ICU faculty, students visit Rahman Baba, Khushal Khattak shrines

PESHAWAR: Senior faculty members and students of the Pashto Department, Islamia College University (ICU) visited the shrines of Rahman Baba and Khushal Khan Khattak to refresh knowledge about the two literary giants of Pashto language and literature.

Led by Prof Dr Abaseen Yousafzai, the study tour was aimed at apprising young students of the significance and huge contribution of Rahman Baba and Khushal Khattak for Pashto literature and cause of Pashtuns.

Speaking on the occasion, Prof Abaseen Yousafzai said that such trips helped young students with research along scientific lines and get firsthand information on a particular aspect of a literary figure.

He said that visit to shrines of Raman Baba and Khushal Khattak always sparked a spirit of creativity among young research scholars.

The daylong study trip had students studying at BS and Master’s levels. Faculty members accompanied the students who provided first-hand information on the life and literary services of two Pashto stalwarts.

The students and teachers visited various portions of Rahman Baba Complex located in Hazarkhwani, Peshawar and evinced keen interest in the shrine of the Sufi poet who lived in the 17th century.

The students and teachers stayed at the mausoleum of Rahman Baba and also held a poetry recitation session in which student paid poetic tributes to the Sufi.

The visiting group then went to the mausoleum of Khushal Khattak in Nowshera district. The Khushal Khan literary-cum-cultural organization hosted a lunch for the visiting students and teachers.

Poets and writers shared views on various aspects of the life and contribution of the great Pashto poet who lived in the Mughal era and who had inspired several generations of Pashtuns.