Chilla (retreat)
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Chilla (, , both literally "forty"), also known as Chilla-nashini, is a spiritual practice of
penance Penance is any act or a set of actions done out of contrition for sins committed, as well as an alternative name for the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession. The word ''penance'' derive ...
and solitude in
Sufism Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
known mostly in
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
n and
Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
traditions. In this ritual a
mendicant A mendicant (from , "begging") is one who practices mendicancy, relying chiefly or exclusively on alms to survive. In principle, Mendicant orders, mendicant religious orders own little property, either individually or collectively, and in many i ...
or
ascetic Asceticism is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures through self-discipline, self-imposed poverty, and simple living, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their pra ...
attempts to remain seated in a circle practicing meditation techniques without food for 40 days and nights in imitation of the
Arba'een In Shia Islam, Arba'in () marks forty days after Ashura, which is the martyrdom anniversary of Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the third Shia imam. Husayn was killed, alongside most of his relatives and his small re ...
.


Etymology

The word ''chilla'' is derived from the Persian word ''chehel'' "forty".


Chilla-khana

Chilla is commonly performed in a solitary cell called a ''chilla-khana''. The place itself is sometimes called Chilla where chilla has been performed.


Incidents of Chilla

The most famous case of chilla is found in the biographies of the 14th century Sufi poet
Hafez (), known by his pen name Hafez ( or 'the keeper'; 1325–1390) or Hafiz, “Ḥāfeẓ” designates someoone who has learned the Qurʾān by heart" also known by his nickname Lisan al-Ghaib ('the tongue of the unseen'), was a Persian lyri ...
of
Shiraz Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...
.


In music

A practice similar to chilla is also performed by
Hindustani classical music Hindustani classical music is the Indian classical music, classical music of the Indian subcontinent's northern regions. It may also be called North Indian classical music or ''Uttar Bhartiya shastriya sangeet''. The term ''shastriya sangeet'' ...
practitioners at an advanced level. It is called chilla katna.


See also

* Khalwa *
Meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...
*
Sādhanā ''Sādhanā'' (; ; ) is an ego-transcending spiritual practice in Indian religions. It includes a variety of disciplines in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions that are followed in order to achieve various spiritual or ritual objectives. ...
*
Shugendō is a syncretic Esoteric Buddhist religion, a body of ascetic practices that originated in the Nara Period of Japan having evolved during the 7th century from an amalgamation of beliefs, philosophies, doctrines and ritual systems drawn prim ...
* Tabligh Jamaat


References


Bibliography

* * {{cite book, first1=Hermann, last1=Landolt, first2=Todd, last2=Lawson, title=Reason and Inspiration in Islam: Theology, Philosophy and Mysticism in Muslim Thought, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bq9zSbNr8gIC&pg=PA203, year=2005, publisher=I.B.Tauris, isbn=978-1-85043-470-2 Religious practices Ritual purification Asceticism Sufism