Mevlana Rumi's poetry therapy for psychiatric patients in Kashmir

When Fatima, 55, showed signs of depression, after her only son disappeared in custody of security forces in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, doctors at a psychiatric hospital told her to visit a shrine and listen to Sufi musical composition inspired by the works of Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi. According to a survey conducted by Doctors Without Borders a few years ago, nearly 1.8 million people in the disturbed region were suffering from mental distress. Since the latest communication blockade in Jammu and Kashmir that started from Aug. 5 after India stripped the region of its limited autonomy, many more people are complaining about psychological disorders. 'We have nothing to offer them, except anti-depressant drugs. They need peace of mind. So, we ask them to listen to Sufi music to calm their nerves,' said a doctor at the Kashmir Valley's only mental hospital in Srinagar. 'We have not documented results, but many of patients have reported partial recovery,' the doctor, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concern, told Anadolu Agency. For over centuries, Kashmir's Sufi music maestros have regaled audiences in Kashmir with the poetry of 13th century poet and Islamic scholar Rumi, buried in the Turkish city of Konya. The city of Konya, located south of the capital Ankara in Turkey's Central Anatolia region, is currently commemorating 746th death anniversary of Mevlana, where thousands of visitors are marking his union with Allah. Faraway from Konya, over the years in the fading sunset, the life almost used to come to a standstill at the hillock of Hari Parbat, or Kohi Maran, that houses the shrine of local saint Sheikh Hamza Makhdoom. Playing his fingers on santoor, a hundred-stringed instrument, maestro Ustad Mohammad Yaqoob Sheikh, would give a new life to Rumi's poetry. 'We used to perform this music only when light fades and dusk approaches. We draw lyrics from Rumi, Jami and Hafiz,' he said. To add to the misery of local population, main mosques and shrines in the region have either remain shut or have limited access since August due to clampdowns. The phenomena is only deepening depression and psychological disorders. 'Sufi music has also suffered due to the tense political climate in Kashmir. Now over the years, many people suffering from mental disturbances were prescribed to listen to Sufi music to explore spiritual roots for the sake of peace of mind,' said the musician. He believes that power of Rumi's poetry was used like a therapy to create an island of peace around the listener. Even though, it is an illusory world, but helps people to reach a higher state of consciousness, where they regain control of life. Talking to Anadolu Agency from the Indian capital New Delhi, former Vice-Chief of Indian Air Force Kapil Kak, also a Kashmiri Pandit (Hindu), said that Kashmiri culture over the centuries had taken inspiration from Rumi, who spoke of loving human beings and not just tolerating them.