Enchanting Myths from Pakistan

[ghazi52]

5 Enchanting Myths from Pakistan


Pakistan is a mystical land. From the beautiful valleys in Northern areas to cosmopolitan and cultural cities to spectacular dessert plains- Pakistan has legendary tales and folklore stories to boast about.

Discover these legends, and intrigue yourself!

1.
Lake Saif ul Malook


This mountainous lake located in Kaghan Valley is truly a fascinating sight to behold. Those who visit, are awestruck by the enchanting beauty and tale associated with the place. But humans are not the only ones enraptured by this paradise on Earth. According to the myth, fairies on a full moon come down from heaven to bathe here.

Once, a prince named Saif ul Malook while exploring the area saw a fairy dancing on the surface of the lake. Intrigued by the magical creature, he stole her clothes and wouldn’t return them until the modest fairy agreed to marry him. She was the Queen of the fairies, and the most beautiful of them all. The Prince and the fairy both fell in love but their union enraged the fairy’s demon lover, who flooded the entire valley and trapped the Queen of the fairies in the mountains. When the floods subsided, the prince kept waiting for his love to return but in vain.

There are two endings to the myth- some say the prince’s soul still wanders the lake at every full moon, waiting to reunite with his lover. While others believe the prince braved all odds, fought the demon lover and rescued the fairy from the mountains…

2. Ansoo Lake




As the name suggests, this picturesque lake is in the shape of a tear drop. Considered as one of the most beautiful lakes in the world, the myth behind this natural wonder is tied to the legendary tale of Lake Saif ul Malook. Only accessible by hiking, and situated in Kaghan Valley, it is widely believed that the lake was created from the tears of jealousy shed by the fairy’s demon lover, Deuo Sufaid (the white giant.) He trapped the fairy Badr-Jamal but knew she loved the Prince Saif ul Mulook and wanted to marry him. Thus, Ansoo lake was a result of the Deo’s sorrow.

The lake is said to have been discovered recently by Pakistani Pilots in 1993. Hence, the myth is still widely believed to be true by many locals.

3. Anarkali




The story of Anarkali is a traditional legend- one full of mystery, suspense, and passionate romance, passing on from generation to generation in Pakistan. It is a tale of forbidden love between Anarkali, a courtesan, and prince Salim, the son of the Great Mughal Emperor, Akbar.

Anarkali was very attractive, and Prince Salim fell in love the moment he laid his eyes on her. Eventually, their love blossomed but when the Mughal emperor, Akbar, found out about the love affair between the two, he was furious. As the son of a Mughal emperor, Salim was expected to marry a woman of great status. When the prince disobeyed his father, Akbar ordered the arrest of Anarkali. The passionate affair ended in the tragic death of Anarkali, who was buried alive, and encased in a brick wall.

When Prince Salim, succeeded to the throne after his father’s death, he constructed a tomb around the final resting place of Anarkali. The Tomb of Jehangir (the Imperial name Prince Salim took at the time of succession) still stands in Lahore. An inscription written on the grave in Persian reads : “If I could behold the face of my beloved once more I would give thanks unto my God unto the day of resurrection.”

4. Sohni Mahiwal





In a village along the Chenab river in Punjab, there lived a beautiful girl named Sohni. She was the daughter of a very well known potter, who was visited by traders from around the world.

One day, a young trader from Uzbekistan visited Sohni’s father to buy some pottery. While examining some of his designs, he saw Sohni, and couldn’t take his eyes off her. The next day he returned to buy some more designs. He was so struck by Sohni’s beauty that everyday he visited the potter’s house just to catch a glimpse of her. The trader’s caravan left, but he stayed in town.

Sohni knew that the trader only came to see her day after day. As time passed by, the trader’s wealth dwindled and he was hired by the potter as their water buffalo herder. He became known as Mahiwal. As their love affair flourished, Sohni’s father became suspicious of their union. He married Sohni off to another potter in a nearby village. Mahiwal, distraught, bought a small hut across the river from Sohni’s house.

One night, while Sohni’s husband was away, she decided to swim across the river to meet Mahiwal. Since she did not know how to swim, she held on to a baked pot and successfully made it across the river onto Mahiwal’s arms. Their meetings became regular but as love never hides, Sohni’s sister in law found out. She replaced the baked pot with an unbaked one. The following night, when Sohni began her journey to swim to her lover, she sensed something was not right. The pot began to melt and she called for her Mahiwal. He heard her cries and swam as far as he could. But the currents were so strong that he was unable to save her. Holding on to each other, they both drowned in the Chenab River.

5. Katas Raj Temple





The Katas Raj situated in the district of Punjab is a Hindu Temple dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiva. There are many myths and legends associated with the place- one of them surrounding the mythical pond, around which the structure is built. As the legend goes, the pond which has clear green water, is due to the creation of Lord Shiva’s tears. When his wife Satti passed away, Lord Shiva cried so much that his tears created two holy ponds- one in Katas Raj Temple and one in Ajmer, India.

Another legend suggests that the pond believed to be filled with Lord Shiva’s tears have magical powers. Even nowadays, Hindu worshippers perform pilgrimages to the Temple and hold the belief that by bathing in the pond, they can seek forgiveness of their sins.

 

[ghazi52]

Crocodiles of Manghopir

Manghopir has some of the oldest Sufi shrines in Karachi where hot sulphur springs are believed to have curative powers and many crocodiles - believed locally to be the sacred disciples of Pir Mangho, roam freely. Crocodile pond is the major attraction of Manghopir. Here around a 100 crocodiles lie basking in the sun. The crocodiles have never harmed a human. There are many interesting stories associated with the origins of the crocodiles. One interesting story claims that these crocodiles were actually head lice of the Pir and once irritated him so much that he stamped his feet in anger. Sulfur springs sprung up from the ground and the head lice changed into crocs. A more logical explanation being that the crocodiles came from the marshy areas of the hub delta nearby.

Noori Jam Tamachi

Noori Jam Tamachi is regarded as a famous tale of Prince Jam Tamachi falling in love with the charming fisherwoman Noori. Noori makes Jam happy with her perfect surrender and obedience which causes him to raise her above all the other queens. Noori Jam Tamachi also appears in Shah Jo Risalo and forms part of seven popular folk romances from Sind, Pakistan. According to the legend, Noori was buried in the middle of Kenjhar Lake, Pakistan. Her last resting place is visited by hundreds of tourists daily.

 

[ghazi52]

Popular Myths Pakistani Parents Tell Their Children


Desi parents have their own way of making their children new and important things. Some of the methods they adapt are more of myths than a fact or phenomena. Parents tell some of these myths to their kids because their parents told them, and some of them are too famous that they have become part of culture.






2) Zyada TV mat dekho.. aankhen kharab ho jaengi





3) So jao warna jin aa jaega





4) Jhoot bolne se naak lamba ho jata hai






5) Payr jhoolne say shaitan jhoola jhoolta hay





6) Joota Ulta rakho.. yeh asmaan ko gali deta hai

 

[ghazi52]

7) If you make funny faces, it will stick that way





8) Koi so rha ho to oper se nahi Guzartay, Kadd Chota reh jata hai.





9) Chheenk aye to iska matlab tumhen koi yaad kar rha hai






10) Zyada sheesha nahi dekhte, nazar lag jati hai






11) Kawwa bolay to ghar me mehmaan aaty hain






12) jo kehta hai wohi hota hai






13) Maghrib ke waqt nhi sotay...Jin bhoot guzar rhy Hotay hain





14) Agar koi jhoot bolta hay tou uski zaaban kali ho jati hay.

 

[Signalian]

6) Joota Ulta rakho.. yeh asmaan ko gali deta hai

This is more of a respect factor as well as mannerism.

 

[[Bregs]]

Superb shared dear, you should be made think tank analyst for posting maximum number of knowledgeable and interesting threads,

 

[Sulman Badshah]

Monsters & Spirits of Khowar Folklore
Chitral is a land of mystery and fables, with Khowar folklore being traced back to indigenous lndus as well as ancient Iranic, proto-Vedic and Chinese sources. Tales of spooks and sprites abound, from the famous paris (fairies) who inhabit the high peaks, to the ghastly chattiboi who leads flash floods and avalanches with his horrible cries, to the dreaded chumur deki (iron-legged one) who roams about in snowy winter nights. These are just a handful of the spirits who are prominent in Khowar folklore.
There are many others, both malevolent and auspicious. Reverence for the naangini, female entities who protect the home and hearth, was almost a religious practice in the old days and a remnant of the ancient folk religion. Such stories can also be justified as part of the Islamic belief in the existence of the jinns and will probably survive in some form or the other but the tales of mythical beasts – monsters for want of a better term – is something that is almost lost.
Stories of dragons, Azhdaar, were very common in Chitrali folklore. The dragon could be both a sign of strength and nobility as well as a dangerous creature to be feared. The Khowar description of an azhdaar is something in between the Iranic and Chinese depiction of dragons. The Chitrali version was a large, winged serpent with a golden mane like that of a lion. They could both inhale a man and breathe fire. Old warriors would tell tales of how you could counter being inhaled by a dragon by holding your sword above your head with the tip of the blade in one hand and the hilt in the other and thus tear the dragon’s fish-like mouth. Dragons would also often be associated with treasure. As late as the 1980s, people would talk of a dragon who guarded a treasure trove in one of the side valleys just south of Chitral. The Chitrali dragon with its Iranic and Chinese elements is a legend with its origins in tales spread along the Silk Road, which connected the Iranic and Sinitic worlds. In the current era, the azhdaar is a creature mostly unknown to those below the age of forty but further South the name is also used in Pashto for the rock python.
Another very curious creature of Khowar mythology is the Halmasti. The exact description of a Halmasti is not agreed upon and it is unclear if it is supposed to be an organic monster or a spirit of some sort. It is usually described as a wolf the size of a horse which carries a flame in its mouth. Encountering one is supposed to be an ill omen. This is one beast whose legend actually grew more popular as modernization reached the valley. As more roads were constructed into the remote side valleys, increasing numbers of jeep drivers would claim to see it running alongside the road during late-night drives, often before experiencing harrowing accidents. In Khowar the word “halmasti” can also be used for destructive lightning strikes – and so perhaps it is the embodiment of sudden chaos emanating out of nowhere. It is only very recently that this creature has become unpopular but older drivers still fear it on long summer night drives.
One cannot write about strange beasts of Khowar folklore without mentioning our most famous cryptid, the Barmanu. The barmanu is our local version of the pan-Himalayan yeti. Like the yeti it is described as a large bipedal ape. The name itself comes from the Vedic Sanskrit “ban-manus”, meaning “man of the forest”. Surprisingly the barmanu, although perhaps the most well known of these supposed inhabitants of our mountain fastness, is actually a rare character in Chitrali folk tales. Everyone has heard of this beast, but few seem to remember a story about it or having heard of a sighting. I personally believe that this legend is not native to Chitral and is based on the folklore of the surrounding regions, but that does not mean that it is altogether irrelevant to this article. Khowar is also the largest language in the Ghizer District of Gilgit-Baltistan. Ghizer abounds with tales of the barmanu and its depredations upon livestock and attempts to abduct women. Interestingly many sightings were reported up until the 1970s and I have talked to an eyewitness who claims to have seen one. His description is that of a classic yeti but with the added feature that it was wearing an animal hide on its head and back. This creature has been the subject of many scientific studies to ascertain its actual identity but the general conclusion is that most sightings are misidentified bears walking upright as they sometimes do. The animal hide, though, negates the barmanu being a bear and is not consistent with yeti sightings further along the Himalayan rim.

What are some of the unique mythological creatures from your country's folklore ?
In Pakistan, their is no national folklore due to the fact that we are an extremely diverse group of people. Each ethnic group has its own folk tales that have been popularized nationwide through movies, TV shows, song, and dance. Most of our folktales are romances; Punjabis have Heer-Ranjha, Sindhis have Sassui-Punnhun, Balochis have Hani-Sheh Mureed, and Pashtuns have Adam-Durkhanai.
If you dig deeper into the extensive histories of the people who once lived in what is now Pakistan you’ll be able to find mythological creatures associated with Hinduism, Buddhism, or Zoroastrianism.
One such mythological creature who once lived in the beautiful Swat Valley of Pakistan was the Naga Apalala[1] .

Depiction of the Naga Apalala.

Swat Valley, Pakistan.
Long ago, the Suvastu or Swat River was essential to the agricultural lifestyle for the people of Swat Valley. The river’s source was guarded by the serpent king— Naga Apalala. The serpent king was a mighty, dragon-like creature with the head of a human.
Each year, the people of Swat would present some of their harvest to the Naga Apalala who would take their offering as a token of gratitude for the waters of the river he controlled.
As generations passed, the practice of paying tribute to the serpent king slowly faded away. The Naga Apalala was angered by the disrespect and decided to flood all of the fields and destroy Swat.
The helpless people of Swat appealed to the Buddha who arrived with his bodhisattva Vajrapani. The Buddha challenged the Naga Apalala to a battle in which the serpent king lost.
After the Naga was defeated the Buddha converted the serpent king to the ways of Buddhism. With the Naga Apalala pacified, the flooding of the Swat River was thought to be subdued.

Naga king Apalala showing submission to the Buddha.
The Buddha’s conversion of Naga Apalala is a testament to the presence of Buddhism in Swat, as over 1400 monasteries once thrived in the area. Until the 16th century AD, the people of Swat were largely Buddhist by faith.
Although Buddhism has disappeared from the valley, the reminders of the Naga Apalala remains as locals pray for the Swat River not to flood their croplands.

Amlukdara Stupa, Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkwa, Pakistan.