Book on Bajaur history a crash course for researchers, historians

PESHAWAR: A comprehensive book on the history of Bajaur tribal district and its people would serve as a crash course for the researchers and historians.

‘Bajaur Da Tarikh Pah Rana Ke’ (Bajaur in the light of history), written by Maulana Khanzeb, a native resident of the tribal district, has recently launched the book.

Spread over 438 pages and published under the auspices of Mafkoora, a private Research Institute in Peshawar, a number of literary circles have hailed the attempt of the religious scholar for compilation of a book featuring past glory, flora and fauna and cultural traditions of the land and people based on authentic sources.

The book has 16 chapters with beautiful description of every important event and spot traced back to its 4,000 years history.

Interestingly, the writer opens his book with history behind the name of ‘Bajaur’ and after several references, he arrives with one solid conclusion that Baaj means ‘tax’ imposed on the crop in certain proportion and warr means to give and the combined term came to mean tax giver because he adds that area produced and still produces variety of crops owing to its water abundance.

Every chapter with subheading describes its own topics and escapes nothing significant to the people of Bajaur and established its traces of history four thousands in the ancient times and with great respect sheds light on the remains of every era whether Buddhist ‘site or Alexzander’s passage through the area of Bajaur.

Chapter third is entirely dedicated to its past history, and remains of different civilizations.

The book also gives important information about the geography, administration, agriculture and minerals and also throws light on its climate, mountains and open fields, including picnic spots. Different Pakhtun tribes living in Bajaur find valuable information about their origin and evolution, way of life, traditions and even traditional foods and beverages.

The writer retells the most popular folktale of Sher Alam and Maimonai that he says was happened around 1920 and mentions that the story had a real background later versified by about nine folk Pashto poets but poet Fida Mutawahir’s version took it to a new height when it was sung by a popular folk singer Fazle Rabi.

The tale has a striking similarity with Shakespeare’s Othello.

Also, he takes time to describe the visit of Bacha Khan to a mosque still located in Katkot, Mamond area where he had spent 40 days.

Similarly, the writer has mentioned the shrines of Sufis, great literary figures and poets in the book that not only take the reader to the past glory of Bajaur but also transports one to the sights and sounds of the local residents, their tribal pride and their beautiful traditions that still bloom in the springs of the area.

The book is a medley of war, history and romance that gives the author due credit to bring such information to the avid readers of history but the book also provides a window to different readers with various tastes and bent of minds.