โHello sir!โ the young Kalash woman greeted me friendly.
I almost got a heart attack!
I had grown so accustomed to the total separation of the sexes in public in the mountain regions of Pakistan, there were areas where you saw hardly any women in the streets, men were even doing the shopping for groceries, that when I suddenly met this young woman in her colorful costume on a mountain path I intended to walk past her without looking at her, like I had learned before.
When I was right beside her she greeted me, looking me directly in the eyes and smiled.
She was rather surprised that I seemed so distant.
I think she was hoping for some friendly chit-chat with a foreigner, but at that moment I was so overwhelmed and puzzled by this sudden culture shock that I just kept walking, flee Fleance flee! ๐
I had found a world so different from the other mountain regions I had visited so far.
The Kalash are a very special people. They are Pakistanยดs smallest ethnoreligious community, numbering in the few thousand only and their unique faith, called animistic by some scientists, ancient hinduistic by others, has brought some serious attacks by their hardcore Muslim neighbors, especially the Taliban, upon them over the years, at one time reducing them to a mere 2000 people.
Luckily the Pakistani government decided to step up the military presence in the Kalash region, leading to a decrease in Taliban attacks and the Kalash population recovered to about 4000.
In 1992 there was still the claim that the Kalash were descendents of the soldiers of Alexander the Great, which would explain the lots of blonde hair and blue eyes you see there, but it seems that genetics has debunked that myth now.
Drumming is menยดs business in Kalash society
As luck would have it, I was there during one of their main festivals in spring time, with mad drums, flutes and lots of very special high pitched female singing, dancing, and dancing Kalash style meant women and men joining together in dance.
They have many customs, which are so different from those of their Muslim neighbors, that often they are very offensive to orthodox Muslims, who consider them Kafir, unbelievers, pagans, not people of the book, and similar to the campaigns against the Yazidis, who are fire worshippers, in Shingal, the latest one by the hordes of Daesh, radical Muslims have been trying to either convert the Kalash or eradicate them for centuries.
But somehow these happy-go-lucky hobbits straight outta Shangrila survived.
Theyยดre kinda like the eco hippies of Pakistan, music, dance, love, peace and mulberries.
In the Kalash valleys I met Sean, an English guy who had just finished film school in London and was carrying lots of photo and sound equipment, having a field day during this kaleidoscope of colours of greeting spring. He recorded the weird and wonderful singing, filled roll after roll with beautiful pictures and we all recharged our souls which had been deprived of the femine after weeks in the harsh mountains of patriarchy.
The women in their colorful costumes, adorned with Cowrie shells, wonder where they did get them from, witnesses of ancient trade relationships I guess, the men with their feather hats, peacock style, 1992 was still a peaceful time in Kalash territory, but shortly afterwards the terror of the Taliban in Chitral, Swat and other places would start.
In recent times efforts have been made to protect and support Kalash culture and language, like in this video.
I donยดt know why, probably because of their shared love of music and dance and the interaction between men and women, but the Kalash very much remind me of the Kurds in the Middle East.
Both are amicable people but unfortunately their neighbors donยดt want to let them live their lives on their own terms.
This video shows a bit more of the life of the Kalash people.
The opening scene alone is typical for this region.
Who else but a guy with a Kalashnikow could do the honours? ๐
Since I took no camera with me on my journey, I have no pictures of my own to show you the Kalash colours, but because of those wonderful internet times of ours, everything is just a mouse click away.
Watching the videos, deciding which pictures to show, brought back many sweet memories, I actually cried a lot while writing this article.
Just thinking about this wonderful people being under attack from religious zealots drives me mad.
And the Kalash are not the only one in danger.
The world is still full of wonderful indigenous people who have so much to give to the world, their knowledge, their customs and traditions, their myths and stories, their lovely ways with nature, but we are in danger of losing them.
Nowadays there are people in many countries trying to help those people.
Helping them, protecting them, preserving their cultural heritage must not mean putting them in a zoo or in a museum though, that would just be another form of cultural imperialism.
I hope that countries like Pakistan, with indigenous people, find the love and the strength to let those people develop on their own terms, embracing progress but at the same time also preserving their heritage.
Since this has now become a serious series of even more serious travelling,
check out the last part too.
There you will also find a link to the previous parts.
Thank you for this beautiful introduction of the Kalash people. I can see the similitudes with the Kurdish people, gender equality, hospitality, open minded and living in a harsh neighborhood. Even the landscape look like the region of Dersim in Kurdistan.
Welcome back!
Thank you! :)
Wow! Great post! Really like the fact that they dress in so colorful clothes... Anyway, do you know why there aren't any women shopping or walking down the streets? ๐ท
Anyway, if you are into traveling, fitness or self-development, feel free to check out my channel. Otherwise have a fantastic evening! HUGS ๐
Because the men keep them inside the house in order to control them or to prevent them from having contact to other men and probably disgrace the family honor, or for whatever else archaic reasons.
In some areas of the world with hardcore patriarchy women rank not much higher than livestock.
no dear not at all that you say but it is possible in some area but not in all over the pakistan than. becauase the majority of the people are muslim.
Islam also gave right to the women but some men not have knowledge that why some problem occurse.
The solution of that problem is the only awareness !
I was there in 1992, so hopefully things have improved, and you are correct, also in1992 this was not over all Pakistan but in some mountain areas only.
But when I was in Pakistan, there were also no Taliban, trying to prevent girls from going to school.
i some area this is possible but not all area of pakistan!
beautiful!Thanks for sharing @likedeeler, I'd never heard of these people. Love all the color and eco-hippies of their region LOL ! <3
I really love this. It looks like a beautiful and joyful culture.
Yes, such a difference to most of the other mountain regions in Pakistan were the feminine aspect is not held in such high regards, not allowed to celebrate its colorful beauty in public.
If only those men knew what they are depriving themselves of.
Quite sad actually, what religion sometimes does to people.
No doubt. In my humble opinion God wants us to be happy and loving. I'll never understand why people make it so ugly.
thank you @likedeeler for introducing me to the Kalash people, I hope they do get to continue to live how they wish and donot end up getting converted and losing their culture.
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SO beautifuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuul
This is Beautiful <3
so how you feel there?
me also from pakistan!
I really liked it in Pakistan, wonderful people, not many tourists, so much adventure.
Beautiful people and beautiful culture... loving these happy people! Great article by the way ๐๐ป
I am glad u visited my country mate. Hope you enjoyed in Pakistan. Thanks for the post.