Q: How would you perceive the similarities between Sufism and Yoga during

the medieval period?

A: Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras shares certain features with religious movements that
we today consider Hindu, in other ways his text falls in the indeterminate realm
of “neither Hindu nor not-Hindu.” However after approximately fourteen
hundred years, in northern India—“Hindu” was an epithet that speakers of
Indian languages were beginning to use to describe themselves. Furthermore,
contrary to some recent accounts that Hindu merely had geographical or ethnic
connotations, this term was sometimes used in an unmistakably religious way in
the late medieval period. The word Hindu not only denotes a geographic
identity but also refers to modes of belief and practice that we would nowadays
refer to as religious. It is also clear that authors such as Eknath, who was born a
Hindu Brahmin, had at least a basic understanding of the tenets and practices of
Islam. However, when we look at the ways that yoga was described in texts
between the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries in northern India, it is
remarkable how frequently we find forms of what we now think of as “Hindu
yoga” mixed with the Islamic practices of the Sufis. There appears to have been
motivation to traverse this boundary from both sides: on the Hindu side, by a
group associated with Hatha Yoga known as the Nath Yogis, and among
Muslims, by Sufis of the Chishti and Shattari orders. The phenomenon of
Muslims practicing yoga in India continued well into the period of British rule.
In the British census of 1891, for instance, under the heading “miscellaneous
and disreputable vagrants,” 38,137 “Muhammadan Jogis” (yogis) were
enumerated in the province of Punjab alone; more than 17 percent of the yogis
counted in the census were Muslim. By 1921, the number of Muslim yogis
counted in the census had fallen to less than 5 percent. What at first glance may
have seemed a typographical error by a British official was actually more
evidence for a well-established Islamic branch of yogis. The most notable
record of Sufi adoption of yoga practices comes from a text called the Pool of
Nectar. This text no longer exists in its Sanskrit or Hindi original, but a scholar
of Sufism, Carl Ernst, has documented various recensions in Arabic, Persian,
Turkish, and Urdu. These revised versions are not so much translations as they
are transcreations of what Ernst supposed was originally a Hindi text called the
Verses of Kamakhya. This earlier text seems to have contained traces of the
influences of both the Nath Yogis and the Kaula tantric tradition made famous
by the Kashmiri philosopher Abhinavagupta. Yet the Pool of Nectar had an
influence far beyond its origins in India. An Arabic revised version ended up in
the hands of the fifteenth-century Yemeni Jewish scholar Alu’el, who
incorporated its tantric yoga teachings about the breaths of the right- and left-
hand channels, corresponding to sun and moon, respectively, in his exegesis of
the Book of Genesis. Although modern Hindu nationalists argue that the
theologies of Islam and Christianity make those religions incompatible with
yoga, the dispersion and popularity of the translations of the Pool of Nectar
seem to indicate the contrary. One example of the way that the Pool of Nectar
adapts yogic teachings to make sense to a Muslim audience is its adaptation of
the seven chakras, or power centres, which are among the most common
features of tantric yoga physiology. Each of the seven chakras, beginning with
the root chakra located at the perineum, is associated with one of the Arabic
names of God.
1. Seat “O Lord” (ya rabb)
2. Genitals “O Mighty One” (ya quadir)
3. Navel “O Creator” (ya khaliq)
4. Heart “O Generous” (ya karim)
5. Throat “O Controller” (ya musakhkhir)
6. Eyebrows “O Knowing” (ya ‘alim)
7. Brain “O Lifegiver” (ya muhyi)
The correspondences in this text are actually much more elaborate, including
Sanskrit mantras spelled phonetically (hum, aum, hrim, brinsrin, bray, yum, and
hansamansa) and the names of astrological bodies (Saturn, Mars, Jupiter, Sun,
Venus, Mercury, and Moon). Also employed in the Pool of Nectar is a
technique of “translating gods,” finding Near Eastern equivalents for the gods
and holy men of South Asia. So, for instance, the gods Brahma and Visnu are
equated with Abraham and Moses, respectively. Three major figures of the Nath
Yoga tradition, including its mythical founder, Matsyendra Nath (“Lord of the
Fishes”), and his disciple Gorakh Nath, are also equated with Islamic prophets.
While “translating gods” may appear to be a technique inappropriate for a
monotheistic religion such as Islam, historically most Muslims in Persia and
South Asia have accepted that charismatic saints, such as Moinuddin Chishti,
who established the Chishti Sufi order in India, possess miraculous powers. In a
landscape replete with saints and wonder-workers, it is little problem to equate
the biblical Jonah with Matsyendranath, the first Nath Yoga patriarch, who
while in the belly of a fish overheard Siva’s teaching of yoga at the bottom of
the ocean. In a similar spirit, an eighteenth-century Islamic text, The Coral
Rosary of Indian Antiquities, describes India as a holy land because it was the
site of Adam’s descent to earth on the island of Sri Lanka after he was expelled
from Eden.
Q: Write a critical essay on the development of Sufism in north India during
thirteenth-fourteenth centuries.
In the thirteenth century, Delhi emerged as one of the major centres (markaz) of
the Chishtis. This was possible largely due to the activities of the illustrious
Chishti saint Khwaja Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki, who left his birthplace in
Transoxiana and arrived in Delhi in the early 1220s. He was warmly welcomed
by Sultan Iltutmish. After coming to Delhi, Kaki met the challenge both of the
ulama and the Suhrawardis. The former wanted to oust him from Delhi and
condemned Kaki as a heretic on the ground that the mystic was fond of Sama.
This criticism had no impact upon Sultan Iltutmish who wanted to use sufi
influence to counter the ulama. Once Kaki was about to leave Delhi for Ajmer,
which is also an important centre of the Chishtis. But a huge crowd
accompanied him outside the city for miles and he had to settle in Delhi.
However, the Suhrawardi silsilah, because of their orthodox approach, could not
enjoy such popularity among the Delhiites. Some of the Sultans of Delhi
favoured charismatic Sufis like Kaki. Establishment of the sharia rule in tune
with the advise provided by the ulama, was not possible in the Indian
environment. Many sultans who excelled in statecraft realized that an empire
derives its strength from heterogeneity. Now many sufi saints epitomized
India’s composite culture in the sense that they had Hindu, Sikh and Muslim
followers. Many Chishti and Qadiri Sufis believed in the policy of sulh-i-kul or
‘peace with all’. Later on, Mughal Emperor Akbar emerged as a great empire
builder largely because of his capacity to translate this concept into practice. So,
offering patronage to some Sufis implied strengthening of the symbols of
multiculturalism. The two most prominent sufi orders in south asia during the
Sultanate period were the Chishti and the Suhrawardi. The Chishtis flourished
in Delhi and in the surrounding area, including Rajasthan, parts of Punjab and
modern UP, Bengal, Bihar, Malwa, Gujarat and later on the Deccan also
experienced the waves of sufi movement. The Suhrawardis were influential
mainly in Punjab and Sindh. Muinuddin Chishti, the doyen of the Chishti
movement in South Asia moved to Ajmer around 1206 A.D. when Turkish
hegemony was firmly established there and a sizeable Muslim population of
Turkish ghazis and prisoners of war who had to embrace Islam under coercion,
came into being. The saint selected Ajmer as his centre because like Chisht (in
Central Asia), it was a small town and away from the epicentre of political
activity, Delhi. The saint believed that the environment in a small town was
favourable for spiritual experimentation. Khwaja Muinuddin was married, but
led the life of an ascetic. His principal object was to enable the Muslim piety to
lead a life of devotion to Allah. Interestingly, this same spirit was reflected in
the activities of rulers such as Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq and Emperor
Akbar who used to venerate this saint. His image as a saintly man became larger
after his death in 1235 A.D. Canonization of a sufi is marked by the erection of
structures like dome or mosque on the tomb of the deceased sufi. However,
Muinuddin’s stature as a saint reached its apex under Akbar who nurtured deep
respect for him. Akbar could grasp the political importance of Ajmer -
Muinuddin as the symbol of India’s composite culture respected by all
irrespective of religious beliefs. Muinuddin advised his followers to “develop
river like generosity, sun like affection and earth like hospitality.” River, sun
and earth are sacred among the Hindus. In this way the sufi saints reflected their
appropriating nature while addressing the common people in a language they
understood. Another great Chishti saint Baba Fariduddin Ganj-I-Shakkar, the
most famous disciple of Kaki. Farid lived at Hansi in modern Haryana, then
moved to Ajodhan, on Sutlej, main route connecting Multan and Lahore. He put
emphasis on poverty emulating the Prophet Muhammad who used to say “I take
pride in my poverty.” It is useful to note that many sufi saints used the image of
the Prophet as a source of authority as a natural legitimizing process as they had
to encounter the challenges of Islamic orthodoxy. Nizamuddin Auliya, a chief
successor of Baba Farid was the most illustrious Chishti saint of Delhi where he
worked for fifty years during a period of great political turmoil characterized by
the collapse of Balban’s dynasty and the ascendancy of Alauddin Khalji, and
the rise of the Tughluqs. He survived those frequent changes of dynasties and
rulers because of the Chishti philosophy of keeping politics at bay and not
associating with the rulers and nobles. Like the yogis, they considered that
control of senses was necessary for spiritual uplift. Nizamuddin Auliya regarded
altruistic services as more important than obligatory prayers. At a time when the
Turks turned a blind eye to the Islamic concept of brotherhood and looked down
upon the ordinary people, the sufi attitude of non-discrimination helped to
reduce social tensions. The principal concern of the Sufis was the amelioration
of the condition of Muslims. However, their care and concern did not exclude
the Hindus. The Chishti saints freely interacted with Hindu and Jain yogis and
discussed with them various matters, particularly yogic exercises. Bahauddin
Zakariya, the founder of the Suhrawardi silsilah in India, unlike the Chishtis, the
Suhrawardis accepted royal grants and believed that money was necessary to
help the poor. They also put emphasis on the external forms of religion, i.e.
namaz (prayer), roza (fasting), hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) or zakat (charity).
Though Bahauddin prescribed restricted visits to sama (sufi music), the
orthodox ulama became hostile towards him on that issue. Building activities
around the tomb or shrine of a saint, the sultans and nobles often contested
among each other in showing their respect to the deceased saint through their
involvements in building activities. Patronizing of the sultans and nobles in
medieval India of sufi shrines was a common legitimizing process through
which the rulers and aristocrats tried to enhance their images
among the nobility and the subject population.
Q: Critically evaluate various approaches to the study of Islamization in the
Indian subcontinent during the medieval period.
When the Muslim invaders came to India they decided to make it their home.
They intermarried and took to the culture of the Indians. There was a mutual
exchange in ideas and customs. In dress, speech, manners and intellectual
outlook, the two influenced each other very profoundly. Some of these changes
are described below. The Indian society was divided into four major groups.
They were the aristrocats, the priests, the towns people and the peasants. There
were also the Hindu Rajas, chiefs, Hindu merchants and bankers concentrated
all the wealth as well as the power in their hands. The Sultan outmatched
everyone in this. To maintain his distinction as the ruler, he was provided with
many officers and servants at the royal household where he lived in great
luxury. Even the nobility imitated his style and showed off their wealth. The
Priests were another important class of people in the society. They were given
grants of tax-free land for their maintenance and were often very powerful. The
Ulemas wielded great influence on the Muslim Sultans and often influcenced
their policies. Places where the Sufi and Bhakti saints lived and places which
housed important temples and mosques had become pilgrim centres. The
peasants, of course, lived in the villages and were often the worst off. They paid
huge taxes to the state as land revenue. Any change of dynasty had no effect on
their lives. The caste system was very rigid and intercaste marriages and
intercaste dining was totally prohibited. But exchange of ideas did take place on
a large scale. Those who converted themselves to Islam did not forget their old
customs. Many Hindu customs were adopted by the Muslims while many
Muslim customs were adopted by the Hindus, like those concerning food, dress,
clothing and music, besides many others. Trade was flourishing and many new
towns came up to encourage trade. Some communities like the Banias,
Marwaris and Multanis made trade their special vocation. When Islam came to
India, Hinduism was in vogue. But by this time Hinduism had degenerated
itself. There were superstitious beliefs, rituals and sacrifices. Brahmans had
become very powerful and the caste system was very rigid. The people,
especially the lower classes, were ill-treated. Islam was the opposite of what
was in practise among the Hindus. It talked of equality, brotherhood and
oneness of God.
The Muslims first came to India in the eighth century AD mainly as traders.
They were fascinated by the socio-cultural scenario in this country and decided
to make India their home. The immigrant Muslims also entered into
matrimonial alliances with the local people and learned to live together in
harmony. The Hindus and Muslims influenced each other equally in dress,
speech, manners, customs and intellectual pursuits. The Muslims also brought
with them their religion, Islam which had a deep impact on Indian society and
culture. Islam talked of equality, brotherhood, and the existence of one God. Its
arrival particularly made a profound impact on the traditional pattern of Indian
society. The rise of both the Bhakti and the Sufi movements believed that all
humans are equal, God is supreme and devotion to God is the only way to
achieve salvation. Sufism found a congenial atmosphere in India under the
Turkish rule. Their sense of piety, tolerance, sympathy, concept of equality and
friendly attitude attracted many Hindus, mostly from lower classes, to Islam.
The sufis were also influenced by the Christian and Buddhist monks regarding
the establishment of their khanqahs and dargahs. Mazars (tombs) and Takias
(resting places of Muslim saints) also became the centres for the propagation of
Islamic ideas. The Sufis were organised into religious orders or silsilahs. These
silsilahs were named after their founders such as Chishti, Suhrawardi, Qadi. and
Naqshbandis. These also started the tradition of piri-muridi, (teacher and the
disciple). In order to attain a state of mystical ecstasy, the sufis listened to
poetry and music (sama) which were originally in Persian, but later switched to
Hindawi or Hindustani. They preached the unity of God and self-surrender unto
Him. Music attracts everybody, irrespective of language. Slowly such music
attracted the Hindus who started visiting the dargahs in large number. The
Hindu impact on Sufism also became visible in the form of siddhas and yogic
postures.
The rulers of Delhi were called Sultans supposed to rule over a territory on
behalf of the Khalifa or Caliph, who was considered to be the spiritual and
temporal head of the Muslims. Both the names of the Khalifa and the Sultan
used to be read in the khutha, (Friday prayers) by the local Imams. The Delhi
Sultans were replaced by the Mughals. They also got the khutba read in their
own names. However, Sher Shah, a local Afghan ruler, challenged the Mughal
ruler, Humayun and kept him away from the throne of Delhi for about fifteen
years. Sher Shah’s reign stands out for many outstanding achievements. Mughal
emperor Akbar was a great ruler in the history of India. He made a sincere effort
to foster harmony among his subjects by discouraging racial, religious and
cultural biases. As a secular minded monarch he also started a faith called Din-i-
Illahi which encompassed ideas from various religions. On every Thursday,
scholars from different religions came to debate on religious issues raised by the
emperor. This was done at the Ibadat Khana in Fateh Pur Sikri at Agra. The
composite cultural characteristic of the medieval period, a new style of
architecture known as the Indo- Islamic style was born out of this fusion. The
distinctive features of Indo-Islamic architecture were the (a) dome; (b) lofty
towers or minarets; (c) arch; and (d) the vault.