For The Silk Road Kung Fu Friendship Tour Part 16, click here.

I left Beijing on December 25th arriving in Islamabad early on the 26th. A good Pakistani friend I met waiting for the airplane in Beijing gave me a ride to my hotel. My first full day in Pakistan I went to the ruins of a huge ancient civilization called Taxila which I’ll describe later in this story.

December 27th, 2017 Islamabad, Pakistan

It was on my second day in Pakistan when I met and first interviewed Wushu Master Noor Ahmed Saqib. His story is heartwarming, inspirational and profound on many levels. A few days after interviewing him I got an e-mail that had his story in his own words and it was better than the one I wrote. So in this, Part 17 of my Silk Road Kung Fu Friendship Tour series I simply copy and pasted what he wrote with a few incidental notes from our interview. After that I’ll briefly describe the ancient metropolis of Taxila.

Wushu Master Noor Ahmed Saqib – My Story

“I born in August 1973 in a town named Baddomalhi in Narrowal District, Punjab Province. This is very rural Pakistan. During our interview he mentioned “Our family stitched the designs on shawls; it was enough to get by, to survive. We did always not know what will be in our future.

“In 1986, when I was 13 years old, a guy came to our village and showed me and my fellows some kicks and punches. On our request he told that this is ‘Taekwondo Karate.’ We requested him to teach us but after 15 days he left. Then next year in summer vacation, again he appeared and taught us kicks and punches. Because I was his best student he promised me that when I will complete my 10 year study, he will teach me up to black belt. I was very excited but later he shifted to the UK.

“In 1992, one of my class fellows named Abdul Hameed Tahir met me in Lahore. During discussion he told me that he is learning Kung Fu and he offered me to join the club with him. So I joined the Kung Fu club in Narrowal. My Teacher’s name was Mr. Raza Ali Raan.

“My teacher taught me very well and I became his good student. During my second month of training, my teacher told us that there is an open martial art competition and we will go to participate. It was 25th December 1992, we went to participate in competition. There were different rules like no face punching and no under belt kicks. But our training was like a street fighter with full-body contact and knockout based. So I fought according to Kung Fu rules and I knocked my opponent down within 40 seconds. Let me tell you that my opponent was blue belt in Taekwondo while I had only 2 months training.

“In 1993, I left my village and came to Islamabad (Capital of Pakistan). I started my job at a book shop as a salesman.

During our interview he said: “I came to Islamabad in 1993 and saw another world. Then I got some sense of martial arts and business. I lived in the market for 12 years and used to sleep on the roof of that building,” pointing to a nearby older shop building. “At that time, the food stall area where we are now was covered in grass.” In other words, he wasn’t sleeping on the street; he was sleeping on a rooftop.

“In 1993, I participated in the National Wushu Championship in Quetta Baluchistan province and secured the Silver Medal. Then in 1994, I participated in a Wushu championship “Punjab vs Azad Kashmir”, where I secured Gold Medal and the “Best Fighter” award as I knocked down my two opponents within 7 & 9 seconds.

“In 1996, I opened my first Wushu Training school in Islamabad where I had 26 students from 5 countries including Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bosnia and Comoros. I used to speak in three languages including Urdu, Arabic and English because some students couldn’t understand English or Urdu. It was great time when I was learning and teaching at the same time because I had to survive.

“In 2000, I started participation in District Wushu competitions; then Divisional Wushu competitions and then I participated in a National Championship and won Gold Medals in all competitions. Those were my last championships in which I participated as a player.

“Despite that I was a national champion and best fighter I could not survive with Kung Fu only as there was no financial benefit in teaching or learning Kung Fu. I decided to start some business to survive and keep Kung Fu as a hobby instead of profession.

“In 2001, I started my business of building maintenance. I got married in 2003 and was enjoying my life. My daily routine was I used to go to my office at 9 am to 5 pm then go to my club to teach Kung Fu to my students.

After a long time in 2016 my school fellow who introduced me in Kung Fu, Mr. Abdul Hameed Tahir called me and asked me to come for Wushu trials for the National Championship.

I went there. My friend told me that I was selected as a national coach and I will have to participate in the National Championships with my team. I was surprised. I couldn’t understand how this happened suddenly. I was going to receive the fruit of my 24 years efforts for Wushu Kung Fu and work hardness. I was going to be recognized that I am Kung Fu man. I found tears in my eyes. I praised God Almighty who suddenly blessed me with this greatest prize of my life, Al-ḥamdu lillah (Praise to God).

I participated in the 2016 National Championship with my team. My boys secured one Gold, one Silver and one Bronze Medal, (Al-ḥamdu lillah). I also participated in the fighting division just to examine myself and where I am, and by the grace of God Almighty I secured the Bronze Medal.

When I came back from the championship on 20th December, God Almighty blessed me with another award; I found Mr. Gregory is here in Islamabad on his Silk Road Kung Fu Friendship Tour. I emailed him but in fact I was not hoping to get any chance to see him but because it was a gift for me from God Almighty. Mr. Gregory not only responded to my email but also asked me to meet with him.

“After some discussion he asked me for my interview. I was shocked. It was the second time in my life that my interview was going to be published in an international magazine; before it happened in 1996, when a Saudi magazine al Sharq ul Aosat published my story. Mr. Gregory interviewed me and now I am in front of you with my entire story. All the credit goes to Mr. Gregory who helped me to get my identity in Wushu World community otherwise I was a hidden star.

“Thank you so much Gregory my friend, I will never forget you and your kindness. May God bless you and your family and keep you in his care…”

To that I can only say: “Thank you Master Noor Ahmed Saqib.” In actual fact when in his office, he showed me a collection of several dozen, perhaps 50 or 60 awards and certificates from different competitions and training seminars all over Asia and the Middle East going back decades. I am deeply touched by his great work as a teacher, greatly impressed by his legendary prowess as a Wushu fighter and genuinely honored and thankful he took the time to talk with me. He now owns three companies, two in the engineering/construction industry and another that deals with surveillance and security systems. Though he’s not a rich guy he’s been quite successful in business and has a younger brother that drove us around in a monster Mercedes SUV. Wow! Rags to riches? Not exactly. He’s not rich but the lessons and skills he learned as a Kung Fu and Wushu fighter and trainer translated well into business success in Pakistan’s capital city of Islamabad. Hats off and profound respect to you, brother Saqib!

Besides meeting the masters of Kung Fu and Wushu along the ancient Silk Road, I also am compelled to visit the most ancient and famous of Silk Road sites along the way. Below are some stories from just one such visit.

The Great Metropolis of Taxila

To quote the classic text A Guide to Taxila by Sir John Marshall:

“The city of Takshasila or Taxila as it has more familiarly been known to Europeans ever since Alexander the Great’s invasion of India, was situated at the head of the Sind Sagar Doab between the Indus and Jhelum rivers and in the shadow of the Murree hills where they die down into the western plain.”

In fact, this was an old city long before Alexander the Great entered the Punjab at the age of 30 in 326 BCE. Yet it is not so ancient as many others I’ve visited, having been dated to only about the 6th Century BCE. Heck, the Hittites reigned supreme around 1,700 BCE and even they were far from the oldest of civilizations. Nonetheless, the great metropolis of Taxila is still quite ancient. What it may lack in great antiquity it makes up for in historic prominence. It was for more than half a millennium the king city of the Southern Great Silk Road.

It was at the meeting place of three major trade-routes, from India and the “Royal Highway,” West Asia and Bactria (northern Afghanistan) and the north in Kashmir and Central Asia. Over time it connected Rome and Greece to the Persian Empire and China.

Taxila has a legendary history in Indian literature. The Ramayana states it was founded by Bharata, younger brother of Rama who appointed two of his sons as rulers of the two cities: Taxila and Pushkala. In Buddhist literature, Taxila is referred to as a seat of learning and home of world famous teachers. According to Jains Taxila was visited by Hindu Saint Rishabha - eighth Avatar of Vishnu of the twenty-two incarnations - in about 6th Century BCE!

Because of its historic prominence – the greatest of all the cities between the Indus and the Jhelum - it was visited by many of the greats of history, including Alexander, Plutarch (46-120 CE) who remarked on the richness of the soil. It was visited by Chinese travelers Fa-Hien (405 CE) and the Chinese Buddhist pilgrim traveler Xuanzang (602–664 CE) who described the rich harvests, flowing streams and fountains, abundant flowers and fruits, and an agreeable climate. Yet enormous battles were fought here on foot, horses and battle chariots. It has seen the rise and fall of many civilizations. After the death of Alexander the troops which remained in the Punjab were soon driven out or destroyed by Chandragupta. The pathways through this ancient capital are rich in the fine powdery dust of the ancient habitants of this still fertile valley.

A sign posted in the Taxila Museum states:

“In the first 1000 years after Christ, merchants, missionaries, monks, mendicants and military men traveled on the vast network of Central Asian tracks that became known as the Silk Road. Linking Europe, Pakistan, India and the Far East, the route passed through many countries and many settlements from the splendid city of Samarkand to tiny desert hamlets. Sogdian merchants traded in Baltic amber, lapis from Afghanistan, spices and cotton. Itinerant Buddhist monks, Persian Manichean priests, Zoroastrians and Nestorian Christians sought coverts among the desert settlers; storytellers, acrobats, musicians, dancers, courtesans, diviners, peddlers and miracle-workers offered their wares in the market places an at temple fairs.”

Sun setting over Dharmarajika in Taxila.

 

Taxila like other metropolis is actually composed of several cities combined into one, and the ones I visited are: the Bhir Mound, Sirkap and Sirsukh as well as the ancient and marvelous Dharmarajika Stupa.

Sirkap, the first city I visited was a beautiful old town first built by Demetrius, the Greco-Bactrian King after his invasion of India about 180 BCE. That city thrived for about 180 years, declined and was rebuilt by Menander 1st, an Indo-Greek king and patron of Buddhism.

Possibly the most impressive thing about this ancient metropolis is that the followers of so many faiths, religions, and philosophies lived here in peaceful coexistence. For example, here along the main street in Sirkap, one may find a Jain Temple (the central theme of this ancient Indian religion belonging to the Sramana tradition is non-violence and respect for all living beings) very close to the Temple of Sun God, nearby Xuanzang’s Buddhist Stupa, a Hindu Temple, Ionian Temple (of ancient Greek origin), Zoroastrian Temple, and even according to my guide an ancient St. Andrews church only a short walk away. This was and remains – a set in stone – example that people of different faiths can indeed live together in peace. Yet also within some partly excavated walls one can find the remains of human bones crushed in the earthquake that destroyed most of the city in 30 AD. Nature, is not always so kind.

In Sirkap I also saw the famed “Double Headed Eagle.” Double headed eagles go back to the Hittite civilization (1,700 BC), were used in the Anatolian Seljuk Sultanate, Mamluk Egypt, Islamic Spain, and by the Eastern Roman Byzantine Empire, Western Roman Empire, Serbia and Russia by Christians, and least I forget is called the Reichsadler or Imperial, heraldic Eagle in the modern coat of arms of German, the Second German Empire, the Weimar Republic and the Third Reich.

Double Headed Eagle of Taxila.

 

In one of the suburban areas one can find the huge Dharmarajika Stupa and several other Buddhist monasteries for this once was a massive center of Buddhist learning with hundreds of monasteries and in the museum here (at Taxila) and National Museum in Karachi one finds huge numbers of perfectly preserved Buddha statues with faces showing Indian, Greek and Chinese influences.

According to Tibetan tradition the Great King Ashoka (273–232 BC) died at Taxila. The name of Prince Kunala is associated with Taxila as he was the presumptive heir to Ashoka and thus the Mauryan Empire which ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent, however he was blinded by his jealous step-mother Tishyaraksha (after he refused her “advances”) and ultimately his son Samprati became his heir. Sources as diverse as Xuanzang confirm that Prince Kunala was celebrated around the vast empire for his piety and humility. According to one history:

”Blind and destitute, Kunal and his wife left the palace and wandered about the land until at length they arrived at Patliputra. The prince’s plaintive song attracted the king who was shocked to see what had become of his favorite son. The inquiry was swift and the libidinous queen was executed. Legend, as preserved by Xuanzang, tells us that the prince’s eyes were restored by a Buddhist priest called Gosha. Other sources, however, tell us of the prince never regaining his eyesight and dying in Patliputra.”

Xuanzangs Stupa in Sirkap Taxila.

 

Discovering Pakistan: The Blind Prince

In spite of palace intrigues during the Buddhist era things probably were probably considerably better than a couple of hundred years earlier during the Greek period, as remnants of the Greek army that survived noted about Taxila the prevalence of polygamy and widow-burning (Sati) and the custom by which girls too poor to be provided with a marriage dowry were exposed for sale in the marketplace. Such were the harsh realities of the ancient world, though Buddhists at least would have outlawed killing in all of its forms and instituted greater levels of social egalitarianism among the common people.

The entire site at Taxila is much, much larger than has been excavated so far and most of this ancient metropolis is currently being used for farmland. None-the-less one must give the Pakistani government credit for having meticulously preserved so many of the ancient relics in museums, and having facilitated excavations thus far, however much more remains to be done.

When gentle evening came upon my guide and I, we were at the Dharmarajika Stupa and monastery. It’s a wonderfully peaceful place this time of year; the summer-like air was warm and fresh in spite of it being January. (I heard in July and August it’s beastly hot.) Who would ever wish to leave?

Exercise Instrument Gandhara Region 3rd - 5th century - Taxila Museum.

 

Are there secrets buried there as to how humanity can live together in peace that might help us poor beleaguered modern people in our increasingly divided world? Probably not. The religions and philosophies there that have survived the thousands of years all teach pretty much the same things: patience, tolerance, forgiveness and alms for the poor and needy. There are no secrets. We just need to practice what we already know – thanks to those very same ancient masters.

While at Taxila I sat for a while on the platform of Xuanzang’s Stupa and simply rested amidst the ghosts and histories. Was it all a dream?

Getting back to Beijing a couple of weeks later I had so much work to do at school I didn’t have the time to finish writing the stories and interviews I’d started in Pakistan. Now, almost a month later, I review my notes, photos and books. Nope. It wasn’t a dream. Pakistan, her kind and warm-hearted people, for example Wushu Master Noor Ahmed Saqib and histories for example at Taxila are just-simply–amazing and as real as real can get.

Master Saqib can be contacted on Facebook at: noor saqib wushu kung fu

For The Silk Road Kung Fu Friendship Tour Part 18, click here.