Wandering in the wilderness is love’s favourite pastime, since it hones and matures the intellect. Majnun, who stands at the forefront of lover’s ranks, has the unique distinction of having no rival in “sehranavardi” (wandering in the desert). Sarmad wandered through the deserts of Sind, warming the soles of his feet. Many harsh winters and blistering Indian summers ravaged his naked body. At last, he realised:

Why do you wander in the wilderness
Looking for Him? Sit still.
If he is Khuda
He will appear on His own.

Those were days when Alamgir was about to make another move on the chessboard of the Indian Empire. During the last days of Emperor Shahjehan, Dara Shikoh was heir-apparent. A man of Sufi temperament, he was unique among Mughal princes. It is a blot on historical veracity that the pen which recorded the history of the Mughal period was always held by Prince Dara Shikoh’s enemies. Behind the screen of political manoeuvres, the real picture has become blurred.

From his early years, Dara displayed the attributes of a Dervish. He always kept company with philosophers and Sufis. His writings indicate that the author was a man of excellent taste. The overwhelming proof of his taste is that in pursuing his goal he lost the distinction between the temple and mosque. The humility with which he met the Muslim divines was matched by the devotion with which he bowed his head before the Hindu saints and sadhus. Who can deny the purity of this principle? Because in this exalted state of mind, if one can still distinguish between Kufr and Islam then what is the difference between blindness and vision? The moth should seek the flame. If it is desirous of the lamp which is lit only in the mosque, its desire for self-immolation is not complete.

A true lover of God is misled
Both by religion and lack thereof
A moth does not choose
Between the burning candle.
Whether in the mosque or the temple.

Once Sarmad had entered the ramparts of Delhi, Death said, “Stop!” The wine that he was searching for was available only in this one tavern. The author of Mirat ul-Khayal, who stands in the first rank of the devotees of Alamgir, writes; “Dara Shikoh preferred the company of mendicants, madmen and lovers. He therefore took Sarmad into his circle.” This particular author gets so engrossed in discussions about sanity and insanity that he does not realise that there are scales on which if madness was placed on one end and reason on the other, they would never tilt on the side of reason.

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Then there are buyers who would offer their entire wealth for one grain of madness, in fact, throng the marketplace to make a bid for madness. In any event, we prefer Dara Shikoh’s indulgence towards the insane to Alamgir’s coterie of the rational and the sane. In the latter case, the sword of vigilance had been dyed in the blood of lovers, while in the former, blood flowed freely from the severed veins of lovers’ necks. Probably Dara Shikoh was tired of the alertness of men like Alamgir. He, therefore, preferred the company of majnoons like Sarmad.

Sarmad stayed on with Dara Shikoh. The latter was devoted to Sarmad. Sometimes the agony of love would force, Sarmad to leave the palace. But he could not leave the precincts of Shahjehanabad because he knew that this was his final destination. At last Shahjehan’s illness and Dara Shikoh’s imminent succession brought Almagir’s designs into stark daylight. After a period of unrest and bloodshed, in 1069 AH Aurangzeb ascended the throne. Dara Shikoh and his followers were in for hard times. Several fled the capital with Dara Shikoh. Those left in the capital found their ship caught in the worst storm. But for this one human being, lost to the world and immersed in thoughts of his Beloved, there was nothing but blissful oblivion. Where was the need to raise his head and look at the world around him? Had he looked up at the milling unrest on all sides, it would have made no difference. How could he leave? Despite his innocence, he was aware that whatever had happened so far had been only the first milestone of his journey. The last milestone had to be crossed in this very same place.

You won’t get a light sentence in love
By sustaining a wound or two
With his bow-shaped eyebrows
The archer is poised for you.

Sarmad’s execution has been recorded by various authors of the Tazkiras. According to Mirat ul-Khayal, the following rubayi of Sarmad made the custodians of Islamic law bristle with anger. They declared it kufr (heresy) stating that it negates the concept of Miraj

He who understood the mystery of
Reality became vaster than the vast heaven;
Mullah says that Mohammad ascended the Heavens
Sarmad says that the Heavens descended to Mohammad.

What did this simple fakir have to do with the drums of war? He did not even glance upwards to see what commotion these blind dogmatists were causing. He was at a stage in which the squabbling of the Mullahs could not reach his ears.

Intellect plays no part
In the many-splendoured blossoming of love.
It has nothing to do
With understanding the mysteries
Of Majnoon’s insanity.

Excerpted with permission from His Miracle, Not His Sin: The Rubaiyat of Sarmad, translated from the Farsi by Syeda Saiyidain Hameed and Reyaz Ahmad, Speaking Tiger Books.