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Writer's pictureSyed F N Chisty

Amir Khusro The Parrot of India and Father of Qawwali Lyrics

Updated: Nov 27

Amir Khusro

Abul Hasan Yamin al-Din Amir Khusro (R.A), Shair, singer and scholar, Amir Khusro was a true polymath of his time in the Indian Sub-continent.


He had been hailed as the 'father of Qawwali' and was attributed as the key figure who identified Qawwali as a distinct Indo-Persian genre and one of the key figures in the establishment of the cultural and literary tradition of Qawwali in the sub-continent.


The art piece itself is tribute to how Khosrow fuses Persian, Arabic, Turkish and Indian elements, thus he truly is one of the most eclectic of cosmopolitans.


He was one of the Parhers providing some great words for the best and yet to clash compositions including Amir Khusro poetry and Amir Khusro shayari written currently.


Amir Khusro The Parrot of India and Father of Qawwali Lyrics

Amir Khusro Childhood and Early Life

Amir Khusro was born in 1253 in Patiyali, Uttar Pradesh, to a family of mixed lineage. His father, Amir Saifuddin Mahmood, was an Afghan belonged to Balkh, and his mother, Bibi Daulatnaz, was from a Rajput family of Delhi. Where was Amir Khusro born? One of most asked query and the answer is small town of northern India.


Amir Khusro lost his father when he was nine years of age so he was brought up by his maternal grandfather Nawab Imadul Mulk in a rich cultural milieu. He had an excellent command of Persian, Arabic and Turkish and he could speak Indian dialects.


Besides studying grammar, philosophy, and Fiqh, he developed an early interest in poetry and music. His commitment to Sufism increased when he became a disciple of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi.


Poet and Musician– The contribution of Amir Khusro.

Pioneer of Ghazals in India


The works of Amir Khusro are varied in literary forms, such as ghazals, masnavi and rubaiyat. He is known for initiating the Persian-model ghazal in Indian poetry and after that mixing it with some local traditions, resulting in a particular art. The Amir Khusro poetry are the foundation of Urdu and Persian literature.


Amir Khusro The Father of Qawwali Lyrics

Amir Khusro of course is a titan in music. He became the father of Qawwali, synthesizing Persian and Indian music into new forms of Sufi devotional music. His legacy lives on in the Qawwalis sung in Nizamuddin Dargah and countless other Sufi shrines.


Riddles and Wit

Koi monda in his moolen ki soorat, the dandiya in his durbandhis (read dhoris) for us, and uh riddle doing dosto-with-an-evil-twist par humein khojan(jonk, sorry), so Amir Khusro shayari ka thoda chaya (Legitimate) before being busted at malabar gates parodying shayari and showing us his friendly side personocity as frontman. These riddles and their accompanying verses are still recited in homes and social events, keeping his legacy alive.


A life dedicated to courts and Sufi traditions

Amir Khusro was shuffling between the palaces of different rulers of the Delhi Sultanate such as Alauddin Khilji and Ghiyath al-Din Tughlaq. His works document historical events, war, culture, etc., through Khaza’in ul-Futuh, Tughlaq Namah, etc. Due to his razor-sharp intellect, exquisite wit and effortless eloquence, he was often referred to as Tut-i-Hind, Parrot of India.


The bond above the limits of corporeal realmThe most beautiful usrat Is khusrow bond with his spiritual teacher Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya was something to wonder upon. Amir Khusro breakdown When the saint died in 1325, Khusrow was so crushed by the loss of his beloved master that he tore his robe and collapsed to the floor. His heart was so sorrowed that he soon followed the saint to the grave, within 6 months. Both are now buried not too far away from each other in the Dargah Nizamuddin Auliya, Delhi.


Where Is Dargah Nizamuddin Auliya: Highlights:

And for those who wanted to know, Nizamuddin Auliya ki dargah kahan hai, it is located in NizamuddinWest, Delhi. A shrine familiar to most devotees, a site where the faithful of every religion come to find peace, this holy site is a place of solace for many a petition for bountiful blessings.


Qawwali at the Dargah

Devotees sing Khusrow’s compositions during Qawwali sessions that light up the dargah, especially on Thursdays. In these performances, he refers to a Maranatha world of the miraculous which he teaches love and unity and audience relation.


Legacy of Amir Khusrow / Amir Khusro

With an example of this is the continued resonance of Amir Khusrow well after his lifetime. His Nuh Sipihr was a funeral oration of the grandeur of India as an ancient civilization and his writings are an enigma for billions of people. The writings are some of the most popular examples of synthesis, and his impact on ghazal and Qawwalis goes as far as until today in the South Asian culture.


Final Resting Place

Khusrow spent the latter half of his life half a mile away from his Pir's tomb, dying in (October 1325) و (725 AH) and being buried next to his disciple Hazrat Amir Khusrow's dargah, thus extending their connection into the afterlife.


The life history of HAZRAT AMIR KHUSRO is a portrayal of highest level of deep devotion, inventiveness, and unsurpassable artistry in the field of literature and music. The spirit of Khusro remains alive in generations — be it jivan parichay, all the riddles you can riddle him in, his music or whatever you capture about him over the years.


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