Written by: Sirat Gohar Daudpoto
Posted on: November 23, 2023 | 
| 中文
Front and back cover of Pothohar Ki Yadain Aur Yadgarain (Memories, Mystics and Monuments of Pothohar)
Language matters! In a country like Pakistan where several languages are spoken and the majority of the people do not understand English, the production and transmission of cultural knowledge into local languages is very important and is the need of the hour. Because culture is linked with people’s identity, it is a sensitive issue for groups, communities and even individuals. Language should not be put on the fringes of discourse on cultural heritage. The local people, in Pakistan, have the right to know about and contribute to the knowledge of local cultures and heritage. Cultural historians, anthropologists, archaeologists and scholars working on the cultural heritage of Pakistan should be cognizant of the fact that to reach out a larger audience, cultural knowledge must be produced in the Pakistani vernaculars (such as Balochi, Brushaski, Panjabi, Pashto, Pothohari, Saraiki, Sindhi, Urdu etc.), as there is a very small number of Pakistanis who know English.
Haveli of Lal Singh and Heera Singh (Photograph taken by Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro)
Being aware of this issue and the significance of the popularization of his work and discoveries through vernacular languages, Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro, who is a very famous author on the cultural heritage of Pakistan, has taken steps to translate his writings into local languages. We know that Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro writes in English, and to communicate with non-English-speaking Pakistani audiences, he is translating his works into Sindhi (his mother tongue) and Urdu, with the help of historians, cultural heritage experts and scholars who know these languages. The first outcome of this scholarly collaboration is the Urdu translation of Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro’s recent book on the heritage of Pothohar by Tehmina Yasmeen Muhammad.
Inscription in Gurmukhi, Urdu, and English on the entrance wall of the Munday school (Photograph taken by Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro)
Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro has written two books and several research and popular articles on the history and cultural heritage of Pothohar, a region of Pakistan located in the middle of the country, covering the whole area between the Jhelum and Indus rivers in the east and west, and Margalla Hills and Salt Range in the south and north. One of his books titled “Memories, Mystics and Monuments of Pothohar”, has been recently translated into the Urdu language by Tehmina Yasmeen Muhammad. Memories, Mystics and Monuments of Pothohar is Kalhoro’s first of a series of ten books on the history and cultural heritage of Pothohar, was published by Emel Publications in 2022. It contains seventeen articles written on the different aspects of the history, culture, buildings and monuments, including Narali, Islamabad, Nara, Sukho, Makhad, Maira Sharif, Pindigheb, Saghri, Domel Village, Dhamali, Munday, Chakwal, Chawli, Ranjha Village and Dora Budhal in Rawalpindi, Chakwal and Attock districts of the Pothohar region.
The haveli of Kishan Chand, Nara village (Photograph taken by Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro)
The details of the Urdu version of the book are as follows:
Title: (Pothohar Ki Yadain Aur Yadgarain) پوٹھوہار کی یادیں اور یادگاریں
Author: Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro
Translator: Tehmina Yasmeen Muhammad
Publisher: Warq Publications Chakwal
Year of Publication: 2023
Pages: 143
Price: 1000 PKR
Shrine of Maulana Muhammad Ali Makhadi, Makhad Sharif (Photograph taken by Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro)
Very rich and diverse in content, the book focuses on the different aspects of history, culture and built heritage of the Pothohar region. All the seventeen articles included in the book are written on a particular monument or its aspect, e.g., history, personalities and communities of a specific place. The composition of these articles is as follows: two are on the Narali and Dora Budhal villages; one on the decaying heritage of Islamabad; another on the havelis of Nara; one discusses the Sikhs and saints of Sukho; three are dedicated to the mystics, mosques, temples and havelis of Makhad; one on the mystics of Maira Sharif; the temples and havelis of Pindigheb; the havelis and shrine of Saghri; two discuss the monuments of the Domel and Munday villages; one is about the Sikhs of Dhamali; two discuss the stone-built mosques and the Chawli village of Chakwal, and one is about the mosques and merchants of the Ranjha Village.
Temples in Pindigheb (Photograph taken by Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro)
The Urdu translation of Memories, Mystics and Monuments of Pothohar by Tehmina Yasmeen Muhammad is a significant addition to the Pothohar studies, and the Urdu literature on the Pakistani heritage. Tehmina Yasmeen Muhammad’s Pothohar Ki Yadain Aur Yadgarain is a well-translated book. One interesting feature of this book is that the author has used common Urdu vocabulary so that the general reader can easily comprehend the text. Overall, the book contributes to the understanding and knowledge of Urdu-speaking (Pakistani) people about Pothohar and its rich historical and cultural legacy.
Government High School Munday (Photograph taken by Dr. Zulfiqar Ali Kalhoro)
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