Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai (1689–1752) was a Sufi scholar & is considered one of the greatest poets of the Sindhi language. Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai was born in 1689 in Hala Haveli's village Sui-Qandar located near Hyderabad, Pakistan. Shah Abdul Latif was son of Syed Habibullah & grandson of Syed Abdul Quddus Shah. He settled in the town of Bhit Shah in Matiari, Pakistan where his shrine is located. His most famous written work is the Shah Jo Risalo, which is a master-piece of Sindhi Literature as well. The major themes of his poetry include Unity of Almighty, love for Prophet, Religious tolerance & humanistic values. For his works, he is regarded as a "Direct Emanations of Rūmī's spirituality in the Indian world."
The Early Life:
Most of the information that has come down to us has been collected from oral traditions. A renowned Pakistani scholar, educationist & a foremost writer of plays, dramas & stories, Mirza Kalich Beg has rendered a yeoman service to Sindhi literature by collecting details about the early life of Shah Bhitai, from the dialogues that he has constantly held with some of the old folks, still living at that time, who knew these facts from their fathers & grandfathers for they had seen Shah Latif in person & had even spoken to him.
"The next day I sat down & listened to the Story of the "Wairagis." Their salmon-coloured clothes were covered with dust. Their hair-bands were worn out. They had let their hair grow quite long. The lonely ones never talk to anyone about their being. These '"Nanga" are content & happy. They move about unmarked amongst the common folk." ........Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai.
He was born around 1689 CE (1102 A.H.) to Shah Habib in the village Sui-Qandar a few miles to the east of the present town of Bhit Shah (named after him), on Safar 14, 1102 A.H. ie November 18, 1690 CE. He died at Bhit Shah on Safar 14, 1165 A.H., i.e. January 3, 1752 CE. In his memory, every year, on 14th Safar of the Hijri Calendar, an Urs is held at Bhit Shah, where he spent the last years of his life & where his elaborate & elegant mausoleum stands.
Shah Abdul Latif got his early education in the school (maktab) of Akhund Noor Muhammad in basic Persian (the government language at that time) & Sindhi (local spoken language). He also learned the Qu'ran. His correspondence in Persian with contemporary scholar Makhdoom Moinuddin Thattavi, as contained in the Risala-e-Owaisi, bears witness to his scholastic competence.
"Beloved's separation kills me friends, At His door, many like me, their knees bend. From far & near is heard His beauty's praise, My Beloved's beauty is perfection itself." .....Bhittai
His father Syed Habib Shah, lived in Hala Haveli, a small village, at a distance of about forty miles from Matiari and not far from the village of Bhitshah. Later he left this place & moved to Kotri, where Shah Latif spent some part of his adolescent life.
Appearance & Characteristics:
In appearance, Bhitai was a handsome man, of average height. He was strongly built, had black eyes and an intelligent face, with a broad & high forehead. He grew a Sunnah beard. He had a serious & thoughtful look about himself & spent much time in contemplation & meditation, since he was concerned about his moral & spiritual evolution with the sole purpose of seeking proximity of the Divine. He would often seek solitude & contemplate on the burning questions running through his mind concerning man's spiritual life:
Although he was born in favoured conditions, being the son of a well-known & very much respected Sayed family, he never used his position in an unworthy manner, nor did he show any liking for the comforts of life. He was kind, compassionate, generous & gentle in his manner of speech & behaviour which won him the veneration of all those who came across him. He had great respect for woman & he exercised immense reserve in dealing with them, in an age when these qualities were rare. He hated cruelty & could never cause physical pain to any man or even to an animal. He lived a very simple life of self-restraint. His food intake was simple & frugal, so was his dressing which was often deep yellow, the colour of the dress of sufis & ascetics, stitched with black thread. To this day, his relics are preserved at Bhitsah (where his mausoleum stands), some of which include a "T"-shaped walking stick, two bowls, one made of sandal-wood & another of transparent stone, which he used for eating & drinking. His long cap & his black turban are also preserved.
"Cloud was commanded to prepare for rain, Rain pattered & poured, lightning flared. Grain hoarders, hoping for high prices, wring their hands, Five would become fifteen in their pages they had planned. From the land may perish all the profiteers, Herdsmen once again talk of abundant showers, Latif says have hope in Allah's blessed grace." ......Bhittai.
Quest for Religious Truths:
In quest of religious truths, Shah Bhitai travelled to many parts of Sindh & also went to the bordering lands. He kept himself aloof from the political scene of favouritism & intrigues which was going on at the height of the power & rule of Kalhoras in Sindh. Instead of visiting towns & cities, in political canvassing, to serve the purpose of the rulers & elite of the land, though he was much respected by the members of the dynasty & could have benefited from it, he went to hills, valleys, the banks of river & the fields, where he met the ordinary simple people, the sufis (mystics). He went to the Ganjo Hills in the south of Hyderabad for contemplation & then to mountains in Las Bela in the south of Sindh & Balochistan. For three years, he travelled with these sufis in search of the truth, peace & harmony, to Hinglay, Lakhpat, Nani at the foot of the Himalayas & to Sappar Sakhi. At several places in the Risalo, mention has been made of these sufis & of his visits to these wonderful, holy & peaceful places. The two surs, Ramkali & Khahori, describe them under various endearing names & a detailed account of the sufis lifestyle is given. He also travelled to such far away places as Junagardh, Jesalmere & parts of the Thar desert.
"In deserts, wastes & Jessalmir it has rained, Clouds & lightning have come to Thar's plains; Lone, needy women are now free from care, Fragrant are the paths, happy herdsmen's wives all this share." ..........Bhitai.
Piety & Asceticism:
By the time he was a young man of twenty one years, he began to be known for his piety, his ascetic habits & his absorption in prayers. Observation & contemplation were chief traits of his character. A number of people flocked round him adding to the already large number of his disciples. This aroused jealousy of some powerful, ruthless, tyrannical persons - landlords, Pirs, Mirs & Rulers - who became his enemies for some time. Later, seeing his personal worth & the peaceful & ascetic nature of his fame, abandoned their rivalry. At this time he was living with his father at Kotri, five miles away from the present site of Bhitshah. It was here that his marriage was solemnised in 1713 CE with Bibi Sayedah Begum, daughter of Mirza Mughul Beg. She was a very virtuous & pious lady, who was a proper companion for him. The disciples had great respect for her. They had no children.
In the true ascetic spirit, Shah Latif was now in search of a place where in solitude, he could devote all his time in prayers & meditation. Such a place he found near Lake Karar, a mere sand hill, but an exotic place of scenic beauty, four miles away from New Hala. This place was covered by thorny bushes surrounded by many pools of water. It was simply & aptly called 'Bhit' (the Sand Hill). On the heaps of its sandstones he decide to settle down & build a village. As it was sandy, he along with his disciples dug out the hard earth from a distance & covered the sand with it to make the ground firm. After months of hard labour, carrying the earth on their heads & shoulders, the place was now fit enough for the construction of an underground room & two other rooms over it, along with a room for his old parents. A mosque was also built & the houses of his disciples properly marked out. In 1742, whilst he was still busy setting up a new village, Bhit, he got the sad news of the death of his dear father.. Soon after this Shah Latif shifted all his family members from Kotri to Bhitsah, as the village now began to be called. His father was buried there, in accordance to his will, where his mausoleum stands only eight paces away, from that of Shah Abdul Latif, towards its north.
The Seven Queens of Sindh:
The women of Shah Abdul Latif’s poetry are known as the Seven Queens, heroines of Sindhi folklore who have been given the status of royalty in the Shah Jo Risalo. The Seven Queens were celebrated throughout Sindh for their positive qualities: their honesty, integrity, piety & loyalty. They were also valued for their bravery & their willingness to risk their lives in the name of love.
Perhaps what Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai saw in his tales of these women was an idealised view of womanhood, but the truth remains that the Seven Queens inspired women all over Sindh to have the courage to choose love & freedom over tyranny & oppression. The lines from the Risalo describing their trials are sung at Sufi shrines all over Sindh & especially at the urs of Shah Abdul Latif every year at Bhit Shah.
The Seven Queens mentioned in the Shah Jo Risalo are:
- Marvi
- Momal
- Sassi
- Noori
- Sohni
- Sorath
- Lila
For the last eight years of his remarkable life, Shah Latif lived at Bhitshah. A few days before his death, he retired to his underground room & spent all his time in prayers & fasting, eating very little..
He suffered from no sickness or pain of any kind. The date was 14th Safar 1165 Hijra corresponding to 1752 CE. He was buried at the place where his mausoleum now stands, which was built by the ruler of Sindh, Ghulam Shah Kalhoro. His name literally means 'the servant of the Shah'. He, along with his mother, had adored & revered Shah Latif & were his devoted disciples. The work of the construction of the mausoleum was entrusted to the well-known mason, Idan from Sukkur. The mausoleum, as well as the mosque adjoining it, were later repaired & renovated by another ruler of Sindh, Mir Nasir Khan Talpur.
"Tell me the stories, oh thorn-brush, Of the mighty merchants of the Indus, Of the nights & the days of the prosperous times, Are you in pain now, oh thorn-brush? Because they have departed: In protest, cease to flower. Oh thorn-brush, how old were you When the river was in full flood? Have you seen any way-farmers who could be a match of the Banjaras? True, the river has gone dry & worthless plants have begun to flourish on the brink, The elite merchants are on decline & the tax collectors have disappeared, The river is littered with mud & the banks grow only straws The river has lost its old strength, You big fish, you did not return When the water had its flow Now it's too late, You will soon be caught For fishermen have blocked up all the ways. The white flake on the water: Its days are on the wane." ......Bhitai (translated by Prof. D. H. Butani (1913-1989) in The Melody & Philosophy of Shah Latif).
The Urs Sharif:
The URS is a Grand event in Sindh, where people from almost every village & town of Sindh & from different cities of other provinces of Pakistan - rich & poor, young & old, scholars & peasants - make a determined effort to attend. The Urs commences every year from 14th Safar (2nd month of Hijra calendar) & lasts for three days. A literary gathering is also held where papers concerning the research work done on the life, poetry & message of Bhitai, are read, by scholars & renowned literary figures. His disciples & ascetics, gather around & read passages from his Risalo. Scholarly debates & exhibitions of his work & traditional Sindhi artifacts are also organized.
"Sleeping on the river's bank, I heard of Mehar's glory, Bells aroused my consciousness, longing took its place, By Almighty! fragrance of Mehar's love to me came, Let me go & see Mehar face to face." .....Bhittai.
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