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Assignment No 1 - PST
Assignment No 1 - PST
Throughout the subcontinent and Pakistan, it is believed that familial and national
identities are the true key factors affecting and changing one’s perceptions, ideologies and social
values. In addition to this, ethnicity, national and religious identities are the common aspects on
I was born in Arian family that were known warriors of the times back Alexander the
Great. There was a priest named as Arius after the time of Alexander. The Arius of Alexandria
design a distinction between the essence of the Father and the Son, who’s manifested as Jesus
Christ. He was the person who thought beyond Christianity. And in the middle of the fourth
century, these people were known Arians and became Muslims. In 712, six thousand Arians
conquered the Sindh along with Muhammad Bin Qasim. After the dead of the Muhammad Bin
Qasim, they decided to live here in sub-continent and then they changed from warriors to
farmers. From then, they are known for being assiduous, diligent and conscientious in farming.
My family calls themselves as ‘Arain’ due to this remarkable history. They thought that if you
are not associated or connected to your familial identity, you are not going to have self-identity
either.
Keeping in mind that how history is created, and we are deprived of the facts, I was never
fascinated by national or familial identity. I am in the favor of being identified as Muslim. I grew
up in religious environment and in Islam, we all Muslims of the world are united by this identity.
“O mankind, We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into races
and tribes, so that you may identify one another. Surely the noblest of you, in Allah’s sight, is the
one who is most pious of you. Surely Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware” (Al-Quran, 49:13).
By considering this verse, all the identities including national, identity of the caste or any
other ethnic identity is to develop the relation or associations among the people of same identity.
Can I represent myself as Arain globally or at the national level? These regional identities are so
specific and limited to a certain area that one cannot relate on a bigger scale. Also, these regional
identities where they bound people to each other, can cause not ending fights, differences due to
social status and racism. If we consider the example of the caste system of the Hindus where they
were limited to their castes. Also, certain facilities were associated with higher classes which
were Barhaman and Khushtri. Why am I not carrying the national identity as my personal?
Pakistan is the country where people live here regardless of the respect of creed, culture and
religion. Although Pakistani as national identity could be carried on as one’s personal identity
because it sums up all the efforts for which all Pakistanis fought but isn’t it broad enough? Or
doesn’t Islam as a religion provide us all the Muslims the broader view and incase of emergency
or situation like world war where all the Muslims were reached there along with the things
Muslim need in Turkey. We can consider the example or the oblige of Haj. Where all the
Muslims are united. They only identified as Muslims there not Pakistanis, Indians or any other
national identity they kept. If people are considering Pakistani as their personal identity because
their ancestors gave many sacrifices to gain this country assuming that they are Muslim too.
Aren’t they forgetting the sacrifices of the Muslims? That how many sacrifices did Hazrat
Muhammad (PBUH) for Muslims. Aren’t they forgetting the efforts of the Anbiya-e-Karam that
how were difficult for them to propagate Islam and today they are Muslim? The spectrum of
Wahid 3
religious identity is so broad that it entitles all the class of people associated with it. When we
study that Muhammad Bin Qasim conquered the Sindh, We also study that a Muslim did this. If
we consider the national or the regional identity of him which is Arab, I as a Muslim cannot
relate him. There are so many examples even in Islam from where it is proved that Muslim
identity for Muslims is far noble and preferred one for them.
In short, the personal identity for me is my religious identity regardless of the fact that the
perceptions or the outlook of being a Muslim is not as much encouraged as it could be. Although
there is a certain group of people who wanted to be identified from their national identity, but
this is to create close relationship among all patriots. And this may be based on these facts that
how they have gained this country, but I cannot relate it due to the fact that the ancestors of my
family were here before the partition of the sub-continent. So, the personal identity I have
constructed for myself is the perfect manifestation of all the considered identities. I will not be
evacuee while presenting myself as Muslim just like a famous boxer Khabib.