9/09/2017
PUKHTOON'S CUSTOMS
AND TRADITIONS
The Pukhtoon social structure, which has attracted the attention
of many a scholar is mainly governed by conventions and traditions and a code
of honour known as "Pukhtoonwali". This un-written code is the
keystone of the arch of the Pukhtoons' social fabric. It exercises a great
influence on their actions and has been held sacrosanct by them generation
after generation. The Pukhtoonwali or the Pukhtoon code of honour embraces all
the activities from the cradle to the grave. It imposes upon the members of the
Pukhtoon society four chief obligations. Firstly Nanawatey or
repentance over past hostility or inimical attitude and grant of asylum,
secondly Teega or a truce declared by a Jirga to
avoid bloodshed between two rival factions, thirdly Badal or
obligation to seek revenge by retaliation and fourthly Melmastiya or
an open hearted hospitality which is one of the most sublime and noble features
of Pukhtoon character. In a broad sense hospitality, magnanimity, chivalry,
honesty, uprightness, patriotism, love and devotion for the country are the
essential features of Pukhtoonwali.
The history of Pukhtoonwali is as old as the history of the
Pukhtoons and every individual of Pukhtoon society is expected to abide by
these age old traditions. The non-observance of these customary laws is
considered disgraceful and may lead to expulsion of an individual or even a
whole family. Pukhtoonwali, Pukhto and Pukhtoon have become almost synonymous
terms.
Nanawaty: Some
European writers define Nanawatey as grant of asylum to
fugitives or extreme hospitality. An experienced British administrator who
served as a Political Officer on the Frontier for a fairly long time describes
it "an extension of the idea of Melmastia, (Hospitality)
in an extreme form, stepped up to the highest degree". But the grant of
asylum or sanctuary is only one aspect of Nanawatey while its
exact definition and true spirit seems to have been ignored. As a matter of
fact, it is a means to end longstanding disputes and blood feuds and transform
enmity into friendship. Under Nanawatey a penitent enemy is
forgiven and the feuding factions resume peaceful and friendly relations. Thus
it creates a congenial atmosphere for peaceful co-existence and mutual
understanding through eventual reconciliation.
When a person feels penitent over his past bellicose
postures and hostility and expresses a desire to open a new chapter of friendly
relations with his foe and live in peace and amity with him, he approaches the
tribal elders, Ulema and religious divines for intercession on his behalf for a
settlement. In this regard the Jirga's efforts are always
countenanced with favour and the very presence of the suppliant in the
enemy's Hujra creates a congenial atmosphere for resumptions
of friendly relations. The host, who used to scan the neighbourhood in an
effort to avenge his insult, exercises patience and kindness and gently pardons
his opponent for his past misconduct. This is followed by slaughtering of a
buffalo, cow, or a few lambs or goats provided by the suppliant. A feast is
held in the Hujra and with it the enmity comes to an end.
The customs relating to Nanawatey are more
or less identical throughout the Pukhtoon society. In some parts of the tribal
areas, however, there was a custom according to which the suppliant used to go
before his enemy with grass in his mouth and a rope round his neck as a mark of
humility (this custom no longer exists). Sometimes women bearing the Holy Quran
over their heads would approach the enemy's house to plead their family members
innocence in any given case. The tribesmen, like Muslims all over the world,
have a deep faith in the Holy Quran and they, therefore, regard it as a
sacrilegious act to deny the favour asked for through the Holy Book. Besides,
the women are held in high esteem by Pukhtoons and therefore, a favour
solicited through them is seldom denied. Sometimes a man manages to reach his
enemy's hearth and stays there till his request for Nanawatey is
acceded to. However, if some obstacles lie in the way of acceptance of a Nanawatey then
the suppliant bides his time for an opportune occasion such as occurance of a
death in his enemy's family. He hurries to his enemy's village, joins the
funeral procession, tries to be one of the pall-bearers and announces his
desire for Nanawatey. This evokes a spontaneous feeling of sympathy
and the relatives of the deceased readily concede to their erstwhile enemy's
desire. It is, however interesting to note that no Nanawatey is
accepted in which the honour of the women is involved.
Any one who gains access to a Pukhtoon's house can claim
asylum. He is protected by the owner of the house even at the risk of his own
life. Under Panah which is a subsidiary element of Nanawatey one
can take shelter under the roof of a Pukhtoons' house irrespective of caste,
creed, status or previous relations. Though it would seem paradoxical yet
Pukhtoons on several occasions have provided sanctuary to their deadly
enemies. Panah is best illustrated by a story which, according
to Mr. Claud Field "is often told on the Frontier". Once a quarrel
between a creditor and a debtor resulted in the death of the creditor near his
village. The debtor made an un-successful bid to run away, but he was hotly
chased by the deceased's relatives. Having failed to escape the assassin
approached a village tower and sought refuge in "Allah's Name". The
chieftain of the tower, after enquiries from the fugitive realised that he had
slain his brother. Instead of avenging his brother's death on the spot, the
chieftain calmly said to the fugitive, "you have killed my own brother,
but as you have asked for refuge in God's Name, in His name I give it." He
was forthwith admitted to the tower and the pursuers sternly forbidden to
approach. When they departed, the chieftain gave the refugee an hour's grace to
leave the premises and be gone. The refugee made good use of the grace period
and escaped death on that occasion, at least.
Another example of asylum, as recorded in books, is that of
an old Pukhtoon woman. It is said that once a gang of dacoits raided a village.
The villagers, including the two sons of an old woman, came out to challenge
the dacoits. Soon a fierce fight ensued between the two parties in which
besides others both the sons of the old woman were also killed. The dacoits
having found all escape-routes blocked, sought shelter in the house of the old
woman. The pursuers, who were close on their heels, felt delighted that the
dacoits were now in their grip. But on approaching the old woman's house, they
were deeply annoyed to find their way barred by her. Displaying traditional
Pukhtoon courage she determinedly said that she would not allow any one to lay
hands on them. "You don't know" the pursuers angrily said, "they
have killed your two sons". "That may be so", she calmly replied,
"but they have come Nanawatey to my house and I cannot
see anyone laying his hands on them so long as they are under my roof".
The obligation of asylum frequently brought the Pukhtoons
into conflict with the British during their one hundred years' rule on the
Frontier. The government, under various treaties and agreements entered into by
the tribesmen with the British and under the principle of territorial
responsibility, often insisted that tribesmen should refrain from harbouring
outlaws, but the Pukhtoons considering it as an act against the canons of
Pukhtoonwali, often refused to oblige the authorities inspite of threats of
reprisals and severe punishment. The tribesmen's obduracy in this connection,
on many occasions, led to despatch of military expeditions and economic
blockades by the British. They braved all sufferings, bore the brunt of the
enemy's attack and suffered losses both in men and material but gallantly
refused to hand over the guest outlaws. "In common with all Afghans",
writes Claud Field, "the Afridi exercise a rough hospitality and offer an
asylum to any fugitive endeavouring to escape from an avenger, or from the
pursuit of justice and they would undergo any punishment or suffer any injuries
rather then deliver up their guest". The denial of protection, says Sir
Olaf Caroe, "is impossible for one who would observe Pukhto, it cannot be
refused even to an enemy who makes an approach according to Nanawatey."
Ajab Khan Afridi, the hero of the famous Miss Ellis drama
took refuge with Mullah Mahmud Akhunzada, a religious divine of Tirah Orakzai
after the abduction of Miss Ellis. The British government brought enormous
pressure on the Akhunzada to surrender Ajab Khan and his accomplices but he
refused to deliver them on the ground that they had taken asylum under his roof
and it was contrary to the norms of Pukhtoonwali to hand them over to the
government.
Similarly a few outlaws took asylum with the Jowakis, a clan
of the Adam Khel Afridi tribe, in 1877. The government demanded their return but
the Jowakis refused to comply with such a request. Ultimately their
intransigence over this question brought them into armed clash in which more
than 5000 combatants were engaged. According to George B. Scott "every
glen and valley of the clan was occupied, every tower destroyed, many cattle
died, the families suffered in the wintry cold, only then did the chiefs come
into camp and ask for terms. These were a fine in cash, of course but a small
fraction of what the expedition had cost ____ the
surrender of a certain number of rifles and other weapons in Peshawar ____ and
the surrender of two noted outlaws for murderous raids. The chief of the tribe
replied "we will pay the fine, we will surrender our arms, but those two
men have taken refuge with us. We will not give them up. You are in possession
of our country. Keep it, we will seek a home elsewhere, but those men we will
not give up. Why will you blacken our faces"? Another example of asylum
has been quoted by Major Herbert B. Edwardes, who says that "Raja Heera
Singh, when Prime Minister of Lahore, sent an offer of three thousand rupees or
300 pound to Malik Sawab Khan Vezeeree, if he would give up Malik Fatteh Khan
Towannuh, who had taken refuge in his mountains, the offer was rejected with
indignation."
Kanry / Teega: Kanryor Teega is another custom among the Pukhtoons,
which stands for cessation of blood-shed between contending parties. Teega (lit.
putting down of a stone) in other words means a temporary truce declared by
a Jirga. The word stone is used figuratively as actually no stone
is put at the time of the cessation of hostilities. Once the truce is enforced,
no party dares violate it for fear of punitive measures.
When hostilities break out between two rival factions and
firing starts from house tops and surrounding hills, a tribal Jirga intervenes
to restore peace and prevent blood-shed. In case of firing, there is no
security of life and property and death hangs over the feuding factions like
the sword of Democles. The Jirga, consisting of local tribal elders
and religious divines, declares a Teega after full
deliberations and in consultations with the parties concerned and declares a
truce for a specified period on pain of a Nagha or fine. Nagha is
paid by the party which violates the truce. The objective underlying Teega is
to restore normal conditions by holding the feelings of enmity in abeyance,
cooling down tempers and providing an opportunity to the two sides to settle
their dispute amicably through tribal elders on the principles of justice and
fair-play. The parties generally, strictly adhere to the terms of the truce.
Any one of the contending parties which commits a breach of the truce is
punished with a heavy fine.
If the party guilty of violating the truce declines to pay
the prescribed amount of fine, the Jirga proceeds to recover
it forcibly. This may be in the form of burning of the houses of the rebel
group, its expulsion from the locality or banishment from the tribe. This task
is accomplished with the help of a tribal lashkar, composed of armed tribesmen.
No one can, therefore, violate the truce because of such stringent action. Here
the Jirga's action resembles U.N. General Assembly's action
against any rebel government. The General Assembly applies economic sanctions
against a defiant government, which may be in-effective because the General
Assembly has no authority to enforce it or compel member countries to abide by
its decision, but orders of a Jirga cannot be ignored or
side-tracked in any form or manner.
Self-respect and sensitivity to insult is another essential trait
of Pukhtoon character. The poorest among them has his own sense of dignity and
honour and he vehemently refuses to submit to any insult. In fact every
Pukhtoon considers himself equal if not better than his fellow tribesmen and an
insult is, therefore, taken as scurrilous reflection on his character. An
insult is sure to evoke insult and murder is likely to lead to a murder.
Badal (retaliation) and
blood feuds generally emanate from intrigue with women, murder of one of the
family members or their hamsayas, violation of Badragga,
slight personal injury or insult or damage to property. Any insult is generally
resented and retaliation is exacted in such cases.
A Pukhtoon believes and acts in accordance with the
principles of Islamic Law i.e. an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth and blood
for blood. He wipes out insult with insult regardless of cost or consequence
and vindicates his honour by wiping out disgrace with a suitable action. But
the urge for Badal does not mean that he is savage, blood
thirsty or devoid of humane qualities. He is kind, affectionate, friendly and
magnanimous and forgives any one who kills his relatives by a mistake but he
will not allow any intentional murder go unavenged. Proud of his descent, he
becomes offensive only when an insult is hurled at him or some injury is done
to him deliberately. He goes in search of his enemy, scans the surrounding area
and hills, lies in wait for months and years, undergoes all hardships but does
not feel content till his efforts of wreaking vengeance on his enemy are
crowned with success. Those who fail to fulfil the obligations of Pukhto
(self-respect) by wiping out insult with insult, lose their prestige in the
eyes of their compatriots, render themselves liable to Paighore (reproach)
and earn an unfair name. According to Nang-e-Pakhto or code of
honour an unavenged injury is the deepest shame and the honour of the person
can be redeemed only by a similar action. It may, however, be noted that
"there is little if any random crime or violence" in the tribal areas
as the stakes are too high and the retribution too certain to follow.
Many daring stories of Badal or retaliation
are recorded by European as well as Asian writers but one such story showing
Pukhtoons' strong urge for Badal has been related by Mrs
Starr. She writes, "once an old man with a white beard and hair and eyes
filmy with cataract came into the out patient hall, and when his turn came to
see the doctor, he said "I am old but give me sight that I may use a gun
again. `To the doctors' query he replied in quite a placid and natural manner:
`I have not taken the exchange (revenge) for my sons' death sixteen years
ago."
Another famous story of revenge, as told by T.C. Pennell, is
that a Pathan girl who approached a court of law for justice but the judge
expressed his inability to prosecute the offender for his imputed crime due to
lack of ample evidence. This enraged the girl and she said in fit of anger,
"Very well, I must find my own way". She went in search of the
murderer of her brother "who had escaped the justice of the law but not
the hand of the avenger". She "concealed a revolver on her person and
coming up to her enemy in the crowded bazar, shot him point blank".
Sometimes a Pukhtoon becomes so sentimental that he vows not
to take a meal with his right hand and sleep on ground instead of a charpaee (bedstead)
until he has avenged the wrong done to him. Pukhtoon history is replete with
many examples of Badal and there are instances where a child
born a few months even after the murder of his father has, wreaked vengeance on
his enemy after patiently waiting for many years.
The obligation of Badal rests with the
aggrieved party and it can be discharged only by action against the aggressor
or his family. In most cases the aggressor is paid in the same coin. If no
opportunity presents itself "he may defer his revenge for years, but it is
disgraceful to neglect or abandon it entirely, and it is incumbent on his
relations, and sometimes on his tribe, to assist him in his retaliation".
When a Pukhtoon discovers that his dishonour is generally known, he prefers to
die an honourable death rather than live a life of disgrace. He exercises the
right of retribution with scant regard for hanging and transportation and only
feels contented after avenging the insult. Badal resulted in
blood feuds and vendetta in the past, but now due to the prevalent peaceful
conditions in the tribal area and with the spread of education, the incidence
of Badal are few and far between.
Melmastya (Hospitality): "It goes waste if you
feed yourself alone; It gives
satisfaction to have your meal in company"
Pukhtoon have been described as one of the most hospitable peoples
of the world. They consider Melmastiya or generous hospitality
as one of the finest virtues and greet their guest warmly with a broad smile on
their faces. A Pukhtoon feels delighted to receive a guest regardless of his
past relations or acquaintance and prepares a delicious meal for him.
"Each house," says Mirza Agha Abbas of Shiraz, "subscribes a
vessel of water for the mosque and for strangers". Dilating on the subject
Mr. L. White King says that "Pathans regard dispensing of hospitality as a
sacred duty, and supply their guests with food according to their means".
Guests are usually entertained in a Hujra(village meeting place),
where guests are entertained and routine meetings of the elders are held. Each
village contains at least, one Hujra. The host kills a fowl if he
cannot afford to slaughter a lamb or goat and prepares a sweet dish (Halwa) to
satisfy his sense of hospitality. Guests are not only looked after but also
respected. "A rich chief", says T.L. Penall, "will be satisfied
with nothing less than the slaying of the sheep when he receives a guest of
distinction. A poorer man will be satisfied with the slaying of a fowl".
Pukhtoons feel happy over the coming of the guests and greet
them with traditional slogans, "Har Kala Rasha" and "Pa
Khair Raghley" and "Starrey Mashey" i.e.
may you often come, welcome and may you not be tired. He also exchanges such
courtesies with the guest as "Jorr Yai" (are you
well) "Kha Jorr Yai" (are you quite well) and "Takrra
Yai" (are you hale and hearty). The guest gratefully
acknowledging these forms of welcome by saying "Pa Khair
Ossey", (may you be safe) "Khudai de mal sha" (May
God be with you) "Khushal Ossey" (may you be
prosperous and happy) and "Ma Khwaraigey" (may you
not be destitute). This way of greeting full of friendly gestures reflects the
warmth with which the guests are received. The arrival of the guest in Hujra is
immediately followed by tea and later the guest is served with a rich meal
consisting of Halwa (a special sweet dish), Pullao (rice
dish) and other seasonal dishes. When the guest sets off on his journey he is
bade farewell in these words "Pa Makha De Kha" (may
your journey be safe and happy).
The guest of an individual is considered as the guest of all
and he is jointly entertained by the villagers in the Hujra. A
variety of dishes are prepared and the elders of the family lunch or dine with
the guest on a common piece of cloth (Dastarkhwan) spread over
a carpet, drugget or a mazri mat. It is one of the cardinal
principles of Pukhtoon's hospitality to request the guest to sup or take a few
morsels with the village folk even though the guest may have had his meals but
the etiquette enjoins upon the guest to oblige his hosts by taking a few more
morsels. After they have partaken of a meal the company prays to Allah to give
the host riches and prosperity and power of entertaining more guests.
Giving a vivid description of Pukhtoon hospitality, Sir Olaf
Caroe writes "The giving of hospitality to the guest is a national point
of honour, so much so that the reproach to an inhospitable man is that he is
devoid of Pakhto, a creature of contempt. It is the greatest of affronts to a
Pathan to carry off his guest, and his indignation will be directed not against
the guest who quits him but to the person who prevails on him to leave. This,
or something like it, was the reception accorded to the outlaws from British
justice who fled to the hills."
Another example of Pukhtoon hospitality is recorded by Dr.
Pennel who served in Bannu and the adjoining tribal areas as a missionary
doctor for a number of years. He writes "on one occasion I came to a
village with my companion rather late in the evening. The chief himself was
away but his son received me with every mark of respect and killed a fowl and
cooked a savoury Pullao". He adds, "Late at night when
the Khan returned and found on enquiry that the Bannu Padre Sahib was his
guest, he asked if he had been suitably entertained. To his dismay he heard
that only a chicken had been prepared for dinner. Immediately, therefore, he
ordered a sheep to be killed and cooked, so that his honour might be
saved." To their minds, Says another English writer, "hospitality is
the finest of virtues. Any person who can make his way into their dwellings
will not only be safe, but will be kindly received."
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