BaniOdam

By Aafiyat Nazar The famous Urdu poet Ghalib once reportedly said that he was half-Muslim. The context in which Ghalib declared himself as half-Muslim was different one, whereby he said so. I am not a competent authority to declare somebody, Muslim, non-Muslim or half-Muslim. However, on the basis of the saying of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) that “cleanliness is half-faith”, it may be interpreted that those who have cleanliness have half faith or they are half-Muslims. Similarly, the so called Muslims who do not possess cleanliness or are less careful about the cleanliness be it at their home, workplace or overall surroundings are at least not full Muslims without going into the delicate dimensions of the practice of one’s faith. Thus, in today’s world on the basis of the Prophet’s verdict, majority of the population of the Muslims living across the globe appear to be at least not full-Muslims. The reasons are obvious as they live in unhygienic conditions, unaware and insensitive about ...

A couple of years back, a government high official, pronounced on World Mountain Day that “the environmental problem is created by the western and industrialised world. Our, the developing world’s contribution to this issue is just 0.000000001 per cent”. I got an impression that the so-called learned bureaucrat not only discouraged the organisers of the event, he also encouraged the audience which included other government officials, community members, teachers, and students to remain aloof about our environment. Irrespective of questioning his remarks on the reliability of the statistics, every sensible person will definitely question his act of inciting the public to retire from their responsibilities. In the presence of the ministry of environment and national environment policy, let the international hue and cry on the soaring environmental problems and their implications aside, I was shocked by his vehement remarks. Photo credit: Freepik Such remarks and apathy are not e...

I s our past so ugly that we cannot dare to show it to our succeeding generations? Apparently, the answer is yes. K.K. Aziz (1993) stated that in Pakistan teachers do not “…teach or lecture but repeat what history book contains and the student is encouraged or simply ordered to memorize its contents”. The underlying assumption with this philosophy of teaching and learning is that the young generations will conform and accept “our ideology”. Photo Credit: freepik That is why prevalent approach of learning history is memorization, which implies that history is made of certain “facts” and “fixed interpretations”. Consequently, such approach obscure and distort history. Therefore, question arises: is it worth learning? This article discusses approaches to writing history followed by its teaching and learning at school levels and finally ways forward.  It would be appropriate to begin by asking: What is history? Answers to this question are many such as “history is the story of human ...

Diverse & Tribal Domains Gojal Hunza Reviewed by: Aafiyat Nazar The focal point of the great game which engaged the great powers; mainly the Great Britain and Russia for around a century has been the tiny independent and later princely state: Hunza. Even in modern time the ex-state is the starting point of China Pakistan Economic Corridor and has been important junction in the international politics and trade due to its strategic location. Historically the state has been home to different ethnic and linguistic groups namely, Brushaski, Wakhi, Shina, and Domaky. The annalist and writers who mostly gathered intelligence information, wrote about politics and played key role in the great game had also great contribution on documenting considerable information on the social lives and history of the area. They have recorded useful information in the form of reports, books and left behind with photographic evidences which have provided the basis for subsequent researchers. Sinc...

BESIDES the Quranic verses laying strong emphasis on acquiring knowledge, the Holy Prophet (PBUH) said, “Acquire knowledge from cradle to grave”. In another hadith, he underlined the importance of knowledge by declaring it fard (obligatory) on every Muslim man and woman. Hence, the first and foremost binding duty on every Muslim from infancy is seeking knowledge or education. In contrast, for other duties such as prayer, zakat, and Haj, Muslims are qualified only when they reach a certain age or meet certain conditions. To further stress the primacy of education over other duties, another hadith states: “Seeking knowledge is superior to salat, zakat, Haj and jihad near Allah.” Such emphasis on education by Islam is fascinating and unparalleled. But contrary to what the religion teaches, it is also true that Muslim societies are apparently the most backward in terms of seeking knowledge, education and scholarship, while non-Muslims are putting education on top of their priority li...

THE quest for knowledge and exploration of the universe is one of the most powerful commands of Allah Almighty. The Holy Quran emphasises contemplation of the creation of the heavens and the earth. There are various verses which urge people to ponder over nature. The importance of studying nature is also evident from the names of several chapters in the Quran such as ‘ant’, ‘elephant’ and ‘cow’. The question arises: is studying nature without questions possible? Indeed, it will be naïve to think so. Then, why do so many Muslim societies appear hostile to questions? Can we as a society afford to continue with the suppression of questions? Are the root causes of the problems these societies are experiencing not emanating from this hostility? A cursory look at the histories of civilisations reveals that the stories of their rise and fall are nothing other than endeavours to address the questions that were raised in the past. Certainly, questions have been dominant in the evolution o...