The enchanting beauty of Sachal Sarmast's shrine

Published August 21, 2014
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan
- Photo by Shameen Khan

"If I interpret love for all time, A hundred resurrections will pass; And yet my commentary will not end" - Sachal Sarmast

Abdul Wahab, fondly known by his disciples as Sachal Sarmast, (intoxicated man of god and truth) was born in 1739 in a village called Daraza in Khairpur. He spread the message of divine love through his poetry, which embodied the principles of mysticism and according to him was 'divine' inspiration.

He was fond of ‘sama’ (music) and would always be found absorbed in meditation. He wrote his poetry in seven languages, including Sindhi, Seraiki and Persian, and earned titles from his devotees like Haft-i-Zuban Shair (the poet of seven languages) and Sartaj-us-Shuara. There are nine compilations of his Persian poetry, notably the Diwan-i-Ashkar and Dard Nama, which consist of mainly philosophical verses. However, it is his Sindhi and Seraiki work that is celebrated the most.

He was an ascetic and lived to the age of 90 years. He passed away on Ramazan 1829 AD and his belongings were buried alongside the graves of his father, grandfather, uncle and cousins in the mausoleum later on built by Mir Rustam Khan Talpur, the ruler of Khairpur.

"Where crowds are, there I am not", said Sachal Sarmast. Each year in Ramazan, though, thousands of people gather at his shrine in Daraza for his Urs.

Opinion

Editorial

Ties with Tehran
Updated 24 Apr, 2024

Ties with Tehran

Tomorrow, if ties between Washington and Beijing nosedive, and the US asks Pakistan to reconsider CPEC, will we comply?
Working together
24 Apr, 2024

Working together

PAKISTAN’S democracy seems adrift, and no one understands this better than our politicians. The system has gone...
Farmers’ anxiety
24 Apr, 2024

Farmers’ anxiety

WHEAT prices in Punjab have plummeted far below the minimum support price owing to a bumper harvest, reckless...
By-election trends
Updated 23 Apr, 2024

By-election trends

Unless the culture of violence and rigging is rooted out, the credibility of the electoral process in Pakistan will continue to remain under a cloud.
Privatising PIA
23 Apr, 2024

Privatising PIA

FINANCE Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb’s reaffirmation that the process of disinvestment of the loss-making national...
Suffering in captivity
23 Apr, 2024

Suffering in captivity

YET another animal — a lioness — is critically ill at the Karachi Zoo. The feline, emaciated and barely able to...