Podcast Ep 027 Qawwali

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Omar, Yasmine and Shahroze discuss the history, evolution and spiritual significance of qawwali. Qawwali incorporates music, poetry and story-telling in to a celebration of Love. The singing of qawwali in Sufi shrines and mausoleums is a practice of samaa, a devotional practice that involves singing, dancing, playing musical instruments, praying, reciting poetry and participating in rituals in order to achieve a higher spiritual state.

What We Talk About In This Episode

• Transformation of the ghazal from Arabia, to Iran to the Indian subcontinent

• The use of music in the spread of Islam in the subcontinent

• Borrowed traditions of music and poetry in qawwali

• Qawwali as a means of bridging cultural and spirituals gaps

• World music and performing qawwali for a global audience

• The blending of South Asian folk knowledge and traditions in qawwali

• Performance principles and structures of qawwali

• Haal, kefiyat and trancendence

• Shahbaz Qalandar’s shrine in Sehwan and dhamaal as a form of dhikr

• Commercialisation of qawwali; Coke Studio, qawwali concerts, and events

• Difference between qawwali and sufiana kalam

Things/People Mentioned In This Episode

• Intro qawwali: Bahauddin Qutbuddin Qawwal – Khyal Ang Qawwali

• ‘How the ghazal traveled from 6th-century Arabia to Persia, India and the English-speaking world’

• Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s performance at the 1985 World Music Festival – Allah Hoo

• Shemeem Burney Abbas, The Female Voice in Sufi Ritual

• Regula Qureshi: Sufi Music of India and Pakistan: Sound, Context and Meaning in Qawwali

• Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan – Iss Karam Ka Karun

• Reshma – Lal Meri Pat

• Lostwithpurpose post on dhamaal

View this post on Instagram

The dance of a Qalandar does not know any form, an uncle told me one dark Lahori night, it can adopt any form. He was speaking of Qalandari dhamal, a South Asian Sufi dance where people enter trance states by swirling and moving to the beat of drums. Dance is a word used loosely. Frenetic spinning, stamping feet, shaking heads, flailing limbs, jumping up and down, all are part of a dhamal dance. Watching dhamal has been one of my favorite experiences in Pakistan. I love watching people completely let loose and as music guides their souls to higher levels. The primal nature of a gathering in the dark of night set to drums and raised voices. Every Thursday night, these rituals take place in shrines all across Pakistan. Lahore is a great place to see one, though you have to know where to look. I’ve put together a blog post with a list of places in Lahore where you can catch dhamal on Thursdays. Check the link in my bio if you want to know more!

See also

Omar Rais

Safarnama: A Personal Journey Photographing The Mughal Monuments Of South Asia

A post shared by Alex Reynolds | Travel (@lostwithpurpose) on Jan 15, 2019 at 6:11am PST

• Abida Perveen – Balaghal Ula Be Kamaal

• Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan – Lajpaal Nabi Mere Dardaan Di Dawa

• Abida Perveen – Tere Ishq Nachaya

• Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan – Man Kunto Maula

Further Reading & Resources

Ally Adnan’s Lecture on The History, Art and Practice of Qawwali

Anuradha Bhattacharjee & Shadab Alam, “The Origin and Journey of Qawwali: From Sacred Ritual to Entertainment?” (2012). Journal of Creative Communications.

James R Newell, “Unseen Power: Aesthetic Dimensions of Symbolic Healing in Qawwali.” (2007). The Muslim World.

Scott Kugle, “Qawwali: Between Written Poem and Sung Lyric.” (2007). The Muslim World.

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