Posted by “And indeed We have created man
And We know what his soul whispers to him,
And We are nearer to him than [his] jugular vein” (Q 50:16).
“God said: I could not be contained in the heavens and the earth but can be contained in the heart of a true believer.”
Hadith of Prophet Muhammad
Ginans are a vast collection consisting of several hundred compositions which have been a central part of the religious life of the Nizari Ismaili community of the Indian subcontinent that today resides in many countries around the world. Derived from the Sanskrit jnana, meaning contemplative knowledge, Ginans refer to the poetic compositions authored by Ismaili Pirs, who came to the Indian subcontinent as early as the eleventh century to teach the message of Revelation to non-Arabic speaking people. To explain the ayat about closeness of the Divine, Pirs and their descendants, Sayyids, composed several ginans including:
In his compositions, Pir Sadardin said:
Sab ghat saami maaro bharpur bethaa,
tame gaafal dur ma dekho, ek jiyo jire bhaire (v 1).
My Lord resides in every heart,
don’t deem Him far o you mindless one, O brother! He is the only One.
(tr. M & Z Kamaluddin, Ginan Central, University of Saskatchewan)
Sakhi maari aatam naa odhaar ke alag ma jaajore,
evo saroop mindariyo saar tiyaa tame biraajo re (v1).
O my friend! O saviour of my soul! Do not be separated from me,
come and sit in my heart which is a beautiful and exalted place.
(tr. M & Z Kamaluddin, Ginan Central, University of Saskatchewan)
Sayyid Imam Shah, in his composition Hetesun milo maaraa munivaro, explained:
Paak to saheb ji nu naam chhe, tene jampiye saas usaas,
dur ma dekho dil maahe vase
jem champaa phool maahe vaas (v 4).
The Lord’s name is holy, remember it in every breath,
do not consider Him far, he dwells in the heart
just as fragrance exists in the flower champaa.
(tr. M & Z Kamaluddin, Ginan Central, University of Saskatchewan)
Eji rome rome maaro Shah vase ane antar nahi ek til,
evo jaani ne bhagataaki kijiye, Shah partak bethaa dil (v 5).
Believers, Within every hair of my body, my Lord resides and He is not far by even a distance of one grain of sesame,
perform your worship while thinking of Him thus, the Lord is always present and seated in your heart.
(tr. Ali Asani)
Pir Imamdin, in verse 2 of his composition Aapnu aap pichhaano, instructs:
panj vaarantaa man varjine liyo
dil illala sun laavo.
Renounce selfishness by warding off the five passions (anger, greed, pride, lust, attachment to the illusionary world), fix your heart on “Except God”
[as in la ilaha illa’llah “There is no god except God”].
(tr. Ali Asani)
Sayyida Imam Begum, in her composition Hardam karo abhias, says:
damo dam maaraa saamine srevjo
saami maaro chhe tamaare paas, karine dekhoji (v 1).
Remember my Lord in every breath,
my Lord is very near to you.
Tamaaro saami tame manhe emaj bethi ji
jiyun hae phoolo maahe vaas ( v 3).
Your Lord is in you
as the fragrance is in the flower.
Ajampiyaa jaap bhaai ghat bhitaarji
sohi ghat hoeshe ujaash (v 7).
The heart in which there is silent remembrance
that heart will be enlightened.
(tr. M & Z Kamaluddin, Ginan Central, University of Saskatchewan)
Pir Shams explains:
Hum dil khalakAllah sohi vase ji,
jene kaayam kudarat chalaai ebi Allah (v 1).
In our hearts, resides Allah the Creator; the same Lord Allah who establishes
and sustains the everlasting nature and creation. He is indeed the Lord.
(tr. Ismaili.net).
In his composition Saloko Moto, he teaches:
satgur kahere: dil mahe deval pujiye, ane dil maahe dev duvaar
dil maahe saayaa aape vase, ane dil maahe aape didaar.
Worship the Lord in the heart, and in the heart is the abode of the Lord.
In your heart the Lord resides, and in the heart He bestows His Vision.
(tr. Ismaili.net)
“The way to personal fulfillment, to individual reconciliation with the Universe that is about us, is comparatively easy for anyone who firmly and sincerely believes, as I do, that Divine Grace has given man in his own heart the possibilities of illumination and of union with Reality.”
Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah, The Memoirs of Aga Khan, p 334
park. Photo: AKDN / Gary Otte
“As the poet Rumi has written: “The light that lights the eye is also the light of the heart… but the light that lights the heart is the Light of God.”
Mawlana Hazar Imam
Speech
Also see
Pirs composed Ginans to teach the Ismaili interpretation of Islam
Ginan composers were acquainted with an already well-developed set of Ismaili beliefs
Ginan themes include laments of the soul, supplications, and ethics
Pir Shams composed the largest number of the garbi form of ginans
Sources:
Shafique N. Virani, “Symphony of Gnosis,” Reason and Inspiration in Islam Ed. Todd Lawson, I.B. Tauris in association with The Institute of Ismaili Studies, London, 2005 (p 502-521)
Ali Asani, Hymns of Wisdom, Claremont McKenna College (1:09:46)
Ali Asani, The Ginans – Awakening the Soul Through Wisdom (1:14:14)
Nimira's Blog 