''O' Parvardigar'' is a 2001 EP by

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Towns ...

devoted to his song ''O' Parvardigar'' which in turn is based on

Meher Baba Meher Baba (born Merwan Sheriar Irani; 25 February 1894 – 31 January 1969) was an Indian spiritual master who said he was the Avatar, or God in human form, of the age. A major spiritual figure of the 20th century, he had a following of ...

's Parvardigar Prayer. The EP, which was released on Townshend's own label Eel Pie, contains three versions of the song—a 1972 studio version, a live version recorded in India, and a German-language version recorded for the opening of a European Baba Centre.

Background

In the early 1970s Townshend, a follower of Meher Baba since 1967, composed ''O' Parvardigar'' to the words (with a few alterations) of Meher's Parvardigar Prayer. It first appeared in 1972 on both his debut solo album ''

Who Came First ''Who Came First'' is the debut album by Pete Townshend, released in 1972 on Track Records in the UK and Track/Decca in the US. It includes previously released material as well as tracks that originated as demos for the Who's aborted concept ...

'' and on ''

I Am I Am or I'm may refer to: Language and literature * " I Am that I Am", a common English translation of the response God used in the Hebrew Bible when Moses asked for His name ** I am (biblical term), a Christian term used in the Bible * "I Am" (p ...

'', a tribute album to Meher with music composed and performed by Townshend and a group of other Meher followers.Giuliano, Geoffrey (2002)
Blue Eyes: The Life of Pete Townshend''
pp. 120–123; 142.

Rowman & Littlefield Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group is an independent publishing house founded in 1949. Under several imprints, the company offers scholarly books for the academic market, as well as trade books. The company also owns the book distributing comp ...

. Wilkerson, Mark (2009)
''Who Are You: The Life Of Pete Townshend''
pp. 240; 250; 633.

Omnibus Press Omnibus Press is a publisher of music-related books. It publishes around 30 new titles a year to add to a backlist of over 250 titles currently in print. History Omnibus Press was launched in 1972 as a general non-fiction publisher to complem ...

. . Townshend said in a ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' interview "I don't actually say this prayer, I just happened to put it to music ..Preposterous as it may sound, I thought that by putting it to music, a lot people would just be saying it without thinking about it." Townsend's biographer Geoffrey Giuliano described the song as a "spiritual bullet right between the eyes, a masterpiece of poetics, devotion and the musical art." The song was later included as the final track on Townshend's 2001 album '' The Oceanic Concerts''. A German-language version of ''O' Parvardigar'' using a translation by an Austrian follower of Meher was recorded for the opening of a European Baba Centre but was never officially released. The song was used as the soundtrack to a short montage film on Meher's life produced by Townshend and likewise entitled ''O' Parvardigar''. It was first screened in 1976 at the opening of the Meher Baba Oceanic Centre in Twickenham and was screened again there in 1994 on the 100th anniversary of Meher's birth. ''O' Parvardigar'' also appears on the soundtrack of ''Delia'', another film produced by Townshend and screened at the 1976 Oceanic Centre opening. That film was a documentary on the actress Delia de Leon (1901–1993) who was an early and fervent follower of Meher and an admirer of Townshend's song.Horder, John (5 March 1993)
"Obituary: Delia de Leon"
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

''. Retrieved 19 June 2018.

References

2001 debut EPs Pete Townshend EPs Meher Baba tribute albums Albums produced by Pete Townshend {{2001-rock-album-stub