Tomb of Shah Jamal

The Tomb of Shah Jamal is the tomb of Sufi Saint Baba Shah Jamal. It is located in the city of Lahore - the capital of Punjab, Pakistan. There is a masjid built around the tomb which incorporates a graveyard.

At the foot of the stairs leading up to the tomb, there is a majlis - which is like a regular urs, every Friday morning (from midnight onwards) - a tradition that has been going on for hundreds of years. Dhol is played with devotees (dervish or fakir) dancing in a trance also known as 'dhamaal'. The famous Pappu Sain is the central attraction performs on the dhol.

This performance, every Thursday night/ Friday morning, is attended by people from all walks of life - students, government officials, musicians both domestic and international, models, common folk - in short everyone. The environment is very friendly and safe. It is encouraged that people wear simple and plain clothes and come well covered in respect for the shrine. Attendees usually smoke cigarettes or drink a special drink prepared from Hashish, as the tradition has been. Not all attendees smoke hash and neither are they expected or asked to. However it is tolerated. Many a times Pappu Sain has stopped his performance angry at the fact that people have forgotten the reason for coming to the shrine and instead concentrating on indulging in hashish, etc.

The tomb is more than a simple shrine, providing shelter, food and solace from the vagaries of everyday life. However there are some complaints in the national newspapers i.e. The Post and The Nation that drug-runners use the shrine's Sama Hall for selling drugs to the youth on pretext to listen Dohol.