Shah Hussain
Shah Hussain, also known as Mādhū Lāl Hussain, was a Punjabi Sufi poet, who is regarded as a pioneer of the Kafi form in Punjabi poetry; and the first major early-modern poet in the Punjab, living during the 16th century in the early Mughal era, the Mughal interregnum with the Sur era, and the Mughal restoration.
Shah Hussain was a student of Sufi saint Shaikh Bahlol Daryai, the founder of the Bahlol Shahi sub-order in the Qadiriyya tariqa. Before his death, the saint assigned Shah Hussain to be his representative in Lahore.
Name
Shah Hussain is also often known as Shah Hussain Faqir - Faqir meaning Dervish and Shah means King. So due to his extremely humble Sufi personality, people called him The Dervish King, a person who was a King and a Dervish at the same time.Life
He was born in 945 AH within the Walled City of Lahore in what is now Punjab, Pakistan. His father was Sheikh Usman, he was a Dhudhi Rajput, and by occupation, he was a weaver. His ancestor Kaljas Rai was a convert of Islam. Notable books written on his life include Risala Baharia, Hasanat ul Arifin, Haqiqat ul Fuqra, Miftahul Arifin, along with others.
Relationship with Madho Lal
Shah Hussain, a 16th-century Punjabi Sufi poet, is also known as Madho Lal Hussain due to his profound and unique bond with Madho Lal, a Hindu Brahmin boy. Their relationship transcended societal norms and religious boundaries, symbolizing unity and love in South Asia.The connection between Shah Hussain and Madho Lal was so deep that their names became inseparable. It is said that Hussain was captivated by Madho's beauty and devoted himself to him in a way that mirrored the Sufi tradition of divine love. Hussain even celebrated Hindu festivals like Basant Panchami and Holi to honor Madho. Over time, Madho became Hussain's disciple and spiritual successor. After Hussain's death, Madho carried forward his legacy for 48 years until his own passing, and they were buried side by side at their shrine near Lahore's Shalimar Gardens.
Shah Hussain’s decision to place Madho’s name before his own was a gesture of eternal remembrance. This fusion of names—Madho Lal Hussain—symbolizes their inseparable bond and serves as a metaphor for harmony between different faiths and communities.
Cultural context: Shah Hussain's poetry often uses passionate language that could be interpreted as romantic love. Many argue that this relationship should be understood within the context of 16th-century Punjabi culture and Sufi traditions. Sufi poetry often uses romantic imagery to describe spiritual love, which can lead to different interpretations.
Poetic Diction
Shah Hussain often assumed a female persona in their poetry, portraying themselves as brides and God as the male beloved or bridegroom. He used multiple terms for God in his poetry, such as Sajjan, Sāi'yāņ, Şāĥib, and Kant, all referring to husband, beloved, or bridegroom in Punjabi.ਸਜਣ ਦੇ ਹਥਿ ਬਾਂਹ ਅਸਾਡੀ, ਕਿਉਂ ਕਰਿ ਆਖਾਂ ਛਡਿ ਵੇ ਅੜਿਆThe human soul is represented as a bride, with different states of the soul depicted through various female roles; An unmarried girl unaware of her destiny, a bride-to-be waiting for her groom or a married woman in marital bliss or longing for reunion. He wrote in the concept of spiritual marriage or "betrothal to God" to symbolize the soul's union with the Divine. Thus, he represented soul's relationship with God through marital imagery. He would call a soul that has attained communion with the Divine as suhāgan, and a soul that fails to achieve divine love as duhāgaņ. Shah Husayn used items associated with brides, such as the sālo, to symbolize spiritual concepts like good deeds and the soul's journey.
سجن دے ہتھ بانہ اساڈی، کی کر آکھاں چھڈ وے اڑیا
Shrine
His tomb and shrine is located at the Baghbanpura precincts, adjacent to the Shalimar Gardens (Lahore), Pakistan. His Urs is celebrated at his shrine every year during the "Mela Chiraghan". Madho's tomb lies next to Hussain's in the shrine.In the 18th century, during Maharaja Ranjit Singh rule of Punjab, the maharaja himself would lead a procession from his palace in Lahore to Shah Hussain's shrine barefoot during Mela Chiraghan, accompanied by thousands of Sikhs, Muslims and Hindus. Shah Hussain's urs and the mela used to happen at two different times but were both combined into one and then called "Mela Chiraghan" by Ranjit Singh. This mela is considered to be the biggest festival of Punjab.
Kafis of Shah Hussain
Hussain's works of poetry consist entirely of short poems known as Kafis. A typical 'Hussain Kafi' contains a refrain and some rhymed lines. The number of rhymed lines is usually between four and ten. Only occasionally is a longer form adopted. Hussain's Kafis are also composed for, and the singing of them has been set to music based on Punjabi folk music. Many of his Kafis are part of the traditional Qawwali repertoire. His poems have been performed as songs by Kaavish, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Abida Parveen, Ghulam Ali, Hamid Ali Bela, Amjad Parvez, Junoon and Noor Jehan, among others."It may be asserted that poetry is often written to be sung. And all poetry carries, through manipulation of sound effects, some suggestion of music".
Here are three examples, which draw on the famous love story of Heer Ranjha:
Another Kafi:
Two Kafis that are addressed to his Hindu disciple Madho Lal Hussain need a special mention: