Historical and Cultural Aspect of the Walled City Multan
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HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL ASPECT OF THE WALLED CITY MULTAN THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF PAKISTAN STUDIES IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER IN PHILOSOPHY Submitted By: Supervised by: FOUZIA BUKHARI DR. MUHAMMAD KHURSHID Roll # 12 (Associate Professor Department of Pak Studies) Session (2011-2013) DEPARTMENT OF PAKISTAN STUDIES The Islamia University of Bahawalpur i TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 Page INTRODUCTION 1-25 Initiation______________________________________________________7 History _______________________________________________________8 Today‟s Multan ________________________________________________11 Geography ____________________________________________________13 Location______________________________________________________15 Sites of Interest ________________________________________________16 Educational Institutes____________________________________________21 Agricultural Land_______________________________________________22 Climate_______________________________________________________23 Chapter 2 Page HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 26-57 Historical and Cultural Names_____________________________________ 27 The Persian Invasion_____________________________________________30 The First Arab Penetration ________________________________________ 32 Arab Travelers in Multan________________________________________ _ 37 Ismailia Karmaitians _____________________________________________39 Mahmood Gaznavi ______________________________________________ 39 Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Ghori __________________________________40 Multan Under the Khiljie‟s ________________________________________45 Multan Under The Tughlaq Rulers __________________________________46 Multan Under The Langhas ________________________________________50 The Mughals in Multan ___________________________________________50 Chapter 3 HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL VIEW OF Page WALLED CITY MULTAN 58-73 Walled City Multan ___________________________________________ ___58 vii House Structure _________________________________________________ 60 Delhi Gate _____________________________________________________ 61 Bohar Gate_____________________________________________________ 62 Haram Gate ____________________________________________________ 66 Pak Gate_______________________________________________________ 67 Lohari Gate ____________________________________________________ 71 Daulat Gate ____________________________________________________ 73 Chapter 4 Page Cultural Aspect of Walled City Multan 74-96 Culture_______________________________________________________ 75 Religion______________________________________________________ 75 Social and Economic Aspect______________________________________ 76 Language_____________________________________________________77 Marriages_____________________________________________________78 Births _______________________________________________________79 Death _______________________________________________________ 79 Staple Food __________________________________________________ 80 Horticulture __________________________________________________ 80 Fair & Festivals_______________________________________________ 80 Music_______________________________________________________ 81 Instruments __________________________________________________ 82 Dresses ______________________________________________________82 Multani Kashi Gari_____________________________________________83 Tazia Dari in Multan___________________________________________ 84 Literature_____________________________________________________85 Local Handicrafts ______________________________________________88 CONCLUSION_____________________________________________ 97 Appendix Bibliography _______________________________________108 viii Abstract: The topic of the thesis is historical and cultural aspect of the walled city Multan. From Early Period to Mughal Empire: 1752 Multan is an old of pre-historic time, situated four miles from the left bank of the River Chenab. The rising ground, the accumulated debris of ages on which the citadel and walled city stand, and the numerous ruins scattered round the town furnish unquestionable evidence on two islands in the Ravi, at an elevation of some 40 feet above - the surface of the surrounding country; but, centuries ago, the river deserted its old channel, and, turning westward it flows thirty-two miles from the town. The soil of the Multan is alluvial, and sand is everywhere found at a short distance below the surface. The secret of the fertility of its soil were flood water of Chenab Ravi river. The rivers were without marked high banks and numerous canals were dug up to utilize their water for irrigating the land. Diggings in the old fort of Multan in 1853, under the guidance of General Cunningham, surfaced abundant cultural material of a remarkable kind, shedding glowing light on original inhabitants of Multan. He discovered seals, pottery and several other items which brought to light the past glory of Multan. According to Dr. Mehr Abdul Haq, the seals and pottery discovered after excavation, in the old Fort of Multan indicate superiority of linguistic material over that of the Moenjo Daro linguistic material, but much of it still remains undeciphered. Its true cultural value is yet to be determined. In about 2000 B.C. the Indus Valley was occupied by the Aryans. It appears that during the Aryan period the original name of the city Multan was Kasyapura or Karsapura, after Kasyapa, its mythical founder. According to the Hindu tradition, he was the father of the twelve Adityas, or sun gods. Chinese pilgrim, Hiuen Tsang, visited Multan from Sindh in October 641A.D. and the first mention of Mulasthanapura (city of the Temple of the Sun), occurs in his travels. The Chinese traveler saw the golden status of Mitra, gorgeously attired and magnificently placed it in a temple, to which all the princes of India sent rich presents. He calls the city „Mu-lo-san-pu-lo‟, which is transcribed as Mulasthanapura. This temple was situated at a place which still bears the name “Suraj Kund”. Al-Beruni has given a vived description of the Idol in this temple, which according to him, was house in a domed building 200feet high. ix It was shaped like a human being with a height of 60 feet;it had a golden crown on its head; its body was covered with red skin and two rubies represented its eyes. Multan had grown into a big city surrounded by a moat. In the centre stood the palace of the king or raja. It had well planned streets which were cleaned and lighted at night. It was an important center of trade and agriculture. The credit of being its first invaders is given to Osiris-, king of Egypt. Sesostris, king of Egypt, also conquered India in the eighteenth century before the Christian era. The first recorded invasion of India by the Persians was under Faridun son of the great Jamshed, the founder of Isthakar or Persepolis and the fifth monarch of the Pashadadin dynasty. In 325 B.C. Alexander the great of Macedonia invaved India. Alexander entered the land of Mallies in February 324 B.C. The fortress of Tulamba fell easily enough but a Mallies made a heroic stand at Aftari on Tulamba-Kabirwala Road. After a bitter battle, which lasted for many days, the citadel was captured. Alexander next turned towards Multan, which was inhabited by the Mallies and the Brahmins. In 322 B.C. the Macedonian governor was overthrown and Chandergupta Mauria annexed Multan and so far the first time Multan became a part of Indian Empire. Chandergupta was a courageous soldier and a capable administrator, and both agriculture and commerce flourished in Multan under the Mauriyan rule. During the reign of Chandergupta‟s grandson Ashoka, Buddhism spread in Multan. After Harsha‟s death the Indian empire again broke up and many a petty chieftain declared him independent. During this period Multan became the capital City of an important province of the kingdom of Sindh. In such circumstances, the common people of Sindh and Multan welcomed the Arabs. Islam came as a blessing, as it helped to free them from the shackles of perpetual hatred and ignominy. It is true that the Muslims conquered Sindh and Multan but they never interfered in there local and religious affairs. Muhammad bin Qasim treated the local people equally and adopted the policy of conciliation and understanding, which made him popular in a society, based on caste system. It is evidence that the arrival of the Muslims in Sindh and Multan, ushered in a new era, which gave a new shape to the society. The honest, just and scrupulous character of the Muslims attracted the local population. The socio-culture contacts between the Arabs and the local people thus helped not only in the rapid spread of Islam, but also paved the way for the intellectual collaboration and understanding between the Muslims and Hindus. karmatians secretly spread their movements during the later half of 10th Century and ultimately succeeded in establishing their rule in Multan. They read Khutba in the name of the Fatimid Caliph of Egypt. x Thus, Multan came under the sway of Ghaznavids. The Sumras succeeded in capturing Multan during the downfall of the Ghaznavids in the Punjab. The Sumras were warlike people, who settled down near Multan and availed the opportunity of establishing their rule over Sindh and Multan in the later part of the 11th Century. The Second half of the 12th century witnessed a political struggle in this part of territory, which ultimately led to the success of the Ghorids. Under the suzerainty of Muhammad Ghori, Qutb-al- Din Aibak