Kazi Nazrul Islam
Religious beliefs
Who calls you a prostitute, mother?
Who spits at you?
Perhaps you were suckled by someone
as chaste as
Seeta.
...
And if the son of an unchaste mother is 'illegitimate',
so is the son of an unchaste father.
– Translation by Sajed Kamal
[43]
Nazrul's mother died in 1928, and his second son Bulbul died of
smallpox the following year. His first son, Krishna Mohammad, had died prematurely. Pramila gave birth to two more sons – Sabyasachi in 1928 and Aniruddha in 1931 – but Nazrul remained shaken and aggrieved for a long time. His works changed significantly from rebellious expositions of society to deeper examination of religious themes. His works in these years led Islamic devotional songs into the mainstream of
Bengali folk music, exploring the Islamic practices of
namaz (prayer),
roza (fasting),
hajj (pilgrimage), and
zakat (charity). He wrote the song "O Mon Ramzaner Oi Rozar Sheshe Elo Khushir Eid" on fasting.
[44] This was regarded by his contemporaries as a significant achievement, as
Bengali Muslims had been strongly averse to devotional music.
[45] Nazrul's creativity diversified as he explored Hindu devotional music by composing Shyama Sangeet, bhajans, and kirtans, often merging Islamic and Hindu values. Nazrul wrote over 500 Hindu devotional songs.[46] Nazrul's poetry and songs explored the philosophy of Islam and Hinduism.[47]
Nazrul's poetry imbibed the passion and creativity of
Shakti, which is identified as the
Brahman, the personification of primordial energy. He wrote and composed many
bhajans,
shyamasangeet,
agamanis, and
kirtans. He also composed many songs of invocation to Lord
Shiva and the goddesses
Lakshmi and
Saraswati and on the love of
Radha and
Krishna.
[15]
In another article entitled
Hindu Mussalman, published in
Ganabani on 2 September 1922, he wrote:
I can tolerate Hinduism and Muslims but I cannot tolerate the Tikism (a tiki is a tuft of never cut hair kept on the head by certain Hindus to maintain personal Holiness) and beardism. Tiki is not Hinduism. It may be the sign of the pundit. Similarly beard is not Islam, it may be the sign of the mollah. All the hair-pulling have originated from those two tufts of hair. Today's fighting is also between the Pundit and the Mollah: It is not between the Hindus and the Muslims. No prophet has said, "I have come for Hindus I have come for Muslims I have come for Christians." They have said, "I have come for the humanity for everyone, like light."
But the devotees of Krishna says, "Krishna is for Hindus." The followers of Muhammad says, "Muhammad is for the Muslims." The Disciple of Christ (say Christ) is for Christians. Krishna-Muhammad-Christ have become national property. This property is the root of all trouble. Men do not quarrel for light but they quarrel over cattle.
[48]
Nazrul assailed fanaticism in religion, denouncing it as evil and inherently irreligious. He devoted many works to expound upon the principle of human equality, exploring the
Qur'an and the life of
Muhammad. Nazrul has been compared to
William Butler Yeats for being the first Muslim poet to create imagery and symbolism of Muslim historical figures such as Qasim,
Ali,
Umar,
Kamal Pasha, Anwar Pasha and Muhammad.
[29] His condemnation of extremism and mistreatment of women provoked condemnation from Muslim and Hindu fundamentalists.
[49]
In 1920 Nazrul expressed his vision of religious harmony in an editorial in
Joog Bani,
Come brother Hindu! Come Musalman! Come Buddhist! Come Christian! Let us transcend all barriers, let us forsake forever all smallness, all lies, all selfishness and let us call brothers as brothers. We shall quarrel no more.
[50]
Nazrul was an exponent of
humanism.
[48] Although a Muslim, he named his sons with both Hindu and Muslim names: Krishna Mohammad, Arindam Khaled (Bulbul),
Kazi Sabyasachi and Kazi Aniruddha.
[51]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazi_Nazrul_Islam
