This is a very interesting chapter. It compares the Tajiks in Afghanistan to those in Soviet Central Asia where life is different due to the Soviet influence. It also briefly discusses Ismaili Muslims in the region and the following topics: agriculture, animal husbandry, home styles, tribal democracy, alcohol, etc. It mentions that Tajik women rarely wore the veil and influenced decisions in the village councils (majlis) even though they did not attend.
Comments: 2/1/10
Here are some quotes about the veil which remind me of Northrop's works on the hujum in Soviet Uzbekistan and his discussion of the various reasons, often not outwardly apparent, why the veil was worn and the Soviet failure to quickly change society.:
- "Sophisticated Tajik urban women in Afghanistan continue to come out of purdah (seclusion) and the veil. However, a strange reversal of attitudes occurs when Tajik village women move to towns and cities as their husbands and fathers seek out new economic opportunities. To village women the chadry has become a symbol of modernization because to wear it indicates that the wearer no longer has to work in the fields. The new "urban" women flaunt their chadrys when they return to their old village homes for a visit." (pp. 392-393)
- "In the old city sections of the larger urban centers in Tajikistan (and elsewhere in Soviet Central Asia), one occasionally sees a woman wearing the traditional black horsehair veil, although such a costume is illegal in the eyes of Soviet authorities. Tradition and custom die hard." (p. 393)
A functional, three generation pattern permeates the lives of the rural Afghan Tajik. The grandparent generation represents the past; grandfathers and grandmothers are walking encyclopedias of the society. The mother-father, aunt-uncle generation represents the present, the actively functioning economic and procreating element. The children represent the future, and are taught the nonmaterial aspects of life (origin myths, locally oriented beliefs, morality tales, etc.) by grandparents and their economic and social roles by parents, aunts, and uncles.One final quote from page 392 about Islam:
Just as the annual cycle is partly dominated by nature, the life cycle of the Tajik is largely shaped by Islam. Birth, puberty (circumcision for boys; commencement of menstruation for girls), marriage, and death are ritually marked, either with a celebration or mourning. Even in Soviet Central Asia, the intensive anti-religious campaigns have not completely eradicated Islam from the lives of people.Descriptors: 1970s, anthropology, chapter, D, ethnography, identity, Soviet, Tajiks
