“A man is known by his past” is a saying. This proverb is very
in the case of nations. A country’s present and the dreams of its
food for thought. If it was a glorious, it inspires them to work for the
future are all inspired by its past. A nation’s past affords the people good
achievement of greater glory. If it was not so glorious, it helps them to
draw lessons for the future, avoid the committing of mistakes made by the
ancestors and to build up a present and a future that makes up for the past
and wash off the dark spots in its history. Achievements of the past in
various aspects of national life which come down to the present are
unknown as the heritage of a nation.
Since the establishment of Pakistan, a question that has been very
often asked is – “Does Pakistan really have a heritage? A small group of
people seem to be of the opinion that the situations and circumstances out
of which Pakistan was created deprive it of a heritage. They argue that
Pakistan before partition was a part of India. Its people were Indians.
Therefore, whatever Pakistan has as her heritage cannot be anything
separate and distinct from, Indians. In fact, if Pakistan at all has any
heritage, it is common with that of India.
The great majority of people, however, repudiate this contention.
They point out that the very fact that the areas comprising Pakistan
decided to set up a separate state for themselves prove that Pakistan’s
heritage was indifferent and distinct from India’s. For how, can a people,
one in their heritage, decide to break away from each other? The two-
nation theory itself proves that the heritage of the Pakistan is different
from the Indians. The fact that Muslims of Indian considered themselves
to be a separate nation proves that there Muslims have a separate heritage
from other Indians. For, how can a people not having a heritage separate
from others but common to themselves weld into a nation-hood?
A careful study of Indian history will easily prove that pakistan
has a separate and a rich heritage. The Muslims came to India as
conquerors and for the spread of Islam. Inspite of the attempts of some
Muslim rulers and their nobles Muslims and Hindus could not be merged
into one united whole. Throughout the Muslim rule, they lived as a separate community and mixed with Hindus only on the social level. This
social mixing of races too was conditioned by a number of limitations.
Thus the Hindu and Muslim heritage in India grew side by side but they
had, with the exception of a few similarities and common points, a
completely different origin and development.
The most important and prominent heritage of Pakistan lies in the
glorious past of the Musalmans which is derived from the glorious period
of Muslim history. The benevolent and patriotic rule of the Khalifas,
exploits of the Muslim heroes, conquests of Muslim armies in the face of
severe odds, and their rule over a substantial part of the globe in Europe,
Asia and Africa, the proverbial Muslim unity, fraternity and brotherhood,
these are the rich inheritance of the Musalmans of Pakistan. In more
recent times, the benevolent rule of the Muslim rulers in India over a vast
part of its territory spreading from the slopes of the Hindu Kush to the
shores of the Bay of Bengal, the wealth, progress and prosperity that
existed in India under these rules, provide a proud past and rich heritage.
These make the Pakistanis look back to the glories of their race and
inspires them to work for the achievement of the same glory and make it
the goal for the future of their beloved Pakistan.
The Great Mughals did not give the indian Muslims only a rich
political heritage. The richness of their heritages is clearly seen in other
fields of life too. Babur laid the foundations of the Mughal Empire in India
and his bravery, his literary tastes and his determination enriched, Mughal
history. His Grandson. Akbar, though illiterate, is famous for his
innovations in administration and Government, his toleration and keen
interest in all religious and faiths, his taste for literature and his ear for
music, and the numerous buildings he left behind as monuments of his
reign, which even today inspire awe and admiration for this great
Emperor. Jehangir was famous for his administration of justice, an equal
example of which is not found in any period of Indian history, Hindu or
Muslim. Both Jehangir and Shah Jehan, besides buildings, have left behind
as an example to the import of their strong character mainfested in their
love for their queens, human emotions and sentiments. In fact, the
Mughals have bequeatheed to the Muslims of India such a rich heritage
that their age is known as the “Golden Period” in the pages of India
history.
In the field of art and architectrue Pakistan’s heritage is no less
rich. Turkish architecture is famous all the world over. This architecture was brought to India by the Mughals and its blending with Hindus
chitecture gave rise to a new architecture in Indian History known as
1 architecture. The glaring and world famous example of this
; architecture is the Taj Mahal Agra besides a huge number of
famous buildings of the Mughal days. The Red Fort in New Delhi,
Fatehpur Sikri, the Shalimar Garden at Lahore. All remind us of the days
of Muslim glory in India. It is a pity that most of these Muslims glorious
buildings happen to be in India. But, nevertheless this does not deprive
Pakistan of the pride of a rich heritage in this field.
In art as well as in architecture the pride of a place goes again to
the Muslim Mughals. Paintings and sketches of the days of Jehangir and
Shah Jehan draw admiration from all parts of the world and are admired
even today.
The field of literature is glorious. Muslim literature throughout
the centuries has been famous for its richness. Turkish and Persian
literature of the Mughal days, Urdu literature of the subsequent period is
famous in the annals of literary history. Bengali, one of the two state
Languages of Pakistan, has a rich literature matched by few other Indian
languages and the contributions made to it by Muslims writers have not
been meant by any standards. The Punjabi language is rich in folk lore and
songs, romantic.poetry and the famous legends of Heer-Ranjha and Sussi
Punnon.
By all standards of human understanding Pakistan has a rich
heritage in all conceivable fields of human life. It is our duty not only to
preserve that heritage but also to work for the greater glory of our past
and present. We must bring ourselves to the same standards which was the
glory of our ancestors. We must put the nation and country out of the
backwardness and sloth in which it has been thrown by countries of
foreign rule and our own laziness and mistakes..
Religion has always been the bedrock of Muslim’s civilisation and
culture, in which a very great strees has been laid on sprititual values. The
good of life is the comminion with the Supreme. It is a life of realisation,
an inner intritive vision of good, when man achieves absolute freedom and
escapes from the blind servitude to ordinary experience. It is a subtle
interwovennes with the read it lies of the spiritual wored. This brings out
the distinction between intellectual recognition and sprititual realisation.
We can free ourselves from the shackless of the body and in a split second we can see the truth and be overcome by it. The record of these
experiences in The Quran.
