English (Compulsory) For Class IX - Unit 2 - Role Model - Text Book Exercise Unit 2.1 (Exercise 1 - 7)

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Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai

TEXT BOOK EXERCISE:

UNIT 2.1 READING COMPREHENSION

While Reading
Exercise 1:
a) How many aspects of Shah Abdul Latif's life have been covered in the text?
Ans: There are seven aspects of Shah Abdul Latif's life have been covered in the text.

b) List all these aspects in your notebook as shown below.
Ans: Following are the aspects of Shah Abdul Latif's life:

1. The first aspect is about his Background and Family.
2. The second aspect is about his name Bhitai.
3. The third aspect is about his early life and education.
4. The fourth aspect is about his youth.
5. The fifth aspect is about his spiritual growth.
6. The sixth aspect is about his death and remembrance.
7. The seventh aspect is about Shah Latif's poetry.

Vocabulary
Exercise 2:
The words given in bold below have been taken from the text. Look up these words in the text and underline them.
Next, do the following exercise. Underline the correct answers from the choices provided. The first one has been done as an example.
1. Those who have an abundance of wealth have
(a) little wealth
(b) a lot of wealth
(c) some wealth

2. My family's ancestral roots are in Sindh, means my parents, grandparents and great grandparents have lived in Sindh since
(a) my grandparents got married
(b) my birth
(c) many generations

3. The new academic year commences in our school in April.
(a) ends
(b) progresses
(c) begins

4. The devotees of some saints walk to shrines barefoot.
(a) children
(b) followers
(c) caretakers

5. Many people go to a mystic to ask for the fulfillment of their wishes.
(a) person who lives alone
(b) new person
(c) person with spiritual power

6. The sailors of Sindh used to travel to far off lands as they had good navigation skills.
(a) ship directing
(b) engineering
(c) swimming

7. For centuries, the main medium for transfer of information was oral traditions.
(a) horses
(b) passing of information by word of mouth
(c) messages

8. My brother is a restless person, always looking for new things to do.
(a) genius
(b) different
(c) change seeking

9. Truly great persons deserve reverence as they play a positive role in our lives.
(a) richness and wealth
(b) leadership positions
(c) respect and admiration

10. Islam's message of peace is universal, as without it there can be no happiness.
(a) good
(b) applicable to all the people in the world
(c) acceptable

Exercise 3:
Work in pairs and complete the sentences below with a word written in bold in Exercise 2.
You can use one word only once. Write the complete sentences in your notebook.
1. The devotees of Shah Bhitai celebrate his Urs every year.
2. My mother and I decided to go to a mystics to ask him to pray for my father's health.
3. It is a universal fact that no living thing can survive without oxygen.
4. Much of what we know about our culture has been passed on to us through oral traditions.
5. We may have different ancestral roots but we are all the off springs of Adam.
6. Fasting commences on the first day of Ramadan.
7. Pakistan has everything in abundance but we need strong policies to make good use of everything that we have.
8. Nelson Mandela won his people's reverence for his long struggle for the rights of people in South Asia.
9. The art of restless requires hard work and one needs to practise a lot to write beautifully.
10. The Pakistan Navy has very good navigation skills.


Exercise 4:
The reading text has seven aspects that relate to Shah Latif.
The following sentences state one key point covered under each aspect. However, these sentences are in a jumbled up order. Read the text and write the aspect number in the blanks provided. The last one has been done for you as an example.
a) He found pleasure in praying, thinking and devotion. 5
b) He was married for a short period of time only. 4
c) Shah Latif's forefather migrated to Sindh from Afghanistan. 1
d) A shrine was built over his grave sometime after his death. 6
e) His poetry is mainly about Sindh but off places are also mentioned. 7
f) He loved studying and had a command over other languages. 3
g) He is called Bhitai because he spent a good past of his life on a mound. 2


Exercise 5:
Read the text and find the following information. Write down these things in your notebook. After you have completed, discuss your answers with your partner.
1. Two things done at the time of `Urs', as mentioned in the text.
Ans: Two things done at the time of `Urs' are:

1. Thousands of people gather and listen to the saint's songs sung on the Tambooro'.
2. Many learned men read papers that tell about Latif's life and his poetry.

2. Two possible reasons why his ancestors migrated to Sindh.
Ans: Reason due to which Shah Latif's ancestors migrated to Sindh.

1. The Shah's father, Syed Habib Shah, migrated from Matyaru, his ancestral home in Afghanistan, to Bhainpur in Sindh, in order to gain spiritual contact with Bilawal, a local pious man.
2. His ancestors migrated to Sindh from Hirai Sindh was then a centre of Muslim culture and Shah Lath's ancestors liked it so much that they decided to make it their home.

3. Two other languages that he knew quite well.
Ans: Two other languages that Shah Latif knew quite well:

1. Arabic
2. Persian

4. Two main religious sources that he had knowledge about.
Ans: Two main religious sources that Shah Latif had knowledge about

1. Holy Quran
2. Hadith

5. Two poets whose works were a part of his collection.
Ans: Two poets whose works were a part of Shah Latif's collection.

1. Moulana Jalaluddin Rumi
2. Shah Karim

6. Two skills for which he is known.
Ans: Two skills for which Shah Latif is known

1. Poet
2. Sufi Saint

7. Two places in Afghanistan mentioned in his poetry.
Ans: Two places in Afghanistan mentioned in his poetry.

1. Kabul
2. Kandahar

8. Two places in India mentioned in his poetry.
Ans: Two places in India mentioned in his poetry are:

1. Delhi
2. Deccan

9. Two languages mentioned in which the Risalo' has been translated.
Ans: Two languages in which the Risalo' has been translated.

1. English
2. Urdu

Exercise 6:
a) How was information about Shah Latif's early life collected. Why was it collected in this manner?
Ans: Information about the life of Bhitai has mostly been collected from oral traditions. Because at that time the information of history or the past people were passed by words of mouth from one generation to next. So a renowned Pakistani scholar, educationist, and writer of plays, dramas and stories, Mirza Kalich Beg, is said to have collected details about the early life of Shah Bhitai from some of the old people living at that time. These people had heard these facts from their fathers and grandfathers, some of whom had seen Shah Latif in person and had even spoken to him.

b) Why is Shah Latif called the 'Saint of Bhit'?
Ans: In 1742, Shah Latif left his home and went to live on a mound at some distance from his village, A mound of sand is called 'Bhit' in Sindh, Due to the fact that he lived on this mound for the rest of his life, Shah Latif came to be known as 'Saint of Bhit.' To this day, he is famous all over the country as Shah Abdul Lath Bhitai or Shah Latif of the Mound.

c) Why did Shah Latif not marry again after his wife died?
Ans: In 1713 the Sufi poet married with Bibi Saidha Begum. His wife died at an early age, before she could have any children. However, Shah never married again. Because after the death of his wife, his heart turned more and more towards religion and devotion and he felt restless; and he found it difficult to live a normal domestic life.

d) Why did people become Shah Latif's followers?
Ans: Latif's love of God grew more and more, to the extent that he found pleasure only in devotion. As a result, he spent most of his time in prayers and deep thinking. His spiritual power grew stronger with prayers and devotion so much, so that people began to be attracted towards him. Anyone who came to see him was strongly impressed by his gentle ways and became his devotees. In this way his followers increased day by day.

e) What does Shah Latif's poetry and work tell us about his knowledge and skills?
Ans: Shah Abdul Latif was a sensitive, gentle and kind soul. He was a Sufi in the true sense of the word. Besides its simplicity, one great quality of Latif's poetry is its moving music. The word 'latif' literally means fine, delicate, tender, elegant, and light. This meaning is truly reflected in both his poetry and his personality. His poetic nature loved the calm atomsphere and are spiritual and mystic. Moreover, he was a poet of the people, so he wrote in the language of the common man.

f) Name the places in the text mentioned in Shah Latif's poetry. Why do you think these places have been mentioned by him?
Ans: In his poems he writes mainly about Sindh and its neighbouring regions. However, he also mentions distant cities, such as Istanbul (Turkey) and Samarqand(Uzbekistan), China, Rome, Kabul and Kandahar (Afghanistan), Delhi and Deccan (India). He mentioned these places because he talks about Sindhi sailors (Samundi), their navigation techniques, and their voyages as far as the Malabar coast, Sri Lanka and the island of Java and all above places.

g) Why is Shah Latif's key message in his verses acceptable to everyone?
Ans: His spiritual and mystic poetry carries a message of love, which makes it universal and acceptable to the entire human race. Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai is, and always will be, remembered for his great poetry with love and reverence.

h) Can we put his message into practice in today's world. If 'Yes' how, if `No' why not?
Ans: Yes, we put Latif's message into practice in today's world because his message is the message of love. He believed in brotherhood and equality of men and in pleasing God by good deeds. This according to him is the goal of life.

Exercise 7:
Work in groups of six and prepare questions for conducting an interview of scholars who have studied Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai, his life and his poetry.
Next, prepare a role play in which one member of the group becomes an anchor person while the remaining members become scholars in a TV talk show.