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review Treasure of
exile poetry A word about letters
Urban women, class and dars A pioneering work of great importance and a unique glimpse into Al-Huda By Dr. Tariq Rahman
Transforming Faith By Sadaf Ahmad Published by Syracuse University Press, New York, 2009 Pages: 227 Price not indicated
Everybody remarks on the increasing number of veiled women in Pakistan. But it takes a dynamic and enterprising academic, Sadaf Ahmad, to actually study the phenomenon in a scholarly manner. This is the first book-length study of Al-Huda, a revivalist Islamic institution created by Farhat Hashmi. Starting as a small school in her own home with 13 students, Al-Huda is now a powerful movement for social change with branches all over Pakistan and even abroad. The book has seven chapters, a glossary, bibliography and an index. The author, being an anthropologist, uses the ethnographic approach. She was a participant-observer in the sermons (dars) of the Al-Huda and talked at length with her informants. This gives her book an in-depth understanding of the worldview and ideology of Al-Huda and those who teach and learn about Islam there. This method makes the narrative interesting because we learn about the women participants in the Al-Huda experience. These stories are interspersed throughout the text and function as the voice of the participants -- it is as if we are face-to-face with them and they are showing us the workings of their inner minds. Chapter one, on the ‘Cultural Politics of Fieldwork’, is fascinating in its personal touch, candour and immediacy. For instance, Sadaf Ahmad tells us how, because of her liberal and westernised upbringing like many educated upper-middle class women, she knew nothing about the world of the sermon (dars). So, when she started her field work it was like she was a "native returning to a foreign country" (p. 7). She tells us candidly about her own values, biases and efforts to transcend them. This kind of information is very valuable because, if the author volunteers no information about his or her self, this mask of ‘objectivity’ can hide many biases which remain unknown. The second chapter examines Islam in Pakistan in relation to Al-Huda’s place in it. Here Farhat Hashmi is introduced for the first time but, unfortunately, not in detail as one would expect. We are told that she grew up in Sargodha and attended dars sessions arranged by the Jamat-i-Islami. From here the author goes on to the main campus of Al-Huda in Islamabad and the courses they offer. Apparently the institution caters for women from the middle and upper-middle classes and is flexible enough to adjust to their availability. Farhat Hashmi’s own taped lectures play an important role in the teaching. There are also programmes for children. The major pedagogical method is the word-by-word translation and explanation of the Quran -- something which women do not find in any conventional Islamic Studies class. The important point made by the author is that Pakistani women are already receptive of the Al-Huda’s interpretation of Islam. They are taught a ‘religious-nationalist’ discourse in schools, colleges, universities and through the media. The Indian Muslim community, faced with the insecurity of having a large Hindu community as a political and economic rival, constructed a monolithic Muslim identity vis a vis Hindus. This identity was later strengthened in Pakistan to meet the challenge from the ethnic movements of the periphery, using language and culture in order to obtain goods and services from the state. Urban women, having been exposed to this discourse and to the anti-Barelvi (high church in Gellner’s terms) discourse favoured among educated; urban Pakistanis are ripe for the Al-Huda version of Islam which is literalist and, therefore, removes their doubts in a complex world. Chapter three tells us more about the appeal of Al-Huda for urban women. The main attraction is that Farhat Hashmi draws upon the respect people have for modern knowledge. She has a doctorate from Glasgow which puts her on a higher pedestal than the traditional madrassa-educated maulvis. The maulvi is associated with backwardness and the lower classes whereas Al-Huda is associated with modern Islam and the middle and upper-middle classes. It is seen as a way to return to the authentic Islam -- the one based on the Quran without reference to warring sects and sub-sects -- in order to be reborn with a modern, yet Islamic identity. The point is to convert the women into ‘pious’ subjects ever conscious of the higher aims of existence -- obedience to the will of God. Chapter four takes us into the world of dars. This is a universal phenomenon in the Muslim world as the author brings out and also varies with the area, social-class and other variables in Pakistan. Different dars groups profess and disseminate different ideologies. Al-Huda generally persuades its students to cover the head which is mostly done by wearing the hijab. The body too is covered up in a robe called the abaya. Some women go to the extreme of not listening to music and refuse to be photographed. Others, however, do not approve of such things in principle but give in to the pressures of the moment. These different responses of women to the Al-Huda teachings are given in Chapter six, ‘The stories Behind the Veil’. In a sense this is the most touching chapter as it reveals how meanings are contested and hegemony is never absolute. For women do not always become so regimented as to be clones of one another. Some of them follow individualistic interpretations of what they are told and go off on a tangent. Others adhere to literalism so rigidly as to break up their relations with old friends and family members. But, on the whole, as the Chapter ‘Reflections’ reveals, those who are the most rigid are also the most intolerant. In this Al-Huda resembles other millenarian and conversion movements. The Protestant movement, the Calvinist movement in Switzerland, the Methodist movement in Britain as well as the rise of fundamentalist religious movements more recently among Jews, Christians, Hindus and Muslims have obvious parallels. They are sure of the truth belonging to them alone and condemn the rest of humanity -- in most cases to hell -- and are extremely rigid in their views. This makes even otherwise decent people less sympathetic to others in distress because they believe that this is either because of the sufferers’ sins and transgressions or that it was predestined. Yet another point, brought out by the author, is that the patriarchal gender roles of Pakistani society get strengthened because Al-Huda, like traditional Islamists, consider homemaking the primary, and natural, occupation of the female. I would argue that other traditional ideas of the Pakistani religious establishment -- the discouragement of music, restrictions on female participation in society, salvation being reserved only for the orthodox -- are also strengthened by Al-Huda. But Al-Huda is a contemporary phenomenon. Therefore, in contrast to old-fashioned religious madrassa graduates, it is dynamic and revivalist and functions like a social movement. It has made real changes to women, their families, friends and some of these changes are positive. Some women, for instance, eschew ostentation and malicious gossip and have discovered a purpose and meaning in life. But, on the other hand, they have become less capable of assimilation and are increasing the distance between people (especially in the upper classes) within Pakistan, Pakistanis and foreigners. In an age when Muslims are already suspected, is it helpful to have a non-assimilative and resistant minority -- especially in Western countries? That is something which only the future can answer. The book is a landmark in investigations in modern Pakistani society. But does have errors and shortcomings which can perhaps be corrected in the next edition First, a more in-depth analysis of Islam in Pakistan is required. This analysis should look into other contemporary phenomena like the rise of the Taliban groups and militancy also. Secondly, it needs a more detailed introduction of Farhat Hashmi based on in-depth interviews. Thirdly, the author should choose the best-researched works for reference, not those which merely mention the issue or the idea. And lastly, in many cases, page numbers are needed since the author refers to an idea which is found on particular pages and not the whole work. These are minor faults and do not detract from the academic significance of the book. On the whole I think it is a pioneering work of great importance and I recommend it to all social scientists and the interested layperson.
Treasure of exile poetry In his latest collection, Shaheen produces the effect of being an integrated intellectual with clarity of ideas and thought By Dr Abrar Ahmad Pushtara By Shaheen, Published by A Shamala Publication, Canada, 2010 Price: Rs. 250 Pages: 240 Available at Mavra in Lahore, Academy Bazyaft in Karachi, Book Centre in Rawalpindi
Shaheen is a senior poet of unique stature and significance who has been living in Canada for decades now. Over the last forty years, his four books of poetry have been published -- earning him the repute of a competent and aware poet of a generation that migrated from India in 1947. Pushtara is his recent collection comprising nazms only. With this, he consolidates his place in the contemporary literary scenario -- with dignity. Shaheen was maturing as a poet at a time when modernism was beginning to influence our literature. He too remained under the shadow of Baudelaire during his formative years. Prof. Wahab Ashrafi gives a lucid account of his poetic voyage declaring him a poet who has not been given his due recognition. In the second essay included in the book, Saba Ikram recalls and shares some memories unveiling the personality and sensitivities of the author. These articles help the reader to unfold and appreciate the essence of these poems. It may be relevant to note that Shaheen was subjected to a series of un-interrupted migrations since his childhood -- witnessing violence, mass hatred and bloodshed. This trauma has charged him with a humane and political vision. Wherever in the entire world he finds an identical situation, he reacts and responds. This is a recurring theme in his entire poetry. Younus Ahmar wrote in 1984 "He (Shaheen) has not only shed tears over killing of men by men, he has also expressed the hope that a day will come when the elements of malice and hatred, animosity and hostility will not be seen on the face of this earth." This optimism runs as an undercurrent throughout the contents of Pushtara. The linguistic and artistic command that he enjoys as a seasoned campaigner provides him with an advantage to move freely and naturally along with the flow of his divergent thoughts, without restraint. Each poem is an enchanting composition and a separate entity emitting unique freshness. But as a whole he succeeds in producing an effect of being an integrated intellectual with clarity of ideas and thought. Short and exact, each poem remains to the point and the theme is never overstretched. The fantastic in him gets immediately mingled with an objectivity that is crude and real but the poetic contour is lost nowhere. He is a realist in this regard. The question of identity and intense sense of non-belonging never leaves him. His exile is complete, boundless and without a remedy and he recalls tenderly the places and people left behind and longs for the places of his childhood. There are two separate trends in our contemporary Urdu nazm. One is inspired by the ghazal tradition and overlaps with it in mood and diction while the other is to craft a nazm independent of these influences. The latter resembles and relates more strikingly with the poetry written all over the world. Consequently, not only are such poems in harmony with the entire human situation but are instrumental in producing a paradigm shift in Urdu poetry. Shaheen falls in the latter category -- a fictional touch is an added quality of his poems. It’s our general observation that living abroad bestows no privilege to the overwhelming majority of our writers who continue to live in the aura of the literary climate they left behind. They seldom display a maturity and capability to grow as an author with cosmopolitan vision. Shaheen, perhaps, is one of the very few exceptions in this regard. He is a poet whose craft lends itself to the tradition he inherited but addresses an existence with reference to the surroundings he actually lives in. Akhtar Payami wrote: "His roots are deep in the soil of the land where he opened his eyes and also in the country he has chosen for his homeland. This has created a predominant sense of pathos in Shaheen’s poems and has enriched the treasure of exile poetry in Urdu."
By Kazy Javed PILAC lacks direction The Punjab Institute of Language, Art and Culture (PILAC)
was a wonderful gift of the former chief minister Pervaiz Elahi to the people
of Punjab. However, despite the passage of five years, the institute has not
been able to draw a roadmap and determine its direction. The Chaudhry of
Gujrat could only provide a proper a purpose-built splendid building and
ample funds that were considered by many as more than required. The present provincial administration’s animosity to culture, art and knowledge is no secret. It has handed over a big portion of the land of the 60-year old Institute of Islamic Culture -- which enjoys worldwide respect as a centre of research and publication on Islamic culture, literature and philosophy -- to some other organisations. Abhorring the idea of a Punjab Institute, the administration has taken away a major part of the PILAC premises to make room for a Punjab China Cultural Centre. There are also other reasons for the distressing conditions of PILAC. Not a single meeting of its board of governors, constituted five yeas ago, has been held. The result is that the institute has fallen in the hands of bureaucracy which has played havoc with it. The present chief executive, fifth in five years, has now made a request to the provincial audit pundits to conduct a special audit of his organisation to bring the past financial and administrative malpractices to light. The audit report may take six or more months. But the director-general must convene a meeting of the board of governors in the meantime in order to given a clear direction to his institute. There are many projects waiting for PILAC’s attention. No modern history of the land of five rivers, for example, has ever been written. Not a single worthwhile piece on the cultural, linguistic, social or intellectual history of the Punjab has ever seen the light of the day. Not even an Urdu Bazar level book on Punjabi art is available with libraries. It should be PILAC’s top priority to undertake research and publication on these essential topics. But publications on these topics must be in English language and world class to reach readers everywhere in the world.
Remembering a scholar Although Indian scholar Dr Mukhtarud Din Ahmad has quite a
large number of readers and admirers in Pakistan, the news of his death could
reach only a limited circle of his personal friends. He breathed his last a
few weeks ago in Aligarh and the sad event has deprived the South Asian Urdu
world of a great man of letters who was counted among scholars and
researchers like Dr. Maulvi Muhammad Shafi, Dr Malik Ram, Maulana Imtiaz Ali
Khan Aershi, Qazi Abdul Wadood and Dr Abdul Sattar Siddiqi. More than sixty
years ago, he compiled and edited a special issue of the Aligarh Magazine on
Ghalib which is still read as an important document on Ghalibiyat. Earlier,
he received his PhD from the Oxford University for his work on the social
criticism in modern Arabic literature. The work was completed under the
guidance of legendary professor Dr Hamilton Gibb. Mukhtarud Din Ahmad was considered as the greatest scholar of Arabic language and literature after Maulvi Abdul Aziz Memon in the subcontinent. All his life he remained associated with Aligarh Muslim University from where he retired as head of the Arabic Department in 1984. Dr Malik Ram published a collection of articles under the title Nazar-e-Mukhtar in 1988 to pay homage to the scholar. Shahid Mahli also published a book on his life and literary achievements. Dr Mukhtarud Din Ahmad was remembered in Lahore only by Shahid Ali Khan who included a special section in the current issue of his literary magazine Al-hamra to pay tribute to the departed scholar. It carries three articles written by Dr Anwar Sadeed, Professor Ahter Siddiqi and Muhammad Rashid Sheikh.
New books Sarfraz Syed is a noted literary figure of Lahore and has visited eight countries to present his verse at various functions. He is also a columnist and journalist who has worked with various newspaper during the past 45 years of his career. His columns are appreciated for their analysis as well as the literary touch. Qureshi Brothers Publishers of Lahore have brought out a collection of Sarfraz Syed’s sixty selected columns under the title Ravi Nama. The volume also carries six interviews of the judges of the superior courts on the recent judicial crisis in the country. Journalists are the first writers of history and columnists are usually the first commentators on events of socio-political significance. As such Ravi Nama provides considerable help in understanding many recent events of national importance. Poet Arshad Javed emerged from obscurity in the late 1970s when his city, Faisalabad, produced a number of prominent poets, fictionists and journalists. The local Halqa Arbab-e-Zauq played a role in bringing out the poet hidden in him and his poetry became particularly popular in progressive circles. Those were the days when a number of men of letters like Riaz Majeed, Anwar Mahmood Khalid, Ishfaq Bokhari, Ali Akbar Abbas, Waheed Ahmad, Javed Anwar, Dr. Aalam Khan, Zahid Fakhari and Afzal Sabir wee regular and active participants of the meetings of the Faisalabad’s Halqa Arbab-e-Zauq. Arshad Javed has now come up with his maiden book of verse titled Zara se Dhoop. It is a 128-page volume finely produced by Ekai Publishers of Faisalabad. Two other books that I have to discuss have been authored by K.M. Azam, a former UN adviser who has nine books and many research articles to his credit. Genrally known as a newspaper columnist, he is primarily a sufi and comes from a family noted for its leanings towards spiritual matters. K.M. Azam’s father, Ch. Niaz Ali Khan established Darul Islam Trust at pathankot in East Punjab in 1936 on the request of Allama Iqbal. K.M. Azam has now published a 583-page biography of his father under the title Hayat-e-Sadeed which can also be read as a politico-religious history of the Punjab of the fateful second quarter of the past century. K.M. Azam’s second book is titled Aek Sufi Yaddasht. It is a collection of articles written mostly on Sufism. The book has been published by the Truth Society of Lahore. |
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