Pata Khazana – a response to its attackers!

[marwat]

For your kind knowledge he lived in peshawar when he was exiled from Afghanistan and there he used to attend the litrary meetings where discussions would be made on different issues. And everybody know that Pata Khazana from its very birth was criticised by the scholars like Mckenzie and Qalandar saib but Habibi saib never tried to answer their objections. and yea that's true that Pata Khazana fel meezan was given the shape of the book four years later after Habibi's death but the criticism in litrary circles was there since the very birth of the book.

BTW who give the book the name "Pata Khazana"? Habibi saib? or Shah Hussain Hotak?

shah hussain hotak, by the way what was the Mckenzie objection?

[Brown Skinned Savage]

How come we don't have any tazkira of Shah Hussain Hotak where he pens or names a book Pata Khizana?

[Samandri]

BTW who give the book the name "Pata Khazana"? Habibi saib? or Shah Hussain Hotak?

shah hussain hotak, by the way what was the Mckenzie objection?

Muhammad hotak, not Shah Husaain Hotak who was his patron and badshah

[Yousafzai Pakhtun]

shah hussain hotak, by the way what was the Mckenzie objection?

that is the very first objection then, Did Hotak know that the book will be lost and will be found thousands years later by Habibi so it will be kinda "hidden treasure" haha
why did he name it Pata Khazana? was it hidden/lost in his times too?

[Samandri]

that is the very first objection then, Did Hotak know that the book will be lost and will be found thousands years later by Habibi so it will be kinda "hidden treasure" haha
why did he name it Pata Khazana? was it hidden/lost in his times too?

No offense but very childish commentary is going it. First of all Muhammad hotak (not shah hussain hotak) didnt write it "thousands of years ago" and Habibi didnt find it "thousands of years" later in some treasure cave. Pata khazana is "anthology", meaning its collection of poems and pieces of writings of various poets from the 8th century Amir Kror to 18th century Shah hussain hotak. Shah hussain ordered Muhammad hotak to compile it. And Habibi claim to have found the manusript in a private library of some one.

[Badlun]

What a rubbish. It means Habibi wrote all those poems himself!and all the poets mentioned in the anthology never existed? Amir krorh and people like Bet nika etc are real people not ghosts.
A man like Habeebi who was converted later to Farsiwanism cannot fabricate so many lies.
Can any body give link to Fil Meezan of Qalandar?I saw this book long ago but dont have it.

[Yousafzai Pakhtun]

What a rubbish. It means Habibi wrote all those poems himself!and all the poets mentioned in the anthology never existed? Amir krorh and people like Bet nika etc are real people not ghosts.
A man like Habeebi who was converted later to Farsiwanism cannot fabricate so many lies.
Can any body give link to Fil Meezan of Qalandar?I saw this book long ago but dont have it.

It is said habibi and another writer wrote the poems. There is only one poem of each poet so it isnt a great deal for a writer to wrote few poems plus it is just simple poems like the one "la ma atal nista" The books that they have mentioned from which the poems have been taken were never found anywhere in this world. At one place there is name of the Attock which was built later by Mughal emperor Akbar there are lot of other anachronism mistakes.

[Samandri]

At one place there is name of the Attock which was built later by Mughal emperor Akbar there are lot of other anachronism mistakes.

ANP-wala, you have raised a valid point but you should have bothered with some specific details to back up it and make it more convincing as poems in the book are not confined to Pre-akbar period. Let me explain to the members in more clear manner,

Pata Khazana has an encomium in praise of Shahabudin Ghauri , by Skarandoi which book (or Habibi) claims was Pashtun inhabitant from Ghor and was courtier of the Shahabudin. The word Attock is mentioned in that Pashto encomium, that it greets Sultan Ghauri every year.

Attock is named after Attock fort. In 1581 AD Akbar laid the foundations of fort on eastern bank of Indus and named it Atak (Attock) Banaras. Mughal historian Badayuni (1540-1615) tell us that the name was chosen to rhyme with Khattak , the other frontier town. Abu Fazal tell us that Khattak was then known as Khattak banaras. So Habibi the fraudi didnt do enough research for his forgery.

[Samandri]

The oldest pashto literary document was Shaikh Mali's daftar, written in 1418, describing Vesh system of land distribution and history of Yusufzais. The book is lost and no manusript can be found. Famous English historian of 19th century Major H.G.Raverty discusses it in his book "Notes on Afghanistan and part of Baluchistan". Encylopedia of Islam mentions Shaikh Mali's daftar citing Raverty as refrence.

Khushal khan khattak tell us that in Swat there are two things hidden or revealed, the makhzan of Akhund Darweza and Daftar of Shaikh Mali.

[Yousafzai Pakhtun]

That true Khushal Baba tells us about Pir Rokhan his Khair ul Bayan, Akhun Darweza and his makhzan but haven't mentioned any of the poets and books mentioned in Pata Khazana.

[Yousafzai Pakhtun]

No offense but very childish commentary is going it. First of all Muhammad hotak (not shah hussain hotak) didnt write it "thousands of years ago" and Habibi didnt find it "thousands of years" later in some treasure cave. Pata khazana is "anthology", meaning its collection of poems and pieces of writings of various poets from the 8th century Amir Kror to 18th century Shah hussain hotak. Shah hussain ordered Muhammad hotak to compile it. And Habibi claim to have found the manusript in a private library of some one.

My point is not that who compiled and when? whether it was compiled in 8th century or the 18th why was it named as Pata Khazana? don't you think title or the name of a book should have connection with the content? my point is that Habibi wrote this and named it Hidden treasure coz it was in his mind to claim that it is the old literature which was lost and now found but he forgot that why would Hotak name it as "Pata Khazana" instead he would have named it as "Khazana" , "da shairoono Khazana" etc why would he refer to it hidden when he has compiled it?. The very name is doubtful.

[marwat]

The oldest pashto literary document was Shaikh Mali's daftar, written in 1418, describing Vesh system of land distribution and history of Yusufzais. The book is lost and no manusript can be found. Famous English historian of 19th century Major H.G.Raverty discusses it in his book "Notes on Afghanistan and part of Baluchistan". Encylopedia of Islam mentions Shaikh Mali's daftar citing Raverty as refrence.

Khushal khan khattak tell us that in Swat there are two things hidden or revealed, the makhzan of Akhund Darweza and Daftar of Shaikh Mali.

the same author have mentioned work by name of 'Al-Nasr' or some thing like that which he considered one of the oldest known pashto literary document. the work was sacred and regarded in highest esteem by Yusafzai pashtun but was lost according to him.
pata khazana may be fabricated but that is a fact that pashto work in written form existed long ago

[Samandri]

the same author have mentioned work by name of 'Al-Nasr' or some thing like that which he considered one of the oldest known pashto literary document. the work was sacred and regarded in highest esteem by Yusafzai pashtun but was lost according to him.
pata khazana may be fabricated but that is a fact that pashto work in written form existed long ago

Al-nasr?

The oldest Pashto manuscript found by Abdul Hai Habibi is , 7 pages of Tazkira Awlia by Suleiman Mako written in 1216 AD.........http://www.khyber.org/books/2013/Tazkira_Awlia.shtml

He presented this manuscript of Tazkira Awlia before Pata Khazana, in latter case no manuscript was presented. I dont know what are the opinions of scholars about manuscript of Suleiman Mako. If it is genuine unlike Pata Khazana, then it would be the oldest Pashto document discovered.

[Manzareh]

ANP-wala, you have raised a valid point but you should have bothered with some specific details to back up it and make it more convincing as poems in the book are not confined to Pre-akbar period. Let me explain to the members in more clear manner,

Pata Khazana has an encomium in praise of Shahabudin Ghauri , by Skarandoi which book (or Habibi) claims was Pashtun inhabitant from Ghor and was courtier of the Shahabudin. The word Attock is mentioned in that Pashto encomium, that it greets Sultan Ghauri every year.

Attock is named after Attock fort. In 1581 AD Akbar laid the foundations of fort on eastern bank of Indus and named it Atak (Attock) Banaras. Mughal historian Badayuni (1540-1615) tell us that the name was chosen to rhyme with Khattak , the other frontier town. Abu Fazal tell us that Khattak was then known as Khattak banaras. So Habibi the fraudi didnt do enough research for his forgery.

Akbar the afghan king? Took over from Mahmoud was it.

And how come some people speak Pashto in attock and others Hindko? If the Hindko lot are not Pashtun how come they look the same as the Pashtuns in attock.

[Samandri]

My point is not that who compiled and when? whether it was compiled in 8th century or the 18th why was it named as Pata Khazana? don't you think title or the name of a book should have connection with the content? my point is that Habibi wrote this and named it Hidden treasure coz it was in his mind to claim that it is the old literature which was lost and now found but he forgot that why would Hotak name it as "Pata Khazana" instead he would have named it as "Khazana" , "da shairoono Khazana" etc why would he refer to it hidden when he has compiled it?. The very name is doubtful.

But the thing is, Khazana or treasure , is usually buried or hidden.....so "pata khazana" might have been named in that regard....

There is description of 50 poets in pata khazana.......A research is required to detemine how many of them are mentioned in other historical sources or in traditional accounts. Then further research is required to determine that among those who really existed in history, how many of them were really poets?

For example character of ShaiKh Hamid Lodhi really exist in history, he succeeded arab rulers of Multan and his successors are described as of Qaramati faith (Ismaili) who owed allegiance to Fatimid caliphate. This family was defeated by Mahmud of Ghazni. In Pata Khazana his son Nasr and nephew are doing Pashto poetry.........In historical sources the Lodhi surname appears only with with Shaikh hamid, his descendants have rather arabic names e.g Abu Fateh Dawood. No Contemporary source mention those rulers as Afghans, but Tarikh-e-feishta of 17th century mention Shaikh Hamid Lodhi as Afghan. Abdul Habibi picked it up from Tarikh-e-ferishta, and to give them clear Pashtun identity, he makes them doing Pashto poetry.....