Kashmir

One of the three distinct cultural areas,
along with Jammu and Ladakh, in the
modern Indian state of Jammu and
Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir is a former
princely state, in which the Hindu Dogra
kings also ruled over the minority populations of the mostly Muslim Kashmiris and
the mostly Buddhist Ladakhis. Since
Indian independence in 1947, this ethnic
and religious division continues to be a
source of trouble, and nowhere more than
in Kashmir. At independence, Pakistan
attempted to take the region by force and
claimed a section of Kashmir. In the time
since then, India and Pakistan have fought
several wars over it; Pakistan claims it by
virtue of their shared religion of Islam;
India claims it by virtue of a document
signed by the last of its kings, Maharaja
Hari Singh. The Kashmiris themselves
have been caught in this regional clash,
and their demands for greater self-determination have been largely ignored.
After the 1986 state elections, which were
widely regarded as rigged, tensions
in Kashmir came to a boil. Since 1990 the
tension has turned into an open rebellion,
assisted by covert aid from Pakistan.
Most Kashmiris became Muslims
during medieval times. Before that time
the region was a Hindu cultural area.
Kashmir still has some stunning examples of early Hindu architecture, such as
the sun temple at Martand, a temple to
the god Shiva at Pandrenthan, and the
shrine to Shiva at Amarnath cave which
356
Kashi
is still an important pilgrimage site.
Kashmir also has a minority Hindu population, known as the Kashmiri Pandits.
Recent troubles have prompted many of
them to migrate south to other parts of
India. Although these two communities
profess different religious beliefs, they
share a common language and sense of
Kashmiri identity and culture. For general information about Kashmir and
regions of India, see Christine Nivin et
al., India. 8th ed., Lonely Planet, 1998.