Background:
The following short story is based on a historical event recorded in the book, The History of the Pashtuns. In 1462 Sultan Mohammed Shah, the King of Delhi ordered his Governor to attack the Afghan Pashtuns of Sirhind. Professor Abdul Shakoor Reshad has also mentioned this in an elegy. Some points of this historical event have appeared in the poems of Mohammed Yousuf Wairan. In addition, Professor Benawa refers to this event in one of his poems.

Story:

They had found him the only man in the whole village. There was no other male left there. The governor of the district had ordered to bring forth every adult male found in the village to his courtyard.

He had said that he would deal with those culprits himself. His legions did what they were told to do. They combed the entire village but this old man was the only male left. The village was situated in some part of Sirhind State. It was known as the village of Pathans. The people of this village had risen up against the cruelties and atrocities of the governor. For this reason, the men had fled their homes and were hiding in the mountains to evade capture. They were fighting from there against this governor and had vowed not to surrender to the tyrant. So, they left behind this old man with the women and children. Since the soldiers were under strict orders, the legions took the old man before the governor. The soldier threw the old man in a corner of a cell for the night.

The following day, the governor organized new troops and even the king helped the governor with reinforcements. A very cruel officer was put in charge of a large force that was to match against the small, defenseless village men. Surprisingly, when the troops arrived in the village, the small resistance was able to continue their defense for two days. The heroic villagers fought bravely to the last man. All the men were killed as they refused defeat in surrendering. They preferred death to being enslaved by the governor's orders. The soldiers beheaded the corpses and put the blood soaking heads in sacks, which were taken to the governor.

In the meantime, the old man was being kept in prison. He was bewildered and did not know what had happened or what was in store for him. He thought that maybe he was going to be executed. Then he consoled himself by thinking that maybe they might transfer him to a larger prison. Finally, he saw that the guards were coming to take him. He was to be brought to the court where the governor was celebrating the so-called "victory" with a big feast, courtiers, high-ranking officials, and military officers.

The governor gave orders to bring in the old man to the courtyard. The old man thought it was strange for him to be present at such a big feast. He did not know what this all was about. It only took a few seconds for him to realize what the occasion marked. The governor laughingly shouted, "Bring in the sacks full of heads. We shall ask the old man about them. Bring them all!" The old man was shocked with fear and apprehension for what the governor was planning.

The large sacks full of heads were brought into the courtyard. A trail of blood followed the sacks until they reached the platform. The soaking heads were emptied and piled up into a heap. Tears began to flow down the old man's cheeks and his white beard was moistened with pity, hate, and revenge. His hair stood on end with shock and rage. After paying his silent tribute to his countrymen, he turned his to the bloodthirsty barbarians with repugnance.

At this moment, the governor raised his pompous voice, "Bring the heads one by one and let the old man identify them." The old man was silent and stared senselessly at the lifeless heads, which were once jubilant young men. The governor interrupted his meditation, "You will introduce every head lying here. You will tell us whom they belonged to, their families and social backgrounds." The old man looked at the governor with horror. However, he was compelled to do what was ordered without any other alternative.

The first head from the heap was placed in front of the old man. He immediately recognized it and furnished the necessary information such as his name, family background, vocation and so on. Then another head was put before him. Then another and one after the other he gave details and unique remembrances about everyone.

The old man knew everyone very well because he was once a youngster in this village and had many associations with these people. As soon as he would start talking about the next young man, the governor and the other officials would listen with astonishment, surprise, and sometimes teased the old man. Occasionally, a really sweet love story or story of valor would bring smiles to the audience's faces. The old man continued revealing the stories of these men and emphasizing their bravery and honor.

He was almost halfway done when suddenly he stared at one of the heads. He spoke with a very weak whisper, "ThisI don't recognize this one."

The governor shouted, "Think old man! Think! You ought to know him. I don't believe that you don't know him!"

The old man looked at the bloody head once more. He turned his face and said, "Unfortunately, I don't know him. I don't remember him. Only God knows better."

The governor angrily shouted with fury in his voice, "How come you don't know him? He was not from another village. Think hard. You tell us about him. It is a must."

The old man turned to the head and touched the young man's cheek. "I don't know him. What shall I do? I fail to recognize this one."

The Governor screamed, "Bring him the other heads. We will come to this one again. Maybe he will remember it by the time we are done. He is forced to identify it."

The other heads were brought to him. This process continued for hours. The old man spoke about each young man's personality and contribution. At this time, some of the officers started to recount the action in the battle and each young man's role. The officers told stories of how they captured and killed the men. Sometimes they would cede as to how brave some of their victims were and how well they fought in battle. The courtiers would look at each other with amazement.

Near the end, the old man became difficult to understand. His tears had completely dried up and his voice became faint. Then he realized that he had identified all the heads of the massacred men except one.

In addition, he realized that some of the other young men of village were still alive because their heads were not among this group. With a glimmer of hope, he thought proudly that his son Bahlol was alive for the moment. Unintentionally, he was murmuring to himself unaware that the others were listening. "Bahlol and the other young men will avenge this and bring the unjust to justice. They will. They must."

The courtiers looked at one another and some made fun of the old man by mocking him. The old man was still drowned in his thoughts when the governor shouted once again: "Bring the unidentified head again!" This was the only head that the old man had not commented on. After a long and deep sigh, the old man said with a shaky voice: "I don't know. God knows better."

"What does that mean?" shouted the impatient governor. The governor said, "Old man! You are very stupid. Either you will identify this head or you will lose your head as well. Do you understand?"

The governor spoke with such fury that even the courtiers trembled at the vicious voice of the governor. The old man looked at the head attentively and answered with a weak but resolute voice: "I said I don't know him. Now, it is up to you to do whatever you want with me."

The governor became furious and blood rushed into his face and his voice became hoarse and heavy: "Old man, I'll make you know it, by hook or by crook!" With this, the governor rose from his seat. An absolute silence spread in the halls of the courtyard. Everyone was shaking with fright as the governor came forth. The governor had not put forth yet another step when the commander of the troops came forward to say: "I will tell something about this young man, I mean this head."

The governor allowed him to go on and say what he intended. The old man looked at the commander with resentment. The commander looked at the old man and then the governor. He began his account of the battle and the valor of this young man as the following: "I wish he was a soldier in my contingent. He really gave us lots of trouble and was a good fighter. He killed many of my men and we killed him with great difficulty. We couldn't get a hold of him. He used superb military tactics - a wonderful warrior."

The commander had not finished yet when the old man raised his shaking voice: "Now, I know this young man." All those present were astonished and kept silent. No one made a sound. Even the disruptive governor was amazed and looked at the old man with curiosity.

The old man explained, "I knew him. He was Shaheen."

After a silent moment, an undeniable smile spread over his lips. Again, tears rolled down his gray beard as he muttered in a weak voice: "I said Shaheen was not a coward. When you were killing him, I hope he hadn't committed anything shameful. I was afraid that he might have run away from the battlefield and left his brothers or surrendered. I now know first hand that my son, Shaheen, defended his people from the common like a true patriot with zeal and valor. Shaheen sacrificed himself for his brethren and their honor. Why would I not know him? He is Shaheen." Then he started to cry and collapsed to the ground