19 February, 2025
Dear Companions on the Path,
Greetings from Baroda, India! I hope this finds you well.
Being in India reminds me just how different the cultures of the world can be. I once chatted with a man in Delhi who had spent a few months driving a taxi in Canada. When I asked him if he had enjoyed living in Canada, he said, “No, it was terrible. People there become angry if you honk your horn.” What a telling example of cultural difference! In the West, a honk is a shot across the bow, whereas in India it’s a genial self-introduction.
Another example is seat belts. In North America or Europe, strapping on a seat belt is a matter of course. In India, however, it’s frequently regarded as a distasteful thing, a mark of embarrassing fearfulness and ignominious self-concern.
When Hazrat Inayat Khan was in Europe and the United States he championed the ancient spiritual values that the East had preserved. When he returned to India he spoke laudingly of the egalitarianism he had seen in the West. Ultimately, he was interested in a mutually enriching exchange of thought between the cultures of the world. He said:
The Sufi Movement has directed all its efforts towards this goal, that the East may be able to appreciate all that is good and worthwhile in the West, and that the West may understand and sympathize with all that is worth understanding in the East. Words cannot explain to what extent the world would benefit by the realization of this ideal. Just now the East is working in its own way and the West is working in its own way; this is like working with one eye open and the other eye closed. It is in the unity of East and West that the vision will become complete, and it is in this conception that the great disasters and troubles which have kept the world in such uneasiness will be rooted out. And by the unity of East and West in wisdom, one can look forward to a real peace.
Today the dialectic of “East” and “West” has been largely superseded by discussion of a “Global North and South,” or of bipolar, unipolar, or multipolar world orders. In its essence, however, Hazrat’s observation remains as apropos as ever: all of the people of the world benefit when cultures engage in meaningful dialogue. Neither xenophobic nationalism nor the monoculture of globalism can weave the patchwork robe that is Earth’s most suitable garment. When someone offered Baba Farid a pair of scissors he said he would prefer a needle and thread. And stitching was the work that Hazrat had in mind when he set out across the sea in 1910.
It’s been a joy being here in India these last few weeks. The Urs in Delhi was a feast of sacred music. In Gujarat I have been able to reconnect with beloved family members and esteemed Sufi pirs.
The Maharani of Baroda graced us with a visit at Maula Bakhsh House. Our conversation highlighted the aspects of Baroda in specific, and of India in general, that gave rise to the artistic refinement and universal vision personified by Hazrat Inayat Khan and Pirzadi-Shahida Noor. We spoke too of how people of various identities ordinarily live together, work together, and appreciate each other with perfect naturalness, and it’s only the imposition of nefarious agendas that drives individuals and communities apart.
The Maharani emphasized the importance of education, and she is very right. The universal availability of an education that preserves and cultivates the seeds of wisdom that children bring with their souls into this world is our best hope for the future. The right kind of education—an education with a deep spiritual foundation—breeds open-mindedness, dignified humility, and a sincere respect for the rights and aspirations of others. In the absence of these habits of mind, the human psyche is sadly susceptible to waves of chauvinism and hypernationalism that have a tendency to culminate in spasms of violence and the institutionalization of inequality. The result is a wasteland of scorched earth and ruined lives.
Ceasefire agreements are currently in effect in Gaza, Israel, and southern Lebanon. The degree to which these agreements have been respected is another matter; there is, nonetheless, a certain amount of relief in seeing the present state of relative respite from the constant aerial bombardment of the preceding sixteen months, and in seeing the exchange of hostages (tragically, many having suffered torture or even death). That being said, nearly two million Gazans remain displaced and much uncertainty and danger remains in Gaza, the West Bank, and the region as a whole. Accordingly, I will be continuing to recite Amaan (“Sanctuary,” our prayer for the protection for all lives in imminent danger), and invite you to likewise continue the daily practice.
Emanations of thought, feeling, and ardent wish are like votes in the inner world. Let us continue to wholeheartedly vote for awakened kinship.
Yours ever,
Pir Zia
******
Image captions
We are happy to announce the launch of a new Suluk Global Online Program, beginning in September 2025. If you are a murid within the Inayatiyya Inner School interested in learning more about our Suluk Global Online Program, please join us for our Info Session joined by faculty members. We will share details with room for questions and answers. This will be an opportunity to get to know the course better and determine whether it is a good fit for you. More details and free registration.
All friends, new and returning, are invited to join us as we explore the terminology of the Sufis as set out in A Glossary of Sufi Technical Terms by ‘Abd al-Razzaq al-Qashani, a key textbook in Sufi circles for the last six and a half centuries. During each class, Pir Zia reviews the terms in alphabetical order, according to the original Arabic. Then he may also add terms unique to the lexicon of the Inayatiyya. More details and registration.
Summer camp registration is now open! Pir Zia will be at Omega Institute June 22-27 and Zenith Institute July 27-August 2. Also, this summer he will be in-person at Suresnes Summer School, July 1-10, in Türkiye July 18-20, and in Katwijk, The Netherlands, August 22-24. We will post related details in March.
This month, we have some news to share from the Caravan about recent passings into and out of this earthly realm. Read more…
The Zephyr is a monthly newsletter of the Inayatiyya, an interfaith mystical fellowship with branches worldwide. For more information, please visit us at inayatiyya.org.
