Essence of
Kashmiriyat
By Tribhuwan N. Bhan
Your* phone call on the occasion of Janamashtami, to
remind me to observe that day
as a vegetarian day and abstain
from all non-vegetarian food, speaks
volumes about the roots of our culture
and tradition, ‘Kashmiriyat’. The basisof this thought is Sufism.
Both Sufism and Kashmiriyat have
the history of tolerance and unity. The
poet saint Noorudin Noorani Known as
Nund Rishi preached this and implored
on the people to live in communal
harmony. Not only did Nund Rishi, but
Lalded, Samad Mir, Shamas Faqir,
Parmanand, Krishanjoo
Razdan, Zindlal Kaul all
belonging to the Kashmir
Valley had the same
identical lookout on life. It is
most surprising to realize
that the thoughts of these
men of high thinking ran
parallel to “Trika”philosophy. It is this concept that blended Shaivism and
Islam. This blending of the
synthesis of the two ways of
life brought the Bhakti
Movement, which proved to
be one of the glorious periods of Indian
History. It is most important for all
Kashmiris to know that Kashmiriyat is
the blending of Islam and Shaivism. The
message of Kashmiriyat is to
understand the essence of all religions.
One must follow one’s religion in letter and spirit, at the same time one has to
respect all other religions. This has been
the message of the greatest leaders like
Buddha, Ashoka,
Gandhi and Akbar. They
preached the message of
Universal Brotherhood.
It was the same message
propagated by our own
Monarch Zainulabdin–Badshah, the most tolerant and just ruler Kashmir ever
had.
To accept the teachings of these
great men of tolerance, we have to
transform our mindset and strive to
create 'Sufi-thinking' in the minds of
all inhabitants of the Valley.
Dearest friend, I feel I am
overwhelming you with my
thoughts, but your telephone
call to me when the annual
festivities at Kheerbhawani
was being observed, left an
indelible imprint on my psyche and has drawn me to
write this epistle to you. I
shall forever treasure the
sound of your voice. As a
small child the old
inhabitants of Tullamulla
told me that it is the abode
of Maa Ragnya. I pray that
she shower her blessings on you and
all the members of your family, so that
you have nothing but contentment and
happiness all along.
* Excerpts from author's letter to his school-mate Mir Inayatullah, former Chief Warden of Wild-life, J&K Govt
Source: Milchar
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