Sukoon (سکون) is an Urdu word and, like many other words that don't have a simple counterpart in another language, translating its depth and intensity into English is difficult. However the closest translation is 'a state of complete peace.'
1947 is the year that India gained independence after 300 years of being colonised by the British. The subcontinent was partitioned into two independent nation states: Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan. Immediately, there began one of the greatest migrations in human history, as millions of Muslims trekked to West and East Pakistan (the latter now known as Bangladesh) while millions of Hindus and Sikhs headed in the opposite direction. Many hundreds of thousands never made it. We honour and pay our respects to all the lives lost.
