Author: Abdullah Rehman
Publication: Chowk.com
Date: May 1, 2006
URL: http://www.chowk.com/show_article.cgi?aid=00006593&channel=civic%20center
I have been living in the UK since the age
of 11. In this time I often visit Pakistan or receive relatives who remain
there. I am struck by the general denial of any common history with the rest
of the Indian subcontinent. It has been mentioned that school textbooks claim
that Pakistan was a `Dark Place` until the `Light` of Islam; that people were
oppressed by the rigid caste system and exploited by the Hindu Brahmins. We
make heroes out of real villains like Ghauri and Aurangzeb. My nine year old
cousin, from Pakistan, told me that Aurangzeb was the greatest of all Mughal
emperors because he remained steadfast to the cause of Islam. Never mind that
he was a ruthless bigot who defaced other religions and forcefully converted
thousands. He also said Akbar was `weak` and a traitor to Islam. Never mind
that he was one of the most tolerant and enlightened rulers the world has
every known.
On the other hand the Arabs are given primacy
in the Pakistani identity. Our real history seems to begin with the Arab incursions
that `liberated` us from darkness. It is not only us Pakistanis. The Persians
and central Asians all seem to gather around this view.
I, for one, am not buying this distortion
of history. In truth Ancient India was achieving greatness in innumerable
fields while the Arabs essentially lived as primate tribes. I thought for
the longest time that the Arabs had `invented` mathematics: the Arabic numerals,
Algebra etc. We are fed that throughout childhood. Historical record shows
that it was in fact the Indic civilizations that produced almost all of the
mathematics attributed to the Arabs. In fact many brilliant ideas of subcontinental
mathematicians were rejected by the Arabs and later Europeans as heresy: irrational
and negative numbers for example. The idea of Infinity was debated for 300
years in the Arab world after it was introduced to them by the Indians. It
was thought, apparently, that only Allah could be infinite, and man should
not attempt to equal him.
In the territory that is now Pakistan, great
Sanskrit scholars like Panini wrote treatises on logic and grammar that have
been the foundation for modern day computing. In the territory that is now
Pakistan the ancient Indus Valley civilization flourished with a level of
egalitarianism unseen in the ancient and perhaps modern world. In the territory
that is now Afghanistan/Pakistan the peaceful overtures of Asoka the Great
conquered the war-like Greeks. I demand the ability to claim these achievements
as part of my past.
In the territory that is now India the great
Moghul Akbar proclaimed tolerance for all religions. In the territory that
is now India Shah Jehan built the great Taj Mahal. In the territory that is
now India the great Siddhartha Gautama proclaimed his message of peace. I
demand the ability to claim these achievements as well.
There is no doubt that Mohammed's (PBUH) message
of peace and brotherhood transformed the lives of many. However this is just
one of the countless religions, scientific, social and revolutionary ideas
that have permeated the history of the great subcontinent. I wish to claim
the egalitarianism of Islam, the peace of Buddhism, the non-violence of Jainism,
the strength of Sikhism and the tolerance of Hinduism as part of my religious
heritage. I want the mathematical, scientific and philosophical brilliance
of MY ancestors to be part of MY heritage. I do believe that Pakistan was
necessary, due to fear of minority exploitation. However the governments,
both military and civilian, have transformed the good idea of Pakistan into
a monstrous distortion of our national identity. Ultimately I agree with the
notion that I was a member of Indic-civilization for 5000 years, Muslim for
around 1000 and Pakistani for 60. I wish our leaders would give us the chance
to appreciate and accept all of these great periods as our national identity.
We have sacrificed so much of our civilisational
greatness to India due to the pathetic notion that we must be their polar
opposite. Indians can proudly proclaim these triumphs while we are left solely
with the concept of Islam. Indians also proudly proclaim the achievements
of their Islamic heritage such as the Taj. The plain truth is that we have
much more in common with the rest of the subcontinent than we have with the
Arab/Muslim world. Personally I don't care about the relations between the
governments of India and Pakistan, both of which have been rather unimpressive
over the years. All I want is for Pakistani school-children to be provided
with a national identity that displays all the greatness of our past, not
just one small part of it. Is this too much to ask?
