![]() ![]() Such poems include Ghoom Charkhia Ghoom (Spin, Spinning Wheel) by Shah Hussain, in which the poet declares, “My body is You, my soul is You. ![]() Marvi’s answers are short and unembellished, in direct contrast to the rich imagery of the songs she passionately sings, which meditate on the longing for God and praise Allah, Prophet Muhammad and others. Fellow performer Arieb Azhar fluidly translates Cooper’s questions from English to Urdu, and Marvi’s response from Urdu into English. The five songs she sings bookend a three-way question-and-answer session about Sufi music, led by Rachel Cooper, a director at the Asia Society. The majority clap loudly in time with the music. Some audience members sway some shout out praise and/or comments. Her only adornments are a silver watch, a gold bracelet, small studded hoop earrings and her voice - a rich, deep belting voice that ricochets off the walls of the small auditorium and pierces New York reserve. Her loose medium-length black hair frames her face. ![]() The woman, Sanam Marvi, wears a black, red and gray shalwar kameez with a translucent red chiffon scarf draped across her body. Sitting cross-legged and barefoot on a red Persian rug, she leads a sama (an experiential Sufi ceremony celebrating God) accompanied by four male musicians playing the tabla, harmonium, sitar and dholak. On a warm April evening in New York, a Pakistani woman holds an audience captive at the Asia Society in the Upper East Side. ![]()
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