First of all, I would like to congratulate the members of the foundation’s board, Kawun Khan Kakar, all the members of Kakar’s family, and the lovers of the foundation on the official inauguration of the Kakar History Foundation. Also, I would like to thank the foundation’s administration and Kawun Khan for inviting me to attend and speak at this wonderful event. Late scholar Dr. Mohammad Hassan Kakar was a close friend of mine and I expect to get invited to other such ceremonies commemorating Kakar and along with other Kakar Sahib’s lovers, I also get a chance to join the discussions on Kakar’s personality and ideas.
The late Kakar was an academician, national and social personality. Kakar has left behind many scholarly works. It is probably expected from me that I will present to you a comprehensive scholarly critique of the works of Kakar. However, I am not an all-knowing Kakar fan; I have not even read all of Kakar’s works, except for two or three important books which I read about 20 – 30 years ago. So, I apologize to the Kakar scholars that despite this obvious constraint, I still have the courage to speak a few words to you today about Kakar’s work portfolio and his personality.
About 3-4 days ago when Kawun Khan Kakar and Liwal Sahib came and asked me to speak at this gathering, Kawun Khan told me that it would be better if I could talk a little regarding the scientific method. So before I comment on Kakar’s two to three scholarly compositions and a few of his translations, let me introduce three different methodologies in the social sciences. First, allow me to talk briefly on one of these three methodologies – that is the historical research methodology.
In the social sciences, scientific quantitative analysis or statistical analysis (which employs the most advanced statistical techniques – e.g. econometrics – to discover the cause and the effect) is very prominent in terms of scholarly status.
The sociologists following this method want to make use of the natural sciences and use quantitative analysis techniques to detect causal relationships between variables. Therefore, in addition to the natural sciences, currently, the most advanced studies in the economics, political science, sociology and psychology fields of the social sciences are based on this same methodology.
Unfortunately, this methodology is rarely used in the scientific-sociological studies about Afghanistan, and the reason is that we do not have complete and accurate data on the occurrences of social phenomena.
After quantitative analysis, the highest prominence and scientific status are given to comparative studies methodology.
In this methodology, there is a basic qualitative study of a few similar cases conducted and then general theories are obtained from a deep comparative study.
However, the generality and accuracy of these theories and results are not comparable to quantitative studies, so the scientific importance of this methodology is lower than that of quantitative analysis methodology. Fortunately, this scientific method is currently being used in Afghanistan-related topics.
For example, about two years ago, Aryan Sharifi used comparative analysis in his Tufts University’s post-doctoral dissertation as he scientifically researched – generally across the Islamic globe and specifically in Afghanistan – the topic as to why some political Islamic groups use violent tactics to achieve their political goals and some other Islamic groups practice peaceful means to do so.
Although comparative analysis methodology is lower in rank than the quantitative analysis methodology as per the philosophy of science, as far as I am concerned, the use of comparative methodology has been very well utilized in researching some of the most important books.
And according to the significance of the scientific methods, the third one in ranking comes the method of historical research. In this method, a society or a phenomenon is particularly studied; it is not systematically compared with other societies and it doesn’t have such general theories which would also be true for other societies. Some of the followers of this method, also called historicists, believe that every society and its occurrences are so special at a particular point in history that they may almost have no close resemblance with the events and developments of another society.
Based on the philosophy of science, the more theory is general, the greater is its scientific significance. For example, the laws of physics are very general and the cause and effect link in them is close to 100 percent. Therefore, physics laws possess a higher degree of validity. The purpose of the data and quantitative studies is general theories, which are not limited to only one case or several similar case studies, and thus their scientific status is high. The purpose of comparative studies is to discover the causes and effects of multiple comparable cases; hence, their scientific status is less than the quantitative methodology. And since the purpose of historical research is a specific case, its theoretical significance is lower.
The quantitative method is used less in the social sciences in Afghanistan; comparative method usage has just started and some very good studies have been conducted; however, the historical research method has been pervasive since long ago and most of our understanding regarding Afghanistan’s social issues are based upon the historical research. Although the goal in the historical research method is not to discover the general theory, the most interesting historical studies are those that have identified scientific or (causal) factors for a specific phenomenon.
But in Afghanistan, I have noticed that since the past, the historical research has been in chronological form, meaning that events and developments have been discussed as continuity over time. The description of proceedings has been presented chronologically, and their analytical form, which focuses on the causes of happenings, has been too weak. This situation is even seen in the books of many famous Western scholars of Afghan culture and history – such as the Dupree Louse’s book. Dupree’s history is a descriptive chronology. There is plentiful information collected in the book; however, based on the philosophy of science, its scholarly content is weak.
When I read the Vartan Gregorian’s book “The Emergence of Modern Afghanistan” about 45 years ago, I grew very fond of it because it wasn’t just based on chronology and narrative (description) but there was analysis as well and to some extent, it had also examined the causes of political events. I also enjoyed reading Leon Poulada’s book, which investigated the social changes and public turmoil during the Amanullah Khan’s era, because of the high focus given to analysis and discussion of the causes of phenomena rather than chronological description.
But one of my favorite books on Afghanistan’s history is the Kakar Sahib’s book called “Government and Society in Afghanistan: The Reign of Abdul Rahman Khan”, which studies the successful efforts of Abdul Rahman Khan for building a central government. Although I read this book over 30 years ago and have of course forgotten a lot of its topics and discussions, I remember one thing that in writing of the book, manuscripts, especially archival material, have been used a lot. Historiography has a special methodology, in light of which valid meaning can be definitively deduced from primary sources. Each primary document must not necessarily be considered valid. Evaluating the authenticity of the documents requires great precision and a researcher must prove that the document’s theory is not in conflict with other reliable narratives of that time. Kakar was well acquainted with this methodology; he made good use of it and, as a result, wrote a book that might be called a real “definitive” study of Abdul Rahman Khan Reign’s state-building. Kakar’s books is not a description or chronology only but it is full of analyses. The Kakar’s book, which is also his doctoral thesis, is based on the scientific method of writing history and is an authoritative scholarly historical publication on an international level. It would be unfair to regard Kakar’s scholarship as a good work merely on Afghan level but we should say that it is a great scholarly work of history consistent with international standards. In my opinion, Kakar’s that book confirmed his scholastic status and won him the honor of being a scholar, and thus Afghan people now take pride in knowing that an Afghan scholar can produce such internationally-recognized scholarly work.
Kakar’s other book that I read about 20 years ago is titled “Afghanistan: Soviet Invasion and the Afghan Response”. I think the scientific importance of this book is less in comparison to the “Government and Society in Afghanistan: The Reign of Abdul Rahman Khan” book because this book is mostly descriptive. But the importance of the book lies in the fact that it encompasses much information and accounts – which would have been lost over time if Kakar hadn’t chronicled them. Since Kakar was a professional historian, he seems to have systematically noted and written the Soviet occupation and other occurrences during the period. Also, during his time in prison, he had talked to many political prisoners and had listened to their stories. Often laziness prevails over people and despite experiencing major chronological events, they don’t bother to write notes. Jihad was a brilliant chapter in the history of Afghanistan, and its memories must survive. The notes and memories penned down by Kakar and then writing this book have helped keep alive the facts of the Jihad period – and this is a great service.
As I mentioned earlier, Kakar’s compilations are numerous; I have only read a few books of him. But in Kakar’s book, I came to notice a point that Kakar’s historical research is not about general history but instead about a particular period or a particular topic. Now, this issue has scientific importance. In-depth and up-to-date research of topics compels researcher to restrict his or her field and scope of study either by time or by subject. People can make good use of general history; however, the scholarly study requires substantive research – and critical research needs to be limited to a specific subject or period of time. In his historical studies, Kakar has paid close attention to this scholarly consideration and has limited his scientific investigations either by time or by subject and thus has strengthened the study’s deepness.
In addition to his many compilations, Kakar has also translated several major works. In the past, translation was an accepted academic endeavor and played a major role in the spread of knowledge. For example, during the Abbasid period, many Greek scholarly works were translated into Arabic and were utilized very well. Then during the Renaissance, Greek and Arabic works were translated in the Western hemisphere and were availed from academically.
But now in developed societies, translation doesn’t have that previous scholastic significance. Now in scientific evaluation, the scholar’s own original viewpoint and thesis are important. But since very few scholarly works are found in national languages of the countries like Afghanistan, good translation can fill the gap to a great extent.
Kakar was professionally a historian but his scholastic interest was not limited to history. Kakar has read many philosophical and theoretical works and also translated some important works into Pashto. Among those translated into Pashto includes the philosophical book by Andrew Varga entitled “On Being Human: Principles of Ethics”; the political theory by John Stuart Mills “Liberalism”; and the “War and Our World” by the John Keegan. The important thing in translating scholarly works is that the translator should not only have authority over both languages but also be well acquainted with the subject matter of the book so that the translation does not become literal. Kakar’s translations demonstrate that he not only translated the works into naturally flowing Pashto but he also had enough knowledge of the books’ subject matter. I believe Kakar’s translations play a crucial role in publishing and publicizing scholarly topics in Pashto and Dari. Likewise, in my opinion, the works that Kakar has translated are also related to Dr. Sahib’s political and social values.
In addition to books and translations, Kakar has authored numerous scholarly and analytical articles. But this short commentary of mine cannot cover all of Kakar’s compilations. In short, Kakar was a qualified historian in accordance with international standards and a continuing student of social sciences, as well as a high voice in the intellectual circles of Afghanistan.
Apart from being a scholarly personality, Kakar was a committed man – dedicated to his people and country. Kakar had faith in individual freedom and the freedom of nations. Whether it was interesting in the awakened youth, in being a member of the Association of Teachers and Students, in participating in Independent Afghanistan’s Writers Union, or being active in the Association of Professors of Afghan Universities, Kakar had the purpose of being a champion for his, other individuals’ and the society’s freedom. Kakar’s commitment to freedom, nation, and the country was so strong that he consciously accepted to go to prison but didn’t let of go of his values. Some of the values that Kakar upheld were the values associated with the traditional Pashtun community; however, Kakar Sahib was still not only influenced by traditions. Kakar was deeply in love with his nation, but despite this love, he also believed in humanity and humanism, and the code of his morals was not confined to the boundaries of a nation but it was transnational and at the level of humanity.
Since a long time, there had been no clash between Kakar’s commitment and his daily life. After the April Coup, a collision occurred between his beliefs and the political environment. Subsequently, Kakar bravely accepted the challenge of life as he was imprisoned and went through many other grievances in defense of his values. Kakar was a civil, political activist and as he was a scholar too, his political/civil activity was very effective. The impact would have been much less if he had been only a scholar or had been an ignorant civil/political activist.
Kakar’s commitment and his living by values steer my attention to another topic. In scholarly circles, this idea is relatively very strong that the researcher should not have a firm stance on the subjects he is studying because it will impact his objectivity. However, I am of not the opinion that the researcher has to be completely impartial about his research. Choosing the subject of a study requires particular interest on the research’s part and there will be very few perfect neutral researchers. What is important is that the researcher should not accept something blindly and that he/she should have scholarly objectivity. And if their personal preferences don’t go along with the facts, they should have the intellectual and moral strength to accept the study’s results and not distort them. So for conducting an objective scholarship, neutrality isn’t a definite prerequisite. This assertion is also true for Kakar’s research. Kakar was keenly interested in Afghan, Afghanistan, Pashtun, freedom, etc., but so far I haven’t someone who could prove that the results of Kakar’s research have been consciously distorted. In my opinion, objectivity and commitment aren’t contradictory concepts. Kakar was a committed human being but his research was actually dependent on objectivity.
And lastly, I would like to share with you some of my observations on the character/personality of Kakar. The social life of many famed scholars in some cases happens to be a little inactive. Of course, this is not a generic stereotype and is not true for Kakar’s case. Kakar Sahib was a very social man and a good friend. Kakar was a cheerful and happy man. Although he had spent a long time in prison, he didn’t bear grudges. According to my understanding, getting acquainted with Kakar Sahib was easy. I met Kakar Sahib in the United States when he was released from prison and then immigrated to the US. But I felt like I knew him from the past. We would talk for a long time on the phone. I lived in Providence city near Boston, USA, and was a lecturer at the Providence College. Kakar lived in the western part of the US, California, and there was at least a five hour flight time between our cities. But he honored me with his two visits to Providence and spent three to four nights with me. Despite the past grievances in his life, Kakar seemed a happy man. Years ago, I read a study regarding the happiness of people. The result of the study was that those people who have a desire in life are more likely to be joyful. In my view, Kakar’s desire was his scholastic, social and personal values. And the realization of those values was up to his own hands. Materiality was not important to him; therefore, he struck me as a happy man. I think Kakar was a lucky man and the people who were his friends, including myself, were fortunate enough to have him as a friend. Kakar had lived a long, meaningful life. Every human being eventually dies, and lucky are those who are remembered in a good name after their demise. The intellectual, social and personal traits of Kakar brought him this luckiness.
I would like to conclude my speech with an observation and a prayer. In the past few years, I have made a lot of criticisms against the government. However, this government, led by President Ashraf Ghani, has appreciated the scholars and in my opinion, it has done right by Kakar Sahib and I want to express my satisfaction in this regard.
And I pray that the Kakar History Foundation may become able to inspire and publish history-related publications on Afghanistan, so that it, on the one hand, can help Afghan historiography and on the other hand, keep the name of Kakar alive.
