Should Hindu festival Basant be celebrated in Pakistan?

Arts & Culture Culture, Arts, Literature & Linguistics
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Should Basant be celebrated in Pakistan though it is related to Hindu festival Basant Panchami.
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/069/nation/As_Punjab_greets_spring_with_kites_bullets_fly_too+.shtml

The Basant festival dates to Hindu times, before Islamic invaders starting from around 1000 AD offered Punjabis a stark choice: Adopt a new faith and new ways, or die. But people of the region kept their love for flying kites.

‘‘Basant is celebrated in northern India, by Hindus!’’ fumed Ikram Azam, head of a Muslim charity, in an opinion piece written for the Daily Pakistan Observer. ‘‘How is it we are calling the celebration of such blasphemy a part of our culture?’’

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i see no problem

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LOL another BS about hindu times by smelly indians and the "barbarism" of Islamic invaders LOL convert or die !
Just like the indians were a givena choice by the aryans I guess, convert or die.

Or that Basant has anything to do with hinduism LOL!

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Sultan Toora, refer to the thread I opened in the Religious forum.
http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/Forum13/HTML/004442.html

I remember you argued then that Basant is OK before I showed you websites from Pakistanis themselves.

I hope this will refresh your memory and keep the discussion in focus!!!

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/wink.gif

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/wink.gif

Iam really appalled at your ignorennce and naiive. <<
Well I am too!!

It is Pakistanis themselves who are against Basant.

Here’s an excerpt from the ‘DEfense Journal’!!

The joint celebration of “Basant”, an Unislamic festival, fully participated in by the elite from across the border. << http://www.defencejournal.com/globe/2001/may/pakistan-ppf.htm

And they are still blaming Hindus and India!!

This is from a Jihadi Article!!

When Taliban tried to purge their country of idols, these worshippers of culture went up in arms. Some so-called Muslims are also among them. It was due to our embracing of the Hindu culture that Sonia Gandhi declared to have defeated Pakistan on the culture front. Now Bal Thackeray having seen our obsession with Basant has said that this is the triumph of Hindu religion. So all these people are pointing out our idiocity but we still are busy following their agenda. Restriction on Jihad fund and Jihadic activities are also being imposed in this perspective.<< http://www.markazdawa.org/English/magazines/VOICE/march2001/editorial.htm

Now in case you don’t know I didn’t invent either Pak Military Journals or Jihadi Publications!!

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excuse me ppl, why are you calling it hindu fastival??? what does basant have to do with hindusims???

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/confused.gif

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/confused.gif

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/confused.gif

[This message has been edited by cool down (edited March 11, 2002).]

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and to refresh your memory ill again tell you that Basant has nothing to do with hinduism. Many ppl who object to celebrating basant say that its origin lies in the traditipon of ridiculing Islam, apart from that kite flying has nothing todo with anti islamism. SO i hope, youll read this 3 or 4 times to comprehend fully.
There is a sports called Buzkashi in afghanistan, which is very old way before Islam was on the horizon, they still play it. It has nothing to do with Islam or anti isalmism. The question is, does the origin of the kite flying festoval lie in ridiculing Islam, so that it maybe called unislamic? Or does Basant involve worshipping gods or other stuff?
And lastly, basant as we know it in Pakistan has nothing to do with hinduism or India. Most probably its origin lies in the Punjab agricultural plains.

[This message has been edited by Sultan Toora (edited March 11, 2002).]

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Re: Should Hindu festival Basant be celebrated in Pakistan?

“Hindu” pastime is banned in Islamic Pakistan …

Go fly a kite? Not in Pakistan Wed Mar 8, 8:44 AM ET

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Flying a kite in Pakistan is a dangerous pastime.

http://www.juiceenewsdaily.com/index.php/2006/01/13/pakistan-bans-kite-flying/

Already it’s banned for all but 15 days of the year but a provincial minister warned kite-flyers this week that any who cause injury or death with string made from metal or coated with glass could be tried under anti-terrorism laws.

The Punjabi chief minister’s unprecedented threat came just ahead of the start of an annual kite-flying festival in the provincial capital, Lahore, on Sunday.

Kite-flying in Pakistan and neighbouring India often involves aerial duels in which participants try to bring down each other’s kites using string coated in a sticky paste of ground-up glass or metal.

Every year, Pakistani media report dozens of deaths and injuries caused by kite flying, mainly of children and motocyclists whose throats are sometimes cut by metal or glass-coated string.

“It is a matter of concern that a healthy sport is being turned into a game of death,” the official APP news agency quoted Punjab Chief Minister Pervez Elahi as saying on Tuesday.

Elahi said a crackdown had been launched against the sale of sharp kite string and threatened a permanent ban on kite-flying if deaths continued.

“Action under the Anti-Terrorism Act would be taken in case of deaths due to … dangerous kite-flying string,” he was quoted as saying.

Pakistan’s Supreme Court banned kite-flying nationwide last year in response to an outcry over injuries and deaths. The ban was lifted for a 15-day period to allow the holding of this month’s traditional kite-flying festival of Basant.

Some Islamist groups have staged protests in the past week after newspapers reported several deaths caused by kite-flying, denouncing the activity as un-Islamic.

**
Basant, a kite-flying festival, where tens of thousands of people fly kites from rooftops and sports fields, takes place in Lahore, Pakistan every Febuary. Hardline Muslims oppose Basant as wasteful and a Hindu festival.

**

do u guys like writing journal(s)
do u guys like writing journal(s)
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Re: Should Hindu festival Basant be celebrated in Pakistan?

Excellent Presentation on Basant

http://www.alhudapk.com/audio-video/presentation/basant/basant.pps

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Re: Should Hindu festival Basant be celebrated in Pakistan?

The mullahs had threatened to disrupt the festival for many reasons. The country has had an earthquake and it’s bad form to celebrate a festival after such a tragedy; the West has just insulted us with the blasphemous cartoons and we should be foaming at the mouth rather than celebrating; President Bush was in Pakistan recently and we should be cleansing the Land of the Pure instead of blotting the landscape with colour. And so on. The real reason is that the mullahs are killjoys and think that having a bit of fun is un-Islamic. In particular, they have got it into their little heads that the festival is tainted with “Hinduism”. Next stop: Christmas and Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day and New Year’s Day.

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Re: Should Hindu festival Basant be celebrated in Pakistan?

Why do you islamist extremists have to take the joy out of peoples lives? Basant is a festival that has been celebrated for years in pakistan, its a time when people get together and have fun. If basant is a hindu festival then why do you people get married in traditional wedding ceremonies, because our weddings have hindu influence aswell. Hindu influence will always remain in Pakistan, accept it and get over it. Our history can not be changed. Our culture used to be so rich and colourful, now its fading away and being replaced by the desert culture of the arabs. Keep your islam between yourself and your masjid and let other people live in peace. Dont destroy the few remaining remenents of our culture.

ß®!D∑§ 2oo9™!
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Re: Should Hindu festival Basant be celebrated in Pakistan?

you are missing the point here totally
it is not about adopting "arab culture"
and I can tell you many examples of "colorful culture" from arabia as well esp. during the so-called "golden age" of islam.The Ummayyads, Abbassids and later dynasties adopted such ways that were totally mindboggling and very "culturally rich"
But Islam always instructed its followers to follow a austere lifestyle,that means abandoning many aspects of our culture that dosent mean we become arabs
Here I give a small example of how Hudhifah(ra) a bedouin who were considered culturally inferior by the persians sets an example for them

"The people of Madaa'in came out in great numbers to welcome their new governor They came out preceded by their interest in that graceful Companion. They had heard much about his good conduct, his piety, and more so about his great achievement in the conquest of Iraq.

While they were waiting for the coming procession, they saw before them a** bright fellow riding on a donkey with an old saddle. The man was riding with his legs hanging and holding a loaf of bread and some salt in his hands, and eating and chewing his food**. When he came in the midst of the people and they discovered he was Hudhaifah Ibn Al-Yammaan, the expected governor, they were about to lose their wits! But why the surprise? Who did they expect the choice of "Umar would be? In fact, they were not to blame. Their countries had not been accustomed since Persian days or even before to having rulers of with such graceful style."

I am not against kiteflying that is usually a harmless sport but these days it is being turned into a carnival like pagan festival

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Re: Should Hindu festival Basant be celebrated in Pakistan?

In Pakistan, ultra-conservative and nationalist elements have been trying for years to eliminate basant from the calendar because they see it associated with Hinduism, and therefore with India. And since they would like to repudiate Pakistan’s subcontinental traditions and roots, they pretend that our history began on 14 August, 1947, the day Pakistan came into being. However, many of Pakistan's everyday customs have been influenced by the centuries Muslims have spent living next door to Hindu neighbours. Consider Pakistani wedding rites: the mehndi, the uptan and the mun-dikhai are all part of Hindu weddings as well. Young and old enjoy these traditions, and we are all enriched by their inclusion in our marriage rituals

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Re: Should Hindu festival Basant be celebrated in Pakistan?

i dont think its taken as a pagan festival in pakistan. it is infact turning into a commercial festival. and in turn supports the economy no? what with all the women shopping for pretty yellow outfits, the race for the man with the most expensive kite, the most advanced kite string, the parties, the food etc etc. ultraconservatives like to put down their lathis and say "haram haram" but in turn offer no alternatives for job creation and distribution of money in the economy.
HOWEVER....the dangerous strings made with chemicals and glass must be banned. since it has taken so many lives.