Islamic Mystic Abu Yazid & Advaita

In his insightful treatise "Hindu & Muslim Mysticism", R. C. Zaehner writes about Abu Yazid, the Sufi Mystic. He was born in the village of Bistam in Western Khorasan, Iran, in 804 A.D. His father & uncles were ascetics & so was he, who for the first time in Islam, dared to make himself equal with the deity. It was he who first said "I am He", echoing the famous "Tat Twam Asi" of the Chandogya Upanishad & the "Aham Brahmasmi" of the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.

He also reportedly said "Subhani" (Glory be to me), which is blasphemous to Muslim ears. But "Mahyam Eva namo namah" says Brihatsannyasa Upanishad, meaning "Homage, homage to me." He is also reported to have said "I have sloughed off my skin like a snake & I am He." Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, (4.4.7, 12) says "As the sloughed off skin of a snake lies, so does this body lie." But a man should know himself & should say, "I am He."

"As soon as I reached God's unity, I became a bird, flew & perched on a tree. I Iooked down & then I knew it was all deceit." says Abu Yazid. So did Shankara in his "Brahma Satyam Jagat Mithya" in his "Viveka Chudamani." Incidentally the Quran (47:36) also says "This world is but a sport & diversion", echoing the "Maya" theory of Advaita. This tree also seems to be none other than the Cosmic Tree of Katha Upanishad (also mentioned in the Mundaka & Svetasvatara Upanishads.)

To avoid a head-on collision with the religious authorities, he encouraged the idea that he was mad. Also Naradaparivrajaka Upanishad says that the perfect sannyasin should behave like an idiot. Dr. Margaret Smith, in her "Early  Mysticism in the near & middle East" writes that early Muslim  Mysticism is, in its overwhelming emphasis on the love of God, so much indebted to the thoughts of the Christian Mystics of a slightly earlier period. On the contrary, mainstream Islam, promises believers the delights of a sensual Paradise, while making it quite clear that Allah does not reside there.

To conclude, Abu Yazid may have absorbed the new (for Muslims) doctrine of "Fanaa" (dying in mystical union with Allah) from his mentor, Abu Ali al-Sindi. He was also born just later than Adi Shankaracharya (8th Century.) Abu Yazid's s ideas seem quite similar to the ideas of "Jeevan Muktas" of Advaita, namely Sri Ramakrishna & Bhagawan Ramana Maharshi.

Bibliography:

The Following Upanishads.

1. Brihadaranyaka.
2. Brihatsannyasa.
3. Chandogya.
4. Katha.
5. Mundaka.
6. Naradaparivrajaka.
7. Svetasvatara.

Others:

1. Adi Shankara, Viveka Chudamani.
2. Smith, Dr.Margaret. "Early Mysticism in the Near & Middle East.
3. The Holy Quran.
4. Zaehner, R.C. "Hindu & Muslim Mysticism."

Earliest records of Pt. Ravi Shankar

These, though not heard frequently now, are perfect little gems from the early part of his career. They were issued presumably on 78 rpm shellac records prevalent in those days, playing for about 3 minutes on each side. They were later reissued on four 45 rpm extended play (EP) records, each carrying two ragas on each side.

The 16 ragas are, Marwa, Hemant, Yamani Bilaval, Prach, Sindhu Bhairavi, Tilak Shyam, Nat Bhairav, Puriya Kalyan, Bhatiyar, Hameer, Kirawani, Rasiya, Ahir Lalit, Panchami se Gara, Yamani Manj & Bengali Kirtan. Subsequently, several of these pieces were issued in LP & CD format also.

Apart from these, 4 EPs were issued, playing 6 minutes each side, containing ragas Kaushi Bhairav, Khamach, Todi, Manj Khamach (last two with Ali Akbar Khan), Megh, Nand, Janasammohini & Mishra Gara.

In addition, during Bangladesh war of 1971, a special EP was issued with Panditji himself singing two Bengali songs on one side & a duet with Ali Akbar Khan featuring Raga Mishra Jhinjoti on the other.

All these ragas, though of limited duration, perfectly showcase Panditji's genius in compressing the essence of the ragas in a brief time & are unmissable by connoisseurs.

Work, Profession or Albatross?

An albatross is something that hangs around a person's neck, inhibiting his/her freedom. Now one's work or profession, especially in the urban areas where commuting is becoming more time-consuming & nerve wracking, has become an albatross, preventing one from having any other interests or social activities. Instead of providing a livelihood for a person to lead a full life, it is stultifying & suffocating human dignity.

Art, Culture & Sports which alone distinguish man from animals are banished from everyday life, effectively dehumanising man into an economically productive robot. Now itself, one listens with increasing frequency,  about burnout, heart attacks & even suicides as if life is only possible under these toxic  work conditions. Posterity can only tell what calamitous effect this can have on future generations. Corporate Culture, the main stay of "non-compassionate" capitalism, limping from quarterly to ever higher quarterly returns, is aiming to return humanity to the dark ages of the industrial revolution, where human resource was considered the cheapest of all natural resources.