Painting 784 3 Kailash Women

This painting portrays Kailash women.The Kalasha, or Kalash, are a Dardic indigenous people residing in the Chitral District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa... more

by Mawra Tahreem

Title

Painting 784 3 Kailash Women

Artist

Mawra Tahreem

Medium

Painting - Acrylic Paints

Description

This painting portrays Kailash women.The Kalasha, or Kalash, are a Dardic indigenous people residing in the Chitral District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. They speak the Kalasha language, from the Dardic family of the Indo-Aryan branch. They are considered unique among the peoples of Pakistan. They are also considered to be Pakistan's smallest ethnoreligious community, practising a religion which some scholars characterise as a form of animism, and other academics as "a form of ancient Hinduism. The Kalash of Chitral maintained their own separate cultural traditions. Kalasha women usually wear long black robes, often embroidered with cowrie shells. For this reason, they are known in Chitral as "The Black Kafirs". Men have adopted the Pakistani shalwar kameez, while children wear small versions of adult clothing after the age of four. The Kalash valley a more liberal approach prevails, partly because of its unique religion and culture. The Kalash people are not Islamic - they worship a pantheon of gods and goddesses and hold exuberant festivals inspired by the seasons and the farming year. The Kalash attitude to gender is also defined by notions of purity. Some rituals can be executed only by men. The temple itself near the area of the seasonal spring festival is off-limits to women as well as Muslims

Uploaded

July 6th, 2018