[Reader-list] Iconoclasm in Kashmir-Motives and Magnitude-II

[rashneek kher]

MOTIVES BEHIND ICONOCLASM-THE MUSLIM KINGS



Shudda observes



*It is no one's case, least of all mine, to state that iconoclasm by*

*Muslim Kings in the sultanate period in **Kashmir** did not occur. It did,*

*and my contention is that it is incorrect and biased to say that*

*iconoclasm occurred only at the behest of Muslim rulers in **Kashmir**.*



May I ask Shudda to show me a line wherein I have said that Iconoclasm
happened only in the times of Muslim Rulers.Can he be kind to show me
that posting where I have said so.As far as I remember I haven't
anywhere mentioned that it was Muslim Rulers alone who were
Iconoclasts.I would still be ready to be corrected if I said so
anywhere.



What I however do re-affirm that while a miniscule percentage of
Hindu,Hun(like Mihirkula),Buddhists (like Jaluka) rulers did destroy
temples and some destroyed Buddhist Viharas too(of course not
Shankarvarman)the reasons for the same were not religious expansion or
bigotry.Unlike Muslim kings they did not think that they have a holy
aim of converting Darul-Harb to Darul-Islam.The aim was not to
subjugate or make people change their religion or faith but anything
else.Most of the Muslim rulers destroyed temples thinking that they
were doing a righteous act and were promoting Shariah by eliminating
infidels(Kafir's).Many thought that they were emulating the
Prophet(SAW) little realizing the difference that what Prophet
Mohammed (PBH) had done while destroying the idols at Kabba(a pagan
place of worship then and a mosque now) was destroying idolatory and
not idols.Iconoclasm in Kashmir was endorsed by the Amirs of the
day(whether general Muslims supported it or not can be a matter of
debate much like whether majority Hindus supported or condemned the
barbaric destruction of Babri Mosque  or whether Iconoclasm, in
present day Kashmir has the mandate of the Muslims of the Valley or
not).There are examples galore to prove this point.In order to put
this in perspective I am giving some references.



*From Bahristan-i-Shahi*

* "Sultan Shihabu'd-Din addressed himself to such works as would help him
get peace in the world hereafter. He arranged a tomb and a burial place for
himself to be used after his death. Towards the fag end of his life, he was
infused with a zeal for demolishing idol-houses and destroying the temples
and idols of the infidels. He destroyed the massive temple at Beejeh Belareh
[31] (Bijbehara). He had designs to destroy all the temples and put an end
to the entire community of the infidels.[32] "
"Again it needs to be recorded that for some of the time which the holy Amir
spent in **Kashmir** he lived in a sarai at 'Alau'd-Din Pora. At the site
where his khanqah was built, there existed a small temple which was
demolished and converted into an estrade on which he offered namaz (prayer)
five times a day and recited portions of the Qur'an morning and evening.
Sultan Qutbu'd-Din occasionally attended these congregational prayers."
" [It may be recorded] that the temples of idol-worshippers, which had been
destroyed and razed to the ground by the religious-minded and justice-loving
Sultan Sikandar- God bless his grave and bless him-had been rebuilt and
rehabilitated by Zainu'l 'Abidin. He had permitted idolators and polytheists
to revive the practices of infidelity and they had propagated heresy (kufr)
and false religion (din-i batil). With the support of some more kings,[96]
the infidels had flourished day after day. But with the support and
authority of Malik Musa Raina, Amir Shamsu'd-Din Muhammad undertook a
wholesale destruction of all those idol-houses [97] as well as the total
ruination of the very foundation of infidelity and disbelief. On the site of
every idol-house he destroyed, he ordered the construction of a mosque for
offering prayers after the Islamic manner."
The idolatory and heresy which had existed prior to his coming to this place
were effectively replaced by his preaching and propagation of Islamic laws
and practices. He brought honour to all the infidels and heretics (zandiqa)
of **Kashmir** by admitting them to the Islamic faith and bestowed upon them
many kinds of rewards and benefactions. It is publicly known as well as
emphatically related that during his life-time, with the virtuous efforts
and elaborate arrangements made by the fortunate Malik Musa Raina,
twenty-four thousand families of staunch infidels and stubborn heretics were
ennobled by being converted to the Islamic faith. [99] It is difficult to
compute the number of people who had hitherto indulged in corrupt practices
of a wrong (false) faith and dissent and were put on the right track under
the proper guidance of Mir Shamsu'd-Din 'Iraqi .[99] *

*In fact the transmitter of (God's) grace (Mir Shams 'Iraqi) conferred
favours upon the righteous Malik Musa Raina and gave him blessings which
enabled him to fulfill that cherished task. Indeed, fortunate is one who has
been able to become the recipient of such special consideration at the hands
of a highly venerable and elderly person like him (Amir Shamsu'd-Din). After
Sultan Sikandar-God's peace be upon him-no one among the Muslims who wielded
authority over this country rendered as much service to Islam by its
propagation and advancement as Malik Musa Raina did. Nobody was able to make
as organized an effort as he did towards the advancement and furtherence of
the Muhammadan religion. *



Please look at how the kings viewed their acts.One thought he would
get peace by destroying temples.Sultan Sikander has been defined as
religious minded and justice loving by the historians of the day while
in no case has Kalhana supported or even condoned breaking of
religious places.He heaped scorn on kings who resorted to this.

Now that's the difference. While Muslim Kings, their Amirs and even
most Muslim Historians thought that the King was indulging in act of
religious righteousness, kings belonging to other faiths had no such
grandiose megalomania of reaching heaven (where houris would await
them) by resorting to such acts.



It makes an important reading into the mindset of the Muslim
rulers.They clearly saw a holy purpose of converting "people of false
faiths" like Shudda and me to the only "true religion".In their
understanding of Islam they were doing great acts and their Amirs and
most Historians of that period(especially the foreign historians who
came with them ) supported this sickness unlike Kalhana who outrightly
condemned these acts.



Read the Last line of my reference from the Bharistan-i-Shahi

*Nobody was able to make as organized an effort as he did towards the
advancement and furtherence of the Muhammadan religion. *

Here we are.The purpose is clear "Advancement and Furtherance of the
Mohammedan Religion".



*Tarikh-i-Hasan Khuihami*

* *

*For details of forcible conversion of Hindus to Islam and their
massacre in case they refused to be converted, see Tarikh-i-Hasan
Khuihami; pp. 178-80. One significant detail is that three kharwars
(one kharwar is approximately equal to eighty kilograms) of Hindu
ceremonial thread (zunnar) were burnt by Sultan Sikandar.
(Tarikh-i-Hasan Khuihami, Pir Ghulam Hasan, Vol II, RPD,* Srinagar
1954.)*

* *

*Other Sources for Sikander Butshikan alone*



*This is what historians (mostly Muslims) have to say. *

*"He [Sikandar] prohibited all types of frugal games. Nobody dared to commit
acts which were prohibited by the Sharia. The Sultăn was constantly busy in
annihilating the infidels and destroyed most of the temples..." (Haidar
Malik Chădurăh: Tărîkh-i-Kashmîr; edited and translated into English by
Razia Bano, Delhi, 1991, p. 55.) *

*"[He] strove to destroy the idols and temples of the infidels. He got
demolished the famous **temple** of **Mahădeva** at Bahrăre. The temple was
dug out of its foundation and the hole (that remained) reached the water
table. Another temple at Jagdar was also demolished… Răjă Alamădat had got a
big temple constructed at Sinpur. (...) The temple was destroyed [by
Sikandar]." (Khwăjah Nizămu'd- Dîn Ahmad bin Muhammad Muqîm al-Harbî:
Tabqăt-i-Akbarî translated by B. De, Calcutta, 1973)*

* "Sikander burnt all books the same way as fire burns hay". "All the
scintillating works faced destruction in the same manner that lotus flowers
face with the onset of frosty winter." (Srivara, Zaina Ra-jtarangini). This
I am giving more for its poetic value rather than what it says.*



Also please do pay attention to the following

*"At the behest of Shams Iraqi, Musa Raina had ordered 1500 to 2000 infidels
to be brought to his door-steps every day by his followers. They would
remove their sacred threads, administer Kalima to them, circumcise them and
thrust lumps of beef into their mouths,'' mentions Tohfatul Ahbab.*

*Role of so-called Sufis*:

While no one can deny the fact that Kashmir was greatly influenced by Sufism
and has produced some great Sufi saints and mystic poets(both Hindus and
Muslims),we must stay clear of attaching a Sufi tag to every Muslim
Godman.On one hand we have the great Sufi Tradition of Nund Rishi,Shams
Faqir,Ahmed batwario,Rahim Saab,Swoch Kral,Prakesh Ram Kurigami,Govind
Kaul,Ahmed Dar, on the other we have self styled god-men like Bul Bul Shah
and Syed Ali Hamdani on whom this label of Sufi is stuck to make them more
palatable to the larger masses.Let us understand this in the context of
Shudda's assertions.

Shudda says

*It is necessary
to remember that **Kashmir** is a part of **South Asia** where the rise of
Islam
did not accompany a military invasion, but occurred largely due to the
example set by missionaries and religious divines.*

* *

My comments



Syed Ali Hamdani or Shah-I Hamdan as he is popularly called by Kashmiri
Muslims is widely regarded as the man responsible for conversion of
Kashmiris to Islam.Shudda has agreed in our previous discussions on this
very forum that the Shah-i-Hamadan mosque was built after demolishing a Kali
temple(and there are enough historical records to prove that, apart from the
fact that to this day Pandits perform prayers alongside the converted
structure).Now that itself should have restrained a scholar of Shudda's
repute to make the statement that he has made above.



That not-withstanding I would like to inform the forum that before
Shah-i-Hamadan left Kashmir he ordered the king to impose the following
sanctions on Non-Muslims.I am enumerating them for your reading please.



1)                  The Hindus will not construct any new temples under the
rule of Muslims.

2)                  They will not repair old temples fallen into ruins.

3)                  They will respect Muslims.

4)                  They will not dress like Muslims.

5)                  They will not ride a horse with saddle & bridle

6)                  They will not put on a ring.

7)                  They will not carry swords or bows & arrows.

8)                  They will not adopt Muslim names

9)                   They will not harbour spies or act as spies

10)              If any relation of their's wants to embrace Islam, they
will not oppose it.

11)              If a Muslim comes to attend a Hindu meeting he will be
respectfully received.

12)              They will receive Muslim travelers into their houses &
provide them hospitality.

13)              They will not prevent Muslim travelers from staying in
their temples & shrines.

14)              They will not mourn their dead loudly.

15)              They will not buy Muslim slaves.

16)              They will not build houses in neighbourhood of Muslims.

17)              They will not sell intoxicating drinks.

18)              They will not carry their dead near the grave-yards of
Muslims.

19)              They will not openly practice their customs & usages among
Muslims.

20)              They will not give up their traditional dress so that they
can be distinguished from Muslims.

*In the end the fiat in the form of an advice dictated if any Hindu dares to
flout any of conditions, he should be first looted and then possession of
his body is halal(Zakhiratul- Muluk).*



(Source:Dr.Qayoom Rafiquee's doctoral thesis titled"Sufism in Kashmir")



In case this is not enough proof for anybody's  flight of fancy which makes
him believe that Islam spread peacefully here are some examples from the
same thesis.If this isn't persecution in the name of religion then I wonder
what is.



Writes Dr. Qayoom Rafiquee, "Mir Mohammad was not ready to give the status
of Zimmis to the Hindus of Kashmir and treated them as kafirs who were not
obedient to Islam, but were at war with it".



Sufism in Kashmir, P-101



Again to quote Rafiquee, 'the medieval Muslim sources inform us emphatically
that infidelity was uprooted from Kashmir through the influence of Mir
Mohammad'.



Sufism in Kashmir 101.

*And sadly some of us have the cheek to say Islam in **Kashmir** spread
through divinity and personal example of missionaries.*
This should put to rest any imaginative thought processes of Islam spreading
in Kashmir through "divine incarnation of Dervishes and examples set by
missionaries".If someone still wants to stick to his point then I hope the
same divinity that dawned on our forefathers in Kashmir dawns on him too.

-- 
Rashneek Kher
http://www.nietzschereborn.blogspot.com