Somewhere between Pasrur and
Lahore on the side of the main path, many people on their journeys. Most of them
are on their foot, while some rich men and families could afford to be on a
horse or a bullock cart, others used to walk along a small ‘mazar’ of an unknown
man. There was a small well near the ‘mazar’ and frequent travelers on the route
look forward to stop there for resting.
There was a small hut next to the ‘mazar’ in which a 60 year old woman lived.
She was a religious woman praying five times a day, armed with devotional charm;
she used to serve water and whatever else she had, to weary travelers. Despite
her being a very religious and devoted woman, she carried a feeling of anger and
resentment. Most travelers at this stop got puzzled by this apparent paradox and
if anyone dares to ask her any questions, she kept repeating the following story
to them.
Once upon a time, there was a handsome young man called ‘Mirza’ who lived in
Sialkot.
At this stage, her voice got choked and for a few moments she unable to speak.
Her audience was left in no doubt by her sad glances towards the ‘mazar’, that
it must be final resting place of that handsome young man she is talking about.
Then, she gathered her courage and again continued her story.
Mirza was in love with this beautiful girl from Pasrur. The girl name was Sahiba.
A feeling of anger rose in her voice and her audience could feel the earth
tremor in fear of this saint’s emotions. The chirping birds on the tree under
which she was sitting stunned into silence, the wind stopped and sun became
still. She paused for a moment, control her anger and wait for the birds to
start chirping again and then to continue her story.
Sahiba was also very much in love with Mirza. She had resolved that she would
not marry any man except Mirza. Mirza was a well known horse rider and Bow and
Arrow marksman. There was not any other man living in and around the five rivers
who could even beat Mirza in a competition. It was said that Mirza wake up from
his sleep and before his eyes are fully open, he could shoot seven arrows to
kill seven flying birds.
Mirza approached Sahiba’s parents but they refused to give their daughter to
him. Both Mirza and Sahiba vowed that they would not get married to anyone else
except each other. Mirza returned back to Sailkot. All the elder brothers of
Mirza got married one by one. Finally his last sister was going to get married
in a few months. Mirza’s friends taunted him that if he does not get Sahiba’s
hand from her parents, he will have to remain single for the rest of his life.
Mirza took a bet with his friends, that he and Sahiba will get married in a few
months before his sister’s marriage.
Mirza traveled on his horse from Sialkot to Pasrur. There, once again, he
pleaded with Sahiba’s parents to marry Sahiba to him but they refused. At night,
Mirza slipped into Sahiba’s home and the two lovers decided to run away. Mirza
seated Sahiba behind him on the back of his horse and the two trotted towards
Sailkot.
When they were far away from Pasrur, Sahiba asked Mirza to stop for a rest.
Mirza knew that now that the sun has risen, Sahiba’s parents would find out and
her seven brothers would be searching for her and avenging for Mirza. However he
heeded to Sahiba’s request and decided to stop under a tree.
The woman saint’s eyes turned up to the leaves of the tree under which she was
sitting with her audience and narrating the story. She paused for a moment as if
asking permission from the tree to tell what happened next and continue.
Mirza stopped and tied his horse. He handed his bow and seven arrows to Sahiba
and asked her to be on the lookout while he takes a nap. He instructed Sahiba to
keep the Bow and Arrow within his reach just in case, somebody is following
them. Sahiba, in love with this young man, took every instruction he gave as a
command and dutifully sat down with the Bow and Arrow guarding the place. Mirza
was soon fast asleep.
Sahiba heard a commotion from the other side of the hill. She heard her brothers
calling out her name and soon saw them carrying swords to rescue her. Sahiba was
shattered, she looked at her sleeping lover and then again looked towards her
brothers, who by now had seen her and were running towards her and Mirza with
swords waving in their hands. Sahiba knew that these seven swords are no match
to Mirza’s arrows and felt guilty towards all her brothers pending deaths. She
wanted to escape but thought she could do so and still let her brothers live. To
save her brothers from Mirza’s arrows, she decide to wake up Mirza after hanging
the bow and arrows a bit high up in the trees so that they could not be grabbed
easily.
She woke up Mirza. Mirza saw the swords and men running towards him and gave a
laugh. He asked Sahiba to give him his Bow and Arrows so that he could stop them
in their tracks. Sahiba pointed her finger to where the bow and arrow were, away
from Mirza’s reach. Mirza was stunned at this treachery of her lover and before
he could retrieve his bow and arrow, he was cut into pieces by Sahiba’s
brothers.
Woman saints’ face turned into stone, the silence in the air was filled with an
expectation of an outburst.
O, People of the world, there is no worse kind of treachery than letting your
lover down. Sahiba was cruel and deserves my condemnations, she was not
trustworthy, she could not make her mind between her brothers (her past) and her
lover (her future) and in the process she has lost the most precious thing she
had in her life.
Woman saint now got up from her seat and as if she is calling higher powers of
the sky and said.
If there is any power looking after this world, I ask you to punish Sahiba for
her ghastly crime, I ask you to let me tell her story to everybody who passes by
so that they can also condemn her, those of you, who are going to Pasrur,
beware, go there and spit on the ground and condemn Sahiba.
Woman saint then broke down in tears; her whole body is shaking with indignation
and sorrow. She would quietly retire into her hut for the rest of the night.
No body dared to ask her anything more. Not even a foolhardy dared to ask, what
her relation to either Mirza or Sahiba was.
If any one had dared to ask her, they found out that it was Sahiba herself who
is living at Mirza’s ‘mazar’ and narrating her own story to every passer by so
that she can atone for her ghastly deed.