Manu Khajuria
Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed while inaugurating the newly renovated and refurbished Abhinav Theatre spoke about the need for the youth to take onus of preserving the composite culture of the State. The Chief Minister referred to the prolonged strife in the State which has run over three decades and has been responsible for hindering cultural activities. Dr Haseeb Drabu speaking on the occasion said that a culturally conscious civil society can create an enabling environment for the revival of cultural activities in the State.
The above statements lead to some very important questions. The first being what is culture. Sociologists simply define it as a way of living, thinking and worship. This definition covers the entire gamut of language, various art forms, places of worship, local legends, folklores and more. What is important to understand is that an activity can be termed cultural only if it successfully creates an environment of self development and self protection/ preservation. The development and protection of the local culture should be the goal of any cultural activity and it must percolate unto the last man.
Culture has been a casualty in our State but for some regions if not all three the damage started not just three decades back but even before it. The worst kind of invasion is the invasion of one’ s self esteem. Nothing illustrates it better than Lord Macaulay’s reasons for propagating English education as recorded in his address to the British Parliament in the 1800s …” For if the Indians think that everything that is foreign and English is good and greater than their own, they will lose their self esteem, local culture and they will become what we want them, a truly dominated Nation”. Despite not being a Scholar himself he formulated the education plan for India and cleverly devised a strategy to rule over our minds in a manner such, that we still cannot shake off the colonial hangover. Strip a people off their way of life, tell them their history has nothing to be proud of and you can rule over them unopposed, for they would have lost their ability to debate, discuss and defend. Loss of pride and faith in self is the most damaging. Undoubtedly not knowing renders us mute and weak but knowing and not speaking up is worse. What is even more shameful is not making the effort to share that knowledge, so that atleast others may speak up. To encourage scholarship, research, discourse and a space where people discuss and form informed opinion on their culture and history is a fundamental cultural activity.
Language which is the vehicle of any culture is taking a beating not surprisingly because it we who insist that our children speak English but not Dogri, Gojri or Pahari. The many Literary Sabhas and organisations with a packed calendar of book launches, commemorations and book readings fall short, if they are unable to instill a sense of pride in one’ s local language, a desire to read, write and speak it. Cultural and literary activities cannot remain within the four walls of fancy halls and auditoriums. Many of our young people who travel out of the State, identify themselves as Delhiites and not Jammuites citing reasons that no one has heard of Jammu. To misidentify is indicative of our failure in not equipping them with the knowledge, pride or ability to speak of and for, their city, town and village; its history and distinct culture. The enabling environment Dr Drabu spoke of clearly needs working upon.
It takes hundreds of years to build a culture and it can be destroyed in less than half the time it took to develop it. To speak of peace only in times of war is not an ideology but a reaction. We must work on preserving our culture not only when it is threatened but it must be a priority at all times. A case in point is Basohli Art, a local art form which is dying and has been reclaimed by the neighbouring Himachal Pradesh. Inaction definitely spells doom for this art but knee jerk reactions and half baked ideas do not stop its sure and painful death. Priyanka a young girl I met researching Basohli art, takes a bus at 7 am to travel around 3 hours to Basohli, to learn, find answers. To share the relevant information so that something can be done, she is willing to travel across cities at her own cost. She is probably doing more than any cultural activity designed half heartedly to save this art form. The training centre in remote Karanwada is not accessible to most. To encourage and facilitate young people like Priyanka, who are involved in such research and to take on board their findings would be one way to truly create an enabling environment for the promotion of culture. The State Government must recognise the achievements of two time Everester Lt Col Ranveer Jamwal, from Badohri Village in Samba District, who also has 24 other expeditions under his belt. Honouring the Heros amongst us will only foster a culture of heroism.
The Chief Minister also said that without keeping heritage and past values alive the youth may achieve economic affluence but will never know who they are. This could not be truer. Devoid of the knowledge of who we are, we do not know of the legacy we have to carry forward. We have a Zorawar Singh the bravest of warriors, a Baba Jitto an inspiring social revolutionary, a Khuda Dad Khan the Victoria Cross winner, a Maharaja Ranbir Singh, a noted Classical Persian Scholar, a Baba Ghulam Shah who predicted the glorious future of Maharaja Gulab Singh, a Maharaja Gulab Singh, the Hindu King who built a shrine in Shahdara Sharief in Baba’s memory, and a Mahamaya the fearless local woman who gave up her life fighting foreign invaders. Self respecting, loyal, nationalist, finest fighting material, courageous with a high sense of honour and a strength of character to reckon with are some adjectives used to describe the local people of Jammu Region. It is critical for our growth to know that the Dogra is not a dangar but all of the above. Cultural values which can uplift, shape character and impact behaviour must be promoted widely and especially in schools. Wet clay can be moulded easily and hence the younger they are the greater the impact. It is vital to remember that history inspires character and character builds Nation.
The unstable environment and political situation to a large part are responsible in playing havoc with the local way of life. Culture we wrongly think should take a backseat when militancy and cross border terrorism continue to keep us in a fight and flight mode. We forget that it is culture that truly protects us and brings us together. The Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in the wake of the Paris attacks said ” They want terror, we respond with culture that is stronger than ignorance. We will never change our way of life, our identity, and surrender before them.The Italian way is to spend a euro in culture for every euro spent on security”.
The peaceful culture of the land is epitomised in the story of Raja Jambulochan seeing a tiger and a goat standing side by side and drinking water from the River Tawi. The culture of the land has never been insular but always inclusive. Hence every paisa spent on it is worthwhile and we must do so wisely.
Each one of us has a role to play. It is we who allow ourselves to become the subject of ridicule and it is we alone who can change it. We do not become the son/ daughter of the soil by mere birth.We earn that honour by our deeds. There can be different means to an end but the result in the end, must be success. A Samaaj or a society is not a random group of people coming together. It is a group of people who are one in their ideology, self respecting, unshakeable in their faith and united in their aim to protect and preserve their culture. They join hands for a common purpose, they promote the brilliant amongst them to inspire more, they foster positivity, the older generation share knowledge and are conscious of the fact that they must pass the baton forward to the young, and the young ask not what they want and need but what they can do and give. A civil society which is conscious of and toiling for true cultural work should be our ideal. A people without knowledge of their past, origin and culture are indefensible.
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