Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

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81

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Parda and hijab are different

Parda was what many Pakistani women observe which is now being replace by hijab

This thread reminds me of mullah who ran away from the mosque in burqa and those hijabi women with danday

One historical Islamic event in Pakistan I think I will never forget

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Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

To the OP of this thread:

Seriously have you considered Indianization of our society? From fashion to language everything is being Hindi-ized. From TV to private parties, you will either see "desi angrez" or "tulsi/kum kum/shilpa/mister bajaj" type people everywhere.

The way you are specifially pointing your guns at Arabification makes me wonder if you have some sectarian motives (all that Iran good/Arab bad thing going on these days)...

83

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Whether you call it Arabification, Westernization or Indianization... It's just us Pakistanis who are easily influenced by other cultures, more so than others.

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Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Habibi, why u feelin so baad? Go drink some bebsi and sbit on them Arabs. Sheesh. (Not literally, just for the sake of this thread)!

But yes I know what you mean :) Maybe we feel very Islamofied when we try to be like them?

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Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Well said, but that's you Ms. Khatti.

I think I know where LondonsFinest is coming from....

86

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

^ So do I. He is coming from London.

87

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Yes… And old uncles.. eyeing them… :disgust:

88

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

I am a Fan of Parda.. not of Hijab.. (no offence to anyone)

Say what ever happened to “ghunghat Ki aad” he he he :rotfl:

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Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

The most astonishing irony of this thread is that Pakistanis living in increasingly Islamaphobic/xenophobic Western countries have the galls to build an equally xenophobic contempt for Hijab and beards in Pakistan in the name of culture. Internalised racism or what?

90

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

In my opinion we need our own kinda culture, different from Arabs, Indians etc

91

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Niks, I get his point as well, what I don't stand by though is pcg's assertion that anyone with a drop of Pakistani lineage who dones an abaya vs a shalwar kameez and 1.5 metre ka dupatta is shunning being pakistani and following a cult.

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Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

I wear an abaya and scarf when I go to the mosque and when I am in the middle east and in Pakistan.
To the mosque because I am less conspicuous and blend in and because I am better covered so the "haram police" will leave me alone. And in middle east and Pakistan because by being in abaya I am not stared at with those x-ray-like glares.
Does that make me a wannabe too?

Seriously though....I don't see the harm in adopting a good thing no matter what culture it may come from. So long as it is adopted genuinely and improves you as a person.

93

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Women in my family don't take abaya, but some of them only take when go to shopping. They feel comfortable and secure from x-ray gazes in abaya.

94

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Hain??? How many hijabis got gunned down in america?

PS Karachi rocks mujahir power :smokin:

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Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Having lived in the ME, I have an abaya that I will wear when I go to the masjid, which is rarely. The last time I wore it was this Ramzan for taraweeh prayers. Why? Because it's comfortable and convenient. I don't have to worry about wasting time on finding a kurta shalwar and then ironing it. I can simply throw abaya over the very wrinkled and oft-worn lawn kurta I had been wearing in the house and in which I look like a bum and head to the masjid. If the jeans and top are a bit fitted, wear the abaya and I am good to go. My cousins in Pakistan wear the usual dupattas at home. When they go out in the bazaar, they wear their shalwar kameez but pin up the dupatta hijab-style. I don't blame them, it can be a pain to manage dupattas because they tend to fall and depending on their material, they may not stick on the head or shoulders and sometimes they can be too heavy, long, starchy or fancy. You put on a hijab and its shorter and it stays in place. I never thought they were trying to mimic the Arabs. One of their sisters wears abaya with niqab outdoors and I didn't think she was being a wannabe. There are bigger, more serious things to dwell on.

96

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Don't be afraid of the Al-Haramain Cotton thobe, and the emphasis on certain letters of the alphabet in spoken sentences. It's not an invasion.

Thumbs up for the user before me. There are bigger, more serious things to dwell on.

Perhaps, it has to do with shortening of distances, and easier access to other cultures. The spread of internet while bringing us closer to our loved ones back home or abroad, has also brought the world to our fingertips including all that is good and wholesome, as well as all that is bad and corrupting. It really depends on the individuals and how they access the information, and what they do with it. Some in Pakistan may find inclined to dress as the people of arabic speaking countries out of affection because the holiest of places of Islam are located in Saudi Arabia and Palestine. While others may choose to adopt a more western lifestyle because that is more in-line with their liking.

If how we dress were to define us, a whole lot of us would be lumped together although our reasons for dressing the way may differ significantly.

OP may have observed the trend, and an obvious change partly because of easier access to the trends worldwide.

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Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

What do you think of when you think of Pakistani identity? While we're on the topic, may serve well to define who you'd see as being a Pakistanified Pakistani either out of the country or within.

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Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Here's my problem. This past Ramadan, I missed getting a simple Ramadan Mubarak wish from many of my desi friends. Most of them were saying Ramadan Kareem. Nothing wrong with it, but some of them didn't even know what it means...

See what I'm saying? It's more about emulating a culture rather than picking habits and/or traditions that make sense to you and blend in with your lifestyle.

99

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Great question. A little hard to answer when I think about it. But here are a few examples:
- Saying sehri at home instead of suhoor. Imagine waking my husband up in the morning saying, jaan, utho, let's have suhoor, especially when I am fixing some serious parathas and andey ki bhujia. Sehri seems so much in order then. :D
- Also, traditional attire, foods we eat at home primarily, our Pakistani grocery list (:D), cuts of meat we buy for our nihari and paye.

We that have lived out of our home countries for so long have surely progressed and assimilated other cultures no doubt. But if you go to a city mosque for example, one can clearly tell the Pakistanis from the Arabs from the Indonesians from the Malaysians.... And so while it is perfectly alright to learn from each other and adjust our lives to what's suitable and convenient, I think at the end of the day, our embedded culture remains within us. And as much as we may try to be like someone else, we really can't. Most likely, those people don't want us either :D.

But as most people have said in the thread, most of us don't want to copy anyone. We just pick and choose things we like, add on, become richer culturally. Some folks, however, try too hard...

100

Re: Arabification of Pakistan and Pakistani culture:

Everyone was preaching tolerance and respect for Hijab under all sorts of freedom after two Hijabi sisters were killed in North Carolina. It’s pretty sickening to see Pakistanis living in increasingly Islamophobic countries speaking like Neo-Nazis and equating Hijab/beard with extremism and betrayal of national values.

Honestly speaking, I am generally getting fed of Karachiites who generalise all the doom and gloom, depression of a chaotic and violent metropolis to the whole of Pakistan. It’s like they don’t think that Pakistan goes beyond a certain city. Perhaps they need to step outside of Karachi to see the real colours, beauty, diversity, energy, culture, sense of community and traditions of a huge country called Pakistan.