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Written by: Mudasir Rashid

Category: ENVIRONMENT

Published: 12 May 2018

• "Aurel Stein even expressed a desire that he were “cremated” in his beloved Marg but his wish was never fulfilled unfortunately it proved his last. Stein died in Kabul of massive heart attack in 1943 at the age of 81"

GANDERBAL: Mohand Marg, known colloquially in Kashmiri as Marg of "Relaxant"  is a meadow ground that lies ensconced in the mountains about 20 Kilometres along the road to Ladhak in north of Srinagar. From the road to Leh near Manigam in Ganderbal district. Marg in Kashmiri is meadow. Nestled in the snow-capped mountains of Harmukh in Sind valley below the "Neela lake" of Harmukh so called Gangabal. Girdled by massive snow peaked mountains skirted by pine trees the meadow gets filled with flowers in the summer season.

Intense wanderlust fire earned him the name of a nomad. And Nomad of Mohand Marg he was called by the locals with whom he lived in this meadow for about 40 years. Budapest born, Aurel Stein, a naturalized British citizen chose Kashmir as his home, once located Stein fell in love with the spot. The Marg gave Stein reassurance of timeless and unchanging strengths and throughout his life prided himself on his unfettered life there in a tent.

Mohand Marg held the unique charms and keys to his inner and outer life. So fascinated was he with this remote mountain site that he called it as ‘my own’ or ‘my kingdom’. The Marg was his true and spiritual home. For him it was a site from the paradise, and he always longed to return to the spot. Here he enjoyed the breathtaking views and breathed the pine-scented air which he called as “the avalanche perfume” The magic of the place effected him so strongly that in spite of being a loner he never ever felt lonely here and would recall. He even sometimes used week health as a reason why he should return to Marg from wherever he was and always on move for about 56 years in wild till his last breath. Here, he translated the Rajtarangni into, English and prepared its first Sanskrit edition. Stein learned Kashmiri. Wrote Kashmiri fables from the mouth of Halim Tilwon.

Kashmir's past is full of extraordinary personalities who not only because of its achievements but also because of its "lash greenery" Nazara Janat Ka" feeling of paradise. "Scores of personalities including Aurel Stein visit here from time to time and on 8 June 1888 till the last when Stein left Kashmir for the last time in April 1943, he fell in love with Kashmiri's meadows one so called Mohand Marag. 

The meadow made him fascinated by the beauty of carpet the flowers made of mountains slopes of meadow with shades of deep yellow and dark blue with sparing whites. Stein character and work has had an enriching effect not only on Kashmir but also on the world of science and universal knowledge and have earned international respect as a result. One such name is that of Sir Marc Aurel Stein. His name is linked forever with the silk road of Central Asia one of the great romantic and evocative images of the east. Explorer archaeologist and geographer Stein is always acknowledged immediately but a Sanskritist seldom perhaps never.

Even though Aurel Stein was the first among Europeans to understand the ethos of Kashmir's culture and recognize the value of its contribution to the history of world culture yet his biographers have given only scanty accounts of his life and labours in Kashmir. What the reader is now holding is not a biography of Sir Aurel Stein nor is it a book on Kashmir history. In fairness it may be considered a memoir to Sir Aurel Stein's Kashmir life. It is a homage to his achievements as Sanskrit scholar and his relations with his adopted home Kashmir and its native scholars. The book is a comprehensive research document which obliterates the gulf of time and distance that had so far obscured Stein's life and labours in Kashmir. It brings the spotlight on Stein's lesser known aspects and thus is an attempt to make him a better known figure that he is today. To sum up the book shifts the focus on Aurel Stein from Central Asia to Kashmir and thereby breaks a new ground in Stein scholarship.

"Aurel Stein even expressed a desire that he were “cremated” in his beloved Marg. The wish was never fulfilled unfortunately it proved his last. Stein died in Kabul of massive heart attack in 1943 at the age of 81". Now his dream comes true, the locals of Anderwan Manigam made a daunting job to install a memorable stone of Aurel Stein's memory at Mohand Marag. The job was very tough to carry a big stone in its actual place of Mohand marag, we completed this job nearly long two months in between hilly, harsh cold, without food, said one local Nazir Ahmad, added that this plan gives Anderwan' Village a new chance of development, and gets the nod to be International tourist destination and the efforts put by locals and university students to develop the place as for tourism.