Kashmir Trip Quotes

During the eighteenth century the Punjab was the scene of ceaseless turmoil between Sikhs and Moslems, and on January 7, 1761, at the battle of Panipat, the Sikhs were defeated. On their homeward march the victorious Moslems destroyed the holy city of Amritsar, blew up the Golden Temple with gunpowder, filled the sacred pool with mud, and purposely defiled the holy place by slaughtering a lot of holy cows within the temple enclosure. Although this happened in 1761, the Sikhs have neither forgotten nor forgiven it. When the Partition of India took place and Pakistan came into being, the dividing line passed between Amritsar and Lahore, leaving many thousands of Sikhs and Moslems on the wrong side of the line. In the scramble to get out of India and into Pakistan, great numbers of Moslems were killed by Sikhs. On the other hand, the Moslems who were already in Pakistan avenged themselves by slaughtering thousands of Sikhs who were trying to escape into India. How

ancient name Bharat. “India” originated with the East India Company, and as it smacked of Britain, it was discarded. But the youthful Hindu nation quickly discovered that it had made a mistake. The whole world knew India. Nobody had ever heard of Bharat except a handful of Hindu intellectuals, so that every effort, except changing their constitution, is now made to retain the name India. Pakistanis,

On thinking the matter over, I have come to the conclusion that as far as food is concerned there is a remarkable similarity between Russia and England with regard to the treatment of their citizens. Both countries export food for the sake of American dollars, while their citizens suffer dire austerity.

population of Karachi had grown from 400,000 in 1947 to about 1,250,000 in 1950. “You

Divide the asking price by four with a view to getting eventually what you want for half is a good rule. Then, having beaten the seller down to half and paid for your treasure, you suddenly realize that the real value is almost sure to be much less or he wouldn’t have closed the bargain. “Only

Lapps regard their dogs as honored members of the household, and the dogs know it.

Although their country is only one sixteenth the size of Texas, Danes have the same sly sense of humor as Texans.

hospitable Denmark, whose national drink is beer and whose national weakness is another beer.

If it were not for the water that comes from Kashmir, West Pakistan would be a desert. Every Pakistani knows that his very life depends on water from Kashmir, and he’s going to fight to the last gasp to prevent India from endangering that water supply.

The adage, “Two’s company, three’s not,” doesn’t apply to an explorer and his wife. Provided the third person is the right kind, three is an ideal number on any expedition. In

a ‘pundit’ is an indigenous Kashmiri Hindu or the descendant of one. You see,” he explained, “while the majority of present-day Kashmiris are Moslems, they were originally Hindus. It was only in the fourteenth century that they were converted, mostly by force, to become Moslems. Those who succeeded in remaining Hindus are known as ‘pundits.’ You find them all over India, where they are well known for their acuteness and subtlety of mind, their quick-wittedness and their intelligence.

Which country do you want to join, India or Pakistan?” It was surprising how many of those Kashmiris could speak English and still more surprising to find that the majority of the answers could be summed up as follows: “A plague on both countries. What we want is peace and a return to the days of Thomas Cook!” Occasionally a man would sigh for the return of Kashmir’s maharajah;

Just then a man passed by wearing a gauze mask over his mouth. “He looks as if he’s afraid of catching influenza,” remarked Zetta. “Not at all,” I corrected. “He’s a Jain. Jainism forbids the taking of life in any form. He’s afraid he might inadvertently swallow a gnat.” Hailing

how to keep well in the tropics. The night he arrived he had eaten salad and lots of delicious fruit, none of which should be eaten without being washed in permanganate of potash. “Don’t

Incidentally, the names Muslim, Moslem, and Mohammedan all mean the same thing, “belonging to the Faith of Islam and followers of the prophet Mohammed,” but in the Indian subcontinent they are always known as Muslims. Thanks

Precis writing is just the opposite of ordinary writing. A novelist will take a plot and expand it into a book. A good precis writer can take such a book and after a rapid scanning of its contents extract the plot and tell the essential story in a few paragraphs. In

in 1947 immediately after Partition, when about seven million Moslems who lived in India suddenly abandoned their homes and property and set out for Pakistan, while approximately five million Hindus and Sikhs who lived in what is now Pakistan pulled up stakes

Pakistani dress, consisting of white trousers and smart knee-length black coats known as “sherwanis.” Having

pilau is a favorite dish with Moslems, especially Persians. According to the dictionary, a pilau is a mixture of boiled rice, raisins, spices, and some kind of meat or fowl. However, there is nothing mushy about a pilau. Each grain of rice is separate, and as it is always colored with some kind of spice, a pilau is pretty to look at as well as delicious to taste. My

Jute, known as the “golden fiber,” is by far the most important product of Pakistan. All of it comes from East Pakistan, which accounts for about 75 per cent of the total jute production of the world. Despite the fact that for many years Americans as well as other people of the Western world have walked on jute, sat on jute, and slept on jute, not many people know that this wonderful fiber comes from Pakistan. Its most obvious use is for making sacks and sackcloth, but jute has a thousand other uses. Carpets are usually woven on a basis of jute; linoleum is built upon a base of jute. Jute might even be called the foundation of the upholstering business. Like

East and West Pakistan are just as different in the appearance of their inhabitants. West Pakistan is a land of tall men with high cheekbones who often sport large black mustaches and wear turbans, baggy trousers, and speak Urdu, whereas in East Pakistan the men are short, bearded, wear skirts, skullcaps, and speak Bengali.

Calcutta taxis carry two men in the front seat was explained to us later. One’s job is to drive. The other’s is to prevent passengers from murdering the driver and stealing the cab. Exciting

although a notice informed us that all drinking water was boiled, that was no guarantee that the receptacle that held the water had been sterilized. Refreshed,

Sweden, was excellent. It is a wonderful place to spend your summer and get away from the heat of most American cities.

the capercaillie, which the Swedes call tjäder, that remarkable bird that looks like a giant prairie chicken. The capercaillie is not only very good eating but is the Don Juan among birds. Not satisfied with his capercaillie mate, he mates with any bird of his own species, such as partridge, hazel hen, and even the ptarmigan, all of which are very much smaller than he. The result is that his variegated offspring are the despair of ornithologists. Never was there such a mixture as the illegitimate children of the capercaillie. So numerous and varied are they that one of Sweden’s natural-history museums has set apart a special room for capercaillie and company. At

Nanak’s sole purpose in life was to reform and restore the Hindu religion to its ancient purity. He forbade the burning of widows, the killing of girl children, and the element of sacrifice in worship. He required truth and the utmost simplicity in worship, without ritual of any kind. Wherever

To the Sikhs the Golden Temple is just as holy as the Kaaba in Mecca is to Moslems, or the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to Christians. Had

To this day all Sikhs are Singhs, but as a Hindu friend recently told me, not all Singhs are Sikhs. In addition to the name Singh, all Sikhs have five distinctive items of dress known as the five kakas, all of which begin with the letter k and by means of which all orthodox Sikhs can be recognized. Kirpan is a knife, which denotes readiness for battle; kara is an iron bangle denoting fidelity; khanga is a comb; kes is the uncut hair on which the comb is used, and karchh are knee-length shorts denoting manhood. All Sikh women wear long trousers. Henceforth the Sikh fellowship was to be known as khalsa, meaning the “elect” or the “pure.” It

some of the Kashmiris belong to the lost tribes of Israel. In fact, there exists today in Srinagar the tomb of the man who founded the sect of Quadiani, whose theory is that a certain saint named Yus Asaf, who preached in many of the same parables as Christ, was indeed Jesus himself.

this lovely vessel, which looked more like a large yacht than an ocean liner, was utterly devoid of that peculiarly unpleasant odor that is usually so noticeable on large ships.

the Swedes know how to live on a long voyage. The routine was as follows: Breakfast at eight-thirty. Walk the deck, rest in deck chairs, and read until 1 p.m., when luncheon was served. Then sleep and get fat until 4 p.m., when tea was served. At four-thirty promptly we had a Swedish bath, a massage, exercise in the gymnasium, followed by a swim in an ice-cold pool. This enabled us to lose the fat we gained during the day and put us in good form to regain the fat at dinner, after which there was an excellent concert and dancing until 11 p.m.

A kangra consists of a basket lined with earthenware and filled with glowing charcoal When winter comes a Kashmiri carries it with him wherever he goes

Locally Old Delhi is still called Shahjehanabad. The city is surrounded by a great wall built by Shah Jehan but greatly strengthened by the British after they captured Delhi in 1803.

Another celebrated building that we saw inside the Fort was the Diwan-i-Khas. Here can be seen in Persian characters the famous inscription, “If a paradise be on the face of the earth, it is this, it is this, it is this.” At the time of the Delhi Durbar in 1903 to celebrate the proclamation of Edward VII as Emperor of India, this exquisite building was used as a supper room. “This is the Chandni Chauk [Silver Street],” said our driver as we passed along Delhi’s main street. “It is the richest street in the world.” “Used to be,” corrected Sam. “It was sacked at least four times and most of its riches carried away.” Nowadays it is the abode of the jewelers and ivory workers of Delhi. Ten miles south of Delhi, amid the ruins of another ancient Delhi, stands the Kutb Minar, which is said to be the most perfect tower in the world and one of the seven architectural wonders of India. Built of marble and sandstone which is dark red at the base, pink in the middle, and orange on the top story, this remarkable structure, 238 feet high, looks almost brand new, yet it was built in A.D. 1200. Close by is another Indian wonder, the Iron Pillar, dating from A.D. 400. A remarkable tribute to Hindu knowledge of metallurgy and engineering, this pillar, some sixteen inches in diameter and twenty-three feet eight inches in height, is made of pure rustless malleable iron and is estimated to weigh more than six tons. Overlooking both the Fort and the city, and approached by a magnificent flight of stone steps, is the Great Mosque, also erected by Emperor Shah Jehan. It has three domes of white marble, two tall minarets, and a front court measuring 450 feet square, paved with granite and inlaid with marble. “Sight-seeing in Delhi is as tiring as doing the Mediterranean,” I

Gothenburg, the largest seaport in Sweden. But Gothenburg is far more than a seaport and center of shipbuilding. This ancient city is also a cultural center of considerable importance. Among other attractions, Gothenburg boasts one of Europe’s most modem theaters, a world-famous concert hall, and a magnificent museum of art. There is also a ski jump, snow for which is imported by the trainload from Norway. It

Instead of hanging our room key on the door so that anyone who wished might enter, as was the custom in 1932, we were told to be sure and leave our keys at the desk so that no unauthorized person could enter our rooms. The

Gentlemen are given a full glass. By law ladies can have only half a glass. Zetta was furious. “Whether I want it or not,” she said, “I believe in equal rights for women.” As

When Pakistan reciprocated Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s peacenik bus trip to Lahore with a military invasion of the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir in 1999, the Indian Army was not allowed to cross the Line of Control and strike at the invaders’ bases and supply lines in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. This raised the death toll among Indian soldiers, the typical Gandhian price for a pose of saintliness,