Dharti Mata
10 March 2016
The most satisfactory and accomplished journey was a short trek to the summit of Takht e Suleman in November 1994. The trip took all of three days, but being on the summit opened a great window of light. My guide, two local militiamen showed me the 'grave' of Qais Abdur Rashid that all Pathans believe is a common ancestor to them. The grave was actually a stone pedestal measuring twenty-one feet square. It was an ancient pagan sacrificial pedestal.
Two years earlier, at the shrine of Channan Pir in Cholistan, I watched the rituals of salaam and giving thanks for the son and realised that this was a throwback to Dharti Mata of our pagan past. And shortly before the dawning at Channan Pir, I had been on the peak of Musa ka Musalla where some Gujjar herders were taking a couple of buffalos to say salaam too the shrine on the summit. They told me that this ritual made the animals more fertile. That is what Dharti Mata does: she bestows fertility upon her worshippers.
Now, on the Takht e Suleman, as we stood there with the Pathans praying to their so-called ancestor, it came to me like a bolt of lightning: this was another face of the worship of Dharti Mata. In the beginning on Musa ka Musalla, it was a slow understanding that grew more established when I was at Channan Pir. But on Takht e Suleman all the pieces fell into place with an audible click. I think it was this wonderful peak with its drape of chilghoza pine trees that brought me new knowledge and was therefore the most satisfactory and accomplished journey.
posted by Salman Rashid @ 00:00,
2 Comments:
-
At 10 March 2016 at 14:17,
said...
-
The artcle reminded me my expadetion of 1987 once i along with other collegue stayed night at Mosa ka mussala.
-
At 11 March 2016 at 10:28,
said...
-
some of your posts are sort of cryptic!!! But as interesting as ever.
Post a Comment