Visiting historical places is my way of experiencing the past: Haroon Khalid

Haroon Khalid is a freelance journalist and a travel writer who combined his love for archaeology and history with his work. He visits abandoned places of worship in Pakistan and tries to unveil their stories.

He then started to combine his stories into books. His second book, In Search Of Shiva, is a study of folk religious practices in Pakistan, published last year. Dawn caught up with Mr Khalid to talk about his experiences while researching for the books and how that has changed his idea of Pakistan.

Q: What was your inspiration for the book?

A: I was writing for different newspapers focusing on historical, abandoned places of worship. I am interested in archaeology, and that was a way for me to connect with what I enjoy. I wanted to experience history and this is how my beat as a travel writer evolved as well. I would come across interesting Muslim shrines, places like the shrine of phallic offerings and I would write stories about them.

After a few years, I had a collection of such stories which I thought could be combined into a book which focuses on strange places of worship one would not normally associate with Muslim practices.

Q: Have your perceptions of Pakistan changed during your research and writing?

A: Growing up in Pakistan, particularly in an urban centre, you have a stereotypical understanding of what the ‘other’ Pakistan is by which I mean rural, uneducated Pakistan. You think of that ‘other’ as the problem- uneducated, intolerant, religious bigots. When you travel to these centres, those stereotypes breakdown. You realise the problem is in urban areas, in our education system. It helped me understand Pakistan and allowed me to break away from viewing the country in a monolithic light and see diversity and colour.

Q: What was the most lasting impression for you?

A: Something that has fascinated me is how gurdwaras or temples in rural areas have been re-appropriated into the Muslim ethos. We can interpret this in multiple ways. You can see it as an example of religious intolerance but for me it is a way for the people to associate with the land.

After the creation of Pakistan one couldn’t simply walk into a non-Muslim shrine, but there are people in villages who have been associated with the shrines for generations. So what happened over the years was the moulding of certain shrines into a Muslim ethos which is how they became far more acceptable. To me, this was a way of associating with the land and its history beyond the limited scope of nationalistic history.

Q: What are you planning next?

A: My third book is on the journey of Guru Nanak and as I go to the various places he visited, I imagine his experiences and follow in his footsteps. The book is part fiction, part fact as it seeks to look at the development of institutional Sikhism and Guru Nanak’s movement which was essentially a movement against institutional religion. Guru Nanak is one of the characters in the book as I present his ideography. The book is scheduled to be launched in November around the festival of Guru Nanak.

Originally published in Dawn , June 23rd, 2016.