Jammu and Kashmir - The People

Kashmiries | Ladakhis | People of Jammu

Kashmiris

According to historians, the ancestors of Kashmiris are early immigrants from India proper. With the spread of  Buddhism, many scholars came to Kashmir from far-off lands for research and study. This resulted in the emergence of Buddhism. The contact of Kashmiris with the Roman, Greek, and Persian civilizations, and the interaction made for a happy blending of cultures. Most of the people claim their descent from the Indo-Aryan stock. Actually, Kashmir is inhabited by diverse and  different races, distinct in their looks, dress, food habits, customs, speech, and traditions.

The Kashmiris made remarkable contributions to story-telling, mystical poetry, the Shaiva philosophy, grammar and the sciences. Folk-songs and dances, as well as the various arts and crafts, for which Kashmir is world famous, bear eloquent testimony to the artists and cultural genius of the people of Kashmir.

Most of the people in the valley are fair-complexioned, with light brown hair, blue or grey eyes, chiseled features, and fine physique. There are also people with a whitish complexion, black, almond eyes, and black hair. Kashmiris tend to be superstitious.

The Kashmiris, on the whole, are non-aggressive and temperate in nature and very God-fearing. They have been regarded as non-martial in character. They were considered timid during the early period, but this myth has been exploited by them after Independence. Kashmiris are a bundle of contradictions: vociferous, loath to hurt yet very abusive, master artists yet lacking art sense, shrewd yet business-like and persistent, lowly yet intellectual and mystical, polite on the face yet abusive and rumor-mongers behind-your-back. With all such positive and negative elements in Kashmiri character, the Kashmiris can be singled out as extremely warm, friendly, and hospitable.

Whereas the Kashmiri Pandits life and habits are simple and frugal, he tends to be individualistic, largely intellectual. Traditionally, he avoids doing manual labour and has clung to professional and administrative jobs. In bygone days, he used to be reluctant to go away from his homeland but now he has changed completely. Kashmiri Muslims, on the other hand, is generally more active, energetic and dynamic. He is an unrivalled craftsman, deftly producing time-honoured designs - intricate and beautiful - on papier-mache, wood, silver and gold, and embroiders and weaves the most exquisite shawls, carpets and rugs. He is an excellent cultivator, rears sheep and cattle, and is self-employed in cottage industries. He is also a shrewd businessman.

Religion

Ninety percent of the population in the valley profess Islam, of both Sunni and Shia sects. The rest are Kashmiri pandits. There are some Sikhs. The Kashmiri pandits do not have castes like Hindus in the rest of India.

FOOD

Rice is the staple food of the Kashmiris, and meat cooked in delicious varieties, goes with it. Kashmiris pride over Karam Sag (a kind of leafy green vegetable), nadru (lotus stalk) and turnips. Wherever a Kashmiri goes, he carries these  precious vegetables as token presents. Kashmiris are known for their culinary art, or more accurately, the cooking of lamb dishes of various ways, each distinct in taste from the other. The tea that the Kashmiris drink is called Kahva - a concoction of green tea leaves brewed in the samovar and enriched with pounded almonds, cardamom seeds, and cinnamon stalks, overdosed with sugar and served without milk. The other kind of tea is Shirchai-salted and milked, pink in colour, with lots of cream on top of it.

Dress

Kashmiri Muslims used to wear the pheran, a long loose gown, hanging down below the knees, a white turban tied on a skull cap, a close-fitting shalwar and lace less shoes called gurgabi. A white piece of material hung on their shoulders like a stole. Hindu men wear churidar pyjama instead of shalwar. The less affluent Muslims wore skull caps, which looked cute and didn't carry any shawls.

Kashmiri women are among the most beautiful in India. They have "an English rosiness of complexion behind the Eastern tan". The colour of their hair ranges from golden red to brunette and that of eyes from green, blue, grey to black. Besides being boats-women and farmers, the women of Kashmir lend a hand to their men-folk at shawl making, embroidery and other handicrafts.

 The women wear the pheran, the voluminous Kashmiri gown, hemmed with a border and hanging in awkward folds. The long, loose pheran covers their physique no doubt, but does not blunt their physical appeal. Whereas a Muslim woman's pheran is knee-length, loose and embroidered in front and on the edges, a Hindu woman's pheran touches her feet. For the sake of smartness and ease it is tied at the waist with folded material called lhungi. The long, loose sleeves are fashionably decorated with brocade. With this type of Hindu costume goes the head-dress called taranga, which is tied to a hanging bonnet  and tapers down to the heels from behind. The folds of the taranga are made of brightly-pressed lines fastened to a pointed red-coloured and brocaded skull cap with a few gold pins at the sides. Over the head and ears are pieces of muslin embroidered in gold thread . The younger Hindu women, however, have taken to the sari, after the 'reform movement' of the thirties. Even then, on the wedding day they have to wear the taranga ceremonially. It is covered with the pallav of the bride's wedding sari. Taranga thus stays as part of the bridal trousseau.

Unlike a Hindu woman's pheran, which gives her a Roman look, the Muslim woman's pheran is beautifully embroidered in front. Their head gear, the Kasaba, looks very different from the taranga. It is red in colour, tied turban-like and held tight by an abundance of silver pins and trinkets. It has an overhanging pin-scarf which falls grace fully over the shoulders. A work-a-day shalwar goes with it. Unmarried Muslim girls wear skull caps, embroidered with gold thread and embellished with silver pendants, trinkets and amulets.

 The dress of a Gujjar woman of the hills in the valley is very much similar to that worn by the Turkish village women. It consists of as ample shalwar and full-skirted tunic with loose sleeves. A thick veil on the head falls back to the shoulders. The Gujjar woman knit their hair in multiple plaits which hang in front, covering half of their moon-shaped faces.

Ornaments

Kashmiri women generally have such love of jewellery that their headgear, ears, necks and arms glisten with ornaments. The typical ornament that Hindu women wear is the dejharoo, a pair of gold pendants, hanging on a silk thread or gold chain which passes through holes in the ears pieced at the top end of the lobes. The dejharoo is the Kashmiri panditani's mangal-sutra. Muslim women wear bunches of ear rings, the weight of which is supported by a thick silver chain. And there are ample bracelets and necklaces. The whole ensemble lends a most artistic effect to the appearance of Kashmiri women.

With the passage of years, an appreciable change has come about in the dress of the Kashmiri women. Saris, shalwar-kameez, churidars and jeans are becoming popular, yet none of these belong to them as much as the good old pheran.

People of Jammu

The Dogras inhabiting the hilly tract sounding the mountains of the Kashmir valley on the south and extending to the plains of the Punjab, are descended from Aryan stock. They speak the Dogri language- a mixture of Sanskrit, Punjabi and Persian -whose origin goes back to the Indo-Aryan branch of Sanskrit. Their staple food consists of rice, wheat, and pulses. Their dress is simple- a short coat or a flowing shirt with pyjamas at the knees and tight-fitting at the ankles. The men's turban on the head is generally complemented by a kamarband at the waist. With a shawl or dupatta thrown over the head, women put on tight-fitting bodice or jumpers over pyjamas which resemble those of the menfolk.

The Dogra Rajputs , who have traditionally made the Army their profession are not big build, their average height being 5'4" (160 cm). The men's complexion is light brown, the women's lighter still. The Brahmins of the Jammu province are mainly engaged in agriculture. A minority among them comprise the priest class. The Chibbalis and the Sudans - the chief sects among the Muslim Rajputs - are also a martial race.

The dishes are delicious, with abundant nutritional value. One of the dainties of Dogra dishes is auria, made from yoghurt and potatoes. Other Dogra specialities are ghiwar, a sort of bread fried in ghee, thothru, well-kneaded fermented balls cooked in - dried wheat flour pieces also fried in ghee.

Distinct and remarkable, Dogra cuisine complements the people's achivements as soldiers, painters and builders of temples and forts. Through the Basohli school and other paintings, Dogras have made a notable contribution to the development of painting in India. Basohli emerged as a great centre of painting early in the 18th century. Outstanding paintings of this school depict Krishna's frolics, scenes from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, etc. Basohli paintings have been characterised as ' poems in colour ' for their extraordinary lyrical quality.

Jammu province is inhabited by diverse castes and sects. Khatris and Mahajans are of Punjab stock. They generally follow sedentary occupation like trade and commerce. Harijans constitute another large segment of population. They are agriculturists and pursue semi-skilled professions, including those of  cobblers and scavengers.

Strong - muscled, virile, simple, and truthful , the Paharis inhabit the hilly tracts of the 'middle mountains'. Theirs is a hard life, rearing sheep and cultivating the sparse available tracts of land on hilly, sloppy terraces for barley, wheat, and maize. Many people of this area recruits to the Army. Their hospitality is exemplary. Frugal inhabits, their diet is simple and sparse - wheat bread with whey and lentils. Their language is a mixture of Dogri, Punjabi and Hindi. Generally dressed in grey woollens and loose pyjamas, they also flaunt a kamarband . Women wear long , loose tunics , close - fitting chudidars and dupatta or cap to complete their charming ensemble. The Kashmiris who have immigrated into this region have adopted the same dress and speak a mixture of Pahari and Kashmiri dialects.

The Dogras are deeply attached to their land. Much of their folklore - myths and legends - relates to their shrines. Religion also contribute to the mass entertainment of the people in the form of Ras dances.

The physical features of a Kishtwari are unmistakably those of an Indian - dark complexion , thick protruding lips and broad noses , akin to Dravidians . They are short statured, simple and unsophisticated but are very hardy. They are sure-footed mountaineers. Guileless and credulous, they are superstitious. Witchcraft prevails among some of them. The people speak the Kishtwari dialect, which is a mixture of Dogri and Kashmiri.

Ladakhis

The people of  Ladakh region have Mongoloid, or, more accurately, Turanian features. People of this region have a cheerful disposition and are peace-loving . According to the 1971 census , the population of Ladakh was estimated at 105,000. Fifty-five percent of the Ladakhis are Buddhist by faith and the rest are Muslims.

Ladakh is known as the 'land of the Lamas' and the Buddhist of Ladakh prefer to call their religion Lamaism - which is much the same as Mahayana (or Great vehicle) form of Buddhism. Religion pervades the life of Ladakhis and dominates their life-style. The people of Ladakh have a system of dedicating atleast one person from each family to priesthood , i.e. to be a Lama. The female monk is called Chomo. The Dalai Lama of Tibet is to them the chief spiritual head.

Ladakhis call themselves Bo-pa-ancient Bhauttas. They speak a Tibetan language which is a dialect of Tibetan. It is written in the Tibetan script. Many words in the Ladakhi language, especially in religious terminology, are derived from Sanskrit.

Ladakhis are sincere and honest. About 90 percent of them depend on agriculture for their livelihood. Barley, wheat, buck-wheat, peas, rapeseed, and beans are the main agricultural products. Apples and apricots are grown in warmer regions of low altitude.

Another occupation of the Ladakhis is sheep-rearing . The herdsmen are called Chang-pas. They rear long-haired goats and sheep from whose under-fleece the famous Kashmiri pashmina shawls are made. Chang-pas live in tents and are nomadic, going from place to place in search of pastures.

Ladakhis are keenly interested in trade. Wool, in raw form, is their chief commercial product. The men travel long distances, seeking favourable prices for their wares, which consist of salt, dry fruits, and cultured pearls and semi-precious stones. In return they get tea, tobacco, grain, sugar, and other essential goods.

Ladakhi men wear long, grey, woollen gowns fringed with sheep-skin and tied at the waist with girdles of blue colour, multi-coloured velvet caps, fringed with black fur earlaps. Their women wear colourful clothes. Their special , turquoise - studded headgear called Perak , is made of red cloth or goat skin and hangs up to the forehead and tapers down to the waist at the back. Brooches of turquoise and other semi-precious stones embellish their headgear , bangles and ear ornaments.

The staple food of the Ladakhis  is grim - a kind of barely grown abundantly even at high altitudes - which is eaten as bread, or mixed with butter and tea as a paste. They are invariably meat-eaters. A local drink called Chang is consumed in ample quantities at festive occasions and reception following marriages and births.

Polyandry used to be a common feature among the Ladakhis. The elder brother's wife was the wife of all brothers. This system was mainly with an aim to keep the population steady and patrimonial property undivided. This system has been discarded by the young Ladakhis , but there is no law yet against polygamy.

 Playing polo on fast-racing ponies is the most popular entertainment in Ladakh. The horse is not changed with each Chukkar (Chukka) as in western style polo but each player carries on with the same sturdy pony. Primitive wooden balls are still used for the game - played on rough , uneven pitch - whose popularity persists in Ladakh.

Ladakh offers the hunters exotic hunts of markhor, ibex, red bear, snow leopard, wild sheep, antelope, gazelle, and marmot. Ladakh is also rich in minerals like gold, copper, and semi-precious stones.

Gujjars

The hill people of Kashmir, called Gujjars, mostly herdsmen by occupation, are found  in most parts of Jammu and Kashmir . They are said to be Rajputs who had migrated from Rajasthan and adopted the Muslim faith . They are tall and well-built, with a prominently Jewish cast of features. Their dialect, Gujari is now identified as a form of a Rajasthani. They raise sheep and cattle . Their nutritious diet consists of maize bread, whey, jungle roots and fruits.