PESHAWAR: Poets and devotees from parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Fata, Balochistan and Afghanistan gathered at the shrine of Sufi poet Rahman Baba here on Sunday to pay their tributes in befitting words.

The three-day Urs celebrations started on Friday and concluded on Sunday at Rahman Baba shrine in Hazarkhawani. The Pashto mushaira was conducted in two sessions. The first poetry session was devoted to guest poets from far off areas while the second session was specified for local poets.

The poets paid glowing tributes to Rahman Baba for his illustrious literary contributions. They said that Rahman Baba was the symbol of peace and spirituality. Academy of Letters resident director Syed Wali Khial Momand, social activist Eng Ejaz Khan Yousafzai and Ashraf Ghamgeen also attended the event that was participated by around 150 Pashto poets.

Zafar Bakhshali, general secretary of Rahman Baba Adabi Jirga, presented three resolutions, which were passed unanimously by the participants.

Authorities asked to declare first day of Urs public holiday in Peshawar

People from far and wide continued to throng the shrine of the Sufi poet. The devotees of Rahman Baba also performed dhamaal (Sufi dance) to attract attention of the visitors. Attired in tattered clothes with disheveled hair, they whirled around for quite some time. A few spiritually charged visitors also accompanied them.

Addressing the function, Prof Abaseen Yousafzai said that Rahman Baba had a special reverence in the hearts of Pakhtuns because of his universal message of humanism.

He said that it was need of the hour to render Rahman Baba’s poetic works into all major languages of the world so that people across globe could know and understand the collective wisdom and peace message of Pakhtuns. He said that Rahman Baba would remain source of inspiration for them and would continue to guide on the right path.

The first resolution demanded of the provincial culture directorate to increase its annual grant in aid from Rs100,000 to at least Rs500,000. The second and third resolutions asked the directorate of archives and public libraries to vacate Mushaira Hall at Rahman Baba Complex from the record of the revenue department and start renovation work on it immediately and also release funds for Rahman Baba Public Library forthwith.

“We demand immediate release of funds not only for Rahman Baba library but also for all public libraries in the province to promote book culture especially among our youngsters,” said Zafar Bakhshali.

He made a special demand of Chief Minister Pervez Khattak and Peshawar district nazim Mohammad Asim Khan to declare the first day of Rahman Baba Urs as a public holiday at district level to ensure greater participation of people in the event.

He regretted that despite their invitation, officials of culture department didn’t show up at the gathering.

Earlier, Aqeel Khan Faqeer, a senior mendicant, at the shrine made a call for public supplication to invoke Allah to bless Pakhtuns with peace and spiritual guidance. He requested the participants to read and understand poetry and sublime thoughts of Rahman Baba to purify their deeds and purge their hearts of mundane worries. Later, the organisers of the event distributed free meal among the guests and visitors.

The Rahman Baba Adabi Jirga also launched a calendar of 2017 sprinkled with couplets of Rahman Baba while bookstalls were set up at the shrine. People took keen interest in the bookstalls and floral paintings along with couplets done all over the walls of Rahman Baba Complex.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2017