Plight of Kashmiri Muslims in Indian Occupied Kashmir

In our on going series of posts of Islam and life of Muslims in non Muslim Countries, today for this post I have made a slight modification for the plight of Muslims at the hands of Israelis and Indians in Palestine and Indian Occupied Kashmir is the worst case of human rights violation, suppression of seeking freedom and beginning of the worst kind of genocide is unparalleled and most disturbing.

The Muslim inhabitants of the Indian Occupied Kashmir, a disputed territory between Pakistan and India since their independence in 1974 is the worst case of denial of exercise of right of self determination of their future. At the time of independence, while majority Muslim population wanted to be part of Pakistan, a tacit move by the last British viceroy of India, Lord Mountbatten ceded Kashmir to India. This created lot of resentment from Pakistan and a war broke out soon thereafter between the two countries, which was halted due to UN intervention and and resulted in a ceasefire with a front solidified along the Line of Control.

The map showing the division of Kashmir across the Line of Control between Pakistan and India [Photo]

As per the provisions of UN, a plebiscite was to be held to determine the fate of the Jammu and Kashmir region. But since 1947, India has consistently denied this right to the Kashmiris and have tried to suppress their right of self determination with brute force. This has frustrated the Kashmiri Muslims and they have resorted to a long freedom struggle for their legitimate rights. And in doing so, thousands of Kashmiris have lost their lives at the hands of the Indian Army and countless have been maimed for life. 

Indian brute force suppressing voice of Kashmiris [Photo]

In recent times, the intensity of freedom struggle has picked up a greater momentum and an equally greater suppression by Indian Army. Not only many have been martyred, but use of pellet guns have left ugly scars on the bodies of freedom fighters.  

One of the countless pellet gun victims of Indian Occupied Kashmir

Indian forces have committed many human rights abuses and acts of terror against Kashmiri civilian population including extrajudicial killing, rape, torture and enforced disappearances. In 2011, the state humans right commission said it had evidence that 2,156 bodies had been buried in 40 graves over the last 20 years. 

Unarmed retaliation against armed Indian Army [Photo]

Some rights groups say close to 100,000 people have died since 1989 while the official figures from Indian sources state the estimates of number of civilians killed due to the insurgency in the range of 16,725 to 47,000 civilians, in which 3,642 civilians were killed by security forces. According to Amnesty International, no member of the Indian military deployed in Jammu and Kashmir has been tried for human rights violations in a civilian court as of June 2015.

Just recently, when there rose a hope of mediation between the two countries as promised by US president Donald Trump, the World's so-called "largest democracy" has acted in the most undemocratic way possible in illegally rescinding Article 370 on 5th August - a constitutional clause dating back to 1949 that gives Jammu and Kashmir its special autonomous status. The scale of this move cannot be overstated. Abrogating Article 370 represents a major tipping point for an already fraught dispute - and it could easily backfire on India. 

Before the announcement by Indian government and movement of large scale military troops, prominent Kashmir leader Syed Ali Gilani tweeted to the world with a heart wrenching message. The tone and choice of words says it all about the genocide of Kashmiris that is geared in coming days.

With this ugly move, Jammu and Kashmir will turn from a state to a union territory, meaning India’s central government in New Delhi will gain much more control over the area’s affairs. New Delhi is also considering splitting parts of J&K into two federal territories: the new state of Jammu and Kashmir, which will get its own legislature; and Ladakh, a remote and mountainous area that won’t get a legislature. By dispensing with the region’s autonomous status, it can formally consummate that integration and deliver a definitive blow to the region’s separatist impulses.

Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said the decision was a "sinister one" designed to change the demographics of the only Muslim-majority state. "We have been let down by the same nation we ceded to," she said, adding that it seemed as though the state had made the "wrong choice" in aligning with India rather than Pakistan during partition in 1947.

This sinister move by Modi's India brings to forth the rejection of Two Nation Theory put forward by Muhammad Ali Jinnah, founding father of Pakistan. However when Mr Jinnah raised his voice, many Muslim leaders shrugged his suggestion and sided with India. Now after seven decades Jinnah's wisdom has started to dawn on those who though India would protect them.

The scrapping of Article 370 means a defiance to UN resolutions and holding of the plebiscite. More broadly, though, India unilaterally pushed to change Kashmir’s status without Pakistan’s buy-in. The worry now is that widespread unrest will spike in the region. Indian forces already heavily patrol Kashmir, but it has sent thousands of extra troops there in anticipation of violence, as well as closed schools, evacuated tourists, cut off internet connectivity, and put some of the area’s political leaders under house arrest. In effect, the area is on lock down.

Bodies of cluster bombs fired across Line of Control by India 

UN Observers photoing the cluster bomb shells [Photo]

Ahead of the decision, India not only deployed a large number of additional Armed troops in Kashmir, but had also stepped crossed border shelling into Azad Jammu and Kashmir. They have even used cluster bombs which were even seen by the members of UN monitoring teams. The shelling and set ablaze many houses, martyred many Kashmirs besides wounding dozens recently.

A young man holding Pakistani flag - The Bold Defiance in the face of Indian Army 

Today Modi has trashed international law and dozens of U.N. resolutions and dashed the hopes of millions upon millions of people praying for justice and peace to prevail. Modi has shown he is not a man of peace. He is a man of war who doesn't seem to realize the potentially catastrophic consequences of playing with fire.

Timothy Todd Shea, an avid contributor on Facebook, on 5th of August wrote in reaction to the Indian move to scrap the Article 370 of its constitution, which honestly reflects the aspirations of Muslims in Pakistan, Kashmir and elsewhere:

Dear People of The World, if YOU stay silent now as you have for 70 years about the atrocities in Kashmir, if you don't even try to understand the roots of this conflict, if you simply don't care about what is going on in Kashmir and this week's naked military aggression and escalation of violence and tyranny over innocent Kashmiris who have been begging for YOU to hear their cries for 70 years, then you are complicit in the crimes against Humanity that are being perpetrated by Modi and his Hindu extremist terrorist thugs.

If you are OK with India's outrageous and criminal behavior in throwing a peace offering into the burning trash can of war, then please do not complain and do not cry if and when this conflict spirals out of control and leads to a nuclear exchange which will harm you, your family and every Human Being and forever scar the face of our planet and alter the course of history.

Totally agreeing with Timothy, I would say that when it comes to a non Muslim country usurping the rights of Muslims, the world keeps silent or shows its indifference, but when a Muslim country is seen usurping rights of non Muslims, the world community acts faster than the speed of light to get them Independence. Why could this not be done in case of Kashmir for almost seven decades. The indifference of world towards plight of Muslims clearly exhibited.

Carrying the body of  fallen Kashmiri with resolve to get freedom one day [Photo]

Do watch this informative documentary of the freedom struggle by the Kashmiris and see their sentiments against the occupying Indian forces:

I do not know how would be the reaction of the world to Kashmir after this one sided notorious Indian move, and how much the world will support the Kashmirs in getting them their rights. Time will tell. But I keep my fingers crossed for I do not see justice being forthcoming in any substantial way from the world community.

Photo | References: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |

Originally posted in my blog: Islam My Ultimate Decision

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Beware of these people

Life is a very complex thing to deal with or even to live with. We have all sorts of people who come into our lives – some leaving pleasant memories, while many leaving haunting imprints that one would not even like to remember.

One of these people are the one who are always angry – showing and expressing their anger just for nothing or even on the pettiest of the thing not worthy of even being angry for. Such people are always ready for an explosive discussion and conflict with anyone who comes their way and may even harm them.

For such dealing with such people, the solution is very simple: Simply walk away, without engaging in any way. For these are the people who are actually not fighting with you, but are fighting with themselves – they only want to vent their anger on you to be at ease internally.

So be mindful of such people – leave them on their own for any engagement with them will hurt you emotionally for nothing.

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I am not afraid any more - Point to Ponder

A friend sent me this beautiful poem and I thought of sharing it with my readers - simple words but very much meaningful and awe inspiring.

Please have a reading:

ﻣﺠﮭﮯ ﺍﺏ ﮈﺭ ﻧﮩﯿﮟ ﻟﮕﺘﺎ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﮯ ﺩﻭﺭ ﺟﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﺗﻌﻠﻖ ﭨﻮﭦ ﺟﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﮯ ﻣﺎﻥ ﺟﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﮯ ﺭﻭﭨﮫ ﺟﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻣﺠﮭﮯ ﺍﺏ ﮈﺭ ﻧﮩﯿﮟ ﻟﮕﺘﺎ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﻮ ﺁﺯﻣﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﮯ ﺁﺯﻣﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﻮ ﯾﺎﺩ ﺭﮐﮭﻨﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﻮ ﺑﮭﻮﻝ ﺟﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻣﺠﮭﮯ ﺍﺏ ﮈﺭ ﻧﮩﯿﮟ ﻟﮕﺘﺎ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﻮ ﭼﮭﻮﮌ ﺩﯾﻨﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﮯ ﭼﮭﻮﮌ ﺟﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻧﺎ ﺷﻤﻊ ﮐﻮ ﺟﻼﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻧﺎ ﺷﻤﻊ ﮐﻮ ﺑﺠﮭﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻣﺠﮭﮯ ﺍﺏ ﮈﺭ ﻧﮩﯿﮟ ﻟﮕﺘﺎ

ﺍﮐﯿﻠﮯ ﻣﺴﮑﺮﺍﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺒﮭﯽ ﺁﻧﺴﻮ ﺑﮩﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻧﺎ ﺍﺱ ﺳﺎﺭﮮ ﺯﻣﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﺣﻘﯿﻘﺖ ﺳﮯ ﻓﺴﺎﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻣﺠﮭﮯ ﺍﺏ ﮈﺭ ﻧﮩﯿﮟ ﻟﮕﺘﺎ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﯽ ﻧﺎ ﺭﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﯽ ﭘﺎﺭﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﮐﯽ ﺑﯿﻮﻓﺎﺋﯽ ﺳﮯ

ﮐﺴﯽ ﺩﮐﮫ ﺍﻧﺘﮩﺎﺋﯽ ﺳﮯ

ﻣﺠﮭﮯ ﺍﺏ ﮈﺭ ﻧﮩﯿﮟ ﻟﮕﺘﺎ

ﻧﺎ ﺗﻮ ﺍﺱ ﭘﺎﺭ ﺭﮨﻨﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻧﺎ ﺗﻮ ﺍﺱ ﭘﺎﺭ ﺭﮨﻨﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻧﺎ ﺍﭘﻨﯽ ﺯﻧﺪﮔﺎﻧﯽ ﺳﮯ

ﻧﺎ ﺍﮎ ﺩﻥ ﻣﻮﺕ ﺁﻧﮯ ﺳﮯ

ﻣﺠﮭﮯ ﺍﺏ ﮈﺭ ﻧﮩﯿﮟ ﻟﮕﺘﺎ

Are we really not afraid - specially of dying, when we know we haven't prepared ourselves to board the last and final bus?

We need to ponder over it. 

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When I'm 64 - A Must Read for 'those' Getting Old

'Long time' back in my teens, the Beatles sang 'When I am Sixty Four' and I just shrugged off the song as I thought I was too far away from that stage. But I never knew then in my prime age that there is something called old age that creeps in even before you know it - I did not know it then, but know it now.

Yesterday, I read an interesting post at Facebook shared by friend of friends Muhammad Ali - and I found it full of depth and meaning to our real day life. Whatever is written from herein under is for those crossing 60s and have grown up children. Getting old is the stark 'reality' one cannot escape from - but one can make a difference if one is rational, logical and positive about realities of getting old.

So read on this beautifully written post with its far fetched implications on our lives.

Here it goes:

Don't worry about what will happen after you are gone, because when you return to dust, you will feel nothing about praises or criticisms.

Don't worry too much about your children; for children will have their own destiny and find their own way. Don't be your children's slave.

Don't expect too much from your children. Caring children, though caring, would be too busy with their jobs and commitments to render any help. Uncaring children may fight over your assets even when you are still alive, and wish for your early demise so they can inherit your properties.

Your children take for granted that they are rightful heirs to your wealth; but you have no claims to their money.

Friends falling in category of 60s or who will one day be in 60s also, please don't trade in your health for wealth anymore, because your money may not be able to buy your health!!! When to stop making money, and how much is enough (hundred thousands, million, ten million)? This is what is always in our mind.

Out of the thousand hectares of good farm land, you can only consume three quarts (of rice) in your meals daily; Out of so many houses and places, you only need eight square meters of space to rest at night. So as long as you have enough food and enough money to spend, that is good enough. So you should live happily. Every family has its own problems. Just do not compare yourself with others either for fame and or for social status and see whose children are doing better. What you must compare with others is in happiness, health and longevity.

Don't worry about things that you can't change because it doesn't help and it may result in your health being spoilt. You have to create your own well-being and find your own happiness; As long as you are in good mood, think about happy things, do things daily which make you happy and have fun in doing them. Then you will pass your time in a far better and in a contented manner every day.

One day passes, you will. lose one day; but when One day passes with happiness and contentment then you gain one day. In good spirit, sickness will cure; in happy spirit, sickness will cure fast; in good and happy spirit; sickness will never come close to you...With good mood, suitable amount of exercise, time in the sun light, variety of food, reasonable amount of vitamin and mineral intake, hopefully you will live another 20 or 30 years of healthy life.

Above all learn to cherish the goodness around ……and FRIENDS..........They all make you feel young and "Wanted"…without them you will surely feel lost!!

Don’t forget to love and respect those around you and in turn you will see that you will be loved and respected. Remember Fear is not respect or love but being caring and committed is.... Wishing you all the best.

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Married or not, please read this

A friend shared the following anecdote, which I really found moving and meaningful. I do not want to say how did I feel when I read this to the end. But my re-sharing it may tell you the reason why.  I would request you to read this till the end and decide whether I was worth re-sharing it or otherwise: 

When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand and said, I’ve got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.

Suddenly I didn’t know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topic calmly. She didn’t seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why?

I avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man! That night, we didn’t talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer; she had lost my heart to Jane. I didn’t love her anymore. I just pitied her!

With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, our car, and 30% stake of my company. She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I could not take back what I had said for I loved Jane so dearly. Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.

The next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at the table. I didn’t have supper but went straight to sleep and fell asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Jane. When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.

In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn’t want anything from me, but needed a month’s notice before the divorce. She requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son had his exams in a month’s time and she didn’t want to disrupt him with our broken marriage.

This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to recall how I had carried her into out bridal room on our wedding day. She requested that every day for the month’s duration I carry her out of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going crazy. Just to make our last days together bearable I accepted her odd request.

I told Jane about my wife’s divorce conditions. . She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said scornfully.

My wife and I hadn’t had any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mommy in his arms. His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly; don’t tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat upset. I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.

On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest. I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn’t looked at this woman carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.

On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy returning. This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me. On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn’t tell Jane about this. It became easier to carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger.

She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily.

Suddenly it hit me… she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart. Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head.

-->

Our son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it’s time to carry mom out. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change my mind at this last minute. I then held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just like our wedding day.

But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn’t noticed that our life lacked intimacy. I drove to office…. jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my mind…I walked upstairs. Jane opened the door and I said to her, Sorry, Jane, I do not want the divorce anymore.

She looked at me, astonished, and then touched my forehead. Do you have a fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Jane, I said, I won’t divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn’t value the details of our lives, not because we didn’t love each other anymore. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death do us apart. Jane seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away. At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote, I’ll carry you out every morning until death do us apart.

That evening I arrived home, flowers in my hands, a smile on my face, I run up stairs, only to find my wife in the bed - dead. My wife had been fighting CANCER for months and I was so busy with Jane to even notice. She knew that she would die soon and she wanted to save me from the whatever negative reaction from our son, in case we push through with the divorce.— At least, in the eyes of our son—- I’m a loving husband….

The small details of your lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, property, the money in the bank. These create an environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves.

So find time to be your spouse’s friend and do those little things for each other that build intimacy. Do have a real happy marriage!

If you don’t share this, nothing will happen to you.

If you do, you just might save a marriage. Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. ♥

The friend who shared this anecdote recently lost his wife to cancer!!

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Inverter Generat(or)ion

The long spells of load shedding - which are increasing by hours every day makes me wonder how long will this menace continue to haunt our lives.

Photograph by Jalal HB [Shared at Jalaspages / Flickr]

We grew up in days when such things were never heard of - we had plenty of everything, including electricity. Light offs were only heard in wars in the black out nights and there were never any log spells of power outages as we are witnessing today. Even such things were not there as long as three were people who could manage this country well as they loved it as their own too. 

But now it seems there are two kind of people in our country: 'People' who rule and people who are ruled. For the People who rule, there seems to be no limit to enjoy the perks and privileges at the expense of taxes paid by the People who pay and are still ruled. And this is very true when it comes to living as an ordinary human being. 

The long spells of power outages which now stretch to five to six hours at a stretch even in cities speak volumes of inefficiency of those who are mismanaging the the power sector in Pakistan. The power tariff has been raised something like 200% over the past couple of years, but still there is no relief to the people. every other day, the president and the prime minister 'take notice' of the long spells of load shedding, make statements to pledge to look into the matter - but the matter is so deep welled that it is taking much more than the required time to come up with a solution.

Load shedding has become so central to the miserable life of  the people that nothing else comes to mind while talking and writing about our grievances. When we were kids, we heard the world 'the generation gap.' But today it is the inverter generation that is cursing its life. From infants to old, students and labourers, everyone knows one world - load shedding and inverter (commonly called the UPS). From a generation gap we have become an inverter genear(or)ion or simply an inverter generation - a generation whose life now hinges more on inverters and generators than anything else.

Those who can inverters - a cheap alternative to electricity are even now facing miseries as an inverter cannot run for more than at best two hours. When the spell of lead shedding were less, these inverters helped a lot for a fan to run and a light to glow, but now even these gadgets have lost their utility. I wonder how students would be preparing for their exams with no light. In the past, poor who did not have light would go and sit under a nearby lamp-post - but now even the lamp posts are switched off.

I simply pity the inverter generation.

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Let the mothers of martyrs smile

Now that those burred under rubble and bouldered snow have been there for more than two weeks and except for any miracle there does not seem to be any hope of their survival, my friend Jamil Bravo from Canada shared a very heart moving and lamenting poem and I thought I must share it with my readers - for it is worth sharing, reading and understanding.

Although it is difficult to console a mother who had borne the pain of child-birth and then rearing her son into a young man and then waiting for him, even when there is no hope....

This is what her son writes to her from somewhere buried deep under tons of rubble and darkness: [In time I shall translate the poem for those who do no understand Urdu]

دعا کرنا

کہ کبھی تیرا یہ بیٹا

خاکی وردی پہنے

سینے پہ تمغے سجاءے

مجاہدوں کا سا نور لیے

تیرے سامنے فخر سے کھڑا ہو،

اور میری ماں

میری ماں یہ سن کر

ہنس دیا کرتی تھی ـ ـ ـ

کبھی جو تمہیں میری ماں ملے تو اْس سے کہنا

وہ اب بھی ہنستی رہا کرے،

کہ شہیدوں کی مائیں

رویا نہیں کرتیں۔ ۔ ۔ ۔

میں اکثر ماں سے کہتا تھا

اْس دن کا انتظار کرنا،

جب دھرتی تیرے بیٹے کو پکارے گی،

اور ان عظیم پربتوں کے درمیان بہتے

اْشو کے دریا کا نیلا پانی،

اور سوات کی گلیوں میں بارش کے قطروں کی طرح گرتی

روشنی کی کرنیں پکاریں گی۔ ۔ ۔

اور پھر اس دن کے بعد،

میرا انتظار نہ کرنا،

کہ خاکی وردی میں جانے والے اکثر،

سبز ہلالی میں لوٹ کر آتے ہیں۔ ۔ ۔

مگر میری ماں۔ ۔ ۔

آج بھی میرا انتظار کرتی ہے،

گھر کی چوکھٹ پہ بیٹھی لمحے گنتی رہتی ہے،

میرے لیے کھانا ڈھک رکھتی ہے۔ ۔ ۔

کبھی جو تمہیں میری ماں ملے

تو اْس سے کہنا،

وہ گھر کی چوکھٹ پہ بیٹھ کر

میرا انتظار نہ کیا کرے۔ ۔ ۔ ۔

خاکی وردی میں جانے والے

لوٹ کر کب آتے ہیں؟

میں اکثر ماں سے کہتا تھا

یاد رکھنا !

اس دھرتی کے سینے پہ

میری بہنوں کے آنسو گرے تھے،

مجھے وہ آنسو انہیں لوٹانے ھیں۔ ۔ ۔

میرے ساتھیوں کے سر کاٹے گئے تھے

اور ان کا لہو پاک مٹی کو سرخ کر گیا تھا۔۔

مجھے مٹی میں ملنے والے

اْس لہو کا قرض اتارنا ہے۔ ۔ ۔

اور میری ماں یہ سن کر

نم آنکھوں سے

مسکرا دیا کرتی تھی۔ ۔ ۔

کبھی جو تمہیں میری ماں ملے

تو اْس سے کہنا

اس کے بیٹے نے لہو کا قرض چکا دیا تھا

اور

دھرتی کی بیٹیوں کے آنسو چن لیے تھے۔ ۔ ۔

میں اکثر ماں سے کہتا تھا

میرا وعدہ مت بھلانا،

کہ جنگ کے اس میدان میں

انسانیت کے دشمن درندوں کے مقابل

یہ بہادر بیٹا پیٹھ نہیں دکھائے گا

اور ساری گولیاں

سینے پہ کھائے گا

اور میری ماں

یہ سن کر

تڑپ جایا کرتی تھی

کبھی جو تمہیں میری ماں ملے

تو اْس سے کہنا،

اس کا بیٹا بزدل نہیں تھا،

اس نے پیٹھ نہیں دکھائی تھی،

اور ساری گولیاں سینے پہ کھائیں تھی۔ ۔۔ ۔

میں اکثر ماں سے کہتا تھا،

تم فوجیوں سے محبت کیوں کرتی ہو؟

ہم فوجیوں سے محبت نہ کیا کرو، ماں!

ہمارے جنازے ہمیشہ جوان اْٹھتے ہیں۔ ۔ ۔

اور میری ماںـ ـ ـ

میری ماں یہ سن کر

رو دیا کرتی تھی ـ ـ ـ

کبھی جو تمہیں میری ماں ملے

تو اْس سے کہنا،

وہ فوجیوں سے محبت نہ کیا کرے۔ ۔ ۔

اور

دروازے کی چوکھٹ پہ بیٹھ کر

میرا انتظار نہ کیا کرے

سنو۔ ۔ ۔!

تم میری ماں سے کہنا

اْس سے کہنا وہ اب بھی ہنستی رہا کرے کہ ... شہیدوں کی مائیں رویا نہیں کرتیں

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The Secret to Longevity and Healthy, Hearty Life by Geroge Carlin

Those of us who are always worried on account of everything that happens to them or happening around them, live a miserable life. Instead of taking a positive note of our lives, we count things we don't have, but the neighbour does, the perks and privileges enjoyed by a relative or a friend, the winning of match by a country we do not like and so on. If we start taking everything to our heart, how long this small clump of meat can take the stress and one day clogs - sending us in wailing ambulance to a cardiac hospital.

Are we born to live a miserable life? Ever seen people living in slums - who still laugh, make merry while still living in rag tags and heaps of dirty and litter. But many of us who have everything still lament of not having enough. If do this we are definitely not going to live long and will someday be intercepted by a failing heart - or even if we do not, the misery can be read from our faces and they way we live.

I was down too on account of a misery of my friend, who for no explainable reason is being forced to live a confined life for many more years in future. It was then that I received an e-mail from a friend of mine, who always sends me something that is thought provoking and make me wiser. 

The mail contained a few tips on life and aging by no one other than George Carlin. Well if you haven't heard of this name before, let me write a few words about him before sharing his views on aging.

Geroge Carlin or George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12, 1937 – June 22, 2008) was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, satirist, actor and writer/author, who won five Grammy Awards for his comedy albums. Carlin was noted for his black humor as well as his thoughts on politics, the English language, psychology, religion, and various taboo subjects. Carlin and his "Seven Dirty Words" comedy routine were central to the 1978 U.S. Supreme Court case F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation, in which a narrow 5–4 decision by the justices affirmed the government's power to regulate indecent material on the public airwaves. Four days before his death, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts had named Carlin its 2008 Mark Twain Prize for American Humor honoree. The prize was awarded in Washington, D.C. on November 10, making Carlin the first posthumous recipient.

With this brief introduction, now just read what Carlin write about aging. But remember, if you do not read it to the end, you would lose an important day of your life. And if you really reach to the end, then you must share it with friends and anyone known to you (as I am doing by sharing this in my blog) as it would have a profound effect on the life of all those who really value life and want to read something about it.

Here it goes: George Carlin views about Aging:

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids? If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about aging that you think in fractions.

'How old are you?' 'I'm four and a half!' You're never thirty-six and a half.. You're four and a half, going on five! That's the key. You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.

'How old are you?' 'I'm gonna be 16!' You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . .. . you become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50

and your dreams are gone.

But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!

So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60. You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!

You get into your 80s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime And it doesn't end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards; 'I Was JUST 92.'

Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. 'I'm 100 and a half!'

May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

HOW TO STAY YOUNG

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay 'them.'

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever.. Never let the brain idle. 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop.' And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable,improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9 Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10.Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

And if you don't share this others - who cares? But do share this with someone. We all need to live life to its fullest each day.

Read more about George Carlin: Wikipedia

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