Farhan Sami Rather
The oldest signs of human settlement in the Kashmir valley are five to six thousand years old. The pre-historic sites found in North Kashmir date back to the neolithic and megalithic eras. This long history of ours shapes the current state of Kashmir. During the Buddhist era, the fourth council of Buddhism took place in Kashmir. This council distinctly divided Buddhism into two distinct sects: the Mahayana and the Hinayana.
Later, Kashmir would go through its Hindu and then the current Muslim phase. Lying on the silk road, the Kashmiri culture incorporated elements from various cultures into itself. Our culture and language are heavily influenced by the distinct cultures and languages of Eurasia. During this long history of ours, however, we, like all pre-modern kingdoms, witnessed constant invasions and hardships.
The Mughal annexation of Kashmir sealed the fate of the valley as a foreign governed state. Following the Mughals, Kashmir was ruled by the Afghans, then the Sikhs, then the Dogras and now it's in a divided condition. The current state of Kashmir is a product of the events of its long history. Our focus will be on the Kashmir valley, and I will simply refer to it as Kashmir.
On the one hand, one witnesses the developmental projects and children singing the Indian national anthem at schools, and on the other hand, killings, soring depression rates, suicides, economic disparities, drug abuse, murders and so on. Our valley is in quite an interesting position, where on the one hand, the people seem happy and welcoming to the tourists and on the other hand, they are losing the will to live fully. It's quite common for one to hear “saare chi pakaan davahas peath” i.e. all are functioning on medication. So why? one must wonder. Our common answers may include the lack of religiousness, the internet or the “western culture” that has penetrated our society.
A very defining feature of the Kashmiri society is the realization of our weaknesses, but the lack of motivation to do anything about it. We very well know that our institutions are corrupt, but we aren’t willing to do anything about it. We complain but don’t take any action because we are convinced that the fellow Kashmiri is too selfish to do anything for his brother. Then we witness the occasional incident of someone helping another selflessly and feel a wave of Kashmiriyat and then forget about it.
The current state of the valley is in such a state because we allow it to remain that way. When the people are corrupt, the institutions are corrupt. When parents aren’t good enough, children seek shelter in something else. When we temporarily ignore our problems, it's only obvious that we will have to face them in the future. So why are we the way we are? Why do we allow our institutions to remain corrupt and our youth to indulge in meaningless internet trends or drugs? The reason lies in our historical development.
The constant economic hardship, particularly after 2014 forces one to take selfish means. One doesn’t care about his neighbor when his children don’t have what they need. One gets involved in drugs because they can’t find such satisfaction elsewhere. The primary concern of the youth is to find a good source of money, not a way to help others. And we can’t blame ourselves for this. If we had opportunities for the youth in the fields of their liking, a happy enough environment for them to stay in, and understanding enough parents to learn from, they wouldn’t have to indulge into drugs or internet trends.
Of course, not all crime and problems would cease to exist if we were economically, politically and socially stable, but we surely would’ve been in a better place now. We don’t have anyone else to blame other than our historical development. It is our condition that has turned us into a divided society governed by self-interest. And therefore, if we want a better future, the answer doesn’t lie in tall buildings or roads, but rather facing our weaknesses and thinking materially, not ideally.
Despite the setbacks and cultural weaknesses, the Kashmiri society has achieved a lot in arts and sciences. Rasul Mir, Mehjoor and others are the great marvels of our literature that have written wonders. In contemporary times, a lot of our writers and scientists continue to make history. Dr. Suriya Rehman is the first female scientist from Kashmir to be featured consecutively in the list of top 2% global researchers published by Elsevier.
Going a bit into history, we have constantly fought for our rights. Kashmiris rebelled against the Sikh empire in the Poonch rebellion of 1837 and against the Dogra rule in the Poonch rebellion of 1947. The Quit Kashmir movement launched by Sheikh Abdullah in May 1946 aimed to end the Dogra rule in Kashmir. In 1947, the communists of Kashmir organized the people’s militia, with the goal of ending the Maharaja’s rule.
To quote from Andrew Whitehead’s paper “The People's Militia: Communists and Kashmiri nationalism in the 1940s”, “In autumn 1947 communists in the Indian princely state of Kashmir took the lead in organizing a people's militia, part of a mass mobilization which confirmed the end of princely rule and the advent to power of a radical Kashmiri nationalist movement.” The popular movement failed after the first Kashmir war.
Now to summarize, our current state is the way it is due to its historical development. Cursing our society won’t do us any good and only radical action and thinking can get us anywhere. Despite the weaknesses and evils of our society, we have done many remarkable things.
Author can be mailed at farhansami99909@gmail.com
