Dr iIshtiaq Ahmad, famous historian dancing on Khawaja ghulam fareed RA's Sufi Kaalm

 *Rohi Rapture: When Desert Winds Danced in Distant Land*

Prof Waqar Hussain 

What a rare and radiant sight it was—to witness people truly rejoicing, their spirits soaring sky-high in pure, unbridled spree. In much of the East, and particularly in Pakistan, this simple, spontaneous habit of open-hearted celebration has been slowly fading, quietly crushed under the weight of stiff formality, misplaced notions of dignity, and a serpent-like seriousness. Zero smile has become the trademark of greatness.

The British, it seems, could savour Indian music yet never quite master the abrupt, free-flowing manners of Indian dance, and so they kept mum; our black Britishers dutifully followed suit. One is astonished to find that bureaucrats will not even laugh at a joke when the moment calls for one to pulsate, tipsy-turvy, rolling in helpless mirth.

The presence of a person of Dr. Ishtiaq’s stature dancing smashed that inferiority-complex-ridden practice of morbid seriousness. It sent a clear and compelling message: that singing and dancing are not lowly or abominable acts, nor are they beneath the serious and the successful. Rather, they can be the graceful expression of a mature mind and a generous heart. When a man of learning and standing lets himself move freely to the music, he quietly challenges the old orthodoxy that high officers, ministers, and intellectuals must remain forever solemn—never laughing too loudly, never enjoying song, and certainly never dancing—as though joy itself were an indecorous indulgence.

Then Ali Sajjad followed suit and took beautiful steps, and overall all the participants were wavering their bellies and arms to the Sufi poetry of Ghulam Farid—like date-palm trees in the desert wind, swaying all around. The Rohi spirit was awakening in the UK.

My love to Dr. Ishtiaq, Ali Sajjad, the singers, and all the participants. For I believe that rejoicing is paying tribute to Nature for her generous and multifarious giving, and is a virtue; while grim seriousness means that all of Nature’s bestowments are rejected and we remain glooming. To me, that is a “sin”.