1 Altaf Husain Hali (1837–1914), inspired largely by the reformist ideals of his mentor, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, wrote an epic poem called Musaddas: Madd-o-Jazr-e Islam (The Ebb and Flow of Islam). See Shackle and Majeed (Eds), Hali’s Musaddas: the Ebb and Flow of Islam, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 1997. Making explicit the hortatory character of his poem, Hali wrote in the introduction to his Musaddas: ‘This poem has not … been composed in order to be enjoyed or with the aim of eliciting applause, but in order to make my friends and fellows feel a sense of outrage and shame.’
2 Sadar is the central business district in Karachi.
3 A cultural practice among some Muslims in South Asia where coins are wrapped in a piece of cloth and tied around the arm for safety and good luck during travel. Upon the successful completion of the journey, sweets would be bought and distributed as thanksgiving. There could also be embellished arm-bands with holy verses embroidered in zari on velvet. Both versions are called Imam Zamin. However, the Imam Zamin is usually tied before a long and perilous journey and not an outing in the city.
4 A verse from the Surah al-Imran of the Quran, it is often quoted by the faithful; it means Allah honours those He is pleased with and disgraces those He is not happy with.
5 The original has the word ‘abdali’ referring to the concept of ‘abdaal’ or ‘the substitutes or lieutenants’ or certain righteous persons of whom the world is never destitute, and by whom God rules the earth. The substitutes and successors of the prophets shall always remain. Intizar Husain uses the iconic image of the hans-hansni, the swan and his mate, which have been popular in folklore as well as the qissa-kahani tradition, to reinforce the idea of an eternal presence of goodness and happiness, which may be threatened by ‘storms’ and may be separated but is destined to be reunited.
6 Baldev, also known as Balram, was the elder brother of Krishan and is regarded as an incarnation of Shesha, or the King of Serpents.
Adaab
a more secular greeting or salutation in comparison to Assalam alekum which means May God’s blessings be upon you; its full form is ‘Adaab arz hai’
Aji/Ai/Arre/Ai wah
exclamations to denote a range of feelings such as surprise, remorse or incredulity. Often, sentences begin with such an exclamation, eg. ‘Ai Majju Bhai’; they are particularly favoured by older women.
Alam
pennant or standard, a replica of the one carried by Husain (the younger son of Ali and the grandson of Prophet Muhammad) and his army in the Battle of Karbala; it is carried at the head of the Muharram procession
Ama
also an exclamation, but used exclusively among men; a bit like ‘mate’
Aqiqa
the Islamic practice of sacrificing an animal at the time of the ritual shaving of hair from a baby’s head shortly after birth; it is also the occasion to name a child
Arbi
colocasia; its root is cooked as a vegetable and its leaves are fried in a batter of ground gram flour and eaten as a snack during the rainy season. However, the leaves are considered hard to digest and are not advised for those with a weak stomach.
Asr
the third of the five daily prayers, it is offered in the early evening
Atthanni
short for eight annas or fifty paise, a coin of eight annas was called athhani
Aza
mourning; so azadari is the ritualistic remembrance and mourning in memory of the incidents of Karbala during Muharram; azakhana is a hall or room where alams are stored and where the majlis is held during Muharram
Azaan
the Muslim call to prayer given five times a day
Beerbahuti
a tiny insect that comes out during the rains, it is also called rain bug or red velvet mite
Bhabhi
a term for sister-in-law, brother’s wife, or brother-in-law’s wife; Badi Bhabhi means elder sister-in-law
Bhai/Bhaiyya
a form of address for brother; also used for one who is not really a brother but like a brother or where the relationship is such that one does not want to use ‘sahab’
Bhadon
the month of rains
Bhatiyare
those who run an oven or a roadside inn; belong to a low caste
Bibi
a form of address for a young(er) woman, especially an unmarried one
Boriyat
a coinage used as a slang by Urdu speakers to mean boredom, tedium, ennui and weariness
Bua
form of address for an older woman; could be a family retainer or distant relative; roughly equivalent to ‘aunt’. Though not to be mistaken for the Hindi ‘Bua’ meaning paternal aunt
Burqa
an all-encompassing outer covering, usually black, worn by women over their everyday clothes when going out in public
Chacha/Chachi
term for father’s younger brother and his wife
Chaliswan
also called chehlum, it is the ceremony on the fortieth day after someone’s death; it marks the end of mourning
Chaprasi
the peon or office boy; a colonial relic that continues to be found in most offices today
Chavvanni
a four anna or twenty-five paisa coin
Chillum
a clay pipe used to smoke tobacco
Dada/Dada Miyan
Dastaan
story, fable, tale
Dharamshala
a lodge for Hindu travellers
Doli
a small covered palanquin for a single lady passenger, usually no more than a box hoisted on long poles that would be carried on the shoulders of two or more men
Dulhan
literally meaning bride, but often daughters-in-law would be addressed as Dulhan for years, even decades, after their wedding; as a result, they often acquired monikers such as Dulhan Chachi or Dulhan Khala by nephews and nieces.
Ekka
a horse-drawn carriage similar to a tanga
Gazak
a brittle made of gur and sesame or peanuts; like other gur-based sweets these are considered unsophisticated and rough when compared to milk-based preparations. While gazak is usually cut in long flat slabs, rewri comes in bite-sized pellets that can be popped several at a time
Ghasiyare
those who cut grass; a caste
Gopi
the maidens of Mathura who flocked around Lord Krishan
Gujia
a sweet comprising a pastry casing stuffed with dried fruit and condensed milk that is fried, dipped in syrup and dusted with powdered sugar and grated coconut
Gur
jaggery, a natural product of sugarcane and an unrefined version of sugar
Hadith
narration of sayings or actions of the Prophet Muhammad; many such narrations have been compiled
Haveli
a large house or mansion built in the old style; different, for instance, from the bungalow which was a colonial construct
Huqqa
a pipe for smoking tobacco through water
Imam Bara
a place where the taaziya is kept and where Shia Muslims congregate for majlis during the month of Muharram
Insha Allah
meaning ‘If Allah so wills’
Jihad
literal meaning in Arabic is ‘to strive’ or ‘to endeavour’; it is used to mean any ‘just’ war for a ‘just’ cause in the name of Allah
Jinn/jinnat
also a creation of Allah, a spirit-like creature; jinnat is plural for jinn
Jogi
mendicant, travelling ascetic
Kabab-paratha/parathe
a combination of minced meat roasted on skewers, eaten with a form of unleavened bread that is fried on a skillet
Kalma
the Muslim profession of faith La illaha illala Muhammad-ur Rasool Allah, meaning ‘There is no God save Allah and Mu
hammad is His Prophet’
Khamira
a form of medicine in the Unani system; it has a fermented base and is in a conserve or syrupy form
Khala
term for aunt, mother’s sister: Khalu is Khala’s husband
Khand
the powdery stage of the process in which sugar is made from jaggery
Khandoi
steamed dumplings made from besan (chick-pea flour) and put in a salan or curry
Khatna
the practice of male circumcision
Kheer
a sweet dish made from milk, pound rice and sugar
Kos
a measure of distance, equal to approximately two English miles
Kotha
a prostitute or courtesan’s place; it can be an elegantly appointed salon with musicians, etc. or dingy quarters in a red light district
Kothi
large, well-appointed mansion
Kutcha
crude or unformed, for roads it refers to dirt tracks without paving or tarmac; the opposite of kutcha for roads or houses would be pucca
Laddu
an immensely popular round ball of a sweet, it comes in a variety of ingredients: condensed milk, pound lentils (besan), nuts, jaggery, besan among others
Lakshman rekha
refers to the line Lakshman drew for Sita when Ram, Sita and Lakshman were living in the forest; it is used to mean a line beyond which one is not safe
Maash
a sort of lentil with small black grain
Malai
the thick layer of cream that forms on milk that has been boiled; its correct pronunciation is balai, meaning ‘topmost’
Malfuzat
dialogue, discourses and sayings of sufis, compiled by the disciples
Marsiya
elegiac poem describing the events and main characters associated with the Battle of Karbala
Mashak
skin of goats fashioned into a sack to carry water
Mem
used initially for anglicized non-native women, including native Christian women; now used for any westernized woman and not only an Englishwoman
Misri
crystallized sugar lumps
Miyan
tagged on to a name, as in Jawad Miyan, as a form of address for a younger man
Mondha
a somewhat rustic chair or stool fashioned out of reeds and twine
Muhajir
an Arabic word for immigrant; the Islamic calendar Hijra starts when Muhammad and his companions left Mecca for Medina. They were called muhajirun. The Arabic root word for immigration and emigration is hijrat. In Pakistan, the immigrants from India were called muhajir.
Muharram
the first month of the Islamic lunar calendar; the tenth day of Muharram is the day of Ashura when the decisive events of the Battle of Karbala, 10 October 680 AD, reached their tragic culmination. The battle was between a small group of supporters and relatives of Muhammad’s grandson Husain ibn Ali, and a much larger military detachment from the forces of Yazid I, the Umayyad caliph, to whom Husain had refused to give an oath of allegiance. Husain and all his supporters were killed, including Husain’s six-month-old infant son, Ali Asghar with the women and children taken as prisoners. The dead are regarded as martyrs by both Sunni and Shia Muslims, and the battle has a central place in Shia history and tradition, and has frequently been recounted in Shia Islamic literature.
Muezzin
person appointed in a mosque to recite the call to prayer, the azaan, to announce the time for prayer
Mushaira
a literary soiree where poets assemble to recite their poetry to an invited audience
Musla
pejorative word for a Muslim
Naan
a form of leavened bread that is made in an oven instead of a skillet
Nikah
marriage ceremony
Paandan
a container to keep all the ingredients of assembling a paan, such as catechu and lime paste, betel nuts, etc.
Pakwan
spicy crisp-fried savouries; usually eaten as a tea-time snack, especially during the rains
Peda
a disc-shaped sweet made from sweetened milk that has been cooked on slow fire and flavoured with cardamom
Peepal
a species of the fig tree native to the Indian subcontinent
Pehelwan
one who practises Indian free-style wrestling
Phulka
a smaller, lighter version of the roti
Phulki
a fried dumpling made of ground chick-peas, a smaller version of the pakoda
Phuphi/Phuphi Amma
a form of address for father’s sister
Purdah
literally meaning curtain or screen, refers to the form of gender segregation as well as the practice of wearing a burqa or chadar or some outer garment that covers a woman
Qasba
an administrative unit in the Awadh region, smaller than a town
Qibla
since a qibla is an object of veneration or reverence, this is a form of address for a king, a father or a senior or older man
Qul
literally meaning total or whole, the four qul or four verses of the Quran constitute four important prayers
Rabrhi
a street food made from sweetened milk
Rakaat
consists of the prescribed movements and words followed by Muslims while offering namaz; the five namaz have different number of rakaat or ‘unit’ of prayer
Rishi
Hindu sage or saint; and a sadhu is an ascetic or holy man who need not be versed in the Vedas as a rishi would be
Saiyad
those claiming descent from the Prophet
Sawan
fifth month of the Hindu lunar calendar, it coincides with July-August of the Gregorian calendar; it is traditionally the month of the rains, as is Bhadon, the next month
Sawani
songs sung during the rains
Shurfa
plural of sharif, the respectable well-born folk
Subhan Allah
literally meaning ‘All praise is for Allah’ or ‘Glorious is God’ but is used also to express admiration or assent, as in ‘Bravo’
Surah Yaseen
one of the most recited verses, called the ‘heart of the Quran, it is the 36th chapter of the Quran comprising 83 verses
Tamboli
those who sell paan; a caste
Takht
a rectangular, low settee or diwan, usually covered by a white cloth and edged with sausage-shaped bolster cushions called gau takhiya
Tehmad
a rectangular piece of cloth, much shorter than a sari, which is tied around the waist and worn by men; unlike the sari which is wrapped around a petticoat, the tehmad is wrapped loosely once and secured with a knot and remains open from the side
Tehsildar
an administrative officer in charge of an administrative unit called a tehsil whose job was primarily to collect tax
Teli
those who press oil; a caste
Tesu
In an Indian version of Halloween, on a day between the festivals of Dusshera and Diwali, children buy dolls; the ‘boy’ doll is called Tesu and the ‘girl’ doll is called Jhanji. Children would often collect money to arrange for a wedding between Tesu and Jhanji. While Tesu looks like a human face on a stick with large eyes and a prominent moustache, Jhanji is a decorated clay pot with perforations; when a lit diya (lamp) is placed inside the Jhanji, which can also twirl like a top, the light coming out of it makes a beautiful dancing pattern
Til bugga
a cruder and less refined version of gazak, it is a mixture of sesame seeds (til) and gur
Tanga
horse-drawn carriage used as public transport
Ustad
a colloquial form of address, a bit like ‘Boss’; litera
lly, it means master or teacher
Wazifa
prayers
Yaar
rough colloquial equivalent of ‘mate’ or ‘friend’
Zuhr
the second of the five daily prayers; this begins only after noon