Culture of Kashmir

The culture of Kashmir is a diverse blend and highly influenced by Indian, Persian as well as Central Asian cultures. Kashmiri culture is heavily influenced by Hinduism, Buddhism and later by Islam. Dominant by Hindu-Buddhist culture in the past, Kashmir was heavily influenced by Islam after Muslim influx in the Valley.[1]

Kashmiri women in Traditional Kashmiri attire

Early History
Main articles: Kashmir Shaivism, History of Kashmir, and Abhinavagupta
Schist statue of Shiva Mahadeva, Northern India, Kashmir, 8th century, Cleveland Museum of Art.

The Vedic art and culture grew in Kashmir, and some early Vedic hymns were composed in Kashmir. The Bharata Natya Shastra is notable as an ancient encyclopedic treatise on the arts one which has influenced dance, music and literary traditions in India, originated in Kashmir. Patanjali of 2nd century BC compiled his compendium on Yoga in Kashmir.[2] The Panchatantra is also said to be originated in Kashmir.[3] At the time when Pali was primary language for Buddhist literature in rest of India, all the Buddhist literature produced in Kashmir was in Sanskrit. Kashmiri women hold high status in society as Bilhana records that Kashmiri women were fluent both in Sanskrit and Pali.[2] Kosh Shastra, a work on science of sex, second to Kamasutra was developed in Kashmir.[4] Some of the major texts that originated in Kashmir were Vigyan Bharaiv Tantra, Yoga Sutras, Sapndi Karkika[5], Tantra Loka[6] Para-Trisika-Vivarana and many more.[7]

Cuisine
Main article: Kashmiri cuisine
Noon Chai or Salt Tea
Rogan Josh

Rice is the staple food of Kashmiris and has been so since ancient times.[8] Meat, along with rice, is the most popular food item in Kashmir.[9] Kashmiris consume meat voraciously.[10] Despite being Brahmins, most Kashmiri Hindus are meat eaters.[11] Kashmiri beverages include Noon Chai or Sheer Chai and Kahwah or Kehew.

The Kashmir Valley is noted for its bakery tradition. Bakers sell various kinds of breads with golden brown crusts topped with sesame and poppy seeds. Tsot and tsochvor are small round breads topped with poppy and sesame seeds, which are crisp and flaky, sheermal, baqerkhayn (puff pastry), lavas (unleavened bread) and kulcha are also popular. Girdas and lavas are served with butter. Kashmiri bakerkhani has a special place in Kashmiri cuisine. It is similar to a round naan in appearance, but crisp and layered, and sprinkled with sesame seeds.[12] It is typically consumed hot during breakfast.[13]


Festivals
See also: Kashmiri Hindu festivals
(left) 2,200 years old Shankaracharya Temple dedicated to Shiva; (right) Khanqah-e-Moula mosque construed around 1395 AD

Kashmiri Hindus

Primary festivals of Kashmiri Hindus include:

  • Herath (Shivaratri)
  • Khetchmaavas
  • Navreh
  • Zyeth Atham
  • Tiky Tsoram
  • Pann
  • Gaad Batt

Kashmiri Muslims

Primary festivals of Kashmiri Muslims include:

Language and literature
Main articles: Kashmiri literature and Kashmiri language
(left)An example of early Sharada script, in the Bakhshali manuscript; (right) Stone Slab in Verinag in Perso-Arabic script

Kashmiri (English: /kæʃˈmɪəri/)[14] or Koshur (English: /kɜːʃur/; कॉशुर, كٲشُر),[15] is a language from the Dardic subgroup of Indo-Aryan languages, spoken by around 7 million Kashmiris, primarily in the Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir. There are also speakers in parts of the neighbouring Pakistani territory of Azad Kashmir.

Although the official language of Jammu and Kashmir is Urdu, Kashmiri is recognised as a regional language in the state and is also among the 22 scheduled languages of India.

Kashmiri has split ergativity and the unusual verb-second word order.

Although Kashmiri was traditionally written in the Sharda script [16][17][18], it is not in common use today, except for religious ceremonies of the Kashmiri Pandits.[19]

Today it is written in Perso-Arabic and Devanagari scripts (with some modifications).[20]

The Perso-Arabic script is recognised as the official script of Kashmiri language by the Jammu and Kashmir governement and the Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages. [21][22][23][24]

Nowadays, the Perso-Arabic script has come to be associated with Kashmiri Muslims, while the Devanagari script has come to be associated with the Kashmiri Hindu community.[25]

Music
See also: Music of Kashmir, Jammu and Ladakh

Early History

The Bharata Natya Shastra is notable as an ancient encyclopedic treatise on the arts one which has influenced dance, music and literary traditions in India, originated in Kashmir.[2]

Present day

Kashmiri Music primarily includes:

  • Chakri
  • Henzae
  • Rouf or Wanwun
  • Ladishah
  • Sufiana Kalam (Kashmiri classical)

References
  1. "Central Asian Contribution to Kashmir's Tradition of Religio-Cultural Pluralism on JSTOR". doi:10.2307/41928559. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  2. Sundararajan, Saroja (2010). Kashmir Crisis: Unholy Anglo-Pak Nexus. Gyan Publishing House. pp. 25–27. ISBN 978-81-7835-808-6.
  3. Datta, Amaresh (1988). Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: Devraj to Jyoti. Sahitya Akademi. ISBN 978-81-260-1194-0.
  4. Tikoo, Colonel Tej K. Kashmir: Its Aborigines and Their Exodus. Lancer Publishers LLC. ISBN 978-1-935501-58-9.
  5. Vasugupta; Singh, Jaideva (1992-01-01). The Yoga of Vibration and Divine Pulsation: A Translation of the Spanda Karika with Ksemaraja's Commentary, the Spanda Nirnaya. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-1179-7.
  6. Toshakhānī, Śaśiśekhara (2010). Rites and Rituals of Kashmiri Brahmins. Pentagon Press. ISBN 978-81-8274-475-2.
  7. Vivekananda, Swami (2007). Prabuddha Bharata: Or Awakened India. Swami Smaranananda. p. 354.
  8. Bamzai, Prithivi Nath Kaul (1994). Culture and Political History of Kashmir. M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd. p. 243. ISBN 9788185880310. Rice was, as now, the staple food of Kashmiris in ancient times.
  9. Kaw, M.K. (2004). Kashmir and Its People: Studies in the Evolution of Kashmiri Society. APH Publishing. p. 98. ISBN 9788176485371. But perhaps the most popular items of the Kashmiri cuisine were meat and rice.
  10. Press, Epilogue. Epilogue, Vol 3, issue 9. Epilogue -Jammu Kashmir. Since Kashmiris consume meat voraciously and statistics reveals that on an average 3.5 million sheep and goat are slaughtered annually for our consumption, the skin can be utilised for production.
  11. Dar, P Krishna (2000). Kashmiri Cooking. Penguin UK. ISBN 9789351181699. Though Brahmins, Kashmiri Pandits have generally been great meat eaters.
  12. "Culture of Anantnag". District Anantnag J&K. Archived from the original on 2009-06-19.
  13. "Kashmir has special confectionary". Thaindian.com. 2008-03-13. Retrieved 2013-07-18.
  14. Laurie Bauer, 2007, The Linguistics Student's Handbook, Edinburgh
  15. Kashmiri at Ethnologue (20th ed., 2017)
  16. "ScriptSource - Sharada, Śāradā". www.scriptsource.org. Retrieved 2020-07-14.
  17. Language: Sharda Script, India, retrieved 2020-07-01
  18. Kaul Deambi, B. K. "The Sharada Script : Origin and Development". Kashmiri Overseas Association. Archived from the original on 7 January 2010. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  19. Kaul, Omkar Nath. "On Kashmiri Language". Kashmiri Overseas Association. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  20. "Kashmiri Language". omnigot. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  21. Kaw, M.K (2004). Kashmir and It's [sic] People: Studies in the Evolution of Kashmiri Society. A.P.H. Publishing Corporation. pp. 303–304. ISBN 9788176485371.
  22. Mahapatra, B.P (1989). The Written Languages of the World: A Survey of the Degree and Modes of Use : India : Book 1 Constitutional Languages. Presses Université Laval. p. 270. ISBN 9782763771861.
  23. B. Kachru, Braj. "An introduction to Spoken Kashmiri". Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  24. Kaul, Omkar Nath. "Spoken Kashmiri A Language Course". Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  25. "Valley divide impacts Kashmiri, Pandit youth switch to Devnagari - Indian Express". Retrieved 2020-07-01.
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