Khojahs
Also called: Khoja · Topic: Bhakti and Sufi Traditions · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 2 "Bhakti-Sufi Traditions"
Meaning
The Khojahs are a branch of the Ismailis, a Shi'a sect. Their communities lived mainly in Punjab, Sind and Gujarat, especially among traders. They found new ways to share their faith. They spread ideas from the Qur'an through local poetry and music, not through Arabic texts alone. They show how Islam in India took on local languages and forms.
Example
The Khojahs sang ginans (from the Sanskrit jnana, "knowledge"). These are devotional poems in Punjabi, Multani, Sindhi, Kachchi, Hindi and Gujarati, sung in ragas during daily prayer. They were written down in the Khojaki script, which came from the "landa" script used by merchants.
Don't confuse with
- Sufi orders such as the Chishtis: these are mystical brotherhoods linked by a chain of masters and disciples (silsila). The Khojahs are a sect within Shi'a Islam, not a sufi order.
Related concepts
- Ulama
- Sharia
- Hadis
- Zimmi
- Five pillars of Islam
- Ginan
- Mihrab
- Regional mosque architecture
- Turushka
- Yavana