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| Afghanistan/South Asia |
| Afghans seek cures at al-Qaeda shrine |
| 2005-06-13 |
| Some men want to walk without crutches, and some women want to get pregnant. A few Romeos stand in front of the graves and ask for love. Others pray for the souls of the dead. Everyone has a wish at this Al Qaeda cemetery. "I have an ache in my left leg," said Khanema, who like many Pashtuns has only one name. "I have a backache. Sometimes it hurts so much, I can't sleep. So I came here to pray to the martyrs. I came from Pakistan only for this shrine." The men buried here at Martyrs shrine and another shrine nearby were killed in late 2001 during the U.S.-led war against the Taliban. On the second night of Ramadan, the fasting month for Muslims, U.S. forces bombed a mosque in the southeastern town of Khost. Dozens of Taliban and Al Qaeda members were killed. The mosque has been rebuilt, light green and peach, with large windows and a sunlit prayer room. But the two shrines for the dead and another in eastern Afghanistan have turned into pilgrimage sites, almost tourist attractions featuring Al Qaeda dead. Villagers sometimes travel for hours to go to these shrines to pray. They stop as they return home to Afghanistan from Pakistan, where they had been living as refugees. They visit every day, or once in a lifetime. The shrines show the logic of some people in the new Afghanistan, particularly those in the south and southeast, where the influence of the Taliban and Al Qaeda has been strongest. Those who come here do not necessarily support terrorists. Many say they do not hate the Afghan government or the U.S. forces. They welcome the upcoming elections and do not want war. But these people are often desperate, for whatever reason, and they believe the dead men might help them. The visitors call the dead "martyrs" and the U.S. forces who killed them "infidels." But they mean that in the nicest way. They see no contradiction. "People love the shrine, and I love it," said Marjullah, the Martyrs caretaker, adding that he helped carry the bodies of the dead to the shrine. But he says he also likes the Afghan government. And he says the U.S. forces should stay as long as they help rebuild the country. At the shrine, there are 39 graves in two rows, starting with No. 1, "This is the leg of an Arab," and ending with No. 39, "The grave of Holy Korans." All told, there are 12 Arabs, eight Pakistanis, eight Afghans, nine unknown people and two graves for Korans destroyed in the blast. Ropes are strung over the graves, and people have tied colorful flags and scarves to the ropes, providing some relief in the mundane beige landscape. One visitor has hung up an embroidered white sheet with "God is great" and a duck, a candle and a butterfly. "Congratulations on your pilgrimage, Asil Khan," proclaims a painted banner on the front of the shrine. The graves are covered with bright yellow flowers and weeds. Visitors park in the dust outside, just off the main highway leading north from Khost, a town near the border of Pakistan. They taste a pinch of salt for good health, and some put money into the wooden donation box in front; money will be used to build a roof over the brick walls. People then walk up and down the aisle of graves, pausing maybe in front of No. 3, "Martyr Paradise," or No. 34, "Hamidullah from Badakhshan." Khanema, who does not know her age, ties knots in the scarves hanging over grave No. 16, marked simply "Arab." She unties others, in a ritual she hopes will end her pain. "The people who are deaf, who cannot talk, who are sick, who are paralyzed, they come here and they are made better," said Ajab Noor, 27, who sometimes visits the shrine to pray. "This is not a place for lovers who come to pray for sweethearts." "Why not?" countered Gulab, who said he was 29 or 30. "I have come more than 50 times, believe me, for two years. I am in love. But I have got nothing. I am drowned in the water. "Many people have come, and it has worked. I don't know why my prayer is not accepted." A minute later, he asks for help in finding a wife. Others have had more luck. Gulwali Shah, 18, prayed at the shrine six times. "God, give me the one I love," he thought to himself. Finally, a year ago, he married his sweetheart, after both families agreed. Still, Shah comes to the shrine to see the graves. "They were both devoted Muslims and Al Qaeda," Shah said. "Some of them fought for nothing. Some of them fought for the sake of God." The nearby Al Qaeda shrine, called Arabs Family Shrine, is smaller, a large grave plot where many people are buried. Besmellah, the caretaker, insists that these victims are women and children, although visitors say they are Al Qaeda and Taliban members. As Besmellah talks, a dozen women and girls walk in, stand by the mass grave and then leave. Besmellah said he believes the women may want to get pregnant, but he would never ask them, as the conservative culture does not allow it. He said many people come here and are cured. "I have seen lots of these cases, I don't want to lie to you," said Besmellah, who is about 45. "People who could not walk came here. On the way out, they walked away. People who could not talk came. When they left, they started speaking." He is still waiting. He limps here every day on his artificial leg, leaning on his crutch and walking carefully in his Adidas tennis shoes. He lost his lower leg in a land-mine explosion. But he is a practical man. Unlike some others who visit these shrines, he knows there are some things even prayer cannot fix. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #3 So would it be ok to go over and piss on their graves - like they like to come over here and piss on our flag? |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-06-13 19:11 |
| #2 Lol! Perfect, RD! |
| Posted by: .com 2005-06-13 18:40 |
| #1 another fricken holy site...I have a headache. |
| Posted by: Red Dog 2005-06-13 18:36 |