Adam was driven out of heaven; his fall resulted in his lowered state of earthly life and his deprivation of Divine
beneficience. Thus start man's spiritual distress which embraces his being and his tears of regret which soak his soul.
A bewildered and forlorn soul for which he seeks a safe haven the world over and which is enveloped in pitiful anguish
and perpetual longing for what it once had.
"And the reed of my being was seperated from the ground whence it grew And the wail of my reed has sorrowed
woman and man.
I seek someone with a heart filled with the anguish of separation
For whom to relate the story of my own yearning" (Molavi)
Art is the most beautiful manifestation of man's seperation From his heavenly bliss and the symbol of his long lost
closeness to his Lord. Among the many branches of art, music is the highest branch. Music is the voice of the human
soul; sometimes wailing of the pain of seperation, sometimes raising the soul from dark depths to sublime exaltation
with whispers of spiritual elevation or the hopeful song of re-union
"Do bring me a note from that melody.
Fiddler so we can hear sublime secrets from hidden depths" (Hafez)
Art is the manifestation of divine enlightment which brightens the summit of human cognition. The artist, having
been honoured with such nobility, has a very painstaking duty toward spiritual maturity. When a musician plays
his/her music, he/she sounds the bell of enlightment and awakens the sleepers – in – headlessness and gives the
promise of love, devotion and unity to man's wearid soul.
"He whose soul is embraced by love, never dies
Embedden on the face of creation is the memory of our presence"
Dance, song and music appeared with the appear and of man; man has , from the very beginning when he lived a
crude life in the midst of nature and as a part of it, expressed his feelings – of fear, hope, sorrow, happiness love and
hatred – in the from of dance, song and music.
The History of the Daf (tambourine)
One of the best hand – hit musical instruments which has been in use from the distant past is the Daf. This instrument
has always been regarded highly by the people because of its simplicity of structure and high esteem in musical
circles. The word "Daf" is originally Hebraic and means "to hit".
When we look at its long history we realize that the Daf does not belong to any one specific place or culture, for , its
origins cannot be traced back to any particular peoples. This musical instrument which has an impressive, resonating
sound has been built and used commonly for different purposes among various peoples according to their traditions.
In certain cultures the Daf has been the main musical instrument used for Happy occasions whereas in others it
signified warfare and others still used it for religious ceremonies. In some tribes the ritual of sacrificing for the Daf
was practiced. Or the Daf and the Daf performer were revered by sacrificing sheep. In the third millenium B.C among
inhabitants living along the Nile in ancient Egypt, everyday religlous rituals were carried out with hymns and various
musical instruements (including large round Daf – like artifacts) for the Gods. Around 1500 years B.C. Moses had
learned the sciences and the art of music from Egyptian priests. At that time among the musical instruments used was
one called "tuf" which was most probably the same as what was later known as the Daf. According to a turk scholar
in solomon's wedding with Belqeis Daf was the musical instrument used for the ceremony. Other signs of the
significance of the Daf among past peoples are the stone carvings of musicians in the ruins of ancient Assyria which
show various Daf. Also there are the carvings of Egyptian priests who, accompanied by dafists and harpists are
offering sacrifice.
According to the literary narration of ancient Persians the beginning of the new year during the Achaemenian and
later, the sasanid dynasties was celebrated and its start signified by the chant of the Daf. In the l49th psalm of David
we read, "Praise and worship the Lord, sing his hymns with dance and the accompaniment of the Daf and the Lute,
praise the Lord in his holiness and praise him in dance and with the Daf"
The History of the Daf after the Rise of Islam:
Daf the most important musical instrument in sufism
After the establishment of Islam in Arabia and its subsequent expansion, the Arabs learnt the rituals and the way to
perform on the Daf from the Iranians who became their prisoners of war. After music was banned by a number of
religious figures who only regarded its negative aspects – its relation to the carnal soul – and neglected the spiritual
aspects, sufists realized that alongside religious decree, the addition of other elements such as the concept of love,
music, song and Sama, (sufi dance) can play a considerable role in enhancing spiritual maturity and freeing the soul
from its earthly bonds after which soaring in the heights of exaltation to the summit of complete escape from vanity
and spiritual eclipse becomes possible.
"I am enchanted by the hidden wines
And ecstatic with the sound of the hidden Daf and lyre and read"
(Molavi)
This is the reason why sufists turned towards music; to employ its power in raising spiritual potential to higher levels.
"You know not why, those enchanted in spiritual rapture
Engage in movement with the clapping of hands
They open a door of their soul to divine light
And are scattered in union with creation.
Tis lawful for them the clapping of hands in loyal devotion
For, many a new spirit is hidden under each sleeve.
The late literary scholar Saeed Nafisi states: Sufism is the noblest philosophy to have entered human thought and the
highest honour for the Iranian nation is that they raised this doctrine to its highest degree by virtue of art and used it
to the best social moral and human ends.
A scrutiny of the history of music acquaints us with a kind of rythmic music reflecting the intellectual aspects of
various sufi groups in which the basis is a repetition of rythm. What ornates this music is the accompaniment of
utterance which is itself accompanied by systematic and collective body movements in certain sufi groups.
This music in which the Daf has a significant presence has evolved from the triangle of love, be loved , lover or, in
other words charisma, the charmed and the charmer. It initiates an inner feeling of devotion which is echoed by the
pounding fingers of the dafist who encounters a feeling of senslessness and seperation from the physical body.
Sufism is a worthy intellectual movement which advocates the manifestation of unity within the human soul induced
by spiritual cleanliness. The sound of music, especially that of the Daf enables the individual to penetrate the inner
folds of his/her own being by the use of the hearing faculty, connecting him/herself to the whole of creation in
sublime tranquility which paves the way toward the eternal bliss of close proximity to the creator.
In sufi dance the soul nears the wanted one
And opens the heart to hidden secrets
This echo will take you on its wings
And fly you up in delight to the haven of the beloved
(sa'd-e-din Hamuyeh)
In sufi vernacular, Sama' is to open the heart to rythmic sony and sound in spiritual oblivion. Sama' is the Lord's
invitation and is in itself a form of worship. One of the most effective musical instruments for Sama' is the Daf.
Tis the Daf that ornates the sufi dance
For, tis the daf that aims at the heart.
(Molavi)
The Daf - which is circular in shape – signifies the circle of existence and the skin stretched across its surface signifies
the absolute Being and the pounding on the Daf signifies the rising of divine secrets from the inner being towards the
absolute Being for the manifestation of unconscious potential in conscious awareness and the small of the Daf signify
divine attributes.
He who has not seen the essence of his being
He from whom is hidden that light
For him, what meaning can the Sama' and Daf have?
Sama' is the pathway to the light of the beloved.
(Holavi)
Song, hymn and sufi dance which together constitute Sama' had always been regarded highly by the Sufis. Molavi who
is one of the most prominet sufi figures was an admirer of the Sama'. His spiritual revolution began with Sama' and
music played a principle role in this Sama and spiritual revolution which is emphasized by the fact that for the most
part, his two collossal literary achievements, the Masnavi, and Ghazaliat-e-shams were versed during Sama'. His
verse has a special rythm as if it were in harmony with the beat of the Daf and circling in Sama' up towards the
heavens. Molavi, would start this ritual hand – clapping and foot-stamping with the beat of the Daf and reach
spiritual height with its accompaniment. Molavi has wailed in harmony with the Daf for his sage, shams-e-Tabrizi,
which shows his regard for the instrument which accompanies him in verse to rise, step by step, to the height of
spiritual freedom. Molavi's soul is permeated by the essence of music, that music which has signs of spiritual love and
in order to give life to such music he pounds on the Daf in rapture, thus engraving the penetrating pattern of music on
the mien of creation.
Sama' opened a window toward the flowerbed
And all devoted eyes and ears turned towards it
What pity that this window is such a veil
No, talk not in such fashion, for, a delightful veil it is.
Molavi
Molavi's high regard for Sama' and music turned his followers' attention to music and the Daf. So much so that salah-
e-din Zarkub in his last will and testament stated that his body be taken to his grave with his mourners playing the
Daf and executing the ritual hand – clapping and foot-stamping of the Sama' dance. Molavi acted in accordance to
this will and from then of the funeral of his relatives was arranged in such fashion.
Come not to my grave dear brother without a daf
For, in the dance of God's creation no one should be sad.
Molavi
Among the musical instruments used for the Sama' ritual, the Daf and the Tanboor (lute) had special significance and
were revered. So much so that the musician would kiss the instrument and draw it close to his eyes and forehead
before and after his/her performance.
O daf you sound the melody of spring
You are the tune of the rippling stream
The true sound of love and the echo of the waterfall
Tis reflected on the mirror of your surface.
The sufis are in rapture, come O player of the lute of wisdom
Make haste, sing verse and strike the daf.
Echo the song of longing in the pasture, murmur its tune to the cypress and the willow
So they will scatter their leaves in sacrifice
.
Source: Daf navazan, bakhshe nokhost (ghader shahsavari)
