ASHA: Blast From The Past

The popular method employed in all the indigo tracts appears to be the ‘wet-leaf’ method in which the stalks and leaves of the indigo plant were soaked to extract the dye. However this method had two variants: the single vat system and the two-vat technique. We have the testimony of Pelsaert that the first technique was prevalent in the regions of Mewat and Sarkhej, while the second prevailed in the Bayana and the Kol-Khurja tracts:

The method of manufacture [in Mewat] is that of Sarkhej rather than Bayana; the steeping of the plant, and the working back and forward to extract the dye from the leaves are done in a single put, whereas in Bayana or Gorsa [Khurja] two are used…

Tavernier is much more detailed when he explains this single-vat system in Gujarat. According to him:

The tanks are generally from 80 to 100 paces in circuit, and when half-full of water, or a little more, they are filled up with the cut plant. The Indians mix it and stir it up with the water every day until the leaf – for the stem is of no account – becomes reduced into slime or greasy earth. This done, they allow it to rest for some days, and when they see that all has sunk to the bottom and that the water is clear above, they open the holes made round the tank to allow the water to escape. The water having been drawn off, they then fill baskets with the slime, after which, in a level field, each man sits near his basket, takes this paste in his fingers, and moulds it into pieces of the shape and size of a hen’s egg cut in two – that is to say, flat below and pointed above. But the indigo of Ahmadabad is flattened and made into the shape of a small cake…

From the account of Peter Mundy it appears that the steeping and stirring of the stalks and leaves to extract indigo pigment took around 48 hours before the ‘water receaves the Coulour’.

This single-vat technique of manufacturing indigo was ‘inferior’ and resulted in a low quality of dye. This is specifically mentioned by a factor at Surat, who in

1648 wrote to Bayana:

…this sort will not come up to expectations as regards goodness; for it, being to my knowledge, made in one chebecha [chāhbacha] can not compare with what is made in Coriah [Khurja] itself.

Thus from these descriptions to appears that in this system there were single circular vats called chāhbachas (artificial wells; lit. sons of wells) which were used both for steeping and beating purposes to extract the indigo dye from the plant.

A perusal of the sources indicates that there was more than one method to extract indigo from the plants.

Linschoten is one of the first to describe the making of indigo at Cambay.

Writing about 1594-96 he remarks:

[it] is sown like other hearbes, and when [time and] season serveth, pulled and dryed, and then is made welle and beaten, and so certayne dayes after dryed againe, and then prepared. At first it is a fine greene, but after it is a fayre blew…

This ‘dry leaf’ method however is referred to in the context of indigo manufacture in the Sarkhej region only and is also mentioned by Mandelslo and Geleynssen de Jongh. According to de Jongh, as per this method, the leaves were sun-dried and then shaken off from the twigs and kept in a vat for 4 to 5 days.

The soaking of the colour in water within the vat was further facilitated through repeated stirrings and beatings. The rotting leaves and the dye-soaked water were then shifted to another tank where it was let to remain for one or two days to let the heavy pigments of the dye to settle down. The clear water from the top was removed and the residue with the pigments was then strained and let to dry in the sun and ultimately

cut into pieces.

Joseph Salbancke visited Bayana in 1609 and his is the earliest eye-witness description of the technique of manufacturing and extracting indigo at Bayana. According to him, in the ‘Indico milles’ the plants after being cut

…lyeth on heapes for halfe a yeere to rot, and then by oxen it is trodden out from the stalkes, and after wards is ground very fine, and then boiled in furnaces, and so sorted out into severall sorts.

This ‘dry-leaf method’ is significantly not mentioned by any other contemporary traveller as far as North India is concerned.

These are the days when attempts to see everything as a monochrome are being made: this is saffron, that is green. By doing this we are committing the folly of not appreciating the variety and explosion of colour in a garden! Remember the vibrancy of a polychrome as compared to the dullness of a monotony! Riot of colour symbolises to gaiety, while opposite is implied by a single black or white!

Let’s look at my alma mater: it represents almost all colours of the rainbow: the green of Islam, the saffron of Hinduism, red of communism, the mustard of Sikhism and so on and so forth! It’s a Garden with myriads of flowers of every shade and colour….

Do you know that Ishwari Prasad was the first graduate from Aligarh Muslim University? [Incidentally he is not the famous historian of that name!]

And that the famous Damodar Dharmananda Kosambi (31 July 1907 – 29 June 1966) was initially a lecturer of Mathematics there (from 1931-34)?

Jadav Chandra Chakravarti (1855 – 26 November 1920) who was a famous mathematician and author of books like Arithmetic and Algebra taught at AMU? He joined MAO College in 1888 and retired in 1916.

Or Piara Singh Gill (28 October 1911 – 23 March 2002) a nuclear physicist who was a pioneer in Cosmic Ray Nuclear Physics was Professor and head of the Department of Physics at AMU from 1949 to 1963.

Or that Satish Chandra (20 November 1922 – 13 October 2017) spent most of his academic career at Aligarh?

Or that the Atranjikhera site which definitively brought the association of PGW culture (I.e. Vedic Culture) with iron, was excavated by Professor RC Gaur (1929-89), who taught at AMU?

Did you know that the first VC of AMU was a Shia and the first Chancellor, a woman?

Maharaja Sir Mohammad Ali Mohammad Khan, Khan Bahadur, KCSI, KCIE (4 June 1878 – 23 March 1931) was the Vice Chancellor of AMU between 1920-23

Nawab Sultan Jahan Begum (9 July 1858 – 12 May 1930) was the Chancellor from 1920 to her death in 1930.

Another Shia, Allama Saiyid Sibtul Hasan (1908-78) helped establish the world renowned Manuscript Section of the Maulana Azad Library where he served as its Incharge between 1958-71. His Minhāj i Nahjul Balāghah was amongst the first works to challenge those doubting the authenticity of Nahjul Balaghah the word of Imām Ali.

Further that AMU is the only University in India which has an independent Department of Shia Theology where such world renowned Shia theologians and scholars like Allāma Saiyid Ali Naqi Naqavi, (1905-88): undoubtedly the most influential 20th Century Shia scholar of India; Allāma Mujtaba Hasan Kamoonpuri (d. c 1973) and Allāma Saiyid Kalbe Abid (1923-86) taught and served.

Allāma Saiyid Ali Naqi Naqavi

Allāma Saiyid Kalbe Abid Naqvi

Did you know that Sir Syed himself collected a large number of sculptures? Both Hindu and Jain? And that they are still proudly displayed at the Central University Museum at AMU?

And that at the time when he founded the MAO College, he ordained that the University Jami Masjid would hold two congregations five times a day: one led by a Sunni Imām and another by a Shia! And that even on Fridays and Eids the Shias and Sunnis both will pray in the same mosque?

My Garden even has a common graveyard where Muslims of all sects find their resting place!

Not only this, but my garden boasts of many illustrious scholars known for their secular and non-religious ideology: Thus we had Professor Mohammad Habib (1895-71), a scholar with mystical approach who founded and shaped the Marxist Historiographical traditions, especially in the field of Medieval India. His book Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni laid the foundation of secular, scientific and Marxian approach to writing Medieval Indian history. DD Kosambi, the first Indian Marxist historian has already been mentioned earlier.

Another such person was Professor Kunwar Pal Singh (1937-2009). He considered illiteracy and communalism as a national threat and dedicated his life for the eradication of the scourge. He was an advocate of composite culture and organized several symposium and workshops to promote Urdu language and literature as well. The great ideals and traditional values of Aligarh Muslim University lived in his persona and he remained to be an epitome of the Aligarianism that an Aligarian is known for the world over.

One such individual who in fact is an institution in himself is Professor Irfan Habib (b. 1931), one of the living legends of History and a Marxist historian. He is well known for his strong stance against Hindutva and Muslim communalists. His Agrarian System of Mughal India published initially in 1963 is considered the Bible of Medieval Indian History.

And this is the beauty of my garden which was laid down by Sir Syed and that is why it is a beacon of hope in these conflicting times!

• Syed Ali Nadeem Rezavi

The Kacchā-Pakkā Divide: Material, Space and Architecture in the Military Cantonments of British India (1765-1889)
Christopher Cowell
— Read on journals.openedition.org/abe/3224

The concept of a redeemer, or a messiah appears to be quite universal and not typical to any one religion or religious groups. It pervades not only the Semitic faiths like Judaism, Christianity a nd Islam, but also the Aryan and Indic faiths like Zoroastrianism, Buddhism and Brahmanism and Vedantic religions. It is also known in the Chinese religions like Taoism.

Zoroastrians

Amongst the oldest belief was the one prevalent amongst the Zoroastrians. At a time when the earth would be totally filled with the darkness and evil, a representative of Ahura Mazda, the eternal God, would make his appearance. His name would be Saoshyant, who would come riding a white stead.

Eventually, Ahura Mazda will triumph, and his agent Saoshyant will resurrect the dead, whose bodies will be restored to eternal perfection, and whose souls will be cleansed and reunited with God. Time will then end, and truth/righteousness (asha) and immortality will thereafter be everlasting.

Brahmanism

Similarly in the Vedantic Brahmanic belief, when the end of the world nears and the evil pervades all over, Kalkin, the 10th avatar of Lord Vishnu would appear. Riding a horse and a sword in hand, he would defeat the evil and establish the rule of Brahma.

Kalki / Kalkin will come to end the present age of darkness and destruction known as Kali Yuga. The name Kalki is often a metaphor for eternity or time. The origins of the name probably lie in the Sanskrit word “kalka” which refers to dirt, filth, or foulness and hence denotes the “destroyer of foulness,” “destroyer of confusion,” “destroyer of darkness,” or “annihilator of ignorance.”

Kalkin/ Kalki, the tenth and last avatar of Lord Vishnu whose coming would herald the end of Kaliyug and the establishment of the Lord’s Kingdom. He is the Messiah.

Mark the double forked sword (a la Zulfiqār, the divine sword of Ali and the other Imams) and the white horse!

Buddhism

The concept is there in the third oldest religion of world, Buddhism, too. Maitreya, a bodhisattva, in the Buddhist tradition is to appear on Earth, achieve complete enlightenment, and teach the pure dharma. According to scriptures, Maitreya will be a successor of the historic Śākyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. The prophecy of the arrival of Maitreya is found in the canonical literature of all Buddhist sects (Theravāda, Mahāyāna, Vajrayāna) and is accepted by most Buddhists as a statement about an actual event that will take place in the distant future.

According to a Buddhist stream of thought , Maitreya would appear in the imminent future in this world to provide salvation during a time of misery and decline.

Judaism

The concept of a Messiah exists in the Jewish traditions and scriptures too. In Jewish messianic tradition and eschatology, the term came to refer to a future Jewish King from the Davidic line, who will be “anointed” with holy anointing oil and rule the Jewish people during the Messianic Age, an age of peace and tranquility.

Orthodox Jews strictly believe in a Messiah, life after death, and restoration of the promised land. The text is as follows:

Traditional Rabbinic teachings and current Orthodox thought has held that the Messiah will be an anointed one (messiah), descended from his father through the Davidic line of King David, who will gather the Jews back into the Land of Israel and usher in an era of peace.

Christianity

In Christianity the Messiah is the Christ, the Anointed One. He would have a Second Coming and would appear again at the end of the world. Thus one prophecy, distinctive in both the Jewish and Christian concept of the messiah, is that a Jewish king from the Davidic line, who will be “anointed” with holy anointing oil, will be king of God’s kingdom on earth, and rule the Jewish people and mankind during the Messianic Age and World to come.

Taoism

This concept prevails in the Far East as well. Around the 3rd century AD, Taoism developed eschatological ideas along these lines. A number of scriptures of this tradition predict the end of the world cycle, the deluge, epidemics, and coming of the saviour Li Hong, who would save and redeem humanity.

Islam

In Islam, al-Mahdi, the Messiah is believed to hold the task of establishing the truth and fighting against oppression and injustice as well as killing the false messiah al-Dajjal (similar to the Antichrist in Christianity), who will emerge shortly before him in human form in the end of the times, claiming that he is the messiah. After he has destroyed al-Dajjal his final task will be to become a just king and to re-establish justice, peace and monotheism in the world.

Sunni Islam

In Sunni Islam the Mahdi would be born, not appear, before the end is near. He would be a progeny of the Prophet through the line of Hasan, the elder grandson of the Prophet. Thus the history of the Islamic world has witnessed a number of people who claimed to be the Promised Mahdi. One such Mahdawwiya Movement which became quite popular was during the reign of Akbar. Shaikh Mubarak, the father of Abul Fazl was a strong proponent of this idea.

Shi’ism

In Shi’i Islam the concept of Mahdi, the Messiah is somewhat different: He is born and living but hidden from the view. According to Shi’i Islamic beliefs the world can never be without a Guide. Thus when Prophet left this world he never left a vacuum: he appointed Imams, the first of these divine Imam was Imam Ali. He was followed, according to the majority Shi’i faith by 10 more Imams (1+10=11) – all in the line of Imam Husain, the younger grandson of the Prophet. The next to succeed, the 12th Imam was a child when anointed. He was born on 15 Shābān AH 255 / 19 July 868 AD

As an Imam or leader, he led a life hidden from public view and maintained contact with his people through 4 of his agents for around 80 years. This period of 80 years when he was hidden but accessible is known as “Minor Occultation” (Ghaibat-i sughra). This was followed by a period when he is totally hidden (thus one his names, al-Ghaib, the Hidden). This period of Major Occultation would end only before the end of the world. During this period of Ghaibat-i Kubra, (started AD 941) he guides through ‘inspired” agents, the wali-i faqih. He can reveal himself to whomsoever he wants, none other can meet him on their own.

When the end nears, and when the world would be full of evil and misery and when goodness would stand defeated everywhere and when religious would be the most irreligious, the 12th Imam would Reveal himself. He would come as al-Mahdi, the redeemer. He would come riding a white stallion, assemble an army of faithful, defeat the evil forces led by the Dajjal and declare the Kingdom of God on earth. And then Jesus would make his appearance and pray behind al-Mahdi. It will be then that the Bugle would be blown to usher the end of the world and start of the Day of Reckoning