Baadah-e-Shiraz/Mul-e-Isfahan: Religion Becomes a Catalyst for Social Mobilization
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
2 January
2024
Those
knowing Persian are aware of this archaic Persian adage, Baadah-e-Shiraz/
Mul-e-Isfahan. Farsi words Baadah and Mul mean wine. We often use
the word Baadakash for Maykash (alcoholic) in Urdu.
People of
medieval Iran would often get into unnecessary debates regarding the quality of
wine of Shiraz and Isfahan. Those from Shiraz, would claim that their wine was
the best and people hailing from Isfahan would assert that theirs was the best
wine. It remained inconclusive as to which wine was the best. Medieval Persian
historian Aneeq Qanai wrote that the wine lovers of Shiraz were particularly
adamant and arrogant in asserting the supremacy of their respective wine.
Going by
this analogy, today's Hindus, intoxicated by the wine of fanaticism, are
asserting that their way is the highway. They're the Baadakash-e-Shiraz
(alcoholics of Shiraz).
The famous
atheist and ex-Muslim Anwar Shaikh coined a phrase 'Maykash-e-Mazhab'
(Alcoholics of religion) for the fanatics. Now these religious alcoholics, in a
soon-to-become Hindu Rashtra, are issuing edicts that all Indians irrespective
of their faiths, must chant Jai Sri Ram.
Religion
often becomes a catalyst for social mobilization. It also lends legitimacy to
our (wrong) actions and decisions. This has happened in all ages and in all
countries wherever religion got an upper hand.
Anthropologist
Breymer opined in his essay, 'Periodic Assertiveness in Religiosity'
that in the history of all man-made faiths, there have been phases and periods
of religious assertiveness.
All faiths
have experienced this and asserted their supremacy in that period. Islam
enjoyed the longest period of religious fanaticism. It's still more or less a
fanatic faith. Medieval Christianity was killing and burning all heretics.
Judaism, till the 6th-century, was a faith of zealots. Adi Shankar's Hinduism
was hell-bent upon the annihilation of Buddhists and Jains. The same zealotry
has returned in the form of neo-Hinduism.
The history
of human civilization has been a sanguinary saga of religious madness and
bloodshed. That we still call ourselves 'civilised' is the biggest joke. So
profound is the impact of neo-Hinduism that a superstar from South, who always
called himself an avowed atheist, is now chanting Ram, Ram.
Humans will
never be able to get rid of their chromosomic religiosity which is in their
DNA. Sigmund Freud aptly said, "Until a brand-new human species with
absolutely no preconceived ideas of concocted gods and outdated religions
emerges and replaces the existing substandard humans, a handful of sane and
godless individuals will continue to suffer." There cannot be a more
correct and incisive observation than that of Sigmund Freud.
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A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in
comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed
articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including
Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/shiraz-isfahan-religion-social-mobilization/d/131436
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