The Department of Bengali collaborated with Pashchimbanga Itihas Samsad to host a seminar/panel discussion on Sufism and Bengali culture, duly ratified by the IQAC of our college in Jubilee Hall on Saturday, 30 September, 2023. The panel included very distinguished speakers, Prof. A. Dey, Ashutosh Mukherjee Professor, of the Department of History, University of Calcutta and Dr. Ipshita Halder, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature, Jadavpur University, Kolkata. The session was chaired by the eminent historian, Shri A. Bandyopadhyay.
Dr. Dey gave the historical perspective of how Sufism was imbibed in various ways for centuries in India, while Dr. Halder spoke about the influence of the philosophy in Bengali literature and music. They illustrated how in the 19th century, many great minds of Bengal like Raja Rammohan Roy and Maharshi Debendranath Tagore took an active interest in Persian poetry, particularly, in the works of Hafiz and Jalaluddin Rumi.
Prof. Amit Dey enumerated the multifarious ways in which Bengali culture and society were transformed under the influence of Sufism. Emphasizing on certain key concepts of Sufism, like love (“ishq”), annihilation (“fana”), he sought to explain how Sufism was widely accepted by the people of Bengal. He cited the structural similarity between the domes of temples and mosques and the shape of the caps that Sufi devotees wore. Illustrating the importance of religious travel, place-making and space-making, Prof. Dey highlighted the amalgamation of the universal and the local in Sufi thoughts and practices. For instance, he showed how by integrating the universal tenets of Sufi religious beliefs and couching them in local terms and understanding, the Sufis were better able to communicate their ideas among the people. He also sought to explain why and why Bengal did not produce any charismatic Sufi which ultimately became synonymous with a site, as in the case of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti or Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya. It is here that he introduced the idea of warrior Sufis of Bengal, who prioritized the task of spreading the ideas of Sufism in Bengal at a moment to articulate their thoughts in a coherent manner when the political climate of the region was quite daunting. Concluding his stimulating session Dr Dey encouraged young scholars to undertake more serious research on Sufism in Bengal and through such localized intensive study add to the domain of historical study in more thought provoking ways.
Dr. Ipshita Halder concentrated on the influence of Sufi thought on the language and literature of Bengal. For the Thirteenth century Sufi poet Rumi, “Love is my religion”, as “Only on the horse of love can you go beyond the sun and the moon to behold the Perfect One.” It is this message of unconditional love that inspired the religious rejuvenation of Shri Chaitanya or Meera Bai, or even Guru Nanak, resulting in the inclusion of Sufi verses in Guru Granth Sahib. Dr. Halder pointed out that although translating the Quran was strictly prohibited initially, and how it took centuries to publish a Bangla version. She read out very interesting extracts to show how the Islamic missionaries eventually adopted a very Sanskritized register to communicate with the people of Bengal. Rabindranath possibly imbibed his love of Sufi poetry from his father, Debendranath, who was fond of Hafiz. He was instrumental in encouraging Kshitimohan Sen to rediscover the medieval saints and poets, thereby opening up the world of Sufi ideas to the twentieth century readers.
Dr. Halder paid glowing tributes to the Bauls of Bengal, among whom Lalan Fakir, is possibly the best known, whose profound philosophy owes much to the Sufi tradition.
156 participants attended the program.
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An invited lecture on “Key issues in Gender Sensitization” by Ms. Seema Sreeniwas was organised by the Internal Complaints Committee in collaboration with IQAC, The Bhawanipur Education Society College on 24th December,2021 @ 1:00 p.m. There were around 50 participants which included faculty, students and staff of the college from various sections. The programme started …
The prominence of Data Analysis in this epoch has fostered the magnanimous usage of analysis tools, for instance, Python, Talend, Hadoop and R to quote a few. Keeping up with the necessity of introducing its faculty members to the state-of-the-art technology, the Department of BBA of The Bhawanipur Education Society College organized a three-day Intra …
Srijan- the annual cultural extravaganza organized by the Students Council of Shri Shikshayatan College. It endorses ingenuity and inspires the students to take a break from the humdrum schedule of life and unearth one’s concealed talent and interests. The theme this year was “Colossal”, the idea was to celebrate the various hues of life that …
Sufism and the Culture of Bengal
The Department of Bengali collaborated with Pashchimbanga Itihas Samsad to host a seminar/panel discussion on Sufism and Bengali culture, duly ratified by the IQAC of our college in Jubilee Hall on Saturday, 30 September, 2023. The panel included very distinguished speakers, Prof. A. Dey, Ashutosh Mukherjee Professor, of the Department of History, University of Calcutta and Dr. Ipshita Halder, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature, Jadavpur University, Kolkata. The session was chaired by the eminent historian, Shri A. Bandyopadhyay.
Dr. Dey gave the historical perspective of how Sufism was imbibed in various ways for centuries in India, while Dr. Halder spoke about the influence of the philosophy in Bengali literature and music. They illustrated how in the 19th century, many great minds of Bengal like Raja Rammohan Roy and Maharshi Debendranath Tagore took an active interest in Persian poetry, particularly, in the works of Hafiz and Jalaluddin Rumi.
Prof. Amit Dey enumerated the multifarious ways in which Bengali culture and society were transformed under the influence of Sufism. Emphasizing on certain key concepts of Sufism, like love (“ishq”), annihilation (“fana”), he sought to explain how Sufism was widely accepted by the people of Bengal. He cited the structural similarity between the domes of temples and mosques and the shape of the caps that Sufi devotees wore. Illustrating the importance of religious travel, place-making and space-making, Prof. Dey highlighted the amalgamation of the universal and the local in Sufi thoughts and practices. For instance, he showed how by integrating the universal tenets of Sufi religious beliefs and couching them in local terms and understanding, the Sufis were better able to communicate their ideas among the people. He also sought to explain why and why Bengal did not produce any charismatic Sufi which ultimately became synonymous with a site, as in the case of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti or Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya. It is here that he introduced the idea of warrior Sufis of Bengal, who prioritized the task of spreading the ideas of Sufism in Bengal at a moment to articulate their thoughts in a coherent manner when the political climate of the region was quite daunting. Concluding his stimulating session Dr Dey encouraged young scholars to undertake more serious research on Sufism in Bengal and through such localized intensive study add to the domain of historical study in more thought provoking ways.
Dr. Ipshita Halder concentrated on the influence of Sufi thought on the language and literature of Bengal. For the Thirteenth century Sufi poet Rumi, “Love is my religion”, as “Only on the horse of love can you go beyond the sun and the moon to behold the Perfect One.” It is this message of unconditional love that inspired the religious rejuvenation of Shri Chaitanya or Meera Bai, or even Guru Nanak, resulting in the inclusion of Sufi verses in Guru Granth Sahib. Dr. Halder pointed out that although translating the Quran was strictly prohibited initially, and how it took centuries to publish a Bangla version. She read out very interesting extracts to show how the Islamic missionaries eventually adopted a very Sanskritized register to communicate with the people of Bengal. Rabindranath possibly imbibed his love of Sufi poetry from his father, Debendranath, who was fond of Hafiz. He was instrumental in encouraging Kshitimohan Sen to rediscover the medieval saints and poets, thereby opening up the world of Sufi ideas to the twentieth century readers.
Dr. Halder paid glowing tributes to the Bauls of Bengal, among whom Lalan Fakir, is possibly the best known, whose profound philosophy owes much to the Sufi tradition.
156 participants attended the program.
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