Culture and Customs of Pakistan

Journal of Third World Studies, Spring 2008 by Jain, B M

Malik, Iftikhar H. Culture and Customs of Pakistan. Westport, Connecticut and London: Greenwood Press, 2006.220 pp.

South Asia is a cradle of human civilization and a mosaic of diverse cultures, religions and ethnicities. The Indus Valley civilization forms bedrock of the subcontinental civilization, basically inherited by Pakistan following the partition of an undivided India in August 1947.

Before the advent of Islamic influence in India in the 7th century, India was a center of the two major religions-Hinduism and Buddhism. The latter spread over to Southeast and East Asia. The Delhi Sultanate ( 1206-1526) and the Mughul empire in India (1526 - 1707) made a significant contribution to enriching the art, sculpture and culture, bringing new influences on the Indian societal and cultural make up. The upper India, in particular, was the "heartland of Mughul culture". But under the British rule in India ( 1858-1947) , South Asia witnessed a new political and strategic ferthent. In order to consolidate its empire, the British followed the policy of "divide and rule" through various legislative enactthents like 1909 Act under which a separate electorate system, based on religion, was introduced. The Muslim League established in 1906, was further exploited by the British as a springboard to advance its imperial interests by alienating Hindus and Muslims. Furthermore, MA. Jinnah's persistent advocacy of the two-nation theory, based on religion, culminated in the partition of the British India, giving to the rise of India and Pakistan as independent and sovereign states in August 1947.

Against the afore-mentioned backdrop, Iftikhar H. Malik's book under review makes an interesting reading. In a Series Foreword to Malik's book, Hanchao Lu of Georgia Institute of Technology has rightly observed mat Asia is one of the world's "richest reservoirs of culture and an ever-evolving museum of human heritage."(p.ix). Born and raised in Pakistan, the author has rightly claithed in his prefatory remarks that he has "offered first-hand insights into its (Pakistan) history, society, environthent and diverse cultures."

The book is divided into nine chapters with glossary, bibliography and index, running in 220 pages. The first introductory chapter, dealing with the geographical and topographical features and demographic division in terms of religion, sect, ethnicity, and language, is aithed to provide a comprehensive survey of Pakistan as a nation-state. The strength of this chapter lies in the author's ability to flash out the history of Pakistan in a concise and coherent manner within the civilizational paradigm. He narrates a brief political history of Pakistan beginning from 1947 to 2005 ,while underscoring the political upheavals taking place in Pakistan's military and democratic regithes. However, Nehru's birth year 1890 (p. 12) is factually wrong. His birth year was 1889.

Chapter 2 focuses on thought and religion in which the author has brilliantly examined how the religion in Pakistan plays a prominent "and often dominant role in the private as well as public life"(p.25). While tracing the roots of Islam, the author has described mat "various forms of political Islam have used the ideology of holy war(Jihad) to wrest control of postcolonial states, and the war on terror has certainly intensified bom the anger and anguish"(p.29). But the author does not say anything whether the war on terror is justifiable. The author attributes the division of Pakistanis into Muslim and non-Muslim groups to Gen. Zia-ul-Huq's "selective laws" while Gen. Musharrafs removal of separate electorates, the author thinks, has "augured well for minorities"(p.42).

In chapter 3, the author picturesquely paints the tapestry of Pakistan's literary and artistic heritage. At the sathe tithe, as the author maintains, the great Hindu epics such as Ramayana, BhagvadGita and Mahabharta ,and the revival of the Indo-Buddhist cultures under the Hindu ruler, Ashoka in 321 -184 B.C., have made a significant contribution to the growth of literature.

The author has ably dealt with multifaceted forms of art, architecture, housing, cuisine and traditional dresses of Pakistani society by purveying a holistic picture of bom the ancient and urban cultures co-existing in Pakistan. No doubt, the influences of the Mughal architecture in the form of mosques and tombs were remarkably striking in South Asia. It is interesting to note mat tombs of Tughlaq, Khilji and Lodhi Kings in the Lodhi Gardens of Delhi represented a unique "indianization of West Asian traditions"( p.86). The author maintains that despite the impact of western style dress and food, there is a "continuity of patterns and tastes through the centuries"(p. 123).

Chapter 6 on gender, courtship and marriage is very interesting and revealing. It tells us about customs, traditions, orthodoxy and Muslim laws that dominate the institution of marriage in Pakistan. There are cases of "honor killings" and forced marriages. The author's explanation of the concept of marriage in Islam helps remove some of the lingering doubts and myths around the marriage institution. He writes: "Islam does not prohibit polygamy or encourage it"(p.130). He further writes: "Islam does not prohibit family planning, and even under emergencies allows abortion"(p.130). Divorces in Pakistan, as the author maintains, are rare (p. 144) but they are allowed as the "last option" under the Islam.