"Today they are not here, who bitterly wept,
The Opening
Ali Ahmed Brohi...click, one of the most respected writers and influential literati of the Sindhi history and language has written an excellent book, "History On The Tombstones : Sind and Baluchistan," which bears a true testimony to the richness of Sindhi heritage. Within these pages, we shall be reproducing some salient features from that vast treatise on our heritage.
The unwillingness of Scyths to give battle
But the Scythian king proudly replied:
"This is my way, Persian. I never fear men or fly from them.
I have not done so in the past, nor do I fly from thee.
There is nothing new or strange in what I do;
I only follow my common mode of life in peaceful years.
Now I will tell thee why I do not at once join battle with thee.
We Scythians have neither towns nor cultivated lands,
which might induce us, through fear of their being taken
or ravaged, to be in any hurry to fight you. If, however,
you must need come to blows with us speedily, look you
now, there are our fathers' tombs - seek them out and
attempt to meddle with them - then ye shall see whether
or not we will fight with you. Till ye do this, be sure
we shall not join battle unless it pleases us. This is
my answer to the challenge to fight."
A shooting star makes a shining furrow across the sky and then sinks into darkness for ever. Same is the case with civilizations. Same is the case with man. Man's sojourn in this world is very brief but even during this short period he strives to achieve all that might make himself happier, with the puerile craze of a child running after a butterfly.
He braves roaring hurricanes of adversity, faces calamities and bears many stings of grief, and remains optimistic, for he knows life is both a thorn and a rose, a pain and a healer. Every dying 'today' adds to the dejection, but every unborn 'tomorrow' brings hope of a rosy prospect. So rolls the wheel of time.
Sometimes streaks of light pierce the pervading gloom and sometimes darkness stubbornly persists till death and finally brings down the curtain on the drama of life. But the web of desire, joy and sorrow, woven around the man with golden threads of worldly charm, is so intricate, so strong, that he cannot easily extricate himself from it and see what lies beyond this earthly existence.
And when he does, he finds to his dismay the path of life leading to a yawning chasm of oblivion. He is reminded of the great universal truth - death, an eternal farewell to this pretty world any time and a complete effacement of the physical self.
The image is dreadful, like a walking human skeleton and with it melt the trappings of romance. Disillusioned with life, man by and by feels he is drifting away from this glamorous world towards the hushed loneliness which stretches to the rim of the horizon and beyond. But the desire to live at all costs, to defy fate by any means possible, stirs in his bosom. Restless that he is, he finally seeks consolation
in the thought that he can at least survive in the memory of people after he ceases to exist physically in this world. A partial victory over death it would be, and it would tend to preserve his individuality, reduced to eerie nothingness of name though it may be.
This urge of man to live is widely manifested all over the world in the shape of so many things, ranging from public utility institutions and buildings to tombs and mausoleums, which in some cases were commissioned by the departing during their lifetime, while in other cases they were built as desired by them or, out of sheer love and reverence by people who wanted to preserve the cherished memory of someone with a tinge of pride.
In these pages of this wonderful medium they call Cyberspace, we are going to tell the story, as told ny Ali Ahmed Brohi in his monumental work, "History On Tombstones : Sindh and Baluchistan." of the tombs of warrior tribesmen found in large number in various parts of Sindh...click. These monuments are relics from a remote past and as such present interesting studies to all, especially, the children of mother Sindh, who may wish to look back to the beautiful culture of Indus Valley civilization - the treasured heritage of Sindh.
"Let my glance fly over the boundaries,
And see my native land;
Don't cut off the chain that binds,
My soul with my heritage.
How can I live without my culture,
Which has its roots in Sind?"
........Arjan Shaad (Sarhad-a je hun-a paar-i)
Strange phases of history have gone into the making of what is called 'Sindhi Culture' which is
a composite culture that partakes the finest that is in Man's
spiritual and temporal life. This culture is strikingly distinct in
its secular and humanistic content. The inhabitants of the Indus
Valley were the most peaceful people living in ancient times. No
traces of weapons or aggressive traits are found in that civilization.
Popati Hiranandani, in "History of Sindhi Literature", Chapter II on "Partition of the Country and its Socio-Economic
Effects" says, "Sind, throughout the ages had been invaded by the people from the
North-West, but all these diverse races and religions that penetrated
this region were somehow absorbed by and fused with the ancient
inheritors fo the Mohan-jo-Daro culture."
The sufistic faith of the universality of man's brotherhood that was propogated in Persia, found a fertile ground in Sindh. The faith moulded the life of the people in Sind for many centuries and it became the indigenous creed that was accepted by both Muslims and Hindus of Sind. Most of the works in Sindhi literature of the past reflect that spirit. It is a proud chapter of the cultural heritage of Sindhis.
Sindhi Sufism is a harmonious blending fo the finest values of both
Vedantic and Islamic cultures. The axiom of Sachal "I am neither a
Hindu nor a Muslim," shows the dynamic tradition of the most secular
philosophy of humanism which nurtured the intrinsic fabric of the mind
of a Sindhi. Sachal, and other Sindhi poets, were blunt in their criticism
of the dominant Mullahs and the orthodox fanatical Hindus. They
denounced Mullahs and the Pundits [who] declared them heretics.
"People think Mullahs are on fast,
But they are having their milk secretly.
Look at these dishonest persons,
They cannot carry themselves,
But they boast of carrying the sins of others!"
.............Shah Hussain
"Diin (Religion) and Kufr (unbelief) are snares for the heart."
..........Sachal
"Lahiruun lakha libaasa,
Parnia pasarnu hekro."
.........Bhitai
"Though the forms of waves differ,
Water pervades them all."
..........Bhitai
The legacy of all-embracing love for mankind has made Sindhis
cosmopolitan in outlook and universal in temper. Their social
structure is not ridden with prejudices of caste, colour or creed.
In Sind, the relations between Muslims and the Hindus were very cordial. Both had access to the houses of each other. The evening prayer of a rustic Sindhi would invariably be "God's blessings be on Hindus, on Muslim and on the rest."
Both Sindhi Hindus and Muslims do not harbour any race conscious prejudices. Even the descendants of Negro slaves whom the Arabs brought with them, live peacefully in Sind..
Hindus and Muslims co-existed in love and friendship for centuries. A Sindhi Hindu bows down in front of a holy Dargah [shrine] without any hestitation and Sindhi Muslim calls God Varuna Zindah Piir [The Living Saint]. Prof. Ram Panjawani's memorable story "Mohammad Gadi a waro" (Mohammad the Carraige Driver [cf. Lord Krishna's role in the Gita]) and Narain Bharati's story 'Dastavez' [The Document] portray the communal harmony which existed between the Hindus and Muslims of Sind before partition.
A Sindhi never speaks about wars and conquests, aggressive adventures or religious crusades. He sings devotional songs to his water god [jhule lal], dances to the rhythmic tunes of wedding songs and composes poems which express the fidelity of love and attachment to his soil.
Click here for...The Study Of Tombs And Graves
Click here for...The Chowkhundi Tombs of Sindh
Click here for...The Makli Tombs In Thatta District of Sindh
Click here for...The Thatta Mosque
Click here for...The Roots Of Sindhi Civilization
Click here for...The Hala Mosque
Sindh - My Motherland My Fatherland
Makhdoom's Quest For The Truth
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