KARACHI, May 8: And so it ended. Five nights of Sufi music — hours on end — supposed to bring one closer to the Divine Reality; the echoes of what Mansur al-Hallaj screamed as he was dragged to the gallows centuries ago, Ana Al-Haqq, ‘I am the Truth.’

One is not sure how much closer the International Mystic Music Sufi Festival brought people to the Truth. But one thing is certain: the fact that the festival brought performers from all over the Muslim world, as well as from within Pakistan, on to a single stage at Karachi’s Baradari, is highly commendable.

Turks, Arabs, Iranians and others sang the praises of God, and of those He loves, as people came and went. Though the opening night was marred by paranoid security levels (forgivable, as we live in a police state), the following four nights saw smoother sailing.

Though over the first four nights crowds were not that large, on Monday, the final night of the festival, crowds packed the sprawling grounds of the Baradari, perhaps to listen to Abida Parveen, who was scheduled to perform.

As Azerbaijani group Savalan sang the mystical verses of 13th century Turkish poet Yunus Emre on Monday night, one was reminded of the other outstanding international artistes that performed at the festival. Bosnia’s Choir Hazreti Hamza, born in the shadows of the Balkan war in 1993, stood out as particularly marvellous. Other strong performances included those of Iran’s Bidad, Turkey’s Musemma, Iraq’s Maqam Ensemble, Algeria’s Nadi el Hilal Eptakafi and Morocco’s Aissaoua Brotherhood, among others.

The fact that so many international artistes came to Karachi, despite the prevailing regional situation, goes to the credit of the organisers, the Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop, who deserve plaudits for organising such a complex festival.

Matter of fact, Faizaan Peerzada, the Festival President, said on Monday that next year he wanted to include up to 30 international performers, along with bringing the festival back to perhaps mid-April in view of the May heat.

Trends come and go. But a civilization’s heritage — that which exists in the soil and in the very DNA of its people — cannot be erased. Thus whether it is moderate enlightenment or ‘stick-wielding sharia,’ these aberrations will be recorded in history as just that. And the echoes of our spiritual masters shall remain, for they are made of far more enduring stuff. Here’s to next year’s Sufi festival.