Assignment No: 01

Name: Mahan Shehzadi

Roll No: CB435288

Pakstudy

Question No: 01

Keeping in view the origin and background of Pakistan, discuss the

development of Ghandhara Civilization in South Asia.

Gandhara is the name of an ancient kingdom Mahajanapada located in modern day

northern Pakistan and parts of eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the value
of Peshawar the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River. Its main cities were Purushapura
modern Peshawar literally meaning “City of Man” Varmayana modern Banyan
and Takshashila modernTaxila.The Kingdom of Gandhara lasted from the early 1st millennium
BC to the 11th century AD. It attained its height from the 1st century to the 5th century under the
Buddhist Kushan Kings. The Hindu term Shahi is used by history writer Al-Biruni to refer to the
ruling Hindu dynasty that took over from the Turki Shahiand ruled the region during the period
prior to Muslim conquests of the 10th and 11th centuries. After it was conquered by Mahmud of
Ghazni in 1021 CE, the name Gandhara disappeared. During the Muslim period the area was
administered from Lahore or from Kabul. During Mughal times the area was part of Kabul
province. The Gandhāri people were settled since the Vedic times on the banks of Kabul River
Kubha or Kabul down to its confluence with the Indus. Later Gandhara included parts of
northwest Punjab. Gandhara was located on the northern trunk road Uttarapatha and was a center
of international commercial activities. It was an important channel of communication with
ancient Iran India and Central Asia .He boundaries of Gandhara varied throughout history.
Sometimes the Peshawar valley and Taxila were collectively referred to as Gandhara and
sometimes the Swat valley was also included. The heart of Gandhara however was always
the Peshawar valley. The kingdom was ruled from capitals at Pushkalavati Charsadda Taxila
Purushapura Peshawar and in its final days from Udabhandapura Hand on the Indus. According
to the Piranhas they were named after Taksha and Pushcart the two sons of Bharat a prince
of Ayodhya. Evidence of Stone Age human inhabitants of Gandhara including stone tools and
burnt bones was discovered at Sanghao near Mardan in area caves. The artifacts are
approximately 15,000 years old. More recent excavations point to 30,000 years before present.
The region shows an influx of southern Central Asian culture in the Bronze Age with
the Gandhara grave culture likely corresponding to immigration of Indo-Aryan speakers and the
nucleus of Vedic civilization. This culture survived till 1000 BC. Its evidence has been
discovered in the hilly regions of Swat and Dire and even at Taxila.He name of the Gandhāris is
attested in the Rigveda and in ancient inscriptions dating back to Achaemenid Persia. The
Behistun inscription listing the 23 territories of King Darius I (519 BC) includes Gandāra along
with Bactria and That gush. In the book Histories by Herodotus Gandhara is named as a source
of tax collections for King Darius.

Gandhara had played an important role in the epic of Ramayana and Mahabharata. Ambhi

Kumar was direct descendant of Bharata of Ramayana and Shakuni of Mahabharata. It is said
that Lord Rama consolidated the rule of the Kosala Kingdom over the whole of the Indian
peninsula. His brothers and sons ruled most of the Jana Padas 16 states at that time.

The primary cities of Gandhara were Purushapura now Peshawar Takshashila or Taxila and
Pushkalavati. The latter remained the capital of Gandhara down to the 2nd century AD when the
capital was moved to Peshawar. An important Buddhist shrine helped to make the city a center
of pilgrimage until the 7th century. Pushkalavati in the Peshawar Valley is situated at the
confluence of the Swat and Kabul rivers where three different branches of the River Kabul meet.
That specific place is still called Prang from Prayaga and considered sacred and where local
people still bring their dead for burial. Similar geographical characteristics are found at site of
Prang in Kashmir and at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna, where the sacred city
of Prayag is situated west of Benares. Prayaga Allahabad one of the ancient pilgrim centers of
India as the two rivers are said to be joined here by the underground Sarasvati River forming a
triveni a confluence of three rivers.
The Gandharan Buddhist texts are both the earliest Buddhist and South Asian manuscripts
discovered so far. Most are written on birch bark and were found in labeled clay pots. Panini has
mentioned both the Vedic form of Sanskrit as well as what seems to be Gandhari a later form
bhasa of Sanskrit in his Ashtadhyayi. Gandhara’s language was a Prakrit or “Middle Indo-
Aryan” dialect usually called Gandhari. Texts are written right-to-left in the Kharosthi script
which had been adapted for Indo-Aryan languages from a Semitic alphabet the Aramaic
alphabet. Gandhara was then controlled by the Achaemenid dynasty of the Persian Empire which
used the Aramaic script to write the Iranian languages of the Empire. Semitic scripts were not
used to write South Asian languages again until the arrival of Islam and subsequent adoption of
the Persian-style Arabic alphabet for New Indo-Aryan languages like Urdu Punjabi
Sindhi and Kashmiri. Kharosthi script died out about the 4th century. However the Hindko and
the archaic Dardic and Kohistani dialects derived from the local Indo-Aryan Prairies are still
spoken though the Afghan Pashto language is the most dominant language of the region today.

Gandhara is noted for the distinctive Gandharan style of Buddhist art which developed out of a
merger of Greek Syrian Persian and Indian artistic influence. This development began during the
Parthian period .Gandharan style flourished and achieved its peak during the Kushan period from
the 1st to the 5th century. It declined and suffered destruction after invasion of the White Huns in
the 5th century. Stucco as well as stone was widely used by sculptors in Gandhara for the
decoration of monastic and cult buildings. Stucco provided the artist with a medium of great
plasticity enabling a high degree of expressiveness to be given to the sculpture. Sculpting in
stucco was popular wherever Buddhism spread from Gandharan India Afghanistan Central Asia
and China.

Though the marks and ruins of Gandhara civilization can be found throughout in Northern
Pakistan its heritage has been saved more in true form in taxila Peshawar and Swat valley.
Evidence of Stone Age human inhabitants of Ghandhara including stone tools and burnt bones
was discovered at Sanghao near Mardan in area caves. The artifacts are approximately 15,000
years old. This civilization is primarily a symbol of human development in the area of human
knowledge religion art and history for the world to come to great extent.
Question No: 02
Evaluate the poetry and ideas of Shah Abdul Latif Bhatt?

Shah Abdul Latif of bhatt called simply Shah or monarch is a unique figure in Sindhi literature.
He is not only the greatest of Sindhi writers but he has been equated with the literature of his
land as if he were co-terminus with Sindhi literature. The first foreigners who explored the
civilization and culture of Sind thought that Shah was the only Poet and Philosopher Sind had
produced and the universal vogue of Shah-Jo-Risalo or Shah's Poetical works in the land of the
Sindh inclined them to believe that the Risalo was the only literary work in the Sindh language.
It has become clear now that far from being the only poet of Sindh or the only singer of his time
Shah was only one albeit the greatest of a multitude of poets who formed a nest of singing birds
in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Shah was the finest flower in a garden of poetry. His
poetry is not that of a pioneer it is the poetry of fulfillment it is not the poetry of experimentation
or innovation it is the poetry of gracious benediction. Nor is it correct to call him the last of the
traditional or medieval poets in Sindhi as some have tried to make out Shah is no Milton the last
of the Elizabethans. It is well-known that Shah looked upon Sachal Sarmast who wrote more
than a million couplets in 7 languages as his spiritual successor. And there were others besides
Sachal to keep up the tradition of Shah. Shah did for Sindhi language and literature and the
Sindhi people what other world poets have done for their own language and country in their own
particular way Hafiz for the Persian Lyric Dante for the' illustrious vernacular' of Italy and
Tulsidas for Hindi language and literature. Shah Abdul Latif Bhatti also referred to by the
honorifics Lakhino Latif Got Brittan and Bhitt Jo Shah was a Sindhi Sufi scholar mystic saint
and poet widely considered to be the greatest Muslim poet of the Sindhi language. His collected
poems were assembled in the compilation Shah Jo Risalo which exists in numerous versions and
has been translated into English Urdu and other languages. His work has been compared
frequently to that of the Persian poet Rumi. Sayed Hussain Nar an emeritus professor of Islamic
studies at George Washington University described Shah Latif as a direct emanation of Rumi's
spirituality in South Asia. Shah Abdul Latif was born to Shah Habib in the village of Hala Haveli
a few miles to the east of the present town of Bhit Shah named after him. His first teacher was
Akhund Noor Muhammad Bhatt although he was largely self-educated. He received little formal
education the Risalo provides proof that he was well-versed in Arabic and Persian. The Qur'an
the Hadith the Masnawi of Maulana Jalal Uddin Rumi along with the collection of Shah Karim's
poems his grandfather were his constant companions copious references. His correspondence in
Persian with contemporary scholar Makhdoom Moinuddin Thattvi as contained in the Risala-i-
Owaisi, bears witness to his scholastic competence. In his poems he writes about Sindh and its
neighboring regions he mentions distant cities such as Istanbul and Samarqand as well as Sindh
sailor samundi their navigation techniques voyages as far as the Malabar coasts Sri Lanka and
the island of Java.

Question No: 03

Elaborate the role of Aligarh Movement and Sir Syed Ahmad Khan for the
reconstruction of Indian Muslims during 19th century?

The most important movement for the spread of modern education and social reform among
Muslims was started by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan. He came from a family of nobles of the Mughal
court. He joined the services of the East India Company as a judicial officer and remained loyal
to them during the revolt of 1857, whereas the British rulers regarded the Muslims as their real
enemies and most dangerous rivals and followed a policy of discrimination against them.

Syed Ahmad Khan was deeply concerned at the depressing situation of the Muslims and raising
them from their backwardness became his life-long passion and aim. He strove hard to remove
the hostility of the British rulers towards the Muslims. He appealed to the Muslims to return to
the original Islamic principles of purity and simplicity. He advocated English education for the
regeneration of Muslims in India. His emphasis on science particularly offended the orthodox
Muslims. He faced opposition from the orthodox sections of Muslims. However with courage
and wisdom he overcame these obstacles .In 1864 he founded the Translation Society which was
later renamed ‘The Scientific Society’. The society was located at Aligarh. It published Urdu
translations of English books on science and other subjects, and an English-Urdu journal for
spreading liberal ideas on social reforms. He advocated the removal of many social prejudices
that kept the community backward.

Achievements:

His greatest achievement was the establishment of the Mohammedan Anglo Oriental College
also known as Aligarh Muslim University at Aligarh in 1875. In course of time, this college
became the most important educational institution of Indian Muslims. It provided for education
in humanities and science throughout English medium and many of its staff members came from
England. The college received support from leading Muslims throughout India and the British
showed much interest both officially and otherwise in its development.

The M.A.O. collage which later became the Aligarh Muslim university fostered a modern
outlook among the generations of students that studied there. The movement of Muslim
awakening associated with Syed Ahmad Khan and M.A.O. College came to be known as Aligarh
Movement. He opposed the activities of the Indian national congress. He believed like many
other leaders at that time that Indians were not yet ready to govern themselves and that their
interests would be best served by remaining loyal to the British rule. He founded the Indian
patriotic Association with the support of some Hindu and Muslim leaders to oppose the congress
and tried to dissuade the Muslims from joining the congress. He emphasized the unity

between Hindus and Muslims.

Muslim Reforms:

Sir Syed Ahmed Khan was one of the greatest Muslim reformers of India. He interpreted Quran
in the light of modern rationalism and science. He took up the struggle against fanaticism
ignorance narrow mindedness and bigotry and laid emphasis on free thinking.

Question No: 04

"Shimla delegation" was the step to political success for the Indian Muslims.
Give your arguments.
In fact Shimla Deputation was in line with a kind of thinking that was developing amongst the
Muslims during that time i.e. they had certain interests and they must stand up to protect their
rights and unless they do that that objective would not be achieved. The Shimla Deputation of
1906 was the first systematic attempt on the part of the Muslims to present their demands to the
British government and to seek their acceptance. The Shimla deputation comprised 35 Muslims
from all over India. It was a galaxy of Muslims leaders from all the provinces, from one end of
India to the other and it had Muslims of all background. Therefore when in 1906 this deputation
called on the Viceroy it was the most representative Muslim delegation. This delegation was led
by Sir Agha Khan and Nawab Mohsen ul Malik served as a secretary and this delegation met the
Viceroy in Shimla that was why it was called as Shimla Deputation. The memorandum which
they presented was a kind of demands which were the uppermost in the minds of the Muslims at
that time. The delegation emphasized that the Muslims should not be viewed simply in numerical
terms but they should take into account their historical importance and the kind of contribution
the Muslims had made to British India and keeping in view that importance they should work
towards accommodating their demands. The delegation emphasized that democratic principle
should be introduced keeping in view the peculiar conditions and circumstances of India. The
diversity the fact that there different kinds of people living in India and the fact that the Muslims
consider themselves to be a separate entity all these things had to be taken into account because
the India was not a homogenous amalgamated or monolithic political identity. It was a political
identity comprising diversity divergence in view divergence in outlook and when you introduce
some kind of system then these realities had to be accommodated.

Presented some demands:

Representation more than their population because of their importance. Separate electorate
Reservations of Muslims seats in government jobs. Special share in Municipal or district boards
University senates and syndicates Muslim representation in Viceroy Executive Council. Muslim
University at Aligarh. The Viceroy was sympathetic towards the demands. It encouraged the
Muslims to launch struggle for their rights parallel to the Indian National Congress but it
required an organized platform.
Formation of the Muslim League in Dhaka (Dec 30, 1906):

Time had come to formally organize the Muslims after the success of the Shimla Deputation.
The Muslim leaders desired to create a permanent political forum. After the meeting of the
Mohammedan Educational Conference the Muslim leaders met to set up the All India Muslim
League. Waqar-ul-Mulk chaired the meeting. Nawab Salimullah proposed Muslim League and
Hakim Ajmal Khan and Maulana Zafar Ali Khan seconded. In the Karachi session Dec 1907 its
constitution was approved and in March 1908 at Aligarh, Agha Khan was formally elected its
president.

London Branch:
May 1908 Justice Amir Ali Syed organized a branch of Muslim League at London and
responded effectively to the misunderstandings and conspiracies of the Hindus against the
Muslims.

GOALS:
Protection and promotion of political rights and interests of the Muslims. Cooperation with other
communities without prejudice to the above goal. Fostering sense of loyalty among the Muslims
towards the government.

Change Goals:
Change in the Goals of the Muslim League 1913 Important developments occurred during the
first decade of the 20th century like annulment of the Partition of Bengal and Western aggression
towards Muslim countries Balkan wars Libya, Italy war demolition of the mosque in Kanpur
etch weakened Muslim faith in the British. This led to a major drift in the Muslim League’s
policy.

Self-government under the British:

Self-government under the British Crown keeping in view the peculiar conditions in India. Good
relations with other communities’ cooperation with any party working for similar goals. This
change brought the ML and Congress closer. In this way the era of cooperation between Hindus
and Muslims set in. The role of the Quaid-i-Azam is highly noteworthy to bring the Congress
and the Muslim League to the table. He joined the Muslim League in 1913.

Luck now Pact 1916:

The Luck now pact was the product of Hindu-Muslim unity envisaged by M. A. Jinnah. In
December 1915, the ML and Congress met separately in Bombay. Both the parties set up
committees for making a scheme for constitutional changes in consultation with other political
parties. Role of the Quaid-i-Azam Jinnah did a lot to unite the two nations along with the
recognition of the rights of Muslims. Meeting of both parties held at Luck now in 1916.

The constitutional proposals were approved:

 One Third seats for Muslims in the Imperial Legislative Council.

 Separate Electorate
 Half members of the Executive Council to be elected by the Imperial Legislative Council.
 Commissioned ranks of the army for Indians.
 Expansion of Provincial Legislative Councils.
 Half members of the Governor’s Executive Council be elected by Provincial Legislative
Council
 Weightage to minorities in provinces.

Gains from Muslim Point-of-view:

 Separate Electorate
 One Third Muslim seats in Central Legislature.
 Unofficial bill if opposed by three-fourth members of a community it will not be passed.

Montagu promised:

Greater association of Indian in all branches of government.

Responsible government
Induction of Indians in the commissioned ranks.
Conclusion: The historical struggle of the Muslims confirmed their identity. They organized their
political party to address the demands. They also got recognition by the Hindus as a separate
nation. The British accepted their role in the political domain

Question No: 05

What was the importance of the establishment of All India Muslim League for
the Indian Muslims?

Muslim League original name All India Muslim League political group that led the movement
calling for a separate Muslim nation to be created at the time of the partition of British India
1947.The Muslim League was founded in 1906 to safeguard the rights of Indian Muslims. At
first the league was encouraged by the British and was generally favorable to their rule but the
organization adopted self-government for India as its goal in 1913. For several decades the
league and its leaders notably Mohammed Ali Jinnah called for Hindu-Muslim unity in a united
and independent India. It was not until 1940 that the league called for the formation of a Muslim
state that would be separate from the projected independent country of India. The league wanted
a separate nation for India’s Muslims because it feared that an independent India would be
dominated by Hindus. After the creation of the Indian national Congress and its time as a
representative party for the people of the Indian subcontinent there was felt a need to reassess its
claims at unbiased representation. From the very start of its existence the Congress had shown
clear its interest to safeguard the rights of Hindus alone. Some of the Congress leaders adopted a
revolutionary policy to establish Hindu Raj in the sub-continent under the guise of a national
movement. The prediction of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan Soon proved to be fact that Hindus and
Muslims are two different nations who have different ideologies. The Muslims of India were
greatly disappointed by the anti-Muslim stance that the Congress seemed to have adopted. The
events following the partition of Bengal and Urdu-Hindu controversy strengthened the desire of
the Muslims to organize themselves politically as separate community. The birth of All India
Muslim League at Dacca on 30th December 1906 came as an expression of that desire.
Following are the reasons for the establishment of Muslim league.

Indifferent Attitude of the Congress towards Muslims:

All India National Congress was a pre-dominantly Hindu body. Its interests were always at odds
ends to those of the Muslims. By 1906, Muslim leaders were convinced that they must have their
own party which may speak for the community on all important occasions.

Educational and Economic Backwardness:

Muslims had lagged far behind from the Hindus in education and economic progress.
Educational and economic conditions could only be up graded by establishing a separate
Muslims organization that could represent the wishes of the Muslims.

Urdu-Hindi Controversy:

The Urdu-Hindu controversy began with the demand of Hindus to replace Urdu by Hindi as
official language in Deva Nagari Script. Sir Anthony MacDonald the then Governor of UP
ousted Urdu from public offices. Congress clearly sided with Hindi and supported the movement
against Urdu and there was no other political party to support Urdu. Thus the need of formation
of a Muslim political party was felt severely.

The Evolution of Minto Marley Reforms:

The turning point came in the summer of 1906 during John Morley’s budget speech in which he
hinted of constitutional reforms. At that time Muslims did not have a political platform to
demand their share. It was reasserted that they wanted a separate political platform.

The Success of Smile Deputation:

Minto offered fullest sympathy to the Muslim demands. The success of Deputation compelled
the Muslims to have a separate political association of their own.

To Save Muslim Entity:

The belief uttered by sir Syed Ahmed Khan that the Muslims were somehow a separate entity.
The Muslims did not believe that Hindus and Muslims formed one nation. They were different
by religion history languages and civilization. It became essential for Muslims to establish a
political party of their own.

A resolution to form the All India Muslim League was passed by Nawab Salimullah Khan and
was seconded by Hakim Ajmal Khan, Maulana Muhammad Ali and Maulana Zafar Ali. The
resolution was passed by All India Educational Conference on 30th December 1906. A
committee was formed to prepare its draft constitution. Sir Agha Khan was appointed as
President and Syed Hassan Balgrami was appointed as secretary while Nawab Mohsen-ul-Mulk
and Nawab Viqar-ul-Mulk were made joint secretaries with six Vice- President’s a Central
Committee with forty Members was also constituted. In this way Muslim league was established
and become the sole representative of Muslims. Knowing the circumstances which led to the
formation of Muslim league was not difficult to make out what it aimed to. However the Muslim
league laid the following points as its objectives.

To create among Muslims the feelings of loyalty towards British Government and to remove
misconception and suspicious.
To Safeguards the political rights of the Muslims and to bring them into the notice of the
Government.
To prevent among the Muslims the rise of prejudicial feelings against the other communities of
India. The first session of all India Muslim league was held at Karachi on 29th December, 1907
and was presided over by Adam Peer. It was being felt from the beginning that the All India
Muslim League would not achieve considerable success without winning the British Public
opinion to its side. Therefore Syed Ameer Ali organized the branch of Muslim league at London.
The inaugural meeting was held on 6th May 1908, at London Caxton Hall. It was participated by
the Muslim and those British people who favored their view point. There come into being a
political body which was to play a decisive role in the destiny of the Muslim peoples of the
Indian sub-continent. The day the Muslim delegation won recognition of the demand of separate
electorate the course of the Muslim freedom struggle was charted. It was the beginning of the
growth of Muslim national consciousness. It farmed visible institutional expression in the form
of Muslim League which after a forty years struggle was to achieve for the Muslims the
culmination of their national aspiration Muslim League became a mass movement of the
Muslims and succeeded in achieving Pakistan in 1974. Actually the new breed of leadership like
Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was instrumental in its metamorphosis. After the
acceptance of the demand of separate representation in the Minto Morley reforms it was common
sense to have political party to fight elections for Muslim representation. Whatever may have
been the effects of Muslim league but it made clear that the interests of Muslims must be
regarded completely separate from those of the Hindus. Any fusion of both the communities in
future was not possible. It steered the ship of Muslim destiny safely through of Political chaos
and turmoil to the safer harbor of Pakistan.