Social media is the place to be these days and Twitter is this whole world of friends and detractors. A space where thoughts, images, ideas, love, hate, culture, anything are compressed in a hundred and forty characters. In our world where there are no public spaces to play, learn, expand our minds, feel safe and more, Twitter, sadly, is the substitute for discussion. It’s about as close as we come to the concert hall, theatre, museum, university and playing field. Is that good enough? Has complacency set in? Do we need more? The real thing perhaps?
I live in Karachi a sprawling metropolis with an estimated twenty million inhabitants; which offers little in the way of mental stimulation to its inhabitants. The only entertainment is food. We don’t have public galleries, museums or exhibition spaces. There are no forums for debate and discussion, no place where we can exchange ideas. There is no sense of community, of building institutions and giving something to the next generation. Forget the opera and the ballet, there are no theatres or concert halls, no dance no music and barely any cinema. We do have a lot of mosques.
Over the past thirty years we in Pakistan have reinvented who we are and where we came from. Shunning our heritage we moved out of Mehergarh and the Indus Valley Civilisation and into the deserts of Arabia. We have ceased to engage each other in debate, we have no tolerance and to anyone who may wish to engage and debate with us the answer is violence.
It’s not something we should be surprised at; it is after all the inevitable result of a closed mind. It’s a bit like constipation if you only take in what will close you up it will make you ill. The same with the mind, if you are fed something all your life and lack the tools to challenge or even question what you are being taught it becomes an undisputable fact and makes for a ill society. For in this society it is the only narrative, and any attempt to challenge it is met by violence. And that is the way we have introduced our children to religion. As neither they, nor, in most cases, the teacher can read, a strange brand of religion has overrun this country. Life on earth is unimportant and temporary the real life awaits us in death. A strange logic or is it perfect logic?
A young person with no education, no prospects and no seeming reason to want to live a life of deprivation would most likely say perfect logic. For anyone with options, opportunity, ability living in an environment that encourages development, ideas, thinking and creativity there is much to do, much to live for. For such a person there is a sense of history, a legacy, a sense of destiny, the idea of leaving something behind, something future generations can build on.
To build we must have ideas, to grow we must innovate, to succeed we must have creativity. Our cities are not the products of ideas, innovation or creativity. They do not boast theatre districts or centres of academic excellence. Arts councils are struggling to survive and its not just a lack of funding its a lack of interest from a population that is a product of the Zia years. Where we were told that its wrong to be happy, to think, to be free. Shackled by his personal brand of religion we’re no better than Ferdinand and Isabel’s Spain (circa 16th century). Repression torture and murder all in the name of a new order.
Today we talk about fighting the extremists in the north, in southern Punjab, in the seminaries and mosques let’s start with the extremist within us. Let’s agree to engage with each other, not deny our collective history and learn to love who we are so we can eventually love one another.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 18th, 2011.
COMMENTS (63)
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@pert: nicely put.
@sars: thats because they are not following the code of Islam. It does have grounds for politics and statehood.
what is wrong with all of you guys that you think that anything is either "for Islam " or against it.Sounds like the messed up thinking of Mr Bush Jr.Somethings about your life or preference of government are not neccessarily done on religious grounds.Had that been true all Majority Islamic countries would be havens of peace prosperity and progress.Since thats not the case instead of foaming at the mouth we need to sit down and figure out where we went wriong.Dont use religion as a stick to beat yourself and others over the head with.
@Top Gun: well you rock brother.. the only muslim in the list here who didnt sound overwhelmingly confused by the ideas bombardment of the anti-islamic forces in the recent past. as Iqbal said to the west, " tumhari tehzeeb aap apny khanjar se khudkushi kry gi/shaakh e nazuk pe jo aashiyana bnay ga na payedaar hoga" here you can have the display of what anti-islamic forces achieved post 9/11: Muslim themselves confused of their ideology and branding each other exactly as the enemy would want them,, nice slam from your side, i deeply appreciate your strong participation,,, and to rest of the so called liberal moderate muslims, "please read Quran and dont pass judgment about your religion based on corporate media reports, same goes for the author"
@waqqas iftikhar: I disagree, thats why I rest it here. Another debate.
@Top Gun...didnt the 'two-nation' theory drown in the bay of bengal?
Its disheartening to see the mindset of most people on this forum. We all are entitled to our own beliefs, however, this blog just like all others wont get as anywhere. The problem is not our difference in beliefs, its the extremism in our beliefs. Live and let live people.
@Abdul Rehman Gilani:
http://www.pakistanideology.com/pakistan-news/quaid-e-azam-mohammed-ali-jinnah-secular-or-islamist/
You should read this... and the interviewee's book. :-]
@m Hussein: Thanks for the worthless contribution!
top gun needs to go to Arabia and be treated like a slave ..
welcome to Islam
@Sadia: abusive??? :S
i would like to correct you.Pakistan was not made for islam.Pakistan was made for the muslims and any one else who wanted to be here .Untill we can differentiate , we will continue to go nowhere fast.
@|TopGun|: why the angry and abusive tone?
"No one would slam you for debating.. but they will surely slam you when you tell them that they don’t know who they really are or they have reinvented them self over the years to something which you again define as an extreme"
you so proved the point the author was trying to make that we are an intolerant people incapable of debate in a civilized manner.
@Jim Beam: That was what the article was for. The correct speeches. Pakistan was made in the name of Islam.
@Topgun: A blog? Really? The Quaid wanted a modern secular state - read his speeches before you comment on his ideological leanings.
@sajid: Thats where you are wrong. Jinnah was never secular. He was pro Islamic. He surely did not want the state to be run by a mullah with a divine mission, but by a Muslim majority under a Muslim constitution as an Islamic state.
FYI: http://www.pakistanideology.com/pakistan-news/quaid-e-azam-mohammed-ali-jinnah-secular-or-islamist/
@hariharmani: I have understood the essence of what you have said and agree to a fair extent but I felt the author has the ability to take the discourse further and our media is relatively free. Thanks.
I salute author for such a superb,and vividly mind boggling article that too without any fear from the fundamentalist who are bent upon destroying the social fabric of the society.for last two days I have become a fan of this publication i.e.The Express Tribune.I have reading The Dawn since 1978my student life in patna University Library.But you too have hypnotised me with your free frealess and frank journalism.
@topgun,i thought jinnah intended pakistan to be a modern secular state with a musim majority,i guess bangladesh took his advice.
My blog is direcred to Mr Parvez,who asked,that the columnist should have gone ,further and pursued and offered comperhensive solution,and explained how we got there.Mr Parvez,she is just like any other person,she knows are audience,readers,her society and her limit,being too honest has its down side,world is not black and white,I often write in Pakistan news paper,and they get published,but moment I tried to be frank and even border on seemingly critical of Islam,the moderator never allow it to see the light,I have learned the hard way that Some society are not free wheeling society like the democracy of west.you can not cross the line,yet she has done well understanding her limitatation(you have seen the reaction of top gun).Pakistan has long way to go,the question is how much time do you have?What is the point of being honest if no one is listenning and you are whisling in the wind?I trust I came to bat for her a little,but your heart in right place,life is a gift and intellect,brain and reason and logic are its twin sisters,if you are blessed,then after life,if it is, as they say,is BONUS,no one has come back from there to tell us its reality,'JO BEE KAHA sab SUNNI-SONNAI Bat HAI',I do not have any intension or malice to down play the reality of "JANNAT'
@Idealist: You should shift to India then I guess.
The ideological boundaries of our country are not controlled by mullahs. Qaid-e-Azam founded it as a modern Muslim state. Since you can do nothing about whats happening around you, you can just be skeptic and blame everything and everyone around you.
@SharifL: "I do not consider my wife, or daughter as dirty; I love them and respect them"
<< You're explaining as if there are doubts.
@Author: Madam, I salute you. What you have written takes extraordinary courage, and not hiding behind pseudonyms or anonymity, as most of us posters are doing. Already someone has made dark hints about blasphemy laws (even though nobody brought those up). Do take care. Yours is one a few of the precious sane voices. Pakistan will pull out of the morass due to people like you.
@muhammad adnan: I pride myself as a patriotic Pakistani. My love for my country regardless of its situation has never died. However, It is a verse of the Quran which says: "To Allah we belong and to him shall we return." How can you say "We are pakistanis first and foremost, muslims or anything else is secondary?"
@topgun you need to read some history books apart from the zia sanctioned pak studies course. You forget that ours is a country dominated by intolerance where even the slightest hint of protecting minority rights is met with sprays of bullets.. If it isn't secterian violence then it's along ethnic lines. We need to look inward and realize the mistakes we've made over the last 6 decades that have left us with nothing to be proud off. No modern nation can survive on the premise of establishing nationhood through the lense of a puritanical understanding of religion with little room for debate. When was the last time you read a positive piece on something the majority did for the minorities? You call Islam the religion of peace yet our track record is so poor you can't possibly justify your claim to a peaceful religion. And if you knew any Indians you would realize that they treat their minorities far better than we do.
More generally it's time we wrestled control of our country's ideological boundaries back from our mullah brethren who have no legitimate claim to it and who will only rest till this country is destroyed and becomes a homogenous nation of gun toting extremists who have killed all diversity amongst this tract of culturally diverse land. It's time to take religion out of the public sphere. Europe realized this some centuries ago hence western society is alot more accommodating and tolerant than the bigots we see in our country.
Top Gun, Do not keep on repeating, just go back to the masjid and listen to this video what is expected as Inam in the next world: ( I do not consider my wife, or daughter as dirty; I love them and respect them)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdzusekB8cg
but since when has Karachi's population risen to 20 million !
@ Fauzia, Henna, Md. Adnan, It is so heartening to read posts such as yours. I must share with you a news report in The Indian Express a few days back. Apparently, there is a resurgence in enrolment of Hindu students in madrasas in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, primarily to learn Arabic ( also Urdu) so that they acquire an edge in Gulf based jobs but what made me sit up was the comment from the maulvi that no attempt was made to force the students to learn Quranic verses since he felt that they should not deviate from their culture and religion. I suppose this is where the subcontinental muslim parted ways. Google Sabrimala temple and you will be pleasantly shocked to know that millions of Hindu pilgrims bow before the grave of the greatest devotee of Lord Ayyappa before starting their trek to Sabrimala temple,the grave of Wawar, a muslim. Whats more, several thousands of muslims undertake the strict 41 days of abstinence from liquor, tobacco, non veg and sex to travel to Sabrimala to pray before the "Hindu" God. Not one fatwa from any mullah in India for this "idol worship", that too in a place (Kerala State) where muslims are 30%+ of the population. This is where the muslims of India differ from their kin in Pakistan.
@Chandler: I'd rather call it an emphasis rather than a spin...
@Fauzia Haider: I already said I'm bent on restoring the real heritage, the blend of all the societies that have lived in the subcontinent. But just as we can not let go of the others, we can not disown Islam; which the author tried to do!
@Alina: Thumbs up.
@Husnain Lotia: Although she did mention a cover up about zia, but the tone certainly has prejudice & sarcasm against what we really are; Muslims. We do have a different culture from the Muslims of rest of the world, but we are Muslims.
@Henna Javed: It is funny, really funny how we're all indignant about why we shouldn't be so much under an inferiority complex about Arabic, where we struggle n compete to learn ENGLISH ! We would be ashamed to attribute a part of our culture to the Arabs and Islam but we are so proud for the British part?
The area of Pakistan wasn't vacant when the British, the Arabs, and any one before them invaded this place. But then they are all a part of the culture... infact so many of us came with those invaders n chose to stay. Pakistani culture is a blend of all that, our language, urdu, has evolved under effect of all those civilizations... the sooner you come out of denial of your own identity, the better you can handle your country.
I'd rather say its like: Muslim hen hum watan hay sara jahan humara.
@observer:
"You mean Ms Haq’s Indus Valley is not Mr Top Gun’s Indus Valley"
<< The author does have certain attachment to the so called history related to it. She might even want to own the pre historic times as a cultural value. The thing is, values change, improve... which they have as Islam came to the region.
I really don't understand why do you attribute anything to individuals like qadri or even groups of people... at one point you call them extremists... and on other point you blame Islam, you aren't self consistent. Some one who is going to an extreme with his own brainwashed point of view doesn't represent the religion.
Also, for those you are slamming the blasphemy laws, they should pretty well know that even without those laws in place, such statements would be punishable under other laws for creating mischief & civil unrest. May be we shouldn't have laws at all?
At your last comment, I'd just say, lol..
@ss: Either you're an Indian, or so much against your own ideology... all India is doing is rebranding its self to hide all the social and minority issues it has.
You have a very wrong perception. 'Islam-dominated' history is not intolerant. Islam has always been the religion of peace. So many malpractices of the subcontinent fixed by Islam. Muhammad bin Qasim wasn't seen as an invader but a saviour even by the locals!
Pakistan is based on its Islamic identity... you can not change that, its our history and we own it as much as we own the Indus valley civilization!
@Fauzia Haider: You have spelt it out so simply and correctly and yet we live in denial. The murder of our history being taught in our schools and what passes for religious sermons in our mosques, over the decades, to a great extent is responsible for this. Getting away from the subject a bit, a friend sent me a clipping of a Humayun Gohar article in Pakistan Today of 16th. July titled Delusions of being Islamic or O' Muslims what have you done - Interesting read.
Dear Ms.Haq,
recently I saw a docu on Piranha fish in a pond. I can co-relate it to what is happening in pakistan right now.
Piranhas in the pond are very dangerous, due to their volumes. They stalk and kill each and every animal/fish available in the pond (which are naturally weak due to less numbers). When there are no other animals left, they start attacking the weaker amongst themselves. This way they end up killing each other.
I hope this is not the fate of pakistan.
our society's obsession with religious rituals is most alarming.we think that rattafying religious texts in a foreign language will wash away our sins,will earn us 'sawabs' ,will grant us a place in heaven etc. we love to perform religious rituals repetitively in the delusion that this will save our souls.all this 'inshallah,mashallah,subhanallah' will get us nowhere.Where religion starts,rational thinking ends.uttering phrases in a language you don't understand while moving your arms and feet doesn't make you a better person.it just shows your eagerness to be brainwashed into following religious dogma.
@Chandler: I'd rather call it an emphasis rather than a spin...
@Fauzia Haider: I already said I'm bent on restoring the real heritage, the blend of all the societies that have lived in the subcontinent. But just as we can not let go of the others, we can not disown Islam; which the author tried to do!
@Alina: Thumbs up.
@Husnain Lotia: Although she did mention a cover up about zia, but the tone certainly has prejudice & sarcasm against what we really are; Muslims. We do have a different culture from the Muslims of rest of the world, but we are Muslims.
@Henna Javed: It is funny, really funny how we're all indignant about why we shouldn't be so much under an inferiority complex about Arabic, where we struggle n compete to learn ENGLISH ! We would be ashamed to attribute a part of our culture to the Arabs and Islam but we are so proud for the British part?
The area of Pakistan wasn't vacant when the British, the Arabs, and any one before them invaded this place. But then they are all a part of the culture... infact so many of us came with those invaders n chose to stay. Pakistani culture is a blend of all that, our language, urdu, has evolved under effect of all those civilizations... the sooner you come out of denial of your own identity, the better you can handle your country.
I'd rather say its like: Muslim hen hum watan hay sara jahan humara.
Ms. Haque you are a creative thinker, no doubt. In this city we have no proper parks and if any it is at a long distance as lands, marked for parks, have either been allotted to powerfuls or grabbed by some mafia. There are no clubs for middle class community. There are no mentionable libraries within reach of citizens. Book shops are also disappearin from shopping centres of Karachi, if available, then very costry, out of reach of middle class. Reasonable cafeterias are rare and again out of reach of middle class. Modern cultures have been developed in cafeterias of different countries, particularly of France. People go to cafeterias for eating and running out, without any gossiping/chatting/discussions. People living in posh localities avoid to see and meet their neighbours, what to say about a
bethakin old days. Young people have nothing to do and also have no place to sit with their friends and talk on constructive lines. What is to be done, at least you continue to write, something will come out, may be young people, like you, establish a chain of social activities centres in Karachi. Your name will be remembered and citizens will come out to help you.We have to stop teaching hatred to our childeren in schools. Hatred for non-believers. THIS IS OUR BIGGEST PROBLEM. Otherwise we are doomed.
In any country, the most important field is education. Unfortunately in Pakistan, the children are taught distorted history that Pakistan existed since 11th century, hatred towards other religions and glorification of Islam, jihad and its armed forces. This doctorine is resulting in loss of identity, frustration amongst the youth which are sixty five percent of the country's total population, intolerance and jihadism leading to violence in the country.
the horrific arabisation of pakistan should stop.it is not 'allah hafiz' it has always been 'khuda hafiz',it is not 'jazakallah' it has always been 'shukria'.we are pakistanis ,not arabs and all this abayas,hijabs and whiskerless beards are alien to our land.
We are pakistanis first and foremost, muslims or anything else is secondary. Our sick fixation with religion has brought us to the edge of destruction.
I agree with the author. Pakistan has been drifting from slightly liberal society to more and more religious society, which excludes any other thoughts or cultures. What Top gun says is something many people say to each other. 'Life is temporary and we must prepare for the next.' But the point is that we are here and the reason for existence is to enjoy life. God is not a dictator who will punish us for not praising Him so many times a day. I say, God will love those who love other human beings and hep those who are in need. The rest is fairy tales, as Richard Dawkins says. Live life, enjoy the films theater, fresh air. Let everybody live the way they want. Telling people all the time not to do this or that because that is the only option is not only boring, but takes away freedom of our choice. As Buddha says: Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.
Totally disagree with top gun.
We need to stop worshipping arabs and remember that we are from the indian sub-continent, not "middle eastern"
i have heard pakistanis abroad say that they are middle eastern, and it's rather infuriating. Pronoucing their names and words in arab accent.
Religion makes a positive contribution in an individuals life if it is used to bring spiritual upliftment, acceptance and tolerance of others and an ethical approach to solving every day problems. The Religion that makes us narrow minded, intolerant and violent must be defeated. We must always understand our Religion, question what cannot be rationalized and understood and never fear calling for reforms where necessity demands it. Religion is a personal pact between us and our God, when we bring it into the public space we are merely corrupting and defiling it. Always use it to spread Love and never as a tool to exert control over others.
TopGun, I like your comment. However, I don't think Tammy is EXCLUDING the deserts of Arabia from our heritage. I read her as saying that since, and because of, Zia, we have EXCLUDED all else.
@TopGun: If only Pakistan was "the multi-ethnic & multi-cultural smoothly blended over the years" that you claim it to be. Perhaps that is what India still is, or at least has tried to be. But not Pakistan. Truth be told, Pakistan, post-1947, has not been much about "blending" at all. Rather its project has always been about how to "unblend". And that is where the problem is, as the author correctly identifies. Unfortunately, all Pakistan has been bothered about is how to subjugate/forget/negate its pre-Islamic heritage and replace it with a bogus, exclusivist, Islam-dominated version of history and identity that is intolerant of any plurality or diversity. If you cannot tolerate and respect others, it will ultimately stop you from tolerating and respecting yourself.
@TopGun: SLAM-DUNK! What a response !!!!!!!! Well done!!
@Fauzia Haider
I could not pen it any better. Earlier the religious bigots realise this the better. There is a kind of inferiority complex at work when people are uncomfortale with their past and try to invent a new identity based on glorified myth.
Its been a hard work of over 60 years to get rid of the burden of this land's history, and now you want us to go back to where we started in 1947... . You make it sound as if we have committed some mistake, when every step was a deliberate thoughtful one, with the best intentions for the national interest. Lets not mess up now and finish this up to its logical conclusion.
A people living in a democratic society and believing in democracy, we should be the first and the strongest defender of our opponent's right to voice their opinion. Unfortunately in the entire subcontinent we are yet to learn the art of democratic debate!
Top Gun, This land was not laying vacant when Mohammad bin Qasim Invaded it. We have our own culture and heritage and Arab culture is not our culture. Gandhara, Harrapa and Mohenjodaro, etc are our ancient civilizations. Lot of invaders have come and gone and brought their mix of culture to our land but we are not Arabs and Arab culture is not our culture. There are elements of Arab culture that have been incorporated into our culture just like Persian and Afghan culture. We were all Hindus, Zoroastrians, Buddhists, Jews etc before we became Muslims, as these religions predate Islam and that is a historical fact.
"Life on earth is unimportant and temporary, the real life awaits us in death. A strange logic or is it perfect logic?" This sums it up...if people don't value life and all that comes with it, then they won't be asking relevant questions from the Establishment/ Govt...why we don't have jobs, electricity, health care or education? It is a perfect diversion...keep them focused on after life so they don't ask questions about this life.
@TopGun, seems you have been going around in a tail spin in that plane of yours. Totally incoherent post.
E.T. Ed. In my above comment please correct covert to convert. My mistake sorry.
There are times when you are brilliant and this is one of them. Through your analytical mind and the ability to covert thought into written text you have drawn an amazing picture of where we stand and how got there. If you had pursued it a little further and given a better more comprehensive workable solution to this mess we are in, I would have said that this time you were beyond brilliant.
Totally agree. Only love can defeat hate.
This is the problem statement for Pakistan.