KASHMIR
- A GLIMPSE IN TIME
Rajiv
Sapru
EARLY ACCOUNTS
The
oldest written account of Kashmir is found in the sixth century Sanskrit
Classic, the Nilmatpurana. It begins with a legend: a vast lake, Satisar (Lake
of Sati, the consort of Shiva), surrounded by towering snow - bound mountains,
was inhabited by a demon, Jalodbhava (Born of Water). His victims, the Nags,
inhabitants of the mountainous region, appealed to the sage Kashyap, for
deliverance. Since the demon was invincible within water, his element, the sage
did great penance and was thus able to secure divine intervention. The mountain
to the west of the lake was pierced with a trident and water drained away
through this gorge. The demon, deprived of his elements, was easily slain by
Vishnu. The valley that emerged from under the water was Kashmir, a name said to
be the corrupt form of Kashyappur or Kashyap Mar or stretching a point, Ka
(water) shimir (desiccated).
Whatever be the truth of these legends, geological
findings confirm that the valley, with its fossil remains of aquatic animals
& plants, was once submerged in water. Scientific opinion based on the
valley's physical features holds a major volcanic convulsion responsible for
draining away the great lake. Another proof of the valley having lain submerged
under water for countless years is the peculiar formations karewas (wudar in
Kashmiri) found here. These are raised, plateau-like formations with sloping
sides separated by ravines, some of these stand like islands, others cling to
the sides of mountains like smooth, flat-topped outgrowths suggestive of their
long under-water existence.
Nags (Sanskrit for serpent), the earliest inhabitants
of Kashmir, are sometimes imagined as human-bodied snake worshippers, sometimes
as snake-tailed deities who could assume human form. It is interesting to note
that the Kashmiri name for a spring - that delightful natural phenomenon of
water bursting out from subterranean passages in the mountain spurs, ridges or
downs that Kashmir is so rich in - is nag. It is believed that these springs
were the abodes of the Nags. The springs and fountains, all popular tourist
resorts now, are thus associated with individual serpent-deities celebrated in
legend: Nilnag, Verinag, Anantnag, Vicharanag, Sukhnag, Kokarnag, and
Vaishakhnag (a distortion of Vasuki, the mythical serpent with whom Garuda, the
divine bird, is in eternal conflict). Even the great lake, Wular, the largest
natural fresh water lake in Asia, was the abode of Mahapadma, the serpent deity
that could grant even impossible wishes.
The Nags were followed by settlers from the plains,
chiefly Brahmins who are supposed to have had to subdue the Pisachas and Yakshas
(beings in a lower state of evolution than the human) before they could live in
peace in Kashmir. Other inhabitants included Nishads, Khashas, Dards, and Bhotta
(present-day Ladakhis and Zanskaris).
According to another myth Kashmiris are believed to be
the lost tribe of Israel, and Kashmir the promised land that Moses should have
found but did not! This theory suggests that Jesus Christ, alive after being
taken off the cross, was brought here by his disciples to recover at Aishmuqam
near Pahalgam. Aish is the local name for Isa (Jesus), and muqam means "the
place of stay", but aish also means 'enjoyment', and is quite appropriate
as a name for this pretty spot on the banks of the Lidder stream. It is believed
that Christ was finally buried at Rozabal Khanyar in Srinagar. The name recorded
on the shrine at Rozabal is Yuz Asaf, which according to the believers of this
theory means Jesus, son of Joseph. Though this theory is a matter of some
debate, there is no doubt that in spite of its mountainous terrain Kashmir has
been remarkably accessible to outsiders. There is evidence of intercourse with
the ancient Greek, Roman, and Persian civilizations, as well as those from other
parts of India.
Some Kashmiris believe that the Pandavas of the great
Hindu epic the Mahabharata lived and ruled here. In fact, the gigantic ruins of
old temples in Kashmir are known as Pandav-Lari or the Houses of the Pandavas.
In the third century BC, Kashmir came under Buddhist influence when Ashoka, the
great Mauryan king, made Srinagar his capital. The zenith of Buddhist power in
Kashmir was reached in the reign of king Kanishka, convertor of the fourth Great
Buddhist Council which was attended by a large number of scholars, theoreticians
and commentators.
Buddhism was followed by a revival of Hinduism and
Kashmir was ruled by Hindu rulers till AD 1320. One of the most remarkable Hindu
kings was Lalitaditya Muktapida of the Karkota dynasty who ruled from AD 724 to
761. A great warrior, he is often compared to Alexander in his ambitions and
successful military campaigns. The sweep of his conquests was such that his
empire extended from Tibet in the north to the Deccan in the south and from
Gujarat in the west to Bengal in the east. Vast areas of Central Asia were also
annexed by him.
Apart from being a military genius, Lalitaditya was a
great builder. His most glorious legacy is the sun temple at Martand, 8
kilometres from Anantnag, which even as a ruin stands magnificent and
aweinspiring. The temple has a trefoil arched doorway, surrounded by a
rectangular colonnade of eighty -four pillars and seems to have been conjured
up, like the walls of Ilium, by a miracle. Martand itself commands one of the
finest views to be found anywhere in the world, with its sunny prospect
overlooking the vast expanse of the valley on the one hand and tall, snowy
mountain peaks on the other, Lalitaditya's imagination, architectural and
artistic vision, and style left an undying stamp on all later building craft in
Kashmir.
About 75 kilometres away to the north-west, on the
commanding site of Karewa, near the present village of Divar, Lalitaditya built
a new capital for his kingdom. Situated near the confluence of the Veth (Jhelum)
and the Indus, he called this city Parihaspura ('fun' or 'humour' in Sanskrit)
because its sublime grandeur excelled the divine city of Indra, the King of the
gods, and thus seemed to mock it. Of this celebrated city of magnificent
limestone edifices embellished with rich and lavish decorations, which the
historian Kalhana describes with awe, alas, only three crumbled ruins remain.
These are all Buddhist: a stupa (a dome-shaped relic structure), a rajvihara
(royal monastery) and a chaitya (a relic structure within an assembly
hall).
Raja Avantivarman (855-83) of the same dynasty was an
equally enthusiastic builder with a grand vision. He laid out the city of
Avantipur, about 25 kilometres from Srinagar on the Srinagar-Jammu road on the
bank of the Veth, and built the magnificent temple of Avantiswami from huge
blocks of limestone, installing a gigantic idol of Vishnu there. Today only the
topless ruins of the temple and colonnade remain, poignant reminders, like other
monuments scattered all over the valley, of the glorious building skills of
ancient Kashmiris. Avantivarmans's reign was one of peace and consolidation. He
was also a patron of the arts. Many writers and philosophers graced his court,
but the brightest of his jewels was a remarkable man, Suyya, whose name has been
bequeathed to the modern town of Sopore (old Suyyapur) in north Kashmir. He was
an engineering genius who caught the attention of the king by volunteering to
rid the country of famine brought about by floods. While the people watched in
puzzlement, Suyya dropped pots of gold coins into the river Veth at certain
specific points where its choked current overflowed its banks. Excited at the
thought of gold-prospecting, people dived into the river, rummaging its bed,
pulling out in the process boulders that impeded its flow, and piling up masses
of mud, slush, and stone on the banks. Thus was the river bed dredged, its muck
drained and bands built. Liberated, the river flowed out in a faster current to
the Wular lake. Suyya also altered the course of the Veth, preventing it from
meeting the Sindh at Trigom, thus saving a large area from turning into a swamp.
ISLAMIC INFLUENCE
When Islam came to the valley in the twelfth century, it
did so in a quietly persuasive manner rather than through the power of a strong
arm or a royal commandment. The first Islamic preachers who set foot in the
valley were Sufis, the mystic poet-saints of Islam. They won converts to the new
faith even before the beginning of the rule of the first Muslim king Rinchen in
1320. the meditative religion of these Muslim mystics was a product of the
influence of the austere, inward-looking, non-violent Mahayana Buddhism of
Central Asia on Islam. In 1320, the most enlightened of the Sufis, Bulbul Shah
came to Kashmir. He is the one who through his piety and remarkable life
converted Rinchen to Islam. The interaction of Sufism, Buddhism and Hinduism
gave rise to a distinctive form of Sufism the practitioners of which were called
rishis in Kashmir. A similar process overtook Hindu Shaivism (the worship of
Shiva), making it evolve into its own specifically Kashmiri form known as
Trikasastra.
The rishi cult of Kashmir emphasized celibacy,
austerity, penance and a strict vegetarianism that even entailed not eating
freshly-plucked vegetables. It accepted with perfect religious tolerance many
humanistic practices of the faiths which had influenced it. The greatest of
these rishis was Sheikh Nuruddin, born in 1377, the patron saint of Kashmiris,
also known simply as Nund Rishi. His ziarat (shrine) at Chrar-i-Sharief
is a highly venerated place, and supplicants include believers of all religions.
His counterpart, born in the middle of the fourteenth century, was Lalla,
popularly known as Lal Ded, the great mystic poetess and Shaiva philosopher
whose observation transcended all organized religions. Their sayings, highly
philosophical and abstract yet most practical, have become maxims that Kashmiris
live by and frequently quote. Nund Rishi's adage, An poshi teli yeli van
poshan, meaning 'Food [grains] will last only as long as the forests' could
very well serve as the slogan of modern conservationists! Lal Ded is believed to
have suckled Nund Rishi at her breast, recognizing in the infant the latent
saint.
Many theories are advanced to explain the destruction
of the massive, megalithic Kashmiri temple structures. Sultan Sikandar
(1389-1413), one of the Kashmiri Muslim rulers, has come in for most of the
blame. Later historians have given the sultan the title of the Butshikan
(Iconoclast) in the traditions of Mahmud of Ghazni, the Muslim invader who made
the breaking of idols and the destruction of temples the mission of his life.
But all the devastation is certainly not Sikandar's handiwork. There were Hindu
kings also who revelled in the destruction of their predecessors' work. Some
were prompted by jealousy, others by sheer fits of madness and still others by
plain greed for the gold, silver, land, and property attached to the temples.
Sankarvarman (883-901), for instance, was a narrow-minded zealot who uprooted
the Buddhist complex at Parihaspura and, removing the vast material from there,
built a whole new city close by at Sankarpura (modern Pattan on the road to
Baramulla from Srinagar). Harsh (1089-1101), another Hindu king, was comparable
to Nero in the cruel delight he took in watching marvels of workmanship go up in
flames, or huge structures crumble down, demolished by a giant hammer blow. Many
Brahmin priests also took advantage of the prevailing confusion, aiding in the
vandalization of richly-endowed temples so that they fell into disuse and could
conveniently be usurped. Sadly, all this was later attributed to religious
bigotry alone.
Sultan Sikandar was, in fact, a great patron of
scholars and gave refuge to many Muslim theologians and Sayyids from Iran who
were fleeing from the persecution of Timur (Tamburlaine). He is the builder of
the beautiful hospice at Srinagar, the Khanqah Moulla, which through many
vicissitudes still stands in all the glory of its intricate, stylish wooden
architecture and artistically painted interior. His prime minister, Suha Bhatt,
a Brahmin, converted to Islam and, with the zeal of a new convert, embarked not
only upon a denunciation of his old faith but also the violent destruction of
all its symbols and adherents.
The most glorious chapter in the history of ancient and
medieval Kashmir was written by Sultan Sikardar's son Shahi Khan (1420-70) who
assumed the title of Zain-ul-Abidin. Such was his popularity that he came to be
known as Budshah (Great King). It is his name that boatmen and load carrying
labourers even now chant reverentially whenever they need to haul with all their
might, or force themselves to the maximum physical effort. All historians agree
that his reign of fifty years was a golden period in the history of Kashmir.
Budshah's religious tolerance is legendary. Such was
the catholicity and breadth of his vision that, though a devout Muslim, he
actively participated in the festivals of his Hindu subjects. In fact, most of
these festivals became cultural rather than sectarian events. This tradition was
continued by later rulers like Hussain Shah Chak who reigned from 1563 to 1570
by which date majority of the population had embraced Islam. An important
occasion was the 'birthday' of Nilnag, the source of the river Veth, when the
whole populace, including Budshah and his court, stood on the richly illuminated
ghats (Yarbal in Kashmiri) and lowered earthen lamps with their quivering
little flames into the river, asking for the blessings of the mother river. The
Veth festival, however, is no longer celebrated. The Hindus reciprocated by not
eating meat during Ramadan. In the spring festival too, celebrated in the month
of April, there was royal participation with fireworks and general revelry.
Though its traditional venue Badamwari (the Almond orchards), around the Hari
Parbat, with lovely pinkish-white blossoms lining the slender leafless almond
branches in March and April, is fast disappearing under the onslaught of the
construction boom, the spring festival is still very much a part of Kashmiri
cultural life. People picnic under almond blossoms, a samovar steaming
before them, and a good time is had by all, with hearty feasting to the
accompaniment of song and dance by folk musicians.
Budshah would also personally assist at the most sacred
Hindu-festival of the Kashmiris, Shivratri, which under the local name of Herath
is celebrated a day before the festival of Mahashivratri. The festival extends
over several days, being an exact replay of the marriage of Lord Shiva to his
consort Parvati, with all the elaborate religious and cultural ceremonies of a
traditional wedding, performed with earthenware pots and objects as symbols of
the divine personages. The offerings include mutton and fish which never cease
to astound, indeed horrify, strictly vegetarian Hindus from outside Kashmir!
Native rule came to an end in 1586 with the conquest of
Kashmir by Akbar, the great Mughal king of India, who appointed governors to
rule over Kashmir. With their eye for natural beauty and their passion to
enhance it through man's artistic skills, the Mughals were quick to respond to
the enhancement of Kashmir. Akbar built the fort a Hari Parbat, the walls and
fortifications of which survive to this day. Jahangir, with his celebrated queen
Nur Jahan, loved Kashmir and would not go far from it even in the winter months,
when he would shift to Lahore. The splendid gardens around the Dal lake in
Srinagar - Chashma Shahi (Royal Spring), Nishat(joy), Shalimar (the Abode of
Love) and Harwan - are his legacy. Jahangir also laid out gardens around some of
the most exquisite springs at Achhabal and Verinag. The Mughal road, which was
wide enough for huge royal processions of elephants, horses and men, passed over
the Pir Panjal mountains near the present-day town of Rajouri. The Mughals built
huge serais(inns) at intervals for royal caravans, and these serais are worth
seeing even now. The Mughals are also credited with planting the glorious chinar
(Platinus orientalis) on a large scale all over the valley, particularly on the
west bank of the Dal lake at Naseem Bagh (the Garden of Breezes).
As Mughal power declined Ahmed Shah Abdali, the Afghan
conqueror, invaded and annexed Kashmir in 1753, leading to its colonization and
enslavement and its consequent decay and degeneration. Fed up with the cruel,
tyrannical and exploitative Afghan rule, Kashmiris secretly sought the
intervention of Ranjit Singh, the Sikh ruler of Punjab. The Afghans were
defeated in 1819 and Sikh rule established in the state. With the break-up of
the Sikh empire in 1846, Gulab Singh, Ranjit Singh's emissary in Jammu, Ladakh
and Baltistan, negotiated a separate treaty with the British at Amritsar. Apart
from the territories already in his possession, the valley of Kashmir was handed
over to him for Rs. 750,000.
MODERN HISTORY
The year 1846 is the date, therefore, when all the
territories that constitute the present state of Jammu and Kashmir were welded
into one political unit under Dogra rule. This rule, lasting about a hundred
years, saw the stirrings of modernism in the state. The Dogra rulers,
particularly Pratap Singh, built many palaces and temples, beautifying the
landscape. Schools and a college each at Srinagar and Jammu were established to
impart modern education with far-reaching consequences. Houseboats appeared on
the Dal and Nagin lakes and on the river in Srinagar. These were initially for
the British as, under a state law which is still in force, only permanent
hereditary residents of the state could own landed property here. The presence
of the British Resident (whose graceful official mansion, the Residency, now
houses the Government Arts Emporium in Srinagar) encouraged an influx of British
and foreign tourist as well as the development of Gulmarg as a hill and ski
resort. In fact all the other famous resorts-Pahalgam, Sonamarg, Achhabal,
Kokarnag Yusmarg, Verinag, Lolab valley - became very popular. Camping sites at
Ganderbal, Manasba and Naseem Bagh, and treks to the glaciers and mountains and
to Ladakh and Gilgit became fashionable. The bund on the Veth and the Boulevard
around the Dal lake became promenade for the rich. The picturesque location of
the palace in Srinagar (one of which is a well-known hotel now) in the downs of
the Zabarwan hills on the Dal lake, between the Pari Mahal and the
Shankaracharya hill temple, are a tribute to the aesthetic sense of the Dogra
rulers.
In spite of its pomp and glory, however autocratic rule
and the feudalism it spawned were oppressive and despotic. Forced and unpaid
labour illiteracy, poverty and exploitation of all kinds stalked the lives of
the masses. Whole families of the world famous kani shawl weavers were
wiped out, some in famines. Others, unable to keep pace in an unequal race with
the machine-made paisley shawls from England and Europe, gave up their work,
with the result that this fine craft died out. The discontent of the people grew
till in 1931, the Muslims of the state rose in open revolt against the
autocratic rule of Maharaja Hari Singh.
That was also the year when Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah
appeared on the political scene. Coming back to Kashmir after getting Master's
degree in Chemistry from Aligarh Muslim University, he found the vast majority
of the Kashmiri people submerged in a 'culture of silence without any awareness
of the depths of the ignorance, poverty, and bondage. Their politic economic,
and social emancipation became his dream, and he embarked on the long struggle
to restore to the state its lost glory, and to its people the dignity and pride
in their own unique culture which centuries of subjugation and cultural
domination had wrenched from them.
The National Conference, the party launched by Sheikh
Abdullah, represented all three regions and worked in tune with national leaders
like Gandhi, Nehru and Azad. Popularly known as Sher-i-Kashmir (Lion of Kashmir)
Sheikh Abdullah rallied all Kashmiris behind his demand for the unity of Hindus,
Sikhs and Muslims. Even during the communal convulsions of 1947 when the country
was dismembered into India and Pakistan, no blood-bath took place in Kashmir as
it did in the rest of north India. Today, the state is progressive and
prosperous and the basic necessities of life are available to all.
LANDMARKS OF SRINAGAR
Srinagar, the summer capital, is an ancient city believed
to have been originally built by Ashoka, the Mauryan king (third century BC), as
his capital. Successive tides of history have left their imprint upon its
architecture. Built upon the banks of the Veth its picturesquely named nine
bridges are reminders of its history in their style and material used in
construction. The city as it stands today is at once old and new. There is quite
a contrast between the interior of the city on the river with its closely packed
houses of old brick and timber, quaint medieval bazaars full of rich, burnished
copper-ware, gracefully shaped samovars and pots, the heavy aroma of
tobacco sticky with molasses formed into neat little heaps for the hookah and
the comparatively new residential complexes of concrete and glass fanning out
loosely around it. Then there are the Dal and the Nagin lakes and their
population of houseboats. The Hari Parbat fort on Sharika hill was constructed
in the eighteenth century by Atta Mohammed Khan but the walls surrounding the
fort were built much earlier, during Akbar's time. A complete panoramic view of
the city with its river, lakes and winding canals can be had from the top of the
Hari Parbat and Shankaracharya hills, two graceful eminences harmoniously poised
at either end of the Dal lake. The original temple atop the Shankaracharya hill
is believed to have been built by Ashoka's son Jaluka around 200 BC, on the site
of the Takht-i-Suleiman or the throne of Solomon. The present temple, on the
same site, however, was built during Jahangir's reign. A real feel of the city,
however, is provided by a leisurely boat ride from the Zero Bridge to Safa Kadal,
the last bridge. Boating through the narrow, willow-lined channels that link the
Dal and the Nagin lakes - an unforgettable experience - is not only extremely
relaxing but offers a close look at the almost amphibian life of Hanjis, the
boat people. The once floating gardens, approachable only by boat, are now
rooted to one mace and only grow vegetables but still remain divided into
islands by cries-crossing currents. The gardens of Chashma Shahi, Nishat,
Shalimar and Harwan are laid out around the Dal lake. The first three are
perfect examples of the Mughal style of garden: terraced lawns, evergreen
cypresses, flowering bushes and fruit trees and a channel of sportive water
taking a break into a pool of spouting fountains, suddenly falling in a sheet to
finally flow out of the garden in a stream to be utilized for irrigating the
fields.
Another Mughal legacy is the Pari Mahal of the Palace
of Fairies, a series of arched terraces picturesquely perched on the slope of
the Zabarwan hill facing the Dal lake. It was built by Dara Shikoh, Shah Jahan's
son, as an observatory and library for his tutor Akhoon Mullah Shah. Akhoon
Mulla's tomb, at the foot of Hari Parbat, next to the shrine of Maqdoom Saheb,
is well worth a visit too.
HOLY SHRINES
The holiest place for the Muslim of Kashmir is not a
mosque but a shrine, Hazaratbal, which houses one of the holiest relics, a
sacred hair of the Prophet Mohammed. With its exquisite location on the western
bank of the Dal lake, it is a graceful structure in white marble. A shimmering
dome balanced by a minaret, it is a most harmonious sight, visually and
spiritually. One can see other shrines at the most enchanting locations, with
latticed or (in modern renovation) barred windows choked with multi-coloured
strips of cloths tied as pledges by believers who importune the presiding saints
and deities to grant their wishes.
Amarnath, the holy cave with its huge ice lingam,
a miracle of nature, is situated at the towering height of 3880 metres, 142
kilometers north-east of Srinagar, It is one of the most exciting treks in
Kashmir as far as a dazzling variety of landscape is concerned. For the
Shiva-worshiping pilgrim it is, of course, a spiritual experience par
excellence. The 46 kilometres route from Pahalgam, winding along the Lidder
stream for the first day's trek, soon leaves the forests and the beeline behind
in its climb, and adventures into wild-flower meadows field with such intense,
intoxicating scents that trekkers are warned not to linger there too long. The
route passes along torrential streams, ice-bridges, frozen glaciers and
deep-blue mountain lake, Sheshnag (associated with the seven-headed mythical
snake on which Vishnu is supposed to recline). The cave is reached after a four
day march. It is possible to do it from the Baltal side (15 kilometres
south-east of Sonamarg), a shorter route
certainly, but tougher and without the constantly
unfolding surprises of the much more beautiful Pahalgam route. Twenty-one
kilometres from Srinagar, set in a grove of ancient Chinars is the shrine of
Khir Bhawani. The temple rises from the surrounding waters of a spring, the
colours of which are supposed to change according to the moods of the Goddess,
thus predicting the fortunes of the state!
LANGUAGE
The Kashmiri language itself has a Dardic base, modified
considerably by the superstructure of Sanskrit and Persian vocabulary acquired
through hundreds of years of interaction with immigrants from other cultures,
though it did not have a script of its own, from the fourteenth century onward
it had a lively oral poetic tradition. The earliest mystic poets, Lal Ded and
Nund Rishi, used the four-line stanza without rhyme called the vaakh and
the shrukh. But the poetess who broke new ground and transposed Kashmiri
poetry from mystical heights to the human level, lending a tragic dimension to
it, was Habba-Khatoon (1551-1606), the village girl from Pampora who became the
queen of the last king of Kashmir, Yusuf Shah. When Akbar defeated Yusuf Shah
and had him exiled to Patna (Bihar), Habba suffered the torments of separation.
Not only did the content of poetry change with her, but she also gave it a new
verse form: the vatsun, which is like a ghazal in its exquisite
lyrical quality and therefore perfect for love poetry. The charm of these
vatsuns is that they can be sung very effectively, music enhancing the inherent
melody of their alliterative and repetitive rhymes.
MUSIC, DANCE AND THEATRE
The classical music of Kashmir is Sufiana Kalam, a blend
of Iranian and Hindustani classical music some of its muqams are similar
to ragas. The leading musician sings as well as plays upon the santoor,
the 100-stringed instruments . which is played upon by two small curved sticks.
Other instruments are the tumbakhnaar, sazi-i-Kahmiri, sarangi, rabab and
tabla. The songs are in Persian and Kashmiri. The compositions have a
sweet, soothing melody, gradually increasing in tempo but never too loud.
Up to the beginning of the twentieth century, dancing
girls known as hafizas were also a part of a Sufiana music performance.
They would sing and dance on marriages and other celebrations. Their dances were
not robust or fast-paced but gentle and graceful, the face acting out in sharp
detail the emotional content of the song. Today they have disappeared from the
scene. A substitute has appeared in the folk form, chhakri, in which
a boy, dressed in a long skirt and blouse, with a veil draped round the neck,
sings in a high-pitched voice and dances to a vigorous beat. This performer is
known as a bachcha (child), and the programme bachcha naghma - as
against the old hafiza naghma - but the two are worlds apart as far as grace and
charm are concerned. The instruments used in a chhakri are the tumbakhnaar,
sarangi, not and rabab. A harmonium too is used now.
The roff or rov is a simple form of dance
accompanied by songs with recurring rhythms, the refrains emphasizing
alliterations and assonances. This dance performed only by women, irrespective
of age, on the Muslim festival of Id and on marriages and other celebrations, is
indicative of the participatory nature of all festivities.
The pather is Kashmiri folk theatre
performed by troupes known as the bhands. Having portrayed the concerns,
hopes, fears and problems of the common man from time immemorial, this folk
medium possesses remarkable vitality. Its topical themes, its wit and earthy
humour have helped it to evolve into a stylized form, using the age-old devices
of humour, irony and full-blooded satire, bordering sometimes on the crude. Even
today, thanks to television and the radio, the bhands have a great fan
following.
FOOD
Kashmiri cooking blends the best of Indian, Iranian,
Afghan and Central Asian haute cuisine. The traditional wazwan,
served by Muslims at weddings, is an unimaginably elaborate affair. As many as
two dozen mutton and chicken dishes, including goshtaba, the famed
mincemeat balls, are served with mounds of rice and pilau to four people on one
platter. There are in addition chutnies, vegetables, cheese, curds and sweets.
Another culinary area in which Kashmiris excel in sheer
variety of form and taste is bread-making. Not for the ordinary bread; every
locality has its own baker to whom customers flock in the morning and afternoon,
buying freshly-baked large or small, crisp or soft, flat or fluffy, round or
oval, tsot, kulcha, girda, tsochvor, qatlam, lavaus, sheermal, khatai and
several other varieties.
ARTS AND CRAFTS
The arts and crafts of Kashmir are distinctive too.
Back-breaking effort goes into the intricate weave of each inch of a Kashmiri
silk or wool carpet. The art has a simple mechanical principle to it. The
design, as in the case of shawl embroidery, is created by the artist, known as a
naqash, and then reproduced on graph with all the delicate shades that
blend, contrast or stand out in harmony. The graph is then translated into
symbols, coded messages on sheets of rough paper. The unlettered craftsman who
actually transfers these fantasies of colour and texture onto cotton warp in
knots of wool or silk is given these yellow-brown lengths of paper to work from.
Generally the 'master', the head craftsman, chants a rhythm of his own coded
messages: three ripe cherries, two rust, two snuff, one turquoise, five
pomegranates'- and as if by magic the vibrant colours appear on the surface of
the warp. The left-hand fingers pull a length of yarn hanging above in little
balls, deftly twist and firmly knot it around the thread of the warp, a flash of
the curved knife held in the right hand snips the 7 yarn and the knot is the
place. These fingers of the carpet weavers echo the rhythm of the chanted
instructions. Once a whole row is done and iron comb presses it down firmly. The
fineness of knotting can reach the dizzy miniaturization of squeezing in as many
as 1200 knots per square inch. Pure-silk yarn spun so perfectly that not even a
microscopic variation in thickness can be detected goes to create the perfect
texture and 'shot' effect of the carpet. The shimmering silk plays tricks with
one's vision and the carpet seems to change hues when seen from different
angles.
There are other floor-coverings that are uniquely
Kashmiri. The numdah is brightly embroidered in 'leaf fringed legends'. It is
generally small, ranging from a 6 to 3 square metro rectangle to small round
ones which can be scattered all over a room to lend it warmth and colour.
Innovative designs include small nursery items that can carry the whole English
alphabet charmingly illustrated. Sometimes a complete fairy tale is inscribed in
crewel embroidery, tapestry-fashion. But what makes this floor-covering
interesting is its base. One man spreads fluffy cotton in a thick pile to the
required measurements. Another, meanwhile, neatly arranges sheep's wool in its
natural form to make a fringe of thick wool strands all round the edges of the
pile, A third sprinkles water on the pile till it is soaked and then gives it a
generous rubbing of locally manufactured soap, pressing it down into a felted
sheet. More cotton and more soap is added till it is the thickness of a
comfortable rug. Then begins the beating and pressing down with a long
wooden-handled mallet-like contraption, squeezing the water out. These firm rugs
are then washed in plenty of water and hung out to dry, after which they receive
their decorative embroidery usually done by girls. The natural creamy-white base
can also be dyed in vivid colours.
The gabba is another variety of floor-covering.
Generally old blankets worn thin are soaked in soap and water and then actually
trampled upon to give them a matted look. Once dry, they are cut into little
squares, wavy patterns, rounds or other shapes, depending upon the design in
mind and then dyed in different colours. As in quilting, these bits are
stitched, but here the stitching is actually crewel embroidery which completely
hides the stitching and fashions the whole thing into an exotic, multi-coloured
and geometrically patterned rug. The stitching mirrors the intricacy of the
miniature patterns of a khatam band ceiling.
Most Kashmiri households still posses heirloom
mattresses, the genuine gabba, with its painstakingly joined bits and
pieces in warm rich tones of orange and maroon to make a bed cosy in winter.
Anantnag, the prosperous town in the south of Kashmir, is the seat of this
craft. This area also boasts of a woodcraft which is fast dying out in this age
of electric whisks, plastic toys and metal walkers. These are traditional wooden
toys, little three-wheeled walkers for toddlers, beautifully painted in bright
colours, with softly rattling wooden rings attached for a child to play with.
Hard, seasoned walnut-wood lends itself well to the artistry of the Kashmiri
wood-carver's hand. Three-dimensional scenes from nature, wavy floral patterns,
recurrent motifs of the iris, poppy, lotus, the chinar leaf amid intertwining
bunches of grape and vines, slowly emerge from the gently chisel. Apart from
fashioning elegant furniture, the walnut-wood carvers also produce decorative
boxes, salad bowls, trays and cigarette-boxes.
Nearly every visitor to Kashmir carries back a papier
mache souvenir. Apart from table-lamps and jewellery boxes, there are exquisite
candlesticks, coasters, bangles, napkin-rings, cigarette and powder boxes, even
decorative eggs and bells that will retain their beauty as long as they do not
get too wet. The processing of papier mache is long and painstaking. Waste paper
and even cotton rags are soaked till they become a soft mess, which is then
pounded together with a starchy paste or a gelatinous mixture to make a soft
dough, pliable enough to be moulded into the desired shape. When dry, floral or
other dainty designs are painted on with the extremely fine, delicate strokes of
a brush. What is amazing is not only the sharpness of the eye nor the steadiness
of the hand, nor even the speed with which these lovely miniature designs are
executed, but the highly sophisticated taste of the craftsman, which does not
allow a single stroke of inharmonious colouring to mar the aesthetic beauty of
even the lowest priced of papier mache items.
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