World renowned Pakistani rock singer Salman Ahmad -- the "Bono of South Asia"-- led a group of Muslim and Jewish musicians last weekend in Palo Alto, in support of Abraham's Vision and the Salman and Samina Global Wellness Initiative (SSGWI). The concert was also promoted by Pakistani-American Cultural Center (PACC) in Silicon Valley, California.
It was a high energy performance that brought the audience to their feet, with loud cheers, and ecstatic dancing to an eclectic mix of music with origins in South Asia (Saleem Ahmad on tabla) and Central and Eastern Europe (Yale Strom with fiddle, and an accordionist).
Dubbed as "Unity Jam", the concert began with Salman Ahmad and Elizabeth Schwartz singing the poetry of Punjabi Sufi Saint Baba Buellh Shah (Punjabi: بلہے شاہ, ਬੁੱਲ੍ਹੇ ਸ਼ਾਹ
, and ended with the popular Jewish folk song of Hava Nagila (הבה נגילה in Hebrew), and John Lennon's "Imagine".
Baba Bulleh Shah's poetry carries the messages of romance, love and tolerance that constitute a solid foundation for any inter-faith efforts to resolve conflicts, and to bring peace and harmony to a world torn by hatred, terror and violence. For example, one of the poems chosen by Salman Ahmad for the concert goes like this:
Masjid dha de, mandir dha de, dha de jo kucch dainda
(Tear down the mosque and the temple; break everything in sight)
Par kisi da dil na dhain, Rab dilan vich rehnda..
(But do not break a persons heart, it is there that God resides)
Haq's Musings: Salman, Bulleh Shah, Hava Nagila in Silicon Valley