Believe it or not, the ongoing military operation against the Tehreek-e- Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in North Waziristan and the ancient Greek myth of Hercules slaying the Lernaean Hydra has many uncanny similarities. The myth of the Hydra, in short, revolves around the second labour assigned to Hercules in which he was required to slay this reptilian monster that lived in an inaccessible cave and only ventured out to terrorise the neighbouring villages. The Hydra, with its multiple heads was no ordinary creature as its breath and blood were enough to cause death. Though it could be killed by decapitation, but this was in itself an impossible task for two reasons. Firstly, by preferring to remain confined in its hideout when not preying on the poor people, it was elusive and secondly, every time one of its head was severed, two new ones would immediately sprout in its place!
When the mighty Hercules embarked on his mission to kill the Hydra, he thought that he possessed both the strength and ability to decimate this monster alone. He went about his job in a military like manner by first firing flaming arrows into the Hydras lair, forcing it to come out. He then proceeded to decapitate it, but on seeing multiple regeneration of every head he severed, Hercules soon realised that his efforts were of no avail. So, he sought the help of his nephew named Lolaus, who came up with the idea of immediately scorching the Hydras neck stump from which the head had been cut off before it could re-grow two heads and this worked! Seeing that Hercules was triumphing over Hydra by using this stratagem, Hera, who had nurtured the Hydra for the sole purpose of killing Hercules, sent a giant crab to distract him, but Hercules promptly crushed it under his foot! So, while Hercules began cutting off the Hydras head one by one, his nephew promptly cauterised every headless neck stump with fire before it could regenerate. Thus, with the assistance of his nephew, Hercules was able to kill the monster by cutting off its last head with a sword gifted to him by the Goddess Athena.
Just like the Hydra which had been fostered by Hera to destroy Hercules, the Tehreek-i- Taliban Pakistan (TTP) too has been nurtured by some powerful entities to destroy Pakistan. Just like the Hydra, the breath of the TTP too is extremely lethal as it spews venom by promoting sectarianism that ends in societal violence. And whenever the blood of its cadres is spilled during anti terrorism operations, the TTP resorts to widespread massacre of innocents, justifying it as retaliatory strikes! In the Greek myth, the Hydra has been portrayed as a reptile- like monster and this has a striking similarity to the TTP, which too has a snake- like habit of suddenly emerging to terrorise and harm innocents. Also, its various factions are akin to the multiple heads of the mythological Hydra, as no sooner as one is decimated, multiple new factions promptly spawn! Then there are also the giant crabs in the form of certain politicians and groups that are seeking to distract the army from this battle by talking about the virtues of holding dialogue with the terrorists instead of using force against them and also blaming the army for the sufferings of the people residing in these areas.
As per the myth, the Hydra lived a deep cave in the spring of Amymone and only came out to terrify the neighbouring villages. The TTP is no different as it hides the desolate areas like North Waziristan and comes out only to terrorise the people of Pakistan. So, just like Hercules who used flaming arrows to force the Hydra out of its hideout, the Pakistan army too has used its fighter jets to rain fire from the skies and flush-out the TTP from their dens! Presently, the final combat between todays Hercules, (as symbolised by the Pakistan army) and the modern Hydra (as represented by the TTP) is on and from the reports available, the Hydra has already lost many heads. The giant crabs have also tried their best to distract the army from its mission, but failed. However, what would be the final outcome of this battle is difficult to say as unlike the myth, in which Hercules had the support of his nephew, in Zarb-e- Azb, the Pakistan army is fighting the TTP Hydra all by itself. And so, even though it may succeed in decapitating the TTP Hydra single- handedly; there is none by its side to prevent regeneration of new heads by immediately cauterising the neck stumps!
However, the lack of a helping hand with the Pakistan army in its battle against the TTP Hydra is not the only difference between the Hydra myth and Zarb-e-Azb. The Greek myth also talks about how Hercules dipped his arrows in the virulent blood of the dead Hydra to slay other enemies in his subsequent labours. Unfortunately, the Pakistan army is already doing so by way of nurturing the good Taliban and should it continue with this practice, then the outcome of the myth of the Hydra and the reality that is Zar-e-Azb, may not be the same. Thus, while no one in his senses would ever decry the Pakistan armys righteous war against the TTP and everyone wishes them all the success, for giving Zarb-e-Azb a happy ending like the Hydra myth, Islamabad surely requires a helping hand from its neighbours. Its army too needs to rethink its policy of maintaining strategic assets in the form of the good Taliban for two reasons. Firstly, what Pakistan considers to be the good Taliban are perceived as Hydras by its neighbours and till these are reined-in, no neighbour will be ready to play the supportive role of Lolaus in its fight against terror. Secondly, the people of Pakistan are paying very dearly for this irrational philosophy, as it takes no time for the good Taliban to turn into bad guys and rogues. However, till Islamabad and the Pakistan army see the light and make amends, the Hydra of the TTP will emerge ever- stronger after each military operation and the innocent people of Pakistan would unfortunately continue to be the hapless victims of this monsters ever growing proclivity for bloodletting!
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
ACT NOW |
MONTHLY | Rs 100 | |
YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |