 For the matted oily mass of a goat's under fleece, Pasham, Pashmina or Kashmir, has since time immemorial been much too much fast over. It has inspired wars, been flaunted as a status symbol and gifted with a long and received with pleasure. Even in the Vedas, the Ramayana and other ancient scriptures of India, one finds detailed references to it. Geographically, the story of Pasham begins in these high lofty mountains. The Rig Veda describes ideal wool country as the Sindhu or Indus river basin and areas around the Irravati river or Ravi as we know it today. It also informs us that the sheep of the larger Gandhara region known as Avi are considered to provide the best wool. The legacy perhaps is intact. While the finest Pasham comes from Ladakh, some of the softest hand woven shawls are made in Basali, an obscure town on the banks of the Ravi near Jammu. Unknown to many, Pashmina shawls are still woven the old way here, since the shawls which are made in the Kashmir valley are the ones which are famous the world over. From the place of its origin, Pashmina has travelled far and wide right from the Indus valley days. Through the Silk Roots, the Doshala as it was known in Hindi, reached the Middle East where it was called Ashal, only to become a shawl as it travelled further west and European royalty draped itself into its soft snugness. While its lure remained constant, techniques and designs continued to evolve and change, becoming more and more elaborate and intricate. Changing designs often reflected the political fortunes of the day, even the kings, whims and fancies as these mapped shawls giving intricate details of the Dalek suggest. So popular were these shawls in the 18th century in Europe that British and French manufacturers began to produce machine made imitations en masse. However, in India, traditionally a single Pashmina shawl usually means the entire family has been involved at various stages of its production which sometimes can take up to a year. Women, especially elder ones, card the Pasham making it ready for weaving, after which the male members weave and dye the shawls. Embroidery normally is done by both men and women. In this Pashmina story, just as the Pasham continues to come from these snowy peaks and is transformed into beautiful shawls by these skilled hands, just so woven or embroidered, the Ambi or Paisley, the late motif of India, continues to be one of the most popular designs which adorns these shawls. Some things surely don't change with time.