Political Awakening and the Birth of Kashmiri Identity

The identity formation in the state of Jammu and Kashmir has followed a uniform pattern. These identities which evolved over a large span of time may be located in the specific geographical and environmental spaces. They have the common characteristic feature of a common language spoken by a group of people with a common history of observing common traditions, rites and rituals. All these components have endowed these identities with an arena of primordiality. The prominent aspect of these identities has been their inclusiveness in absorbing new and sometimes even foreign influences of religions and cultures resulting in adding layer after layer in the formation of their distinct personalities. The incorporation of shared historical and cultural values shaped these identities in a mould in which the religious edges of the identity remained subdued or even dormant. Interestingly the capacity of absorption and accommodation of these identities resulted in two diametrically opposite consequences. On one hand these identities remained humane and inclusive, incorporating and reflecting broader human and universal values. On the other side, they acquired the traits of particularism which in the later stages of building multicultural and multi-ethnic nation states posed multi-faceted problems. Significantly as long as these identities remained and thrived in the domain of cultures, they cemented the social structures. However, once they moved into the political domain, their fragmentary characteristics came to the fore. Ironically in one domain these identities reflected equanimity but in the other they appeared to be fractious.