Longing as Devotion: Spiritual Desire and Hallajian Fanâ in the Ghani Khan’s poems The World and Heaven, and the Pious Priest and Madman
Salvia Islam, Hamza Bin Anees, Aiman Aiman
Wah Academia Journal of Global Religions March 30, 2026 DOI: 10.63954/xw97hz14 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative thematic analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Poetry of Ghani Khan |
| Topics | Buddhism Mysticism |
| Keywords | Poetry Existentialism Sign mathematics Interpretation philosophy Immanence Religious experience Soul Doctrine Literature Psychoanalysis Foregrounding Transformative learning Meaning existential Numinous Faith Spirituality Aesthetics |
| Key findings | Ghani Khan's poetry reconfigures longing as worship, where devotion is enacted through sustained yearning, self-dissolution, and spiritual risk, aligned with Hallajian fanā. |
Abstract
This paper explores the concept of spiritual longing in the poetry of Ghani Khan through the Hallajian doctrine of fanā (self-annihilation), arguing that desire in his poetic vision functions as a form of devotion rather than emotional yearning. While Ghani Khan’s poetry has been widely discussed in aesthetic, existential, and socio-political terms, its engagement with mystical longing as a transformative spiritual practice remains underexamined. Using qualitative thematic analysis of selected Pashto poems, the study identifies recurring patterns of desire, separation, and ecstatic suffering that align with Mansur al-Hallaj’s understanding of longing as a sign of divine presence. The findings reveal that Ghani Khan sustains longing as an existential condition that destabilizes the ego and guides the self toward fanā, rather than resolving desire through symbolic union. By situating Ghani Khan within the Hallajian mystical tradition, this paper demonstrates how his poetry reconfigures longing as worship, where devotion is enacted through sustained yearning, self-dissolution, and spiritual risk. The study contributes to Pashto literary studies and comparative mysticism by foregrounding longing as a central devotional and philosophical principle in Ghani Khan’s poetic imagination.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The varieties of contemplative experience: A mixed-methods study of meditation-related challenges in Western Buddhists Western Buddhist meditation practitioners and experts in Theravāda, Zen, and Tibetan... | 2017 | Qualitative study with mixed-methods | |
| A phenomenology of meditation-induced light experiences: traditional buddhist and neurobiological perspectives American Buddhist practitioners | 2014 | Qualitative study | |
| Common Core Thesis and Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Mysticism in Chinese Buddhist Monks and Nuns Chinese Pure Land and Chan Buddhist monks and nuns | 2011 | Mixed-methods study | n = 139 |
| Anger regulation in traumatized Cambodian refugees: the perspectives of Buddhist monks. Buddhist Cambodian monks in Massachusetts | 2011 | Qualitative study | n = 6 |
| The Lived Experiences of Experienced Vipassana Mahasi Meditators: an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Experienced Vipassana Mahasi meditators | 2018 | Qualitative study |