Bombing of Rahman Baba shrine By Qaiser Khan Afridi

[LahoreEstate]

Monday, March 23, 2009
Terrorists’ focus hurts people’s sentiments

By Qaiser Khan Afridi

PESHAWAR: After inflicting human and material losses on Pakhtuns and their cultural values, terrorists have now started hurting their sentiments by targeting the shrines of saints and national poets.

“Ma khu nade sok bewaja azaar kare, Da chay ma azarawee azaar da cha day,” (I did not hurt anybody, then why people are out to hurt me without any reason), is a rhyme from the poetry of the great mystic poet Abdur Rahman, commonly known as Rahman Baba.

The barbarism that took place at Baba’s mausoleum hangs like a question mark over the responsibilities of those at the helm of affairs.

On the other hand, the terrorists have alarmed the state of Pakistan once again about their intentions against the culture, as they did not even spare Sufis, who spread the message of love, peace and tolerance.

The perpetrators are not new. Call them religious extremists, Taliban, foreign militants or other elements; the people are now familiar with their acts and the ideology that they promote.

What else can one say after this coward practice of hitting the shrines of the saints, who widely preached Islam to get more people into the fold of religion than any other fact in the subcontinent?

The ill-omened Frontier province and tribal areas have witnessed widespread human and material losses that have left behind throbbing tales. Innocent people were killed and infrastructure destroyed. However, they have now started playing with people’s sentiments by targetting shrines.

In his poetry, Rahman Baba says: ‘Pa sabab da zalimano hakimano, Kor au gor au Pekhawar dray wara yo dee’ (Because of the oppression of tyrants, my home, grave and Peshawar — all the three are one).

Some people said that a large number of NWFP residents had started migrating to the Punjab, and they should also ponder shifting the graves of the saints to the Punjab.

“These terrorists are neither Muslims nor human beings. Such terrorists should be crushed as they did not even spare Baba, who is quite an undisputed person,” stated an aged disciple of Baba, while sitting in the damaged shrine.

With his eyes welled-up, the bearded person cursed the terrorists for attacking Baba’s shrine, and said such people should be hanged to death.

Born in 1632 AD at Deh Bahadur, a village about four kilometres south of Peshawar, Rahman Baba was called the Nightingale of Pakhtunkhwa.

His father, Abdul Sattar, was a peasant. Rahman Baba received early education from a local religious scholar, Mulla Muhammad Yousaf and adopted the life of privations, austerity and asceticism at the age of mere 20 years. He died in 1707 AD

Every April, fans of Rahman Baba hold a grand cultural festival at the shrine. Poets, writers and his fans from Pakhtun-inhabited areas in Afghanistan and Pakistan gather to celebrate the festival. This year the festival was scheduled for April 5.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=21101