Ighna_Shayhak_Reimaging Linguistic Diversity of Pakistani Languages

Transcriptions

Ighna: So, we are here to conduct this interview for the project “Re-imagining linguistic diversity of local languages in Pakistan” which is being managed by Mr. Adeel Khalid, and we have Shayak here with us.

Asalam o alikum (Greetings) Shayak

Shayak: Walaikum aslam (Greetings)

Ighna: How are you?

Shayak: Alhamdulillah,

Ighna: We will be documenting Balochi language with you. So, tell us a little bit about your language.

Shayak: Balochi language comes from an Aryan language whose documented history goes back 4000 years. In current times, Balochi is spoken in Baluchistan, Iran and parts of Afghanistan.

Ighna: Please share some terms from the language with us, how you call your mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, and siblings in your language?

Shayak: In Balochi, mother is “maat”, father is “pit” grandfather, both paternal and maternal are called “piruk” and for grandmother there is a term “Baluk” and brother is called “braat” and sister “gohar”. Uncle is “naako” and aunt is “truu”

Ighna: Please share any story or tradition from your hometown that is famous or narrated to children, which you think should be preserved for future generations or anyone interested to access.

Shayak: yes, there is one thing in my village, it’s not as prevalent anymore, when I was younger it was there. It’s not a story per say but an oral practice. Whenever it wouldn’t rain in our areas, in summers, young girls about ten to twelve in number from the village would get together and make a doll, decorate it and dress it in Balochi clothes and jewellery. They would take the doll to every door while singing this thing we called “Sheshelu”. The song went “Sheshelu shalu “ . They’re basically saying, “Oh god please let it rain so that I can wash my doll, my sheshel.” They would go to every house and on the way, they would keep sprinkling the doll with water so that it doesn’t dry. When they would sing it outside a house, a woman from inside would bring a glass of water to sprinkle some water on the doll, then also give the girls something, some money, fruit, food or drinks anything from her home. Like that they would go to all houses and at the end they would divide everything they collect and the oldest girl in the group takes the doll with her home to do it again the next day.

Ighna: Such a nice and fun tradition you shared with us. What do you think is its association with your language?

Shayak: It links with language like this, I read at a place that this tradition is 4000 years old, it was practiced in the Aryan times as well as a way to pray for rain. It was done in the same way.

Ighna: So, it connects you to your roots and that is why it is so important.

Shayak: Yes, for sure it connects us to our roots. The practice has been going on for generations and when we carry the same practice it is like we are a part of them. We can feel our heritage.

Ighna: As a member of that community, what kind challenges do you think that you have to face if you try and make an effort to preserve your culture, traditions, and language. What things do you have to prepare for and what do you have to counter?

Shayak: In these times, modernization and boom of technology has made it so that the younger generation moves more towards latest trends. They use new words from English and Urdu, mainly because they watch videos in English and Urdu on YouTube. While consuming that they start forgetting their own language. So, to promote our language we have to produce such content in our own language as well for those children to watch in order to get entertained. Other than that, there is a lack of any documentation for Balochi, I think if that starts in a proper systematic way, it would be very beneficial.

Ighna: The tradition that you shared with us, you mentioned that it was a practice in your childhood. Has this practice become less over time?

Shayak: Yes, it has almost disappeared. I haven’t seen it in my village in years, it has stopped almost entirely.

Ighna: That is so sad to hear. It was such a fun practice to hear. When you came to FC as a bilingual speaker whose native language is not prevalently spoken in Pakistan but mostly in Baluchistan. So how did this difference in use of language impact you?

Shayak: In the start I felt left out at FC. My Urdu also had a Balochi accent, so I felt different whenever I spoke. But at the end of the day, I met new people here, and because FC has people from all over with different languages like from Gilgit, Punjabi and Sindhi, it gave me confidence watching them. If they can represent their culture here I can too. So yeah, I was a little intimidated at first, but I got used to it.

Ighna: Do you feel like your way of speaking was affected by your stay in a multilingual community like at FC? Do people at home point out any difference in how you speak?

Shayak: Yes, I’ve been in Lahore for 2-3 months, Before that I lived in Karachi for two years, even at that time whenever I went back to my village, I would replace a lot of words of Balochi with Urdu while speaking. Many people back there pointed it out. There was an influence of Urdu that changed and mould my language.

Ighna: Please share with us a word, saying or any proverb in Balochi that you like and the reason you like it.

Shayak: A proverb in Balochi is “Malkamut Mastein Lerain mu te mudhur sora koran pacharende “, Its meaning, I can translate it to some degree but not with the same essence. It is said whenever a loved one dies, a senior Baloch says these words “Malkamut Mastein Lerain mu te mudhur sora koran pacharende “. He says that he wishes that the angel of death was an aggressive camel, as in camels that are in its immaculate maturity is very aggressive and they are very hard to control. So here he says that I wish the angel of death was a camel like that, then I would take him far away by his neck and feed to him bitter leaves. Here the Balochi people express their sadness but also their strength, that it is only death which is out of our hands. The example is to grab it like the camel because Balochi people are famous for capturing and controlling such camels which are very aggressive. Many deaths are caused by them in our place. So, in that way it is also to represent the strength of the people.

Ighna: Beautiful, I get why you like this one. Okay, so any specific way you express your happiness, sadness, and excitement in your language?

Shayak: There isn’t any special way, but there is this thing that if there is some happy occasion or if I have to give you good news something happy like for example if there’s a child born in the family like my brother’s or like that. So, I was come to you and ask you to give me a “mistaghi”. Mistaghi is like, when I ask you for it you give me some gift, money, or something to eat or it could be anything and then I would share the good news and we will be happy. Sadness…there isn’t anything as such… I do get one thing in my mind from it. It is something the old people, those on their deathbed would usually say to their favourite children. They say “Allah manati muradan vidan” which means I hope I live today when I can see you happy. For excitement I don’t know much really. And for love, if you love someone you say to them “Mangun tu meher kani”. In our culture, when you love someone, you really take care of them 24/7.

Ighna: Tell us about your favourite food, something special from your village or something your mother cooks, any dish or recipe you would like to share.

Shayak: One famous one is, everyone knows it, it’s called sajji. Its made at Eid especially when lambs are slaughtered. Their legs are roasted with just over fire for 2-3 hours and then its eaten. Another less common one is, I remember we used to have it in my childhood now after modernization it is not as prevalent. But before when we would reap wheat fields in our area, when the wheat was wet and there were some months left in cutting, we would cut that wheat and a dish was made from burning it, it was very delicious called “Aabos”. It was that the wet wheat seeds were burnt on fire and then cleaned and eaten, it very good and is called “Aabos” in Balochi”.

Ighna: Anything rare in vocabulary, words or a proverb in the language that are not used as much. Like you mentioned that things are changing a lot, even some foods are not as popular anymore. So, any words being used less and less or are disappearing, but you think should not go out of use.

Shayak: Ah yes, there are many such words which are not commonly used anymore. I remember when my grandmother was alive, she used to say this thing whenever someone at our home was distressed. She would say “ Mumre amehsan bahar gan nu ki ke”, in a sense it is said to a goat that don’t die yet the spring in about to come so be a little patient. Another one is “Horu sir on uke cher” it is said in a situation where it is the same if you take an action or not take one. Its literal meaning is standing in the rain and standing under a water pipe results in the same thing.

Ighna: What efforts do you can be made to preserve these things in language and practice. In this sense that how can we encourage the younger generation and children to stay close to their culture, to let them know that anything you watch in another language is better than your native language. In your community especially, how do you think they should be encouraged to love their language, and like it like any popular language like English or Urdu.

Shayak: I think that the first and fundamental thing in this regard in the family. Your family should be proud of their culture and language so that their children see them and have the same pride and do the same practices. And like I said before, documentation of our language has been very less. It is only about 70 years ago that Balochi language started being documented. For our community as well, I think we should speak our own language and wear our traditional clothes. Not to say that they should not do it with others, but they should wear their own culture with more pride.

Ighna: If someone from outside the community takes interest in Balochi, do you think there are resources available for them to learn the language and understand the culture to be a part of the community if they wish to be?

Shayak: It is difficult. Like I mentioned that documentation is very less. To this day, we only have one dictionary for Balochi, which was written by Syed Zahoor Shah Hashmi, that is the only dictionary which has Balochi words. Balochi is very hard language. Even as a native speaker there are times when I listen to song, I don’t understand certain words in them. It is pretty widespread and has a vast vocabulary. I think the best way for someone new to learn the language is for them to live with Balochi people, then they can learn.

Ighna: Lastly, any song or ghazal you like and a little bit about its meaning and why you like it?

Shayak: I have a favourite song which is by my favourite singer Arif Baloch, it is written by Ghulam Hussain Shohaz. It is about a Bolochi fold story, Hani and Shah Mureed, maybe you have heard of it. Sardar Chakar e azam who was the mostly widely known chief of Balochis, it is a story from that time. The writer of the song describes in the when Shah Mureed and Chakar are returning from a journey, they stop by at Hani’s house. They are very tired, so Hani brings water for them. When she sees how tired they are she thinks that if they drink the water now, they... what was the word… they would vomit, like when you are very thirsty and drink quickly you vomit. So, Hani puts a piece of wood in the water so that they drink slowly pushing the wood away. Seeing this Chakar is very impressed and influenced, he thinks that this intelligent girl should be in palace, she would live with poor Shah Mureed. Chakar can’t tell Shah Mureed directly, Hani is Shah Mureed’s fiancé, so he can’t directly ask Shah Mureed to give her to him, so he tricks him. They are sitting in a gathering, there’s a Balochi practice which called making a “Kol” (claim) done in dewan. Dewan is where the elder and respected people all sit together. So, in dewan if the chief says to make a kol, everyone gets up one by one and makes a kol that they must fulfil. In the dewan everyone makes different kols, like one says if anyone touched my beard, I would cut off his head. Another one said if someone’s camel came to my land, I will kill them or not give it back. At the end when its Shah Mureed’s turn, he stands up and says on Thursday whoever asks me for anything, I will give them whatever they ask for. Sometime later on Thursday, Chakar sends some singers to his house who sing Shah Mureed’s poetry and he really likes it. He tells them to ask for whatever they want and because they were sent by Chakar, they say that they want him to give Hani’s hand to Chakar. In this Balochi practice, keeping one’s word in considered a man’s honour so Shah Mureed gives Hani to Chakar. This song tells Shah Mureed’s story, he leaves his village and goes insane, goes to Makkah and stays thee for thirty years. In the song they tell how much pain and suffering he went through, how Chakar made a fool out of him and put him in this situation.

Ighna: It’s a very sad song.

Shayak: Yes, The folk story is the most famous one even today. It is said that when Shah Mureed came back to her after thirty years, Chakar saw how much pain he has been through, he gives Hani back to her. Shah Mureed was on a camel and Hani goes and sits with him. It is said and my grandmother used to say as well that Shah Mureed and Hani are alive and still travel on that camel.

Ighna: Thank you so much for sharing it and Thank you so much for your time today.

Transcriptions

Ighna: So, we are here to conduct this interview for the project “Re-imagining linguistic diversity of local languages in Pakistan” which is being managed by Mr. Adeel Khalid, and we have Shayak here with us.

Asalam o alikum (Greetings) Shayak

Shayak: Walaikum aslam (Greetings)

Ighna: How are you?

Shayak: Alhamdulillah,

Ighna: We will be documenting Balochi language with you. So, tell us a little bit about your language.

Shayak: Balochi language comes from an Aryan language whose documented history goes back 4000 years. In current times, Balochi is spoken in Baluchistan, Iran and parts of Afghanistan.

Ighna: Please share some terms from the language with us, how you call your mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, and siblings in your language?

Shayak: In Balochi, mother is “maat”, father is “pit” grandfather, both paternal and maternal are called “piruk” and for grandmother there is a term “Baluk” and brother is called “braat” and sister “gohar”. Uncle is “naako” and aunt is “truu”

Ighna: Please share any story or tradition from your hometown that is famous or narrated to children, which you think should be preserved for future generations or anyone interested to access.

Shayak: yes, there is one thing in my village, it’s not as prevalent anymore, when I was younger it was there. It’s not a story per say but an oral practice. Whenever it wouldn’t rain in our areas, in summers, young girls about ten to twelve in number from the village would get together and make a doll, decorate it and dress it in Balochi clothes and jewellery. They would take the doll to every door while singing this thing we called “Sheshelu”. The song went “Sheshelu shalu “ . They’re basically saying, “Oh god please let it rain so that I can wash my doll, my sheshel.” They would go to every house and on the way, they would keep sprinkling the doll with water so that it doesn’t dry. When they would sing it outside a house, a woman from inside would bring a glass of water to sprinkle some water on the doll, then also give the girls something, some money, fruit, food or drinks anything from her home. Like that they would go to all houses and at the end they would divide everything they collect and the oldest girl in the group takes the doll with her home to do it again the next day.

Ighna: Such a nice and fun tradition you shared with us. What do you think is its association with your language?

Shayak: It links with language like this, I read at a place that this tradition is 4000 years old, it was practiced in the Aryan times as well as a way to pray for rain. It was done in the same way.

Ighna: So, it connects you to your roots and that is why it is so important.

Shayak: Yes, for sure it connects us to our roots. The practice has been going on for generations and when we carry the same practice it is like we are a part of them. We can feel our heritage.

Ighna: As a member of that community, what kind challenges do you think that you have to face if you try and make an effort to preserve your culture, traditions, and language. What things do you have to prepare for and what do you have to counter?

Shayak: In these times, modernization and boom of technology has made it so that the younger generation moves more towards latest trends. They use new words from English and Urdu, mainly because they watch videos in English and Urdu on YouTube. While consuming that they start forgetting their own language. So, to promote our language we have to produce such content in our own language as well for those children to watch in order to get entertained. Other than that, there is a lack of any documentation for Balochi, I think if that starts in a proper systematic way, it would be very beneficial.

Ighna: The tradition that you shared with us, you mentioned that it was a practice in your childhood. Has this practice become less over time?

Shayak: Yes, it has almost disappeared. I haven’t seen it in my village in years, it has stopped almost entirely.

Ighna: That is so sad to hear. It was such a fun practice to hear. When you came to FC as a bilingual speaker whose native language is not prevalently spoken in Pakistan but mostly in Baluchistan. So how did this difference in use of language impact you?

Shayak: In the start I felt left out at FC. My Urdu also had a Balochi accent, so I felt different whenever I spoke. But at the end of the day, I met new people here, and because FC has people from all over with different languages like from Gilgit, Punjabi and Sindhi, it gave me confidence watching them. If they can represent their culture here I can too. So yeah, I was a little intimidated at first, but I got used to it.

Ighna: Do you feel like your way of speaking was affected by your stay in a multilingual community like at FC? Do people at home point out any difference in how you speak?

Shayak: Yes, I’ve been in Lahore for 2-3 months, Before that I lived in Karachi for two years, even at that time whenever I went back to my village, I would replace a lot of words of Balochi with Urdu while speaking. Many people back there pointed it out. There was an influence of Urdu that changed and mould my language.

Ighna: Please share with us a word, saying or any proverb in Balochi that you like and the reason you like it.

Shayak: A proverb in Balochi is “Malkamut Mastein Lerain mu te mudhur sora koran pacharende “, Its meaning, I can translate it to some degree but not with the same essence. It is said whenever a loved one dies, a senior Baloch says these words “Malkamut Mastein Lerain mu te mudhur sora koran pacharende “. He says that he wishes that the angel of death was an aggressive camel, as in camels that are in its immaculate maturity is very aggressive and they are very hard to control. So here he says that I wish the angel of death was a camel like that, then I would take him far away by his neck and feed to him bitter leaves. Here the Balochi people express their sadness but also their strength, that it is only death which is out of our hands. The example is to grab it like the camel because Balochi people are famous for capturing and controlling such camels which are very aggressive. Many deaths are caused by them in our place. So, in that way it is also to represent the strength of the people.

Ighna: Beautiful, I get why you like this one. Okay, so any specific way you express your happiness, sadness, and excitement in your language?

Shayak: There isn’t any special way, but there is this thing that if there is some happy occasion or if I have to give you good news something happy like for example if there’s a child born in the family like my brother’s or like that. So, I was come to you and ask you to give me a “mistaghi”. Mistaghi is like, when I ask you for it you give me some gift, money, or something to eat or it could be anything and then I would share the good news and we will be happy. Sadness…there isn’t anything as such… I do get one thing in my mind from it. It is something the old people, those on their deathbed would usually say to their favourite children. They say “Allah manati muradan vidan” which means I hope I live today when I can see you happy. For excitement I don’t know much really. And for love, if you love someone you say to them “Mangun tu meher kani”. In our culture, when you love someone, you really take care of them 24/7.

Ighna: Tell us about your favourite food, something special from your village or something your mother cooks, any dish or recipe you would like to share.

Shayak: One famous one is, everyone knows it, it’s called sajji. Its made at Eid especially when lambs are slaughtered. Their legs are roasted with just over fire for 2-3 hours and then its eaten. Another less common one is, I remember we used to have it in my childhood now after modernization it is not as prevalent. But before when we would reap wheat fields in our area, when the wheat was wet and there were some months left in cutting, we would cut that wheat and a dish was made from burning it, it was very delicious called “Aabos”. It was that the wet wheat seeds were burnt on fire and then cleaned and eaten, it very good and is called “Aabos” in Balochi”.

Ighna: Anything rare in vocabulary, words or a proverb in the language that are not used as much. Like you mentioned that things are changing a lot, even some foods are not as popular anymore. So, any words being used less and less or are disappearing, but you think should not go out of use.

Shayak: Ah yes, there are many such words which are not commonly used anymore. I remember when my grandmother was alive, she used to say this thing whenever someone at our home was distressed. She would say “ Mumre amehsan bahar gan nu ki ke”, in a sense it is said to a goat that don’t die yet the spring in about to come so be a little patient. Another one is “Horu sir on uke cher” it is said in a situation where it is the same if you take an action or not take one. Its literal meaning is standing in the rain and standing under a water pipe results in the same thing.

Ighna: What efforts do you can be made to preserve these things in language and practice. In this sense that how can we encourage the younger generation and children to stay close to their culture, to let them know that anything you watch in another language is better than your native language. In your community especially, how do you think they should be encouraged to love their language, and like it like any popular language like English or Urdu.

Shayak: I think that the first and fundamental thing in this regard in the family. Your family should be proud of their culture and language so that their children see them and have the same pride and do the same practices. And like I said before, documentation of our language has been very less. It is only about 70 years ago that Balochi language started being documented. For our community as well, I think we should speak our own language and wear our traditional clothes. Not to say that they should not do it with others, but they should wear their own culture with more pride.

Ighna: If someone from outside the community takes interest in Balochi, do you think there are resources available for them to learn the language and understand the culture to be a part of the community if they wish to be?

Shayak: It is difficult. Like I mentioned that documentation is very less. To this day, we only have one dictionary for Balochi, which was written by Syed Zahoor Shah Hashmi, that is the only dictionary which has Balochi words. Balochi is very hard language. Even as a native speaker there are times when I listen to song, I don’t understand certain words in them. It is pretty widespread and has a vast vocabulary. I think the best way for someone new to learn the language is for them to live with Balochi people, then they can learn.

Ighna: Lastly, any song or ghazal you like and a little bit about its meaning and why you like it?

Shayak: I have a favourite song which is by my favourite singer Arif Baloch, it is written by Ghulam Hussain Shohaz. It is about a Bolochi fold story, Hani and Shah Mureed, maybe you have heard of it. Sardar Chakar e azam who was the mostly widely known chief of Balochis, it is a story from that time. The writer of the song describes in the when Shah Mureed and Chakar are returning from a journey, they stop by at Hani’s house. They are very tired, so Hani brings water for them. When she sees how tired they are she thinks that if they drink the water now, they... what was the word… they would vomit, like when you are very thirsty and drink quickly you vomit. So, Hani puts a piece of wood in the water so that they drink slowly pushing the wood away. Seeing this Chakar is very impressed and influenced, he thinks that this intelligent girl should be in palace, she would live with poor Shah Mureed. Chakar can’t tell Shah Mureed directly, Hani is Shah Mureed’s fiancé, so he can’t directly ask Shah Mureed to give her to him, so he tricks him. They are sitting in a gathering, there’s a Balochi practice which called making a “Kol” (claim) done in dewan. Dewan is where the elder and respected people all sit together. So, in dewan if the chief says to make a kol, everyone gets up one by one and makes a kol that they must fulfil. In the dewan everyone makes different kols, like one says if anyone touched my beard, I would cut off his head. Another one said if someone’s camel came to my land, I will kill them or not give it back. At the end when its Shah Mureed’s turn, he stands up and says on Thursday whoever asks me for anything, I will give them whatever they ask for. Sometime later on Thursday, Chakar sends some singers to his house who sing Shah Mureed’s poetry and he really likes it. He tells them to ask for whatever they want and because they were sent by Chakar, they say that they want him to give Hani’s hand to Chakar. In this Balochi practice, keeping one’s word in considered a man’s honour so Shah Mureed gives Hani to Chakar. This song tells Shah Mureed’s story, he leaves his village and goes insane, goes to Makkah and stays thee for thirty years. In the song they tell how much pain and suffering he went through, how Chakar made a fool out of him and put him in this situation.

Ighna: It’s a very sad song.

Shayak: Yes, The folk story is the most famous one even today. It is said that when Shah Mureed came back to her after thirty years, Chakar saw how much pain he has been through, he gives Hani back to her. Shah Mureed was on a camel and Hani goes and sits with him. It is said and my grandmother used to say as well that Shah Mureed and Hani are alive and still travel on that camel.

Ighna: Thank you so much for sharing it and Thank you so much for your time today.