Qaul, Tarana Man Kunto Maula by Ustad Munshi Raziuddin & Sons Qawwal

The Arabic word "Qaul" – meaning speech, saying, dictum, declaration – has an enduring association with South Asian Qawwali music. Normally qawwali compositions are sung with the purpose of reciting Sufi poems. There is, however, an obscure sub-genre of Qawwali in which the songs are based on the sayings and adages (i.e., Qauls) of saints and sages. Qawwals have been singing these Qauls for centuries though most of the qual compositions appear to have been lost to time or gone out of vogue. The most famous surviving Qaul that qawwals sing today is the one attributed to Prophet Mohammed(s) uttered at the event of Ghadir-e-Khum in 632: mun kunto maula fahaza Ali un maula ... (He who accepts me as his master, must accept Ali as his master as well).

The special status which this Qaul grants to Ali ibn Abi Talib, the Prophet's cousin and son-in-law, is recognized by almost all Sufi orders, including the famous Chisti order of India, who trace their teachings and spiritual lineages to Hazrat Ali. It is no wonder then that the inventor of Qawwali, Hazrat Amir Khusro (1253-1325), the great Hindustani cultural icon and Chishti saint, rendered this saying as a memorable musical composition. This song naturally became known as the Qaul.

Traditionally in Qawwali gatherings, a recitation of the Qaul would be compulsory, perhaps even as the opening performance, but increasingly this is no longer the case. Nevertheless, the Qaul's popularity and reverenced legacy remains undisputed and occasionally the Qaul finds its way into other genres of Hindustani music including classical music.

Tarana is a Hindustani vocal music genre in which the texts of the compositions are constructed using syllables such as na, ta, dar, tanom, yala, yali, instead of verses of poetry. The expert tarana singer, an Indian Classical musician or a Qawwal, can sing taranas in a wide variety of raags and taals (beats), with the delivery usually set to medium or fast tempo.

The genre is the invention of Hazrat Amir Khusro. It's generally believed that the words (bol) used in taranas are unintelligible sounds. Ustad Amir Khan (1912 - 1973) dedicated a large part of his musical career to the study of taranas. In his assessment, however, the words comprising tarana expressions come from Persian and Arabic. In one of this research articles he explained their meanings as follows:

Tanan Dar Aa - Enter my body.
O Dani - He knows
Tu Dani - You know.
Na Dir Dani - You are the Complete Wisdom.
Tom - I am yours, I belong to you.
Yala - Ya Allah
Yali - Ya Ali

Other musicologists have also tried to explain their meanings along the same lines as Ustad Amir Khan. For instance, we have the following translation lexicon [3]:

Dar – Bheetar, Aandar (inside)
Dara – Andar Aa (get in or come inside)
Dartan – Tanke Aandar (inside the body)
Tanandara – Tanke Aandar Aa (Come inside the body)
Tom – Main Tum Hun (I am you)
Nadirdani – Tu Sabse Adhik Janata Hai (You know more than anyone else)
Tandardani – Tanke Aandarka Jannewala (One who knows what is inside the body)

Hence, from the above interpretations, we learn that Tarana bol are in fact words and phrases which carry meaning in a certain mystical context.

After this brief introduction, let us listen the live performance of the great Qawwali maestro Ustad Munshi Raziuddin from a 1988 recital of Qaul & Tarana along with his sons Abu Muhammad & Fareed Ayaz Qawwal at the house of Syed Mehdi Hasnain Sahib in Defence Karachi.

The Qaul - Man Kunto Maula, with its ethereal alaap, is their best rendition and is technically brilliant.

(Excerpts from qaulblogspot.com)

Qaul- Man Kunto Maula
قول- من کنت مولیٰ
Composition: Ameer Khusro
Sung by Ustad Munshi Raziuddin (R.A)
Year:1988

Bol Bandish:

Man kunto Maula
Fa Ali-un Maula
Dara dil dara dil dar daani
Hum tom tanana nana
Nana nana ray
Yalali yalali yala
Yala yala ray
من کنت مولیٰ
فعلی مولیٰ
در دل در دل در دانی
ہم توم تا نانا نانا
نانا نانا رے
یالالی یالالی یالا
یالا یالا رے

Girah Bandi:


علی کے مرتبے کو عیش چشم غیر کیا سمجھے
یہ وہ بندوں میں بندہ ہے جسے بندے خدا سمجھے
بتاؤں کیا تمہیں ھجرت میں کیا اہل جفا سمجھے
علی کو ہو بہو نور محمد مصطفیٰﷺ سمجھے

زہے عزّ و جلالِ بو ترابے فخر انسانے
علی مرتضٰیؓ مشکل کشائے شیر یزدانے
ولی حق وصی مصطفیٰ ؐ دریاِۓ فیضانے
امامِ دو جہانے قبلۂ دینے و ایمانے
امیرِ کشورِ فقرِ شہہ اقلیمِ عرفانے
خدا گوئے خدا بینے خدا دانے خدا شانے
پیمبرؐ بر سرِ منبر نشست و خواند مولائیش
کہ تا مولائیش را با شد اندر خلق برہانے

ع سے عین عبادت کا سر انجام ہوا
ل وہ لام کہ جس لام سےاسلام ہوا
ی سے یاور ہوئے مشکل میں ہر اک بندے کی
صدقے اس نام کے کہ کیا خوب علیؑ نام ہوا

زباں کے ساتھ دل بولا
علیؑ مولا علیؑ مولا
علیؑ اعلیٰ ہے اولیٰ ہے
علیؑ کا بول بالا ہے
جو بالا ہے وہ یہ بولا
علیؑ مولا علیؑ مولا
علیؑ کی بادشاہی ہے
علیؑ اسم الہی ہے
علیؑ نے سرّ حق کھولا
علیؑ مولا علیؑ مولا

تا صورت پیوند جهان بود، علی بود
تا نقش زمین بود زمان بود، علی بود
آن شاه سر افراز که اندر شب معراج
با احمد مختار یکی بود، علی بود