In my last two posts on Islamabad (here and here) I talked about the woods and the forest trails that I love so much and take to them whenever I can.
In those woods, at the foot of the Margallas, until a few years ago, there was a very large and very old tree — some believed it to be hundreds of years old. Its gnarled branches sprawled over a very large area around the tree. Next to the tree was a small concrete kiosk with a concrete bench.
It was a pipal tree (botanical name: ficus religiosa). Pakistani residents of Islamabad were mostly unaware of the presence of this tree and those who knew about it were generally indifferent to it. But the tree attracted many expatriate residents, mostly from South East or East Asian diplomatic missions based in Islamabad. They would come, sit on the bench and contemplate and admire the tree.
It was said to be a bodhi tree.
What is a bodhi tree and how it came to be in Islamabad?
As many of us would remember from our history books, that is, if one graduated from high school before the 70s (for afterwards they stopped teaching history of pre-Muslim era of the subcontinent in schools), prince Siddhartha Gautuma meditated under an old pipal tree in a village named Gaya near Patna, Bihar some 2500 years ago. Ultimately he achieved nirvana or was ‘awakened.’
Consequently the tree under which he sat was named Bodhi, meaning “awakening.” Sidhartha Gautuma became Buddha (the awakened) and the village where all this happened came to be known as Bodh Gaya, which name it still carries, and the Bhodi tree that grows there today is believed to be a direct offspring of the original Bhodi tree. In the centuries after the Buddha, the Bodhi tree became a symbol of the Buddha’s presence and an object of devotion for Buddhists.
A little more history before I get to the pipal tree in the woods of Islamabad.
King Ashoka (died 232 BC), the third Maurian king, converted to Buddhism and became a great advocate of the religion and actively propagated Buddhism throughout his empire. The Mauran Empire included, other than the present Northern India, the Gandhara region, which included the area around present day Islamabad, the Peshawar valley and parts of Afghanistan and Iran. Taxila (then Taxshashila), Peshawar (then Parshpura) and Charsaddah (then Pushklavati) were important cities of Gandhara. It was at this time that Taxila reached the peak of its development and became the center of Buddhism. Chandra Gupta Mauria and Asoka spent time at Taxila and so did their famous political adviser, Chanakya, who taught at Taxila.
King Asoka’s daughter, Sanghamitra, who became a Buddhist nun, is said to have taken a cutting of the Bohdi tree from Bhod Gaya to Sri Lanka and planted it at Anaradapura, the ancient capital of the island, where it still grows. Many temples throughout the Buddhist world have bodhi trees growing in them, which are or are believed to be offspring of the one from Anaradapura.Now, back to Islamabad.The very old pipal tree that grew in the woods of Islamabad was also believed to be an offspring of the Bodhi tree in Gaya, possibly planted centuries ago by a devotee alongside a temple that might have existed then. Taxila, as you would know, is only a few miles from Islamabad as the crow flies and is full of Buddhist monuments - stupas, statues and remains of monasteries.
In the 1980s Ziaul Haq ruled Pakistan. In his zeal to “Islamize” the country he encouraged and helped build madrassas all over the country, mostly with Saudi money. One such madrassa was built in the woods of Islamabad, not too far from the bodhi tree. Over the years the madrassa expanded, as most madrassas do, violating the building codes and encroaching upon state land, to become one of the largest madrassas in Islamabad. Today it occupies 5-6 acres of prime real estate in Islamabad and has a sprawling building complex and a very large playing field - larger than any school or college in Islamabad might have.
The madrassa houses a couple of thousand students ranging in age from 6 to 26 or even older. One sees them during breaks in their classes when they swarm into their playground and, as if the playground were not large enough, overrun the nearby children’s park, driving the children and women out. It is quite annoying for the residents - and a bizarre sight - to see young bearded men swinging and sliding like crazy on the swings and slides meant for young children of the residential area. Other contributions of these madrassa students to the community are: defaced street signs and walls with posters soliciting sacrificial animal skins, and vandalized letterboxes.
Fortunately, because of its very large girth, the bodhi tree did not burn down completely even though it was badly damaged. It still stood with half of its branches still intact. The city administration tried to preserve what was left of the tree. They even posted guards at the site for sometime after the incident to protect the tree from any further attacks. When I saw it last, a few years ago, it was still green and seemed as if it was struggling to recover from the wounds inflicted on it.
Last week, having returned to Islamabad after two years, I decided to look up the tree, as if you would look up an old friend, and see how it was doing. I was shocked to see that there was no tree there!
Only a few logs of the decapitated tree were lying around like dead bodies. The concrete kiosk next to it was partially demolished, the bench was gone, and the remaining walls covered with graffiti. Through the woods I could also see the madrassa — some construction work going on it. Still expanding, I guess.
Thank you Mahi for your elaborate response to Mr. Alvi. You have done a much better job than I could have.
I have just returned (18th. March) from a North Indian trip. I visited a number of historical sites, holy places and some well known shrines. About twenty years ago (1986), I spent three months in Kanpur and had the occasion to visit the same places. In twenty years time India has changed a great deal. Today the religious rituals are not the same as twenty years ago. It used to be a memorable site to visit the Ghats in Banaras at sun-rise and sun-set. In the pre-dawn light thousands of people used to take their Ganga bath, chanting their prayer and the river was flooded with little oil-lamps (diyA). There were Sadhoos on both banks of the river singing their religious prayers. The same was repeated in the evening. There was serenity, joy and spiritualism in all this.
Now, in the morning there are only a few flickering candles floated by a few visiting tourists. In the evening, for one hour, there is a big show by seven professional dancers disguised in holy priests. They show a well choreographed dance to imitate the so-called religious ritual on the tunes of recorded music of some well known singer of bhajans. The tourists adore it. The present Hinduism in India is more a Show Business than the Puja of the deities.
For convenience I will divide Islam in India in two categories: Sufi Islam (A) and militant Islam (B). The (A) contains the Muslim, who more or less follow the teachings of the Sufis and (B) does not. As compared to twenty years ago the A has reached closer to the Hindu rituals. Now, while you visit the mazar of Hazrat Nizamuddin if you have a bare-head, a plastic cap is automatically fixed on you head, you should not turn your back towards the mazar, you have to present a basket of flowers with some sweet thing in it and in return you receive a gift of some sweet hard nuts from the so-called Khadim to distribute among your family and friends like zam-zam water or more like a Hindu parsad. The visitors are already lying flat at the tombs of great Sufis like Nizamuddin or Amir Khusro. The so called Khadims are behaving like High Priest Brahmins.
I think this Islam (A) can be easily absorbed by Hinduism but in that case the militant Islam (B) will become more militant and extreme movements like that of Taliban will become common and stronger. These groups will receive all the financial and material help from all the Muslim countries. What should the Hindus do? Maintain the statut quo!
To see the importance of the Greek influence on Gandhara Art, it will be helpful to visit Texila where Buddha statues have Greek fases.
Ahsan
My above comment is addressed to Ahmed2.
I am glad you have identified yourself now. Earlier I noticed another Ahmed on a different thread but didn’t see any hint of Ghalib in his/her comments. So, I was wondering what happened. Now I know. Thanks.
mahi:
Thanks for taking time to explain from your perspective. Interesting indeed.
jayjay wrote: “This epitomizes the story of all madrassas in the Islamic Republic.”
jayjay:
Not all. There are some very reputable madrassas in Pakistan as well, the Islamic Republic as you have pointed out. All societies have their share of social ills. It is just that Pakistanis are trying to point out theirs on this post in a hope of self betterment. I for one appreciate your interest in Pakistani society. Please do tell us where we go wrong; in a positive way though. Thanks.
MQ:
You have a way with words and ideas. If I might quote Ghalib again:
Dekhna [tahrir] ki lazzat kay jo usnay kaha
Mainay yeh jaana kay goya yeh bhi meray dil mein hai
Full of sorrow — sabha dukha- I looked deep into myself for enlightenment but alas no enlightenment came. I too grieve with all others for one more erasure from our common memory.
Pakistani residents of Islamabad were mostly unaware of the presence of this tree and those who knew about it were generally indifferent to it.
This is not true…what made you come up with a generalized statement like this.There seems to be a general misconception that islamabadis are ignorant of their surroundings. ive seen this tree your talking about many times. lots of people in islamabad knew about it, and many youngsters i knew would go for walks on the trail that passes by the tree.People loved that place, and were very sad when the tree was cut down.
yes it was cut down, in phases. they chopped half of it down at first, and then after a few months it was all gone..
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007 3\21\story_21-3-2007_pg7_28
20 students ‘rescued’ from seminary
MUZAFFARGARH: Kotadu Police freed 20 children from a religious seminary where some of them were being kept in fetters in Hala village on Monday and arrested the person in charge of the seminary on charges of sexually abusing the children.
“We raided a madrassa and found 20 children there, 10 of whom were in fetters, and have registered a case of sexual harassment against the teacher, Qari Ghulam Rasul, on the complaint of two of the children,� Muzaffargarh District Police Officer Rai Tahir told reporters.
He said that five-year-old Ziaur Rehman and six-year-old Ishaq had told police that Ghulam Rasul had subjected them to sexual abuse, adding that another student, Irfan (15), had said that he had earlier tried to run away from the seminary after coming to know that Ghulam Rasul abused children but was recaptured and forced to live there. However, students Muhammad Idrees (16) and Muhammad Bilal (17) denied the charges of sexual abuse against Ghulam Rasul and said that Irfan was an “absconding� student. staff report
MQ Do you have any proof that this tree was sacred to any faith? Do you have any proof that this tree was burned down by the students and not some opportunist to defame Islam? You are talking about encroachments? Islamabad is the greateset encroachment on the face of Pakistan. Can you pretend all’s well in CDA?
By the way your roshan khayal ‘civilized’ american friends have destroyed the historical sites in Iraq know famously as the ‘cradle of civilization’ . Let’s hear your apologies on their behalf. I am all ears.