Pakistan calling
“It is human toil that makes for the prosperity of a people and I have no doubt that we have in Pakistan a nation of industrious and determined people whose past traditions have already distinguished them in the field of human achievements”— Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah
ASSALAMO Alaikum.Today is my First citizen’s birthday which calls for talking about his legacy to my compatriots.
On these occasions, to start with I would like to share my antecedents for the benefit of my generations.
I am 74 years old but the land which is named Pakistan has been home to ancient civilizations that dwelt here ,nourished it and enriched human culture.
Their remnants can be seen at archaeological sites located all over in my north and south and in east and west Mehrgarh (Balochistan) Moenjo Daro (Sindh)
Harrapa (Punjab), Ghandhara (KP).Mehre Garh, Harrapa and Moenjodaro were contemporary of Egyptian and Mesopotamia if not older.
The later ones like Taxshila, and many others.To know about them you have to travel to Arabian Sea Coast, deserts, plains plateaus, valleys, passes, mountains and peaks.
Starting at Jiwani head to Nangarhar, Tharparkar Cholistan, Thal, Potohar Soan, Swat, Kaghan, Hunza, Khyber, Khunjrab and AJK to see the mosaic of remnants left by ancient dwellers.
The ancestors of my people come from multiracial stock and include Assrians, Persians, Arabs, Scathyns, Mongols (Mughals) Afghans, Pashtuns besides the Aryians and indigenous residents of Indus valley.
Indus is one of the planet’s great river systems which for centuries has supported the settlements along its own banks as well as of its tributaries.
Indus was so famous in early history times that it generated fascination and attracted inhabitants from other places where civilizations flourished including from steppes of Central Asia as well.
Some historian say that for Alexander the great, main attraction for coming to India was the Indus, in upper reaches of whose banks Hindu scripture are said to have written I Indus fountain head is somewhere beyond Tibet but all along its path tributaries fed by snows of Himalayas, Karakoram and Hindukush mountain ranges disgorge their waters into it.
After its descent into plains in Hazara it is joined by other big rivers one after the other like Gilgit, Kabul, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlaj and Beas.Great cities were built by people along banks of the majestic rivers.
Peshawar on Kabul Jhelum, Gujrat, Jhang, Lahore, Multan, Bahawalpur, Sukkur, and Hyderabad Sindh to name a few Civilization flourishes with languages perfected Sindhi, Baluchi, Brohi.
Sraiki, Punjabi, Potohari, Hindko, Kashmiri, Balti and Pashtu etc counting about seventeen in number Finding their own space in the subcontinent where Sansikrit, Hindi and other regional languages were dominant, my language was born 600 years ago.
Called Urdu, it flowered as a blend of beautiful words picked out of languages of hordes of new settlers coming with conquerors from Persia, Arabia and Turqs from Central Asia.
Resultantly, ethos of my folks are found in different collections of folklore.Music is not an exemption or exception to the abundance of Musical instruments is these drumlets, sarod, uktara, bainsari or sarangil.
As a result of va and vien my land has been house to all great religions Hinduism, Budhism, Christianity and finally Islam which is professed by overwhelming majority of people and given me name of Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Eminent personalities lie buried under my soil including kings.Emperors (Jahangir) Conquerors (Mohammad Ghori) and rulers (Qutbu Din Aibak), Queens (Nur Jahan), princes (Perwez son of Shah Jahan)) and princesses (Nadira Begum) and legendary figures like Anarkali.
Then there are burial places of of freedom fighters (Syed Ahmad Shaheed) of the recent past, most significant are tomb of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Sir Dr.
Muhammad Iqbal, Maulana Maududi and Allama Mashriqi.The dynasties have left behind a heritage in the shape of majestic and historic forts.
There is a chain of dargahs where Sufi saints are buried, some as old as 8th century such as Bibi Pak Daman (7th century), Abdullah Shah Ghazi (8th century) and Pir Mangho (8th century), Ali Hajweri (10th century) and then a number of contemporaries of 12th century, Shah Maqbool Aulia, Rukkunuddin Aalam, Fariddin Shakre Ganj, Makhdoom Burhanuddin and Syed Mohammad Usman Shahbaz Qalandar and Sakhi Sarwar and many thereafter.
They related to different Sufi orders like suharwardia, Qadria, Naqshbandia and Chishtia and spread message of Islam.Sufis wrote mystic poetry which stirs soul today as freshly as when inscribed.
Famous are Shah Latif Bhitai, Shahbaz Qalandar, Fariduddin Shakre Ganj, Bhule Shah, Sultan Bahoo, Abdur Rahman Baba, Khwaja Sakhi Sarwar, Muhammad Baksh who are popular today as ever, not to mention Bhule Shah Madho Lal Hussain and Mehr Ali Shah.
Indus civilization loved their river waters and their panorama and there are romantic legends woven in beautiful poetry often ending in tragedy.
Famous are Marvi, Sassi Pannu, Hir Ranjha, Sohni Mahiwal, Mirza Sahiba and Saifal Maluk etc.
Although poetry revolves around love tales, poetry is full of philosophy and human experience sharing of their happiness and grief making it potent in appeal even after generations. Legacy of fine arts continues.Pakistan era poetry is no lesser standard, Hafeez Jallundri.
Faiz Ahmad Faiz,, Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Ahmad Faraz, Jameeluddin Aali, Akhtar Sherani, Habib Jalib, Qateel Shifae, Sorish Kashmiri, Maulana Zafar Ali Khan, Perveen Shakir and more.
List can be long.Paintings of Chughtai, Saqlain, and Jimmy Engineer have uniqueness.—To be continued.
—The writer is Chairman NPC (T) & former Chairman, PTA, PTCL, PEMRA & former Member RRB, ITU.
