[Reader-list] Shrine as an anodyne In strife torn Kashmir

[Hilal Bhat]

Dear friends
I am Hilal Bhat from Srinagar (Kashmir) and am here to
share the intitial findings of my Sarai
Fellowship,“Shrine as an anodyne in strife-torn
Kashmir," which is an attempt to map the shrine within
a therapeutic space in the conflict devastated
Kashmir. This will be done in the context of a field
where fifteen years of violent unrest has resulted in
a situation of chronic stress at the existential,
psychological and social level. The incidence of and
the increase in stress related disorders like
post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) during the past
decade is staggering. The existing infrastructure is
hard pressed to deal with such rates of incidence.
This leads to falling back upon the residual practices
like visiting a saint at the shrine who happens to be
the lone healer in the wake of inadequate
institutional support.  Nevertheless, history of
Kashmir also contributes to this burgeoning trend. A
milieu which has been historically pervaded with a
certain religious ethos where the existence of
charismatic and saintly figures occupies a central
place in the existential universe of the individual,
results in a phenomenon where people in large numbers
seek relief in counsel with saint rather than the
psychiatrist. 

My search to map the presence of the saint within the
existential universe of the devotee led me to the
shrine of Makdoom sahab, also known as
Sultan-ul-Arifeen (the prince of the Gnostics). The
shrine is perched on a shelf half way up the Hari
Parbat hill located within the heart of the old city
of Srinagar. From the distance the shrine complex
reminds one of the monastic complexes that are
scattered through out Europe and Middle East. The
shrine also evokes a sense of the Buddhist monastery.
The approach to the shrine is through the Kathi
Darwaza, which is the main gateway that allowed one to
enter a medieval garrison city founded Mughal emperor,
Akbar. Some structures of the old city still remain
which once encircled the Mughal City. Past the arched
gateway, a gradual incline leads to a flight of steps
that end at the shrine complex proper. A corridor like
roofed enclosure where the faithful offer payers
borders the central courtyard of the shrine.

The initial findings were limited to figuring out the
profile of the people who frequently visit the shrine.
The methods used therein were observation and
interview framed in such a way so that they will
become the basis of a questionnaire /schedule, which
could be used in the subsequent field trips. The
initial finding was significant in the sense that
shrines are conventionally linked to the notion of
backwardness and a superstitious mindset. But the
Kashmir Shrines have a different story to offer. The
practice of visiting a shrine for healing effects is
not peculiar to the supposedly backward classes. The
emancipated classes of Kashmir have an equally abiding
faith on continuing presence of the saint in the
neighborhood shrine. There are rituals, which are
intimately related to these people. This is primarily
because the saints themselves represented the elite of
the time. And the awe of the aura of their influence,
even after their death hundreds of years back, leaves
a palliative effect on the person who visits such
places. Even the Islam in Kashmir got influenced with
practices that were in vogue here for centuries prior
to its introduction in the valley. In the initial
years of turmoil militants, who were indoctrinated
with Wahabi ideology raised fingers on such practices
and severed peoples’ contact with these shrines that
people believed to have come to their rescue in
difficult times. 
I look forward to readers response to make enrich the
research.
warm Rgds
Hilal Bhat
srinagar (Kashmir)
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