Defying the repulsive tradition.
[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]
The shameful thing about Hazrat Nizamuddin dargah, one of Delhi’s holiest Sufi shrines, is that women are not allowed inside the chamber where the 14th century saint lived, died and was buried. They may pray outside the door to the tomb, or cling to its walls, or sit in the courtyard but they cannot enter into the tomb.
Why? “According to Islamic law, women are not allowed near graves,” says Altamash Nizami, a dargah caretaker.
If that is the case, then why are women permitted inside the tomb of Khawaja Gharib Nawaz, a sufi shrine in Ajmer, Rajasthan? “The tomb hall in that shrine is very big and so there is a large distance that separates the pilgrims from the tomb,” says Mr Nizami. After a pause, he says, “In Nizamuddin, the tradition of not allowing women is being followed for 700 years.”
How can a sufi saint, who is expected to be kind to everyone, be prejudiced towards a woman who loves him as much as a man? “I don’t think it was a prejudice,” says Sadia Dehlvi, the woman author of Sufism: the Heart of Islam. “It was their understanding of the Islamic tradition.”
Ms Delhivi says that some sufis during their lifetime were accessible to women and some were not. “It depends on the nature and attitude of a sufi saint. For instance, Naseeruddin Mahmud Chirag Dilli never met his women followers directly so I understand if we cannot enter his tomb. But to my knowledge Hazrat Nizamuddin used to interact with women. Like Ajmer’s Khwaja Gharib Nawaz, he was accessible to everyone – the rich, the poor, the men and the women. I think the ban on the entry of women in Nizamuddin’s tomb is a later imposition by the dargah’s khadims.”
As a protest against this repulsive tradition, The Delhi Walla invites women to view the images taken by him inside Nizamuddin’s tomb. “Ultimately, it doesn’t matter if you are standing inside the shrine, or outside, or anywhere else in the world,” says Ms Dehlvi. “It’s about making connection with the heart.”
Agreed. Still, it is not fair.
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
Ladies are allowed inside
