By S.Sarwar.Malik
Acknowledging his debt to over one dozen people, including Dr.Keith Salmon and Mary Deuchar — who at Hertfordshire University, helped Naveed Qazi,The Vale Dweller, a Kashmiri, who wrote a Novel, recently, claimed to be a ‘fiction’, of that name ( – disclaimer, as expected, is there dear reader), seen as ‘dirge’,..‘ within the garb of a political fable, that has, in its very first chapter words like trekkers ….topography ……… ‘ immaculate lakes…unsullied forest cover of Pines… meadow valleys… (of) The Paradise on Earth …this nestled valley in the Himalayas’… and in the last chapter, concluded (their) three-day EXCURSION..…. bespoke of Guchhi, a local wild mushroom, too.
This young writer has done his postgraduate degree in International Business from university of Hertfordshire in UK, and was contributing to English Dailies in Kashmir.
I am least interested in politics but myself being a humble contributor, this mention of ‘trekking and our Dailies motivated this oldie to pick this book as I myself owe a lot to these local Dailies,who graciously gave space to my purely non-political write ups during last two and a half decades.
“Hi paaannee/
mae-ts-aay baanne/
ts-e kammay vaannee/
thorrnaie aaakhh?”//
“Shikkme mannze neerith/
vachhass tael roetnass/
‘JAANAA’ voenenamm
haell kael paanuss”//
“Adde deyongg khoosah/
daekke tikke zaann/
taeth roeyess jhoornas/ koernass ma sherremande zanhh”//
“Yeth ane-maanass,/
hoeth gomaanass /
vaennoen miyoun/
tss-en-maetis paanass heu”.///
Gaeen gaeen mae-ts-e miyane/
naiee voezzenaevikhh/
qaelib aeethow, kaethe
kernove hoess//
Kaetehou oestaadov /
achhere gaash dittehoem/
Vaette pakkenovhass/
thaph kaerrith theie //
Soorrie tihindoie/
miyoun kyah sanna chhoe?/
………..”///
True it is. In this week, on Monday, 9-9-2024, i:e a milestone day, it was of my humble penmanship,(I can name it so), as my collection of English Poems got published, under the title CRIES OF THE THORN BIRD (by S.Sarwar. M.(Hillman), almost simultaneously for the readers, in two editions, one for west and the other for India. (The latter priced as low as 399 Rs (out of which this humble author has chosen to have meagre Rs 10-30 as his share of royalty.
Salute to all my teachers who taught me from the fundamental/ basics, the alphabets and whatever little I know. Thus, flowed the closing line of the supra given lisping,
in my native kashmiri language.
’unto THEM belongs everything,
what is there in me,
that I can call Mine ?/
‘Them’ includes all those from whom I have benefitted; those whom I have met, physically but also those acclaimed poets whose works got published in the very recent past, post-1950 till 2015, (my formative years) especially winners of the highest literary awards, world around. But I do not intend to undervalue the Elizebthians mentioned rightly in the introduction by the esteemed professor, who in a way has at times goaded me to take the first preservative steps, in the post-1986 era, of my life. Otherwise the fate of my scribblings would have tasted.
‘the bonfire,/
i periodically lit’ //
Moreover, how can any student of English literature forget all others, right from the penmen who gave us whole treasure, spread from Canterbury Tales to Wasteland; post Eliot luminaries too, of all genres?
How can I forget my mother
who fed us spoonfuls of English literature, from early days, as she was a professor of this subject–taught by the stalwart, Prof M.S.Wantt; encouraged through-out by M’me Mehmooda Ahmed Ali Shah.
Also my father. Though he himself was a pass out of Aligarh university – 1947 batch, having Economics and Law as his subjects,yet he loved to quote the great writers of English language, besides Persian (including the ones who dwelled on mystic side of religion) and Urdu, while conversing.
Back to the commitment, made in the previous write up of this column, dated 31 Aug, i:e about Gurez, Kargil/ Baltistaan and adjoint areas. Here I go:
Travel- back in time.
[Salvaged from the Bonfire.]
Wasn’t it 1978? When, under the starry night, seated inside the ‘two men tent’, pitched on the bank of the roaring KishanGanga river, the flame of candle flickered by my flashing hand when I lost my patience, my cool, that night and there followed an ugly moment that surprised both of us; regret whereof I still have, though forty six years have passed.
[C.M’s priest hadn’t died till that time, in Maggie’s arms …remember ? ‘YOU, up there, do you hear me, Flora ?’].
O ya, Kishenganga flowing through Gurez. This remote valley (+125 kms from Srinagar) in the Himalayas of J&k (north Kashmir), having picturesque scenery, breathtaking vistas of snow capped peaks, green forests, fresh mountain air, stunning view of starry Gurez nights ; one gets lost in the vast constellations during short night walks, around the picturesque hamlets nestled inside ravine; or those houses, …away from din, that village- life; those alpine-log-houses; observance of age old traditions; those community celebrations,; that enrapturing folk music; visits to old Sufi- shrines; (true even today, na?) but those old watchtowers & forts standing guard here in the Gurez valley, above the ‘ancient Silk route that were witness to the historical truth that this side of Kashmir was at one point in history, part of the ancient Dardistaan and this ancient road once connected Kashmir with Gilgit, thence to Kashgar and beyond.
[ …”about Central Asia, I remember my commitment, dear Editor”.]
[ Din of mid 1984.
Final Parting 1985.
Cacophony 1990’s
Fiery Cascade- ridgetop tree struck: OBITUARY REQUESTED, 2017– Received Late: Postal Delay?]
(The decades old sound of heavy dozers, ( in late 80’s ) and that noise of those diesel generators belonging to the power project people, rang heavily in my ears in 90’s and thereafter too, when seated in the Govt run Circuit House, standing on the banks of kishanGanga river. The reminder of their noise spoiled my reveries during my subsequent visits. But wild berries came to my rescue, soon, in this ancient Dardistani area, spread between Minimarg, Drass and beyond. People here speak the Shina language. Culturally too they resemble more with Gilgati/ Balti people of Baltistaan; I better say Dardistaan of yore. So my dear reader Shina is an Indo Aryan ethnolinguistic group. But their attire is similar to Kashmiris.
Baadshah Yousuf Shah e Chak, ruler of the Kashmir of 16th Century, who is popular among kashmiris, partly because of zoon – the village belle, ‘who had the fire of poetry in her veins, besides being beautiful like moon’; with whom this youthful king fell in love and made her his wife/ queen but (…tootay zamaanay teray haath nigoadaay…) as ill luck would have it, this king was taken captive by the army of Mughal king, Jalal u din Mohmmad Akbar… [- over glorified for his so-called justice..(fie..you court-historians; you commissioned-pens, slur on you..) ‘by deceit’…(writers have said, so ) he belonged to this ethnic strain and possibly the father of zoon might also have been initially a resident of this Dardi area, who along with his family later moved closer to the capital of the kingdom; Pampore-Srinagar- belt…[‘ …Jammalattay..? Leave it. ]…imprisoned and kept in Bihar. Cruel fate forced his newly wed wife, zoon [‘-Habba Khatoon,after the Shahi wedlock] wander here and there, like an ascetic, seeking her love [- OK, accepted all tales might not be true, and this statement about her going up the pyramid- peaked mountain of Gurez valley…(-excellent place for photography…this peak presents magnificent views of the whole Gurez)…wishing and waiting ,madly, for the arrival of Yousuf; gave the name ‘Habbe khotoon e heund baal’ to it, might not be 100 % true yet probable it seems that she wandered here and there; singing her poetry-her expression of love, her desire, her pain of separation (- see how popular her songs are…)…till she too somehow surfaced later in…Bihar(-yes!) and there in Basuk the couple lies buried. Thanks to Teng sahib- of The J&K Academy Of Art, Culture & Languages.
It is said with the recent tourism boom, affordable home-stays are mushrooming there but the impact-study of this Tourism(..overall, for all the popular destination as well as that of the Power houses etc of J&k, (- ‘all incursion of humans..) needs to be done periodically so that rectification wherever, whenever needed is undertaken, earnestly, without bahaanay bisyaar…..
Hello.. hello my dear reader, you make me go on and on…(..I just saw the editor’s pupil cautioning me…”Word Count?…space my newspaper can afford for one penman ( is.. ),… “youngsters too, are waiting”), so allow me to leave. Next time more about ..the Trekking routes between neighbouring parts; Baltistaan history related to erstwhile part, Ladakh and also about a popular King of Ladakh whose one wife was a muslim; and interesting features of another village of the neighbouring, Kargil and much more… in the coming days, in this column.
Bye, Allah Nigehbaan
aap ka be Mayra be.///
Cries of the Thorn Bird by Hillman
Excerpted from the introduction to the book:
Within these pages lie 57 poems, “that give voice to the poet’s deepest yearnings, dark dreams, and anguish, resonating with Kafkaesque and Poesque tones. Sarwar’s poetic world is far from ordinary; … [In] a style reminiscent of Victor Shklovsky’s defamiliarization and Jorge Borges’ labyrinthine narratives, Sarwar transforms the familiar into the extraordinary, urging readers to see the world anew. Cries of the Thorn Bird is ….. a profound journey into the human condition….He unconsciously follows Sir Philip Sydney….his language has a throwback to Russian formalism…some poems are pervaded through with palpable surrealism…his poetry is in a way similar to that of Hopkins….”
Buy In India:
Pothi Paperback
Price: INR 399.
Available at: Pothi.com
Cries of the Thorn Bird | Pothi.com
Amazon Kindle e-book
Price: INR 99.
Available at: Amazon.in.kindle store.
Buy In USA:
Amazon Paperback
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Available: Amazon.com.Books
Kindle e-book
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Buy In UK:
Amazon Paperback
Price: £ 6.18
Kindle e-book
Price: £ 0.90.
Available: Amazon.co.uk Kindle store.
- The author is a Srinagar based writer who has been contributing articles and poems to English Dailies, regularly, since two decades
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