Kafiristan, Northeast Afghanistan, late nineteenth-century

Kafiristan was the place where Carnehan and Dravot plan to rule as co-kings. Up until this point, no Englishman had “been through it” (16). The narrator claimed that any information on Kafiristan was “as sketchy and inaccurate as can be” (17). This was a benefit for Dravot and Carnehan because they believed initial anonymity was essential to gaining ultimate power. Kafiristan was located in northeast Afghanistan. The people were believers in an interpretation of Hinduism, differing from the surrounding Muslim communities. There, Dravot and Carnehan used their military training and weapons to ally themselves with weak forces and conquer their enemies. Their kingdom grew even faster once they proved their god status as “Past Grand-Masters in the Craft” and founded a “Mother Lodge o’ the country” (36, 37). Once the people proved that Dravot and Carnehan were men and not gods, they revolted. Dravot was killed in Kafiristan...