In one’s life there are some rare occasions that imprint in us pivotal memories. I want to share with two such memories here about my interaction with our late Mehtar, HH Saif ul Mulk Nasir.

I met the Mehtar Chitral first time, in the morning hours of January 24, 1978 in his office in the Pakistan Embassy Ankara.  When I started talking to him in Khowar he first thought that I am one of the Eastern Turkistani communities who had settled in Mastuj since 1917, learnt Khowar and latter in 1963 got settlement in Turkey under an agreement between the two countries. But actually I was a 23 years old Chitrali Lecturer in Gomal University and was awarded merit scholarship by the RCD Secretariat to study in the Istanbul University. When I introduced myself he opened his arms once again and hugged me with warmth and took me inside his office. He spent with me about 2 hours knowing more about me and advising me what to expect and how to respond. He also explained to me the background of the about 20 Khowar speaking families settled in one of the Turkish villages. Later he assigned Mr. Abdul Jabbar his personal driver from Shoghore to take me to a nice restaurant for lunch and later to the central Bus station for a bus to Istanbul. Mr. Abdul Jabbar spent the whole day caring for me telling me that Mehtar has advised him for it and is following it on telephone. I always thought that only a rarely kind person like the Mehtar can go to such an extent of brotherly warmth and courtesy!

A great memory to live with Your Royal Highness, thanks indeed again.

After the Ankara episode Mehtar’s memory was always deep in my thoughts and heart. I was fond in finding international competition opportunities, making strategies and entering the bout and winning. I competed but failed to enter the World Bank and the IMF but in in the process I learned the art and was thrilled to compete. In 1983 through my friend Mr. Islamuddin of the CMLA Secretariat I found some information regarding competition opportunities in the Islamic Development Bank Jeddah. I competed and got selected and resigned from my Assistant Professorial position from the IIUI. That was the start of the dismal days in my profession and personal life. Apparently my official employment contract was thrown into the dustbin by someone perhaps jealous and I had only a telex copy of the contract which was not acceptable to the overseas Pakistani’s regulatory authorities. In a few weeks I was complexly exhausted, penniless and demoralized. My dream job that I had secured through a global level written and oral competition had reached my hand but only to drift away along with my own prestigious job. There was no one to listen to me and no one ready to understand me. In retrospect I would say, at such lowest times in one’s life the canopy of past memories should be utilized to give the brain a positive direction over the hurdles.

My memory with the King of Chitral in Ankara was the pivotal guide and one day I decided to turn up in the King’s residence to tell him my story and ask from him an advice. When I rang the bell at his residence at F8, Mr. Abdul Jabbar came out with the King’s one year old son in his lap. I told him my desire to meet the King. He went inside and came back to tell me that this matter can be resolved effectively in office as it needs contacts with people overseas. Next morning Abdul Jabbar was sent to my residence by the King and I was taken to his office in the Foreign Ministry. I told him about the outcome of the Turkish educational trip and how it was very helpful in competing globally and getting a fantastic job offer. He was truly a kind King. When he saw my job offer his face flashed with happiness and jokingly he said, “Now I have my own interest in this and with this package you should consider employing both me and Abdul Jabbar!” The King’s job was to retrieve from my employers in Jeddah the original offer letter that never reached me. The King assured me that it will be done within a week. As promised, the next week Abdul Jabbar brought me the duplicate copy of the original employment letter. I came to know later that the kind King in service to his subject had gone out of the royal protocol and had managed to send the highest ranking official from the Pakistan Consulate in Jeddah to the CEO of my employing organization to retrieve the document and to send it back to Islamabad in the diplomat mail.

Let us all take a lesson from here – love and respect for each other, burry hatred and enable each other by removing the manmade and natural barriers on our paths to prosperity, hope and security for us and our future generations.