Bâbâ Farîd’s Hymns in Granth Ṣâhib with Qur’ânic Backdrop: A Review

Abstract

Bābā Farīd al-Dīn Ganj-i-Shakar, considered as the first Punjābī Sūfī poet, not only exercised his skill but also conveyed Qur’ānic and Prophetic (PBUH) message through his Punjābī poetry. His poetry is a rich source of Islamic teachings in lingua franca of the Punjab. The research intends to explore that whether the inclusion of his poetry in the Sikh scripture is recognition of Muslim mysticism or the poetry itself. The study attempts to examine the relation of the hymns of Bābā Ṣāhib with the teachings of Holy Qur’ān. Bābā Farīd, because of his high stature as an originator of Punjābī poetry, got a place in Granth Ṣāhib. The goal of this research is to highlight the pivotal position of Bābā Ṣāhib in connecting the two major religions of the world. The paper not only substantiates the historic position of Bābā Ṣāhib but also gives an insight to the services rendered by his poetry in promoting the interfaith harmony in the Sub-continent. This article focuses on Bābā Farīd as a literary and moral Canon, which led his work to be included in Sikh scripture. Moreover, it hints at the nuances of religious tolerance, mutual respect and love for knowledge, which lacks otherwise in a multi-religious society. In this article some of Bābā Ṣāhib’s verses in Granth Ṣāhib will be traced and analysed, taking into account their Qur’ānic interpretations. The comparative and somewhat historical approaches have been adopted to lay out a vivid analysis of his hymns in relation with the verses of the Holy Qur’ān and hence a message is extracted. Thus, he, evidently becoming part of one of the greatest anthologies of Punjābī poetry, attracted a huge outreach. The research question of this article is, whether the Holy Qur’ān is a basic source of Bābā Ṣāhib’s poetry or otherwise. It is strongly recommended that in order to attain actual harmony in our society, Bābā Ṣāhib’s work should be published in Shah-Mukhi script for the contemporary readership.