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The Oppressed Half
Fahad Nawaz Sheikh, Final year
The Fisher’s principle states that the population of the Earth, if left to nature alone,
would be 50 percent men and 50 percent women. Unfortunately, other aspects that give the
two genders some degree of equality are perturbingly scant. We live in a male dominated
world, and I am not referring to population. The repeated cries of women highlighting their
plight at the hands of men are known well enough to all, hence, they are not the focus of at-
tention here. The importance lies in our reaction to these protests.
Feminism is a term we hear and read about all over social media. Before talking about it,
one should have a clear idea of what it actually means. Wikipedia.com defines feminism in
the following way: Feminism is a range of political movements, ideologies, and social move-
ments that share a common goal: to define, establish, and achieve equal political, economic,
personal, and social rights for women. This includes seeking to establish equal opportunities
for women in education and employment. The definition is, of course, a liberal one and does
not take into account the influence of religion. For the moment, pay little attention to what
religion says as the majority of us are not qualified or knowledgeable enough to rightly inter-
pret it. We need to see what is logically, morally and ethically right.
Various feminist organizations are quite active in getting their demands and concerns
heard across the globe through protests and demonstrations. Feminists also take it to social
media to highlight their objectives and complaints. To these actions, people (understandably
men) respond with ridicule and dismiss the claims as baseless and illogical. Such people are
right to some extent; feminists do tend to exaggerate their experiences and seem to ‘read’ the
intentions of men, on which they base their arguments and judgements.
Such examples are commonly come across every day. A teenage girl goes to the balcony
for a breath of fresh air but immediately re-enters her room, complaining that a couple of
workers nearby were looking at her. It is possible that they just saw who was there without
bad intentions. Wouldn’t you look at something that suddenly enters the same scene you’re
in? What power do women possess which makes them aware of the thoughts of men, one
wonders. If a group of boys stands near the canteen of their school, it is automatically be-
lieved that they’ve come to stare at girls. When a guy greets a girl with the most innocent of
intentions, there is still a great chance the girl regards him as a poacher. It is the same when a
male tries to help a female. “I know what he wants from me”, she fears. These reactions frus-
trate the ‘good’ men, who then accuse the female gender of self-victimization.
One must not be judgmental, that is true. But in blatantly nullifying women’s experienc-
es, no matter how illogical and baseless they seem to be, we do not take into consideration a

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fundamental truth. We complain about females’ tendency to self-victimize, but have we ever
wondered what makes them do it?
Imagine you are floating freely in outer space. You see objects that are new to you. Your
eyes are wide open in awe of your surroundings. You are confused. You do not know what
is there to be scared of, what will benefit you, and what serves no purpose or use to you. You
keep floating, being unaltered by the extra-terrestrial objects that fly by. Right now, you are
just a surprised observer. You have no reason to judge what is around you. You float, not
happy, not scared, without judgment. There are no reactions as you have never interacted
with the surroundings. Now consider yourself a woman who has been plunged into space for
the first time. You do not recognize the objects but can see what they’re doing. You see rape
and murder. You see women being beaten and tortured (domestically). You see sexual har-
assment. Then suddenly you come face to face with an object. What will your reaction be?
The answer is conspicuous. You may argue that you can come across good too, across times
when women are seen happy and treated with love. But our minds are influenced more by
punishment and bad experiences than by pleasure. It is fear that drives most, if not all of us.
Even if self-victimization, which is the biggest objection to feminism, can be justified,
other aspects of feminists’ demands are difficult to make sense of. Campaigns like “free the
nipple” and “breast feeding in public” have, perhaps, become the mainstay of feminist
demonstrations in the west. Advocates of such practices take gender equality to a whole new
level. According to them, if a man can move around without a vest, so can a woman. They
fail to understand that the male and female bodies are different, with women having more
body parts involved in sexual arousal. At one point, they want to expose their private parts
and at the other, they complain about the increasing cases of rape. Does it make sense? Rape
is not at all justified even if a woman walks around naked, but when one already knows
about its prevalence today, taking safety measures is probably a good idea.
Furthermore, many of feminists’ movements impart the idea that females want to copy
everything that men do, and get everything they have. “If men can, why can’t women”. Is
feminism a voice for equality, or an outcome of jealousy? Even social media chooses to
highlight such not-so-useful campaigns. We seldom find articles that let us know about an
event which urged to end domestic violence or fight for equal pay, but regularly come across
news of any campaigns like ‘slutwalk’ or ‘femen’, which give feminism a bad name in con-
servative societies (like ours). Even if the latter are important, they are still of secondary im-
portance to the basic primary problems.
Do we need feminism? The answer becomes complicated when the opportunistic use of
this term sometimes (or mostly) overwhelms its primary textbook principle. It is true, as
mentioned earlier, that feminism today has its flaws. It is also true that women today have
more rights than ever, and some of them even use them opportunistically. It is also true that

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in support of women and advocacy of feminism, it is sometimes men who are targets of in-
justice. Social media has also coined the term ‘Meninism’ as a feminism antagonist, trying to
support men in a time of apparent female bias. Can women be biased against men and judge
them poorly? Of course. But, because women are not in a greater position of social power,
these are incidents of discrimination, not oppression or sexism.
Look around you and see what women have to face every day. You may be a woman
who thinks she doesn’t face any of these problems and neither does any of her friends. You
may say the plight of women is embellished. But it’s not. We are not talking about all wom-
en, but most of them. You may reject supporting feminism because some aspects do not seem
right to you. But will you stop taking a drug due to its side effects, even when it is the only
choice?
The injustice against women is so deeply rooted in our society that it has even become a
part of our culture. In our society, it is culturally accepted that women leave their jobs after
having children. It is automatically believed that women cannot be and are not the sole bread
earners, and should lead their lives mostly under the instruction of their husbands. It is a ta-
boo if a man's wife is the sole bread earner and not the man himself. Why? And then, we
blame women for giving up jobs and wasting their degrees when they marry. But in reality, it
is our culture and customs which brainwash most of our women to keep taking these deci-
sions. Imagine you (a man) work hard all your life to develop a great career, but have to drop
it someday because you’ve been told all your life that a man's goal is the upbringing of chil-
dren, and everything else is of marginal importance. That your wife is supposed to earn for
the family, develop a great career and achieve all she has aimed for. Will you accept it to be
fair? If I ask women the same question, most of them will not have any problem. They have
been chronically brain washed to not see the injustice. They are not at fault.
Modern feminism may be more about entitlement than a reaction to unfair treatment of
women. It may not make sense in some parts of the world where women actually have equal
power and rights. It may seem to promote indecency. But, these must be accepted as neces-
sary evils for a greater cause. We still have unequal pay, domestic violence, social injustice,
political inequality, and rape and harassment around us, and that is just naming a few. We
need to end this injustice. It does not matter if a few women make the wrong use of it. Some
bad apples should not cause the whole gender to suffer.
I ask again, do we need feminism? Answer this question by thinking about the women
you care about: mothers, wives, daughters and friends. Ask yourself whether you allow your
daughters to travel alone after sunset (or even earlier) without perturb, and whether you pro-
vide them with more security than your sons. If you do so, then why? What are you afraid
of? These questions are just a few among many which you need to ponder over, and then
you’ll know whether we, or more importantly you, need feminism.

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Life as an “upgraded student”
Rabia Shahid, Second Year
Entering a new campus with fears, doubts, insecurities and a rush of our best friend-
adrenaline, I was greeted with prying eyes, a few whispers and obvious “I’m judging you”
looks. Sahiwal Medical College was in my destiny and so I landed here in the 4th
merit list of
the university. The stigma of being admitted to a college in the middle of an academic session
is that you are welcomed with the beautiful tag of being the “upgraded awaam”. There are
hurried discussions amongst the girls sitting next to you before they care to confirm that you
are an upgraded student and proceed with the common courtesy of your introduction.
And then follows a bittersweet cascade of questions, comparisons and sarcastic slaying
lines like “upgraded nahin downgraded!” What dominates all of this, is the internalized fear
of rejection. The fear we all experience on our first day at our work-place. This fear is magni-
fied to a humongous magnitude when you are one of the few 3 or 4 students to make an entry
in the already set session of your class. The remaining 95 students appear to be huge, celebrat-
ed personalities and disappointment follows in the “grouping” of the friends. Being an upgrad-
ed student also has its pros though… chanting “ma’am upgraded!” when you are asked about
your histology manual… Oh the joy!
Coping with the academia feels ironically less difficult than coping with the environment
and the people… you become automatically over-sensitized to even a slight negligence by
your colleagues. A few suffer because their mighty “ego” comes into play. However, the com-
parison is almost never-ending! Having seen the life at two totally different medical colleges
can become a menace when you’re bombarded with questions constantly; from the teaching
faculty to the helping staff… the seniors to your class-fellows…
The lack of interaction with the seniors and your own class makes surviving a difficult
task. It appears mandatory to have to add “upgraded” as your middle name... Rabia “jee baji,
upgraded!” Shahid became my name in my first few weeks at SLMC…
It almost appears comical how you’re wandering in the campus like a headless-chicken
looking for your class, and you end up asking your class fellows where first year is. A few
might spare you with a decent clarification that, “We are your class fellows”, but the remain-
ing satanic pawns definitely give you a nice round of sarcasm and/or fooling, only to enter the
same class as you later on in the day! Ugh, the betrayals of that evil grin…
You end up crying in the hostel mess because of the challenges that are posed in trying to
earn a position in some committee. However, the dreams and hopes all come together when
you decide to not give up and continue to believe in your abilities and hard work. Removing
this inevitable tag of being the “upgraded girl/guy” can appear to be difficult… even impossi-
ble at times. But yes, the tag wears off when you let your work shine through. And why not
think of it as a chance at a fresh start, a new beginning… and of course the dawn of new expe-
riences! Don’t they say? “Change is always for the better!” Make sure this holds true for you!

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Euthanasia: mercy killing or murder?
Nashmia Niazi, Final Year
All life is sacred. One of the few concepts that face minimal opposition in our world, as
it is a prerequisite to the social stability that we all strive for. Violation of this divine decree
disrupts the tranquility and engenders mayhem in our lives. You may ask, what is classified
as a “violation”? Is murder a violation? Yes! Is suicide a violation? Yes! Is euthanasia a vio-
lation? Not many have an unambiguous view about this form of killing. Euthanasia, with all
its complexity stripped, is known to the world as mercy killing. Is this really all there is to
it? No! Euthanasia is anything but a spectacle of mercy. What prompts this censurable act?
What drives a person to plead to another for the termination of their own life?
It is irrefutable that destiny is immutable. Joy and grief go hand in hand on the path of
life designated to each person by the Lord Himself and life is nothing but a game of ac-
ceptance, advancement and competitive survival, on this course allotted to us. Some are bet-
ter at it than others while the rest get baffled by their inability to cope with the pain and suf-
fering that comes along. The obvious resort for the latter is giving up. Life can coexist with
anguish but not with despair. Thus, the conclusion to the stories of most of these humans, is
departure from this world; self-inflicted (suicide), when the person is capable and euthana-
sia, when somebody else’s desire to help, engulfs their morality.
We humans know pain all too well. It unites us and incites in us the impulse to eradicate
the cause. Novelist John Green, beautifully stated, “That’s the thing about pain. It demands
to be felt.” Physical pain is unbearable but emotional pain is abysmal. Altruism is inherent
in human nature thus we seek to nullify others’ pain but our nature works against us when,
blinded by our pity, we deliberately exterminate one of our own. We put a person out of
their probable non-perpetual misery and then make implausible rationalizations to keep our-
selves sane. These rationalizations are proof of the guilt we try, oh so hard, to suppress.
When the justifications for euthanasia are all invalid, the act can certainly not be morally
acceptable.
Consent is only legitimate if the consenter at the time, is in full possession of his entire
faculties: he is not under influence of any kind. People who opt to be euthanized, conven-
tionally do so due to their prevailing excruciation. How can agony not be considered an in-
fluence? A person who has become accustomed would never contemplate the option. A per-

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son who euthanizes should be cognizant that he is proceeding without bona fide consent and
must face the repercussions. The dictionary holds no peculiar term for the human who re-
sorts to euthanasia because there is no distinction between him and a murderer.
Life can be unendurable; live it anyway. Pain can be insufferable; bear it anyway. Em-
pathy and compassion can cloud your judgment; push through and make the right choice an-
yway. To put it in the wise words of renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, “While there’s
life, there is hope.” Euthanasia is the slaughter of this hope and extirpation of any possibility
of reversion. Why then shall we elect it over faith? To choose euthanasia is to choose to be a
petty God and have the audacity to compete with the Omnipotent in finalizing the fate of an-
other life. It is nothing but an abomination. An act propelled by selfish desires to ease our
discomfort over our impotence; an epitome of fragility of human resolve. The apparent asso-
ciation of mercy with this action is a mere façade.
Euthanasia is infirmity. Euthanasia is exploitation of power. Euthanasia is lack of dis-
cernment. For all intents and purposes, euthanasia is synonymous with murder.

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Examinaria
Nabiha Noor, Second Year
Allah Almighty has blessed man with uncountable blessings. With His cosmic interces-
sion He has confronted man with some lawsuits too; one of them is ‘indisposition’. As
Anopheles causes malaria, there is an indisposition that is typically a result of examination,
that is, ‘Examinaria’. We’ve observed this clinically too.
Patient Presentation
AB is a young student with concerns about difficulty in going to sleep and waking up in
the morning, common tiredness, forgetfulness, unexplained aches and pains, poor appetite,
loss of interest, increased anxiety and increased heartrate. Some sufferers cry on an almost
daily basis.
Focused History
This malady is due to a peculiar virus, ‘exam virus’, and victims are usually students. It
usually spreads as a pestilence.
Pertinent Findings
The physical examination reveals the shortest relationship in life, that is, between stu-
dents and books. They get committed a couple of days before the exam and after exam…
breakup!
Treatment
· The patient should be advised to study on a daily basis, wholeheartedly.
· The patient should be given food as long as it doesn’t disturb his digestive system.
· No extensive treatment is required for this indisposition as it disappears like ‘the
hound on the head of a donkey vanishes’, on the last day of examinations.
Prognosis
The disease appears slowly and sometimes suddenly, with a pre-planned scheme. Usual-
ly, this malady is seen when the temperature of examinations is a 100 degrees and that of
preparation is 0 degrees. Patients mostly survive and the survival rate is 99.9%.
Precautions
· Doctors should be kept as far away as possible, from the patient.
· Books, notebooks, atlas, pencils… in short, everything that is directly or indirectly
related to the exam, should be thrown out of the patient’s room. Because these things and
their presence weaken the nerve of the patient.
· Other siblings and fellows of the patient who are taking exams, must be taken away
from the patient. It’s lucrative to both fellows… when they are at hand, there are greater
chances of paroxysms and fits on the patient’s part.

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Freedom- the Abandoned Trait
Maemoona Abdul Jabbar, Final Year
Freedom is a human right, a state of allowance of free will; it is a gift, a duty and an hon-
or. And just like all of these traits, it requires to be valued, defended and preserved with digni-
ty. It is not just something that one should cherish as a birth right, or let get ruined. Freedom
which many of us enjoy today would surely have cost millions of us to abandon their homes
and families, millions to get slaughtered in the name of children they would have never gotten
to know, and countless to get killed in the name of a land where, they hoped, they would
know free will and independence, if not for themselves, then for their generations to come. It
was, thus, not just our possession that had to be snatched back from the cruel, but also our
legacy, our descended pride!
Today, we might not know the value of independence but surely the people who had suf-
fered the slavery knew it well. So they strove for what we now take for granted. I am writing
to try to revive the sense of duty that comes along with the state of contentment of being at
liberty, which clearly has long elapsed our minds and conscience. Because when that ability
to fight for acceptance and the readiness to struggle for something that you have relished and
esteemed for a long time is lost, then the grandeur of your prized possessions nullifies and be-
comes viable for destruction. It allows others to penetrate and plunder.
Similarly, freedom, if not well taken care of, will soon turn into meander. Sadly, this is
the scenario of our state today. No responsible citizen evades the responsibilities he or she is
supposed to fulfill. It appears that we, as Pakistanis, have lost our self-esteem. This self es-
teem is required to uphold and sustain what is ours. We no longer seem to comprehend that
the country we so artistically complain about is all ours and the ‘wonderful’ state we have put
it in is totally due to our own political and ‘patriotic’ maneuvers. Whining about the elite and
the military tearing apart our country’s foundations is way easier than raising a voice and in-
voking masses to set things right. Also, caviling about foreign components picking their way
in, feels to be far better than realizing and admitting personal evasion of duty.
We have so brazenly become ‘foreign Pakistanis’ that instead of taking the responsibility
of the current state of our freedom and rectifying what has been done, we’re going further
down by trying to blame any factor that comes to our minds as long as it does not blame our
own selves. Clearly, we’re pretending to be oblivious of the fact that unity, faith, and disci-
pline are the keys to success. The world does not care enough for the nations that do not care
for themselves!

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The real question is that are we seriously willing to let go of our most prized possession?
Will we not even fight for it? Is there any hope that one day we will forget our differences and
stand up together to battle against every ailment that has plagued our beloved Pakistan? Will
there ever be a Pakistan which her founding fathers dreamt of? When will we prove ourselves
worthy of living in the country we so shamelessly reside in? Is not that time now?
How much more does Pakistan have to get crushed for us to actually feel the pain our be-
loved country is going through? If we can bring ourselves to answer these questions, then there
still may be some hope left.
Who is Yours, Darling?
Mayra Waheed, Third Year
She is beautiful, softened at the edges and tempered with a spine of steel. She has a
smile that an angel might envy, a heart so compassionate that it understands before the
words are even uttered. She has eyes with the glimpse of heaven. She has cheeks like a fair
rose, a gentleness like the morning dew. She has a soothing lap in a scary world. She has the
calmness of a quiet sea. She has the patience of a desert. She has the grace of a bird in flight.
She is warm and soft, with the sweet fragrance of a rose. She is the guiding star in the dark-
ness of this world. She is the companion of loneliness, she has a part of God’s love. She is a
divine blessing which comforts, purifies and strengthens all who seek it. Yep! She is a gift
of nature, she is the best darling in the world, and she is a mother!
She is the one who cares for you when nobody else does. She has a charming face to
make me smile. Her love is like nothing else in the whole world. The love of a mother
knows no laws, it protects all it encompasses and crushes down remorselessly all that stands
in the path of its duty. The warmth of her touch and the treasure of her love soothe my soul.
She is a symbol of love in this world.
I do not have diamonds to give for every tear you have shed for me, mother. I do not
have pearls for the wisdom you have passed on to me. I do not have the fire that matches the
sparkle of your eyes, but I do have my devotion, love and care as a gift for you. Because
you are the love of my life. You are my darling in this world. But do you know, “who is
yours, darling?”

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The Sick Man of Europe
Maham Ali Khan, Fourth Year
Osman saw himself and his host reposing near each other.
From the bosom of Edebali rose the full moon, and inclining towards the bosom of Osman it
sank upon it, and was lost to sight.
After that a goodly tree sprang forth, which grew in beauty and in strength, ever greater and
greater.
Still did the embracing verdure of its boughs and branches cast an ampler and an ampler
shade, until they canopied the extreme horizon of the three parts of the world. Under the tree
stood four mountains, which he knew to be Caucasus, Atlas, Taurus, and Haemus.
These mountains were the four columns that seemed to support the dome of the foliage of the
sacred tree with which the earth was now centered.
From the roots of the tree gushed forth four rivers, the Tigris, the Euphrates, the Danube,
and the Nile.
The Crescent shone on their summits: from their galleries sounded the Muezzin’s call to
prayer.
That sound was mingled with the sweet voices of a thousand nightingales, and with the prat-
tling of countless parrots of every hue.
From “Osman’s dream” by Sultan Osman Ghazi-the patriarch of Ottoman dynasty.
Sitting in the lounge with my mother, talking about international affairs, we both came
across the prime time drama, the glamorous “Mera Sultan”. Despite my conscious urge to
change the channel, I held stuck to it.
For some reason, Muslim history has always been my favourite subject, either to browse
on net or to read about in books and when it comes to the glorious Muslim empires, I have
always found myself insanely obsessed with their charisma. This time, it was the Ottoman
epochs which caught my special attention.
Hardly had I started watching the serial, when the air in the room began to smell strange;
no actually, it was some marvel going on. I could see the tube lights and energy savers
change into candles placed in the wall oriels and chandeliers hanging from the roof, blinds
replaced by heavy silk curtains. A huge bed with a silk spread in one corner of the room was
another exquisite site. The technology had been replaced by antique provisions. It seemed
like I was standing in the bed chamber of some crown prince of the medieval era.

I could not agree more with the beauty and elegant taste of the owner of the chamber.
The Persian rugs, the beautifully carved wooden miniatures on the wall, the consoles, were
only adding more and more refinement to the look. I decided to explore more of it. I slowly
moved towards the huge door of the chamber that it might, perhaps, lead me out of there and
interestingly, it did. I found myself in a dark corridor. As I advanced through the corridor, I
caught a trace of light coming out of a room. I followed it and when I reached the door, I
opened it, only to regret that I should not have.
What I could see was, some men in a grand room, wearing black robes, their faces cov-
ered with black veils strangling another man in a long, white Turkish gown. The splendour of
his personality, even in such agony, could tell he was no less than a prince. But there was an-
other man in equally splendid attire, standing on a podium in the room, who succeeded in
catching my eye. I recognized him instantly: he was none other than the Sultan Suleiman! So
the man being strangled was, undoubtedly, shehzade Mustafa. I realized that I was standing
in an Ottoman court. The prince choked and his body became still. He was dead. One of the
executioners raised his head and said, “The shehzade is dead, my lord!” The king rose from
his throne and hurried out of the room. Even I could feel his anxiety, perplexed eyes, filled
with sorrow and distress. But this was not all. One of the executioners rose, headed towards
me. I was startled. So he was not ignorant of my presence in the room. But how come? I felt
petrified as he began to come nearer and nearer, till he was a hand’s breath away from me;
when he drew out his sword and within no time he shoved it through my body, causing me to
scream with all my strength, only to open my eyes and find myself back in the lounge. It was
actually my delusion. I had been in a trance all this time.
As I gained more cognizance, I turned around and found my mother engrossed in the
opera. I decided to be composed but couldn’t help being vocal on the subject. “How can a
father take his own son’s life?” I questioned my mother for her opinion on the subject. She
knew what I was referring to. “This was actually the beginning of the decline of Muslim Um-
mah,” she replied, with a smile on her aged face, depicting her acumen and audacity. I could-
n’t agree more. She was factual.
It is stated that under the regime of Sultan Suleiman (whom the world calls Suleiman -
the magnificent), the world was introduced to several reforms regarding law and order, trade,
and ammunition. He not only had the greatest well trained and well-equipped army, but also
had the world’s most respectable physicians, scientists and scholars at his court. He proved
himself to be a perfect administrator in his early years of reign. But despite such wisdom of
Suleiman, his successors did not prove to be men of capabilities and committed the grave
mistake of not taking any interest in the study of economics for the purpose of progressing
their societies economically or developing agriculture scientifically. As a consequence, the

middle class of Ottoman started vanishing while that of Europe started flourishing with
wealth and influence.
Berek, a renowned historian, suggests the cause of the Ottoman regression to be a con-
sequence of not only the economic instability, but the incompetency of garrisons to run the
frontier forts. The lack of reforms needed to revolutionize warfare, to cope with that of the
modern world, also caused the massive Europe and Asia to slip away from Ottoman’s
hands. The seventeenth century proved itself to be an unfortunate century for the Ottoman
domain. In 1641, the siege of Vienna led by a corrupt grand vizier, Kara Mustafa, deprived
the Ottomans of their imperative lands in Europe. He bombarded the city and penetrated
the outer walls of the city but ignored the approach of seventy thousand Polish soldiers
marching to the rescue of the city. Owing to poor strategic plans, the Christian legions not
only routed the Turks out of Vienna, but also took the city of Budapest. The treaty of Kar-
lowitz proved to be another subsequent fiasco, when the Ottomans had to give some of
their lands back to Europe, like Hungary and Transylvania ceded to Austria; Podolia, occu-
pied by Ottoman in 1672, was reverted to Poland; Venetian lands were also returned. Even
though the Ottomans were still trying to get a hold of Europe again, deep inside they had
known, that the glorious days of Islamic conquests were over, never to be replicated again.
In short, the Ottoman age of exploration had to suffer a setback after the siege of Vienna.
Nicholas Tsar, a famous author, called the empire “the sick man of Europe” of 1600s.
Another reason that might explain the fall of the empire could be the unjust behaviour
of the ruling class towards the working class and the gradual insensitivity of the later mon-
archs towards their people. It is believed that the integrity of European power and their
subsequent progress in trade and warfare virtually disrupted the Ottoman realm.
Well, all these justifications are what the historians state. But one cannot repudiate the
hidden truths that are buried beneath the floors of the castles of such empires. I believe that
such a vast and prodigious empire as the Ottoman could not have been annihilated only by
the above stated facts. There are other deeper aspects that the Muslim world of today needs
to comprehend.
To be fair in our judgement, we need to travel a few centuries back, when the Otto-
mans were at their zenith. They possessed not only the greatest empire, but were the centre
of learning in the comity of nations across the globe. And not only this, the Turks were ea-
ger, with all the zest and enthusiasm, to initiate more expeditions that would add land and
glory to their empire. But what actually they were deficit in, was, again, the acknowledg-
ment of the needs to maintain the status of such a realm. Yes, they needed reforms. The
reforms that would earn the consistent modernization of warfare and which were needed to

transform old methods of learning science, medicine, art and literature and technology, into
newer ones.
One more reason that I would suggest, could be the involvement of the Ottoman soldiers
in commerce. This engagement might have shifted the loyalties of janissaries from military
to their own personal growth. Some of them would leave the army and be replaced by men
with little or no training. The new soldiers were all green to their tasks. There is no second
thought that various non-Ottoman occupations would not have sensed the empire’s internal
weak ends. The Ottoman empire had to suffer another halt when nationalist campaigns began
to form. The hostile powers fully supported their rebellious notion through various conspira-
cies.
I believe that women in every nation have proved themselves to be the most useful and
most powerful weapons and when it comes to the Ottoman, it is a well-known fact that they
played a vital role in the empire’s diplomatic affairs. The female intervention or harem poli-
tics with fratricides of capable heirs, did not leave many Ottoman traits in the dynasty. The
lust of power and putting one’s own issue on the throne, lead to internal deterioration and the
ultimate destabilization of the empire.
Christian renaissance might have proved itself the doom of the prodigious Turkish Em-
pire at the dawn of seventeenth century; but what I believe is otherwise. The enemy can nev-
er be sturdier than your chutzpah, if you have one. It might be easier for us to blame the iron
hand of fate to have transformed the grandeur of Constantinople into a mere ghost of Byzan-
tium but if we try to hear what this ghost has to say, we might comprehend that it isn’t fate
that corroded the most powerful civilization of the world, but the follies and ignorance of its
own peers. As I author these words, I must confess that whenever I see my generation of to-
day, doomed and lost in the void of darkness, it reminds me of the zest that let the Muslims
invade half the world, under the commandment of Prophet Muhammad SAW, with mere ar-
mies. Whenever I see my fellows acquiring degrees and not intellect from the institutions, it
reminds me of the diligence of the Muslim scientists like Alberuni, Abu Bakir, Al Khu-
warzami and many others, who laid the foundations of modern knowledge. Whenever I see
my cities bleed, I hark back to the splendour of Baghdad of the thirteen century under the
shadow of Sufis like Rumi, rendering it as the heart of learning and education around the
globe. It was all the fruit of their steadfast efforts that ensured them triumphs over non-
believers. I am convinced that whether it comes to nations or its individuals, success comes
to those willing to strive, eternal life comes to those willing to die and honour retains to
those willing to maintain.
Background painting by: Syeda Aliza Zahra, Third Year

61
Why Failure Is Good For Success
Noor-e-Sahir, Final year
—To achieve the greatest success, you have to embrace the prospect of failure.
(Pauline Estrem)
The sweetest victory is the one that’s most difficult. The one that requires you to reach
down deep inside, to fight with everything you’ve got, to be willing to leave everything out
there on the battlefield—without knowing, until that do-or-die moment, if your heroic effort
will be enough. Society doesn’t reward defeat, and you won’t find many failures documented
in history books.
The exceptions are those failures that become stepping stones to later success. Such is the
case with Thomas Edison, whose most memorable invention was the light bulb, which pur-
portedly took him 1,000 tries before he developed a successful prototype. “How did it feel to
fail 1,000 times?” a reporter asked. “I didn’t fail 1,000 times,” Edison responded. “The light
bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps.”
Unlike Edison, many of us avoid the prospect of failure. In fact, we’re so focused on not
failing that we don’t aim for success, settling instead for a life of mediocrity. When we do
make missteps, we gloss over them, selectively editing out the miscalculations or mistakes in
our life’s résumé.
When we take a closer look at the great thinkers throughout history, a willingness to take
on failure isn’t a new or extraordinary thought at all. In today’s post-recession economy,
some people are no longer shying away from failure—they’re embracing it—without any fear
whatsoever of failure, rejection or punishment.”
The same holds true for personal quests, whether in overcoming some specific challenge
or reaching your full potential in all aspects of life. To achieve your personal best, to reach
unparalleled heights, to make the impossible possible, you can’t fear failure, you must think
big, and you have to push yourself. When we think of people with this mindset, we imagine
the daredevils, the pioneers, the inventors, the explorers: They embrace failure as a necessary
step to unprecedented success. But you don’t have to walk a tightrope, climb Mount Everest
or cure polio to employ this mindset in your own life.
A wise man once said, “There’s only one thing about life that you need to learn: life goes
on.”

62
Lost Islamic History
Ali Nawaz, Old Final Year
This was the era which the world remembers as the era of the “Great game” (1813-1907).
The Russian empire comes out of Moscow and starts moving towards central Asia and Oxus
river, and on the other side, the British empire starts advancing from India and Persia to Af-
ghanistan. Both these major super powers meet in the Muslim world. During the period of this
Great Game, all Muslim regions in Central Asia were conquered by the Russians. Britain’s
forward policy was to keep Afghanistan as a buffer state and all the regions on the western
and northern sides of Oxus river should be given to Russia. During this era, when the Russian
empire expands, it also goes to war with the Ottoman empire (Caliph of Islam). In all the Otto-
man regions between the Caspian and Black sea, including Azerbaijan, Georgia and Caucasian
regions (Chechnya and Dagestan), a ferocious battle takes place and the Ottoman empire starts
losing in these regions. Russia captures Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia but fails to capture
one region; this region between Turkey and Russia is a very beautiful and truculent mountain-
ous region which is known as Dagestan or Caucasus. Now, only these mountainous regions
were left, which were not overrun by the Russians. The Russians thought this region would be
easy to take but it took them a hundred years and ferocious war to conquer it. During this peri-
od five lac Russian soldiers were killed.
The people of this region were so fanatical that in those days, they had become fictitious
figures in Islamic literature. In our Urdu literature this place is known as ‘Koh-e-Khaf’. This
fanatical region gave birth to a fanatical Islamic heroic leader whose name was Imaam Seyh
Shamil (1797-1871). He belonged to Nashabandi (sufi) spiritual order whose first imaam
Mansoor died in a Russian prison in 1791. In 1831, during the battle of Ghimry, all other
prominent leaders of this order embraced martyrdom, after which Imaam Shamil became the
Imaam of this order and started leading the war against the Russians. After capturing Ghimry,
the Russians thought that the war was over but little had they known that it would continue for
the next thirty years and five lac Russians would be transported to hell. A Russian general
once said, “All the resources and men we lost in conquering Dagestan, we could have used
them to conquer half the world.”
In 1839, a daring battle takes place in Akloulgo. This place was situated on a mountain
peak and three of its sides had deep valleys. There was only one way to go up; that was
through rocky mountains. Imaam Shamil and his forces of ten thousand men including wom-
en, children and refugees were gathered there to escape from Russian annihilation. The Rus-
sians surrounded that mountain and Imaam Shamil had to make his last stand. Imaam
Shamil’s Nashabndi army had many battle songs which the entire tribe used to sing and one
could analyze their mood by those songs. One night before the battle of Akhoulgo, they kept
singing the battle songs to keep their morale high. On the day of battle of Akhoulgo, the Rus-
sians sent in columns after columns under cover of artillery fire but out of nowhere, from be-
hind the rocks, Mujahideen came out riding on their horses and killed Russian after Russian,
inflicting heavy losses on them. But the Russians were too many in number and the Muslim

63
army had no supplies. Despite all this, the Russians could not capture the village even after
months of fighting the Muslims. Due to months of battle, the condition of Imaam’s army was
very poor. It had no supplies and due to the martyrdom of many soldiers, the army was re-
duced to a few men, women and children. Despite all this, they did not surrender and decided
to escape at night, through the deep dangerous valleys on the village’s sides. But first, Imaam
made peace negotiations with the Russians and they agreed to let them go if Imaam handed
over his son to them. Imaam Shamil, to save injured soldiers, men, women and children, made
the sacrifice and handed over his son to the Russians but instead of keeping their promise, the
Russians started the war again. The Imaam had no choice but to escape and with his tribe, he
managed to escape from the clutches of Russians.
Imaam Shamil, after this, fought many more battles, all of which cannot be covered in this
article, and defeated the Russians for thirty years, denying them a stronghold in his land. A
few years later, Imaam Shamil got his son back, which he got by capturing the Georgian
prince and exchanging his son for the prince. By 1840, Imaam Shamil had once again com-
pletely organized the war of resistance and continued to fight ferociously against the Russians
until in 1859, after thirty years of ferocious war and battles, Imaam Shamil was again sur-
rounded by the Russian army. Imaam Shamil resisted and fought for months but seeing that
the Russians had unlimited supply of arms and men and that innocent children and women
were being killed, he made a sacrifice again. In order to save his tribe and the people of Dage-
stan and Chechnya from complete annihilation, he handed himself and his family over to the
Russians and the war of resistance which had carried on under his banner for thirty years and
which had killed five lac Russians, came to an end and the great Imaam Shamil was taken as
prisoner to the Tsar (emperor of Russia). After years in prison, he was allowed to be exiled to
Makkah in 1869 with his family, on a promise that he would not lead the war of resistance
which had again been continued under someone else. When Imaam Shamil arrived in Makkah,
he was given a heroic welcome as everyone knew what this great general had done to the Rus-
sians. After performing hajj, Imaam Shamil died in Madina in 1871, due to old age and ill
health.
After his death, Imaam Shamil’s son joined the Turkish army and started fighting the Rus-
sians again. One hundred and thirty years later, when the Soviet Union disintegrated, the Mu-
jahideen of Chechnya and Dagestan once again declared jihad on Russia and began fighting
the war of independence from Russian occupation and the Russian army once again had to en-
ter Chechnya and Dagestan and fight this progeny of Imaam Shamil! This war is still ongoing
today and generation after generation, the Mujahideen are trouncing the Russian army. We
hope and pray that Chechnya, Dagestan, Kashmir and all those occupied Muslim countries still
under oppression, get their freedom and independence. AMEEN! We also pray that Allah
grants Jannah to Imaam Shamil and to all those Mujahideen who fought in the name of Islam
and Allah. AMEEN! I am pretty sure the world has never seen such brave and honorable Mus-
lim men and women who, after two hundred and twenty five years of war and occupation, are
still opposing the Russian oppression. They are a living example of the Quranic verse, “That
some have completed their promise and some are waiting their turn to complete the promise.”
May Allah be happy with them. AMEEN!

64
Note to Self
Nashmia Niazi, Final Year
Mistakes, disappointments and regrets pile up; the burden is immense. As the void
consumes the soul, you close your eyes, struggling to keep the flame of hope lit. You de-
sire contact. You reach out, but the world feels cold and distant. You choose to retrieve
to your shell and suffer in silence. You are in a maze: a maze no one will brave to get to
you. You must save yourself.
Incessant despair is not an option. Choose to be the phoenix that rises from the ash-
es or the rainbow after the storm. Paint yourself like the magnificent red sunset or the
awe-inspiring black night. Even amidst the chaos, choose to survive. You weren’t made
to give up. You are destined for greatness that won’t be achieved, unless, you get a grip.
Move and fight this deadlock; let your drive excel the dejection. Make use of the assets
that are exclusively yours. Take a deep breath, spread those divine wings and let the
world bathe in your glory.
Perfect life is a myth; hopes and dreams demand sacrifices. Life is cruel, God isn’t.
As long as you believe, you will reach your destination sooner or later. Trust yourself;
you are capable. You can do this, you have always done it.
Who can be a Hero?
Iqra Faryad, Fourth year
Sometimes, we all make the mistake of believing that the only heroes out there are the
people we watch on television, read about in news reports or see in the movies. The truth is
that each one of us has the ability to become a hero to someone. You can reveal the heroism
within yourself with only a little effort but with a sustained passion.
First and foremost, you have to be the hero of your own story. If you can’t help yourself,
you will not be trusted to save another. Secondly, self trust is the essence of heroism. So, be-
lieve in yourself.
I think a hero is a simple man with an intent of making this world a better place for all hu-
man beings, the desire to do good and the ability for self sacrifice. Heroes are made by the
path they choose, not by the powers they are graced with. So choose a path and go be a hero.
Good luck!

65
What is happiness?
Sheerin Nazar Sherazi, First Year
Joyfulness is not just a substantial emotion. It’s something more than just serotonin, dopa-
mine or oxytocin production because if it were, drug addicts would be the happiest of all lives
on our planet. It’s actually something that clicks the soul. It’s not just the mere rise of one’s
heartbeat, it’s not just a smile; it isn’t something that gives you rapture for a while. It’s some-
thing that’s eternal, it’s something more than what meets the eye. It may be something not
natural, or may be something as natural as a mother’s fondness, if she loves you without the
egomania of being loved back, without the covetousness of being shadowed when she gets
decrypted. It’s in a bird’s eyes when it reaches its shelter with a few grains in its beak. Happi-
ness is in those moments that remind themselves again and again to you, but not every mi-
nute. Feeling good all the time is not actual contentment, it’s just a state of mood. Because if
it were merriment, then a keeled mood would not be psychologically healthier than a mood in
which you achieve great heights of delight regularly—after all, what goes up must come
down.
People say it isn’t the same for everyone. It’s something that varies from unit to unit,
breed to breed, culture to culture, area to area, region to region, age to age—but it’s the same.
Conditions might vary, but it’s a clone of a spark that touches the soul, that makes one’s self
glitter, that fills oneself with confidence, that encourages one to be real. There are a lot of
things that make one real; being sincere to oneself before making commitments to anyone else
is one of them. It’s something that satisfies your soul in the real sense. It’s not just meeting
physical desires, achieving your goals, conceiving babies, making new technologies, finding
and reaching new horizons of science, living with your soulmate. It’s actually something that
links you to the real world, where you live on your own without being fake, without being a
diplomat.
It can be in all these things or not even in any of them because if it’s only in them, there
would not be those who just commute in the world without having all these gains; those who
just travel round the world to see what’s hidden, aren’t they happy? They are. Then there are
those parts which are still unaware of the modern world. Don’t they feel joy? They do! There
would not be those who don’t have families, there wouldn’t be those who can’t even con-
ceive, there would not be meta-females or sterile males. They all feel happiness one way or
another. There would not be those who don’t have degrees but are wise enough to create new
worlds, because these are not the only things which give happiness, in short.
If one wants to promote happiness, one should just be real. One should be one’s own self,
one shouldn’t hear what discourages; one should be sincere to one’s own existence. Promo-
tion of peace brings happiness as calmness soothes the mind, which extinguishes the fire of
hatred, comparison, jealousy and all such negatives which induce anxiety and sadness.

66
Feminsim: what went wrong?
Nashmia Niazi, final year
Feminism, which first emerged in the 1800s, has preexisted all of us but it is only recent-
ly that it morphed into an important part of popular culture. The Oxford dictionary defines
this often blatantly misinterpreted noun as “Advocacy of women’s rights on the ground of
equality of sexes”. The meaning incites in you great reverence for individuals who in any
way played a part in the progression of such an indispensable concept. Equality is inarguably
everyone’s right; why should women be discriminated against? This article won’t be a factual
account of this historical movement but a personal opinion on how the movement has deviat-
ed from its original goal to inevitably be labelled as unfair despise for the opposite gender
and has earned its supporters the dreaded title of “Feminazis”.
The female population probably strived for equality prior to the 1800s but it was only af-
ter the term Feminism was coined that these scattered struggles acquired a specific direction.
Since then, the lives of women have been drastically transformed. Many of the objectives
they campaigned for have been achieved, with women now having equal opportunities in ed-
ucation and employment along with their right to vote and hold office. The feminism theory
encouraged women to not let their physical weakness, in comparison to their male counter-
parts, hinder them from contributing to the development of the society: the women delivered.
Not only did they excel in fields that were their forte, but also shone in categories believed
predominantly to be for males.
Negatives and positives are two sides of the same coin. What was initially a wave of
women empowerment became a source of embarrassment for the predecessors. Individuals,
with warped views of what the movement was actually about, began advocating for trivial
things. The movement took an unfathomable turn: it became mostly about the right to equal
physical exposure. Though the modern supporters have generated a few meritable points, ma-
jority of the women are indoctrinated by exploitative individuals to believe exposure is
equivalent to liberation, taking the movement a step back, towards female objectification.
Men too, had difficulty giving up their authoritative position in the society and only a
few were secure enough to support the provision of opportunities for the supposedly weaker
gender. Most failed to comprehend that feminism was not male oriented discrimination, ra-
ther the stripping away of some of the privileges unfairly bestowed upon them, solely be-
cause of their gender. Daily catcalling remained a dilemma for outgoing women. Was it to
unnecessarily assert male dominance? God knows. Naturally, this engendered hatred in the
hearts of the valiant feminists, who began undermining the role of males in the society. Femi-
nism became more about supremacy rather than equality and overruling rather than peaceful
coexistence: the stability of the society itself was threatened. It turned into a “blame-game”,
with each side not willing to compromise.
Any time a new concept is introduced, it is bound to generate confusions. With femi-
nism, the question was, if the widely prevalent “Ladies first” rule, was still relevant. Women

67
opted to conceal their vulnerability and tried putting on a facade of strength but felt conflicted
when they were not subjected to the usual chivalry in the name of equality from men, who
gave up on their civility to prove a point. The undeniable majority of the ‘delicate’ females
ultimately outshone the genuine independent ones, tarnishing the sole image most supporters
were pushing for unrightfully.
One of the main positives of the recent transformation of the movement has been the in-
corporation of the demands of men’s rights into the agenda. The theory became as much
about males as it was about females, thus diminishing the feeling of isolation in the male pop-
ulation and making it easier for them to support the movement. It was indeed a step in the
right direction.
In my opinion, persistence of feminism is vital for thriving of a stable society, only, if the
original objectives of the movement are brought back to the forefront. Instead of being sub-
jected to imposition of preconceived gender notions, both sexes should be given the liberty to
opt for social roles they are comfortable with, so they can play them to the best of their abili-
ties. Concept of vulnerability and emotional stability being exclusive to females and males
respectively, needs to be challenged. Equality and mutual respect is the key; chivalry should
be reciprocated with courtesy. It has to be give and take. All of us are the same; all of us de-
sire to live a satisfactory life. Let us choose to not hinder each other’s growth. Let us make
things easier for one another.

68
Happy by Choice
Iram Gill, Final Year
Life is amazing, and then it’s awful. During awful times, nobody will protect you from
your sufferings. You can’t cry it away or starve it away or walk it away or even punch or ther-
apy it away. You will love and not be loved back, give and not receive, help and be left help-
less. Teach and not be taught. Forgive and be forgotten. Trust and be doubted. You will be un-
noticed, disliked, unloved and unappreciated. At these moments, the heart “breaks”. When it
breaks, it is completely silent and you wish it to make noise like a breaking glass or plate, or a
shattering window or a picture falling off a wall, so that it may distract you from that pain.
But hold on, there is beauty in sadness just as there is beauty in vulnerability. The mo-
ments when you feel like giving up are the moments that give you the desire to live. Be strong
when things fall apart. The happy and sad moments are the same. You just have to decide what
to feel.
Seriously, if it is sucking the life out of you, stop giving it attention. If it is a person, cut
him out. If it is a job, you need to quit. If it is an activity, by all means, stop. Stop letting any-
thing but you take the wheel. You are going to be okay. Time will pass. People who hurt you
will face their own Karma.
You don’t deserve anxiety. You’re not operating at your best when someone or something
is taking control over you. Take over, get some good vibes cranking and just be happy in your
own skin.
Life is too short to be anything but happy. Falling down is a part of life. Getting back up is
living.
Remember, it’s a choice to let things affect you.
Happiness is not to be pursued, it is to be attracted by the person you become.
Life is like a curvy, bumpy road. You travel on that road and as long as it is straight and
simple, you don’t face difficulties; you are happy. But then, suddenly, you see the road ending
and freak out. Will there be any way out, you wonder. As you keep moving towards the end,
you become more and more anxious and hopeless. Where will you go when the road ends?
Will you ever find a way out? But when you reach the end, you realize that it is actually a
‘bend’ in the road. You see new directions to the left and right. So at times of difficulty and
hopelessness, bear in mind that it is just a bend from where there are options you can choose
from to get back on the path of happiness again; another straight, less bumpy road. It may
seem that there is no way out, just like the road seems to end from a distance. But it doesn’t.
The directions you choose from the bend, are your decisions in times of adversity. Do not run
away from change. Embrace it.
“Life is amazing. And then it’s awful. And then it’s amazing again. And in between the
amazing and awful, it is ordinary and mundane and routine. Breathe in the amazing, hold on
through the awful, and relax and exhale during the ordinary. That’s just living heartbreaking,
soul-healing, amazing, ordinary, awful life. And it’s breathtakingly beautiful.” (L. R. Knost)

69
Humility is the foundation of all Virtue
Saad Yunus, Second Year
The title is the quote of a well known philosopher, Confucius, who once said that
“Humility is the solid foundation of all virtues.”
Humility is actually a tough term to describe, but some definitions of humility will shed
light on the topic.
Our Holy Prophet (PBUH) says, “God exalts he, who is modest amongst you.” Another
philosopher says, “Humility is the most essential point of lowliness.”
John says, “God’s sweet dews and showers of grace slide off the mountains of pride
and fall on the low valleys of humble hearts to make them pleasant and fertile”
Humility is the process of controlling one’s ego and appreciating the efforts and
achievements of others. Humility is a behavior of rejecting personal adulation and praising
the attainments of others, evaluating the merit of criticism and providing a constructive re-
sponse. We have to understand that humility is a source of strength, and not submissive-
ness.
The philosophers intended to talk of virtues as directed to civic life, wherein the subjec-
tion of one man to the other is defined according to the ordinance of law and consequential-
ity in a matter of legal justice. But humility, when considered as a special virtue, regards
chiefly the subjection of man to God, for Whose sake, he humbles himself.
Anyone can cultivate humility in himself by trying to incorporate the following in his
personality:
Expressing gratitude, keeping our mind on intrinsic good.
Embracing your humanness, practicing mindfulness and self-compassion.
We can see the great rewards of humility as an inner freedom, from having to conceal
that which we try to hide from ourselves and others; in other words, we develop a quiet, un-
derstanding and compassionate heart.
But above all, let me say that the first thing is to be an honest man. You can never have
an impact on the society if you have not changed yourself. Great peace-makers are people
of integrity, honesty and humility.
We may consider two things in a man: one which is God’s and the other which is
man’s. Whatever is flawed is man’s but whatever pertains to welfare and perfection is
God’s.
Humility is the greatest virtue and it deserves greater reward, so our Holy Prophet
(PBUH) said, “He that humble himself shall be exalted.”

70
Media Imperialism and our Culture
Younas Malik, Third year
As it has been documented by numerous professionals, culture is the identity which de-
fines a particular nation, the identity which keeps a nation alive. With the demise of its cul-
ture, a nation also gets effaced from the face of the world.
According to me, culture is the lens that colours our perspective and defines the nation-
al concepts. It is a group of mentality that includes shared attitudes, values and beliefs. It is
an undeniable fact that a culture is influenced by other cultures, but it is the responsibility
of a nation to keep its culture safe from undesirable influences of other cultures.
Although our culture is not purely religious, yet, it is to a great extent, a reflection of
Islamic traditions and values. Verily, it has absorbed some objectionable values, yet, it is
within reasonable bounds and can still be called an Islamic and Pakistani culture.
However, we observe with great regret that our culture is dying fast over time. It is
gradually embracing the Western and Hindu practices. The main cause of this sad state is
the Media of our country. Media has a pivotal role in making or destroying a country’s cul-
ture. It can help safeguard our moral and spiritual values. But sadly enough, the same me-
dia has become the custodian of non-Islamic norms and traditions. It seems to have under-
taken the responsibility of promoting an anti-Islamic culture. Before this Media Imperial-
ism, our culture depicted nationalism and religious values but with the rapid growth of pri-
vate broadcasting channels and showcasing of foreign content, especially Hindu culture
broadcasts has become viral. Why is it so?
If we ponder a little, we will come to know that we have never been serious about
guarding our culture against any invasion. Our media is destroying our identity and we are
doing nothing to counteract and combat this destruction.
We are abandoning our pure norms and values and taking pride in embracing an alien
culture marked by irregularity. Becoming modern is not a bad thing but it would be highly
unfortunate if we were to give up what is ours.
Viewers like to see glamour, outdoor scenes and lavish lifestyle in plays and films. We
have become so enamoured of watching such material that if an Indian channel is banned
for a few days, we protest against this closure and strongly demand its reinstatement. The
new generation is watching these programs day and night. Our cinemas are continuously
showing Indian and Western culture in the movies which promotes anti-social behaviour,
sedentary lifestyle and materialistic values.
Can we imagine how it will affect the future? Our children have become intolerant, im-
patient and insolent. Moreover, the media is also mainly to be blamed for the obscenity,

71
nudity and immodesty that is rapidly prevailing in our society and lives, as it is promoting
them in the cultural shows. The government concerned is playing the role of a silent specta-
tor and is encouraging such exposure in the name of modernism and social advancement.
Our present culture is a borrowed one and it is killing us from the inside. It will soon be
a complete imitation of something foreign and harmful to our lives. It will give us nothing
but depression, sexual perversion, spiritual sterility and moral depravity. Do we want this to
happen? Will this sort of culture afford us peace of mind?
It is never too late. We should let a better sense prevail over ourselves and revive a true
culture. Globalization is an enchanting slogan but we should all be aware that this slogan is
misleading. This is a farce and a humbug. The aim behind it, is to erase the identity of weak
countries like Pakistan so that it becomes easier to erase geographical frontiers.
The sum and substance of my writing is that we should promote our true culture in the
media and fashion as a comprehensive cultural policy which shows Pakistanism. No doubt,
Islamic culture is our ultimate identity.
Emotional Meaning
Aqsa Asif, Final Year
“Like the rain, it not only touched my soul but it also hit my nerves. Every glance at
you makes me feel something is missing deep inside me, a part of my brain is either hyper-
active or in overactive state. My passion starts shattering. You were in my approach but no
matter how we, indeed I, tried to be in touch, it blew too hard; that I was never in a state to
recall the shattered pieces of my memories. Dear Anatomy! You are just above my
thought.” A student before viva.
“Everything was so clear! Crystal clear! I was feeling like a ghost. Oh no! How compli-
cated things are inside me? Instead of caring about emotions, you always tried to ask from
where the emotions come. Instead of smiling, you always stressed on the cause of that
smile.” A student in viva.
“My emotions are from the heart. I do not care if you agree or not. Your emotions may
originate from the hippocampus but mine fairly belong to my heart. Your smile may be due
to your buccinators but mine is just a secret.” A student after viva.
“My smile and emotions are chasing each other. I am hoping my hippocampus and buc-
cinators start working after this.” A student waiting for result.

72
Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover
Ammara Khalil, Third Year
“Look at that girl, look at the way she is dressed!”
“Oh my God, this girl has a serious attitude problem!”
How often in our lives have we judged others based on what they look like? How of-
ten do we go on to make remarks about the lives of people, without having the background
knowledge or without having to get to know the person? How often do we label someone
characterless based on a few inches of a hemline?
I think the answer to these questions is ‘quite often’. I have the experience in life to
know that you can’t judge someone without knowing them, the fact being, that people are
so different from what they seem to be. You might not feel the best way about them when
you first meet them. More often than not, we meet someone for the first time and there is
this adrenaline rush or ecstasy of meeting new people, that you get so confused and you just
start blabbing as soon as you open your mouth and then you go back home to remember all
the things you’ve said in utter foolishness. And do nothing about it, except regret.
I sometimes wonder how shallow can you be, to judge a girl based on how tight her
clothes are, the colour she is wearing, the way she stands or walks or talks. You don’t know
her first name but you have her labelled as an A-rated girl? How can you decide the relation
of any girl to her God and religion, when you haven’t seen what she does when she is
alone? The thing is, that we have been brought up in a society where there is all this fuss
about making something out of the first impression, so we go on to pursue it all our lives.
We are so bigoted in our beliefs, that we don’t pay heed to what’s inside. That the person
you have just made a comment about could be going through enough, that a little more dra-
ma could break him? The girl you have just abused could be going through family prob-
lems or through a psychological breakdown and cries herself to bed? No! We don’t think
that because we are believers of perfectionism and pedantry is thought of as some big quali-
ty. We don’t have the audacity to accept anything different from what we have idealized.
“She is fine, but not marriage material.”
How often do we hear parents saying this about a girl when they look out to find a
companion for their sons? How often do they reject a proposal, just based on something
awkward a girl did on the first meeting, or because they did not get served with a buffet
when they went to the girl’s house for the first time, or that the girl wasn’t pretty enough
and even if she was pretty, she wasn’t fair enough? Or how often does a guy get rejected

73
over the package he is getting at his job, or attributes of physical appearance, like his height?
It’s just that when all things settle down in the long run, you are not going to want a fair wife
or a guy with a big paycheck (the cause of happiness some might think), you are going to
want someone with a heart of gold, a kind nature. Someone who gives you the respect you
deserve and loves you, in spite of all the flaws and differences. In the end, all you want is
happiness. The society has us deceived with the thought that something so superficial can be
your eternal bliss or the everlasting source of your happiness. Sorry to burst your bubble, but
it’s not.
“You look fat.” “You look above your age.” “You look like you are in your teens.”
“Being fat doesn’t suit you.” “You are so beautiful, but you should lose some lbs.”
Body shaming has become so common that being a size zero or having six-pack abs is
the new “it”. People are starving out there just to look good. The ratio of people suffering
from anorexia is increasing, just because they want to be acceptable to the society? I mean,
how low you have to be to make someone feel that they are ugly, that what they have is just
not enough, is not acceptable?
It all comes down to the fact that there is more to a person than the facades he chooses
to hide behind. There is more to him than what we can see. There is more to him than these
worldly attributes. Just dig deeper, try to understand someone before you raise a finger. It’s
easier to judge than to be judged, it’s easier to talk than to be talked about, and it’s easier to
make such void comments than having those made on you. It’s just not easy to suffer from
all of this, it’s not!
God has made you “Ashraf-ul-Makhluqaat”; he has showered upon you the blessings
of thinking, talking and communicating, not so that you can make someone’s life miserable,
but, because you have the strength to make someone’s life better. So let us do it, let us all
rise above hatred, jealousy, judgement, and backbiting. Let’s be bigger than the things hold-
ing us down. Let’s be superior to the mess separating us. Let’s be kind to each other, let’s
help each other rise. You have been given the gift of speech, use it not to put others down
but to make others achieve what they couldn’t alone. Let’s just have a little more kindness in
us and a little less judgement for the sake of all of us!!

“THE HUMAN VOICE IS THE ORGAN
OF THE SOUL.”
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Enigma
Fahad Nawaz Sheikh, Final Year
“You don’t think about what you want to speak and just babble in haste”,
said his father. “Form the words carefully in your mind. Relax. Then, enunciate.
It is all a matter of taking things slowly.” He took in a deep breath, lowered his
gaze and nodded. His father was the last person he wanted to disappoint, and
perhaps that is why he spoke the worst around him. “I t….rr..try my best. I don’t
know whhhh…whhhh…” he couldn’t complete the sentence. His father turned
away his gaze towards the television. They both sat quietly together, staring at
the screen. He wished they conversed, like friends. His father yearned for the
same.
Throughout the millennia, chronic stuttering (or stammering) has been one of the most
mysterious, confusing and seemingly unsolvable puzzles. After being the focus of so much
brainpower and so much pain and suffering throughout so many centuries, it’s amazing that we
have not yet been able to arrive at a consensus on the essential nature of chronic stuttering and
what drives it. The frequency, onset, possible causes, secondary behaviors, avoidance habits,
all vary significantly from one person to the other. It is this, perhaps, this variability, that does
not allow a unanimous consensus to be reached, and results in proposed theories which fail to
shed light on the condition as a whole.
By what mechanism does stuttering really occur? The quest for an answer has occupied a
big chunk of my life. Because to stand any chance in the war against stutter, it is important to
know everything about it. As I mentioned previously, any research or theory I read, failed to
approach the matter in a holistic manner. None managed to match my experiences or answer
my questions. The following exposition is composed by interlinking various, even profoundly
unrelated theories, to complement each others’ loopholes and incorporating easily overlooked
but indispensable phenomena, which helps view stuttering in a context that is plausible and
supported by my own experiences and experiments.
It is very important to understand that every case of chronic stuttering begins as a physio-
logical event. Speech blocks and lisps are very common in a child’s learning phase. The child
overcomes these obstacles through trial and error. This is called developmental stuttering. It is
how a child responds to this state that determines chronicity. The factors which lead to the ab-
errant response to developmental stuttering are mainly psychological and related to individual
family environments which ultimately result in hesitation to express oneself, loss of confidence
in one’s own speaking ability, and social anxiety and fear. These factors merit an extensive and
formal discussion of their own, which is currently not my objective. Stuttering is a disorder of

the whole person; hence, I will refer to the stutterer as a ‘person who stutters (PWS)’ to em-
phasize the need to look beyond the speech blocks and facial grimaces when encountering a
PWS.
“Your mother wants you to get some meat from the store,” his father said,
with his gaze still directed towards the television. From the moment he puts on
his coat and leaves home, he starts worrying about whether or not he’ll be
able to say “mutton”. He is caught up in doing just what he shouldn’t—
visualizing how he doesn’t want to speak. Not surprisingly, by the time he en-
ters the market, the original concern has escalated into a major fear.
There are two forms of stuttering, overt and covert. Covert stuttering is more specifically
called stammering; the PWS avoids to speak a ‘feared’ word at all, which results in uncon-
trollable repetitions. “My nn.. my my my my nn.. my my na na na na naa-aame is is iss
Fahad” is how it manifests itself. At other times, the PWS will try to beat around the feared
word, producing a sentence that seems weird to the listener: “My umm.. My uhh… umm..
Fahad is my.. umm.. Fahad is the word people use to call me.” In the previous example, the
feared word ‘name’ has not been uttered at all. Overt stuttering involves observable speech
blocks: “My nnnnnnn….nnnnname is Fahad.” Both types have a similar, yet different mecha-
nism and are found together in most people with chronic, severe stuttering: “My my my my
my um.. my nnnname is Fa-Fa-Fa-FFFF…FFFahad.” The main difference is the order; cov-
ert stuttering usually precedes overt speech blocks.
The problem with the PWS is that contrary to the norm, his speech is under his conscious
control. Conscious control here refers to what I call ‘scanning’ for difficult words in the sen-
tence intended to utter. How does his subconscious mind know which words are difficult? By
identifying feared sounds gathered over a lifetime of terrible speaking experiences, the list of
which lengthens with each passing day. Once the PWS identifies the trigger word, he is
trained in such a way that he will try his best to avoid speaking the word at all costs. In the
above example, ‘name’ was the feared word. The PWS will keep repeating the preceding
word (my) because he does not want to utter the feared word. This is the mechanism of cov-
ert stuttering, when the person who stutters unconsciously tries to avoid speaking a particular
word due to the belief that he will not be able to. The repeated word is not the problem, the
word that follows is. The PWS will only utter the word when it gradually does not seem fear-
ful enough, or when he has no choice but to say the word. In the former scenario, the difficult
word comes out almost normally after a devastating series of word repetitions. In the latter,
an overt speech block follows.
What happens when the body comes across something it fears? The well known ‘fight
and flight’ response. The sympathetic nervous system goes into overdrive when a feared
word approaches, manifesting itself with pounding palpitations, excessive sweating, etc. This

response occurs when the word has not yet come, hence, the term ‘anticipatory anxiety’ is
used to refer to it. It makes the body ‘ready’ to deal with the supposed danger. How does the
body do that? By unleashing the valsalva maneuver, the end culprit. What happens when you
are told to lift something which you already know is very heavy? You will involuntarily take
a couple of deep breaths, and as you bend down and hold the weight, you will trap air inside
your rib cage and expire forcefully against a ‘closed airway’ as you try to push the weight off
the ground. This helps to give an initial burst of energy to abruptly lift a heavy (or supposed-
ly heavy) weight. The same phenomenon is come across when we defecate. It now seems fa-
miliar, right? Its purpose of air trapping is to increase air pressure inside the lungs in order to
help a person exert physical effort or force things out of the body (like a word, perhaps?).
Therefore, it can be safely said that the valsalva maneuver is physiologic. It is most probably
the abnormal interference of the valsalva maneuver which results in speech blocks. The fol-
lowing mechanism, better known as the ‘valsalva hypothesis’, is quite easy to fathom if the
above text has been understood.
As discussed earlier, the primary problem lies in the scanning and identification of a dan-
gerous/feared word. After trying to avoid the word (covert stuttering), a time comes when the
person has to say the word no matter what, although he is still afraid. The person who stutters
is already in a state of sympathetic overdrive, and when the stuttering mind will try to exe-
cute the ‘dangerous and fearful’ action of saying the particular word, the body will be neuro-
logically prepared for a valsalva maneuver, with the larynx prepared for effort closure to pre-
vent air from escaping and not for phonation. Apparently, the subconscious mind of the stut-
terer believes that the word can be pushed out by force, because the feared situation is, after
all, a ‘block’. But can it work? It is not possible. The main action which ultimately leads to
the entrapment of air in the rib cage is the closure of vocal cords. If the vocal cords are shut
tightly when attempting to speak, no sound can come out because no air passes through to
vibrate the vocal cords. The slight sounds that do escape the mouth during a block is when
some air manages to squeeze through the shut vocal cords because of the excessive force the
PWS applies. The duration of vocal cord closure and valsalva maneuver, varies from person
to person and depends on the intensity of social anxiety and the fear of the words and is
hence, directly related to severity.
The PWS is now trapped. Trying to force the word out of a block may seem to be the
right thing to do, whereas it is not. The harder one tries to be fluent, the more intensely the
valsalva mechanism will interfere. This is why a person who stutters suffers from intense
blocks in situations where it is relatively more important to speak, i.e., vivas, presentations,
public speaking, trying to make an important argument/ point, or speaking when the center of
attention. Constant repetition of the valsalva-stuttering cycle creates strong nerve pathways
linking speech to the valsalva mechanism in the brain. It consequently becomes a habitual,
neurologically-based behavior that is very hard to eradicate.

As he waits his turn in line, he starts believing that he will make a total fool
of himself by not being able to say the word “mutton”. This belief, in turn, be-
gins to shape his perceptions. The frown on the face of the clerk behind the meat
counter, says that he’s not having a good day, that he’s rushed, that he’s intol-
erant of anyone who would cause a delay. The two guys chatting in line behind
him seem superficial and judgmental. They will probably laugh or snicker when
they discover he can’t speak. He desperately looks for friendly faces around him
but does not find any. He believes that he will stutter and make a fool of himself.
His emotions are rooted in fear and terror. Then, it is his turn to order, and
that’s when his divided intention comes into play.
“Yes, sir. Can I help you?”
“Yes, I...I...I would like two k....”
Damn. He’s stuck on the word “kilos”.
Apart from the valsalva mechanism or perhaps in combination with it, a clouding of in-
tention can also result in speech blocks. To speak a word or rather, to carry out any action, it
is crucial to have a clear intention. But when trying to utter a difficult word, there is a big
conflict of interest; physically, the PWS wants to say the word but at a mental level, he does
not. He hopes that he never has to say the word to avoid the psychological trauma of a block,
even though he is physically struggling to get the word out. Try interlocking your fists togeth-
er with the fingers and pulling them in the opposite directions with an equal amount of force.
What happens? The hands stay where they are, even though so much force is being applied.
Bear in mind that the mechanisms discussed above are altered greatly in specific circum-
stances a PWS finds himself in. No one stutters speaking to himself when alone, when nobody
is listening, even if they cannot complete the shortest of sentences in a social situation. De-
spite this telling ‘symptom’, so-called speech therapists in our country (probably in other
countries too) ceaselessly force their patients to practice in front of their mirrors, locked in
their rooms. If a PWS is completely fluent when alone, what benefit will it provide? Speech
therapists are successful, that is true. But the success comes from ways which work inadvert-
ently in a manner different than planned. I remember some of my earliest speech therapy ses-
sions, the clearest of which made me believe that I was ‘cured’. My therapist asked me to tap
my index finger rhythmically every time I had to speak, while speaking each word simultane-
ously with a tap. One tap, one word. When I tried, it made me sound monotonous and robotic,
but I did not stutter. Words came out of my lips like butter. After a couple of similar sessions,
I began to use this technique regularly and in five days, the therapist ‘discharged’ me, adding
my name to his list of successful cases. After another five days, however, the taps ceased to
show their magic. Robotic speech didn’t work anymore. I was back to scratch, and got worse
as time passed because people put the blame on me for ‘not practicing or trying hard enough’

and made me feel that it was my mistake. It is only lately, when I realized that the one tap-
one word method just served as a distraction from ‘scanning’ the words before saying them.
Initially, I had to direct my complete attention to synchronize words with taps and stopped
focusing on difficult words. But as I practiced the technique more and more, it began to come
more naturally and the synchronization became more and more effortless. My attention went
back to scanning and hence, the stuttering relapse. This is just not my story but an account of
the experience of every PWS with speech therapy. The one tap one word method is just one
of many techniques that exist, but all those which work share a common mechanism: distrac-
tion. This, however, is harmful in the long run.
The importance of scanning is such that when a PWS reads something for the first time,
he is markedly fluent because he just utters what he sees without getting time to scan for dif-
ficult words. But if a PWS reads an essay written by himself or an article he has already read
a few times, there will be no improvement in speech as he will know what is coming next
and will unconsciously ‘scan’ for difficult words, plunging himself into the vicious cycle of
speech blocks.
Another prevailing misconception is that by repeatedly trying to speak in feared situa-
tions, like giving presentations, a PWS can finally overcome the fear as he will get used to
these stimuli. This concept is very appealing if thought about in the ‘practice makes perfect’
manner. However, not any practice makes perfect. Only the right one does. By stuttering re-
peatedly in feared situations, the PWS is just being made perfect to stutter in all such situa-
tions. Throughout this essay, I have emphasized the importance of the fear of words in the
causing of blocks. By continuing to stutter in feared situations, the fear of already feared
words will simply increase. The next time a PWS will find himself in similar situations, he
will remember about bad experiences in the past and will ‘scan’ more, because the past situa-
tions (or so-called practices) have only made him sure that he will not be able to manage.
One can only master the clinical examination of a lump by practicing the right steps; is stut-
tering the right way to speak?
Suddenly, the word “kilos” escapes his lips. “Of....” He has set his lips to
say “mutton”, but there is no air escaping from his lungs. He is pulled by two
opposing forces—the poles of a divided intention. He wants to say “mutton”—
in fact, the situation demands it. People are waiting, and the clerk behind the
counter is anxious to complete the sale. Yet, to let go and speak means that he
has to risk the fact that the people around him may see him struggle, which is
not a pretty spectacle. He later on will say that he was afraid he was going to
stutter. But perhaps, it is more than that. Perhaps, it is that his body is in a full
fledged fight-or-flight response. His emotions are rocketing off the scale; yet,

he is trying to keep his composure. Anyone looking at him would simply see
an apparently calm young guy, inappropriately lost in thought.
You may question why the scanning does not take place when the person speaks to
himself, alone? This normality during self-talk is the reason why I accentuated the impact
of social anxiety as a possible trigger. Scanning occurs when it is ‘important’ for the PWS
to be fluent, as described before. For example, when I have to say a difficult word, like
‘Sahiwal’, I will block on it irrecoverably. I will then write the word Sahiwal on a piece of
paper and show it to the listener to get the message across. As soon as he looks at the paper,
the word Sahiwal slips easily through my lips. It is not a feared word anymore, for the time
being. Why? Because now the listener knows the word regardless, and it is not important
anymore for me to say it. Similarly, a PWS may take ages to get a feared word out, but after
saying it, he will feel no struggle to repeat the word immediately for any number of times.
“Ssss…(struggle)…sssahiwal, Sahiwal, Sahiwal, Sahiwal”. Why? Because the word is al-
ready out and the repetitions carry no significance. Words are deemed fearful or dangerous
only when they carry social importance. Indeed, observable speech blocks are just the tip of
the iceberg.
When the word “mutton” doesn’t come out, he cuts off the air flow and
resumes his pensive look. The silence is awkward. He has cut off all commu-
nication with the world around him. The panic state has enveloped him total-
ly. The silence is deafening.
“.…mmmutton.” Phew. The crisis is over. The counter man finally knows
what he wants and goes about slicing off two kilos of mutton. The sounds of
the store once again surround him. He is aware that his face is flushed. The
whole scenario consumed twenty seconds. To him, it seemed like a millenni-
um.
People often ask me why people who stutter make such a big deal of their speech
blocks, and tell me that they don’t see other handicapped people being as much depressed
and troubled. One should just accept the fact that he has a problem, should learn to live
with it and should get used to it because so much time has been spent facing this condition,
right? It is not that straight-forward. What makes life challenging for a PWS is hope. Hope,
that one day he will be fluent enough to express himself without much trouble, even if not
completely fluent. Hope, that with the ‘right’ approach, he can overcome. Hope, that his
decisions and actions, and his choice of career will not be influenced by stutter. Why the
hope? Because he does not block when he talks to himself in the shower, or when he sings.
He speaks quite well when talking to a little boy or when he feels important in a group of
people. If he can speak well in some conditions, maybe he can work on speaking better in
situations of stress, can’t he? Everyday begins with this hope, only to be shattered after eve-

ry verbal interaction. Yes, people who stutter are lucky enough to at least be able to say
what they want to if given ample time, and they are thankful for that. But a person with an
irreversible and complete inability to speak does not have hope and finds it easier to come
to terms with his way of life. He is not expected to function normally like people who stut-
ter are. There are no funny expressions, no ridicule. It is true that people who stutter have a
better quality of life and are more fortunate, but in comparison, people are too quick to
judge and marginalize what a PWS has to face everyday.
Stuttering is a difficult experience for both the PWS and the listener, who has no idea
how to respond even if he wants to help. Struggling to speak, with all those facial jerks and
tongue tremors, is a very personal and intimate moment for the PWS which he shares with
you, even though you may not look at it in a similar light. It is very difficult, but all a PWS
wants when speaking to you is an honest attempt to react as normally as possible to his
struggle. Because it is you, who directs whether his blocks become less or more severe as
the conversation proceeds. It is not possible for a person to overcome stuttering without
the support of the people he is connected with. The first step for both the PWS and you,
the listener, is to understand the mechanisms and mental processes behind the condition,
and you have already taken it.

Over a Cup of Tea
Umera Mehmood
Final Year

Q. If you became the vice Chancellor of UHS, what change
would you bring in the system?
The post entails numerous fields: the compilation of syllabus,
examination system and other academic duties, which you realize only after you have
been handed the responsibility. Of course, everyone has a vision beforehand of what
they would like to do but you never fully realize the extent of your duty till you're actu-
ally there. For example, one of the most commonly raised problems, is the regulation of
the practical OSPE system. Similarly, the sensitive issue of the examination paper
leaks, postgraduate studies and conducting training workshops of teachers for a better
teaching environment. These are only some of the things that come to mind immediate-
ly.
Q. What do you think is the role of a teacher in this environment?
Nowadays, the terminology has been changed; a teacher is now known as a facilitator
and the one-way communication of knowledge has altogether been changed and is now
bilateral. Earlier, the system comprised of teacher centred teaching but it has now been
converted into a student centred system of teaching. It used to be that the teacher deliv-
ered a lecture. Instead, now a discussion based style between the students and teachers
is preferred so that the students are more active. So, the role of the teacher is to facili-
tate the learning process. Although this has only been achieved to some extent in our
system and a gulf yet exists between the teacher and the student. A teacher needs to
mold himself to the demands of the student. He should inspire respect, not fear. A good
teacher should be well mannered, social, knowledgeable, encouraging, should have
good communication skills and a smiling face. As a student, I myself was drawn to a
lecture where the teacher wasn't too strict and I feel lucky that my students have always
been able to communicate freely with me.
Q. Who is your role model?
When I was a student, I used to idolize Allama Iqbal and loved his work. Later on, I
was impressed by Quaid-e-Azam's determination and his will to take a stand. Regard-
ing teaching, I was inspired by a professor of mine, Dr. Chughtai Sahab of biochemis-
try. His personality and delivery of a lecture was very appealing and he was the one,
Dr. Zafar Tanveer
Principal, Sahiwal Medical College

who inspired me to be a teacher. In practical life, I am greatly impressed by social workers
like Eidhi Sahab; selfless people, who regard others before themselves. Apart from our
own life, family and responsibilities, people who work for the betterment of others, who
take time out of their lives for those lesser privileged, are great people indeed, and should
be followed. It is said,
"Struggle for success makes you a hero but the struggle for satisfaction makes you a leg-
end."
Q. Do you get angry? How do you control it?
It is said that I don't get angry easily. But it is also an accepted notion that a person who
doesn't get angry easily, is formidable when it does happen. This applies to me as well.
When I get angry, I tend to speak more English. According to my mother when I was a
child, I used to throw things around in rage. I don't do that now. I try to remain calm and
relax by drinking water or sitting down.
Q. Why did you decide to accept the position of the head of this institute?
The zenith of being a professor is being appointed as the principal. There are many de-
monstrators but only some associate professors, lesser professors and only one principal.
It is a selective position and it was a wish indeed, to be promoted to such a position. In
anticipation of this post perhaps, I have acquired degrees in executive MBA, LLB and
many other qualifications including a diploma in hospital management, medical educa-
tion, public health, public administration, college and university management. I did Mas-
ters in Health Professions Education as well, my research and thesis is ongoing for that.
All this develops confidence in oneself and makes one better able, I think, to carry out the
responsibilities that come with this position. As long as I am here, I will do all within my
power to fulfill my responsibilities and leave this place better than I found it.
Q. Which was the moment when it sank in that you had finally became a doctor?
During my house job, a patient after getting discharged offered me Rs. 3000 as a gift be-
cause she was so happy with my behavior and the way I had treated her. I refused, of
course, but she was very insistent so in the end, I suggested she make a donation of that
money to the ward she'd been admitted to. That was a moment I remember vividly, which
made me very elated and proud of being a doctor. The biggest happiness for me as a doc-
tor, however, was when I delivered my first lecture to a second year MBBS class, as a de-
monstrator. It was '88 and in those days, demonstrators did not use to deliver lectures. So,
when a teacher was needed, I volunteered despite objections from my colleagues. My first

lecture was a resounding success, and the reaction of the students and their admiration and
liking warmed my heart. I guess at the end of it all, I have always identified myself more as
a teacher than a doctor.
Q. Tell us a little about your beginning. How did you decide to become a doctor?
I belonged to a modest agricultural family from a village near Multan. We had to walk two
miles to our school in the extreme cold of the winters of those times. It used to be so cold
that we had to stop a couple of times on our way, just so we could light a small fire and
warm ourselves. We used to sit on rugs in our class and swept the school ourselves in rota-
tions. It wasn't until I was in fourth grade that we got tables and benches in our school. I
wasn't interested in studying just then. Then one day, I found an old bus ticket on my way
and I wasn't able to read it! That effected me a lot; that I wasn't able to read shamed me,
and it inspired me to learn. I started studying hard and became very fond of it. We didn't
have electricity so I studied in the light of an oil lamp till late at night. My mother used to
get up many times to urge me to sleep. I have cut crops, plowed fields and herded cattle in
my youth, though I always carried a book with me. Till the point that my father said one
day, "It's no use bringing him to do such work because he is always so engrossed in his
book, he won't notice if the cow ran off!"
Q. What is the motivation that makes you get up in the morning every day?
When Allama Iqbal went to London, he said some verses:
“ “‫رحسزیخی‬ ِ‫آداب‬‫یھب‬‫ںیم‬‫دنلن‬‫ےس‬‫ھجم‬‫وھچےٹ‬‫ہن‬
He said that a person who does not get up in the morning to pray to his Creator, is wasting
his life. He said:
“‫رحساگیہ‬ِ‫ہ‬‫ےبآ‬‫ا‬‫آت‬‫ںیہن‬‫اہھت‬‫“ھچک‬
I think these are the things which made him great. I was affected by this a lot. So, I get up
every morning so that I can pray to Allah because then, you feel like your day will go suc-
cessfully. I recite Surah Yasin as well with the morning prayers. These things motivate me;
that a person should arrange for food for the soul along with food for the body.
Q. Were you a naughty child? Tell us an incident you recall.
I used to be a very "shareef" child. We used to enjoy in our class and school but I wasn't
naughty. I was even "Imam" for a while back in my childhood. People entrusted me with
the money to get groceries, parents asked me to coach their children in studies, even though

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