Bulleh Shah’s Kafi: A Reflection on Chaotic Times

Current events remind me of a very popular kafi (verse, from Arabic lit. Qafiya – rhyming pattern) by the 17^th century Sufi philosopher poet Bullah Shah (or, Bulle Shah) – Ultey Hor Zamaane aaye (‘Chaotic Times Are Here’):

Ulṭey hor zamaaney aaye Taan mein bhed sajan de paaye	Perverse (topsy-turvy) times are upon us Revealing the natural order of things to me
Kaan laggaraan nuun maaran lagge Chiddiaan zurrey dhaaye	Crows have begun to attack laggars (falcons) (Timid) Sparrows have vanquished hawks
Ghodey chuggan arudiaan uttey Gaddhon khud pavaye	Horses graze (on) rubbish heaps (While) Donkeys are being served fine meals
Aapanian vich ulfat naahin Kyaa chaache kyaa taaye	There is no love among relatives Be they (our) young or older uncles (alluding to patriarchal family structures)
Pio puttaran iteffaq naa kaaii Dhiiaan naal naa maaye	There is no harmony between fathers and sons Nor any between daughters and mothers
Sachiaan nuun paye dhakke milade Jhuuthe kol bahaaye	The truthful (upright) get pushed about Liars (tricksters) are seated closer (honored)
Agale ho kangaale baithe, Pichhliyaan farsh bichhaaye	Front-liners (prominent) persons sit sidelined, destitute (While) carpets are (being) laid out for backbenchers (inconsequential persons)
Bhureyaan vale raajii kitey Raajiaan bhiikh mangaaye	Those in tatters (lit. rough blankets) have been made monarchs (Former) kings are being made to beg
Bullihaa hukam hajuron ayaa Tis nuun kaun hataaye	O’ Bullah, the command comes from the Divinity Who can alter this decree?

Bulle Shah’s kafi is a reflection of the changing socio-economic values in the mid-eighteenth century when the Moghul dynasty’s rule and influence in India was waning and the Sikhs were in ascendancy.  It alludes to families turning on one another, the discord between sons and fathers (the Mughal prince Aurangzeb deposed his father and executed his two brothers), virtuous people of stature being replaced by unethical sycophants and toadies lacking moral stature being given positions of power and status.  The kafi also points out that at the same time, the weak and oppressed rural populace in the Punjab (referenced as the gentle and timid sparrows) were coming together to challenge despots and bringing them down.

I have relied on several resources for this post and gratefully acknowledge the Punjabi poet and writer Dr Manzur Ejaz; ‘Bulleh Shah’ by J.R. Puri and T.R. Shangari of Radha Soami Satsang Beas; and, ‘Bullhe Shah Sufi Lyrics’ published by Murty Classical library of India.

Dr. Ejaz concedes that the underlying love between humans remains a given.  However, he provides the interesting perspective that familial and other relations are not divinely ordained or God-given as we have been led to believe, but are the result of prevailing socio-economic considerations.  Relationships are transactional, driven primarily by needs that change with circumstances.  So long as a society functions placidly we do not question the underlying structures. But, during tumultuous times unpredictability, growing mistrust and perceived threats to self preservation strain our otherwise stable bonds.  Bulleh Shah claims that this is the enduring truth that dawned on him as he witnessed the changing times. 

Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind appears to corroborate this.  Author Christopher Ondaatje writes in his fascinating book ‘Sindh Revisited, retracing the journeys of Sir Richard Burton’ writes: “Each period of change results in a turmoil, since the old belief system has to be destroyed for the new system to establish itself.  Over very long periods of time, the new becomes the old and the old becomes new again.”  

Personally, I believe this kafi is not a critique of humanity’s fickle behavior, but suggests a positive undertone.  It offers hope and comfort through continuum.  History demonstrates that as the zamaanaa (times/period/world) changes, humans do not stay deluded or remain oblivious but rise to challenge, and, alter the status quo.  Mahatma Gandhi is reported to have said, “We but mirror the world. …If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change.”

It is interesting that Bob Dylan’s The Times They’re a-Changin’ reflects Bulle Shah’s thoughts over 200 years later.  Songs such as these galvanized youth in the 1960s to oppose the US Administration’s policies and helped end the war in Vietnam.

Time to reflect on how each of us must change to bring about the change we wish to see in our ‘topsy turvy’ world.