The Burning of the Shrine: Wandering Sufis, Islam and Conflict in Kashmir

Almost centuries ago, wandering Sufis from Central Asia and Iran arrived in Kashmir – a region where Hinduism and Buddhism were the reigning and dominant religious and ideological paradigms. These charismatic wanderers appealed to both the rulers and the ruled and built an edifice of Islam in Kashmir. Their approach was neither conflictual nor confrontational. In modern day parlance, it was soft power that they took recourse to. And it worked. Soon after their foray into Kashmir, Kashmir became predominantly Muslim. However, Islam in Kashmir was unique in the sense that it was not completely iconoclastic: it built upon the extant spiritual and ethical foundations and then gave these an Islamic imprimatur. Truth was spoken to both power and the laity in an idiom that convinced and synthesized than in a showdown or by the force of arms.

The results and the consequences were overwhelming: Kashmir became, to repeat predominantly Muslim. The impact of Sufism was writ large in the nature of Kashmiri society, culture, mores, ethics and orientation. Even the architecture of Kashmiri mosques and buildings reflected this Sufi heritage. Kashmiri society was imbued with a tolerant ethos and outlook. Different communities-Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Buddhists- lived and thrived in the mosaic that was Sufi Kashmir. The operating paradigms were tolerance, mutual respect and harmony.

The politics of Kashmir- the various Afghan incursions and rule, the rule by the Hindu Maharaja-and its economics-widespread and prevalent poverty- did not affect or disturb these paradigms. Sufism and its corollaries were indelibly ensconced in the Kashmiri collective consciousness. It was perhaps only after the partition and division of the Indian subcontinent that politics interfered and interjected into the rhythms of Kashmiri society and life. (This assertion is not meant to demean the struggles of Kashmiris against the Maharaja’s misrule and injustices). Kashmir, it could be said, became a real issue only after the partition. The partition of the subcontinent was premised upon the two nation theory which meant that Hindus and Muslims could not live together and that the subcontinent would be divided along religious lines. This has been belabored enough and does not warrant more than a mention here. Suffice it to say that in the two nation theory, Kashmir, given that it was predominantly Muslim, was supposed to part of Pakistan.   Later, after some convolutions, self determination and freedom for Kashmiris entered the picture. However, what actually happened that Kashmir got incorporated into the Indian Republic. Whether these constituted the best futures and options for Kashmir is not the core concern here. What is at issue is peace and tranquility in Kashmir and the impact on Kashmiri society and psyche in the absence of peace.

The political uncertainty that pervades Kashmir begat violence. While spasms of violence punctuated by peaceful spells have been a theme in Kashmir, it was only in the late nineties that Kashmir both imploded and exploded and violence became structural. This questioned and challenged the dominant Sufi paradigms in Kashmir. Violence instead of peace was the idiom that determined Kashmir. It threw into disarray the social, cultural and psychical fabric of Kashmir. The result was chaos and anarchy with the attendant insalubrious impacts on all aspects of Kashmiri society.

While the Indian state contained the insurgency and instituted a political process in Kashmir, the underlying issue remained unresolved.  The issue simmered and the Kashmiri collective unconscious became fragmented. Contending and competing paradigms like Wahhabism competed and jostled for this psychic and spiritual space. The attendant confusion and psychical morass led to ugly situations and conditions: abnormal, neurotic and bizarre given the Kashmiri psyche. The burning of the Dastgeer Sahib shrine (if it is the handiwork of malcontented elements) a reflection and indication of this abnormality and neurosis. This element apparently wants to destroy and eliminate the Sufi legacy that defines Kashmir and its attendant corollaries. If they do succeed in this agenda, this would constitute a bitter and sad travesty.

 What needs to be done is to reclaim the Sufi nature and legacy of Kashmir. This would render normal the psychical, emotional and ethical universe of Kashmir and Kashmiris. Peace and tranquility will then be the natural condition and state of affairs. The question is how this can be done?

If it was politics that gave short shrift to the Sufi paradigms in Kashmir, it is politics that can restore the status quo ante. This means that powers that be in India and Pakistan take a salubrious view on the dispute over and conflict in Kashmir, grasp the nettle and resolve the conflict for good. Deeming the tourist inflow to Kashmir and the somewhat peaceful conditions that obtain in Kashmir as an indication of normalcy is short sightedness and ahistorical. Kashmir as the burning of the shrine and its aftermath indicates is simmering underneath. All it takes is a catalyst to bring this out in the open. It is about time then that a serious view and note is taken of the dispute and it be resolved. This much is owed to Kashmiris. Our future, psychic health, normality, peace and tranquility is at stake here. Let politics reclaim the spiritual space and legace of Kashmir.