CULTURAL COLOURS OF CHOLISTAN ...

This news item published in Daily Times, Wednesday, Dec 09, 2009 is dedicated to one of my venerated friend belongs to Bahawalpur.

PNCA displays textile crafts of Bahawalpur
By Mahtab Bashir

ISLAMABAD: Southern Punjab has a distinguished tradition of arts and crafts, which its people have retained in spite of the passage of time. For centuries the Punjabis are making intricate needle work, woven fans and mats, handmade bed sheets and cushions and many more handy works to choose from.

To promote this indigenous handcrafted works and develop textile industries of Bahawalpur by involving local crafts people, especially women to provide economic empowerment of the area, Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA) in collaboration with UNESCO and Punjab Small Industries Corporation (PSIC) on Tuesday held an exclusive exhibition of needle crafts from Bahawalpur at National Art Gallery (NAG).

Tauqir Nasir, PNCA, DG was the chief guest on the occasion, while Capt (r) Mazhar Hameed, Regional Manager (RM) Punjab Small Industries Corporation (PSIC) and UNESCO officials were also present on the occasion. However, because of deteriorating law and order situation, the gathering remained very thin.

The exhibition displayed the artwork by the artisans from remote areas of Southern Punjab region and in Particular from Bahawalpur. Cholistani hand fans, carpets, ladies suits (block prints with vegetable dyes), bed sheets (block prints with vegetable dyes), crinkle (cross stitch and Banarsi stitch), towels, table mats, ladies and men kurtay, cushions, table sheets, ladies suits (Zardozi, Tarakashi and thread embroidery), scarves, cotton men’s wear, handmade shoes, women’s wear (block print and Sussi), crinkle Chiffon (with Gota work), Sandwich covers, Bed sheets (traditional Ralli pattern in traditional colours and styles), and a wide range of Choli and Ghagra (tie and die) were put on display with price tags.

All handmade items especially the needle work on textile appreciated by a number of people, who considered it a symbol of Southern Punjab culture that is effectively used as a tool for poverty alleviation on one side and promotion and development of colourful culture on the other.

UNESCO director Tarja Virtanen, who was unable to attend the ceremony because of worsening law and order situation, in her speech read out on the occasion said that Pakistan has a tremendous potential to become a leading player in the cultural industries. “The country’s rich traditions in craft and design have delighted people through generations and have become sought after items of value in world markets,” Tarja said.

She said culture is a treasure, a resource commonly available to all and free of costs, and cannot be separated, as it is the identity of a region. “Whether it is the potter working on the roadside of GT Road or a woman of Cholistan laboring diligently on their needlework, one can not help noticing and marveling at the look of pride on their faces as they are no less than Sadequain, Guljee, or Anna Molka, when they spoke of their most cherished work. She said that Norway has given them additional funds to conduct pilot activities to demonstrate the value of cultural mapping in NWFP and Punjab under the title of ‘Mapping of Cultural Assets in NWFP and the Punjab’. “Our programmes on handicrafts or cultural industries are geared towards quality assurance and providing access to the artisans to potential markets, therefore we invariably link these activities with UNESCO Awards of Excellence Programme, to encourage crafts persons” Tarja said.

PNCA DG Tauqir Nasir said that this exhibition is all about the colours of Cholistan area that has its own rich culture and tradition. “Long ago, I visited Derawar Fort and Cholistan desert, and while spending my time there, I felt different modes of colours in its ambience. The colours ranging from soft to scarlet, everything reflected diversification of cultural richness of the region,” Nasir said.

For edited published version, please click on the link below
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009\12\09\story_9-12-2009_pg11_11

WANTED: LEADERS WITH INTEGRITY

Wanted: leaders with integrity
By Andleeb Abbas

You only feel humiliated if you have the capacity to feel. The egos of our politicians are so big that they have blinded them to their own reality. They do not see the rightful and do not feel the painful

Leaders with integrity are an endangered species in Pakistan; in fact they are almost on the verge of extinction. The painful process of seeing the same faces shamelessly denying proven facts, making promises which are broken as a matter of routine, and continuing to use and abuse their political positions has become an agony the public can no longer bear. The fact that the president of this country has merrily and unabashedly announced that his position gives him amnesty despite the lapsing of the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) is an admission of the fact that his title is the only thing saving him from prosecution; this ‘exemplary’ leadership has set the pattern for many of his ministers to follow.

Politics and politicians in this country have become a joke; you really do not know whether to laugh or cry at the totally bizarre character and behaviour of the majority of the politicians around. They rant raucously, they lie unscrupulously and they cheat ruthlessly. Here is how the politician eligibility criteria goes in Pakistan: to qualify for a seat of power, your major qualifications are a graduate certificate from nowhere; you need to have tonnes of experience in hoodwinking, law breaking and leg pulling; your major skills are a fierce determination to put your self-interest above the interest of all else and a ferocious dedication to prove that wrong is right. Being insensitive and callous are of course bonus traits that will ensure your survival under the most penetrative and conclusive media attacks on your performance and behaviour (our Minister of Interior has abundantly proven how sans heart and soul he is while repeating again and again that “it is not possible to stop these terrorists” and thus advises patience to people who see their loved ones being massacred haplessly). Some additional pluses are their unbounded potential and talent at mudslinging and character assassination of all who oppose them; such abusive retaliatory powers will win you accolades from your party leaders; their personal integrity should be zero while their professional corruptibility should be hundred percent. With this lethal combination of qualification, experience and skills, you stand a very bright chance of coming into parliament again and again as every time you are in power you enhance these qualifications to a level where you become a veteran of politics at its filthiest.

The crowning glory for these highly eligible individuals is the NRO. The NRO is like an ISO-9000 certification for corruption of the highest quality level. The NRO list shows a total of 8,041 people. 7,793 high ups from Sindh have benefitted from the NRO, promulgated by former president Pervez Musharraf on October 5, 2007.

The NRO is a distinguished list. Befittingly, the leader of the country is leading the list from the front. From the SGS and Cotecna, to ARY Gold, to Pakistan Steel Mills, to the Awami Tractor Scheme, the president has really led the way.

Following suit are prominent leaders like Interior Minister Rehman Malik, Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar, Nawab Yousuf Talpur, Mir Baz Khetran, Sindh provincial minister Agha Siraj Durrani and Senator Jehangir Badar, Salman Farooqi, secretary-general to the president, Pakistan’s Ambassador in Washington Hussain Haqqani and Wajid Shamsul Hasan, High Commissioner to the United Kingdom are all in line for this unique honour.

The MQM is the second highest accused party. Altaf Hussain had 72 cases against him, including 31 on murder and 11 on attempt to murder charges. Dr Farooq Sattar, the MQM’s parliamentary leader, occupied the second slot. A total of 23 cases were withdrawn against him, including five on charges of murder and four on attempt to murder. The third biggest beneficiary appeared to be provincial minister Shoaib Bukhari of the MQM, against whom 21 cases were withdrawn, including 16 on murder and attempt to murder charges. The PML-N also figures in this illustrious list but is overshadowed by the above two stalwart parties.

In any other country such horrifying exposure would have resulted in resignations and perhaps suicides. In the recent MPA expense scandal in London, from the speaker to the accused MPAs, all resigned; though in many cases the allegations did not amount to more than a few thousand pounds, the humiliation was too much for them to take. But you only feel humiliated if you have the capacity to feel. The egos of our politicians are so big that they have blinded them to their own reality. They do not see the rightful and do not feel the painful.

It is time for justice to take its turn. The judiciary should ensure that they shake the complacence of these alleged wrongdoers and once for all change the belief of this nation that in politics one has to compromise on character and integrity. You may compromise on style and procedures, you may sacrifice on processes and practices, but you can never compromise on principles and values. What we need are leaders with integrity, leaders with dignity, leaders with courage, leaders with conviction, leaders with vision and leaders with passion. This is a nation which came into being due to leaders of integrity and this is a nation which will once again rise and shine due to people of such character. Integrity maybe a rare commodity but not an extinct reality. Let us ensure that this human minority overrules the inhuman majority.

The writer is a consultant and CEO of Franklin Covey.

Courtesy Daily Times, Dec 09, 2009

HELLO GAYS…Here’s not a gay news for you!

Gays 'will never go to heaven': cardinal

VATICAN CITY — Homosexuals and transsexuals "will never enter the kingdom of heaven", a leading Roman Catholic cardinal said on Wednesday (December 2).

Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragan said that while the Church regarded homosexuality as an "insult to God", this did not justify discrimination against gay and transsexual people.

"Transsexuals and homosexuals will never enter the kingdom of heaven and it is not me who says this, but Saint Paul," the cardinal said, in comments reported by the Ansa news agency.

"People are not born homosexual, they become homosexual, for different reasons: education issues or because they did not develop their own identity during adolescence. It may not be their fault, but acting against nature and the dignity of the human body is an insult to God," he said.

Barragan, the retired head of the Vatican's Council for Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers, quoted a passage from Paul's epistle to the Romans which speaks of "men committing indecent acts with other men".

"Homosexuality is therefore a sin, but this does not justify any form of discrimination. God alone has the right to judge," the cardinal said.

"We on earth cannot condemn, and as human beings we all have the same rights."

AFP

FAILURE DOESN'T MEAN.......

While reading a book named “Tough Times Never Last but Tough People Do”, by Robert H. Schuller, I found something interesting about the people who are afraid of failure. I would love to share this to my dear worthy readers.

Hein Talkhiay safar say bohat tang par Munir/ Ghar ko palat hi jain gay, aisay bhi hum nahi

Mahtab Bashir
mahtabbashir@gmail.com
03335363248
03005256875
Islamabad

* Failure doesn't mean you are a failure . . . it does mean you haven't succeeded yet.

* Failure doesn't mean you have accomplished nothing . . . it does mean you have learned something.

* Failure doesn't mean you have been a fool . . . it does mean you had a lot of faith.

* Failure doesn't mean you have been disgraced . . . it does mean you were willing to try.

* Failure doesn't mean you don't have it . . . it does mean you have to do something in a different way.

* Failure doesn't mean you are inferior . . . it does mean you are not perfect.

* Failure doesn't mean you've wasted your life . . . it does mean you have a reason to start afresh.

* Failure doesn't mean you'll never make it . . . it does mean it will take a little longer.

* Failure doesn't mean God has abandoned you . . . it does mean God has a better idea?

Tough Times Never Last, But Tough People Do -- Robert Schuller

WOMEN FEEL MOST ATTRACTIVE AT 32

Looking like a fresh-faced twenty-something is, apparently, not all it’s cracked up to be.

Research reveals four out of ten women feel at their most beautiful at the age of 32.

The survey of British women aged between 40 and 60 found a fifth picked 40 as the age they felt happiest with their looks.

The 38 per cent who said they felt most attractive in their early thirties attributed it to the confidence gained from experience, an active love life and eating and drinking sensibly.

Celebrities who will be blowing out 32 candles this year – and no doubt feeling quite relaxed about their appearance – include model Sophie Dahl and actresses Liv Tyler and Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Psychologist Dr Sandra Wheatley said the findings were a ‘very encouraging’ sign women valued their achievements as well as their looks.

She added: ‘It sounds to me like women are becoming much more swayed by personality.
‘It’s a sign that we are valued for who we are and what we are capable of, not just what is on the surface.

‘Feeling beautiful is tied in with confidence and life experience.

‘At 32, a woman has been through and survived more experiences and achieved more than at 22.

‘Women can be their own worst enemy, scrutinising each other’s weight and wrinkles.
‘But this is a really encouraging study that beauty is more than skin deep.’
The online survey of 1,500 women was carried out by Willow Water, the bottled water brand which claims to improve the skin’s appearance.

Courtesy Mail

PURPLE PATCH

Dream psychology
By Sigmund Freud

In what we may term “pre-scientific days” people were in no uncertainty about the interpretation of dreams. When they were recalled after awakening they were regarded as either the friendly or hostile manifestation of some higher powers, demoniacal and Divine. With the rise of scientific thought the whole of this expressive mythology was transferred to psychology; to-day there is but a small minority among educated persons who doubt that the dream is the dreamer’s own psychical act.

But since the downfall of the mythological hypothesis an interpretation of the dream has been wanting. The conditions of its origin; its relationship to our psychical life when we are awake; its independence of disturbances which, during the state of sleep, seem to compel notice; its many peculiarities repugnant to our waking thought; the incongruence between its images and the feelings they engender; then the dream’s evanescence, the way in which, on awakening, our thoughts thrust it aside as something bizarre, and our reminiscences mutilating or rejecting it — all these and many other problems have for many hundred years demanded answers which up till now could never have been satisfactory. Before all there is the question as to the meaning of the dream, a question which is in itself double-sided. There is, firstly, the psychical significance of the dream, its position with regard to the psychical processes, as to a possible biological function; secondly, has the dream a meaning — can sense be made of each single dream as of other mental syntheses?

Three tendencies can be observed in the estimation of dreams. Many philosophers have given currency to one of these tendencies, one which at the same time preserves something of the dream’s former over-valuation. The foundation of dream life is for them a peculiar state of psychical activity, which they even celebrate as elevation to some higher state. Schubert, for instance, claims: “The dream is the liberation of the spirit from the pressure of external nature, a detachment of the soul from the fetters of matter.” Not all go so far as this, but many maintain that dreams have their origin in real spiritual excitations, and are the outward manifestations of spiritual powers whose free movements have been hampered during the day (“Dream Phantasies”, Scherner, Volkelt). A large number of observers acknowledge that dream life is capable of extraordinary achievements—at any rate, in certain fields (“Memory”).

In striking contradiction with this the majority of medical writers hardly admit that the dream is a psychical phenomenon at all. According to them dreams are provoked and initiated exclusively by stimuli proceeding from the senses or the body, which either reach the sleeper from without or are accidental disturbances of his internal organs. The dream has no greater claim to meaning and importance than the sound called forth by the ten fingers of a person quite unacquainted with music running his fingers over the keys of an instrument. The dream is to be regarded, says Binz, “as a physical process always useless, frequently morbid.” All the peculiarities of dream life are explicable as the incoherent effort, due to some physiological stimulus, of certain organs, or of the cortical elements of a brain otherwise asleep.

But slightly affected by scientific opinion and untroubled as to the origin of dreams, the popular view holds firmly to the belief that dreams really have got a meaning, in some way they do foretell the future, whilst the meaning can be unravelled in some way or other from its oft bizarre and enigmatical content. The reading of dreams consists in replacing the events of the dream, so far as remembered, by other events. This is done either scene by scene, according to some rigid key, or the dream as a whole is replaced by something else of which it was a symbol. Serious-minded persons laugh at these efforts — “Dreams are but sea-foam!”

One day I discovered to my amazement that the popular view grounded in superstition, and not the medical one, comes nearer to the truth about dreams. I arrived at new conclusions about dreams by the use of a new method of psychological investigation, one which had rendered me good service in the investigation of phobias, obsessions, illusions, and the like, and which, under the name “psycho-analysis,” had found acceptance by a whole school of investigators. The manifold analogies of dream life with the most diverse conditions of psychical disease in the waking state have been rightly insisted upon by a number of medical observers. It seemed, therefore, a priori, hopeful to apply to the interpretation of dreams methods of investigation which had been tested in psychopathological processes. Obsessions and those peculiar sensations of haunting dread remain as strange to normal consciousness as do dreams to our waking consciousness; their origin is as unknown to consciousness as is that of dreams. It was practical ends that impelled us, in these diseases, to fathom their origin and formation. Experience had shown us that a cure and a consequent mastery of the obsessing ideas did result when once those thoughts, the connecting links between the morbid ideas and the rest of the psychical content, were revealed which were heretofore veiled from consciousness. The procedure I employed for the interpretation of dreams thus arose from psychotherapy.

This procedure is readily described, although its practice demands instruction and experience. Suppose the patient is suffering from intense morbid dread. He is requested to direct his attention to the idea in question, without, however, as he has so frequently done, meditating upon it. Every impression about it, without any exception, which occurs to him should be imparted to the doctor.

Sigmund Freud was an Austrian neurologist who founded the psychoanalytic school of psychology. He is best known for his theories of the unconscious mind and the defence mechanism of repression and for creating the clinical practice of psychoanalysis for treating psychopathology through dialogue between a patient and a psychoanalyst

THERE’S A HOLE, IN MY SOUL

By Mahtab Bashir
mahtabbashir@gmail.com
Islamabad

Hay tukray tukray dil ki tarah, dastaan-e-dil
Kuch lab pay, kuch zubaan pay, kuch chashm-e-tar may hay

So Much Anguish- how could someone cause me so much twinge, she made me virtually insane. I am only me when I was with her and now … it's hard to be myself...I just tried to want her to see the good in me, but I failed on every moment.

I was born the day I met you,
Lived a while when you loved me,
And died a bit when we broke apart.

I still remember, the first time we met... And when she sang to me I swear I could fly...I was the true admirer of her voice, I distinctly remember, at our early days and thereafter, she used to hum one of my all time favourite lines of a song and later I invited her time and again to please, sing few lines of it… “Kaisay… Bhooloon gi …Tu Yaad Hamesha Aay Ga- Teray … Janay Say…, Jeena Mushkil Ho Jaay Ga …….” Aor may itna pagal - kay in 2 lines may chupay itnay baray ishary ko kabhi samjh hi na paya… balkay hamesha jab hum kabhi achay mood may hotay to may isi song ki request karta, and she never skipped my request, never did she decline any of others. I miss her, like hell- that’s it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTssV0zZfhQ

Main Hosh Mein Tha To Phir Uss Pe Mar Gaya Kaise
Ye Zehar Maire Lahoo Mein Uter Gaya Kaisay
Kuch UsKe Dil Mein Lagaawat Zaroor Thi Warna
Woh Maira Haath Daba Ker Guzar Gaya Kaisay

Now, memories are biting me- I’m devastated as my heart still is sinking. She made me realize it could be life, and its all about pain.

SWANSONG TO MY DEAREST!
I know its not your fault. May teri majboorion ko samjhta hun dear. May shyaed tujhay samjh hi nahi paya- may fail ho gia hun, or wo bhi zindagi ki early stages par. Please forgive me for everything I did wrong, for every word that hurt you. I found you more sensible, mature and ‘practical’ on every phase of life and as a human being, you are unparallel. I feel mortified- may teray kisi kam nahi a saka, kisi bhi aik kam- I’m so sorry dear. This is life, and this is how life plays its part. And this is what you keep on inserting into my mind.

I have just a qualm saying that how a sensible person who knows everything under the sun, fall prey to a paranormal feelings, knowing well this is not a realistic approach. I remember, when I was told repeatedly to come out of this non-practical move and take life seriously as it should be. And to add insult to my injuries, the person herself fall victim of it- ignoring the future prospect. I know, you took a long to made your verdict, but being a female and head of family, i doubt it was a wise decision taken in broader spectrum. Anyways…. I am not at all pleading to get someone back!!!

I believe, If you break up with someone, it is only because there is someone else waiting for you, and that’s what you told me, on a midnight of Tuesday, November 10. Now from hereon I just want to conclude with tears in my eyes that …….. I never felt true love until I was with you, and I never felt true sadness until you left me. Now it's hard to start all over again and find a new love and a friend like you… You are unforgettable! May Allah Almighty diminish your desolations of today and forever.

All the very best, I bear no retribution whatsoever. You have your right to pick, choose or ignore, and now you have made your decisions- and rightly so because its your life. Enjoy it …

God bless you dear!

Kuch may hi jaanta hoon, jo mujh par guzar gai
Dunia to lutf lay gi meray wakiyaat say.

AN EVENING AT LAHORE

Barish thi, hum thay, or ghani ho rahi thi shaam
Tumnay lia tha kanptaay honto say mera naam
Mainay kaha tha, Ao yunhi bheegtay chalain
In rasto may dair talak ghoomtay rahein
Meri kamar may haath ye phoolon sa daal kar
Kaandhay pay meray, rakhay raho yunhi apna sir
Haatho ko may kabhi, kabhi baloo ko choom loon
Dekho meri taraf to may ankhoo ko choom loon
Pani kay ye jo phool hein, rukh par khilay huay
In mein dhanak ky rang hain saaray ghulay huay
Honto sy inko chuntay rahein, khushdili kay saath
Taaray hamain talaash karain, chaandni kay saath
Yunhi kisi darkht ky neechay kharay rahein
Barish kay deir baad bhi, liptay kharay rahein

Tum nay kaha tha, Ao chalein- raat aa gai
Dil jis say dar raha hay, wohi baat aa gai
Beetay samay ki yaad hi, rasto may reh na jay
Ye dil kahein wisaal ki barish may beh na jay

Kuch deir, aik chup si rahi darmiyaan may
Girhein si jaisay, parnay lagi hon zubaan may
Tum pechay hatnay wali thi, jaany ky wastay
Ankhein jhuka rahi thi, churaany ky wastay
Yakdam gira tha phool, koi shaakhsaar say
Dekha tha tum nay meri taraf, iztaraar say
Baarish may bheegtay huay, jhonkay hawa ky thay
Wo chand begumaan sy lamhay, balaa ky thay
Nashaa sa aik chaaron taraf phailta gia
Phir uskay baad mainay, tumhay kuch nahi kaha.

Dard Mein Bhi Yeh Lab Muskuraa Jaaty Hain
Beetay Lamhay Hamein Jab Bhi Yaad Aaty Hain …
Beetay Lamhay …….

Chandd Lamhaaat Ke Waastay Hi Sahi
Muskuraa kar Mili Thi Mujhay zindagi
Teri Aaghosh Mein Din Thay Mery Katay
Teri Baahon Mein Thi Meri Raat Kati

Aaj Bhi Jab Woh Pal Mujhko Yaad Aaty Hain
Dil Se Saaray Ghamon Ko Bhula Jaatay Hain

Dard Mein Bhi Yeh Lab Muskura Jaaty Hain
Beete Lamhein Hamein Jab Bhi Yaad Aaty Hain …
Beetay Lamhay …

Mery Kaandhy Pe Sir Ko Jhukaana Tera
Mere Sinay Mein Khud Ko Chhupaana Tera …
Aakay Meri Panaahon Mein Shaam-o-Sehar
Kaanch Ki Tarah Woh Toot Jaana Tera

Aaj Bhi Jab Woh Manzar Nazar Aaty Hain
Dil Ki Viraaniyon Ko Mita Jaaty Hain
Dard Mein Bhi Yeh Lab Muskura Jaatay Hain
Beete Lamhay Hamein Jab Bhi Yaad Aaty Hain …

Dard Mein….
Beetay Lamhay …….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IN1ghcJcPwc

Dost kiya khoob wafaaon ka sila detay hein
Har naay mor pay ik zakhm naya detay hein

Tumsay to kheir ghari bhar ki mulakaat rahi
Log sadiyon ki rafaqat ko bhula detay hein

Jinpay hota hay bohat dil ko bharosa Tablish
Waqt parnay pay wohi log dagha detay hien.

Kis da dosh si, kis da nahi si
Ay gallan hun karan diyan nahi
Weilay lag gay taoba walay
Rataan hokay bharan diyan nahi

Jo hoya, aay hona e si,
Tay honi rokiyaan rukdi nahi
Ik wari jadon shuru ho jaway
Gall feir awein mukdi nahi

Kujh unjwi rahwaan okhiyaan san
Kujh gall wich gham da taoq wi si
Kujh shehar day lok wi zalim san
Kujh sanu maran da shaoq wi si

Guzashta chahtoon ka dukh hawa mein sar-sraeay to

Koi bhoola hua lamha achanak yaad aye to

Tum apnay dil ka veraana bohat abaad kar lena

Mujhay tum yaad kr lena, mujhay tum yaad kr lena

Khealon kay mundairoon par koi mash'al jalaay to

Baharon ka koi mausam tumhaein wapis bulaay to

Mery yaadon ki khushboo say wafa ko shaad kr lena

Mujhay tum yaad kr lena, mujhay tum yaad kr lena!

Muhammad Mahtab Bashir

03005256875

03335363248

mahtabbashir@gmail.com

Islamabad