Etymology - 1 (Kind of …)

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Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time … and I am in love with it. If I ever had the chance to choose a career for life, Etymologist would be it.

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Of course, I never did choose a career for life.

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I started wanteing to be a doctor, like my father (Abi) - but not because of his real influence. Born in 1940 to a doctor - who had been recruited in late 1943 to the British Military Service in WW2 - I travelled to several cities (in and outside India, and to parts that later became Pakistan) with him until the war ended. 

There were no children in camps but Abi insisted that Ummi (my mother) and I had to go along … and was granted permission to do so by the Army. So I was the only child around. The first trip I went to was when I was 4 years old.

With Abi I went fairly often to Hospitals where he treated several soldiers who were injured, some almost beyond belief. I saw nearly dead soldiers and even saw a soldier die before my eyes. I never seemed to fear death. In fact the oldest memory I have was that my Nani (maternal grandmother) died when I was 3 … and I remember that event so clearly. When she was gone, I was told that the angels had taken her to a place to cure her. That was what 'dead' meant to me for years.

In the middle of the war we went to Calcutta for a few days holiday with my Khala (Vaseem). It was there that sirens announced planes coming down (Japanese, I was told) to bomb us. We hid under tables. I was told not to pick up sweets that they may drop, because eating them would cause us to die. Don't know if that was to scare me or it was real.

There were two things I did remember from the camps: One was the day we were celebrating Victory. A young soldier climbed up a long set of stairs and jumped into a pool of water underneath. He missed. Fell flat a couple of feet away. And was dead. On the spot!

Before that death, I remember my father and his colleague discussing a man whose head been pierced by some bullet marks. His colleague, perhaps his senior, had said that they couldn't treat him as it was too close to the brain and there was no way that he would survive the surgery. I often thought of that. I even asked my father, who drew weird pictures on a piece of paper to show what a brain was. But I couldn't really understand.

Later on, just before the 1947 Partition, I was in Budge Budge where my Khalu (famous Indian hockey-player, Asad Ali) had been posted by the Customs.  I saw a few dead people floating down the river because of Hindu-Muslim riots. The river was just across the street. My childhood friend, Sattar, a servant 3 years older than me, was playing football with me and he kicked it so hard that it went across the street, right into a winding part of the Hooghly River. He rushed and bent down the floating bushes to pick up the ball and threw it right back after showing it to me. It was the head of a dead child he had picked up by mistake.

So I wanted to be a doctor as I grew up. A brain surgeon was what I wanted to be. Life at colleges were tough. I got thrown out of one; I walked off the exams in the second one. That'll be in another blogpost that I write. 

Abi was getting severe heart attacks during those days and I couldn't have lived off his money for long. Another year at college. Five years at Medical School. Two years of Internships. Several years of setting myself up as a Surgeon. No way!

I told Abi the only one of two lies I remember telling him: I had done well at my exams and was going to get a First Division. (The second lie I won't get into.) I then said I was going to sail away on a friend's father's ship to Chittagong and meet my cousin there … and come back. I wrote to him from Chittagong that I had actually joined a ship and was in the Merchant Navy now. He was most upset. Again, that'll be in another blogpost, too.

Abi died in 1963. Didn't even live to see me pass my exams and get a reward for having topped the International Navigation marks. Then they suddenly decided to stop giving the official awards, so my Merchant Navy College Head, Captain Safdar, gave me a TimePiece-cum-StopWatch as my gift.

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Many of my loves and passions come to me from Abi: Classical Music, Eastern and Western; becoming a voracious reader in English and Urdu; love of and the writing of Urdu Poetry; watching Cricket & Tennis; being totally in love of Science; a passion for correct languages; fighting for Human Rights; loving the truth; even crying in movies :(

We were poor, too. My father had left the Army after Partition, had serious medical problems himself, had a few odd jobs but coudn't continue at his clinic so there was really no money in the house. Ummi was amazing at how she managed to make the loveliest dishes with what little we had - and kept not us but every visitor asking for more. She knew how to make the food we loved out of everything she could get. I used to always tease her about how she managed to put water into everything and make it expand into a lovely, large, edible dish.

Abi's love of books never died. On days when he did go to the clinic and made some money, he'd give most of it to Ummi … but he always bought another book. For himself; for Ummi; and for my birthday gifts. He said to me that if I were really hungry I could tighten my belt and survive another day when food would somehow arrive. But a book was a book. "It gives you pleasure whether your stomach is full or empty …".

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One of his loves was Dictionaries. We had many of them. Farsi, Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish. Old and new. He loved words. … and that, too, came to me.

Which is why I really should have been an Etymologist. 

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From the Merchant Navy, after 25 years of service, I came back to Karachi (Ummi's illness and the birth of my daughter after 14 years of marriage) and set-up an educational computing company, Interface, the first of its kind in Pakistan. This arrangement, bad as it was, moved me (with a lot of difficulty) into opening Solutions Unlimited - a consultancy that now runs with my wife heading it. I founded Enabling Technologies, which produced the best Multimedia Software including CD-ROMs in Pakistan. As an Apple-only company we even produced our first CD-ROM for IBM! (That's going to be one of my blogpost, I promise.)

In the meanwhile I also joined Hamdard University and taught for three years until the first Masters came out. Jehan Ara and Sabeen assisted me at some lectures, too. My best student was Syed Ali Hasan, who is now one of our great animators and now also runs a 3D Printing company.

While this was on, I began drawing cartoons for The Friday Times. You can see them here. Do see the first few, anyway. I'll add more as soon as they become available.

My companies — when they started — had my wife Nuzhat, Sabeen, Jehan Ara, and myself … and none of us had taken Computer Studies in our lives, except Sabeen at school. And she had come to my company for further studies. Her KGS Computer Teacher hated her. From Sabeen's exam papers some pages removed when they were sent to UK … so she failed the subject. Efforts by her father, Tallat, proved that this had happened. An act on his part (probably bashing up the Principal!) was probably stopped by Sabeen's mother, Mahenaz, who was teaching at KGS Kindergarten.

The remaining three of us learnt computers on our own, using a BBC computer and then moving on to a 9" Mac. Nothing comes even close to these two systems.

Later on, Sabeen — who'd joined us when she was 14+ as a student and stayed on until she formed PeaceNiche-T2F — and I decided to open Beyond Information Technology Solutions (BITS), partly in association with the Kasuris. They soon left, dedicated as they were to Education, and I owned the company.

Jehan Ara - who had joined us when she had come back from Hong Kong - said she'd rather not be part of this. So we split half of the company: She continued Enabling Technologies and is now the head of Nest I/O and P@SHA.

Sabeen soon became a Director at BITS (as a gift for her years of service with me) and continued with me as a Consultant to some ventures that we occasionally took online (including our work at Tehelka/India and a leading paper in Afghanistan), despite running her new organisation extremely well. In fact T2F is now considered a standard here and elsewhere.

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This ended with Sabeen's assassination on 24th April 2015.

Like me, Sabeen was never afraid of death.

Listen to a TV Program about her.

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I am sorry I have bored you with this rather long drawn-out preamble. I promise I will move on to Etymology - 2 as soon as I have the time. If you like what I write, you'll find it enjoyable.

Dead at 99 … and we'll all miss him

Khushwant Singh

I was visiting my friend Tarun Tejpal in Delhi and one night I was invited with him to Khushwant's house for dinner at 9:00pm by his son. I said I wanted to meet Khushwant Ji. The son said I should come at 8:30 and meet him as he goes to his room at 9:00pm.

Meeting Khushwant Ji was a pleasure. He was eating his daal and chatted away with me about Pakistan for which he had a great love. At 9pm he started to reach his room and I saw that the door had a large kalmah around the sides. I asked him why that was and he said "Hindu bohat ghabraatay haéñ daykh kar …"

His books on every subject, serious, laughable, biographical, and his novels, have always fascinated me … but his Train to Pakistan was totally remarkable.

RIP, Khushwant Ji

This is where it's at …

A Personal Magazine

Let the court decide …

I put the earlier post up on my blog because several people told me they could not read the post on Shumaila's website that I had quoted on Facebook and Twitter. I am glad that many people have now read it … and also the letter by the girl in response that Amima posted. I think more people should read ALL the stories. Question them. Have views. Not be abusive. Write about what they think. But wait before the court's decision …

As far as I am concerned, I am neither for nor against the girl — I made sure never to mention her name anywhere on Twitter. I know it because of having seen her at ThinkFest.

Tarun (even though I do know him) has to accept what the court decides after looking at all evidence. I don't think I, or anyone,  has the right to pre-judge it, but people do. Again, I do not criticise them. That's their choice, I guess.

The Indian Media has gone haywire, just like the Pak media does. I hope they'll show the decency of not bringing his wife or his kids into this and writing articles. Yes, that I very certainly hope, as I would for my daughter in case I was being criticised.

A 'once-friend', which is how she'd now prefer to be known, has been overly critical of me for defending Tarun. I have done nothing but to retweet links that show that he must be given a fair trial, that the CCTV footage must be shown. There are enough media links favouring the girl, which maybe fine, but I think someone should get this out as a message, too. Whether it is bad for Tarun, I don't know. Both sides MUST be heard is what I want!!!

Sadly I am not too happy with most of the Indian Media which, at times, is worse than our own — and that's really something! Their bizarre handling of this is understandable: It sells papers/airtime. But its not the best way to approach this, in my opinion.

The BJP's extra-ordinary pressure was also disgusting, including Jolly's actions at Shoma's house. I haven't seen any Congress members come to the fore, but if they do, I'd hate that, too. Let the court decide!

I have been asked in email about what I would do if Tarun were my son. Nothing. I may be have been very fond of him, even cry at what has happened, but I'd have to let the law take its proper course and find out if he is true or not. Whether it is rape, molestation, murder, whatever. That's how I feel.

I have been asked by a chap (and again by the once-friend) on Twitter, who told me that I should not respond to her so I didn't, what would be my view if the girl were my daughter? Again, I'd hope the case was right and be helpful in all ways … but the final verdict would come from the court. Not me.

This is why we have courts. Personal emotions, however sad, cannot over-ride the court's finding — except through going to another court and so on. In the case of Talwars who have been given a Life Sentence in India (though there is little to say that they were guilty, since no evidence was found) there are several people who feel that they should appeal against the verdict. This is AFTER the court has made its decision, which I am in agreement with, too.

Finally, the once-friend says I 'censored' the girl's mailed response. I didn't. Someone called Amima posted it as a comment. If she did, one will have to ask her why.

•••••

Saturday 30th November. Shumaila asked me questions on the Facebook and I responded to all of them. Somehow (?) the responses got deleted … Shit! Here they are again, in the Comments spot, though not exactly as I had written them as I have no record of the originals. But the gist is the same.

Do read.

Dear God …

… why does Ramzan make everyone believe they are Soddy Arabians?

That, I suppose, should have been

Dear Allah, why does Ramadan … etc.

OK, maybe some of them did come from there, too, to India, Africa, Malaysia, and also to other Eastern and European places, when the Arab Muslims were expanding their empire. What they did about this set of rules from the Qur'an, I don't know. But surely some Aalims of the times must have thought that you could bend it a bit. Not too much, though!

The first verse of the minor jihãd, the armed struggle, revealed at that time is in Chapter 22, Surah Al-Hajj, of the Qur’ãn, verses 39-40. It clearly explains the purpose of the minor jihãd: “Permission is granted to those who are fighting because they have been oppressed … those who have been expelled from their homes without any just cause…” (Surah al-Hajj, 22:39-40). Again, referring to the non-believers of Mecca who waged war after war against the Prophet and his followers in Medina, the Qur’ãn in Chapter 2, Surah al-Baqara, verse 190, says: “Fight in the way of God those who are fighting against you; and do not exceed (the limits). Verily Allãh does not love those who exceed (the limits).”  (Surah al-Baqara, 2:190). In this verse, the talk is about responding to a war by defending yourself; there is no talk of initiating aggression at all. Even in the defensive mode of struggle, Almighty God warns the Muslims that they should not “exceed” beyond the proper limits. (You can see the original here.)

Most of the people, we know, converted — from Pagans, Jew, Christians, Hindus, and many other religions. Some with a feeling that this religion is much better than theirs. Others - quite a few - converted because the rulers or conquerors were Muslims. A few, because they were (and still are!) threatened. We hear that in Pakistan many Hindu girls are abducted by Muslims and are married off to one of them.

SA, please note, is a country. That's all! It has no reason to be the Head of the Muslims' faith, just because it has the most important parts of the early Muslim culture there. The Ka'aba, the Prophet's house and Mosque, and many other important areas happen to be there, yes. But the King of SA does not own them. They do serve those areas, as did the heads of Arabia before. Sadly, the present heads and their teams sell some of the historic sites that now have new hotels and other places built on them because they don't think it is Islamic to keep these sites. Pity. It takes away a lot of history when they do this. They do this to the graves, too — so we do not know where many of the Muslim leaders, men and women, are buried.

Of course, it is their kingdom and they can do anything they like — except do something to the Ka'aba or the Masjidé Nabvi. We hope so, anyway.

The worst part, of course, is that SA also send tons of money - one way or another - to slowly enforce their own brand of Islam: Wahhabism. Their proteges are many, from LeJ to other nutcases, including Al-Qaeda, plus a few Caliph-loving groups who want to move us back a thousand years. There are many Sharia-loving Muslims everywhere (in UK and the USA :) to start with, who want everyone to follow the Sharia (regardless of how variously it is interpreted in each different group's ideas).

Among their open-hatreds are the Ahmadis, whom almost everyone seems to think should be killed, even when they are offering their Friday prayers in their own masjid. Not only were they killed there, the killers also went into the hospitals where some of the injured were and, helped by the medical staff,  opened fire there, too.

Now there are, increasingly, Shias that are targeted. We can see every day how many are killed by these mad-bad-sad groups. Type in something like 'Shia Killings in Pakistan' in to your Google and you'll find loads of sites discussing this. In Balochistan the killings of Hazaras - a Shia group - is done daily. They are easy to identify with their language or facial description. They are stopped and taken off buses, they are beheaded or shot, their bodies stay on the roads with Shias (and several sensible Sunnis) protesting about these deaths … but nothing really comes of it. The killers and their leaders tell the press that there will be many more Shia deaths and this can often be seen in the newspapers.

Other Shias get killed too. Even the Bohris have been attacked in Karachi. Aga Khanis have been spared but enough is written about them in hardcore fundo papers that is fairly false in most cases.

In Karachi we have seen Shia Doctors killed (and with each doctor's death we have a smaller number of doctors treating a larger number of patients!) … and we have heads of businesses and lawyers and more tortured and killed.

This is Ramzan and I am told that in the first 14 days we still have Muslims killing other Muslims - (about 75 have died so far!) - many of them for sectarian reasons, with Shias mainly being the target, except for political killings. And imagine: the killers and the victims, are fasting. Wow! (As an aside, even the dacoits are fasting and asking the victims to make Sehri for them.)

Today an ad for Josh (a condom) was removed from TVs because it was considered offensive … “Airing of such immoral advertisement on Pakistani channels - and that too in the holy month of Ramazan - warrants serious action,” said F. Mughal. (It was because of Foreigners that I had to shorten his first name. Especially in Ramzan.) Killing is OK, I guess.

To push us further back, way back - and we are not even counting schools being blown up, or even Taliban's attack on Malala (who received a strange letter from a Taliban Leader) - there are news items every day that tell us what's happening in KPK. This is a PTI ruled province. Here is an editorial in The Express Tribune that appeared yesterday after people 120km away from Peshawar put out a new local law.

I am certainly not saying that the PTI is responsible for this … but Imran Khan and PM Nawaz Sharif's parties want to negotiate with the Taliban. The Taliban and their other 'groupies' have little to offer in such a negotiation. They want the Khilafat (Caliphate) back. They want Sharia everywhere (including the rest of the world - in the long run). And they want women in the house, unwilling to learn or do anything other than religious ideology.

The Hadees that many of us heard in our childhood - and one that is still heard from scholars - was that the Prophet had said that Muslims (he didn't say Muslim men!) must go everywhere to find knowledge, even to China! Obviously China was not offering much in the way of Islamic teachings. But who cares: "We'll-do-what-we-want-and-forget-the-good-things-that-the-Prophet-said!" is the order of the day …

If you think Pakistan is going from bad to worse, think of what's happening in other parts of the world. They are all getting there.

Here you will find why the major portions of the world that follow FGM are Islamic. Closer to home, in India and Pakistan there are groups that follow it, too. Remember the history: People were being converted, as soon as Islam arrived, from every religion or belief system, to Muslims. There was no way that anyone would have said "No Circumcision", because circumcision was carried out by many Arabian tribes, among them pagan Arabs as well as Jews (and some Christians). Mainly done for religious reasons, it was generally for males … but in many cases women were also included. The allowance made it possible for Jews and many others, who had been circumscribed earlier, to join into the Muslim world and not get left out. It is from a Hadees that almost all Muslims do it … and it is not a Farz! Yet you will find recently converted people of all ages being forced to do it. Why?

Recall Indonesia, where the Ahmadis are often killed. The killers gets a light (3 months to 6 months) sentence … but Ahmad Nuryamin, an Ahmadi, stabbed Rendy Apriyansah while trying to defend himself. The court sentenced him for 9 months. Supporters of Rendy said Ahmad should have been given a nine year punishment.

Think of Malaysia. Once considered a heaven for modern Muslims. A lot of my friends wanted me to shift there. I am glad the thought never crossed my mind. Once people in Malaysia were doing very well, with a big Chinese population and a fairly large Muslim population. But was it going to last? No.  This is the beginning of what they are up to now.

In Sudan in the Lubna Hussein case, the (eventually commuted) sentence of lashing was for wearing trousers – an offence that not even the Qur'an or other sources of religious law had foreseen and legislated against. One cannot ever forget that the execution of Islamic thinker Mahmoud M. Taha - for the charge of apostasy - was one of the most farcical miscarriages of both religious and civil justice in the country's history.

It's 2013 … Muslims. Wake up!

The Thrills of Hypocrisy

Kite Pictures?

I guess a couple of you may have thought about the birds in the sky that we see all the time … but the majority would have considered pictures of the kites we fly through the air. Like this one.

What a lovely image … by Nicolas Chorier.

But this blogpost is more than just a Kite Picture. It is a picture by Nicolas Chorier … a delightful photographer whose camera is tied to a kite. It goes all the way up and takes amazing photographs through a remote control. And they are taken in India … so they are full of life, and colour, and versatility.

Nicolas … getting to shoot a picture

(I suppose you could get many shots that you can be proud of in Pakistan, too, Nicolas. How about coming over for a while?)

There are others who take such pictures, too, I guess, but I found his images remarkable. Perhaps it is because I love photography (though I am a really bad picture taker). If you look at his images, there are some, like the one at a hotel below, that show you how great things can look from just a little above!

Hotel entrance

There are others that are taken from slightly higher, like the gorgeous coloured boats, here (Aren't the colours just amazing?) ... 

Tamil pirogs

… and have you ever wondered how the sardines that these boatsmen caught, look when they are everywhere on the beach.

Sardines drying on the beach

The pictures - specially those of people - are all wonderfully taken, with Nicolas pressing the shutter at the right time. Everything is in perfect focus. Wow!

Are you into shadows? A good photograph shows them better than you imagine … and its far easier when taken from a kite …

Mangalore shadows

… and if it has close-ups of people in it, it can be breathtaking.

Kalaripayatu fighters

(Click here and see more of this tale)

Of course, Nicolas also takes pictures in which there no humans, such as wonderful architecture and more. Here is one of my absolute favourites —

Car and Coconuts

Others prefer his amazing temple pictures. Here's one.

Matiari Temple

India is full of these, so I hope to see many more images from him.

Get his 'India from a Kite' for your iPhone/iPodTouch/iPad, right now. Its going to give you a treat. Lots of images to see. Details to admire. Amazing angles.

I have fallen completely in love!!!

If you want to see a lot more of Nicolas Chorier's images, Nicolas has a website that gives you lots of pictures. It also has a Limited Edition part that allows you to buy some of them and some books that you could get from India (I hardly see any great photobooks in Pakistan).

Taking pictures from a kite is a lot easier to do in India/Pakistan, too, where getting permissions for taking a helicopter is pretty difficult … and fairly expensive, even if the local authorities give you the required permit. Flying over many areas is often prohibited! And you can't do it whenever you want to do it! But your Kite, your Camera, and the Remote is always with you and it takes about 10 minutes to set it all up!

On that site you can also learn about the way he takes his pictures, in case you want to try and do the same thing … though it is expensive (but certainly much cheaper and better than a helicopter, anytime).

Have fun!!!

Subhan Nizami: France loves his Qavvaali …

… and so will you, when you come to T2F's late night Ramzan Qavvaali session on the 20th July, 2013! It's going to be a treat.

Subhan comes from the illustrious Qavvaal Bachchaa Gharana of Dehli, originally started by Hazrat Amir Khusrau to sing Qavvaali. He is from the generation of their leader, Mian Samat Nizami.

Subhan Nizami's father, Ustad Afaq Ahmad Nizami, was a classical singer, a librarian of his gharaana's music, and he also performed qavvaali. Subhan's daada, Ustad Iftikhar Nizami, was famous not just for his qavvaalis but for the beautiful Ghazals and amazing Thumris that he sang. I heard Iftikhar Sahab on several Sundays when he (and Masood Bhai, of the Harmonium fame) would perform among friends. 

Iftikhar Sahab was a favourite performer of mine and we invited him for an evening of music when I was getting married. Fortunately, despite a really old tape-recorder, I recorded his singing — and it is the only recording of his voice that we find now. I have asked anyone who has any more of his recordings to put them on the Internet. Nothing so far! I have put my recordings on a CD that's available at T2F.

(Lutfullah Khan had one recording of Iftikhar Sahab that he had taken from me. He cleaned it up. It's much better than the version I have, I imagine, but he hardly ever shared his recordings with anyone else. In fact almost several hundred 78s were also copied from our house … but he always said he would not share it until they became public property in a library. I hope they now find a way to share that wonderful set. His recordings are a lovely collection, well documented, and kept remarkably well under his own supervision.)

Iftikhar Sahab's ancestor was Ustaad Qutab Bakhsh Khan - known to all of us as Hazrat Tan Ras Khan. (In India, Tan Ras Khan Sahab's family perform Qavvaali, too: Ustaad Meraj Ahmad Nizami and many others.) You must have heard of Ustaad Samat Nizami and Ustaad Tan Ras Sahab from the latter's great-grandchildren (and, now, their children, and their children's children) whenever they perform qavvaali anywhere. Here is a list of Tan Ras Sahab's progeny in Pakistan: Iftikhar Nizami, Munshi Raziuddin Ahmad, Manzoor Niazi, Bahauddin Khan, Afaq Ahmad Nizami, Naseeruddin Saami, Farid Ayaz and Abu Mohammad, Abdullah and Habib Ahmad Niazi, Mohammad Najmuddin and Saifuddin Mahmood, Urooj Saami, Subhan Nizami, and Hamza Akram.

Go through the above list and, yes, you'll find Subhan, too … but there are a lot of chances that you have never really heard him sing. And with the stupid ban of YouTube it is even less likely.

I am an absolute fan!

So are the people in France!!!

From Subhan's concert in Paris

France - you'd probably be surprised to hear - has a great Dhrupad following, a Qavvaali following, and a wonderful Indian Classical Music following: Have you ever been to this page of a Sitarist and Musicologist?

The Dhrupad they listen to is the Dagar Brothers methodology that promotes a Hindu form which was supposedly the original. They don't really accept the Muslim Dhrupad that was introduced by Amir Khusrau which, according to Munshi Raziuddin, is more delightful and far better than the ones that Dagar Brothers sing. But that's your choice. I love both of the forms (and totally adore the Dagar groups). Music, as far as I am concerned, has neither religion nor caste.

Martina Catella, a musicologist, who spent almost 10 years in Pakistan, had earlier released a DVD of Pakistan Qavvaals (Faiz Ali Faiz) and Spanish Flamenco singers/musicians … but has now moved away from them as the Faiz seems to have branched out into all sorts of stuff and she finds them less interested in 'pure music'. She is a complete fan of Subhan, along with Saida Haidar, a great Sufi follower and lover of Sufi Music (and of Lucknow!)

Martina was so impressed by Subhan that she decided to offer him a present in a form of short documentary of 30 min as an intro to his promising career. Here it is, especially for you.

https://vimeo.com/48014352

Password: heart

Not only is Subhan's singing marvellous, he also gave - as you saw in the film - qavvaali classes to some French musicians. I am glad he did not say that he is 'the most brilliant singer', as most other singers here very often do, specially when running other singers down.

At his concert in Theatre de la Ville - a prestigious hall in Paris where only really big names are accepted - Subhan gathered 2300 persons in a place where there were only 1600 seats. People were sitting all over the the floor, on the stairs, everywhere. Police had to intervene to stop further entries for security reasons.

In his February 2014 Concert, planned by Radio France, he was booked for one show that would have had 1500 people. This soon became three shows … and all were sold out. That's several months in advance! And people are still writing to Radio France to add another day. Wow!

When Saida said to me that "French and Europeans understand and appreciate more Purbi, Hindi, Urdu, Farsi kalaam than Pakistanis"… it is, in some ways, a fact. She added, "At least they appreciate them and cherish them as a work of art ."

When I asked her about Subhan's performances in Paris, she had lots of things to say. Here is one part of that conversation: "Subhan brings out the best of the Dehli Gharana and it's historical background. In France he is very much appreciated and has a very specific public among Sorbonne professors, Radio and TV professionals, and music students who regularly attend all his performances or rather demand them ."

Subhan's group is the only group - in Pakistan's years of existence - which was ever invited by the Ministry of Culture in France. They were received by the Minister herself, who thanked them several times for being there. (Is that how we treat any musicians coming from anywhere?)

Subhan, himself, is a rather soft spoken young man and never ever promotes himself. He hardly ever speaks, except to people nearer his own age, and told me that speaking to older people was considered impolite in his family, except that when they do, they must do so with total respect. His younger brothers, too, are just as soft spoken — or were, to me. Amazing in today's world!

To end - and to give you an idea of what you are likely to hear on the 20th July (when you absolutely must come to T2F) - here is a piece that you will enjoy. It was performed by Subhan and his group at the Ursé Mubarak of Hazrat Yaqoob Jan Auliya.

Download this!

Elections are just two days away!

Have YOU heard 'The Parties' talk?

A cartoon that I made for 'The Friday Times' 22 years ago …

Click it to see it larger


•••••

Vote for a young Independent Candidate
whose views are similar to yours.
They are the ones who will represent you
and vote regardless of any Party Chief's view.

You will also talk to these candidates many times
in the next 5 years
… and not only just a few days prior to 2018 elections.

Al-Buraq (The Lightning) was a Horse?

The Qur'an has no such description, of course.

Where, then, did Buraq's human face come from?

Most often it is a female face.

Hadees does mention the Buraq

… but is the female face ever mentioned?

(In any case, some Muslims do not believe in Hadees)

Here's an image of the Buraq

Many more like this are seen everywhere

including on our delightfully made truck art.

Recently Richard Dawkins mentioned a 'winged horse' in his Twitter account, referring to Mehdi Hasan's belief … and Dawkins received a lot of flak from Liberal 'believing' Muslims. I found it strange why Muslims - who, I am sure, would strongly disagree with Dawkins' atheistic beliefs - found this statement something to be really angry about. Anyway, he has published a piece here that is well worth a read.

Why Mehdi Hasan thought it was a horse surprised me, too! I know it is the generally accepted form among Muslims, but a well-read journalist should understand that there is no way that he can prove something like this from the Qur'an, a book all Muslims support and accept. It can always be questioned by others, but many non-Muslims will understand his belief if the Qur'an says so and allow it … just as Muslims allow a Christian to believe that Christ came back from the dead in 3 days, though, according to many of them he was 'taken up by God' as they understood it from the Qur'an. Of course, some differ here, too.

Wikipedia says this: While the Buraq is almost always portrayed with a human face in far-eastern and Persian art, no Hadiths or early Islamic references allude to it having a humanoid face. This, which found its way into Indian and Persian Islamic art, may have been influenced by a misrepresentation or translation from Arabic to Persian of texts and stories describing the winged steed as a "... beautiful faced creature."

Here is one Hadees!

A translation of Sahih al-Bukhari (5:58:227) describes Al-Buraq this way (as the Prophet said): "Then a white animal which was smaller than a mule and bigger than a donkey was brought to me."

OK!

You might want it to be a horse, but the Hadees doesn't say anything about it except its size and colour. Yes, it does mention a donkey and a mule … but that's to talk about Buraq's size, not it's actual breed or genre.

Legends grow up and become articles of faith some day.

Here, for example, is the Naqshbandi's view:

The Buraq (Heavenly Beast)

When God ordered Gabriel to carry with him the Buraq for the Prophet to ride, he went to the Paradise of buraqs and there he found forty million buraqs. Every buraq had a crown on its forehead inscribed with the words: "There is no god except God, and Muhammad is His Messenger." Under it was written: "Believe in Me, in My angels, in My holy books, and in My prophets." Gabriel saw among them a buraq who secluded himself and who sat alone crying. Gabriel came to him and asked him why he was in such a state. The Buraq answered: "I heard the name of Muhammad forty thousand years ago, and my yearning for him has prevented me from eating and drinking." Gabriel chose that buraq and he took him.The Buraq had the body of a horse but the face of a human being, with big black eyes and soft ears. His color was that of a peacock whose plumage was set with red rubies and corals, on which sat a white head of musk on a neck of amber. His ears and shoulders were of pure white pearls attached with golden chains, each chain decorated with glittering jewels. His saddle was made of silk lined with silver and gold threads. His back was covered with green emerald and his halter was pure peridot.

How many of you actually believe this?

For more details of Isra (and Mi'raj) take a look here. But remember that many traditions that people have been following are much further from the truth. As an example, Masjid-Al-Aqsa (that Muslims take to be in Jerusalem) was not a mosque at the time of Isra! When Caliph Umar conquered Jerusalem after the Prophet's death, a mosque was built there.

Recently Mohammad Shaikh - a young scholar of Qur'an - has also challenged this belief of Masjid-al-Aqsa being in Jerusalem. He finds different answers from the Qur'an and lectures on it from his IIPC. Of course, many other ülemaas call his ideas nonsensical. But that's for the believers to decide. I just know him well from the time he was my Cadet on a Merchant Ship, though I knew his family well.

What — Me Worry?

PPP has completed a full term in office. Wow! However, the last bit of its term was sadly inappropriate (despite many good laws that were recently passed by its Government), specially when it came to the Shia Murders! Not a word was spoken for a while and very little has happened after the late visits of various bodies.

Death is here to stay … while Life moves on. We now have politicians campaigning everywhere for the elections on May 11th … and being attacked (quite often even killed). Every party has had that happen to it (or will have it, as the election dates get closer).

Here, for example, is Norbalm (Norbert Almeida - who also sends messages of crime out on the Phone if you subscribe to the service) and his first message this morning: #Karachi early morning 4 bodies. Shot/tortured dumped in different parts of the city.

We also have peculiar laws here, too.

Ahmadis cannot freely vote in Pakistan due to the discriminatory processes introduced in the election related laws which climaxed during the regime of former dictator General Pervez Musharraf. He bowed to Islamists' demands (as did Z A Bhutto!) and issued a Presidential Executive Order, effectively barring Ahmadis from participating in the election process. The Executive Order No. 15 of 2002 excluded Ahmadis from the country's joint voter roll, requiring they be registered on a supplementary voter roll, and necessitated that Ahmadis must sign a declaration to renounce their faith in Islamic tenets.

Let's look at a major belief among Shias themselves (and the Sunnis).

'Imam Mehdi'— the 12th Asna Ash'ari Shia Imam — (the Shias believe) was taken away by the Will of Allah when he was a child, and he will 're-appear' before Doomsday. Strangely, the Sunnis, with no information about this from the Qur'an, also believe in Imam Mehdi's coming to Earth because it is mentioned in the Ahaadees. Naturally, there are strong differences: The Shia Imam has been born! The Sunni Imam Mehdi will be born!

Would some of the Muslims in Pakistan (Sunni or Shia) be annoyed, too, if the Aga Khanis or the Bohris were not allowed to vote? They are considered Shias, but are not part of the Asna Ash'ari group which is the major portion of Shias.

The Aga Khanis have a Living Imam, which is why I could not find a proper Imam Mehdi piece on the Internet about their beliefs. The Dawoodi Bohras have this to say, and this … parts of which could even be considered Blasphemy. Bohris, according to an article on the Internet "believe in appearance of Imam Mahdi who will fill this earth with justice while it is filled with oppression. They claim that Imam Mahdi appeared in North Africa whose name was Abdullah and founded Fatimid dynasty which is drawn from the progeny of Ali and Fatima."

And we are not even counting the Alawis/Nusayris of Syria, although Ayatullah Khomeini accepted them as being part of the Asna Ash'ari Shias, despite their heterodoxy.

The mad/bad militant groups from Saudi Arabia, known as the Wahhabis, as well as their growing followers in Pakistan, have claimed that Shias are not Muslims at all … and some other Sunni sects agree with them, including the Barelvis (*). Wahhabis also 'separate' the other Sunni groups from Islam (or consider them as having been shifted away from the 'true' religion) when left to their own devices.

Members of the Deobandis, a stricter version of the Sunnis in our subcontinent, are anti-Qavvaali and Milad and many other things that the Barelvis practice. The Barelvis add new ideas to Islam (considered a küfr by the Deobandis) … and soon these things become an 'act of faith' to their followers.

Startlingly it was a Barelvi who killed Salman Taseer … and he has hundreds of supporters from the Deobandi and the Barelvi crowd.

Yesterday, I saw this item in the news:

Thirty-two members of the U.S. Congress lawmakers have sent a letter to the U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry. The letter bluntly says they cannot accept the May election results in Pakistan if Ahmadis are not also included as part of Pakistan's joint electorate.

The lawmakers impressed upon Secretary Kerry saying, "we cannot stand idly by and allow four million Ahamdis to remain disenfranchised and outside the electoral process. You have a unique opportunity to advocate on behalf of an entire segment of Pakistani society which has long been marginalized and oppressed…"

Secretary Kerry has been asked to 'press' Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari to immediately repeal Executive Order No. 15 of 2002 and have reminded President Zardari that with the historical successful completion of a term of democratically elected government, he has a unique opportunity to remove discriminatory voting restrictions on Ahmadis.

Can President Zardari agree? If he does, will Pakistan's Interim Government accept it? Or will Zardari be considered a Blasphemer by the JI and others?

So where are we headed?

Last night I saw a video - something you must see to understand that there are a few voices of reason in Pakistan. I know that this young man may not win … but I think he deserves your vote if you are in NA-250/PS-113. Talk to him first, though! There may be other areas where he may have very different and, often, contrary views to you.

•••••

(*) When I was at sea - and studying all religious beliefs - I came across a Chief Engineer who was a Barelvi. He had literature from his sect and gave me a copy of Imam Raza's works to read. Imam Raza is the Head of the Barelvi School of Thought (and is not the Shia Imam Raza). He has written many books, including a Tafseer of the Qur'an. One person had written to him and asked him that if he wanted to marry a Muslim Girl and there were no other Muslims in the area where he lived, what should they do for the required Vakeel. The book had this answer (it's not verbatim, but the gist is the same): If no Muslims are available get a person from Ahl-e-Kitaab (The People of the Book), that is a Jew or a Christian. Do not get Kuffaars (Disbelievers), such as a Hindu or a Shia!

A bit late, but Comics come to Pakistan …

T2F was where 'Umru Ayar - The Comic' was launched a day ago. Take a look at this lovely story. That's a bunch of 6 young people who love Comics and want to bring them seriously into Pakistan. A great start. If you love Comics, do subscribe to their Facebook page. Hope they succeed.

The group intends to bring out loads of classic tales, crime stories of Ibné Safi(!), and much, much more. I am sure they'll need more people and if you are into drawing comics maybe you should join them or have a word and see how your art can be used - independently or with their work.

I certainly wish we develop and bring out the talent to make Comics and Graphic Novels. We need lots of talent. We need people who understand the art of making such things, from the good old style comics … all the way to Manga … and more. We need all our people reading them the way they read them in other parts of the world, from children to grown-ups.

While I love the work these young people put in - (I've read all their previous free issues) - but, on a personal level, I'd rather have my favourite Graphic Novels in good old black & white. Really.

If you haven't seen what they are like, take a look at almost anything from the Master of it all, Will Eisner (often called 'the father of the graphic novel'). He authored some of the most wonderful books ever.

There's, of course, Scott McCloud whose work is amazing and Understanding Comics is in a class by itself. Being an artist isn't enough. Read Physics! Honest! Read this book and you'll see why. Read People, Accents, Expressions … after all, they'll be in your books, no?

Graphic Novels or Comics are brought out by teams of people … and, occasionally, by a single person who knows and understands all this. Become one … or get someone you can discuss these things with.

Art Spiegelman whose marvellous Maus is worth a reading again and again … and specially if you have a CD-ROM version of it to see. I wish they'd re-release it soon. Maus also was the first Graphic Novel to win a Pulitzer Prize.

Joe Sacco - (whose birthday I share, along with Gandhi Ji) - has written several Political Graphic Novels, including Palestine.

And, finally in this list, there's Marjane Satrapi whose Persepolis was superb. The film was wonderful, too. There are many others one could name and I'll leave them for another time.

Coming close to home, Indian Comics are superb, too, and there's always a good choice to buy new ones when I am in Dilli or Bombay:

Take a look at anything by Sarnath Banerjee (start with his 3 books). He's a wonderful friend who comes to Karachi sometimes. Worth meeting if you are here.

Amit Dasgupta's An Indian By Choice is another way that comics can be made - simple, modern, wonderful, important.

And for a REAL treat, buy Bhimayana - a story by Durgabai and Subash Vyam about the life of Ambedkar. The illustrations are amazing in the fabulous artwork by Srividya Natarajan and S. Anand. This was considered one of the top Political Graphic Novels by CNN.

A Piece for Pynchon

Postdialectic Narrative
in the works of Pynchon

Zaheer A. Kidvai

Head of the Department of New Media, Hamdard University

1. Contexts of absurdity

The characteristic theme of Hubbard’s[1] critique of postdialectic narrative is the role of the reader as artist. Scuglia[2] implies that we have to choose between deconstructivist appropriation and the pretextual paradigm of narrative.

It could be said that the subject is interpolated into a cultural theory that includes art as a whole. If deconstructivist appropriation holds, we have to choose between postdialectic narrative and posttextual socialism.

But Bataille uses the term ‘the patriarchial paradigm of discourse’ to denote the stasis, and eventually the fatal flaw, of precapitalist sexual identity. The primary theme of the works of Spelling is the common ground between class and narrativity.

Thus, the subject is contextualised into a neocapitalist nihilism that includes culture as a paradox. In Models, Inc., Spelling deconstructs postdialectic narrative; in Robin’s Hoods, however, he examines neocapitalist nihilism.

2. Spelling and deconstructivist appropriation

“Society is intrinsically meaningless,” says Marx; however, according to Hubbard[3] , it is not so much society that is intrinsically meaningless, but rather the absurdity, and hence the defining characteristic, of society. In a sense, Hanfkopf[4] holds that we have to choose between neocapitalist nihilism and postdeconstructivist deconstructivism. The subject is interpolated into a postdialectic narrative that includes sexuality as a reality.

In the works of Pynchon, a predominant concept is the distinction between opening and closing. Therefore, Derrida promotes the use of deconstructivist appropriation to deconstruct and read class. Baudrillard uses the term ‘neocapitalist nihilism’ to denote not discourse per se, but subdiscourse.

If one examines postdialectic narrative, one is faced with a choice: either reject the dialectic paradigm of expression or conclude that art is capable of truth, given that narrativity is equal to truth. However, the premise of deconstructivist appropriation suggests that the goal of the poet is social comment. Lyotard uses the term ‘neocapitalist nihilism’ to denote the role of the observer as reader.

“Culture is elitist,” says Derrida. Thus, many theories concerning posttextual deconstruction exist. Deconstructivist appropriation implies that context must come from the masses, but only if Foucault’s essay on the capitalist paradigm of narrative is valid; if that is not the case, the raison d’etre of the writer is deconstruction.

In the works of Pynchon, a predominant concept is the concept of predialectic language. It could be said that the ground/figure distinction depicted in Pynchon’s Gravity’s Rainbow is also evident in The Crying of Lot 49, although in a more mythopoetical sense. Sontag uses the term ‘postdialectic narrative’ to denote the bridge between class and narrativity.

Therefore, the premise of neocapitalist nihilism suggests that society, perhaps ironically, has significance. The subject is contextualised into a capitalist nationalism that includes sexuality as a paradox.

However, if deconstructivist appropriation holds, the works of Pynchon are empowering. Bataille uses the term ‘subtextual capitalist theory’ to denote the absurdity, and some would say the economy, of neodialectic truth.

Therefore, Porter[5] implies that we have to choose between deconstructivist appropriation and capitalist nihilism. Any number of deconstructivisms concerning the role of the artist as participant may be found.

In a sense, Sontag suggests the use of neocapitalist nihilism to attack class divisions. The subject is interpolated into a predialectic deconstruction that includes consciousness as a totality.

Therefore, the main theme of Scuglia’s[6] analysis of postdialectic narrative is not situationism, but postsituationism. An abundance of narratives concerning deconstructivist appropriation exist.

It could be said that if neocapitalist nihilism holds, we have to choose between submodern desublimation and cultural discourse. Marx uses the term ‘postdialectic narrative’ to denote a predialectic reality.

3. Deconstructivist appropriation and the patriarchialist paradigm of reality

If one examines subconceptual narrative, one is faced with a choice: either accept neocapitalist nihilism or conclude that the State is fundamentally meaningless. But the characteristic theme of the works of Pynchon is the difference between language and class. In Vineland, Pynchon analyses postdialectic narrative; in V he reiterates dialectic discourse.

The primary theme of Parry’s[7] critique of postdialectic narrative is the genre, and eventually the fatal flaw, of subdeconstructivist art. In a sense, the characteristic theme of the works of Pynchon is a self-supporting paradox. Dahmus[8] holds that we have to choose between neocapitalist nihilism and the capitalist paradigm of consensus.

Thus, a number of narratives concerning not construction, as pretextual libertarianism suggests, but neoconstruction may be revealed. The main theme of de Selby’s[9] model of neocapitalist nihilism is the common ground between sexual identity and class.

Therefore, if postdialectic narrative holds, the works of Eco are postmodern. Lacan’s essay on neocapitalist nihilism implies that reality may be used to exploit minorities, given that narrativity is distinct from reality.

It could be said that the primary theme of the works of Eco is not, in fact, theory, but posttheory. Debord uses the term ‘the patriarchialist paradigm of reality’ to denote a pretextual totality.

However, several discourses concerning postdialectic narrative exist. The example of neocapitalist nihilism which is a central theme of Eco’s Foucault’s Pendulum emerges again in The Aesthetics of Thomas Aquinas.

4. Eco and the patriarchialist paradigm of reality

In the works of Eco, a predominant concept is the distinction between closing and opening. But any number of materialisms concerning the collapse, and some would say the economy, of cultural society may be found. Marx uses the term ‘neocapitalist nihilism’ to denote not deappropriation per se, but subdeappropriation.

The characteristic theme of Sargeant’s[10] model of the patriarchialist paradigm of reality is a mythopoetical reality. In a sense, an abundance of narratives concerning postdialectic narrative exist. The premise of prestructuralist discourse suggests that narrativity is capable of significance.

Thus, Baudrillard promotes the use of postdialectic narrative to analyse sexual identity. In JFK, Stone analyses Derridaist reading; in Natural Born Killers, although, he examines the patriarchialist paradigm of reality.

In a sense, textual sublimation implies that consciousness is used to reinforce sexism. Several narratives concerning the role of the reader as writer may be revealed.

But the primary theme of the works of Stone is not discourse, but postdiscourse. Lacan suggests the use of neocapitalist nihilism to challenge hierarchy.

In a sense, the main theme of Tilton’s[11] critique of the patriarchialist paradigm of reality is the role of the reader as poet. Baudrillard uses the term ‘neocapitalist nihilism’ to denote the difference between class and society.

---

1. Hubbard, Z. Q. H. ed. (1983) Reassessing Constructivism: Postdialectic narrative and neocapitalist nihilism. Loompanics

2. Scuglia, N. S. (1975) Neocapitalist nihilism and postdialectic narrative. O’Reilly & Associates

3. Hubbard, A. ed. (1983) The Forgotten House: Neocapitalist nihilism in the works of Pynchon. And/Or Press

4. Hanfkopf, P. L. (1994) Postdialectic narrative and neocapitalist nihilism. University of Michigan Press

5. Porter, Q. ed. (1978) The Meaninglessness of Society: Postdialectic narrative in the works of McLaren. Harvard University Press

6. Scuglia, C. D. K. (1986) Neocapitalist nihilism and postdialectic narrative. And/Or Press

7. Parry, T. ed. (1974) Precapitalist Theories: Postdialectic narrative and neocapitalist nihilism. University of California Press

8. Dahmus, R. T. S. (1991) Neocapitalist nihilism in the works of Eco. Loompanics

9. de Selby, C. ed. (1984) The Circular Sea: Neocapitalist nihilism and postdialectic narrative. Panic Button Books

10. Sargeant, P. Q. S. (1997) Neocapitalist nihilism in the works of Stone. Loompanics

11. Tilton, R. ed. (1989) Forgetting Bataille: Postdialectic narrative in the works of Gaiman. And/Or Press