Online author/writer and social entrepreneur Bryan Farris seems to be quite smitten by Pakistan, its people, culture and religion. In a recent article, he observes: “Pakistanis love tea. If this isn’t self-evident, I don’t know what is. Pakistanis love to sit down, stir their chai, and chat. Spending time with others and building relationships is so important. Back home people tend to fly through their days, but in Pakistan, every moment with another is cherished.”
A University of Berkeley graduate, Bryan writes that Pakistan is not what it is perceived to be. He’s spent the better part of a year in Pakistan. “I’ve come to know myself and the world around me in a much deeper way than before.”
Bryan also strives hard to explain what the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan is and how it is observed in Pakistan. He also briefly touches on that all-important issue that currently not only concerns Pakistan but much of the world… terrorism and the impact it is having on the country.
“Pakistan is not a country of terrorists, but rather a country afflicted by terrorists,” he rightly observes. I would find it hard to disagree with him, but then he barely goes on to tell us how he came tot his conclusion.
There is much to see and learn in Pakistan. It is a land like no other. Maddeningly simple, yet so complex! I should know; I was born there. My perspective of Pakistan would be a little different to that of someone on a short visit to the country. But let’s start with Pakistanis and their tea-drinking habit.
Pakistan is the world’s fourth largest consumer of tea with one kilogram per capita tea consumed annually compared to 0.75 kilogram worldwide. Just like many other consumer items, there is a lucrative and thriving illegal market in tea in Pakistan.
But there is a lot more to tea drinking than numbers. Indeed, it is a culture that varies contrastingly depending on where one is in Pakistan and whom with. For the majority of Pakistanis the morning does not start before a cup of tea is consumed i.e. before one’s teeth are brushed. Thereafter, between three and eight cups are consumed in the day. Sometimes more!
For a cup of tea to be accepted as such it has to be hot, it has to be sweet and most importantly, it has to be ‘karak’. (strong) Foppish English blends such as Earl Grey, Orange Pekoe etc just don’t cut it.
Tea drinking also varies across the social landscape. If one is poor or lives in rural Pakistan, tea is drunk from transparent glasses or from a traditional ‘pyala’, a colorful ceramic bowl. It is hot, milky and sweet, is sipped/slurped loudly, relished and drunk slowly.
In the city, if one happens to visit a mechanic, carpenter, plumber, small business owner, or government offices one is usually offered piping hot tea in small cups and saucers. Sometimes, in such circumstances, tea is poured into the saucer and then consumed. Such tea is usually slow cooked, is extremely sweet and has dollops of cream in it. It has to be drunk hot and while making conversation.
In college and hospital canteens, tea is usually accompanied by a crisp potato samosa or a bun samosa sandwich.
In Lahore and most Punjab cities one can get really good tea from any of the many roadside tea stalls, small restaurants/dhabas (roadside eatries) or even tea vendors.
If travelling long distances in Pakistan, the best place to get tea would be at a truck stop where not only is the tea good enough to ‘make you stand up’ but is accompanied by the most delicious parathas (Lightly fried flat bread).
Usually the best tea can be found at Railway stations and there has been many a cold night that I have walked two miles or more to the Railway station for a good cup of tea.
If doughnuts and coffee are synonymous with cops in the States, then tea and ‘yellow biscuits’, cheap sweet cookies that are yellowing in color, are the favorite snack for the police in Pakistan. Army officers too share this love for tea and yellow biscuits.
In the winter, Punjabis love their doodh patti which is tea slow cooked in milk. This rich and creamy drink is what hot chocolate is to the West.
Also in the winter months Kashmiri tea is very popular. This rich brew has tea, cashew, pistachio, cream and thick milk in it. Extremely rich, it is a pinkish color and is a great favorite.
If in the north, especially in Pakhtun areas bordering Afghanistan, then kehwa is what one drinks. Kehwa is green tea with a dash of lemon or cardamom. It is sweet and delicious and can be consumed in great amounts. If offered kehwa, one cannot refuse the host. It is just not done. The same type of kehwa is sometimes provided in many homes in the Punjab after dinner.
When I was a kid, we had morning tea before going to school with breakfast and tea at tea-time which was exactly four or clock every day. The adults of the house also had mid-morning, after lunch tea, evening tea, night tea and late night tea. Tea at four came along with cookies, cup cakes or cake.
At the club houses and gymkhanas in Pakistan tea is still ceremonial and comes in true British fashion, tea pot, tea cozy, sugar pot, milk pourer, tea cups and saucers, quarter plates, cakes, pastries, cookies both sweet and salt, éclairs, cream puffs, and cucumber, tomato or chicken sandwiches etc.
Many top hotels proudly feature ‘high tea’, which is late tea or evening tea past the four o clock hour. This is grand affair and an occasion to discuss serious matters in an appropriate ambience. Business or social discussions are the norm at such high teas.
In Pakistan, tea is also a great leveler and a trusted ally in the art of mediating or settling differences.
When there is a disagreement between two individuals and one says, “Let’s have a cup of tea,” the other is obliged to do so for he has just been handed an olive branch. When this phrase is used it means, “Let’s not argue; rather let’s discuss the issue in a mature manner, putting emotions aside and getting down to the crux of the matter.” The time it takes for the tea to come and be drunk gives both parties time to reflect and get their point of view together in coherent way. If one of the individuals denies the request for tea, it means the matter cannot be resolved.
Greg Mortensen might have been wrong about many things, but about tea he was not when he wrote in his controversial book “Three Cups of Tea” about the meaning of sharing a cup of tea in Baltistan, northern Pakistan: “The first time you share tea with a Balti, you are a stranger. The second time you take tea, you are an honored guest. The third time you share a cup of tea, you become family.”
For a little more on tea check out:
I for one would pick tea over coffee any day of the year. It has so much more going for it, especially when one’s tired or cold. Just how much tea means to most of us tea drinkers is perfectly summed up by one of my all time favorite authors, Rudyard Kipling:
We had a kettle; we let it leak
Our not repairing made it worse
We haven’t had any tea for a week…
The bottom is out of the Universe.
And now to Ramadan, that “religious boot camp” that Bryan refers to.
I love the concept of Ramadan. I think it is beautiful when observed in its entirety and true purpose. Having lived in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, I can tell you with the utmost certainty that most Pakistanis are very spirited when it comes to the month of Ramadan, especially when it comes to the fasting and praying and making sure that others observe the holy month.
However, this past Ramadan has forced me to ask some serious questions about this wonderful month and Pakistan. Although a Christian, my kids insisted my wife make all the delicious foods associated with Eid, kept three rozas (days of fasting) and regretted they were not with their friends in Pakistan for Eid. I put it down as being a cultural thing. My wife’s colleagues were amazed that she was able to fast and yet work eight hours without drinking, eating or cursing.
When in Dubai for my first Ramadan I was enthralled to see how the city had been decked up with eastern style lanterns, how all the mosques catered free Iftar and Sehri meals, how wealthy locals and the rulers gave zakat (money earmarked for the poor and needy) with joy in their eyes, how night markets flourished, how families got together in the evening and enjoyed their Iftari and time after till late in the night, how the prices of everything were modulated and reduced and how the locals carried out their daily work without any visible difference.
But what really moved me was their spirit to observe Ramadan in its true sense, with simplicity and sanctity. Arabs usually break their fast with a date and a sip of water. I have seen it.
One day, just before Iftar, I was in a taxi on Sheikh Zayed road and the driver stopped to break his fast. He had two dates. He offered me one. Then, a local stopped next to us in his Land Cruiser and quickly brought out a simple mat which he spread on the sand before bringing out a traditional Arab coffee pot and some more dates. He offered us coffee and dates. This was a rich guy.
In contrast, nobody cleans up the city or decorates their environs in Pakistan during Ramadan even though Ramadan is a cleansing process. Most people pull out their money long before Eid so that Zakat is not automatically deducted by banks. I thought Zakat, the fourth pillar of Islam, was mandatory. What of the rest of Ramadan if this important requirement is not fulfilled?
In Pakistan the prices of all things double and triple during Ramadan. It is amazing how this holy month is thus abused and yet those who carry out such nefarious activities call themselves Muslims and say they are observing the fast. Hello?
During Ramadan, if Pakistani offices are not deserted, then those manning them are in such a bad disposition that it is impossible for them to function. They have a one word explanation for their lethargy … Ramadan!
Where as simplicity is required, lavish Iftar buffets, dinners and parties are the rage in Pakistan; people stuff themselves with rich foods and delicacies. There is no moderation. As Bryan observed, “Pakistan is a country of extremes,” and so it is. Pakistan and Pakistanis during the month of Ramadan are a case in point.
Then specifically this Ramadan this month:
· Ethnic and sectarian strife has claimed hundreds of lives in Karachi, and elsewhere including child murders and shootings.
· A so-called religious expert, Dr. Aamir Liaquat was exposed on Youtube as a charlatan and real lowlife after using the most disgusting and vulgar language during his programs. Worse still Pakistani seemed intrigued with the content of the video for a long, long time.
· There have been blasts and suicide attacks on mosques and police stations, claiming numerous lives.
· A landlord let his dogs loose on a seven year old girl, leaving the child badly mauled and totally traumatized.
· On April 14, two men entered the home of a woman, cut off six of her fingers, slashed her arms and lips and then sliced off her nose. Before leaving the house, the men locked their 28-year-old victim inside.
· On April 13, a 70-year-old Dr. Warren Weinstein, an American development worker who spent seven years in Pakistan, was kidnapped after a group of eight men broke into his house.
· Likewise, the son of slain Punjab Governor Salman Taseer, Shahbaz, was kidnapped one day after arriving in Pakistan from Dubai.
· The army continues to battle extremist elements in the north who insist that the army is comprised of a bunch of ‘kafirs’ and enemies of Islam. Nobody is concerned about these brave souls who have made numerous sacrifices for their country.
Of course there is much more.
Bryan notes that Pakistan is afflicted by terrorists and terrorism. True. To get some indication of this I would suggest people go to Youtube and check out a series of tele-films called Faseel-e-Jaan Say Aagay which shows how the Pakistan Army is battling against extremist elements.
Many of you will be surprised. So many young soldiers have died in Swat and Waziristan fighting so-called ‘jihadis’, self proclaimed warriors of Islam.
Pakistan is not a terrorist state as many people in the West believe. It is in the grip of a forced retro-orthodox Islamic ideology that is bringing it to its knees and makes it a dangerous place to be. In total contravention to the edicts and teachings of Islam, there is no tolerance in Pakistan.
The murder of Salman Taseer is a point in case.
What possible hope can a country have when its lawyers and law enforcement officers applaud and garland a murderer?
Those who know how to bend the will of the people have the perfect weapon… illiteracy. Only 40 odd per cent of Pakistanis are educated. Therefore, their naivety makes Pakistan the ideal place for the dogs of war and there is no escaping this fact.
Corruption, ideology, hunger for power, lack of education, economic despair… it’s all there.
Back in the sixties and seventies Pakistan was a beautiful place to live in. But then along came Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto with his greater “Islamic world” vision. That he was followed by that great protector of Islam, Zia-ul-Haq, that oh-so-pious general, truly set Pakistan on the path to where it is. The genesis of Pakistan’s troubles did not start with the Afghan war and they are not about to end any time soon. The Taliban, Al Qaida and their Arab financiers have ensured that.
It is easy to be overwhelmed as a first time visitor to Pakistan. You learn to trust and then just when you relax, trouble comes in the worst possible way. Daniel Pearl learned that the hard way.
Warren Weinstein said he was among people he trusted and yet he was kidnapped two days before coming back to the United States. Three weeks now and nobody knows where he is. I hope there is someone out there who cares.
Pakistan is an enigma that cannot be summed up in a few months, a few years, a few pages….
