In the market at Muzaffarabad in Pakistan Administered Kashmir, as we were parking the car, a man had approached and asked in Punjabi, “Sardar ji, what brings you to Muzaffarabad?”

Through our conversation, I had gathered that he hailed from a nearby village. Being aware of the vibrant Sikh community that had once existed in the area, he had offered to take me to his village where he could show me houses that had once belonged to the Sikhs. He narrated anecdotes about the tribal attack of 21 October 1947, which compelled the Hindus and Sikhs to hurriedly depart from Muzaffarabad. In leaving, many had buried their valuables in their homes. He said that for years the new occupants would dig in search of hidden treasures.

A week later, at Eminabad in the plains of West Punjab (Pakistan), while exploring for the cultural remains of the Sikh legacy, I stumbled upon a temple premises which now serves as a home for a migrant family. The occupants were kind enough to permit me inside the walled compound. Just outside the temple premises, my eyes fell on a large stone that represented a ‘Shivling’, which is an abstract form of the Hindu deity, Shiva. In discussion with the migrant family, I learnt that in anticipation of discovering hidden treasures, when they had dug the ground, they found this large ‘Shivling’. While this stone may not have any worth for the present occupants of the temple, it would have once been of immense value for the Hindu community of Eminabad.

In observing the discovery of this treasure of the Hindu community, I was reminded of my conversation with the villager in Muzaffarabad!

These hidden treasures are a reflection of the state of mind of the people who had to abandon their homes in turmoil. They were sure to return one day but history shaped differently!

Photographed in Oct 2014, during the research for the book “LOST HERITAGE The Sikh Legacy in Pakistan”