The Bujh Niranjan: An Isma ili Mystical Poem.

• Author: Nanji, Azim A.

The primary languages of literary expression by Muslims in the Subcontinent have generally been assumed to be Arabic, Persian, and then Urdu. Though recognition has been afforded to writings in Bengali, Punjabi, and Sindhi, among others, most major studies on the subject ignore and neglect the other vernacular languages. In part, this neglect has been based on the assumption of a "classical" heritage which is generally thought to be best preserved in the established languages, and a sense that vernacular expressions tend to be of the "popular" variety, which in any case cannot be considered to be a reflection of "high" culture.

With the growing realization that oral and so-called popular expressions of Muslim devotion and spirituality constitute a vital component of the totality of Islamic life and practice, scholars have turned their attention to texts that preserve, in local languages, the devotional spirit that characterizes much of Muslim mysticism in the Subcontinent. Such texts represent part of the process of conversion, negotiation and transmission of established Sufi traditions and ideas to local settings.

This study of the Bujh Niranjan, an Indo-Ismaili mystical poem, illustrates a specific appropriation of mystical themes in a vernacular form, providing a window to the diverse world of Muslim spirituality in the Subcontinent. It also enriches our understanding of the ginan heritage of the Nizari Ismailis.

The first part of the study traces the transition that led to indigenization both of established form and content, as vernacular writings complemented existing Sufi texts in Arabic and Persian. In the case of Bujh Niranjan, this shift is represented by the use of a regional Sindhi script, called Khojki. This change was also accompanied by the use of Indian verse forms such as the caupai and the dohrah, and a greater use of terms and themes specific to the Indian religious context. In subsequent times, versions of the work came to be preserved also in Gujarati script. The author provides a lucid introduction to the history of the text, and its language, illustrating problems arising in the study and discussing its origin and background in a comparative context.

In discussing the "authorship" of the Bujh Niranjan, Professor Asani traces the process by which an originally Sufi composition is appropriated within the Indian Ismaili ginan tradition, and in the process, integrated into that corpus, and as with other ginans, attributed...