Her Holiness Guru Maa Jyotishanand Saraswati, trustees and members of Vedic Heritage Inc. mourn the passing away of one of the greatest classical musicians of India. Bharat Ratna Bismillah Khan passed away on August 1, 2006 at the age of 91. Bismillah Khanji is a very familiar and important name for us. He played a very critical role in attracting audiences to appreciate classical music from India, and raising funds in the early years to establish the foundation of Vedic Heritage. Her Holiness had the vision to introduce classical Indian music to the NRI and western audiences, especially in NY. She was one of the first to invite Bismillah Khanji in 1982 for a fund-raising program at the Town Hall in Manhattan. She even sold his 10 shows that year in UK and US. He was invited again to perform in 1986 and 1988. Guru Maa says of him, “He was an exceptional human being; he was always very polite, humble and generous. His music was of divine quality. He was so generous that he squandered all his earnings in the upkeep of his large extended family and the community. He himself led a very simple life” Even Sangeet Martandya Pandit Jasrajji was moved by his passing away and cried on the phone as he called Guru Maa to communicate the sad news on the 1st. Says Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, “It was a pleasure and unique honor to play duets with Khan Sahib….as soon as the Ustad begins to play, he became one with the shehnai. It was because of him that the shehnai was heard at concerts, both in India and internationally. The Ustad played the shehnai, not in keeping with the grammar of music, but with its poetry. His concept of music was very beautiful and his vision, superb. What is remarkable is that he kept performing until the very end. May his soul rest in peace. I sincerely hope that someone from his family comes forward to carry on the good work done by him” In Khanji’s words, music was an ocean and he had barely reached its shores even after 91 years of riyaaz. This should be a stark reminder to the new generation who do not have the patience to practice, practice and practice even more until perfection.

I personally still have some great memories of his music and his simplicity from his last visit to Vedic Heritage in 1988. I still recall that though he followed Islamic faith, he lived very comfortably at our Ashram and ate vegetarian food. Not only did he perform in the auditorium, but also performed for the devotees at Sri Hanuman Mandir. Almost 20 years later, his soulful and sweet shehnai is still fresh in my memory – especially as he ended the congregation with ‘Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram’ on shehnai. It was a totally mesmerizing experience permanently etched in my memory.

Shehnai has become the national instrument for all Indian weddings – of any faith. This is the true gift of Khanji – he epitomizes secularism. He was of Islamic faith but made Varanasi, the most holy city of Hindus on the bank of Ganges his home. He regularly performed at Mandirs, and his favorite venue was Sri Sankat Mochan Mandir of Sri Hanumanji.

Khanji was born on March 1, 1916 in a family whose ancestors served as court musicians in the princely state of Dumraon in Bihar. Khanji trained under his uncle ali Bux, a shehnai musician attached to the famous Kashi Vishwanathji Temple in Benares. While many saw conflict and contradiction between his music and his religion, Khanji saw only a divine unity. Even as a devout Shia, he was a staunch devotee of Saraswati. “Music, sur, namaaz – they are all the same thing. We can reach allah in different ways. Unless a musician strives to meet God, he will only have kalaa (art) but no assar (mystical union), and he will always stand at the ocean and never reach the heights of purity” said Khanji. “ The religion of music is one. This is the only haqeeqat (reality). My namaaz is the seven shuddh and five komal surs” Khanji grew up without making distinctions between Ram and Rahim. His music has not only shaped up the Moharram processions, but also the celestial shine of the temples on the imposing riverfront of Kashi’ remarked a music critic. He even came out strongly against the recent terrorist bomb attacks in Varanasi, including the Sankat Mochan temple of Sri Hanumanji. Said Khanji, “ I have played umpteen times and practiced for hours at the Sankat Mochan temple. It has a very special place for all who have some association with Benares. Those behind the bombing were clearly aiming to disturb the communal harmony of this ancient city; but little did they realize that what they did was seen by all sections of society as an attack on humanity. Even the heavens have wept for what was done to vitiate the serenity of this city of Ganga’ (referring to the showers that continued from morning until the afternoon in Varanasi) “ I am proud of this city, which is anointed by the holy Ganga water, where there is no distinction between the Hindus and Muslims…The manner in which both Hindus and Muslims have stood together at this crucial juncture and have refused to fall into the trap of disruptive forces has once again shown that Varanasi will never allow such forces to ever succeed in their nefarious designs”

“The grand old musician of one of the oldest living cities in the world treasured his karmobhoomi Kashi above all and wished to breathe his last in the abode of Shiva only. The father of eight, 3 daughters and 5 sons, had made his medical treatment complicated owing to the wish of staying in Benares till his last breath,” said a spokesperson.

He was bestowed with all the major awards in India – Padma Shri, Padma Vibhusan and finally the Bharat Ratna. Besides he received honorary doctorate from the Benares Hindu University and Shanti Niketan. He has also received Sangeet Natak academy and the Tansen awards. Yet, despite his simple life-style, because of his generous nature and having to support a family of nearly 70 people, he declared, ‘all these awards do not help me make ends meet’ Khanji said, ‘but who cares about that?’

Bismillah means ‘the beginning’. He had predicted that shehnai will not die with him. Many more Bismillah Khans will come up. But, to all his fans, there will be only one Bismillah Khan. May his soul rest in peace. The melodious and sweet shehnai will always remind us of the great Khanji.