is always a tricky thing if you know somebody in the panel sitting on the other side of the desk. They can be impartial (sometimes too impartial), can ignore you completely, or even if they acknowledge you, you can not know if that is a good thing or bad. If they know your positive side, they are also well aware of your negative side! People who do not know you, have to make a judgement about you in five mins, that is unfair! It was often my argument whenever I failed my interviews, but when people who do know you,then reject you, that is scary! This excuse does not work then, and you face the toughest Reality check!

6) Brain Freeze... Yes, it happens too, sometimes you can get intimidated by the panel, or have something  entirely different thing going on in your head (Sports/lover/ sick pet at home/ universe/ Chetan Bhagat/Rushdie/politics), that even after knowing the answers to the questions being asked, you can tie yourself in knots. The answers may be simple, but you have to indulge in the art of making it complex right at that moment! Well, you are too intelligent for the panel of course, which does not understand your point of view and rejects you! (Losers!Them not us, of course!)

 My dear friends, just like formulas for success can be many- reasons/ circumstances/ situations can be many for getting rejected in interviews too. These rejections enrich your experience, can make you wise, and more importantly, make you buckle up for the next interview ahead! Good luck!(Luck, sometimes that works!)

Portrayal of Minorities in Films- Bollywood/ Hollywood

  I recently watched a film where the hero (Hindu) dies while saving lives of a Muslim family during riots. I have always been puzzled and have noticed over the years the similarity in the portrayal of minority' characters in Hollywood and Bollywood. Due to my lack of exposure to world cinema (and most of regional cinema in India), and extreme exposure to both Hindi and English movies (thanks to my father since childhood, and now my husband post- marriage, who have both been fanatic film fans) I can only compare these two industries. Industries because they are in serious business, as they produce/ manufacture/ distribute, and provide employment to millions of people.
 Now coming back to the topic of portrayal of minorities in stereotypical ways, as supporting friends, or characters mostly to provide comic relief (Bollywood has had Mehmood, Johhny Walker, Kadar Khan, Johnny Lever, etc. and Hollywood has had Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock, Whoopi Goldberg etc.) or as important figures (like politicians or police officers). There was a period when Blacks and Muslims got portrayed as criminals or as Dons, and then heroes started romancing minority heroines which added to the tension in the storyline. A very interesting fact is that minorities in both industries have found employed in great numbers for both on-screen roles (heroes, heroines, character artists) and off screen jobs (writing, music, production houses, etc.) especially so for Muslims, in Bollywood.

 I had a Professor specializing in media studies, who had his own take on the film- 'Amar, Akbar, Anthony', a blockbuster hit of 1977, in which three brothers get separated at birth and are adopted by families of three different communities and are brought up by them. The way these three characters were portrayed, eldest brother Amar, the Hindu one, the most responsible brother, a police officer, who brings the family together again. The other two brothers (minorities)- Akbar and Anthony are mostly non-serious characters who create more troubles than solve them. According to my teacher, it was how Indian society perceives its minorities, where majority has to take more serious roles and decisions and be more responsible for the country.  
 There was also a brief period where all negative roles were being written for Muslims, and to be politically correct, and to balance a Muslim terrorist, an honest, patriotic Muslim police officer was thrown in the film's plot as well (Sarfarosh, etc). Similar films can be found in Hollywood as well showing Blacks as bad and good characters.
 It was the Hollywood which started showing a Black character as the President (Morgan Freeman in many movies) before Barack Obama actually became the President of the United States'. In India, Manmohan Singh, (from the minority  Sikh community)  became the Prime Minister while Indian films could never imagine a Sikh as PM, but only portrayed them as non- serious, adorable characters.
 Movies mirror society and its beliefs and prejudices, and its quite a paradox to say, if they are inspired by reality or they inspire people in real life.
  

Impenetrable Old Delhi??

Recently I was at a wedding where I met this lady. She was young, intelligent, opinionated, married with a kid, and was a Magistrate! We were discussing Old Delhi, and she believed that even today there are still some areas in Old Delhi in which even police does not dare to enter. She is not the first person from whom I have heard this stereotype. Shockingly, a lot of young, educated people have this opinion about Old Delhi.

Old Delhi is not one monolith place, since it was a walled city so its big and comprises of different mohallas and katras, and houses different castes and communities in them. Probably, since its streets have become narrower with growing population and time it is not open to prying eyes. It can give an impression of a closed society, with its busy, crowded bazars, and eateries, which are impossible to navigate through with cars.

 There are two ways to look at it. Having police at your back and call gives citizens a sense of security, but it also shows the penetration of the states' mechanism (Foucault). The part of Old Delhi around Jama Masjid   has had a difficult relationship with state being mostly a Muslim neighbourhood. Some right wing fundamentalists also refer to it as a 'mini-Pakistan', owing to its largely Muslim population. Even during the Emergency, when Government's bulldozers killed many innocent residents of Turkman Gate, the idea was to break this compact settlement of Muslims and disperse them in order to govern them better. The furore that followed made government give up that plan. But, it created a relationship of mistrust between the Muslims of Old Delhi and the state. Government now treads cautiously whenever there is talk of development or of any change in the structure in the city. This has also led to them turning a blind eye to rampant six storyed buildings coming up in narrow by-lanes. Police keeps an eye, but does not come unless it is a serious law and order issue. They have enough police posts in and around Old Delhi, which residents complain gives them a sense of being 'under surveillance' always! Especially in a world where terrorism is mostly attributed to just one community, they have to keep an eye on the trouble makers!

 So my dear friends, Old Delhi is no Naxal prone deep jungle where police cannot penetrate. There is far too much surveillance and too much police, just look around when you visit it the next time. Please visit without any fear and enjoy your Butter Chicken, while you are there!

A Visit to the Dargah’ of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmer

 Recently I went on a trip to Rajasthan and also visited the dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer. Arguably, his dargah is the most respected, most revered and probably the most crowded dargah in the whole of the Indian sub-continent. Although, I am not much of a Dargah person myself, but I have relatives in extended family who are Dargah ‘fanatics’ (or ‘ dargah obsessed’ if any such term exists!). They kept suggesting me more such places to visit but I just stuck to one.

  India has the second highest number of Muslims in the world, after Indonesia. Islam’s spread in India was through the Sufi saints, as Sufism helped bridge the gap between the Hindu majority and Muslim minority by espousing a tolerant, flexible and peaceful religion based on love and compassion. Sufis made the maximum conversions from the lower castes of the Hindus. In dargahs, even today, people from all faiths come to pay their respects and get their prayers answered.
Dargah is an Islamic Sufi shrine built over the grave of a revered religious figure, often a Sufi saint or dervish. Muslims may visit a local shrine as a form of pilgrimage known as ziyarat. The dargah's physical space usually includes a mosque, meeting rooms, Islamic religious schools (madrassas), residences for a religious teacher or caretaker, and other buildings for community purposes like cooking or eating spaces. The term dargah is a Persian word which can mean a "portal" or  a "threshold". Some Sufi faithfuls believe that dargahs are places where  the deceased saint's intercessions and blessings can be invoked. Some others hold a less supernatural view of dargahs, and simply visit it as a means of paying their respects to deceased pious individuals (religious buzurg') or to pray at these sites for perceived benefits.

I visited Ajmer Dargah to pay my respects to the buzurg, to whom everybody goes to get their materialistic desires fulfilled. I remember reading a remark by an Islamic scholar that people (especially lower caste/class Muslims) visited these sites as they believed for their day-to-day mundane worldly desires they should not bother the All- Mighty Allah. In terms of numbers there were equal number of non- Muslims in Ajmer. His shrine has also become famous for Bollywood personalities visiting it praying for commercial success for their movies. And, since he is also referred to as 'Garib Nawaz', or to translate it crudely 'friend of the poor', you find a lot of people doing/ taking charity. But, too many people asking/ pestering you for donations can be a dampener. They have a huge cooking pot (degh) where people throw money which is later utilized for cooking food and distributing it to the poor and needy.  

The shrine had lots of women who could move around freely, could hold hands of their partners and even do weird stuff like moving their head/hair as if in a trance holding the grills of the inner shrine. Qawwalis are held too in evenings on special days.

  While, mosques serve as formal places of worship where Muslims come together for their communal prayers or namaz as well as centers for information/ education and dispute settlements, Dargahs are more vibrant and populous places where a lot more is going on all the time. Dargahs are spaces where people from different nationalities, different cultures, religions can come for their own spiritual experience.  

 I have not been to many Dargahs but there have been a couple which I found memorable. Many many years ago I had the pleasure to visit to Baba Haji Ali's dargah in Bombay situated in the sea where the way opens depending on the timing of the tides. It had a certain energy which was inexplicably very peaceful, as its location is also very beautiful. In Delhi, opposite Old Fort, there is Dargah of Mataka Peer. On fulfillment of their wishes, people give out charity in Matkas or pots. Since, it is situated at a height and they have lots of matkas on the Dargah compound, trees etc. which make it look like a south Indian movie set. But, these Dargahs all have mosques where namaz takes place throughout the day at their usual timings, apart from having musical evenings of Qawwalis on Fridays and special occasions like festivals or Urs. Music and spirituality all come together at Dargahs.