Is Islam a patriarchical tradition (I): Understanding the hermeneutical gap
By Aasem Bakhshi We have made it a Qur’an in Arabic, that ye may be able to understand. (Al Quran, 43:3) Nothing exists except through language. -Gadamer in Truth and Method Islamic tradition, in many ways, can be described as a tradition of literature and one way to legitimately analyze the above question is to ask whether the core Islamic texts, i.e., Quran and Hadith are necessarily patriarchical [1]. Although it is true that Quran was originally revealed in a primarily patriarchical society and, at least in Islamic tradition’s formative and post-formative periods, interpreted mostly by the subjects of patriarchies, its text equally allows more coherent, less subjective and unauthoritarian interpretations to contest the popular traditionalist (or orthodox) interpretations with a visible patriarchical bent [2]. A … Read entire article »
The Curious Case of Suo Moto Notice of Ms. Odho’s Wine Bottles
By D. Asghar Any reasonable person will not disagree, that if Ms. Odho was violating any law by carrying two wine bottles in her luggage, from Islamabad to Karachi on a PIA flight, she is answerable. If there is a law that requires her to declare the spirits she is carrying, with her on a domestic flight, then it should be enforced. There is no question that Ms. Odho is a frequent traveler and more than likely … Read entire article »
Filed under: Democracy, Fashion, Images, Judiciary, lawyers movement, Pakistan, Politics, Society
“Problems of a Multi-Cultural society and the way out”
By Riaz Ali Toori A particular community of people living in a country or region, and having shared customs, laws, and organizations is called a society. The social fabrics of a society make it inter-dependent. There could be peculiar differences among the people living in a society that lead to conflicts that sometime lead to great dilemma like war on terror. The gush of unrest we are witnessing today is just because of clash of thoughts and lack of tolerance among the individuals. The other human catastrophes including poverty, unemployment and inflation also play a vital role in fortifying the conflicts. The influx of divergence could be disastrous enough to lead this world towards complete collapse. We need orchestrated efforts to bring down the rising temperature to a freezing point in order … Read entire article »
The Vagaries of Hinglish
By Usman Look up Urdish in the dictionary and you probably won’t find it. It is an allusive concept known only to those who, like me, are prone to muddling their English with their Urdu with such unfortunate flair that, all too often, our hotchpotch concoctions throw others into an abyss of lingual perplexity. I am the first to admit that it is an obtrusive habit which can be annoying even at the best of times. After all, what Urdu speaker wants be asked who wears the patloon in their household or hear the car diggy be described as a joota? I know of a cousin of mine from the States who once told his Pakistani friends to zara latko (hang out) whilst they waited for him. Probably the most common example … Read entire article »
Raymond Davis-Immune or not?
By Dr. Niaz Murtaza The Vienna conventions (VC) suggest that he is immune while Pakistan’s own laws suggest that he is not immune as a technical and administrative staff. So which of these laws should apply in this case? As a signatory to the Vienna convention, the answer for Pakistan is clear—once you sign an international treaty, you have to bring your local laws in line with it. So, even if there is a difference between the international law and the local law, then the international law will prevail and we better adhere to international law if we want to remain a member in good standing within the international community. So does this mean that he should be freed? A closer look at the Vienna conventions is necessary (which is … Read entire article »
Filed under: Activism, Islam, Pakistan, Society, Terrorism, USA
Raymond Davis and the Vienna Convention
By Raza Rumi Yet another crisis has erupted in Pakistan. Raymond Davis, an American national driving on the busiest corner of Lahore, Pakistan’s second largest city, shot at two Pakistani nationals on January 27, 2011. Soon he was arrested by the provincial authorities and is now being tried under the Pakistani laws. Many questions have emerged: was Davis a diplomat; why was he in Pakistan and if he enjoys diplomatic immunity or not. Recent developments suggest that … Read entire article »
Discoursing Blasphemy (I): Deconstructing the Contemporary Authoritarian Context
by Aasem Bakhshi The materials could be used to construct either the authoritative or the authoritarian. If the authoritarian is constructed, the text is rendered subservient and submerged into its representer and reader. If authoritative is constructed, the text survives unencumbered and unlimited by its representer and reader. – Khaled Abou El Fadl in Conference of the Books Imagine your were born into a middle or lower-middle class Christian family in Islamic Republic of Pakistan. This ironic accident of nature would automatically grant you the deplorable status among approximately one percent ignorant, disbelieving and impure inhabitants of the otherwise land of the pure. Stretch your imagination a little further and assume being grown up to become an individual with religious conviction in line with any of the mainstream Christian denominations. Needless to … Read entire article »
Meet Nadir Khan, the Cobbler from Bajaur
by Aasem Bakhshi Nadir Khan, the cobbler from Bajaur who sits at the corner of my street, carries the kind of iconic baggage usually associated with cobblers from Sufi folklore and mystic literature. His character inspires me, his sensibilities vex me and his paradoxes keep me engaged with mine. Being well aware of each second he lives, Nadir Khan spends a quarter of the year with his family in village, another quarter busy earning on a footpath in this metropolis, and another in the way of Allah, as he finds it to be. My self proclaimed wisdom and religious pragmatism is forced to zilch in front of his embodied response to time. … Read entire article »
A Tale of Two Classes
This article was originally published in Dawn. It makes a very interesting read and makes some extremely incisive points. By Muhammad Waseem In Pakistan, two dominant classes compete with each other for influence and privilege. One is the middle class, which provides the catchment area for the civil bureaucracy, technocrats, the military’s officer cadre and the business community. The other can be called, for lack of a better term, the political class that includes political entrepreneurs of various kinds at various levels, led by the landed and tribal elite. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Army, Civil Service, Democracy, Identity, Religion, Society
Why are some Secular Pakistanis Afraid to be Identified as Such
By Feroz Khan Pakistanis are not ashamed of being secular but they are afraid of being seen as secular. The reason lies in the question of who made the mullah strong and powerful in Pakistan? It was the so-called western educated Pakistanis, who in hopes of retaining their hold on power repeatedly appeased the religious right. The failure of secularism in Pakistan is the faliure of its liberals, educated classes to define what secularism stands for and this failure paved the way for the religious right’s assendency to power. From Objectives Resolution in 1949 to Z. A. Bhutto constitutionally declaring the Ahmedis as non-Muslims to Pervaiz Musharraf supporting the MMA into power, it was the educated, westernized, liberal Pakistanis who have historically helped the religious right into making Pakistan a theocratic state. … Read entire article »
Filed under: secular Pakistan, secularism, Society
Islamic Laws and Women:Why Reinterpretation is Needed
This is an intelligently argued article sent to us by Miss Kiran Rizvi. She rightly argues that laws are eventually an outcome of the peculiar circumstances of the prevalent time period. Therefore laws have to be judged in the context of those circumstances. This way of looking at the laws also makes it essential to rethink the current interpretation which is rooted in those times. Miss Kiran’s argument is that the spirit of Islam itself provides justification for reinterpretation of the laws, particularly those which pertain to women. by Kiran Rizvi Contrary to the popular belief Islam neither favors nor victimizes women. What I mean by this is that Islam doesn’t go out of its way to hurt or protect women because of their special status in the society. The current interpretation of Islamic laws … Read entire article »
Reforming the legislators – on the fake degrees
Raza Rumi The debate on fake degrees has captured the middle class imagination of Pakistan’s mainstream media. True that lying and misrepresenting facts is not acceptable. Yet, discriminatory laws against the political elites are not kosher either. The debate on the issue remains sensationalist, purist and devoid of the larger context of Pakistan’s democratic history. Each era of our existence has witnessed such campaigns. In the 1950s laws to screen out the corrupt politicians was launched with much fanfare. It was a clear tool for the unelected institutions to tame and manipulate the political class. In the 1960s such a process was institutionalized and Pakistan reeled under the ill-effects of authoritarianism leading to the break up of the country in 1971. The establishment continued the policy throughout the 1980s and we witnessed the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Judiciary, Pakistan, Politics, public policy, Society
Why Pakistan is not a nation
And how it could become one. By Pervez Hoodbhoy Himal South Asia, June 2010 Pakistan has been a state since 1947, but is still not a nation. More precisely, Pakistan is the name of a land and a people inside a certain geographical boundary that is still lacking the crucial components needed for nationhood: a strong common identity, mental make-up, a shared sense of history and common goals. The failure so far to create a cohesive national entity flows from inequalities of wealth and opportunity, absence of effective democracy and a dysfunctional legal system. While it is true that most Punjabis think of themselves as Pakistani first and Punjabi second, this is not the case with the Baloch or Sindhis. Schools in Balochistan refuse to hoist Pakistan’s flag or sing its national anthem. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Democracy, Identity, Islamism, Pakistan, Partition, secular Pakistan, Society, state
Owner of Hyderabad’s iconic bakery dies
… yet continues to help many live [Dawn Online] HYDERABAD, June 11: Man is mortal but legend stays. It can truly be said for late Kumar of Hyderabad’s Bombay Bakery, as its cuisine left an everlasting flavour on the taste buds of those lucky, who had the opportunity to relish these. Kumar Thandani enjoyed seventy and two winters and met his creator on Friday in a Karachi hospital. A bachelor throughout, he left behind a sister and two … Read entire article »
Filed under: culture, Heritage, Pakistan, poverty, Sindh, Society
Religious Liberalism – Our Greatest Hope?
A.A Khalid has sent us his exclusive post for PTH. It is quite gratifying to note that PTH is becoming a hub for many of us who want things to improve without using the violent means and indiscriminate jihadist agenda. Raza Rumi Is religious liberalism an oxymoron, or is it something long established? More to the point is there something known as Islamic Liberalism, or Liberal Islam? Surprisingly, there is indeed something, a discourse known as Liberal Islam. And contrary to popular perception it is not a contradiction in terms. Charles Kurzman a Professor in Sociology who deals with Islamic movements asserts there is a tradition with specifically Islamic context known as Liberal Islam (pdf file) . What’s more Liberal Islam is not monolithic it has multiple schools and traditions each … Read entire article »
Filed under: Islam, Religion, secular Pakistan, secularism, Society
PTH biweekly Cartoon
Picture of the Week
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Sunrise at the Arabian Sea, Charna Island
24 Dec 2011
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