Sindhi Culture: Feudalism and Sufism in Sindh

Do you know what differentiate Sindh from the rest of provinces in Pakistan? Ghost Schools? No! ; Ghost Teachers? NO! ; Bad Governance? No! ; Bata Mafia? No! Sindhi culture? Yes! It’s Sufi culture that differentiates Sindh from rest of the Provinces in Pakistan. During my extensive traveling through Pakistan, everywhere I go I have been encountering with the people who are mostly curious about my religious affiliation. But Sindh is the only place where I have been encountering people who are most interested in cast and creed instead. The reason is socio-cultural dynamics and distinguished history of Sindh which is mostly underpinned with feudal system and sufi culture. The feudal system have empowered handful of families at the cost of silent majority. Due to which there is widespread gaps amoung those who have and those who don’t have anything to even survive. To maintain socio-political supremacy in their respective areas, these handful chieftains and cunning feudal lords have very easily divided people in different cast and creeds; thus dominating in local affairs generation after generation. While the masses are deprived from basic civic amenities like quality education, quality health services, clean drinking water, electricity, affordable energy, decent sources of livelihood and sanitation facilities. To further strengthen their clout, these political elites and feudal lords are distributing alms from the exchequer of Government under different social support and cash transfer programmes; thus increasing perpetual dependency syndrome amoung their masses. 

Addressing during Sindhi Culture Day

While on the other hand, I have never ever seen this much religious tolerance as i have been observing in the Sindh province of Pakistan. In my opinion, the reason behind all this religious tolerance in Sindh is just because of two main reasons. The first reason is relatively thing presence or absence of religious seminaries. And the second reason is the great influence of sufi culture and teaching of great Sufi Saints like Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, Abdullah Shah Ghazi and others saints and mystic personalities who have greatly influenced all the people of Sindh by preaching about humanitarian principle, pluralistic values and unity in diversity throughout Sindh. 

Now that when the religious extremist and hatemongers are on the rampage throughout Islamic world including Pakistan, I have been observing mushrooming of religious seminaries and religious sentiments in Sindh as well. Therefore, on the Culture Day of Sindh, I would like to draw the attention of each one of my Sindhi friend in general and school teachers in particular to reflect on the teaching of Sufi saints and their teaching for peaceful coexistence and inculcate the same amoung our children and work together to defuse the nefarious designs of religious extremist and destructive agenda of hatemongers in Sindh. Let’s reiterate our commitment to protect our distinguish culture heritage of Topi Ajrek, respect diversity in all its forms and promote humanitarian principles and pluralistic values for peaceful coexistence and prosperous future of our coming generation in Sindh and throughout Pakistan."