Abbas: Journeys Up The Hill – An Autobiography

About Abbas: Journeys Up The Hill

Abbas: Journeys Up The Hill – An Autobiography is the English edition of the life story of Maulana Mohammad Abbas Ansari (1936 to 2022), a religious scholar and a well-known political figure of Jammu and Kashmir. If you are looking for Journeys Up The Hill as a first-hand account of public life in Kashmir over several decades, this autobiography offers the author’s own telling of his story. The English edition is translated by Syed Asif Rizvi and published by Gulshan Books Kashmir (2023, 434 pages). For details of the copy in stock, please message us on WhatsApp at 9906523492 for details of the copy in stock.

Lafz Bookstore is based in Srinagar and stocks one of the largest online collections of Kashmir books, and this autobiography is a natural addition to any shelf on the region’s modern history.

About the author, Maulana Mohammad Abbas Ansari

Maulana Mohammad Abbas Ansari was born on 17 August 1936 and passed away on 25 October 2022. He studied at Oriental College in Srinagar, then at Sultanul Madaris in Lucknow and the Hawza in Najaf, Iraq, where he spent the years from 1954 to 1962 studying subjects that included Arabic literature, philosophy, jurisprudence and political science. In 1962 he founded the Jammu and Kashmir Ittihadul Muslimeen, and in 2003 he was elected chairman of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference. He was known as a scholar and a public speaker, and he spoke often in favour of unity among Muslims.

What the autobiography covers

According to published descriptions of the book, it is an eyewitness account that follows the author’s life across three generations of political activity in Kashmir. It speaks of the author’s association with organisations such as the Plebiscite Front, the People’s United Front, the Muslim United Front and the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, and of the difficulties he describes facing along the way, including periods of imprisonment. The original work was written in Urdu under the title Khaar-e-Gulistan, and this English edition makes it available to readers who do not read Urdu. As with every autobiography, the events, assessments and opinions are the author’s own, and the book is best read as one person’s account alongside other sources.

Why this book matters for Kashmir studies

Memoirs and autobiographies are valuable primary material. They show how events looked to someone who lived through them, which histories written from a distance cannot fully do. Students of the modern history of Jammu and Kashmir, of its political movements and of its religious and community life will find in this book a source to read, compare and cite with care. Readers who want to understand how a religious leader describes his own public journey will also find it of interest.

Who should read this book

• Students and researchers of Kashmir history, politics and society
• Readers of political memoirs and autobiographies
• Readers who prefer English but wish to engage with a work first written in Urdu
• Libraries, universities and collectors of Kashmir books
• Anyone in Kashmir or beyond who wants to hear the author’s account in his own words

How to read an autobiography with benefit

Read it as the author’s own account. Note the dates and the organisations he mentions and compare them with other histories and memoirs, so that you build a full picture. Keep your own questions in the margin and return to them after finishing. With a book of over four hundred pages, reading a few chapters at a time and keeping notes works better than rushing. Reading calmly and fairly, and giving every account its due weight, is the best way to learn from any memoir.

Edition details

Title: Abbas: Journeys Up The Hill – An Autobiography. Author: Maulana Mohammad Abbas Ansari. Translator: Syed Asif Rizvi. Publisher: Gulshan Books Kashmir. Year: 2023. Pages: 434. Language: English (translated from the Urdu original, Khaar-e-Gulistan). For the binding and condition of the copy in stock, please message us on WhatsApp at 9906523492 for details of the copy in stock. Same-day dispatch from Srinagar. Delivery takes about 1 day in Srinagar and 3 to 10 days across the rest of India.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the author of Journeys Up The Hill? The author is Maulana Mohammad Abbas Ansari (1936 to 2022).

Who translated it into English? Syed Asif Rizvi.

Who is the publisher and how long is the book? Gulshan Books Kashmir published it in 2023, and it runs to 434 pages.

Was it first written in Urdu? Yes, the original Urdu title is Khaar-e-Gulistan.

How quickly will it reach me? We dispatch the same day from Srinagar. Delivery is about 1 day in Srinagar and 3 to 10 days in the rest of India.

Looking for more Kashmir books like this? Browse our Politics & Kashmir collection or explore all Kashmir Books. Follow Lafz Bookstore on Instagram for new arrivals and book recommendations.