Deepak Raj
While being in wilderness after militancy erupted in the valley, the KP community came under various pulls and pressures-social, psychological, and climatic. These forces had a great impact on the society members. One of the developments that made its profound impact on the lives of people living in exile was the coming up of numerous shrines and ashrams in Jammu and other parts of the country. Rooted in a deep religious-cultural milieu, KPs continued to remain connected with their roots by observing all community rituals and celebrating socio-religious festivals.
In the beginning people had no priority for religious affairs. They were trying to come terms with new environs entirely different from the previous ones. Basic amenities of life like accommodation, electricity, water, healthcare and economic matters assumed importance. As these were overcome to a great extent by the community during course of time, focus shifted to shrines and saints and socio-religious issues at community level, though at personal level people continued their traditions.
Gradually, replicas of various shrines dedicated to gods, goddesses and particularly to saints came up at various places in Jammu. Prominent among the shrines that dot the Jammu landscape include saint Gopinath, Kralbab (a colony known as Kralbab Nagar was named after him) Surya Mandir Martand at Paloura, Sharika Peeth Subash Nagar, Rishipeer, Nandbab, Rupabhawani Mirza kak etc. Not only in Jammu, these symbols of culture and religion cropped up throughout India at places where KPs in considerable numbers settled. The replicas of Hariparvat, Khirbhawani, Gopinath Ashram are among the prominent shrines that dot the landscape of India. In some cases devotees who could not build shrines started performing yearly havans. These are performed in temples and other ashrams which have arrangements for the same. Saint Gopinath was exalted to the status of God by his devotees. His ashram at Bohri witnesses huge rush of devotees on his birthday and Nirvan divas and other days. His devotees gave him wide publicity through print and electronic media.The Gopinath Trust was created to look after the affairs of the Ashram and to make arrangements for holding festivals, etc. Such is his fame that Government of India issued a postal stamp in his honour. The Khirbhawani temple at Janipora too has a mass following. Likewise other shrines too have their Trusts or Managing Committees to look into the affairs of shrines and ashrams. What was it that prompted KPs to construct these institutions when they were coincidentally in the City Of Temples? In the beginning people lived in rented accommodation within the city limits, or in camps. But with the passage of time, the community gradually settled on the outskirts of the city without temples and shrines.People felt as if they were living in a void. This void was filled by these religious institutions. This allowed them to rediscover their identity, and fall back on their past . There was one more tangible reason for people to participate in ashram or Guru Culture. The KPs in Kashmir did not enjoy the religious freedom they desired. They participated in religious ceremonies in hush-hush manner due to the influence of majority community. The community had to repress its religious sentiments. As a result festivals were celebrated in a subdued manner. After migration the community found conducive atmosphere for giving vent to these repressed religious feelings. The people started celebrating festivals in a fear-free atmosphere. Besides the migrant community faced language and cultural barrier which prevented them to identify itself with the local shrines devoted to local kuldevtas. The rituals or festivals observed in these shrines reinforced, what renowned sociologist Emile Durkheim termed as Social Solidarity, by bringing people together to reaffirm their common bond and recall their social heritage. Participation in rituals heightened the feeling of being part of something larger than oneself. Besides, the migration in its wake unleashed a wave of misery that shook the community terribly. They faced all sorts of trials and tribulations, sickness, and death. It disturbed the normal tenor of house-holds. As the community failed to come terms with the exiled life, they needed divine intervention to overcome migration trauma. Believing fully in the psychological explanation of the preeminence of religion in culture heavily rests on the facts that religion acts as a reliever of stress, anxiety and frustration, the KPs started visiting these places. They associated themselves with one Guru or ashram. Almost every house-hold is linked to one or the other guru or ashram. Whether they get their day to day affairs redressed at these places, one is not sure. But they repose their faith in them and sing paeans in their praise.
According to Romila Thapar, the renowned historian “……The relationship between religion and politics had complex dimensions in the past and cannot be explained away by a simple monocasual explanation that reduces everything to a minimalist religious motivation. Religion is a private matter so long as it remains within the thoughts of a person. When these thoughts are expressed publicly and inspire public action such as building monuments for worship and organizing fellow believers into carrying out political and social functions, then religion ceases to be an exclusively personal matter. It is no longer a matter of faith since its formulation as an organization of believers has a bearing on the functioning of the society. Its religious identity incorporates these functions that are expressed through its institutions, such as monasteries, mathas, temples, mosques, khanqahs, churches, synagogues, gurudwars. Their role has to be assessed not merely in terms of the religion with which they are associated, but also in the context of their functions as institutions of society…..”
The activities of these symbols of culture and religion, however, remained confined to observing rituals and festivals as they could not extend their field of operation by way of carrying out welfare or philanthropic activities in the society. Though there are certain organizations associated with these institutions that carry out certain welfare activities but on a small scale. At pan India level, these institutions established a link between NRIs (of Kashmir origin who had left before and during militancy)and those living in India. Some institutions received even financial support, as is reported.
Their role in educational field does not exist at all as not a single medical, engineering or educational institution is run by them. Nor do they sponsor any deserving student for any training or higher education.
The coming up of a shrine in honor of a Muslim darvesh—Sultan sahib of Vessu Anantnag at Satwari Jammu gave another dimension to the ashram culture. This shrine was built by KPs largely belonging to Srinagar who are said to be ardent devotees of the saint.
……” Social scientists Veena Das and JPS Uberoi present interpretation of ritual in terms of certain fundamental categories of thought (such as time, space, purity, power and auspiciousness) and in relation to the structure of social relations. Common to these approaches is the fact that in all of them religion is regarded as an important element of social life. The system of beliefs, rituals and practices in themselves are not significant; they are significant only in the way these are manifested and actualized in interactions between individuals and groups in a society. It is sociologically significant as as basis for social interactions in the process of which, through the use of symbols, metaphors, language and rhetoric strategies, it demarcates boundaries, creates distinct often conflicting identities. Thus perceived religion has always been an important basis of identity and maker of boundaries. The substantive content cosmological, theological and metaphysical of religion per se is not significant-it assumes significance when it is used by individuals and collectivities to gain political ends”.
After exodus many political groups came into existence to meet the challenge of militancy and apathetic attitude of governments towards the community. These parties had before them the task of providing the community members some political space for furthering their objectives. While analyzing the roles of these institutions viz-a-viz KPs in meeting some of the political objectives, nothing much can be said about them. These could never become centers of political activities. Nor there was movement on the lines of Ganeshmahaotsav initiated by Bal Gangadhar Tilak in Bombay to mobilize masses during freedom struggle. Only one institution—-KP Sabha at Ambphalla, which is a 100-year- old institution is involved in socio-political affairs of the community .But it too does not move out of its periphery .However, there are people who believe that these institutions are politically important as they keep a dying culture alive. And when a community’s culture exists its political identity also exists.
If the community wants to achieve its objectives- social political and economic, these centres could be of great help. What is needed is an orientation that could help achieve the objectives- long or short. Serving rice and dal will not serve any purpose other than the significance it has its own.
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