Ho….. lal meri pat rakhiyo bhala jhulelalan,
Sindri daa, sewan daa, shakishah baaz kalandar,
Damadam mast kalandarr,
Ali da pehla number,
Ho, lal meri……..
Ho lal meri…
This is one of the world renowned number from Sufi collections.
This song is in the honor of Sufi mystic 'Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar'. Every word of his name has a meaning - he was known as Hazrat ( prophet of GOD ), Lal ( he wore red robes or mothers fondly call their kids as Lal ), Shahbaz ( Shah - King and Baz - Falcon, king of falcons and an Iranian GOD who led them to victory, a divine spirit ), and finally Qalandar ( a qalandari - a sufi saint, poet, mystic, noble man ). He settled in Serwan ( Sindh, now in Pak ) and tried bringing peace between Hindus and Muslims. Hindus regard him as GOD and reincarnate as well. You can hear many Punjabi singers, singing in his praise. He is also fondly called as Jhulelal.
The meaning of this sufi song is:
O laal meri pat rakhio bala jhoole laalan, Sindri da Sehvan da, sakhi Shabaaz kalandar, Dama dam mast kalandar, Ali dam dam de andar.
Always render your merciful blessings to my life, and be with me at every moment. Oh you resider of Sindh and sewan, you reside in every human being.( as the supreme master of his soul).
Chaar charaag tere baran hamesha, Panjwa mein baaran aayi bala jhoole laalan
O panjwa mein baaran, O panjwa mein baaran aayi bala jhoole laalan, Sindri da Sehvan da, sakhi Shabaaz Qalandar, Dama dam mast Qalandar, Ali dam dam de andar
(Your shrine is always lighted with four lamps, And here I come to light a fifth lamp in your honor )
Hind Sind ( some also sing Ghanan ghanan ) peera teri naubat vaaje, Naal vaje ghadiyaal bala jhoole laalan, O naal vaje, O naal vaje ghadiyaal bala jhoole laalan
Sindri da Sehvan da sakhi Shabaaz Qalandar, Dama dam mast kalandar, ali dam dam de andar, Dama dam mast Qalandar.
(Let your heroic name ring out in Hind & Sindh, Let the gong ring loud for your glory day and night by the people ( ghariyal - watchman, symbolism of night )
Har dam peera teri khair hove, Naam-e-ali beda paar laga jhoole laalan, O naam-e-ali, O naam-e-ali beda paar laga jhoole laalan, Sindri da sehvan da sakhi Shabaaz Qalandar, Dama dam mast Qalandar, Ali dam dam de andar
( O Lord, may you prevail every-time, everywhere, I pray of our well being, In the name of Ali, I pray to you to help my boat cross (the river of life) in safety).
Some of the known names who have lent their voice to this - Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Abida Parveen, Madam Noor Jehan, Wadali Brothers, Reshma, Sabri Brothers, Jagjit Singh, Runa Laila, Lata Mangeshkar, etc.
This song rejuvenates peace in heart and soul. Though sung with rocking playback support, still it is something which penetrates deep down into the soul of human body, and listeners get so deeply immersed in its charisma that it not only makes them forget all their pains, but also provides them with such magical mental abilities that they become intelligent enough to solve the puzzle of life either by bearing the pain with a smile on their face or by finding the solution of the same.
May God bless every person on this earth. Amen.
Well friend, I am an ardent fan of this song. You have beautifully described the meaning of each and every word in the song and in whose honour it is written and sung. Thank you very much, god bless all of us.
ReplyDeletevery nice
ReplyDeleteExcellent. i cant stop myself appreciating you.Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI have been listening to this song childhood. It takes me into trance.
ReplyDeleteI loved to hear it in baritone voice of Abida Parveen and Runa Laila.
Thank you for providing the meaning of those sindhi words.
Thanks for valuable and for beautiful information. There is a minor correction in meaning. You have mention that lal shahbaz qalander was PROPHET of GOD, No he was not prophet , prophet is only Mohammad sahab(PBUH). Shahbaz qalander sahab was "WALI of ALLAH(GOD) meaning "FRIEND of ALLAH. Shahbaz qalander sahab has blood relation with Prophet MOhammad (PBUH). Second you have mention about IRANIAN GOD. there is no GOD but other than ALLAH. ALLAH gives some divine power to him to solve the problems of mankind. That it. Thank you
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot..
ReplyDeletemam the meaning given is so simple n beautiful.
ReplyDeletemam the meaning given is so simple n beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI used to like the melody, but the meaning is much more touching. My pranam to Jhulelal : O laal meri pat rakhio bala jhoole laalan
ReplyDeleteJust found few more details about :
ReplyDeleteCheti Chand is an important festival celebrated by Sindhi people of Pakistan and India. However date of Cheti Chand is decided based on Hindu calendar. According to Hindu calendar, Cheti Chand is celebrated on the second day of Chaitra Shukla Paksha. Most of the times, it is celebrated one day after Ugadi and Gudi Padwa.
It is the day when the New Moon becomes visible after no moon day. Due to the first appearance of the moon during the Cheti month, this day is known as Cheti Chand.
The Sindhi community celebrates the festival of Cheti Chand to commemorate the birth anniversary of Ishtadeva Uderolal which is popularly known as Jhulelal, the patron saint of Sindhis.
The exact year of the birth of Saint Jhulelal is not known but he was born during the 10th century in Sindh. This was the time when Sindh came under the rule of Sumras. Sumras were tolerant to all other religions. However a tyrant named Mirkshah was threatening Sindhi Hindus to either convert to Islam or face the death.
Sindhis prayed to the river God to protect them from the forced conversion. It is stated that their prayers were heard after forty days of worship. River God promised them that the divine child would be born in Nasarpur to save them from the tyrant. The child was known as Saint Jhulelal.
This day is considered highly auspicious and is celebrated with much fanfare. The water which is the elixir of life is worshipped on this day.