Belonging to a 25-30,000-strong
community of professional singers, or Manganiars,
Durre Khan has spent a lifetime singing at the Nath
Sampradaya Mutt in Miajalar, Jaisalmer. The Manganiars
live across western Rajasthan, close to the Indo-Pak
border, as well as Sindh in Pakistan. A primarily
Muslim commune, patronized and mentored by Hindus,
including the Rajputs, Maalis and Darzis, Manganiars
have – for centuries – had inter-reliance
with the latter. No ritual or rite, festival or
fair, birth or death is complete without the Manganiars
of a particular Hindu family singing for them. What
sets Durre Khan apart from the others of his kin
is the fact that he sings at the Nath Mutt. His
repertoire includes the writings of Sufi saints,
Mira, Kabir, pirs and aulias, and, of course, Guru
Gorakhanath. Gorakhnath, who is believed to be a
Nath Yogi going back to anything between the 8th-12th
centuries with affiliations to Shaivism, was the
ninth Nath in his tradition and said to be the greatest
of them all. A number of works are ascribed to him,
such as the first books on Laya Yoga, Goraksha Samhita,
Goraksha Gita, and Siddha Siddhanta Paddhhati. Some
modern-day masters proclaim Gorakhnath to be one
of the four great innovators of the Indian religion
alongside Patanjali, Buddha and Krishna. “Through
him,” says Osho, “a new type of religion
was born. Without Gorakh, there could be no Kabir,
no Nanak, no Dadu, no Vajid, no Farid, and no Mira
– without Gorakh none of these are possible.”
