To the south-east of Chittagong city is a picturesque town on the shores of the Bay of Bengal. Cox’s Bazar was the name of a subdivision town named after Mr. Cox, an employee of the English government. The name Cox's Bazar was pronounced in Bengali. Before the Second World War, middle class Bengali gentlemen used to go to Giridi, Madhupur, Ghatshila in the west to change the air, just as they used to go to Puri and Cox's Bazar in search of sea. Cox's Bazar is the capital of the Arakanese kingdom before the British rule. The Magh-king of the semi-Buddhist and semi-Muslim Rosang gathered a learned courtier and convened a meeting of Vikramaditya. One of the most civilized of these meetings, the poet Alaol wrote in his autobiography:
"There are as many talented people in Rosang.
Taleb Alim said he cared.
Taleb or Talib - whose plural form does not refer to the Taliban as the Afghan hooliganism created by the American and Pakistani intelligence services - means educated, and therefore respected by civilized people. With much effort this beautiful word has become the epitome of some animalistic islands. In the seventeenth century, the city of Rosang, full of Taleb Alims, was especially prosperous. Shahjahan-Nandan Shah Shuja took refuge here after losing the fraternal war. And the council was attacked and killed for conspiring to occupy the patron kingdom. The romantic story about his daughters is the subject of the poet's succulent short story 'Dalia'. But I went to the Dutch company to find out what really happened. Tragic story. The parishioners told the semi-Buddhist Arakan Raj that the bleeding of girls was forbidden and that it was forbidden. So the pious Narpati stopped them from eating and drinking and killed them. The gentleman was freed from the bloody sin of the woman. It is difficult to say when human compassion and religiosity take shape.
In the seventeenth century, Spanish inquisitors also burned apostates out of compassion. Consider what happened to Iraq at this time, thanks to Mr. Bush, a newborn Christian.
My personal memory has nothing to do with this story. Because my acquaintance with Cox's Bazar is almost three hundred years after these events. Cox's Bazar is one of the places where my parents and I and our servants used to go to 'Change'. I often heard the story of Shillong. But I have no memory of that hill town. My first encounter with the unknown world was in Cox's Bazar. She is full of wonder, fear and indescribable joy. Once again in 1984 I went to Cox's Bazar with my childhood friend Samsul Huda from Chittagong, driving a jeep. The path was full of scars of the freedom struggle from the very beginning. It took twelve hours to cover the 60 miles. I am using the word 'path' courtesy. It seemed that I reached Cox's Bazar after crossing endless ditches. There were big hotels then, none of which were in the thirties. However, in '74, there were no special guests in those hotels. My idea is that the place has gone to hell in the newly achieved prosperity.
Cox's Bazar is a small town in the 30's. The impression of Arakan-Burma is more in its external and internal nature than in Bengal. We used to go to Cox's Bazar by ship from Chittagong. Not a port, so there was no port that could be reached as far as the shore. Ships docked at sea. From there the wonder began. This is the sea that cannot be seen across, where the big waves are rocking the boat, and the water that can be seen in the distance is blue! The sea that Ramchandra ruled? On which the monkeys built a bridge? Is there such a strange thing in the world? And I see it with my own eyes? What a strange thing it was to get on the boat with the stairs hanging from the ship. This is not our barge or kosh boat, Sampan painted in different colors. Beards mugs wearing colorful lungi. These are the ones I have heard from Samudrabihari Pirate-Shital Jatha. Captures children and sells them to slave traders. Sometimes even cut. Won't you sell me? I can't do any work. What good would it do a man with a slave like me? Does anyone keep slaves for writing and playing in the kitchen? However, it can be cut. Hopefully, they are not cannibals in Africa. What is the benefit of just cutting? However, the small sacrifices they make are not for food. Sit close to your mother. I don't know if their goddess likes human sacrifices. But the red and green striped lungi in the middle is very beautiful. Can I get one like that? Suddenly I noticed that Mogra was a foreigner. This is the first foreign I saw. ‘Ago’ frog, ‘Mago’ frog, Jagadishya, Kaluda, Montuda no one has ever seen a foreigner. Absolutely gentlemen are also foreigners. But they have forgotten and become our king. So there are no more foreigners.
With these thoughts in mind, I leaned on Nagar's shoulder and walked towards the beach where the house was rented for us. How much sand and dunes. The dunes are almost as high as the moon, maybe even a little higher. It doesn't hurt to roll on that kind of sand. There is little water on the beach. Can you fish with a towel there? And what are those beautiful red like Palash flowers? As we approached, we fled under the sand. Naga said, "I have a crab." Crab! So beautiful? Look like a red flower? Suddenly Naga pulled me off his shoulder. In front is a one-storey wooden house. The whole house is made of wood? There is no end to the surprises.