Gulshan-e-Kabir

Gulshan-e-Kabir is a village in Ghanche district Baltistan approximately 40 km from Khaplu town.

History

The old name of Gulshan-e-Kabir is Pharawa but the still older name is Ralta Khonbu. Ralta Khonbu was known for its beautiful and lush green fields and meadows. The village was struck by a powerful flood coming from the mountains due to the breakage of a huge lake. This resulted in the total devastation of Ralta Khonbu; the once plain village with beautiful orchards and lush green fields was now covered by mud and mighty rocks. The surrounding villagers noticed that there was no trees or greenery left in Ralta Khonbu so they started calling her Phara (meaning bald in balti language). Phara with excessive usage became Pharawa; a name the villagers never liked. Pharawa and Ralta Khonbu were equally used for some time but Pharawa dominated and was later registered in all the government records by the Dogra Rule so the name became a permanent identity for Ralta Khonbu.

Later in 1992 a group of youth from Pharawa residing in Karachi founded an organization by the name "Anjuman-e-Falah-o-Behbud" and their top priority was to give a new name to the village. Different names including the ancient name of Ralta Khonbu were taken up as a choice but finally they agreed upon the name Gulshan-e-Ameer-e-Kabir, shortly known as Gulshan-e-Kabir, named after the great Islamic saint and missionary from Iran, Ameer Kabir Syyed Ali Hamadni whose intense preachings converted the villagers form Buddhism to Islam. The new name was warmly welcomed and accepted by the villagers and now this beautiful village in the middle of high rising mountains of Karakorum is known as Gulshan-e-Kabir(the garden of Ameer Kabir Syed Ali Hamadani A.R).

According to history of Baltistan, Raja Ghori Tham had ruled here before 850 A.D. Ghori Tham was one of the powerful rulers of his time in Baltistan and Laddakh. His might can be imagined by the traces of his fort found on the top of a mountain situated in Gulshan-e-Kabir. No food and water was available at the near vicinity of the fort and had to be carried it, down from the village through a special and secrete tunnel made in the mountain. Ghori Tham used this fort for defense purposes in the events of foreign invasions. This fort was almost inevitable for most of the invaders as Ghori Tham stood at the top of the mountain and attacked his opponents with rocks rolling down the mountains.