At the crossroads of learning, religion and nature
By Omar Mukhtar Khan
Travelling on the Grand Trunk Road from Islamabad to Peshawar, after a drive of around forty-five minutes, one comes across the small beautiful town of Hasanabdal comfortably tucked in surrounding green hills. It is not clear how the town got its name but a reference is usually made to the 18th century Afghan conqueror, Ahmed Shah Abdali.
History tells us that the place was sacred to Buddhists as narrated by Xuan Zang, a seventh century Chinese Buddhist pilgrim. However, presently the town is associated with Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikh religion and Baba Wali Kandhari, a renowned Muslim saint.
Hasanabdal also served as a stopover for the mughal emperors on their annual retreats to Kashmir. However, in the late eighteenth century, the town was taken over by the Sikhs before their conquest of Peshawar.
The most significant landmark of Hasanabdal is a set of vastly spread red buildings immediately to the left of the main road. These buildings belong to the Cadet College Hasanabdal, one of Pakistan’s foremost premier boarding schools. Field Marshal Ayub Khan inaugurated the school in 1954 to cater to the need of young officers for the armed services.
The main academic block overlooks the college with a cricket ground in the centre, called the ‘Oval’. Six residential wings surround the Oval and it is always a pleasing sight to see young boys in uniforms walking towards their academic block. However, what may not be a very pleasing sight is to see the very same boys doing front rolls in the Oval instead of playing cricket as a consequence of some misconduct.
The college has always been famous for its academic results with its boys bagging most of the top slots in board examinations. While Aitchison College has for a long time catered to the political leadership of the country, the establishment has come from colleges like Cadet College, Hasanabdal, and Lawrence College. One of the interesting facts regarding these colleges is the strong sense of ‘comradeship’ that prevails among the boys. The boys of these colleges use words like ‘Abdalian’ and ‘Gallian’ with the pride.
The Cadet College is surrounded by ‘Loqat’ orchards, lush green fields and a gushing stream where a day with fishing rod can really be fruitful. Mr Catchpole, the first principal of the college is also buried here.
Hasanabdal is also famous for the sacred early nineteenth century Gurdwara Panja Sahib, a very holy site for the Sikhs. The Gurdwara is situated in the middle of the town and the main temple has a typical style with domes and cupolas. The temple is surrounded by a cemented water tank that derives its supply from a fresh water spring that emerges from underneath a huge rock. Now this huge rock has that famous handprint on it for which the site is known as ‘Panja Sahib’.
Legend has it that Guru Nanak requested for water from Baba Kandhari who lived at the top of the hill overlooking the town. The Baba hurled a rock towards Guru Nanak who stopped it with his palm hence the handprint and the name ‘Panja Sahib’. A fresh water spring gushed out from the place where the rock had fallen. The water pond is full of ‘Mahasher’ fish and is also considered sacred. Thousands of Sikhs visit the place every year in April for their ‘Besakhi’ festival.
The tomb of Baba Wali Kandhari lies on the top of the hill overlooking the town and his shrine is visible from below. It takes around two hours to trek to the place. There are a few more tombs and ponds scattered in the town for which more research need to be done.
Hasanabdal is an interesting small town. With temples, shrines, convent school, cadet college, mosques, churches, orchards and streams, the place appears to be at the confluence of religions, learning and nature. One should not forget to enjoy the tasty fish straight from the streams available at all roadside restaurants. There are some reasonable hotels with comfortable accommodation in case one wishes to stay.