Ajan Peer came to Assam during the year 1635-36. His foremost aim in coming to Assam was to spread Islam among the indigenous people of Assam. Through the devotional songs of Zikir and Zari he tried to bring a religious reformation among the indigenous Muslim community of the State. Though he was inspired by the idealism of Srimanta Sankardeva, he used the Assamiya language instead of Brajawali in the Zikir and Zari songs so that he could attract and unite the common people of the State. He tried his best to make the songs so simple that they could be sung with the help of common instruments available at the time. A man who came from the ‘land of deserts’ – Baghdad could easily mix with the Assamiya people. He learnt the Assamiya language and became an Assamiya to the core. His contribution towards the harmonious culture of Assam is remarkable. The word Zikir comes from the Arabian word that means ‘to remember’ or ‘act of narrating or singing or proclaiming the good qualities of anyone’. Through these songs he tried to spread the religious principles of Islam among the common people.
A sense of respect to all other castes, creeds and religions is present in Zikir and Zari songs. It is explained that we human beings are all children of the same power. We can see a clear influence of the local language and thinking in the Zikir and Zari songs. Due to the local influence, these songs occupy an important place in the hearts of the common people of the State. It is important to note here that the Zari songs are like elegies with their tragic tone. These songs, which are based on the stories of Karbala, Hasan, Hussain are generally sung in the month of Muharram. Generally, injustices prevelant in society are reflected in the Zari songs.
Ajan Peer started writing these songs in folk form and as tukari geets using the pure Assamiya language so that the common people could understand them. He also maintained simplicity in expressing the tenets of Islam to the common people. He preserved the religious principles of Islam in the Zikir songs.
He never considered himself different from the mainstream Assamiya society. While spreading the religious principles of Islam, he had always been sensitive to the sentiments of the Assamiya society. In the Zikir and Zari songs he stressed on respecting and praying to Allah whole-heartedly. Ajan Peer had similar contribution towards the culture and literature of the State like Sankardeva, who was not only a religious preacher but also a philosopher, litterateur, social mobiliser and a playwright.
The Assamiya culture and literature witnessed a revolutionary change after the advent of these two great saints – Ajan Peer and Sankardeva. One can see that due to the influence of these two great people on Assam, the culture and society got a momentum and it also helped in changing the narrow-minded attitudes of the people.
These Zikir and Zari songs were sung by both Ajan Peer himself and his disciples. These songs were not found in written form and these songs were spread among all, like other folk songs. As there are no written forms of these songs, these have continued to be transmitted orally. Sometimes these songs lost their original form and became meaningless. In this way, the Zikir songs were on the verge of extinction. However, noted litterateur Sahityasuryya Syed Abdul Malik, taking the responsibility bestowed upon him by the Gauhati University, visited various places of Assam and gathered the songs which were being transmitted orally down the ages. He worked out a compilation of these songs and published it in 1958 as Zikir and Zari. It is known that Hajarat Ajan Peer had written about 160 songs while Malik was successful in tracing only about ninety songs from various places of Assam. The remaining Zikir songs have unfortunately been lost.
When Ajan Peer came to Assam, Ahom king Pratap Singha was on the throne. At the outset, Ajan Peer started living in a place called Sunpara near Gargaon in Sivasagar district. It is mentioned in history that about 120 disciples came with him. History tells us that King Pratap Singha suspected him of being a Mughal spy and ordered punishment. As a result, his eyes were gouged out. However, according to noted historian Dr Surya Kumar Bhuyan, Ajan Peer’s eyes were gouged out by Rupai Dadhara in 1684 during the reign of Gadadhar Singha. It is known that Ajan Peer possessed some divine power, using which he could drift his eyes in the Dikhow river in an earthen pot before being snatched by the king’s people. It is also said that as a result of this action, the river started flowing in the opposite direction and the waters reached the king’s palace, Karenghar. At this, the king grew fearful and asked the Peer to forgive him and only then the Dikhow river calmed down. Then the king presented him with 100 bighas of land at Saraguri Sapori on the banks of the Dikhow river. Then onwards he started living there and breathed his last in 1690.
Saraguri Sapori is a holy place to all the people living in Assam belonging to different castes, creeds and religions. All the people come to this place seeking his blessings. Ajan Peer was a symbol of unity, social harmony and non-violence like Srimanta Sankardeva. Empathy, patience and greatness of human society were reflected in his writings.
Mor monot aan bhab nai o Allah
Mor monot bhin par nai o Allah
Hindu ki Musalman
Ekei Allahr farman
Mor monot eketi bhab.
(There is no difference in my mind. Hindu or Muslim; we are children of one God. I feel all the people are the same.)
