Bagh e Bedil - Remains of a celebrated Persian Poet

Two shrines are located opposite Pragati Maidan hidden in greenery - on Mathura Road, right next to the National Sports Club of India. A small signboard partially hidden by leaves of overgrown an unkempt greenery declares this space as Bagh e Bedil - or The Garden of Bedil. 

Mirza Abdul Qadir Bedil a poet who lived in mid 17th century was a most revered poet in Persian and though not much known in the Indian subcontinent, he still is  the heartthrob in Tajikistan. Afghanistan and Central Asia enjoying almost a cult following. So much so that a group of Afghan taxi drivers in Washington DC supposedly meet up every evening to recite Bedil's poetry and discuss its interpretations, passionately. 

Born in Patna, believed to be the inspiration of Mirza Ghalib, a "complete guru" for Iqbal, the national poet of Pakistan, and the most loved and discussed poet of Uzbekistan, lies buried and unknown in Delhi, paradoxically, in the land of his birth.  

Bedil's poetry is complex and difficult to interpret. A poet no less than Ghalib mentions: 

Tarz e Bedil mein rekhta kahna
Asadullah Khan Qayamat hai. 

A rough meaning of the above is that it is an arduous task to compose poetry in the style of Bedil. [Asadullah Khan is the real name of Ghalib]

Ghalib, reportedly gave up on copying the metaphysical style of poetry writing of Bedil as he belongs to a higher plane !

One interesting episode brings out the humorous side of this much celebrated poet. He lived through the last phase of the reign of Shahjahan and his son Aurangzeb during who time there was a rise in orthodoxy. It is said that Aurangzeb encouraged growing of beards as a sign of piousness - to which Bedil retorted by saying that it inaugurates an era of "goats and bears" and he mocked this orthodoxy by saying that growing of beard would block his entry into paradise as they don't tolerate anything that is aesthetically offensive. 

There is some debate regarding his burial site. According to another theory, when he died, he was buried in his haveli at Bairuni Darwaza outside the city of Shahjanabad. Written references mention that this original house of Bedil was destroyed as a result of attacks and raids on Delhi. It seems, his remains were removed from here by his followers and taken to Afghanistan.

Records of colonial period of early 20th century also does not talk about the existence or any evidence of Bedil's grave at this spot, though it talks of a mausoleum. The identification of this site as the grave of Bedil apparently was done by Khwaja Hassan Nizami who was associated with Nizamuddin Dargah (around the year 1932), and with the help of the Nizam of Hydrabad he tried to spruce it up. The most recent renovation has been carried out in the year 2006 when the President of Tazikistan visited India and expressed interest in visiting this site. 

A misnomer according to some, it actually is the final resting place of Hazrat Khwaja Nooruddin Malik Yar e Paraan, whose mortal remains are actually buried in this garden in this is simple, unadorned grave. 

He was a sufi saint with the real name as Sheikh Nooruddin and he belonged to the Qadri order. Among the sufis or mystics there are different chains of successions known as orders or "silsila". 

He was there around the time of Balban in the 13th century. Malik Yar e Paraan is the title attached to the name of this sufi saint and there is an interesting story behind how he got this name. It is said that he came from Persia and wanted to settle in this place. But there was already another Sufi saint by the name of Matke Shah in the vicinity right across this place, in the area which is now known as Matka Peer. 

Matke Shah objected to this as he considered this to be his territory. To this Sheikh Nooruddin replied by saying that he has been guided by his peer or spiritual guide to come and settle down here.  Matke Shah demanded proof of this. 

Now, Nooruddin was in a quandary as his peer was nowhere in the vicinity. It is said that it took him a moment to travel to his peer as if by magic and return with a letter of authorization from him.   

Matke Shah was immensely impressed and he is supposed to have said that ... Yaar (my friend) you are "Malik Paraan" or the flying king !! 

So, thus Malik Yaar Paraan got attached to his name since then!! And he finally settled here. 

Unlike what we may like to believe, intense rivalry and competition between these sufi saints around their so called terrritories of influence was commonplace regarding their "spiritual territory". Each exerted their own rights over their own spiritual domain and did not enjoy competition from anyone else. 

Whether you are an admirer of Bedil or not, this place certainly deserves a visit, Do consider taking the path that is rarely taken through this garden lined with trees and feel its quiet simplicity - too feel a moment of respite in this busy mega city.