Why a Kashmiri Transformed the Meaning of Home for Education

For Muslims, Eid is a day of celebration with family and friends. For Muslims in Kashmir, it also involves not knowing which day could be your last. 

This became a reality for Syed Ahmad and his family on the first day of Eid in 2016, which began with a lush green view of the Himalayas and ended with the mountainside glowing red with torches and machetes as a mob of violent protestors marched towards Ahmad’s town. 

Instances such as these have always been a part of Ahmad’s life. However, this particular incident gave him the realization that he was stuck in this never ending cycle of violence, and the solution to escape it. However, to do so, he had to separate the meaning of home from family. 

When the British left the subcontinent, the unfair division of the Kashmir region resulted in a conflict that has been on going for 73 years. For many, the region holds their centuries-old ancestral homes. Thus, a decision to stay back is a way to preserve their history and culture, while also an act of protest against the tyranny of the oppressor. 

That night, Burhan Wani, a commander of an anti-India militant organization, was killed by Indian forces at a village across the mountain from where Ahmad and his family resided. This resulted in a clash between Wani’s supporters and his opponents, leading to violent protests and state-enforced curfews. With such conditions, Ahmad and his family secretly relocated from Verinag to the city of Srinagar in central Kashmir. 

This wasn’t his first relocation. He and his family initially relocated when he was just 7 when the tensions in the 2010s became too violent. “Conflict is everywhere in Kashmir, it's not like we are safe in Verinag and more safer in Srinagar, it was for my educational purpose,” Ahmad commented. 

During all of these hardships, Ahmad found education as a form of escapism, as a means of distracting himself from what was going around him. “When you're powerless and hopeless, I think you find new alternatives that can give you hope and I think one of the biggest ones was education,” Ahmad added. With his parents and grandparents well-educated and some of them even working as professors and teachers, they understood the power and potential of education. This is why they relocated every time a new conflict arose so that Ahmad’s education remained undisturbed. 

The reason the 2016 incident is so significant in Ahmad’s life is because it was a moment where he and his family came closest to losing their lives. They were confined 

in their house for over a month, with their mornings beginning with the sounds of gunshots and their nights ending with the possibility of a nearby mob raiding their house. 

Ahmad describes that at that time his biggest worry was when he would be able to resume his education. With his outlet for comfort and liberation being taken away, Ahmad grew frustrated and angered day by day until a moment of clarity came to him. 

“I think there and then I realized that I want to move beyond the boundaries of this neocolonial state, and acquire a higher education that I deserve, and just read and study more so that I can come back, and leave a greater impact on my community.” 

Ahmad then immediately let go of his dreams of studying at a med school in Kashmir and focused on applying to various schools across the globe. With many acceptances to choose from, Ahmad accepted the admission offer from Georgetown University in Qatar as it not only provided him with a generous financial aid package, but it also gave him the opportunity of majoring in international politics, with the option of taking various liberal art courses. Ahmad mentions that this was perfect platform in acquiring the right tools and skillsets in better understanding the complex interactions among people and social institutions, and later applying this knowledge to the situation of Kashmir after graduation. 

Ahmad has witnessed countless relocations his entire life for education. Home for him has always been associated with where his family is, and he knew there would be a contradiction with their meanings when he leaves for his new ‘home’. In August of 2019, Ahmad left for Qatar. At least now, a relocation was under his own decision. 

“Home for me is not territorial or geographical, it’s more of an abstract term, which I create, recreate, construct, deconstruct, reconstruct within my social context,” Ahmad added. With his two years studying in Qatar, he has found a new meaning for home. “I have separated the idea of family from home,” Ahmad said. He believes that this way, he feels less homesick and more motivated to pursue his dreams. 

“Over the summers, the pandemic stopped me from going back home, but for him (Ahmad) it was his geopolitical circumstances, but even then, he not only remained strong himself but also gave me hope,” said a close friend, Aashish Karn. This approach to acquiring education while separating family from home came in essential during the summers when Ahmadtook additional summer courses during a pandemic and was a beacon of hope for his dorm mates. “We have spent countless summer nights at the dorm study rooms, and his presence would always fill the room with assurance and strength,” said Abijeet Pant, a classmate of Ahmad. 

Ahmaddescribes the separation of home and family was harder than the life-threatening circumstances he had lived through in Kashmir. He believes that in the end, all of these sacrifices will be worth it, not only for his own self development, but for the betterment of his society. 

“After graduate studies, I plan to come back and resolve or do my bit in helping the society in Kashmir through policy and law-making,” Ahmad added. “I want to bring a fresh perspective to the ongoing struggle.”