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INTERNATIONAL

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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Continuation of a joint heritage


Ilmana Fasih recounts some examples of the Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb and centuries old, peaceful coexistence beyond religious divides
n otherwise sane looki n g person I met at a party recently started to spew venom laced with conspiracy theories about Hindu Muslim animosity. To top it all, he tried to use my own life to justify his views, insisting that my going to live in Pakistan after marrying a Pakistani was proof of the natural divide. He refused to accept my views that a peaceful coexistence between people of different faiths is possible or that my going to Pakistan from India was not based on religious reasons. His hate-filled thoughts kept me sleepless for hours that night. But talking over the phone to my mother in Delhi later, I was cheered up by her mention of Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb. Our conversation triggered off thoughts about this beautiful, fluid culture that refuses to be boxed up and compartmentalised. The name Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb is as beautiful as its spirit. It refers to the centuries old, peaceful coexistence between Hindus and Muslims of the subcontinent. Not only did the two faiths borrow cultural practices from each other, but they also exchanged each others vocabularies. So much so that now one is hardly able to find any difference between spoken Urdu and spoken Hindi. The Nawabs of Awadh in north India in the 1700s are considered the pioneers of Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb. At least, the term was coined in their times. But on ground it existed well before that era. The starkest example of this syncretic culture is the Purana Hanuman Mandir in Lucknow, which is crowned by an Islamic symbol, a crescent. According to legend, the temple was built by Nawab Saadat Ali Khan to honour the wish of his mother, who had dreamt of building a temple. The tradition of honouring the Nawabs gesture still continues when the Muslims in the area put up stalls of water

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Syncretic development: Kathak dancers from Lucknow demonstrate chakkars that evolved from a mix of cultures during the Bada Mangal festival at the temple, and Hindus manage sabeels (stalls) of sherbet and water during Muharram in reverence for Imam Hussain. Not far from Lucknow, the rulers of the Hindu holy city of Kashi (also known as Benaras or Varanasi) observed the Azadari (the mourning) during Muharram, wearing black on Ashura. Ustad Bismillah Khan, the renowned Shehnai maestro, began his career as a shehnai player in Vishwanath temple, Kashi. In fact, many of the musicians, Hindu and Muslim, who play in the temples, fast during Ramazan and also observe Vrat during the Hindu Navratras. Even today, Muslim artisans in Kashi/Varanasi who make Taziyas for Muharram also make effigies of Ravan for Dussehra, a friend tells me. Hindus too participate in Muharram processions and make Taziyas in many cities, notably Lucknow. Similarly a Sindhi friend talks of the centuries-old peace and harmony between the Hindus and Muslims of Sindh. Adherents of both faiths revere and pray together at the shrine of Jhuley Lal, she says. The shrine walls are inscribed with Arabic verses as well as Hindu names of Gods. An age-old common greeting of Sindhi Hindus and Muslims is Jhulelal Bera-HeePaar. Karachis 150-year old cremation ground for Hindus has a Muslim caretaker, although there are many Hindus in the city. This caretaker is responsible for cleaning the statues and lighting the lamps in the temple, and takes care of the urns that contain the ashes of the dead after cremation, until their loved ones immerse the ashes in water. Cultural practices in Sindh are a fusion of the two cultures. If the Hindus, fervently use Allah as the reference to God, the Muslims touch the feet of their elderly as traditions borrowed from each others cultures. The contribution of Sufi poetry towards this peaceful coexistence, from Kabirdas and Amir Khusro, to Bulleh Shah on the other side, is well known. Beyond faith, at the cultural level, the Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb has seen some beautiful creations like the Ghazal style of singing and the classical dance form Kathak. Kathaks journey from ancient times to its present form merits a walk-through. The word katha comes from katha or story telling. It has its roots in ancient times, when storytellers narrated epics or mythological stories like Shakuntala, and the Mahabharata through dance forms in temples. However with the arrival of Mughals, the dance, enticed to come to the courts, developed into a more Persianised form. The Kathak dancers adopted the whirling from the dervishes to the chakkars. The rhythm of the footsteps found harmony with the beat of the tabla recently discovered by Amir Khusro. The female Kathakaars (storytellers) abandoned the sari of ancient times for the angarkha and churidar pyjama. The language of narration also transformed from Sanskrit to Brij Bhasha and then Urdu. There may be more examples of such coexistence and development in other regions of the subcontinent too. Those who propagate conspiracy theories and narrate stories of hate and disharmony need to know that even with the physical separation between India and Pakistan, the spirit of Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb lives on. The lack of communication between the two countries, particularly after the 1965 and 1971 wars, has not managed to

dampen the natural instincts of sharing these cultures. Farid Ayaz and Abu Muhammed, the renowned Qawwals from Pakistan continue to sing Bhajans which their gharana has been singing for the last 300 years. On the other side are Wadali brothers who sing Bulleh Shah Kaafis and Naats with the same devotion. Despite all odds, Sheema Kermani and her students in Pakistan have continued to keep the dance forms, not only of Kathak, but also Bharatnatyam and Odissi, alive and known in Pakistan. The recent collaboration between Zeb and Haniya from Pakistan and Shantanu and Siwanand Kirkire of India yielded the soft melody Kaho kya khayal hai in a beautiful blend of Dari and Hindi. I could not help relate it to the Zehaal-eMiskeen composition by Amir Khusro which was a beautiful fusion of Persian and Brij Bhasha. And now another peacenik in the form of Shahvar Ali Khan makes a music video titled No Saazish No Jang (No Conspiracy, No War). It is heartening to see the visuals, and hear the voices of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah and Bapu Mahatama Gandhi together in the backdrop. It is not possible to list all collaborations between the two countries and across religious divides, particularly in fields of films, music, health (the most significant being the Heart to Heart initiative by Rotary and Aman ki Asha). But all these initiatives testify to the desire for peace, not hate. As for me, convinced that each of these efforts towards peaceful coexistence is based on foundations going back centuries, I slide into my bed, comforted by the faith that peace, not hate, will ultimately prevail. Its just a matter of time. Dr Ilmana Fasih is an Indian gynaecologist and health activist married to a Pakistani. Her blog is Blind to Bounds http://thinkloud65.wordpress.com/

n December 18, take out just thirty seconds to Pray for Peace Between India and Pakistan. The prayer can take any form you choose. Some expressions of support for this initiative include: The Pentecostal Church in Bihar and Jharkhand, with a membership of 20-30,000 people has pledged to participate. The Lahore School of Economics is providing a free space for students and their friends to gather and pray for peace on Dec 18. On behalf of Pakistan Youth Alliance and Khudi Pakistan, I express full endorsement for the initiative Syed Ali Abbas Zaidi, Chair & Founder Pakistan Youth Alliance, a youth based not-for-profit organisation and Central Executive Committee Khudi Pakistan, a counter-extremism initiative. We have different groups in Faisalabad, Sahiwal, Jhang, Gojra and Toba Tek Singh. The areas have Christian & Muslim population. We are organising programmes with both communities on December 18, 2011 Ashfaq Fateh, Toba Tek Singh.

Those who are not participating through an organised group are of course also welcome to join. Five ideas to share and work on: 1. Make and display a sign in different languages saying Pray for Peace Day! Pray for 30 seconds for peace between India and Pakistan. 2. Tell ten people you know about this initiative family, friends, neighbours, co-workers, anyone. 3. Do fun things like make mock coffins or toilets out of chart paper or cardboard to show where you think the issue of hostile Indo-Pak relations is or should be, ie. bad relations should be flushed down the toilet or buried for good. 4. On Dec 18 or before that as part of awareness raising, include a yoga or pranayam section. For those looking for a bit of guidance on basic yoga postures you can try with the crowd, email a request for this to: swati sharan <swatimagic@yahoo.com> 5. Talk to NGOS, teachers, parents and get children to do arts and crafts to show their support. They might like to do drawings or origami of a dove or whatever. Any kind of creative expression is welcome. See article by Swati Sharan on Why India and Pakistan need Peace, introducing the idea of Pray for Peace Day, published in Aman ki Asha on Sept 7, 2011: http://bit.ly/su33YO Like the facebook page https://www.facebook.com/PrayPeace and post your comments. Like the Aman ki Asha facebook page and send feedback: https://www.facebook.com/amankiasha.destinationpeace

Aman ki Asha Mailbag

The power of compassion


He lived through the horrors of the partition massacre that killed his father and a dozen relatives. Yet Rehmat Ullah Khan chose not to pass on the burden of acrimonious history to his children
the country of his birth or the one he embraced as his own. And yet he never allowed this injustice to embitter him, or affect his family. He died in 1998, leaving us with his remarkable vision as a man of peace. His large-hearted response to the great injustice he suffered changed my perception of life and particularly, with regards to what path I would choose to take with regards to India, Pakistan, the hyphenated India-Pakistan and what my children would learn from me. nored in the strong patriotic current that came to dominate the editorial approach but I continued to push for the inclusion of Indian prisoners. When the lopsided campaign failed to take off, I reminded my editor and the reporter that even if they were only concerned about our compatriots, it would still make sense to highlight the predicament of Indian prisoners since the issue would likely cause a greater storm in India and therefore, gather the momentum needed to propel the issue to the centre-stage. Finally, they relented. As expected, the issue created a commotion in India forcing New Delhi to take it up with Islamabad, which already feeling the heat of our campaign, was similarly compelled to follow suit. As a result, the issue of prisoners release was hurriedly put on top of the agenda of the foreign secretary-level talks that were due at the time. F FOR FREEDOM The two sides came to an agreement that resulted in freeing more than six hundred prisoners, one third of them Indian. The sense of fulfilment at seeing these bruised souls emerge from prison as free citizens cannot be described in words. The peace dream lives on: Suhani, the granddaughter I cannot possibly say it was a personal Rehmat never lived to see, by his graveside. achievement since I had no power to change things, but I will bet my last rupee on the power eyes, including Indian friends, who adore her of compassion as the ultimate weapon to change even more after getting to the dnouement. It the equation and sometimes, the course of has taught me one of the most important lessons history. Life has been worth living for this one humin life: love begets love. ble endeavour alone and I owe it all to my father, an ordinary man with extraordinary power CAUSE TO DIE FOR In the summer of 2005, when I was Assistant of forgiveness and compassion. He left us on Editor at The News, we initiated a campaign for Dec 6, 1998, thirteen years ago, changing my the release of Pakistani prisoners of war lan- world forever, leaving me with a void so deep the guishing in Indian jails, in some cases, for over heart still aches. Still, whenever I look at Suhani, it reminds three decades. I argued that we should not confine the campaign to only Pakistani prisoners but me that hope springs eternal in India, Pakistan and the world. In this, I hope we all find a conalso raise a voice for Indian PoWs in Pakistan. I insisted it was only fair that the humanitar- nect. ian consideration at the heart of our campaign The writer is Editor, Dateline Islamabad should be extended to those Indian nationals, and a former editor The News. He can be who had similarly suffered the brutality of war reached at kaamyabi@gmail.com and its aftermath. Initially, my advice was igA peace initiative whose time has come... Destination Peace: A commitment by the Jang Group, Geo and The Times of India Group to create an enabling environment that brings the people of Pakistan and India closer together, contributing to genuine and durable peace with honour between our countries.
By Kamran Rehmat

School support for Aman ki Asha


Dear Aman ki Asha, Thank you for initiating this pure, inspiring and bold effort by two of the best-known media houses in the subcontinent to build peace between India and Pakistan. All activities and efforts being done under this campaign of Aman ki Asha will bear fruit one day. We at Foundation Public School, Karachi (established in 1981 with nine branches in Karachi and Hyderabad), believe in the individuals freedom of thought and spirit, and critical thinking. We aim to provide opportunities for our students to flourish and learn in a conducive environment, and prepare them to grow and develop into mature human beings, capable of making decisions realistically and with compassion. We proudly took the initiative of promoting Aman ki Ashas message of peace amongst our youth. It was made a part of their curriculum and students of all age groups from 4 years to 15 years actively participated in it. Teachers spoke to them in their classes to spread the message of love, peace and unity in the young hearts. It was simply amazing to see students display their thoughts and feelings in the form of artwork, write-ups, messages etc. Competitions were held grade wise in which students put up great boards about Aman ki Asha. The overwhelming response by the students shows their love and respect for both the countries, India and Pakistan. We would like to present to you the different work done by our students. Kindly let us know how this can be delivered to you. We pray to God that this peace initiative brings together both these nations and its people, as we truly believe that India and Pakistan are stronger together. Wishing Aman Ki Asha all the very best. Meenakshi Verma Administrative Intern Foundation Public School Karachi y father, Rehmat Ullah Khan, was born in District Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India. He came to Pakistan on the last train, a boy of 14, orphaned by the worst carnage known to modern history. His father and more than a dozen close relatives were killed in the communal frenzy that followed the partition of India in 1947. My father barely survived the horror, with an attempt made by one frenzied individual to set him alight in a room full of haystack, which was then locked. Fortunately, he managed to escape from a broken window. What kind of memory and thought-process would that leave a young boy with? And yet, remarkably, he chose not to pass on the burden of acrimonious history to his children, when it would have been perfectly understandable to do so. He put down the greatest genocide in an exodus that claimed the lives of his father and family to a mad frenzy. It was the consequence, he explained, of the worst face humanity could present in circumstances beyond its control. I have never in my life seen a more forgiving man. While serving in Pakistans Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he was posted to New Delhi in the late eighties, returning for the first time to the land of his birth. However, both India and Pakistan stymied his attempts to re-visit his birthplace or his fathers grave, because each respectively deemed him as going into or coming from the enemy country.

A legacy of peace: Rehmat Ullah Khan I decided to uphold my fathers legacy, regardless of the odds. I began with a simple step. It was giving my firstborn, a name, which originated in India: Suhani, meaning pleasant pleasant enough to win hearts, that is. It was a conscious decision, premised in a tribute to all those people, wherever they may be on this planet, who have gamely in the face of huge odds fought for peace between India and Pakistan. If charity begins at home, so does goodwill. Im struck by what a gesture even as small as this has done: our little Suhani is the apple of all

GRAVE INJUSTICE Many on both sides of the divide suffered the pangs of partition but long after the wanton bloodshed, I still shudder at the grave miscarriage of justice where a son was not allowed an opportunity to visit his fathers grave either by THE FIRST STEP LET US KNOW WHAT YOU THINK
Feedback, contributions, photos, letters: Email: amankiasha@janggroup.com.pk Fax: +92-21-3241-8343 Post: aman ki asha c/o The News, I.I. Chundrigar Road, Karachi

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