In an Antique Land: History in the Guise of a Traveler's Tale

Ghosh says that even after he had moved from Lataifa to Nashawy, during his first visit, he had often returned to ask Shaikh Musa questions. Shaikh Musa had known many people from Nashawy, though he visited them less as he got older. Shaikh Musa would tell him stories about his youth in the town, while Ghosh would give him updates on what had happened since.

It was Shaikh Musa who had told Ghosh to seek out Imam Ibrahim Abu-Kanaka, a descendant of one of the founding families of Nashawy. As a young man, Imam Ibrahim had been known for his knowledge of the scriptures and his skill with traditional methods of healing, such as using herbs and roots. Shaikh Musa thought that Ghosh would benefit from meeting him, but he warned him that Imam Ibrahim was now a recluse.

When Ghosh did eventually have something to tell Shaikh Musa about Imam Ibrahim, it surprised him. People in the village now viewed Imam Ibrahim very differently.

While in Nashawy, Ghosh had met the headmaster of the primary school, who arranged for him to meet a man named Ustaz Sabry. Ustaz Sabry was known as intelligent and good at oratory, though Shaikh Musa was doubtful of him. After Ghosh and Ustaz Sabry were introduced, he invited Ghosh to visit his house so they could talk more.

Ghosh tried to do so that night but met an elderly woman at Ustaz Sabry’s door instead. She questioned him on if Indian people really burned their dead or worshipped cows, assuming the purpose of cremation was to “cheat” divine judgement, which she said would not work. Ghosh left after this, before Ustaz Sabry arrived. As he was leaving, the elderly woman urged him to “civilize” (126) his people. 

In Nashawy, Ghosh lived in a house that was cared for by a man named Taha. Taha was an eccentric vendor who made it his business to know a lot about the other villagers and worked many odd jobs to earn extra money. One of these odd jobs was casting restorative spells on people. Ghosh recounts one occasion in which Taha fell sick, and claimed he was ill because he was being envied. He both went to the government clinic to get medicine and called a woman over to break the spell.

Ghosh asked Taha about Ustaz Sabry. Taha informed Ghosh that he had gone too early the last time. He should try to visit again later, about an hour after the sunset prayers.

Ghosh visited Ustaz Sabry’s house at the time that Taha had recommended. He found him lecturing a half-dozen visitors. When Ustaz Sabry noticed Ghosh, he asked why he had not visited earlier and then introduced him to everyone present. Ustaz Sabry urged everyone to welcome him, saying that Egypt and India were similar countries: Both were agricultural, poor due to their colonization, and were now trying to cope with postcolonial issues.

A man named Zaghloul asked if they had ghosts in India, as they did in Egypt. This led to Zaghloul and Ustaz Sabry arguing about whether ghosts existed; Zaghloul insisted that his father had seen the ghost of the man killed at the mowlid months ago while Ustaz Sabry denied that this was possible.

Zaghloul was fond of telling stories. On this occasion, he delved into a story about how the government tried to build a canal through the Nashawy graveyard, where there was a tomb for Sidi Abu-Kanaka (a famously pious man). However, when the workmen tried to dig up the grave, they found that it was impossible. The workmen then asked one of Sidi Abu-Kanaka’s grandsons to open the grave. Inside, the body had not decayed at all. With this proof of the Sidi’s power, the planned canal route was altered.

Ghosh then describes the celebrations for the local religious figures in Nashawy. They had once had festivals like Lataifa, but now they were very toned down and many wanted to stop them. It was felt that they were not properly Islamic and encouraged superstition.

When Ghosh asked this gathering about Imam Ibrahim, he found out that they viewed him as ignorant of modern developments. Despite Shaikh Musa’s praise, these people felt Ustaz Sabry gave better sermons and that Imam Ibrahim’s medicines were ineffective compared to those of modern clinics.

Soon after this, Ghosh left and was guided home by two boys named Nabeel and Isma’il.

Jumping back to 1988, Ghosh says that while he was catching up with Shaikh Musa, he was told that Nabeel and Isma’il had gone to Iraq. This was a huge surprise to Ghosh, who had assumed that Nabeel and Isma’il became employees of the Agriculture Ministry, as they had always intended. The pair had been best friends and cousins, who wanted the well-respected role of advisors to fellaheen on technical matters. In 1988, Shaikh Musa described them both as “good boys,” but when he had first heard about them, in 1980, he complained about their lack of respect for Imam Ibrahim. It had been hard for Shaikh Musa to accept that public life had changed radically since his youth. For Isma’il, Ustaz Sabry held the respect that Imam Ibrahim had during Shaikh Musa’s time.

While Nabeel and Isma’il were walking back from the meeting at Ustaz Sabry’s house, Isma’il talked at length about Ustaz Sabry’s worldliness and piety, sharing an often-repeated story about Ustaz Sabry beating an East German communist in an argument about the existence of God. Ustaz Sabry, and the teachers like him, were expected by the youth to lead them in rooting out anti-Islamic beliefs in the village.

While Isma’il talked extensively on the walk home, Nabeel said little, which was the usual pattern for the two. Their families were soon to be brought even closer together by a marriage between ‘Ali (Nabeel’s brother), and Fawzia (Isma’il’s sister). A marriage between cousins was seen as the ideal bond, as it kept the family close.

When they arrived at Ghosh’s house, Nabeel finally spoke up, asking if boiling water for one made Ghosh miss home. This question struck Ghosh, as Nabeel was the first person in the village who attempted to empathize with what his situation must feel like.

Returning to 1988, Ghosh says that it took him time to absorb the fact that Nabeel and Isma’il had both gone now. He asked why they had left, and was told everyone did when the opportunity came.

Ghosh returns to the historical narrative, stating that for Ben Yiju, travelling eastwards would have appeared the most natural means of improving his life chances. He was born in Ifiqiya, in modern Tunisia, in a family with two brothers and a sister. Evidence points to his family circumstances being modest, but enough to provide him with a comprehensive education.

Ben Yiju’s community specialized in trading in the East, so he was likely following many others’ footsteps when he went towards the Yemeni city of Aden in the 1120s. Here, he contacted Madmun ibn al-Hasan ibn Bundar, the chief representative of the Jewish merchants in Aden and an important player in the Indian Ocean trade. Ben Yiju first became his mentee, and then his business partner. In the early letters between the two, Madmun frequently lays out exact instructions for Ben Yiju to follow, revealing doubts about his efficacy. However, his tone is still affectionate, and it is possible Ben Yiju stayed in his household.

Ben Yiju’s other correspondents in Aden were also connections of Madmun, one of them being Khalaf ibn Ishaq, the writer of the letters which first alerted Ghosh to Ben Yiju’s enslaved Indian man. Ben Yiju was evidently well-connected, but Ghosh insists that it was Ben Yiju’s personal talents that brought him success. The number and length of contacts in his letters suggests he was good at making relationships, a critical skill in his trade.

However, at some point before 1132, Ben Yiju moved to the Malabar coast in India and did not return for nearly two decades. The length of his stay and his refusal to travel back to Aden at all during this time (business in the city seems to have been conducted through the enslaved Indian man) are unusual. Ghosh uses a letter from Madmun to Ben Yiju to explain this situation: It suggests that Ben Yiju had some disagreement with the local ruler of Aden that Madmun was trying to smooth over. Ben Yiju’s departure thus may not have been entirely voluntary.

Ghosh begins to theorize on what this dispute was. He suggests that a civil dispute or money issue could have been resolved quickly by Ben Yiju’s circle of friends. Instead, it is possible that Ben Yiju feared for his safety. Potentially, he had gotten involved in some form of blood feud.

Ghosh returns to the Egyptian narrative, introducing his friend, Khamees the Rat. He had gained the nickname “the Rat” through his mannerisms, but Ghosh wonders if it could be connected to his appearance: A thin face with darting eyes. Khamees was of the Jammal, a broadly-disliked family which had been involved in several recent scandals. Khamees had divorced his wife and remarried, which his ex-wife blamed on his infertility. Khamees’ sister, Busaina, had left her husband.

Zaghloul, one of the guests of Ustaz Sabry, introduced Ghosh to Khamees and several other members of his family. Khamees immediately questioned Ghosh on if Indians burned their dead, a question that Ghosh was asked “almost daily” (168). The other people there urged Ghosh to try to stop this process and convert the Indians to Islam, but Khamees seemed to believe that burning their dead to escape judgement was a very clever move. The conversation continued with more questions about India until Khamees asked if he would be able to ride to India. Ghosh decided to tell them about all the challenges that this would entail and the warzones that it would mean riding through, which greatly impressed the listeners. From then on, Zaghloul would introduce Ghosh by telling people about how much was between India and Egypt. Zaghloul, Khamees, and Ghosh all became close friends, largely because of the two Egyptians’ fascination with the outside world.

Ghosh starts to explain what travel from Egypt to India would have looked like to Ben Yiju. Travelers would have gone down the Nile to modern Northern Sudan to a port named Aidhab, an uncomfortable but busy port that was destroyed in the 15th century by the Sultan of Egypt. A fragment of evidence connects Ben Yiju to Aidhab: A letter addressed to Madmun, that he then forwarded to Ben Yiju complaining that Ben Yiju owed someone in the port money. It appears that Ben Yiju did have to pay the creditor.

Busaina, Khamees’ sister, played a role in Ghosh’s eventual meeting with Imam Ibrahim, albeit accidentally. Yasir, Imam Ibrahim’s son, visited the market every Thursday to collect dues from the vendors, the proceeds of which would be invested in the town. Yasir, like his father, had learned to be a barber but, unlike his father, enjoyed this task. He had managed to save the family business after his father’s anger had driven away most of the customers, and had now set up a barber shop, an unusually successful innovation in the village.

In the market that day, Ghosh was talking to Busaina, who asked him to buy from her as she was trying to establish herself as an independent businesswoman after leaving her husband. As Ghosh later tried to buy grapes from a different vendor, Busaina got into an argument with this vendor because he was trying to rip Ghosh off. This disturbance brought Yasir over, who began to talk to Ghosh and invited him to meet his father.

Several days later, Ghosh stopped at Yasir’s barber shop and was taken to see Imam Ibrahim. Once they were introduced, Ghosh tried to ask about the Imam’s healing methods and his ancestors. However, Imam Ibrahim took offense at the suggestion that he knew more about traditional healing than any others. He told Ghosh that he was trying to forget all about those methods and brought out a tin filled with syringes that he said was the new way. Ghosh realized that traditional remedies had been discredited in Imam Ibrahim’s eyes more than anyone else’s.

They met again when Ghosh went to Yasir’s for lunch. Here, Imam Ibrahim talked about some of the changes that had come to Egypt following the 1952 Revolution. Nashawy had previously been ruled by someone who treated the village as his personal property, but now they had, comparatively, much more freedom. The extent of the change was not appreciated by many of the younger villagers, but all fellaheen of a certain age deeply cherished their deliverance from forced labor.

The meal ended badly when Ghosh asked if Yasir had any brothers. The question hit on a family sore spot, causing Imam Ibrahim to storm out.

Taha claimed to Ghosh that he could foresee the events of ‘Ali’s (Nabeel’s brother) wedding. He predicted that Ghosh would be brought into the small, intimate dinner in the house and asked many questions, as few people there would have met an Indian person. Ghosh, hoping to avoid this, said that he would just try to stay outside, but Taha knew that this would not be allowed.

At the house where the marriage was occurring, a large crowd was gathered around ‘Ali and Fawzia, who sat on raised chairs with their backs to the house. Ghosh attempted to stay outside, but was soon found by Nabeel and his father brought him inside. Ghosh was subjected to many questions, including by one person who thought he might be a spy. Most asked the questions about India that Ghosh had grown used to and did not seem to believe his answers when he said that, in India, many people lived in similar conditions to the Egyptian fellaheen. Ghosh came to realize during this question how desperately the Egyptians wished to modernize. They felt that anyone living in their own conditions was anachronistic to the modern era and, when interacting with the objects around them, could never forget that other places had better technology than they did.

After dinner, Ghosh tried to go into the crowd again to watch dancing but was brought back inside and subjected to more questions. This time, they asked about religious customs and if India practiced circumcision. Ghosh realized that by this, they did not just mean male circumcision, but also female circumcision (also known as Female Genital Mutilation). This was still practiced in many parts of Egypt, though technically illegal. Ghosh soon left the event, discomfited by the questions. Nabeel urged him not to take offense, as the people were just curious.

Ghosh says that he has often wished he had told Nabeel a story from his childhood at this point. As a child, Ghosh lived in East Pakistan before it became Bangladesh. His father was on a diplomatic mission in Dhaka, which happened to be where Ghosh’s ancestors had lived before they emigrated to India. On frequent occasions, visitors would come and stay in their house for a time before leaving. At the time, Ghosh did not question this, but he later realized that the visitors were refugees, fleeing from Muslim attacks to the only Hindu house available. One day, in January 1964, more refugees than ever before crowded into the house and Ghosh’s father ordered him to stay in the master bedroom.

He left the house cook to guard him, but the cook soon left to check on what was happening. Ghosh used this opportunity to go out onto a nearby balcony, which overlooked the lane outside their house. He saw a large crowd of men all with lit torches. The cook soon found him and took him back to his father’s room. Ghosh explored and found a pistol, which he tried to fire but failed. His father came in, took the pistol, and left again. Once this happened, Ghosh realized that his father was afraid they might be killed by the mob, but the police arrived. They had been alerted by Muslim friends of Ghosh’s family and drove the crowd away.

Ghosh later learned that there had been similar riots across Calcutta, but there it was Muslims who had been attacked by Hindu crowds. In both cities it was members of the other religions that had rescued the victims. The cause of riots like these were always the same: A symbolic violation—such as a dead cow placed in a temple, or a dead pig placed in a mosque—would cause an eruption of violence in the city.

Ghosh did not think he could explain this to Nabeel, because the village had been relatively untouched by religious disturbances. The people there would never understand the fear that offending religious symbols could inspire in Indians.

In winter, during a break in the rain, Ghosh set out for the fields with a book. He went to a tree in Khamees’ land, a place he knew was good to read and where he might see his friends. Soon, Khamees’ youngest brother, ‘Eid, emerged from the maize field playing with two girls. When they left, ‘Eid claimed to Ghosh that they wanted to marry him, but he would not marry them. The girls then reappeared, resumed playing, and disappeared again. ‘Eid, unfazed, said that he wanted to marry a different person, a girl from the Badawy family, but their families did not like each other. He explained that the Badawy Ahmed Effendi used to own a lot of land in the village, and he treated its people horribly until government reforms.

At this point Zaghloul arrived and added to the story, saying that Ahemd Effendi had abused the villagers and had not been punished because of his connections to government officials. He also poked fun at ‘Eid for his infatuation with the Badawy girl and said that, as they were fellah, they did not get to love. Ghosh questioned him on this statement and Zaghloul told a story of when he had been obsessed with a woman, but that he had not been able to marry her because his family thought she would not be able to work the land well.

As Zaghloul and ‘Eid continued to talk after this, Ghosh moved away and bumped into Khamees, whom he told what had been happening. Khamees reacted strongly to the news of the girls playing with ‘Eid and asked if they were carrying fodder when they ran away. Ghosh realized that they had been distracting ‘Eid and stealing the family fodder. Khamees remarked that he hoped ‘Eid settled down with a cousin soon.

When talking to Shaikh Musa in 1988, Ghosh was told news about Khamees. Ahmend Badawy Effendi, the son of the abusive landlord, wanted to buy an apartment in Cairo and decided to sell his land. Custom dictated that he offer this land to the Jammals first, and they asked for a month to raise the money to buy it. They went into debt to do this, but were able to buy the land and then pay off their debts within just a few harvests.

Khamees was now very well-off, Busaina had become a seasoned businesswoman, her sons were thriving in school, and ‘Eid had gone off to Saudia Arabia, where he worked in construction for many years. He earned so much from his work that he was able to marry the Badawy girl, in what was seen as a “real love-match” (226).

Returning to Ben Yiju’s story, Ghosh says that one of the earliest documents that can be dated to his move to Bangalore suggests he got married there quickly. This document showed the manumission of an enslaved woman named Ashu in October 1132. Ghosh believes that it is likely that this woman, Ashu, was the person who bore Ben Yiju’s children.

Ben Yiju may have expected to find a sexual relationship quickly in India, as a prevailing stereotype about the area at the time was the easy access to sex. It is possible that he met, and purchased, Ashu in one of the famed brothels of the area, but Ghosh believes the fact that he quickly manumitted her shows that he did not simply want a sexual relationship.

By 1135 Ben Yiju was receiving letters which mentioned gifts for his son, Surur. While there is no definitive proof that Ashu was the mother of this child, both Ghosh and Goitein felt that it was likely. On one piece of scrap paper in the Geniza, Ben Yiju notes that he owes money to Nair, his brother-in-law. The Nairs were a community who formed a part of the population of the Bangalore area, supporting the view that Ben Yiju married here and giving a potential identity to Ashu. Ghosh then argues from the silence of the letter collection when it comes to the mother of Ben Yiju’s children: His son and daughter are frequently mentioned but not his wife, a “pointed silence” (230) that Ghosh believes is explicable if Ben Yiju married a non-Jewish enslaved woman.

In Mangalore, there would have been many marital options that Ben Yiju’s circle found more acceptable, as there was a well-established Jewish community. However, Ben Yiju seems not to have married into this community, leading Ghosh to say that he only hesitates to say there was a marriage of love between Ben Yiju and Ashu because the documents do not definitively prove it.

Back in the Egyptian narrative, Ghosh says that Khamees was haunted by his lack of children. Shortly before Ghosh left Egypt, Khamees asked him to talk to Imam Ibrahim, so he would give Khamees traditional medicines for infertility. Ghosh tried to warn him that he was not close to Imam Ibrahim, but Khamees insisted and so Ghosh tried.

When he did, Imam Ibrahim was immediately short with Ghosh and harshly questioned him on “backwards” Indian practices. He asked how India ever hoped to be like Europe, the place he felt was the most advanced in the world, when they burned their dead. Ghosh tried to insist that many were cremated in Europe, but Imam Ibrahim ignored this. He said that Europe had the best science, the best guns, the best tanks, and the best bombs in the world.

Imam Ibrahim’s attitude angered Ghosh, who began to yell that they had all those things in India too. In fact, they were more advanced in India than Egypt was. Imam Ibrahim responded that this was impossible, claiming Egypt was second only to the West. Ghosh yelled back that they had nuclear weapons in India while Egypt did not, but was then led away by Khamees.

Ghosh says he was glad for this intervention, as he was disappointed in himself for getting into an argument with the Imam that connected success with the way the West interacted with the world, through science and weapons. Ghosh felt that he had symbolically participated in the dissolution of the dialogue that had once linked Egypt and India. Without links, they could now only talk in terms of power instead of morality.

When they were back in the Jammal house, Khamees said that he should ignore that conversation. He would go visit India with Ghosh. He added that if he died there, he wanted to be buried.