Amar Guriro

In Pakistan’s Sindh province’s city of Jacobabad, founded by Brigadier-General John Jacob, an officer of the British East India Company, places of worship belonging to three different religions are located side by side. A Hindu Temple, Christian Church and Muslim Mosque are all adjacent to one another.

Located on the city’s Shikarpur Road, this religious complex representing three different faiths is considered by locals to be a hub of interfaith harmony and tolerance in a time of growing religious extremism. These places of worship are built in a row. On one end is the Hindu Gaushala and temple, and on the other a mosque. In the middle, stands a Baptist church.

Any evening, worship takes place in all the three holy places. In the temple, bells are rung and hymns are sung over loudspeakers, while in the church, the sound of religious songs is heard. The Muslim call to prayer, the adhan, resounds from the mosque.

Sharon Yousaf, pastor of the Baptist church in Jacobabad told Independent Urdu: “The three places of worship are together and their walls are side by side. But despite this, no untoward incident has taken place since the establishment of Pakistan. Believers of all three religions respect each other’s places of worship and treat each other with respect.

“Worship is held in our church in the evenings where we sing hymns. Devotional songs are also played on loudspeakers in the Hindu temple. However, when the Muslim call to prayer is made, they turn off the loudspeakers out of respect.”

According to Pastor Sharon Joseph, the land on which the church was built originally belonged to the Hindu Gaushala. During the colonial period, Christians who came to the city with the brigadier-general were gifted this land by the local Hindus so that they might build a place of worship for themselves.

“When Pakistan was established, many Christians settled here and a proper church was built. This church is about 80-years-old,” the pastor added. “The mystical land of Sindh is a peaceful home for religious harmony. Jacobabad in particular has never seen religious conflict and we all dwell in love.”

“During religious festivals, we invite one another to join in. This place is a perfect example of religious harmony. If anyone is facing a problem, we all help them regardless of faith.”

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Courtesy: Amar Guriro/Independent Urdu/SG News (Posted on 14 January 2022)

The post The city in Sindh where church, mosque and temple stand side by side first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro

There are many historical villages in Talagnag tehsil of Chakwal district. One such village is Singwala, which is located about 18 km from Talagang, on the Talagang-Tamman Road. On this road are several villages which host some historical monuments. Amongst these, Singwala village is quite prominent. According to Tariq Mehmood Malik, the historian and writer, the word Singwala is derived from Sing/Seeng (horns). Malik, who is writing a book on the history of villages of Talagang tehsil, notes that two brothers, Saeda (Saeed) and Lisso who belonged to the Rehan lineage of the Awan tribe, from Abaki village, first settled in this village. Dhoke Abaki is located about 10 km from Singwala and lies on the bank of the Soan River. It is the oldest settlement of the Rehan lineage of the Awan tribe who migrated from this village and founded other villages in Talagang and Lawa tehsils. The history and migration of Rehan Awans of Dhoke Abaki to other villages have been discussed in detail in Tarikh-e-Budhial by Muhammad Ghaus.

The Singwala village takes its name from the deer horns (Seeng/Sing) that both brothers decorated on the main entrance to their house. People of other settlements recognized the house of both brothers as Singwala, those with horns, and hence due to this appellation, the village came to be called Singwala. Apart from the early history of the village, today it is noted for a grand mosque which is believed to have been built in 1939. During my interviews with the residents of villages, I came to know that the construction work of the mosque started in 1925 and was completed in 1939. It took 14 years to complete the mosque. The same dates are also written on the base of a pillar which was added during a renovation of the mosque in 1993.

There are several historical mosques in Talagang and Lawa tehsils – which are mainly famous for their woodwork, paintings and stone engravings. The majority of these mosques have either been renovated or rebuilt now. The oldest mosque of Talagang tehsil is located in Khichian village and was built during the reign of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb (r.1658-1707).

The Jamia mosque of Singwala village, now called Jamia Masjid Farooq-e-Azam, is noted for its impressive paintings and woodwork – a level of craftsmanship which is not seen in any other mosque in Talagang tehsil today. Sirajuddin, the famous mason of Pachnand village in Lawa tehsil, built Singwala Jamia mosque. He was also assisted by his son to dress the stones which were brought from a hill stream. Sirajuddin was a celebrated painter, wood carver, and mason of Pachnand village. He also constructed a mosque in his native village Pachnand which was locally called Tanki Wali Masjid. It was demolished in February 2022 and a new mosque is built which is now called Masjid Khatim-ul-Nabieen (SAW). It was a stone-built mosque which was decorated with paintings. The distinctive feature of the mosque was painted wooden ceilings, doorways, and stone carvings which reflected the dexterity of Sirajuddin Mistri.  It is said that the foundation stone of Tanki wali Masjid was laid by Pir Chan Charag of Kalabagh who was originally from Lucknow. He used to visit his disciples in Pachnanad and other villages.  His shrine is located in Mochi Mohalla in Pachnand village.

According to Ahwal-e-Talagang by Hamdam Kami (2017), Pir Chan Charag of Kalabagh also used to visit his disciples in Singwala village. They used to ask their followers to build a grand mosque in the village. There was already a small mosque in the village. On the instruction of their spiritual mentor Pir Chan Charag of Kalabagh, the villagers decided to build a grand mosque. It is said that Pir Chan Charag himself supervised the construction of a mosque – for which he sometimes stayed for six months in Singwala village.

According to Hamdam Kami, one Munshi Ghulam Hussain of Singwala village also played a very important role. He worked in Delhi and took Sirajuddin Mistri to Agra and Delhi to show him Mughal monuments. He wanted Sirajuddin Mistri to build a similar impressive mosque in Singwala village. Whether he visited the Mughal monuments of Delhi and Agra or not, but Sirajuddin’s architectural prowess had no parallel in Talagang tehsil. Both men and women contributed to the construction of the mosque. Women of the village also presented their jewelry so that the construction work of the mosque should not be hampered due to financial issues.  The villagers even helped bring stones from a hill stream. The mason Sirajuddin took several years to dress the stone blocks and slabs which were used in the mosque. This is the only surviving stone-built mosque in Singwala and neighboring villages which has paintings.

One enters the mosque through the gateway to the spacious courtyard which has now been rebuilt.  The façade of the mosque which depicted stone carvings is now entirely covered with tiles which were added during the renovation in 1993. The famous mason Baba Hayat of Leti village in Lawa tehsil of Chakwal district renovated the mosque. The Singwala Jamia mosque comprises two-aisled prayer halls. The domes are placed on the front aisle instead of the rear hall. The front hall is divided into a bay and two aisles. From the front hall, three doorways lead to the main prayer hall of the mosque.

The central doorway is intricately carved and carries a variety of floral designs. One does not find such a highly engraved wooden doors in any other mosque in Talagang tehsil. However, one can see similarly magnificent wooden doors in the Jamia mosque of Ranjha village, Jamia mosque of Chawli village, and Jamia mosque of Fim Kassar villages in Chakwal tehsil. The famous masons and woodcarvers of Chawli Ghulam Ahmed and Ghulam Muhammad, Muhammad Yasin of Ranjha village and Muhammad Khan of Fim Kassar made wooden doors respectively which were used in the mosques. These doors are still extant in respective mosques. Like Sirajuddin of Pachnand, Ghulam Yasin, Ghulam Ahmed, Ghulam Muhammad, and Muhammad Khan were also famous masons and woodcarvers who were known for their skillful craftsmanship.

According to Abdul Rahman Shad (2008), the author of Tarikh-e-Talagang, nails weighing three mounds were used in the central door of the mosque – reflecting how much labor, time and creativity it took, as not a single nail is visible and hidden in the thickness of the wooden door. Every wooden piece on the door reflects his mastery over the art of craftsmanship.

Apart from this central door, there is another carved wooden door that is fixed on the outer eastern wall of the mosque and opens to the front aisle. It is also exquisitely carved and carries a variety of floral and geometric designs.

Both halls of the Singwala Jamia mosque, front and rear, are painted. However, many of the paintings are lost now due to renovation in 1993. Only domed ceilings and the zone of the transition retain the painting work. A variety of floral designs are painted on the domed ceilings and the mihrab of the mosque.

The Jamia Mosque Singwala is the most impressive structure in terms of decoration in Talagang tehsil. The decoration was done by Sirajuddin, who died in the 1950s – but still lives on through the creative work that he left behind on the domed ceilings, stone crafted facades and walls of the mosques.

Every motif – be it woodwork, stone craft or painted murals – by Sirajuddin manifests itself like magic in masonry!

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Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro, an anthropologist, has authored 12 books: ‘Symbols in Stone: The Rock Art of Sindh’, ‘Perspectives on the art and architecture of Sindh’, ‘Memorial Stones: Tharparkar’ and ‘Archaeology, Religion and Art in Sindh’. He may be contacted at: zulfi04@hotmail.com

Courtesy: The Friday Times Naya Daur Lahore

The post Singwala – A village named after deer horns first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro

My several years of fieldwork from 2000 to 2020 in Darel and Tangir in Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan have revealed interesting facts about the religion, history and heritage of the valley. I visited the main villages in both the lower as well as upper valley for this purpose, and met many oral historians and village intellectuals to have discussions on these topics. As such, there are still some village intellectuals and oral historians in Tangir valley who know its history. I was interested to know their ancient religious ceremonies, practices, genealogies, how population dispersed from one settlement to others in the valley, when and from where immigrants came, how the social organization was formed, how each of the caste claim ownership rights, how caste relationships work, the position of craftsmen and particularly that of woodcarvers, the position of women and children in the valley, and above all, as to when the Islam came to this valley. In addition to these, I had so many other questions.

Through discussions, I came to know that about five hundred years ago the inhabitants of Tangir valley greatly venerated the cow. In fact, it can be said that cow-worship was prevalent amongst the population. The Tangir valley was divided into two parts, lower and upper, locally called ‘Rom.’ The lower valley was ruled by Shigli whose dominion began from Lorkah to Jaglot. The territory of Doro, the ruler of the upper valley or Gabar, started from the Darqali Pain to Koranga Bala extending to the Satil meadow, which was known for iron ore (locally called ‘Chimar gu’). The remains of the fortress of Shigli can still be seen near Jaglot. Likewise, the remains of Doro’s villages and fortress are also found in Dorogah, which is named after him. Dorogah, a nullah, connects Tangir with Gayal Nullah in Darel valley. At the beginning of Dorogah and near Khip village are the remains of Shikari Thoki which are said to have been erected by Doro. There are also remains of the fortress near Dabas which are also associated with Doro. The ancient remains of the water channel in Gachhar Nullah are also associated with Doro. The water channel was excavated during the reign of Doro.

Both Shigli and Doro ruled their respective kingdoms until they were overthrown by Khachelo, Maguno and Sobo. Breno then challenged their rule, and killed Sobo whose descendants now live in Sobo Kot. He also killed Shigli, the ruler of the Lorakh and Jaglot Roms, who imposed heavy tax (Kalang) on the inhabitants of Gabar Rom. Breno came along with his friend Yagri from the lower Indus valley. Both Maguno and Khachelo were fighting over natural resource distribution. Breno persuaded both to amicably agree to the distribution of natural resources, which both accepted. Afterwards, Maguno was swept away in the floodwaters of Gachhar Nullah. Khachelo gave his daughter in marriage to Breno. Afterwards, Breno became the ruler of the Gabar Rom (area).

Breno was the ancestor of the Shins of the Gabar area in Tangir. It is believed that Breno was the first ruler who developed the indigenous system of natural resource management in Gabar in the Tangir valley. The descendants of Breno who embraced Islam now live in Darqali Pain, Darqali Bala, Phapat, Bagut, Dabas and Mushke. Khachelo, after whom Khachelogah is named, was the ancestor of the Kamin caste in the Gabar area, who now mostly live in Mushke village. The descendants of Doro live in Faruri village. Maguno had no male child but six daughters. The descendants of Yagri, the friend of Breno, live in Mushke.

These valleys, including Tangir, were used as routes by pilgrims and traders in the past. There are several stupas and fire altar images engraved on the boulders at the Shatial rock art site

Khami Kot was the principal fortified village in Gabar in Tangir. When the population converted to Islam in the 16th century, the Jamia mosque was built by the residents of the village. Sufis saints from Swat converted the inhabitants of Tangir to Islam. Later when the population of Khami Kot increased, the prominent heads of their lineages moved to found new villages. From Khami Kot they moved to other villages where today the descendants of Doro, Khachelo, Sobo, Yagri and Breno are living. All of them founded villages in Gabar Rom.

Now, Gabar Rom or the region in upper Tangir valley, occupies an important place in the annals of the valley. Even the term Gabar is interesting, which merits some attention and investigation by the scholars who are working on ancient religions in Hindu Kush. Based on my research among the communities in the Hindu Kush and Himalayas in northern Pakistan, I believe that this term is probably related to Zoroastrians. Fire worshippers or Zoroastrians were known by different names and the term Gabar was probably one among the lot. There is also a village with the same name in Darel valley. Right from Darel and Tangir to Indus Kohistan and Swat-Kohistan I noticed place names like Gabar, Gabrial etc. Even in Balochistan and Sindh ancient water reservoirs or ancient dams which are locally called Gabar band/ Gabarband or Gor band/Gorbandi are believed to have been built by the Gabars or Zoroastrians. Not much has been written on place names of northern Pakistan. I think some students of anthropology; sociology or comparative religion should do some research on ancient religions and place names in Northern Pakistan. I believe that with their findings and analyses many unanswered questions will be answered and many facts will come to light. These researches will further provide a springboard to young scholars to further investigate the ancient religions of these regions.

This shows that apart from Hindus, significant populations of Buddhists and Zoroastrians also lived in the Tangir valley. The Shatial rock art site showcases the presence of both religious communities in the region. And Tangir is not far away from Shatial. These valleys, including Tangir, were used as routes by pilgrims and traders in the past. There are several stupas and fire altar images engraved on the boulders at the Shatial rock art site. Even signs and symbols used in the vernacular architecture of the Tangir valley may provide many missing links about the ancient religions of these regions.

I visited all historic wooden mosques of Tangir including Diamer, Sheikh and Khamikot. I also heard that there were also historic wooden mosques in Phapat, Koranga, Dabas and Faruri villages which were rebuilt between 1980 and 1990. The Faruri mosque was noted for intricate wood carvings. It was demolished in 1982 and a new mosque was built by the villagers in 1983. A famous mason and woodcarver of Faruri village, Feroz Khan, built the mosque. I met him several times and enquired about the scheme of decoration and architecture of the old mosque. According to him, Faruri mosque was a real prototype of the Khami Kot mosque. Sir Aurel Stein during the reign of Pakhtun Wali Khan (1905-1917) visited some historic wooden mosques in Tangir. Paktun Wali Khan ruled Tangir, Darel and some valleys in Indus Kohistan from 1905 to 1917. He was killed by Tangiris in Lorakh village in 1917.

Sir Aurel Stein mentioned and provided a photo of the wooden mosque of Faruri in his book Innermost Asia Vol. 1. The old mosque of Faruri was probably built by Jaloti or his son Laskar, who were the descendants of Doro, the ruler of Gabar. The fifth generation of Doro namely Chutho, Soti, Yoshir, Dudoki and Dodar remained non-Muslims. From the sixth generation, Jaloti embraced Islam. The descendants of Doro known as Laskare, Mirzakhane and Butote live in Faruri village. Later some migrated to the Yasin valley. When Jaloti embraced Islam, either he or his son Laskar – after whom the Laskare lineage is named – laid the foundation of a mosque in Faruri village.

The oldest surviving mosque in Tangir is located in Khami Kot. All others have been rebuilt. The Khami Kot mosque is an identity marker of the Tangir valley. Mud, stones and timber were used in the construction of the mosque. It is located on the left bank of the Tangir River. The Jami mosque Khami Kot is noted for floral and geometric designs which are carved on the door, pillars, and arched entrances of the mosque.

This mosque has a rectangular prayer hall, covered verandah, hujra and ablution area. The overall edifice consists of six arched openings on the south and two on the west. These are highly carved, presenting geometric and floral motifs. The roof of the verandah rests on four pillars with each pillar having bracket capitals with double volutes. An ornately carved door from the covered verandah opens to the main prayer hall. The roof of the prayer hall rests on nine square and octagonal pillars. The carvings on these pillars look dim now as smoke billowing out from the fireplace has blackened both the pillars and ceiling of the mosque.

There are two mihrabs in the mosque, both of which are indicated by triangular wooden plaques. The western square corner pillar of the mosque is ornately carved, depicting geometric and floral motifs.

Newly built mosques in Tangir are greatly inspired by the decoration scheme of the Khami Kot mosque. The woodcarvers of Tangir take inspiration from the Khami Kot mosque while engravings doors and pillars.

To the east of the mosque are some wooden coffins which are noted for intricate wood carvings. There also used to be the Shikari (watch tower) of Dost Muhammad east of the mosque, which was a century-old structure that was demolished in 2009.

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Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro, an anthropologist, has authored 12 books: ‘Symbols in Stone: The Rock Art of Sindh’, ‘Perspectives on the art and architecture of Sindh’, ‘Memorial Stones: Tharparkar’ and ‘Archaeology, Religion and Art in Sindh’. He may be contacted at: zulfi04@hotmail.com

Courtesy: The Friday Times Naya Daur Lahore

The post About The Religious History and Heritage of Tangir first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Vinita Govindarajan

It’s dusk in Chennai. The warm evening light streams in from behind the two white minarets of the Wallajah mosque in Triplicane. In the spacious front yard, more than 50 men wearing white fez caps wait silently. A little before the evening prayers begin in the 220-year-old mosque, a yellow truck swings into the driveway. The men immediately spin into action, unloading metal containers of porridge, biscuits, bananas and vadas.

As they have done for the past four decades, Sindhi volunteers from the Sufidar Trust – who follow the teachings of Dada Ratanchand, a Partition refugee who settled in Chennai – have gathered to serve iftaar, the meal that ends the daily fast during the month of Ramzan.

The trust aims to spread the teachings of the Sufi saint Shahenshah Baba Nebhraj Sahib of Rohri, Sindh. “We believe all Gods are one, only people have turned it into different sects,” said Govind Bharwani, who has been a volunteer with the Trust almost since its inception. “That is what our guruji told us.”

Every afternoon, followers of Dada Ratanchand gather at the temple of The Sufidar Trust to offer du’aa, or prayer, to the Sufi saint Baba Dastageer. This is a large room with statues of Hindu gods and goddesses, Jesus Christ, the Sindhi river god Jhoolailum and pictures of several Sufi saints.

Most of the people here are second-generation Partition refugees from Sindh. Jaikishan Kukreja, a businessman, said that his grandfather had traveled to Bombay during the Partition, and had heard an announcement in the railway station about trains going to Chennai. “My father’s brother was already here in Chennai at that time,” said Kukreja. “So everyone traveled here.”

Kukreja’s father was a hawker on Godown Street in Central Chennai. “He used to sell long cloth that used to be brought in from other states,” said Kukreja. “That’s how he came up in life.”

Godown Street in Central Chennai is still known for its low-priced, wholesale textile shops, a business that was once popular among the Sindhi refugees. Dada Ratanchand himself worked in a shop at Godown Street before he took up a spiritual path.

Call to prayer

At the Wallajah mosque, more than thousand Sunni Muslim devotees filed into the courtyard, seating themselves in rows in front of the mosque. They will break their fast before going in to pray. The members of the trust wasted no time in serving the food. Although they do not know why their teacher has chosen this particular mosque to serve, they believe that this is tradition allows them to work actively together as a community.

“We call it seva,” says Govind Bharwani. “Our guruji started this many years ago and we are continuing with it. He began this tradition because he just felt like doing it. Nobody objects to this from the mosque also.”

The Wallajah mosque, also known as the Big Mosque, was built in 1795 by Muhammed Ali Wallajah, the Eighth Nawab of Arcot in Triplicane. One of the most striking features of the mosque is a chronogram composed in Persian by Rajah Makkan Lal, the Nawab’s private secretary.

About four decades ago, at Dada Ratanchandji’s request, the mosque authorities granted the Sufidar members permission to distribute food at the mosque. Ever since, there has been an understanding between the mosque authorities and the Trust that iftaar will be distributed by the Sufidar members. “We have never really coordinated with the mosque to do this,” says Bharwani. “We just come here every year ourselves.”

Suhail Ahmed, a volunteer of the Wallajah mosque, said that in most other places, they don’t allow people from other communities to distribute food. But this period is special. “Eid is a time when we can all come together,” he said. “That is one reason why we continue this tradition. We look at this as a time for brotherhood and to meet people, be it Hindus, Muslims or anyone.”

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Courtesy: Scroll

The post For decades, Sindhi volunteers help worshippers at a Chennai mosque break their Ramzan fast first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Istanbul

A Rabbi who took shelter in a Turkish mosque during a massive snowstorm in Istanbul that ravaged the Turkish metropolis a few days ago has finally arrived in his native Israel.

Elbom, a 62-year-old rabbi and kashrut supervisor who was on a work assignment in Istanbul, was brought to a mosque by security forces after being stranded on a highway for half a day, local daily Hurriyet reported.

Speaking to reporters at Istanbul Airport prior to his scheduled flight to Tel Aviv, Elbom said that he spent the night in the warm mosque and that people were helpful to him.

“The people were very nice and helped us,” he noted, adding that he later offered the Shacharit morning prayers along with Muslim worshipers.

He also said that Turkey’s chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Mendy Chitrik assisted with the evacuations.

“My friend Rabbi Elbaum was also at the E-5 traffic pile-up in Istanbul – he took it in good spirits,” Chitrik said on Twitter.

Elbaum was in Istanbul as part of his job as a controller for kosher food, checking if companies abide by the requirements of Jewish law.

“Hundreds of travelers are stranded all over the country – due to the heavy snowstorm. I keep on getting calls to supply Kosher food from [Turkish provinces of] Antalya and Ankara to Trabzon,” he added, sharing a video of Elbaum on the car where he was stranded.

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Courtesy: The AsiaN

The post Tolerance: Israeli Rabbi takes shelter in Istanbul mosque first appeared on Sindh Courier.