Publishers:
Kamil Pakhto Adabi Jirga, Pabo
Sima, Pabi, Nowshera, Pashtunkhwa, Pakistan
Distributor: Danish
Kitabtun, Qissa Khwani Bazaar, Peshawar
With Credits to
Dr. Yasin Iqbal
Yusufzai
Table of Contents
Life Sketch Incidents & Accidents Literary Activities Poetry Drama
Short Stories Criticism The Frontier Post Translation Afghanistan
Introduction &
Acknowledgements
It was the best of times at the age of fourteen when the
hidden poet in me opened his eyes. Having kept him in the cave
of secrecy for about one year, my elder brother detected him and
he, being a highly frank and open minded man by nature, drew out
that poet in the courtyard of our house. I apprehended snubbing
from my father. But he became very happy and took me to the
office of the Kamil Pakhto Adabi Jirga, situated at Ghazi
Market, Pabbi. Fortunately, a mushaira was in progress at that
time. Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi, Qamar Zaman Qamar Taizi, Late
Farehan Shaida Baba, Sheeirn Khan Sharbat, Husnul Maab Kakakhel
(may their souls rest in peace) and other local poets were
present there. I read my Ghazal and won applause. Later on, I
realized my appreciation was for the sake of encouragement
only. My father who use to call Lala "elder brother" to Dr.
Sher Zaman Taizi told him, "from today I devote my this son to
Pakhto". The sitting poets greatly appreciated the remarks of
my father.
Since those epoch-making moments till this day Dr. Sher Zaman
Taizi became my Kakajee and tutor; and I have been obeying that
parental order much above my personal creative zeal, to irrigate
the sinuous rills of Pakhto literature. During the last more
than fifteen years, I have learnt so much from the alma mater of
my this ingenuous uncle teacher that this one is my second
published book, besides six unpublished.
Dr. Taizi was known to me even prior but in a highly
mysterious way since my school days as a student of Eighth
class, I had read the first few chapters of his novel "Amanat"
but couldn't inch forward due to fearsome scenes portrayed
therein. After having admitted to his tutorship, the fear of
reading Amanat ran away from my heart but the mysteries of his
personality got entangled and entangled as the time passed.
Despite the fact that I remained in close proximity with him, I
have found it often difficult and some times impossible to
excavate something out of his personal life as well as his
intellectual beliefs and school of thought from his mute
personality. If you ask me why ? I would say, he is every inch
an intelligence Officer ; he never wears his heart on his
sleeves ! When the Pakistan Study Centre, University of
Peshawar, send a letter to me to write a profile of Dr. Taizi,
I found it difficult but keeping in view his longstanding
relations of being my teacher and uncle, I accepted the
challenge with interest and devotion.
My difficulties could be realized from the fact that only two
reviews and two references on his famous novel Gul Khan in
research works and one each on other four novels, were available
to me while about his short stories, plays, translations,
research on Afghanistan and criticism plus his personal life
sketch, there was virtually nothing to be embanked upon.
Pakhtun intellectual has yet to give up mere verse-making and
the literary tradition of Research and Criticism is still a
dream in the current Pakhto literature. But in the negligible
work that has been done so far, Dr Taizi has been ignored for
the reasons best known to the scholars. So the need of
literary evaluation of his works was felt by me.
In 1993, I carried out an exhaustive review of Amanat, the
second novel of Dr. Taizi, which was published in two parts by
monthly Pukhto magazine Khkula, Peshawar. Soon after that I
wrote a short commentary on Gul Khan, his master piece novel.
When his last novel ((واده اونشو))
"Wade Onesho" appeared in 1998, I critically reviewed it in
detail in daily the Frontier Post, Peshawar. In this way, I
developed interest to go ahead with the literary and critical
appreciation of his works, particularly his novels. So in 1998,
I switched on my work on : ((د تائزي د ناولو
تنقيدي جائزه)) "Da Taizi da Navaloono Tanqidi Jaiza"
in Pakhto and completed it in Jnuary,1999. Thus my own works
provided me with a scaffold to write a profile of Dr. Taizi for
Pakistan Studies Centre, University of Peshawar. Finally, when
it was decided to convert it into a book shape, I had to expand
upon some aspects of works and particularly his personal life.
While I was trotting in the bulk of his personal files, I was
astonished to see that my uncle teacher has kept almost complete
record of his personal and academic life. However, I had to
ignore some information for certain reasons.
It was also deemed pertinent to interview some of the nearest
and dearest friends of Dr. Taizi. I met Qamar Zaman Qamar Taizi,
elder brother of Dr. Taizi, a Pakhto poet, Haji Ghazi Khan and
Azizullah Khan , both elders of Taizi tribe in Pabbi. I am
highly indebted to them. S. Fida Younas, former Charge de
Affairs of Pakistan to Afghanistan, has a friendship cum
brotherhood with Dr. Taizi for more than thirty years. They
have jointly served in the Pak Embassy at Kabul. He was kind
enough to provide me with some valuable information. My
literary colleagues, Zahid-ur-Rehaman Saifi, Shafiq Ahmad
Khattak and brothers, Javed Iqbal Khattak, Assistant Election
Commissioner, Swat, and Jamshed Iqbal Khattak, M.A English, all
jointly constituted an umbrella of help for me to pen the work.
I am grateful to all of them. Prominent Pakhto writer, Dr. S.
Chiragh Hussein Shah, the then DHO, who was my neighbour at
Karak, not only took keen interest in my work by exchanging
views with me regarding the art and life of Dr. Taizi but also
encouraged me brotherly by galvanizing my spirit all the time.
During the initial typing of the script, my youngest brother,
Navid Danish, a student of 9th class, worked with me like my
right hand while my wife, too, shared the responsibility of
typing. My heartiest gratitude must go to Mr. Hazrat Rehman
Advocate( High Court), of Timergarah, Dir who bestowed upon me
his personal computer, without which the typing work would have
been impossible. I am also greatly thankful to Dr. Fazal Rahim
Marwat, who proposed my name to the Pakistan Study Centre,
University of Peshawar, for writing a profile of Dr. Taizi,
which ultimately sprang up into book form. Finally, I must pay
salute to my dear father who guided and supervised me.
| Oct,8,2000 KHURSHID IQBAL KHATTAK,
KARAK To my Lala
In early 60s I shifted from my village
Jalozai to Pabbi and rented a house in the neighbourhood
of Sher Zaman and Qamar Zaman; both the brothers were
living together. From the very beginning, they extended to
me their hands of brotherhood. Not only I myself but even
my parents felt that we were not among strangers. The
leading of prayers by my father Maulana Abdur Rashid at
Makki Masjid, also became the source of our respect among
the people. Although I developed contacts with many
notables of Pabbi but my relations with the Taizi brothers
always remained specially cordial, intimate and lasting.
I and Sher Zaman Lala did our graduation the same year.
Then on his advice, I did Pakhto Honours, for which he
provided me due guidance. During his service career, Sher
Zaman Taizi remained away from his village even then he
not only send letters to me but endowed upon me gifts and
presents from Chitral, Kabul, etc. He has really proved to
be my Lala by working as the superb guide of my three
elder sons Javed, Khurshid and Jamshed. When Khurshid
joined Dr. SHER ZAMAN TAIZI, it became my dream that he
should write his biography. It is a matter of great
honour for me that my dream stood realized. Being his
tutor, it is indeed the success of Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi. I
pray for long life of Lala and more distinguished success
of my sons in life. Like Dr. Allama M. Iqbal, I would
like advise my posterity to earn name in poverty.
Jalozai. Oct, 8,2000
(ABDUL QUDUS)
M.A; LLB; ADVOCATE, HIGH COURT, PESHAWAR. |
| Name: Khurshid Iqbal Khattak
Father's Name: Abdul Qudus, Advocate High Court,
Peshawar
Date of Birth: 1 April 1968
Place of Birth: Jalozai, District Nowshera
Education: MA Political Science, LL.B, LL.M
(England)
Works:
- Da Kanrhi Okhke, Short Stories Published in 1998
- Khapoona Mazaloona; Play, Da Taizai Navaluna
(Criticism)
- Da Gudar Gharah (Poetry)
- Pakhto Literary Essays (English)
- International Relations (English)
- Islamic Law (Essays) in English
- Dr. Taizi (Biograph) in English)
|
Creation is an inherent want and quality vouchsafed by nation
on the mankind that takes start from sexual urge amidst numerous
emotions and thinks. Once bubbled in heart, it grows in
imagination and blossoms into such a spring that spreads its
fragrance to every nook and corner of the human world. Swimming
across the deep blue Ocean of literary expression, the creator
explores new islands of thoughts and discovers hidden faces of
the earth. Hence, the world of literature creates and recreates
life in elucidation of its essence and reflection of its whole.
In Arabic, literature means expression of human attitude. It
presents thought through language - thought means sense of
imagination, opinion, reasoning and other human mind (Newman).
It depicts a subject in such an attractive way that it quenches
thirst of the man's aesthetic sense (Hudson). It contains
imagination and ideas of intelligent men and women, enjoyed by
readers (Broke). Above all, it is that effort of the man through
which he corrects his wrongs (Ammerson).
With the dawn of the 20th century, Rahat Zakheli (1884-1963)
rose to herald the movement of renaissance, preservation and
promotion of Pushto language and Pushtun culture. Rahat took the
opportunity to introduce different genres, e.g. novel, short
story etc. to Pushto for building a concrete base for Pushto
language and garnish it with modern literary trends. Quite
fortunately, the renaissance movement successfully inculcated
protectionist and modernist tendencies in the rising generation
of literary figures. Exceptionally intelligent and bold writers
came forward to work on those genres.
Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi is one of those twinkling stars in the
firmament of the contemporary literature.
Life Sketch
Hailing from the Taizi family of Momand tribe, Sher Zaman was
born in 1931 in the house of Kator Shah at Pabbi. The
matriculation certificate dated the first of November 1948 that
he had received from the University of Punjab carries the date
of his birth as 3 November 1931. As Dr. Taizi thinks, there may
be a difference of a few months on either side, but, definitely
less than a year.
When the schoolmaster was not so much aboard in the vicinity
of Pabbi, young Sher Zaman used to go to school like a thorough
young lad with his satchel on his shoulders. At primary level,
he was a student of the Islamia Arbia Primary School, Pabbi.
Foundation of that school was the magnum opus of late Hazrat
Bacha Khan and Sheikh-ul-Hind Hazrat Mahmood-ul-Hassan of
Deoband.
Sher Zaman preferred to get education and did his
matriculation from the National School, Pabbi.4 However, he
could not continue study due to an inter-family strife, which
later engulfed the entire town. The feud started just before the
partition and continued for several years. It started with
crossfire in the main bazaar between two parties on 5 June 1947,
in which a powerful man lost his life. Khudai Khidmatgar Ghazi
Khan was then the most influential and powerful man of the town
with vast relationship across the province due to his political
career. He was the munshi of the Ashraf Bus Service at Nowshera,
when there were only two other service companies on the road
with only a few buses. That was then the most lucrative and
prestigious job. When Ghazi Khan stepped in the feud as an elder
of the Taizi family, he sent Sher Zaman, after he took his
matriculation examination in 1948, to hold the job. Sher Zaman
performed his duty with due punctuality and boosted the
business. That earned him jealousy of some old munshis who
reported some fabulous stories, including his amorous relations
with some anonymous girls, to his Uncle Ghazi Khan. Most of
those stories were, in fact, based on his correspondence with
some periodicals. Actually that was the start of his literary
career, which was just romantic.
Once, Sher Zaman went on his own to a recruiting camp at
Nowshera to join the Navy. He was rejected on medical grounds -
some defect in his ears. On 15 January 1949, he joined the Army.
In order to check desertion and indiscipline in the army,
candidates were required to present their parents or guardians
to furnish security for their conduct. Sher Zaman did not inform
any one of his family, but took along an Afghan named Hazrat
Shah, who was running vegetable business at Pabbi beside his
father, as his guardian. Thus, he was recruited in the Royal
Pakistan Army Service Corps (later re-designated as Pakistan
Army Service Corps) as a clerk. The family, particularly his
mother, did not approve it and tried for his discharge. But he
himself preferred to stay on.
During his basic training at Chaklala (15 January 1949 to 7
March 1950), Sher Zaman was declared 'marksman', the highest
degree of qualification of a shooter. He was leading his company
during the training period and normally assisted his instructors
in conducting the range practice of his company. He reminds that
once their instructor (a Non Commissioned Officer) and he were
conducting the exercise of hand grenade throw. They were inside
a walled circle. Recruits came one by one to do the exercise.
Sher Zaman handed the grenade to him and instructed him how to
draw out its pin and throw it over the wall as far as possible.
One recruit pulled out the pin and dropped the grenade inside
the circle due to fear. The instructor dived instantly and threw
it out. It was a matter of seconds that the three escaped the
death.
Sher Zaman played volleyball and football. During the course
of clerical training, he was selected for boxing. There was one
young Lieutenant also. These two boxers exercised medium-pace
run for at least six miles every morning. In the ring, Sher
Zaman was normally on the offensive. He knocked down some of his
rivals. But, later he resigned from the game for unspecified
reason.
Sher Zaman served as Lance Naik Clerk in 1 A.T. Regiment from
1 April 1950 to 12 November 1953. He tried to learn horse riding
but could not become a rider. He spent most of his time in this
service in Azad Kashmir at Muzaffar Abad and in Titwal sector
along the Kishan-Ganga River (later renamed as Neelam River). On
18 and 19 December 1951, he took, and passed, the Pakistan Army
Map Reading Examination for Standard One at Muzaffar Abad. At
the Centre, he performed the duty of acting head clerk for about
two months, although a number of senior clerks had challenged
that appointment and lodged protest with the Adjutant.
Then he was posted to a company where he was the lone clerk
with a Major. During that period, he enjoyed chasing wild birds
and animals, which was not, at all, free of risk. Once he had
joined a small crowd of locals in pursuit of a black bear in a
thicket in the heights of mountain. Then had to walk down all
alone to the road in pitch dark late in the evening. How
adventurous his nature was!
He spent sometime at Bannu and Kohat in that capacity and
sometime at Peshawar in the regiment headquarters until his
posting to the Frontier Intelligence Corps by the end of 1953.
After attending two months course of Intelligence, instead of
three months, at Peshawar and Quetta, Sher Zaman secured third
position and was posted on 12 November 1953 to the Frontier
Intelligence Corps (FIC) as Havildar. The Assistant Director
Intelligence (for Afghanistan) who allowed him to join the
course after a lapse of one month was Major S. A. Rahman Kaka
Khel, the famous playwright of Pushto and the author of Neemgaray Khob and BJOk
M Tarboor Urf Zeba. The
Intelligence sub-Bureau at Peshawar was then headed by a Deputy
Director (Deputy Inspector General of Police). Sher Zaman
attended the Junior Basic Intelligence Course Two in Karachi
from 20 July 1964 to 10 September 1964 and declared "Above
Average".
In the meantime, the government approved civilisation of FIC
and the army ranks were converted into police ranks. Sher Zaman,
then Havildar, was given the rank of Assistant Sub Inspector.
In 1967, the Government of Pakistan approved appointment of
Sher Zaman as temporary Assistant in the Embassy of Pakistan at
Kabul. He was allowed to join the Ministry at Islamabad as an
Assistant in that Mission. Syed Fida Yunas, Assistant Director,
was appointed Second Secretary. In fact, it was Syed Fida Yunas
who had moved and pursued the case to take him along to Kabul.
The post was actually ministerial and Sher Zaman was a field
worker. Another point was that only a few months before the
appointment, he received BA degree (for English only) to meet
the basic qualification for the post. Hence, that appointment
aroused a storm in the office against him.
Before leaving for Kabul Syed Fida Yunas and Sher Zaman
attended a weeklong briefing at the Intelligence School in
Karachi. On 10 May 1967, he formally joined the Foreign Affairs
Ministry and assumed the post of Assistant in the Consular
Section of the Pakistan Embassy at Kabul on 29 June 1967.
On 26 July 1969, Sher Zaman received Tamgha-e-Difa with clasp
Dir-Bajaur - 1960-62 (Medal with 6" Ribbon) for his services in
Dir and Bajaur during 1961.
On completion of his tenure as Assistant, Sher Zaman was
posted back to his parent office at Peshawar. However, before
his departure, the Embassy received approval for his appointment
as Persian translator in the office of the Press Attaché for a
period of four years. Although he had never been a student of
Persian, yet he carried out the job. He accepted the offer on 7
October 1970. It is interesting to note that he received his MA
Degree (Pahsto) No 3328 dated 23 September 1970 that could
qualify his appointment. He joined the office of the Press
Attaché as Persian Translator on 27 October 1970.
In Kabul, Sher Zaman developed contacts with top leaders of
the People Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA: Khalq and
Parcham both factions), Jawanan-e-Musalman, Afghan Millat,
Shula-e-Javed and other political and religious parties grown
wild after promulgation of the 1964-Constitution. Besides, his
literary taste and pursuit facilitated his fraternisation with
some literary figures also.
Sher Zaman rejoined the office of the Deputy Director,
Intelligence Bureau, Peshawar, on 2 November 1974. Here, he
noted that some of his colleagues had turned the situation
against him. Therefore, he got privilege leave from 14 November
1974 to 13 March 1975 and the leave pending retirement (LPR).
Thus, he quit the service as Sub Inspector with a meagre pension
on 1 February 1977.
For almost one year, Sher Zaman was jobless - the most
difficult time of his life as being head of the family, he was
the lone bread-earner. Then, through the courtesy of a friend he
was appointed as manager of a leather factory. He was well set
and quite intimate with his employers, when he received a call
from Syed Fida Yunas, his old officer, friend and benefactor, to
join the Commissionerate for the Afghan Refugees (CAR) as
Liaison Officer. CAR notified the sanction of the Chief
Secretary to the Government of NWFP as regards the re-employment
of Sher Zaman Khan as Liaison Officer in Grade-16 in the Afghan
Refugees Commissionerate, NWFP, Peshawar, for a period of one
year viz. from 1-4-1979 to 31-3-80. His post was upgraded to
Chief Liaison Officer in grade 17 with effect from 1 March 1980.
CAR was established to look after the Afghan refugees migrating
to Pakistan in the wake of the Saur Revolution. It was opened in
the Provincial Secretariat on 1 April 1979 with Sher Mohammad
Khan Commissioner, Syed Fida Yunas Additional Commissioner and
Sher Zaman Ghamzhan Liaison Officer. Sher Mohammad Khan, cousin
of Dost Mohammad Khan Kamil, was also known to them, when all
the three were in the Pakistan Embassy at Kabul for quite some
time.
When UNHCR opened its office in Peshawar in 1980, its first
head Robin MacAlpine invited Sher Zaman, and he joined UNHCR as
Liaison Officer. In response to his formal application forwarded
by CAR, Robin MacAlpine, as Chief, UNHCR Peshawar, informed CAR
that they had received the sanction from their headquarters in
connection with his (Sher Zaman) appointment and accordingly he
was invited to take up that appointment at his earliest
convenience. On 1 May 1980, Sher Zaman joined UNHCR as Liaison
Officer. This is how the luck favoured him. It was astonishing
to note that Sher Zaman Ghamzhan held the office of Protection
in UNHCR for almost eight years, although he had never studied
law. This job needs International Officer with a degree of
International Law at least. Later, his designation was changed
to Territorial Officer. In that capacity, he toured the length
and breadth of the province and tribal belt to monitor supply of
aids to refugees. In the last, he was given the charge of Kurram,
North and South Waziristan - then considered the most dangerous
areas due to frequent landmine blast in Kurram agency and
bombardment by Afghan bombers along the border. He has many
stories of his experience in this field, but he does not like to
bring them to record. On attaining the age of sixty, Dr. Sher
Zaman Taizi retired from UNHCR on 30 November 1991. During his
service in UNHCR, Sher Zaman Ghamzhan received Nobel Peace Prize
Certificate for 1981. The next day, he joined daily the Frontier
Post, Peshawar, as Assistant Editor.
While Islamia Primary School was the first and National High
School, Pabbi, was the last alma mater of Sher Zaman's regular
studies, he did not throw away books from his hand. During the
arduous days of tough and challenging service, he kept the time
by forelock to keep up his academic studies privately. In June
1965, he took examination of Honours in Pushto under registered
No. 115-B/Pa-65 and secured second division. In October 1965, he
appeared in the supplementary intermediate examination held
under the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education,
Peshawar, for English only and secured 110 out of 200 marks. On
14 July 1966, he was registered as a student of the University
of Peshawar against number 66-P-5292. He took BA annual
examination under roll number 592 for English only and secured
107 out of 200 marks. In 1970, he obtained MA Pushto Degree in
the second class from the Peshawar University under roll number
1705. But he wanted to drink deep from the fountain of
knowledge.
From the Area Study Centre (Central Asia), University of
Peshawar, Sher Zaman Taizi received Ph.D. in "Central Asian
Studies" in 1989. He enrolment number was five. Astonishingly,
he wrote thesis on "Afghanistan - A Political Analysis of the
Saur Revolution - 1078-86", although he was known henceforth as
a Pushto poet and writer. Having remarkable insight in the
Afghan politics, Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi is considered an authority
on the Afghan Affairs.
Dr. Taizi did not collect certificates and degrees to make
his career in the service or any other material gains, but to
quench his own thirst of knowledge. While developing his
academic career, Dr. Taizi continued his works in various fields
of literature, and made marvellous contributions in quantity as
well as in quality to Pushto literature. Beside, he
contributions to the history of Afghanistan are likely
tremendous and valuable.
Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi has earned recognition at international
level as well. The Harvard University, USA, included his name as
"Taizi, Sher Zaman" on page '39 of 45' in the Working List of
Scholars in Central Asian Studies. There are only two other
names from Peshawar, Dr. Fazal-ur-Rahim Marwat and Dr. Sarfaraz
Khan. It was last updated September 23, 1999. The cover note
says; "This is a Working List of Scholars of Central Asia, which
is being used in the process of gathering data for the revised
edition of the Guide as Scholars of Central Asia. The paper
Guide will be available in early December of 1999. Eventually,
this information will also be available in an on-line edition of
the Guide to Scholars, which will allow flexible searching of
database which holds information on the great majority of
scholars working in this field world wide."
Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi worked hard with the Frontier Post for
about four years. He prepared, all alone, a full weekly page of
the daily on Pushto literature in which he profusely made use
terms and references of English literature on the whole, beside
translating Pushto literature into English. Thus, he made a
chapter, rather a history, of Pushto literature in English,
which, of course, need subject-wise sorting and publication for
future generation. Pakistan Study Centre, Peshawar University,
has done a good job to have placed on record a worthwhile thesis
for MA on this page submitted by one of its candidates - Inam.
The daily gained added much popularity for this page not only in
Pukhtunkhwa, but also in foreign missions at Islamabad and
Kabul, which found rich material on the culture of Pukhtuns.
However, there was some pressure on the management from a tiny
group of anti-Pushto elements, which received backing of the
Chief Reporter Qaisar Butt. At last, Dr. Taizi was forced to
quit the job in protest against the extremely callous attitude
of the management.
On 1 April 1996, Dr. Taizi got the post of editor of the
Cartoon magazine - New Home, New Life - of the BBC Afghan
Education Drama Project at Peshawar, headed by John Butt. The
magazine was published in two separate editions, one in English
and Pushto and the other in English and Dari (Persian). The
Project was sponsored by a number of UN agencies and NGOs,
including BBC World Service, UNICEF, UNESCO, UNIFEM, ICRC, WHO,
UNHCR, UNDP, UNOPS and MCPA. The post was abolished in May 1997.
Since then Dr. Taizi has been at home.
Sher Zaman was Ghamzhan before his Ph.D. Now, his nom de
plume is Taizi. Two of his young sons, Zaman Khan died at the
age of 15 in 1981 and Aimal Khan passed away at 12 in 1990. Many
relatives and some nearest friends prevailed upon him to change
his pen name Ghamzhan. Hence, he adopted Taizi as his pen name,
although he is still popular as Ghamzhan. He has also
contributed some valuable articles to press under the cover name
of Sheenze. Sheen-Ze is composed of two Pushto alphabets, which,
in this case, make abbreviation of Sher Zaman. This created some
confusion and curiosity for scholars who took it a name but did
not know about the author.
Taizi is the famous family of Pabbi with a heroic history of
its own. One of the grand fathers of Dr. Taizi, Habibullah Khan,
accompanied four Sikhs to Peshawar. The Sikh mercenaries had
made it a practice to force any one coming across to carry their
baggage with them. When the party reached the Bara River, Tarnab,
Habibullah Baba stood for the prayer. The Sikhs laughed at his
religious duty. After the prayer, he managed to take out a sword
from the sheath of a Sikh and attacked them. All the four Sikhs
fell and died. Habibullah Baba also received injuries. But, he
took the way towards Cherat instead of his own village in order
to save his family from the wrath. On the way, he embraced
martyrdom by succumbing to his injuries near village Spin Khak,
where he was laid to rest. Habibullah Baba became a legendary
figure in the village. The Sikhs pressed hard for the revenge
but after that episode, the people had gathered courage to stand
against them. When Hari Singh Nalwa was killed at Jamrud, no
Sikh was then ready to remain in Peshawar.
Incidents
and accidents
Sher Zaman Taizi has met several incidents and accidents of
which, he still remembers a few. In his childhood, Sher Zaman
met survived at least two incidents that he remembers. Once, he
had fallen from the top of a tall tree in a water channel. His
right ribs received severe impact, but he did not go to bed. On
another occasion, he had jumped in ashes of dung cakes left by
an ironsmith after he had just done his work. The ashes did not
show any sign of life, but they were still fresh. Both feet of
Sher Zaman were burnt. He could not even stand for a few days.
There was no competent allopathic or homeopathic service in the
village. His feet were washed regularly with goat milk.
For over two years (1958-61), Sher Zaman Ghamzhan stayed at a
small border village, Arandu, in Chitral. He used to go out, in
company of a friend or two, for hunting or fishing. One day, he
was looking for partridges in a thicket, when a black bird dived
like a bullet, clinched a snake in its paw from the ground and
flew away. It was so close to the feet of Sher Zaman, that he
felt the touch of the bird.
In 1961, Sher Zaman, when he was staying at Munda, had joined
the company of Assistant Political Agent to a lunch hosted by a
tribal Malik at Kulala (Utman Khel area of Bajaur). On return,
rivals of the host opened fire on the party. For almost ten
minutes the party was under fire in the open before it entered a
narrow dale to find a cover. Dr. Taizi says that it was raining
and they could not notice where the bullets hit the ground. But
many bullets had just missed the targets. On another occasion,
he was on leave, when two relative families opened fire late in
the evening against each other. Ghazi Khan and some other people
including Sher Zaman rushed to the sport. There was a big crowd
on the roadside. Only Ghazi Khan and Sher Zaman walked in
between the two parties. It was pitch dark. They shouted to
close the fire. From both sides, they received warning to go
back. But they did not retrace their steps. At last, the fire
stopped. And then they saw that there were only two other men,
Noor Khan and Hakeem Khan, who had entered the scene from the
opposite direction to stop the fire. On the third occasion, a
bullet hit the car of Dr Taizi somewhere in the outskirts of
Peshawar. The hole was very close to the rear tyre. His wife and
some children were also travelling with him. He did not give any
impression and continued to drive. At home, he saw the hole, but
did not mention it to his wife.
Sometime, in 1981-82, he had fallen from his speedy
motorcycle near Sardar Garhi, Peshawar, and got injuries. On
another occasion, he and his elder brother Qamar Zaman Qamar
Taizi had fallen from the motorcycle late in the evening. Sher
Zaman did not feel any shock but Qamar Taizi was badly injured.
Fortunately, he received timely treatment and survived. In
1994-95, Dr. Taizi, having taken some sedative drugs, was
driving fast when he crashed his car against the retaining wall
of a bridge at a distance of about two kilometres away from his
town. The car was battered beyond recognition. He survived,
because he was still in state of tranquillity and did not feel
pains. However, he could not leave the bed for about two months.
Incidents and accidents apart, he had come at least three times
under fire.
In 1997, Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi and his wife performed Haj and
in 1999 both performed umra. The group during the Haj period, to
which they were attached, included Haji Syed Rahimullah Bacha a
Spiritual Guide of Aza Khel, Muslim Khan, Bahram Khan and Waqif
Shah of Khuderzai and Zeban Shah of Pabbi. Besides, Dr. Taizi,
Muslim Khan and Waqif Shah had also taken their wives. On the
day, when Hajis moved to Mina, they left women in the camp and
went out for orientation. They returned in the afternoon and
were preparing for the prayer, when the fire broke out. The
group split into two, but they could manage to escape. That fire
had killed about 300 people. On return, they found that their
own camp had been completely gutted. On return from Mina, the
group moved immediately after the afternoon prayer in somewhat
organised form to stone jumrat before going to the Holy Ka'ba.
One group of men was going ahead and two men, Dr. Taizi and
Waqif Shah, were in the rear to provide cover to the women who
had been placed in the middle. They could push through their way
up to the barrier, which was then closed. There was a surging
crowd of millions behind. When the barrier bar was lifted and
the crowd moved two faltering women of the group shouted for
rescue. Dr. Taizi and Waqif Shah tried to stand for a while to
withhold the movement and pressure from behind to let those
women get up. In the meantime, their wives stumbled down. They
stooped over them until they could rise. Dr. Taizi could not
see, but his wife told him that some one called her Hamshira!
(Sister) stretched his hand and pulled her out. She also told
that there were some people on the ground, which had caused
their fall. However, Dr. Taizi himself had some difficulty, with
a minor injury on his right leg, in keeping his balance before
they were out of the crowd. After stoning jumrat, they rejoined
Muslim Khan and his wife. There was no clue of other colleagues.
While relaxing for sometime, they saw ambulances and heard
screaming sirens.
Literary
activities
In non-literary society and unfavourable circumstances, Sher
Zaman Ghamzhan made a way to the bright end of the world of
literature through his busy, turbulent and risky life. He proved
to be the man of crisis not only in materialistic life but also
in the literary life. The tent opened toward the river,
glittering in moonlight while skirting around the highland that
hid the city from the camp. The fragrant zephyr with imaginary
music created by the ecstatic water striking the haughty stones
tantalised the dormant talents of Sher Zaman. He was not
conscious about his literary taste when he passed the time in
drawing of scenery, sketches and portraits, or writing some
thing during the night duty when he had nothing to do but look
at the telephone set in such a romantic atmosphere of Muzaffar
Abad. He used to visit the city and the shrine of Sain Sahili
Sarkar at Domel, the other end of the city. Once, he wrote a
letter to a newspaper published from Rawalpindi, criticising the
rituals at the shrine. The letter was published prominently. A
young Syed, who was already known to him, mentioned that they
did not have the courage to criticise the mendicants of the
shrine, but his letter was very much appreciated by the
enlightened people. However, he did not give it any importance,
nor he kept copy of that letter.
In fact, Sher Zaman started his literary career at Tall, Dist
Kohat (1954-58), when he listened to poetry of Mohammad Din
Muqayyed. There was no other poet. Muqayyed was a poor man but a
popular poet. The third person who joined their company was
Shahwas Khan Shamsher. Spending sometime in the teashop of Aziz
Khan, Sher Zaman, at last, proposed to form a sort of
association. Hence, Pukhto Adabi Chaman came into being with
these three figures. In fact, it was Sher Zaman Ghamzhan who was
running the association. He could easily establish contacts with
daily Anjam due to his prevailing intimacy with Ajmal Khattak.
The daily was owned and published by Usman Azad from Karachi. He
arranged publication its edition from Peshawar also. Here, Ajmal
Khattak was assigned its editor. Mir Mehdi Shah Mehdi edited one
page of Pushto for it. Within a short time, Pukhto Adabi Chaman
Tall and Ghamzhan both were known in literary circles across
Pukhtunkhwa. In those days the Intelligence Bureau conveyed a
warning, through Assistant Director Major Mohammad Hussain
Qaisrani, to Sher Zaman that he must not disclose his identity
and should refrain from writing any thing against the government
and its policies. Actually, that warning had no effect, because
he had already introduced himself as Ghamzhan only. His real
name and place of origin were almost obscure. Moreover, he was
too young to know much about the policies. So, for a long time,
he worked in obscurity. His verse and prose were published under
the name of Ghamzhan.
After retirement, Sher Zaman Ghamzhan revived the Khushal
Adabi Jirgah at Pabbi on 21 June 1979. Initially, Azam Khan Azam
of Kurvai, Pabbi area, had founded that Jirgah in late 1950s,
which carried out bustling literary activities in the area.
However, it faded away as illness of Azam worsened and he was
shifted to Dadar Sanatorium for treatment. After his demise, the
Jirgah could not stand long. The Jirgah was renamed as Kamil
Pushto Adabi Jirgah, Pabo Seema, in 1982. Contributions rendered
by Dost Mohammad Khan Kamil to Pushto literature and history are
beyond measurement and expression in words. It was Dr. Taizi who
proposed and pushed to rename the Jirgah. It may be noted that
there were, at least, three other Jirgahs in the name of Khushal
Khan Khattak. So, it was not in any way something derogatory to
the great name of the Father of Pushto, Khushal Khan Khattak,
but recognition of services of Dost Mohammad Khan Kamil who was
the man who had worked hard for about thirty years to reveal
almost all aspects of the political and literary careers of
Khushal Khan Khattak in form of a comprehensive preface to the
voluminous Divan of the Khan. He also reviewed Tarikh-e-Murassa
(Jewel Studded History) compiled by Afzal Khan Khattak from the
notes of his grandfather Khushal Khan Khattak with some
addition. The note of Dost Mohammad Khan Kamil is almost double
of the original text of the history. Kamil also highlighted the
works of Rahman Baba with his scholastic and elaborate comments,
beside other works in Pushto and English.
Pushto poets and students from adjoining villages used to
come down to Pabbi and cluster around the towering personality
of Dr. Taizi during monthly meetings and mushairas of the Jirgah.
Dr. Taizi would speak gently and eloquently on any genre of
literature during the meetings. He would face with cool mind
volleys of questions from participants. Many would open their
notebooks to take down points from the discussion. He maintains
attachment with some literary associations such as Malgaree
Leekwal, Sarhad Adabi Jirgah Peshawar (renamed Milli Adabi
Malgaree), Rahman Adabi Jirgah Peshawar, Rahat Adabi Tolana Aza
Khel, Pukhto Adabi Chaman Tall and the organising committee of
the Chat Karma Baksheesh Award Swat.
Besides his participation in several literary meetings a
month, Sher Zaman Ghamzhan gave due attention to his imaginative
as well as research works. This is, probably, the main reason
that mystifies his character and confuses writers and readers
about his life. Some promising young writers have tried to write
some notes on one aspect or the other of his life. It becomes
very difficult to explore all aspects with convincing arguments.
Thanks God, that Dr. Taizi keeps a good record of his life, and
his books in different fields stand evidence to justify the
mysterious activities of this versatile genius of the 20th
century. For the sake of exploration of some aspects of the
contributions of Dr. Taizi to literature as well as knowledge,
his works have to be classified for discussion. Since, he is
known in Pushto literature more for his novel, we start from
here.
the works of Leo Tolstoy (Russian) and Charles Dickens
(British), the topmost novelist of the world. Professor
Taqweem-ul-Haq Kaka Khel appreciates that "the story of Gul Khan
is a story of Pushto and in the environments of Pushto". He
lauds the style of writing as beautiful, meaningful and
artistic. According to Sher Shah Tarkhvi, President of Malgaree
Leekwal and editor of monthly Khkula Peshawar, this novel might
have been published in more than ten editions, but the publisher
did not mention edition on any copy. He thinks that the
publisher avoids the number of edition in order to dodge not
only the income tax department but also to usurp right of the
author. Pushto scholars consider it a novel of standard from
every aspect. Dr. Taizi himself says that in Gul Khan, he lays
emphasis on brushing aside the darkness of ignorance. The
overall ratting of Gul Khan is that it is a masterpiece.
The second novel of Dr. Taizi is Amanat. It was published in
1971. The central idea of this novel revolves around the class
struggle. Motabar, the hero of the novel, takes up the gauntlet
to clean the Aegean stable of class discrimination in which he
succeeds brilliantly. From social theme in Gul Khan, Ghamzhan
moved to ideological theorem in Amanat. Ibrahim Ataee terms this
novel a masterpiece.
Mohammad Ibrahim Ataee compares Mamoonai of Said Rasul Rasa
with Amanat of Ghamzhan. He says, Mamoonai is subject to
romanticism and naturalism, while Amanat is founded on realism
by unveiling an exploitative aristocratic system. It inculcates
the spirit of change in the people. But whether it is his
criticism of Mamoonai or Gul Khan as against the appreciation of
Amanat, both could not be believed and accepted due to the fact
that he has lost much literary subjectivity to his ideological
objectivity.
Amanat teaches us to build up a revolutionary society, which
must stand above the class distinction, where peace and
prosperity prevails on socialistic political foundation.
However, it could be subjected to criticism on the point that
how Motabar and Janana are living together without nikah
(marriage bond), despite the fact that they are not in the
prohibited degrees to each other. Dr. Taizi explains this in a
single word - 'commitment'. However, the answer is not legally
tenable because under Muslim personal law it is unwarranted, but
it is a piece of literature with many favourable arguments.
Under the heading of Intellect: The exercise of the mind:
Creative thought: Imagination, some meanings, e.g. ideality,
conception, thought, imaginative exercise, flight of fancy, play
of fancy, uncontrolled imagination, romance, fantasy,
extravaganza, rhapsody, exaggeration etc. suitably stand in
favour of the idea of Dr. Taizi.
A renowned Afghan poet and short story writer, Mohammad
Siddique Psarlay, in his comment on "Da Amanat Khawand (The
Trust Owner)", reminds the time when he knew nothing about the
author but enjoyed reading of the novel that he had purchased
several times in Kabul. He expresses his surprise as; "Apart
from a limited number of real and experienced writers, many of
those who have earned fame as writers by unfair means have not
even reached that stage where this young artist stands. They
have been introduced by invisible hands, whereas he has not yet
been introduced duly." The novel was introduced by Habibullah
Rafie in Aryana journal, Kabul, Dalv-Hoot 1350 AHS (Jan-Feb
1972) and by Zafar Khel (it is probably not the real name or
penname) in daily Zeray published by Pukhto Tolana Kabul on 23
Hamal 1351 (12 April 1972). In the meantime, Information and
Foreign Offices Islamabad raised objection over its circulation
in Kabul. The Ambassador called for explanation from Sher Zaman
Ghamzhan, who, in response, submitted copies of those
introductory notes, published in government publications.
(Rahman Koroona) is the third novel of Ghamzhan and the first
detective novel in Pushto as mentioned in the preface by
Professor Afzal Raza. Dr. Azam has ignored both Amanat and
Rahman Koroona but Ibrahim Ataee did not miss them. He reviewed
this novel also. In this comment, too, Ataee has swerved from
literary approach and bogged down himself in the Communist
phraseology. He says that the story of the novel emerges from
tribal feudalism and enters the fibre of urban bourgeoisie,
which breathes with real evens in the presence of legal system.
However, this novel is full of dramatic elements and thrilling
actions. The culture of vagabonds has been depicted vividly in
this novel. The story and purpose of the novel is not new; it
pertains to the tussle arising out of wealth, land and woman -
oriental disputes, but its detective touch is quite conspicuous.
Barialay and Zarlakhta, the central characters, change their
physical complexion, costumes and even way of life so as to
defend themselves from their common enemy. As the story inches
forward and intelligence officers start chasing them and their
two colleagues, curiosity and suspense are created; the sea-saw
which they play with the intelligence officers is also very
impressive. It looks that Barialay and Maula Bakhsh are trained
detectives.
Regarding (Ghunday), the fourth novel of Dr. Taizi, Kazi
Sarwar comments; "The book Ghunday can be aptly described as a
laudable literary-cum-social contribution in putting across what
its eminent author had to say all that which to my mind was
never said before in such a lucid style. It dramatically
highlights the perpetual conflict raging between the forces of
goodness and eve, beautiful and ugliness, truthfulness and
falsehood in a society bedevilled by feudalism, exploitation,
drug-nuisance and worst of all arrogance, contradiction,
self-deception, conceit and fraudulent practice. The central
idea of the novel Ghunday is a faithful and sincere interweaving
of how satanically innocent souls are led astray leading to
painful misery quite often total ruination."
"It is a pungent satire on lascivious great Khan whose
pernicious machination and aims pave way to an impending danger
to the peaceful social environment. The obscenity, which is
being spread like jungle fire by a vindictive young dancing lass
and her mother, has been narrated brilliantly. Ghunday, a main
protagonist of the novel, is a mute character that interlinks
both the sub plot and main plot. The philosophy of both the
ageless poets - Rahman Baba and Khushal Baba - has been
realistically infused into the main positive characters. These
characters have been delicately coloured with heart sweeping
fragrance of realism." The author superbly scans and boldly
demonstrates causes, events and effects of degradation of social
values, which grow in the climate of compulsion of the need and
moral digression of the wealth. He unfolds many heart-wrecking
and pathetic events of debauchery of men of means in lucid and
fluent style that sound credible and real. The subject is not
new but the way it has been tackled refreshes it with quite new
and unique shades that would hardly fade away from the mind the
reader. Ghunday introduces a new facet of the mysterious world
of intelligence, i.e. their venomous instruments of blackmailing
enshrouded in moral cataclysm, always at work in the esoteric
international network. Besides, its scenic beauty steals the
sense. The reader feels to be moving about like a character of
the novel in lush green high mountains where springs flow down
in cataracts and fruits grow wild amidst tall trees and thick
bushes. Dr. Taizi builds up the scene in such a way that makes a
clear picture in the mind. As a master of pun, he has invented
some compound words - about thirty in number - in this novel.
The latest, i.e. the fifth novel of Dr. Taizi is (Wade Onesho)
i.e. the marriage that did not take place, hereinafter
mentioned in abbreviated form as Wons. Before reviewing this
novel, it would be better to trace back the origin of this
particular genre.
Many categories of the novel became recognisable in the 18th
century, including the didactic novel, in which theories of
education and politics were expressed, and the Gothic novel, in
which the element of horror is created by the use of
supernatural phenomena. One of the most enduring genres in the
English novel is the comedy of manners, which is concerned with
the clash between characters formed by particular cultural and
social conditions. Jane Austen is considered by many to be the
unchallenged genius of the genre.
Encyclopaedia Britannica CD-97 Single-User Version describes
Gothic novel as European Romantic, pseudomedieval fiction having
a prevailing atmosphere of mystery and terror. Its heyday was
the 1790s but it underwent frequent revivals in subsequent
centuries. It is called Gothic because its imaginative impulse
was drawn from medieval buildings and ruins. Such novels
commonly used such settings as castles or monasteries equipped
with subterranean passages, dark battlements, hidden panels and
trapdoors. The vogue was initiated in England by Horace
Walpole's immensely successful Castle of Otranto (1765). His
most respectable follower was Ann Radcliffe whose Mysteries of
Udolpho (1794) and Italian (1797) are among the best examples of
the genre. A more sensational type of Gothic romance exploiting
horror and violence flourished in Germany and was introduced to
England by Matthew Gregory Lewis with The Monk (1796). Other
landmarks of Gothic fiction are William Beckford's Oriental
romance Vathek (1786) and Charles Robert Maturin's story of an
Irish Faust, Melmoth the Wanderer (1820). The classic horror
stories Frankenstein (1818) by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley and
Dracula (1897) by Abraham Stoker, known as Bram, are in the
Gothic tradition but without the specifically Gothic trappings.
Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi has the credit of introduction the
Gothic novel to Pushto, but without the specifically Gothic
trappings as Frankenstein and Dracula. But, this novel differs
from them also some other aspects. It is purely an imaginative
work with living character of the dreadful Saidan Shah. Dracula
was the Count of Transylvania who rises in the night after his
death to prowl in search of a human prey and suck his/her blood
as the vampire, and then goes to his coffin. In Frankenstein,
Dr. Frankenstein creates a man from limbs cut from bodies of
those people who had just expired. The limbs of different people
do not reconcile in that single body and make the creature a
monster who, at last, kills his creator. The tragic outcome of
this novel is that the readers also killed Dr. Frankenstein and
gave his name to his creature.
The romantic title Wade Onesho tells a horrendous and
hair-raising story of magical, supernatural and superstitious
phobias. For this book, renowned cartoonist and artist Zahoor
has drawn an excellent portrait to depict the devilish look of
Saidan Shah. The most important and astonishing fact related to
this novel is that it has been written within the longest span
of twenty-four years. The preface written by Professor Afzal
Raza bears the date of 23 March 1974 and that of Professor
Preshan Khattak has been dated 1 October 1977. Dr. Taizi himself
admits in his note - Gratitude - that he deemed it necessary to
go through novels, short stories and other informative books,
and also watched some films on the subject in search of
mysterious aspects related to the world of black magic. He also
collected some relevant news, comments and essays from dailies
and periodicals that he could get, and listened to stories from
those who believed in them. He adds that the more he piled up
the material, the more the situation stiffened and got knotty.
However, there are not only events in which Dr. Taizi was
interested. He has also studied history, various cultures and
geography of places to make a global itinerary for movements of
the hero. The sum total is that this is a proper research work.
Professor Afzal Raza writes, "This book is strange in the
sense that for the first time such details of magic, hypnotism
and mesmerism have been put forward in Pushto. Dilating upon the
crisis of social identity that has affected Saidan Shah, Preshan
Khattak considers the work an eye-opener and suggests
reformation of the rotten social order, as we know numerous
educated people facing similar crisis and take the same way.
But, he does not agree with portrayal of the wrong doings of
Saidan Shah in Germany. However, he records his deep concern
about the oppressed and agonised spirit of Zarpari.
The negative forces of the social order denounces Saidan
Shah, a man of exceptional qualities, due to the fact that his
father was a poor cobbler and that he had participated in the
independence movement as a red shirts. For this very reason, he
is rejected for many jobs and dismissed from few. His father
affectionately advises him to be patient but under the burden of
heavy shock, he kills his father, writes a letter wherein he
confesses his guilt and runs away to Germany. There he spends
the life of a vagabond for some time, but then finds a menial
job in a hotel. Ultimately, a magic master, Dr. Hazel Hurtz,
dupes him, takes him to his magical den and trains him there.
After becoming a great magician himself, he comes back to his
country with a view to liberating the soul of a Pushtun girl,
Zarpari, from the evil spirit by way of magical incantation. But
an intelligence detective operation is launched to arrest him.
The operation ends with success but not according to the plan
that had been prepared in a meticulous secret exercise by a
small group of intelligence officers, headed by Haidar Zaman.
Saidan Shah could not be arrested. He falls to see an amulet.
The amulet is worn around the neck by a character Qabil Shah who
himself does not know about it. Such is the complexity of
suspense that Dr. Taizi has created masterly. The dream of this
magical fool to marry Zarpari is, thus, smashed.
"The theorem of Dr. Taizi's novel under review is that the
magic is a satanic occupation and as such it diminishes, rather
fully washes away, the faith and its implication? Dr. Taizi
condemns magic at numerous places in his novel as an
anti-religious phenomenon. Religion is God given guide for the
human community, hence invincible, whereas magic is an art based
on mysterious power of imagination, superstition, ephemeron and
concentration. When faith starts tumbling, magic, superstition,
fetishism and animism push society into the narrow cul de sac of
ignorance and waywardness. Where men of exceptional qualities
like Saidan Shah go all perverted, the entire society feels
dithered. The wrier refers to the Holy Quran as the strongest
force, which the art of magic can never face." The
religious-type English writers use the cross to subdue to devil.
Another aspect of the novel is that of national integration.
The character of Zarpari personifies the positive element of the
Pushtun culture, whereas the evil spirit that has overtaken her
body signifies the tragedy of social injustice that leads to
disintegration and political turbulence having befallen the
Pushtun community for centuries.
Depiction of some original locations and names of characters
apart, there are some relevant words, which have been defined
and explained, e.g. necromancy, mesmerism, voodoo, zombie,
carnival, etc. The very etymology with annotations of the words
Munich, Rasputin, Trichmir, with meanings of local terms and
phrases as kijasu and dangar can not be overlooked.
In Wons, the detective colour is very bright and arresting.
Details of performance of intelligence agencies, the way they
thrash out modalities of masterminding and executing an
operation, courage and, above all, the alacrity of mind it
requires, have been put before the reader unveiled with
captivating power of speech.
Searching for such like literary works in English literature,
the most thrilling one is The Tragical History of Doctor
Faustus, a drama written by Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593).
Marlowe was reputedly a secret agent for the government. In
1593, he was denounced as a heretic. As described in his life
sketch, Dr. Taizi was a member of the Intelligence Bureau for
almost 23 years. He is a religious man but so liberal that even
many of his admirers have doubts about his belief. He criticises
the corrupt clergy also in Ghunday and Wons. In this research
works (The Saur Revolution, being discussed latter) he has
elaborated his idea about the religion. As the plays of Marlowe
are characterised by beautiful, sonorous language and emotional
vitality, so are novels of Dr. Taizi. Although a visible line
can be drawn between the two but an assiduous study of Dr.
Taizi's novel evinces that is inclusive of national awakening
and religious reformation as contrasted to Doctor Faustus, which
is exclusively biographical in nature.
Commenting on Wons, Shafique Ahmad Khattak remarks that Dr.
Taizi has paid heed to the caste system that prevails in the
Pukhtun society. He adds that the trading class is treated like
those in Hindu society. However, Ms Irum Iqbal reviewed the
novel in Urdu having formed the opinion that the main subject is
mysticism. She criticises some events and aspects of the work.
For instance, why Saidan Shah kills Head Master Riaz, who had
provided him with a job? One can answer this question from the
text of the novel that Riaz had dismissed him from service for
narrating a magical even in the classroom. But when she asks
that if an evil spirit has been living for four hundred years,
how can it dies, and that, too, so suddenly, we should give it
some weight, if not to answer it! Similarly, she points out that
the body of Rasputin was cremated, how its skull remained and
Hezl Hurtz offered drinks to Saidan Shah in that!
E.M. Forster has an answer to these queries and many others.
He recognises such elements as one of the aspects of novel under
a technical name fantasy. Forster says, It implies the
supernatural, but need not express it. Often it does express it?
such as the introduction of a god, ghost, witch into ordinary
life, or the introduction of ordinary men into no man's land.
Fantasy, Forster, maintains, asks us to pay something extra. In
fact, the supernatural requires the reader to suspend his
disbelief, which Miss Irum did not! As the Forsterian aspect of
the novel, fantasy is at peak in Wons, where we see how and why
a society, due to its socoi-economic weakness, loses one of its
genius members to the world of black magic.
Gul Khan is considered a masterpiece of Dr. Taizi in Pakistan
whereas Amanat was declared as such in Afghanistan. I have
reason to believe that Sons can also be graded as a masterpiece.
Firstly, its canvass is highly extensive and the theme is
greatly exhaustive, international politics and relations
buttressed by appropriate historical testimony have found deep
expression with literary embellishment. Secondly, it outcries
for the long awaited social change in Pushtun society. Needless
to say, it is social change, which bails out a nation from
miseries and allows it into the domain of a civil society.
Thirdly, it gives an outline history of Pushtuns to plead its
case for socio-economic prosperity and political solidarity.
Fourthly, it emphasises the need for eradication of cast system
prevailing in Pushtun society. Peoples like cobblers,
carpenters, washermen, barbers, blacksmiths etc. are looked down
upon, they are not respected. Pushtuns cannot make any progress
unless this apartheid is done away with by granting due honour
to these people. Last but not the least, it is a masterly
commentary on the human psychology.
According to Professor Preshan Khattak, had such a novel been
written in English or any other language, Ghamzhan would have
earned the name as that of Dickens or Tolstoy. It is interesting
to note that Ghamzhan expressed with profound confidence the
later theories (of Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy; 1928-1910) of
ethics and morality recommended non-participation in an passive
resistance to evil, in Gul Khan, when he was, probably, not yet
40, whereas the diction of the novel is as florid and fluent as
of that of Charles Dickens.
In preface to David Copperfield, Charles Dickens disclosed
that the said novel had been completed in two years, whereas Dr.
Taizi completed his novel Wons in twenty four years. Dickens
says, no one can ever believe this narrative in the reading more
than I believed it in writing. The same impression can be
gathered from the foreword to Wons, whereas in preface to Rahman
Koroona, Sher Zaman Ghamzhan has elaborated this fact
concretely. Again Sir Arthur Quiller elucidates, But in
Pickwick, it hardly ever occurs and, therefore, to all happily
fit persons the suspension of disbelief, to adopt and shift
Coleridge's dictum from verse to prose. In Wons, too, we have to
assume a temporary suspension of disbelief during its reading
its reading to believe in the Phantasmagoria that the author has
created with superb diction.
So far techniques are concerned, Dr. Taizi is the master of
all aspects of novel. In the art of story telling, he knows that
daily life is practically composed of two lives the life in time
and the life by values. He is very scrupulous in sequence of
time in story and emphasises values in characters. He superbly
transplants characters by their creation and acclimatisation
through understanding. Though he flattens people in novels but
with strong moral fortissimo makes them capable of roundity,
e.g. the ability of Kharo and Kontara (Amanat) to move up for
defence of their Pushtun honour and Noor Jamala (Ghunday) when
Karkana becomes an apotheosis for her. His plot construction
contains essential element of mystery that deepens suspension,
arouses intelligence and memory. But like others, his plot, too,
fights losing battle with characters; consequently, the
characters pull on their life and run out of his hands. For
example, Haidar Zaman defeats the plot in Ghunday and enters
Karketch (a play), and then Wons.
Prophecy is an accent in the novelist voice. In the opinion
of Forster, prophecy demands two qualities: humility and
suspension of sense of humour. While comparing two novelists
George Eliot and Dostoyevsky, he says that the latter is a
prophet and the former is a preacher. We can draw parallel lines
of comparison between Mitya and Zeegrawar (Rahman Koroona) at
the time of their execution, Saidan Shah (Wons) at the time of
killing his father, Nadir Malik (Gul Khan) during his last days
of life and Bawar Khan and his son at the time when they stand
completely exposed to the society. These characters amply reveal
the prophetic spirit of Dr. Taizi. In such an accent of his
voice, we hear songs of Khushal and Rahman, with the message of
national integrity and spiritual awakening.
A writer or an artist works primarily for his own time, great
artists overstep their age to the mind of timeless humanity,
such solitary spirits born out of due reason must wait until the
whirligig of time brings in a temper of mind with which they are
sympathetic. Without any exaggeration and cosmetics, this is
true in case of Dr. Taizi. Prominent Afghan critic Mohammad
Ibrahim Ataee says that he knows the art of novel writing.
Similarly, another leading Afghan poet, writer, intellectual and
researcher Habibullah Rafie recognises his status as such. His
socio-religious revivalism in Wons and socio-political
prosperity in Gul Khan are ahead of time whilst socoi-ethnic
cataclysm in Ghunday, bitter traditional family feud in Rahman
Koroona and class struggle in Amanat belong to contemporary
realities of the society. Men like Dickens are valuable
reformers; they have no notion of confining books to a library
shelf. On the basis of the above discussion, Dr. Taizi is no
less a writer than Dickens he is the Dickens of Pushto novels.
Pushtuns give much heed and importance to poetry. Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi has expressed his emotion and sense in poetry also. It may be noted that the poetry of Dr. Taizi has some strange aberration from traditional ways and styles that could hardly be explained. He does not exercise any sort of hypocrisy in expression of his ideas. Although, he follows figures of speech precisely, yet some pleasurable strangeness glitters in the lines.
So far the poetry of Dr. Taizi has appeared in two books; (Warsho, 1981) and (Soma, 1994).
Warsho has been divided into five parts. The first part contains poems on different subjects. In this part, somewhere he talks to the Holy Quran, sometime mourns the tragedy of Karbala, then addresses scientists and taunts them that they may be bring miracles but social inequalities also deserve not to be lost sight of. Some springtime thoughts, romantic ideas and appreciation of nature can be observed in poems like those of Lokhara, Da Pachae Khawand, Mahal, Shpelae, Guldasta and Sparlay. In the poem captioned 1957, he avails of the opportunity to review the war of independence launched a hundred years back against the British Raj in India. The same years, composed a poem on Haqqania at Akora Khattak, the famous seat of religious learning of Pukhtunkhwa. However, the most impressive poem in the first part is Sala (Counsel) - a blank verse. Its satire is gnawing and scathing, saying:
O Crazy, O lover of Pukhto!
If you want your language
Be respected and liked,
Join hands and kill it!
Call it what you like,
Murdered or martyred!
But, it must die.
Be buried with full honour!
Give alms and charity!
Build a comely concrete grave n it!
Don't leave the graveside,
Chars and Bhang!
O Crazy! O lover of Pushto!
I offer you this counsel,
With all my best wishes
The British Broadcasting Corporation (Pushto Service) arranged the Frontier Caravan to have an extensive tour of Pukhtunkhwa and celebrate its 10th anniversary. Gordon Adam led the Caravan with some members of the Pushto Service including Gauhar Rahman Gauhar and Safia Haleem. On 16 February 1992, it entertained invitees with light refreshment and presentation of synopsis of the Pushto programme starting with the first announcement of Pushto Service followed by a presentations in different fields; news, comments, art and literature. In the field of literature, it had picked up a part of a poem of Dr Sher Zaman Taizi of the Frontier Post.
The participants included chief minister Mir Afzal Khan, Khan Abdul Wali Khan, Begum Wali Khan, Bashir Bilour, Fareed Toofan, Malik Nadir Khan Zakha Khel, Afrasiab Khattak, Afghan Consul Abdul Qayyum, some journalists, writers and poets. It was this poem (Counsel). BBC compensated Professor Sher Zaman Taizi
The second part of Warsho carries tributes to some literary and religious figures including Rahman Baba, Khushal Khan Khattak, Maulana Abdul Qadir and Maulana Hussain Ahmad Madani. The selection of figures for poetry puts some light on the mode of thinking of Dr. Taizi, i.e. he is a Pukhtun Muslim. This is an ambiguous term which has two meanings, (a) the Muslim who is a Pukhtun, (b) the die-hard Muslim. The practical life of Dr. Taizi provides full justification to both the meanings.
The eulogy in respect of Khushal Khan Khattak, he says;
Beyond the stars, he rode the horse,
Neelab of his imagination knew no bounds,
He convinced the world of the taste of Pushto,
Introduced Pushtun across the globe.
It is an undeniable reality that Taizi has versified in a nutshell to highlight achievement of the Father of Pushto in political and literary fields.
Use of exceptional and rare similes evinces depth of knowledge of Dr. Taizi about the figures of speech with poetical acumen. He walks with the time and makes good use of scientific achievements in his prose and verse. Just consider the following line:
In search of beauty, in the Apollo of love,
I forget the start, what to say of the end.
Jens Enevoldsen has translated an ever-florescent line of Rahman Baba as:
There is no community,
Of the hermit and the Khan,
How should Aziz Khan agree
With Abdul Rahman!
This line symbolises Aziz Khan as the oppressive feudal lord. With reference to this line, Dr. Taizi denounces the prevailing class discrimination, as;
In the Garden of Love, grown by Rahman,
I forget every Aziz Khan of the world.
As many as 75 quatrains are included in the fourth part of Warsho. Among them are some metrical translation of some Rubayiat of Omar Khayam and some verses from Piam-e-Mashriq and Zaboor-e-Ajam of Allama Iqbal. The last part contains a versified travel account in which Dr. Taizi records memories of his travel from Kabul to Kandahar and Quetta and back to Kabul in 1968. With more than 120 lines, it introduces his other companions, historical references, natural relief and climatic condition with many other shades. It also discusses the rhyme scheme also. If I am not wrong, this is the only travel account in verse, although it is short.
Sher Shah Tarkhvi, editor of monthly Khkula (Pushto), Peshawar, has written a comprehensive comment on Warsho. He says, Warsho is the imaginative work in verse of that idea that has been given to Pushto literature by the invaluable assets in the name of Gul Khan, Rahman Koroona and Amanat and has multiplied resources of literature.
Professor Mohammad Nawaz Tair, then Director Pushto Academy, Peshawar, in his comment on Warsho for radio, says, Ghamzhan has developed a particular and rosy style that he maintains in prose as well as verse. He has a singular style of writing and particular mode of thinking. He writes ghazal as well as nazm. It seems that he is not only a good poet of conventional nazm, but his blank verse is also very forceful, worthwhile and tasty due to the subject matter and depth of thinking. It seems that Ghamzhan has more inclination towards reformation and mysticism, because his every nazm has a particular objective. Professor Tair is not satisfied with the standard of ghazal in Pushto. According to him, there are only a few poets who have earned fame and recognition in this field. However, he picks up Ghamzhan as an exceptional case whose ghazal is passionate with deep thought and elegant style. He comments on the versified travel account of Ghamzhan as: This poem has been composed in the background of historical events with many allusions to history. It refreshes the mind of the reader with past glory, replete with bright and admirable examples of sacrifices that our forefathers had offered for propagation and evolution of Islam.
When we turn the pages of Soma, we realise that, with the passage of time, the effulgence of poetical deviation and variation of Dr. Taizi culminate to romantic lyricism. That is the reason that Soma is an anthology of Ghazal, which is romantic by nature. This inverse trend makes him unusual and exceptional. In Soma, amorous feeling and thought run altitudinous.
The very name of Soma is a mystery. Prominent researcher Mohammad Parvesh Shaheen highlights the nature and history of Soma with conventional justification of its existence. He writes: this ancient religious plant is named in Sanskrit as Soma, in Avesta as Homa and in Pushto as asmania, barara, oman and bandakay. In Regved and Avesta, it has different definitions and appreciation. It is a holy and respectable plant from which alcoholic drug was extracted; synonym to rapture and delight. According to him, a lot of research has been conducted in this plant. Avesta shows that its birthplace is Swat.
However, Dr. Taizi himself considers it a myth of the past, as he alluded to it in a line as,
Drunk with glories of the past,
Taizi searches Soma in mountains of Pukhtunkhwa.
Here he wishes peaceful and romantic atmosphere in Pukhtunkhwa as it has been described in the legend related to Soma. Ahmad Ali Kohzad as has recorded the legend:
During the time of Regved, the juice of hill plants was called Soma. According to traditions, a bird (eagle) had brought that from Sky, and it grew in mountains of Manjwan. Aryan women and girls used to collect its white or pale juice in moonlight in mountains, and mixed that with water, milk, butter and honey to make a delightful tonic of it. That was offered in the name of different deities. Mostly the people of noble class used that drink. Due to its substantial qualities of delight and rejuvenation, that plant was regarded as a Divine gift by Aryans and treated as a deity. That custom continued in the area now called Afghanistan until the end of Avestian era.
Encyclopaedia Britannica describes Soma as an unidentified plant, the juice of which was a fundamental offering of the Vedic sacrifices in ancient Indian cult worship. The stalks of the plant were pressed between stones, and the juice was filtered through sheep's wool and then mixed with water and milk. After first being offered as a libation to the gods, the remainder of the Soma was consumed by the priests and the sacrificer.
It was highly valued for its exhilarating, probably hallucinogenic, effect. The personified deity Soma was the "master of plants," the healer of disease, and the bestower of riches.
The Soma cult exhibits a number of similarities to the corresponding haoma cult of the ancient Iranians and is suggestive of shared beliefs among the ancient Indo-Europeans in a kind of elixir of the gods. Like haoma, the Soma plant grows in the mountains, but its true origin is believed to be heaven, whence it was brought to earth by an eagle. The pressing of Soma was associated with the fertilising rain, which makes possible all life and growth. In the post-Vedic classical period, Soma is identified with the moon, which wanes when Soma is drunk by the gods but which is periodically reborn.
Let us see and enjoy how Dr. Taizi appreciates different attractive colours of his beloved:
My heart along sustains your cruelties,
Who else can carry stones and sand in muslin sheet.
Listen to some couplets on the mole of the beloved:
Mole, an ambushed soldier in eyebrows,
Strikes on the plane of vision.
Mole between they two eyebrows,
Look like a Khattak dancing with two swords.
Then he lauds tall stature, blonde hair etc. as:
On her tall stature, fair cheeks, spreads the blond hair,
Or, embers glow on maple tree in the autumn.
Tighten braids of thy hair, lest it should awake,
Sleeping memories in the cradle of my heart.
Being a seasoned poet, he knows the art of pun.
Sweetheart, sweet is thy name, sweetens my mouth.
Sweat is my life that I hold up my breath.
Captivatingly, he conjures up the painful universe of a mad lover as:
Even the vast desert holds it breadth,
When a thorn twists in the food wound of the mad.
Drama
Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi also tested his literary
muscles as a playwright. Two of his serial plays, viz. Teendak
and Karketch, and a few assorted plays have been telecast from
Peshawar TV centre. Both the serial plays contain a true
detective touch. He has not published these plays so far. In
book form, we have his one play Gulpana.
Like other works of Dr. Taizi, Gulpana, too, is
praiseworthy piece of good fiction. It lays stress on need to
eradicate the evil of class distinction and the curse of
ignorance. It invites us to channelise our efforts to bring a
meaningful social change. Dr. Taizi intends to say that peaceful
and prosperous society is that which is literate because those
people understand each other and their mutual problems, and are
able to devise ways collectively to solution. The language of
dialogues is objective and fluent, the portrayal of characters
original and the environment real. Besides, the story of Gulpana
emerges, runs and reaches the conclusion in a locality, which is
rich in scenic beauty. In this context, it can be brought at par
with Gul Khan and Ghunday.
Short
Stories
Dr. Taizi has written many short stories. He
lost a notebook that contained his short stories. Then he
collected those published from time to time in dailies and
periodicals, added a few, and published them in a book under the
title of M¼PJq Shpelae (The Flute). This book contains the
shortest short story under the title of “The Field”, in the
following three sentences:
Sultan Bacha was killed.
Mir Bacha was sentenced to transportation for
life.
And that field for which the two brothers were
fighting was taken by others.
There are several comments and reviews on this
book, but those written by Habibullah Rafie, Tahir Afridi and
Gul Mohammad Baitab are worth mentioning. All of them have
specifically discussed this story. Rafie says, The first one is
the briefest and shortest story, but he (the author) has
encompassed in it the basic and the longest tragedy of Pukhtuns.
This story covers one page, not full page even but half a page,
even less than half a page, i.e. only five lines. The title of
the story is Patay (the field)? these lines are in fact a story
of the whole life of Pukhtuns? Similar views have been expressed
by Tahir Afridi and Gul Mohammad Baitab also. Tahir Afridi
advises Dr. Taizi to take the modern course of fiction.
One of the stories - Lewanae - was published in
English under the title of The Madwoman in daily the Frontier
Post, Peshawar, on 30 April 1994, and monthly The Busy World
International, Peshawar. It was selected and included in the
brochure published by the Pak-India Peoples Forum For Peace And
Democracy in Peshawar under the caption of Peace and War for the
4th Convention On Peace held at Peshawar from 21 to 22 November
1998. Another of his stories Faisla (The Judgement) has been
translated and published in Urdu in several magazines and
anthologies of short stories. Like his other works, his short
stories are also in a different style. As G. M. Baitab has
points out, these stories are related to the every day life.
They do not give any impression of being imaginary work. For
this very purpose, one of his stories had been rejected and
returned by the editor of a Pushto monthly with a note, asking
for assurance that the story and the characters were not real.
Criticism
Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi have reviewed many books
for the weekly page of the Frontier Post, Peshawar. These books
include books on almost every genre of literature as well as on
history and social sciences. Having studied his comments and
criticism on a vast variety of fields and genres, one has to
acknowledge that Dr. Taizi is really a great scholar and critic.
In a monthly meeting of Milli Adabi Malgaree in Peshawar, he
said that criticism does not have its own principles but thrives
on foreign principles. This commented astounded the
participants. They wanted its elaboration. Dr. Taizi elaborated
the point in very simple worlds. Any genre under criticism is
reviewed in the light of the principles of that particular
genre. In criticism of a short story, principles of the ghazal
can not be applied. That discussion was meaningful but brief and
has been put on record by the said association. However, it
transpired that Dr. Taizi is not a traditional critic but an
academic critic. A student of literature can learn much from his
book reviews that have appeared in the Frontier Press (1992-95).
Although is own concept does not admit that a good critic does
not become a good poet. Only a man of rare qualities can master
both these qualities, such as Khushal Khan Khattak. In view of
various comments on his poetry and his comments appeared in book
reviews and in form of prefaces to a few books, his own concept
personifies him as an exceptional case.
The Frontier
Post
Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi joined the Frontier Post,
Peshawar, as assistant editor on 01 December 1991. In that
capacity, he gave more attention to projection, propagation and
development of Pushto language and literature. He published
profiles of literary figures, covered activities of literary
associations and introduced and reviewed Pushto books. His
stories and round ups first appeared on the city page (page 2).
The encouraging feedback moved the management to consider
publication of a weekly page on Pukhto literature. Although, it
was a gigantic task, Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi accepted the
assignment. That job needed at least four qualified persons, but
he worked all alone to do it. The first weekly page appeared on
June19, 1993.96
S. Inam-ur-Rahman, a student of Pakistan Study
Centre, University of Peshawar, carried out research in 1996 on
contribution of Dr. Taizi to daily the Frontier Post. In
introduction, Inam writes: a weekly page of Pukhto literature of
the daily Frontier Post, Peshawar, took regular start on Sept.
19,1992?.with a view to giving a bird's eye view of the subject
matter, and the significance and value of this page, in this
thesis an attempt has been made to accomplish the task by
dividing the whole range in the following topics:
-
Profiles of writers, poets, playwright,
artists, singers and musicians,
-
Reviews of books and magazines,
-
Articles and comments on various fields and
forms of literature, historical events, cultural heritage,
literary figures,
-
Activities of literary associations,
-
Translation of short stories and poems,
-
It was also deemed necessary that views
regarding this contribution of a few distinguished readers
should be obtained in order to reach a convincing conclusion.
In this 180-pages thesis, the learned researcher
concludes that the contribution is enormous in quantity and
excellent in quality. This contribution, he maintains, is very
useful to students of literature in general and of Pukhto
literature in particular. It has also made available a good deal
of authentic and interesting information on cultural, political
and historical background of Pukhtuns for students of Pukhtuns
history and culture.
In brief, the contribution of Dr. Taizi to the
development and promotion of Pukhto language and its literature,
through the Frontier Post, is remarkable, unprecedented and
exemplary. Within such a short span of time, this one weekly
page introduced Pukhto as an old and rich language to the
educated people as well as to the world abroad.
Translation especially from verse to verse is a
challenging literary task. But Dr. Taizi has no match in this
field. He has translated Pukhto poetry of Mohammad Hasham Zamani,
an Afghan poet. The name of the book is Polar Bear. About the
quality of Taizi's translation, Zamani writes in the
acknowledgement: No doubt there are much cultural and life-style
differences among cultural units of the world and due to this
it is very difficult to carry the real sense and form of one
language into another. And it is most difficult in poetry. In
spite of this difficult task the translator has done his best to
carry and reflect the sense and form of the Pukhto poems into
English as much as he could. The translation was published in
April 1982. Some poems of the Polar Bear were translated into
some other languages of Europe and published in press media.
Dr. Taizi has translated some other works. Among
those is one titled Abad Khan: The Last Ring Of The Chain (Kamil
Pukhto Adabi Jirgah, Pabbi, 1988). It was translated from the
Urdu, which had been compiled and published by Anwar Khan Diwana.
Besides, Dr. Taizi has translated hundreds of
essays, articles, short stories and poems which have been
published in the Frontier Post, Peshawar, and other magazines
such as Pakistani Literature of the Academy of Letters,
Pakistan, and monthly the Busy World International published
from Peshawar.
So far, we were enjoying the imaginary niceties
and fragrance of the literary works of Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi.
When we turned to his academic works, we were puzzled to see how
thorough and patient he was in the dull and dry field of
research! Not less a political analyst and scientist, Dr. Taizi
is an expert on the Afghan affairs. He has earned his Ph.D. for
research on the Communist Revolution in Afghanistan that took
place in April 1978. The thesis, submitted to the Area Study
Centre, University of Peshawar, is titled The Saur Revolution
1978-86, A Political Analysis. It was published by the Frontier
Post Publications in 1991 under the title of The Saur Revolution
1978-86. It was sold out within a few weeks.
It would not be irrelevant to review the
thoughts of Dr. Taizi about the Afghan crisis.
Exuberantly traced out, the raison dêtre of the
Communist Revolution was enmeshed in complex socio-political,
religious and historical factors. Starting from the age of Timur
Shah (1773-93), Dr. Taizi substantiates his arguments with
reference to major historical events as to how ruthlessly the
elements of religious change were curbed by the 3-M troika,
Malik, Mullah and Monarch. Dr. Taizi further argues that the
geo-political strategy of British India and Craziest Russia was
followed more acutely by the Socialist leadership, which sank
deeper and deeper in socio-political conflict inside the
boundaries of Afghanistan. But for one or the other reason, the
quest for change continued to increase with the passage of time.
An educated group of young Afghans emerged, which derived
inspiration from Amanullah Khan, the progressive King of
Afghanistan. The group was forming the middle class and building
the hard core of administration, and thus raising a platform
against clergy. In 1947, they formed an association in the name
of Wikh Zalmyan at Kandahar, and then shifted to Kabul. Thanks
to palace intrigues, Sardar Daud encouraged political overtures
of students of Kabul University. An association namely
Kuloop-e-Jawanan took shape. Babrak Karmal joined that, while
Noor Mohammad Taraki became a member of Wikh Zalmyan. These
associations levelled ground for organised political struggles,
which survived throughout the political razzle-dazzle. The
leftist socialist elements got propped up both externally as
well as internally. Thus in 1965 the PDPA (Peoples Democratic
Party of Afghanistan) came into being. After 13 years, the PDPA
emerged political victor and reached the pinnacle of power.
After a thorough, informative and academic,
discussion, Dr. Taizi concludes that the change which occurred
in Afghanistan in April1978 (corresponding to Saur 1357) was a
revolution by all means and not a coup d etat
Within two months of the Revolution, he adds,
the PDPA leadership realised that it was premature. Moreover,
infighting ensued in the ruling party. But the common man was
still unaffected. He writes:
The change in Kabul was not a matter of concern
to the common Afghan. The Saur Revolution did not arouse any
reaction. The call of political and religious leaders did not
receive any response until the traditional life of the people
was disturbed by the over-enthusiastic revolutionaries, their
brutal arrogance and rude methods.
Spelling the details of external reaction to the
Afghan crisis, Dr. Taizi highlights that capitalist world wanted
to play Islamic fundamentalism against Communism. In this
respect he quotes Brezezenski, the National Society Advisor of
the Carter Administration as having said that: Islamic
fundamentalism can stop Communism. Thus the CIA started backing
Mujahideen to bleed Russians.
Regarding Pakistan, he says that by opting for
launching opposition to the Soviet Union for violation of the
accepted international forum, it (Pakistan) closed every option
for herself, but to depend upon USA for her security needs as
well as making any headway in the Afghan crisis.
Dr. Taizi has drawn a well thought-out and
logical conclusion. Some of his predictions he articulated at
that time have proved correct. For example, he said the USA has
no interest in Afghans and Afghanistan. Their main objective is
containment of Russia. Soon after the dissolution of the Soviet
Union, the USA distanced itself from the Afghanistan crisis. Now
the situation has drastically changed, from help to hate; they
abhor Afghans as terrorists.
Col. (Retd.) M. Y. Effendi has aptly analysed
the literature created on Afghanistan during this time. Having
discussed the books published outside Pakistan, then those
published in Pakistan, he comes down to Pukhtunkhwa. As regards
The Saur Revolution, Col. Effendi says, a doctoral thesis The
Saur Revolution: 1986-86 by Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi is a unique
document as he sympathetically evaluated the Afghan revolution
and showed apprehension about the rise of obscurantism among the
Mujahideen forces. He was hold to do this, when such line of
thinking was considered anathema among the majority of
Pakistan's intelligentsia and in the official quarters. In the
same class, we have Mr. Afrasiab Khattak, Dr. Fazal-ur-Rahim
Marwat and Dr. Adil Zareef who are far-sighted scholars, and
have developed a deep empathy with the Afghan struggle for
peace.
As we have discussed in the part of literature,
Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi has expressed well his prescient quality
here in the political science also. What he had predicted in The
Saur Revolution in 1986 is happening exactly in that way (2000
AD).
Dr. Taizi has also analysed subsequent political
events in three different treatises published by Area Study
Centre (Central Asia), University of Peshawar.
Two of them are titled as Afghanistan: From
Najib to Mojaddedi 1986-1992.
The third is captioned as Afghanistan: The Clash
of Interests. In the last mentioned treatise he highlights how
Afghanistan became a battleground of conflicting interests among
Saudi Arab, Iran and Pakistan. During this tug of war, the
Taliban phenomenon appeared on the political scene, who took
hold of Kabul in September 1996. He argues that like the
double-edged sword, the movement of the Taliban has been causing
much damage to Islam as well as to patriotism and nationalism.
Being Sunni, mainly from the Pukhtuns areas, their force is
considered a front against the Shia sect and non-Pukhtun ethnic
groups?. He concludes thus: The situation in Afghanistan needs
serious and honest approach for restoration of peace. The fire
raging in Afghanistan is now warming the enthusiast spectators
also, and is spreading each and every moment in each and every
direction. Pakistan, Iran and Tajikistan are right on its way.
They should, therefore, think more to extinguish the fire inside
Afghanistan, rather than fanning it, and let the people have a
sigh relief.
The fourth treatise that Dr. Taizi has
contributed to knowledge was published by Area Study Centre
under the title of Afghanistan: Two Governments and Three
Capitals. Most of the information in these booklets has been
collected from the print media in Pakistan. These four booklets
together make a continual history of Afghanistan since 1986. The
students of the Afghan affairs with other sources of information
can make good use of these booklets.
Dr. Taizi compiled a book in English on Osama
bin Laden also, which is being considered for publication by the
Area Study Centre.
In this field, another remarkable achievement of
Dr. Taizi is translation of the book of Abdul Samad Ghaus,
captioned The Fall of Afghanistan An Insider Account, into
Pushto. Danish Kitabtun, Qissa Khwani Bazaar, Peshawar published
it in 1999 under the title of Suqut-e-Afghanistan. Samad Ghaus
was a deputy foreign affairs minister during the regime of Daud
(1973-78). He confirms most of the information contained in The
Saur Revolution of Dr. Taizi.
Dr. Taizi has also translated a book of Dr.
Hassan Sharq from Dari (Persian) into English, which is being
published by the Area Study Centre, Peshawar. Dr. Sharq has
written this book under the title of ((خربس
پوش ها په برهنه)) Karbas-posh-ha Pa Brehna. He was an
accomplice of Sardar Daud in the coup d’ etat staged in 1973
against Kind Zahir Shah. He had served as Prime Minister in the
regime of Daud.
This brief biography of Dr. Sher Zaman Taizi
reveals that he is not only a prolific writer but also an all
rounder. He has set up a mission for him and work with
missionary zeal to achieve that mission. He has chosen
literature to convey the message of mutual understanding and
tolerance, education and enlightenment, peace and love, to his
people, which would definitely lead them to national integrity
and on the right path of Pukhtunwali. According to him, this is
more durable and effective than the political and religious
demagoguery. Therefore, he is quite optimistic about the bright
future of Pukhto and Pukhtuns.
However, this is not the end, but an effort to
put something on record about the mysterious figure of Dr. Sher
Zaman Taizi and his works. There many other matters that he has
written but not yet been published in book form.
