Conference Presentations by Natasha Shahid
This paper, written by a teacher of Pakistan Studies and History in Lahore, Pakistan, examines th... more This paper, written by a teacher of Pakistan Studies and History in Lahore, Pakistan, examines the content of the textbook for Pakistan Studies assigned to 12th Grade students by the Punjab Textbook Board – the state-run publishing and curriculum designing house dedicated to producing textbooks for public schools in the Punjab, the most densely populated and urbanized provinces of Pakistan. It seeks, in particular, to highlight in the concerned book instances of ideological brainwashing, prejudice towards religions other than Islam, and bias against historical figures during the Pakistan Movement. The paper further also seeks to highlight – through examples personally encountered by the writer – the true extent of the suppression of freedom of thought and discussion in the Pakistani classroom.
This paper seeks to present a review and analysis of medieval Muslim historiography – especially ... more This paper seeks to present a review and analysis of medieval Muslim historiography – especially that originating in what constitutes modern-day Iran, Iraq, and Syria, or the-then Seljuk Empire – with exclusive reference to its anti-Nizari Isma'ili content. The Nizari Isma'ili sect, also called the "Hashshashin" , was an offshoot of Isma'ilism that was created in 1094 AD after the death of al-Mustansir bi'Allah, the Caliph-Imam of the Fatimid Empire. The sect was primarily founded by Hasan bin Sabah, and was insultingly called the Hashshashin – better known to the English-speaking world as the Order of the Assassins. This paper would attempt to record and reflect upon the hateful opinions presented by the abovementioned writers about the Hashshashin, and would further attempt to relate their hateful rhetoric to intra-faith sectarian violence committed by Muslims in the modern world.
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Conference Presentations by Natasha Shahid