United Nations Deceninium
for Indiginous Peoples
1995 - 2004
THE
KALASH
A LIVING PERSONIFICATION
MYTH AND HISTORY
The Sanskrit word "Kalash" means both pure and ashes, and according to the stories told by the Kalash to Bugi and his family in the last 40 years, we are created out of water to be pure.
Khudai, the supreme God, long ago, at the time of
distributions among the sons of Adam, gave land to live
on. Kalasha, the youngest son, decided with his family
to keep the valley of Bamboorate for himself as this was
the most beautiful and fertile valley in the whole
world. The two other brothers, Katis and Bashagalis,
became jealous when they saw that the most beautiful
part had been given to the youngest son. And this is
what caused the enimity between the different tribes of
the Kalash: the Siah Posh (with black robe), the Surkh
Posh (with red robe) and the Safed Posh (with white
robe).
In time immemorial the Kalash were spread over the
extensive borderlands of China, Afghanistan, Kashmir and
Pakistan, which included the Hindukush mountains and
valleys stretched from Wa'gal, Shatruma Desh,
Trachingao, Shoowar, Badam, Lotdeh, Badamuk, Tar Chigal,
Bijen Chäo, Bashagal in Nooristan to Kohistan of Swat
and Dir, from the Kabul River Valley to Badakshan and
Wakhan, along the Karakoram Highway (parts of the
ancient Silk Route).
A says they are the last descendants of the soldiers of
Alexander the Great of Macedonia (326 B.C.). Reasons for
the legend was the fact that the Kalash know a number of
seperate named gods and demons, under which one of them
resembles like the Greek god of wine Bacchos. The real
origin of the Kalash is obscure. Historians
accompagnying Alexander after crossing the Lowari Top in
Dir have mentioned small scrimmiges with the Kalash
tribe. The centuries old rockcarvings along the
Karakoram Highway are according to some anthropologists
of Buddhist origin, but they could also be direction
signs used by the trading shepherds living in the Kalash
Kingdom. In the time of the Moghuls (rulers in this
region in the 15th till the 19th century) wine was taken
from the valleys of the Kalash to the tables of the
moghuls. The Moghul Emperor Babur "the tiger" invaded
the Kalash area because he did not recieve the taxes
(Jizya).
The tribesmen who did not know the power of gunpowder were blazed away. They reacted, Babur said, with unseemly gestures. He introduced new taxes at the time of harvest, which was later abolished by Akbar (1504) with a sense of fairness, because he was a man of culture and wisdom.
Seeing the prosperity of the Kalash in the Bamboorate
valley, Katis and Bashagalis became jealous. They
invaded the valley several times. They killed many and
took away golden and silver utencils and girls. The
Kalash complained to the Amir of Chitral, Aman-Ulmulk.
The Amir promised protection, in exchange of
walnuttrees, honey, cheese, goats and women to work as
housemaids in his palace. The inhabitants of the valleys
of the Kalash area became the slaves of the Amir of
Chitral. He did everything to keep them from education
and nobody was allowed to hunt deer or mountain goats
Harkhor). There was some freedom though. Religious
ceremonies were respected four times a year, and at the
time of death and birth. Onesided treaties were signed
as far as the water flows and the grass grew. The land
belonged to the Amir and his family. The Kalash had
nothing to say in it for they were the illiterate, the
wild bunch. For little quantity of tobacco precious
possession of the Kalash were disposed. By igorance and
because of the high debts the Kalash lost their land to
strangers in the end.
On the other side of the mountains in the valley of
Barose and Shisikohn the wise king Bola Singa (ruler of
the Kalash in the 17th century) had a dream. A giant
appeared to him and said: "shoot these three arrows and
let your soldiers find them again. Build a temple where
the black arrow will come down. On the spot where the
red arrow comes down you build a house, where the female
may deliver their children and where they can live when
they are unclean. [the Kalash consider women who are in
labour and women who have their period as unclean, and
it is their habit that they live in a seperate house,
called Bashalani.] The third arrow will be saved for the
future generations to come forth." As predicted by the
wise, soon the Surkh Posh-Kalash would disappear. And so
it happened. Amir Abdur Rehman, ruler of Afghanistan,
invaded at the end of the 19th century the living area
of the Surkh Posh-Kalash and converted 80.000 Kalash
into Muslim. The name of the area changed from
Kafiristan (land of the unbelievers) into Nooristan
(land of the light).
The Brittish explorer Robertson (1890 - 1895) saw the
last people of Kafiristan and notifyed about them in his
book "Kafirs of the Hindukush. Katis and Bashagalis".
Amir Abdu Rehman was armed to the teeth by the Brittish
to prevent the Russians to reach a warm seaport. The war
which was waged over small possessions became a fanatic
religious war. People from Nooristan regularly invaded
Bamboorate, Bireer and Rumboor. Sculptures were burned,
houses broken down and everything which reminded of
idolworship was taken away. So were the 200 sculptures
which were taken to the British museums by Robertson and
by the people who were caretakers of the British Empire
for governing purposes.
The Kalash disappeared out of the picture. There was no
education and no written language. All religious
ceremonies were passed down from generation to
generation by means of hymns and songs. While singing
songs the high priest of Rumboor (Qazi Biraman, who is
now 85 years old utters: "when I was a young boy there
were 106 life size sculptures in Rumboor alone, where
are they now? Oh my fellow Kalash warriors, beware these
bounty hunters are not your friends". CULTURE
Wine, fruit, exotic women, fairy tales and gods, that is
what it was all about in the Kalash Kingdom. A tribal
chief was judged according to the number of goats he
possessed. The highest cast and the people with royal
blood, only possessed cows. After living a few months
alone with his flock in the valleys a young boy became a
man and a warrior. After this he could choose any girl
he wanted. In future the man was named Ballalik (brave
warrior).
Just like other pagan tribes of Indo-Arian origins,
festivities were connected with the seasons, and the
activities belonging to each season, like sowing,
harvesting and storing the harvest, ment rejoicing and
merry making. The early days remembered of the Promised
Land, abundance of food and drink, clothes made out of
goathair and age old customs in which respect for
eachother was central. During harvesttime there was a
feast which lasted for one week. There was dancing in
the moonlight by the sound of the drums, while people
with torches in their hands gathered on a spot specially
meant for this feast. Even the children would be drunk
then, and the girls sang lovesongs: "I would like to run
away with you brave warrior, but don't tell my friends.
I want to live with you. I want to marry you. How many
goats and cows can you give to my parents, I will be
yours." The boys answered on the changing rythm of the
drums and sang: "What is the meaning of cows and goats
if you have me. Don't look at my possessions. I am there
to protect you. If my enemy gives five goats I will give
twenty, for he can't beat me. I am the son of a great
warrior". RECENT FACTS Uptil today there are still 2500
Kalash living in the three valleys in Pakistan:
Bamboorate, Bireer and Rumboor, near Chitral, N.W.F.P.
The Kalash consider the period under the rule of their
kings Shalak Shah, Cheo, Raja Waii and Bola Singa as
their best time. That was the golden time remembered by
the Kalash. Trich Mir smiled like a golden god upon the
bountiful land. Trich Mir, Chitrals highest peak, still
towers high, only the days are no longer so golden......
The sons of the royal families tell with pride: "This
was our land, but what should we do. Our ancestors in
the evenings listened to the wings of the fairies
passing by, while the drums were being played. What is
left for us? Our land is taken by strangers, our trees
are used as pledges for a cap, we live like animals in a
zoo, where the spectators stare at us. We are forced to
dance for strangers and our women are troubled. All we
want is to be left alone."
The Kalash are skilled artisans. Just look at the
patrons in harmony with nature all over. The paintings,
the woodcarving and the wooven textiles. They are
beautiful people, their women have long slender necks,
the most delicate wrists and long tapering fingers.
Childlike people, innocent. They hardly have any crime
among them. They don't lie, they don't cheat and for the
guests they go out of the way. But slowly they are
forgetting everything. To honour their dead the Kalash
make wooden sculptures (Gandaoo effigies), animals are
sacrificed, feasts are given. So every artisan can
compete for his family's name.
"I am the best carver in the whole valley", says
Mirzamust, a sculpturer. And to celebrate the change of
seasons, they paint the doors of their houses. Like
Khishoo, the outstanding artist among the Kalash
artisans.
But everything gets stolen, many things disappear to
Europe, to museums of Anthropology and Ethnography. The
Kalash never get any compensations. Moreover the
healthsituation in the valleys is disastrous. Infant
mortality is high, lack of elementary hygiene cause
eye-infections among many other things. And last but not
least outsiders always interfere with the Kalash.
At the time of Joshi (the Kalash festival in Rumboor), a
priest from the west came with a bible in hand, and
started shouting, raising slogans: "Oh I found the lost
tribes of the Jews". The Government of Pakistan acted
promptly and all religious preachings and lobbying were
banned, to respect the Kalash sensibilities.
All this brings tears in the eyes of the Kalash. Like a
chieftain of the Kalash, Laqbal Khan says:
"Ex-prime-minister Mr. Bhutto loved us very much. He
visited us and promised us museums to preserve our
culture and to earn selfrespect. All we want is to be
left alone, and carry out our religious- and human
rights. In 1980 there were 5000 of us. Now, in 1995 only
2500 are left. These people, who are living in tents on
the bank of Chitral River, are our brothers from
Nooristan, who have returned from across the borders. We
wanted to fight with them, hand in hand against the
Soviets during the Afghan-war. Now the Soviets are gone,
we can live in peace and harmony with nature again. All
these refugees living near the mountainstreams are our
familymembers. We don't have much, but we share with
them whatever we have. The enemy is gone. Now help us to
survive, for we were the test sites. Test sites of the
games superpowers play with the poor countries."
Bugi
Ansari
United Nations Deceninium
for Indiginous Peoples
Translation by Anita Ansari
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