I should have written this eight months ago. I do so today, hoping for the objectivity that time allows and immediacy denies.
Many know the profound effect my two-month stay in Kabul had on me. Very few know that there is another connection that now binds me forever to Afghanistan, one that I came to know of only after I returned.
A few weeks after my stint training Afghan journalists in the coverage of parliament early this year, my mother informed me that my maternal ancestors came from Afghanistan. My maternal grandmother’s maiden surname was Khumri, derived from the place of her clan’s origins – Pul-i-Khumri, the capital of Baghlan province in north Afghanistan.
I was stunned. I hadn’t known this when I left for Kabul. Had I known, I would have surely attempted to visit it.
Pul-i-Khumri, I found out, is a small Hindu Kush town of 60,000 that is the administrative centre of Baghlan, one of Afghanistan’s more troubled provinces. It was founded by the Kushan dynasty – who called it ‘Bagolango’ – and was part of Emperor Kanishka’s vast empire that stretched from Bactria (Central Asia) to northern India with its capital in what is today Peshawar.
Tajiks make up between 55% and 70% of Baghlan’s population, depending on which source you trust. While my mother’s side of the family has no information on whether my ancestors were Tajiks, I do notice some similarity in their features with those of my late grandmother – the shape of the nose and the colour of the skin, in particular.
I can only speculate on what my ancestors did for a living and what made them come to India. Maybe they grew cotton and beetroot, as most farmers in Baghlan still do today. Or maybe they herded the famous Karakul sheep, renowned for their hardiness and their camel-like ability to store fat (they do so in their tails). These sheep are said to have originated in the deserts of Central Asia and can survive conditions that would suck the life out of most other animals.
Maybe my ancestors came to India as merchants along the Silk Route through the Khyber Pass and stayed on in what is today Gujarat. Maybe they were part of the armies of Taimur or Babur, who looked upon India as a conquest but were won over themselves by this land.
I wish I knew.
There is one more coincidence. My closest Afghan friend, no less than a brother, Farid Ahmad, it turns out, is from Baghlan. The veteran journalist’s father is an Aimak, a Tajik sub-group, and mother is a Pashtun (we Indians know them better as ‘Pathans’), Afghanistan’s dominant ethnicity.
I was never a big believer in destiny and cosmic connections. Perhaps I should change my mind.
Ashraf Engineer
sayli said,
November 28, 2011 at 4:44 am
Hey very interesting Ashraf… Maybe u shld do another trip and trace ur ancestory.
I have been attempting to trace my ancestory too…. its an interesting journey
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 28, 2011 at 4:45 am
I long to go back, Sayli. Some day, I have promised myself, I will go with my daughter.
Prashanti Mikayla said,
November 28, 2011 at 5:12 am
finding connections is in itself so overwhelming…i can only imagine the impact of ones so poignant, Ashraf. this just reiterates to me that establishing our connections, seeking out a place/people where we belong, is at the heart of our existence and this strange reality we call life.
Muhammad Asif Ziar said,
November 28, 2011 at 5:16 am
it is very interesting to know that your ancestors belong to Afghanistan, please have a visit to your motherland, it is very nice and beautiful place, there are some of my relatives, i will also go with you.
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 28, 2011 at 5:19 am
Insha Allah, I will come some day. This time, with my daughter. We’ll go together, Asif.
Kavita Nair said,
November 28, 2011 at 5:26 am
Finally you wrote it — lovely read…I must dig into my past someday, dont you think???
)
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 28, 2011 at 5:27 am
Thanks, K. Yes, you must too. I remember what you told me about your possible Bactrian origins. Though your past may be a lot more interesting than mine
Dhairya said,
November 28, 2011 at 5:31 am
Its so good to knw this.. I hope u get a chance to visit Afghan once more…
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 28, 2011 at 5:32 am
I hope so too, Dhairya.
Abhishek Srivastava said,
November 28, 2011 at 10:47 am
This is very interesting Ashraf. I think it is no less than surreal to be in that place. It is really a privilege to be able to trace your origins. I have no clue
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 28, 2011 at 11:02 am
Yeah… You know the kind of wonder we felt while we were there. Multiply that a million times over and you get a sense of what I felt when I found out about my ancestors.
Dilnaz said,
November 28, 2011 at 12:04 pm
The country will tug at your heart strings every now and then… like my country tugs at mine
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 28, 2011 at 12:10 pm
Well, India is my country.
But I’ll never forget my time there and how it changed me.
Shashi said,
November 29, 2011 at 5:47 am
You’ve got all of us thinking about one of the really big questions – where do I come from? Like so many others here, makes me want to trace my roots.
Inshallah you will go back with your daughter to a more peaceful country.
On another note, now we know where you get those meat-eating genes from!
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 29, 2011 at 5:50 am
Yes, Shashi, Insha Allah… As for the meat eating, I think I may have actually eaten one of those Karakul sheep at Farid’s place!
Arpana Ahuja said,
November 30, 2011 at 8:42 am
Wow! That is some discovery indeed. We are all at that stage / age in our lives where roots and past / history are more meaningful…..as we have enough context to place it within. Wonder what your reaction would have been had you found out when you were much younger……..what was Baby’s reaction?
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 30, 2011 at 8:44 am
Yes, I wonder how I would have reacted if I were younger. I probably wouldn’t have cared. But it’s important now. As for Baby, well, she doesn’t understand it though I tried telling her. She’s more interested in the pictures of horses and mountains that I’ve got back with me.
Farid Ahmad said,
November 30, 2011 at 10:54 am
Hi , Ashraf
It is really interesting to me as well, we really like brother before we know this secret, I am sure you will vesit Poli-e-khumry one day and I can take you there cuz it’s my hometown and my parents still living there .
Take care and be safe brother
Farid
Ashraf Engineer said,
November 30, 2011 at 10:56 am
Yes, Farid, Insha Allah it will happen soon. We’ll go together, brother.