Rahman Baba
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Known as the Nightingale of Afghanistan, Rahman Baba is a legendary Pashto Sufi poet. His poetry places him alongside Khushal Khan Khattak for his contribution to Pashto poetry and literature.
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[edit] Early life
(1653-1711 AD)
Rahman claims was of the Sarban tribe, who are recognized as the ‘true Afghans’ because they can trace their ancestry back to the eldest son of the putative Pashtun ancestor Qais. The Sarban tribe migrated into the Peshawar valley from the thirteenth to the sixteenth century.
Rahman was a Momand, of the Ghoriah khel (tribe), who lived in a small pocket of Mohmand settlers on the outskirts of Peshawar. From 1550 A.D. the Yusufzai tribe had come to dominate the area, following the defeat of the Ghoriah Khel in the battle of Sheikh Tapur. Rahman apparently lived peacefully in the area, and never mentions his involvement in these inter-tribal conflicts.
Opinion is divided about Rahman’s family background. Several commentators are convinced that his family were village maliks (chieftains). However Rahman Baba did not perceive himself to be of a powerful family.
( the above background information is courtesy of Robert Sampson and Momin Khan)
[edit] Religious Background
Rahman Baba was an ascetic but various unfounded theories have been made about who Rahman’s guide may have been, and to which order he was attached. Sabir suggests that Rahman had a Naqshabandi initiation in Kohat, as well as training from the sons of Pir Baba. Schimmel casually assigns Rahman to the Chishti order. Aqab, himself of the Qadiri order, claims Rahman was a Qadiri.
[edit] Published work
Rahman Baba's only work is his famed Diwan. The Diwan of Rahman Baba is now considered one of the most defining bits of Pashtun literature ever published. Despite it's fame amongst Pashtuns it has only recently been fully translated into the English language.
[edit] Recommended reading
- The Poetry of Rahman Baba by Robert Sampson & Momin Khan
- The Nightingale of Peshawar: Selections from Rahman Baba by Rahman Baba, Jens Enevoldsen
- The Gulistan-i-Roh: Afghan Poetry and Prose by H. G Raverty
- Selections from the Poetry of the Afghans, from the 16th to the 19th Century by H.G Raverty
