The protection
provided by Siddharãja JayasiMha to Muslims and their places of
worship was continued by his successors in Gujarat. The population of Muslims
as well as their places of worship continued to multiply in several cities
of Gujarat as is borne out by numerous inscriptions, particularly from
Khambat, Junagadh and Prabhas Patan, dated before Gujarat passed under
Muslim rule in the aftermath of Ulugh Khãn’s invasion in AD 1299.
“These records,”
observes Z.A. Desai, the learned Muslim epigraphist, “make an interesting
study primarily because they were set up in Gujarat at a time when it had
still resisted Muslim authority. That the Muslims inhabited quite a few
cities, especially in the coastal line of Gujarat, quite long before its
final subjugation by them, is an established fact. The accounts of Arab
travellers like Mas‘ûdî, Istakharî, Ibn Hauqal and others,
who visited Gujarat during the ninth and tenth centuries of the Christian
era, amply testify to the settlements of Muslims in various towns and cities.
The inscriptions studied below also tend to corroborate the fact that the
Muslims had continued to inhabit Gujarat until it became a part of the
Muslim empire of Delhi. Moreover, they furnish rare data for an appraisal
of the condition of Muslims under non-Muslim rulers of Gujarat. On one
hand, they indicate the extent of permeation of Islamic influence in Gujarat
at a time when it was still ruled by its own Rajput princes and show that
Muslims had long penetrated into different parts of Gujarat where they
lived as merchants, traders, sea-men, missionaries, etc.; these settlements
were not only on the coastal regions but also in the interior as is indicated
by some of these records. On the other hand, these
epigraphs form a concrete and ever-living proof of the tolerance and consideration
shown vis-a-vis their Muslim subjects by Hindu kings who were no doubt
profited by the trade and commerce carried on by these foreign settlers.”1
It seems, however,
that these “merchants, traders, sea-men and missionaries” were not satisfied
with the situation obtaining under Hindu rule. They kept looking forward
to the day when the Dãr al-Harb (land of the infidels against
which Muslims are obliged to wage war) that was Gujarat would become Dãr
al-Islãm (land of the faithful). The evidence of how these Muslim
settlers worked as sappers and miners of Islamic invasions of Gujarat remains
to be collected from Muslim annals. Here we are citing an inscription from
Prabhas Patan, the city which was famous for its temple of Somanatha.
The inscription
is dated AD 1264 and records the construction of a mosque at Prabhas Patan
by a Muslim ship-owner. The stone slab containing its Arabic version is
now fixed in the Qazi’s Mosque at Prabhas Patan and is not in situ.
The Sanskrit version which, it seems, was removed at some time and is now
in a wall of the Harasiddha Mata temple in the nearby town of Veraval,
has been summarised as follows by Z.A. Desai:
“Ship-owner
Nûru’d-Dîn Pîrûz, son of ship-owner Khwãja
Abû Ibrãhîm, a native of Hormuz,2
had come for business to the town of god Somnath during the reign of Arjunadeva,
the Vãghelã king of Gujarat (C. AD 1261-74) when Amîr
Ruknu’d-Dîn was the ruling chief of Hormuz; Pîrûz purchased
a piece of land situated in the Šikottari Mahãyãnpãl
outside the town of Somnath in the presence of the leading men like Thakkur
Šri Palugideva, Rãnak Šri Somešvaradeva, Thakkur Šri Rãmdeva,
Thakkur Šri Bhimsiha and others and in the presence of all (Muslim) congregations,
from Rãjakula Šri Chhãdã, son of Rãjakula Šri
Nãnasiha; Pîrûz, who by his alliance with the great
man Rãjakula Šri Chhãdã, had become his associate
in meritorious work, caused a mosque to be constructed on that piece of
land; for its maintenance, i.e., for the expenses of oil for lamp, water,
preceptor, crier to prayers and a monthly reader (of the Qur’ãn)
and also for the payment of expenses of the particular religious festivals
according to the custom of sailors, as well as for the annual white-washing
and repairs of rents and defects in the building, the said Pîrûz
bequeathed three sources of income: firstly, a pallaDika (particulars
regarding whose location and the owner are given in detail); secondly,
a dãnapala belonging to one oil-mill; and thirdly, two shops
in front of the mosque, purchased from Kilhanadeva, Lunasiha, Úãdhar
and others; Pîrûz also laid down that after meeting the expenses
as indicated above, the surplus income should be sent to the holy cities
of Mecca and Medina; as regards the management, he desired that the various
classes of Muslims such as the communities of sailors,
ship-owners, the clergy (?), the artisans (?), etc., should look after
the source of income and properly maintain the mosque.”3
The English translation
of the first seven lines of the Arabic text as given by Z.A. Desai, is
as follows:
1. Allãh
the Exalted may assign this (reward) to one who builds a house in the path
of Allãh… [This auspicious mosque was built].
2. on the twenty-seventh of the month
of RamaDãn, year [sixty-two].
3. and six hundred
from migration of the Prophet (23rd July AD 1264), in the reign of the
just Sultãn and [die generous king].
4. Abu’l-Fakhr
(lit., father of pride), Ruknu’d-Dunyã wa’d-Dîn (lit., pillar
of State and Religion), Mu’izzu’l-Islãm wa’l-Muslimîn (lit.
source of glory for Islãm and the Muslims), shadow of Allãh
in [the lands],
5. one who is
victorious against the enemies, (divinely) supported prince, Abi’n-Nusrat
(lit., father of victory), Mahmûd, son of Ahmad, may Allãh
perpetuate his…
6.
and may his affair and prestige be high, in the city of Somnãt (i.e.
Somnath), may God make it one of the cities of Islãm ad [banish?].
7. infidelity and idols… 4
Z.A. Desai has
noted some differences between the Arabic and the Sanskrit versions. “For
example,” he writes, “the Arabic inscription does not give all the details
regarding the sources of income, the procedure for its expenditure, management,
etc., which are mentioned at some length in the Sanskrit record. Also,
the Arabic version mentions only the leader of prayer (imãm),
caller to prayers (mu’addhin) and the cities of Mecca and Medina
among the beneficiaries… Likewise, no mention is made of the provision
for the celebration of religious festivals as stated in the Sanskrit record.
Further, in the extant portion of the Arabic record, we do not find mention
of the then Vãghelã king of Gujarat, Arjunadeva… On the other
hand, the Arabic version gives some more information regarding the status
and position of Pîrûz (Fîrûz) and his father Abû
Ibrãhîm. For example, Fîrûz is called therein
‘the great and respected chief (sadr), prince among sea-men, and
king of kings and merchants.’ He is further eulogised as the ‘Sun of Islãm
and Muslims, patron of kings and monarchs, shelter of the great and the
elite, pride of the age’, etc. Likewise, his father,
Abû Ibrãhîm, son of Muhammad al-‘Irãqî,
is also mentioned with such lofty titles as ‘the great chief of fortunate
position, protector of Islãm and the Muslims, patron of kings and
monarchs, prince among great men of the time, master of generosity and
magnanimity’, etc. Needless to say, all these titles are absent in the
Sanskrit version.”5
One wonders, however,
why the learned epigraphist has overlooked the most glaring difference
in the two versions and tried to cover it up by stating that “in the extant
portion of the Arabic record, we do not find mention of the then Vãghelã
king of Gujarat.” The record is complete for all practical purposes except
for a few gaps which the epigraphist has filled up creditably with the
help of his long experience in reading and reconstructing such inscriptions.
It is difficult to imagine that the name of Arjunadeva, the then Vãghelã
king of Gujarat, could have occurred in any of these gaps even if the king
was stripped of all his appellations. Moreover, the name of a Hindu king
could have found no place in the scheme followed in the inscription.
The scheme followed
in the inscription is similar to that which we find in thousands of such
inscriptions set up on mosques and other Muslim monuments all over India,
before and after AD 1264. The name of the ruling Muslim monarch with his
appellations finds a prominent place in most of these inscriptions. And
that is exactly what we find in the present instance. The only difference
is that there being no Muslim monarch at that time in Gujarat and Gujarat
being a Hindu kingdom independent of the Delhi Sultanate, the builder of
the mosque chose the king of Hormuz for showing his solidarity with Dãr
al-Isãm.
That in itself
was objectionable enough for a subject of the Hindu king of Gujarat or
a resident alien doing business in Gujarat. The mosque was erected at Prabhas
Patan which was situated in the kingdom of Gujarat and not at a place in
the kingdom of Hormuz. But the builder went much farther as, after extolling
the king of Hormuz as “the source of glory for Islãm and the Muslims,”
he prayed fervently that “may his affair and prestige be high in the city
of Somnãt, may Allãh make it one of the cities of Islãm,
and [banish?] infidelity and idols” from it. In other words, he was praying
for and looking forward to another Islamic invasion of Gujarat.
Comparing the
Sanskrit and Arabic versions of this inscription, the conclusion is unavoidable
that the Muslim merchant from Hormuz had eschewed carefully from the Sanskrit
version what he had included confidently in the Arabic text. He must have
been sure in his mind that no Hindu from Prabhas Patan or elsewhere was
likely to compare the two texts and that even if a Hindu noticed the difference
between the two he was not likely to understand its meaning and purport.
At the same time, he was sharing with his co-religionists in Gujarat a
pious aspiration enjoined on all believers by the tenets of Islam.
There was a similar
Muslim settlement at ANhilwãD Pãtan, the capital of Gujarat
under the Chaulukya and the Vãghelã dynasties of Hindu kings.
An inscription dated AD 1282 fixed in the wall of a mosque in this place,
records the death of a Muslim merchant in the reign of the Vãghelã
king Sãrañgadeva (AD 1274-96). “Within
our present state of knowledge,” writes Z.A. Desai, “this is the only record
at Pãtan which is dated in the pre-Muslim period of Gujarat, furnishing
evidence of the settlement, or at least presence, of Muslims in the very
capital of the Rajput rulers.”6 But
as he himself admits “Muslim remains also have not survived the ravages
of time”7 in this town. It is quite likely
that an inscription similar to that at Prabhas Patan existed at ANhilwãD
Pãtan also.
Cambay
or Khambat, the famous port of Gujarat, abounds in Muslim inscriptions
from the time when Gujarat was a Hindu kingdom. An inscription dated AD
1218 in the reign of the Chaulukya king Bhîmadeva II (AD 1178-1242),
records the construction of a Jãmi‘ Masjid and says in the very
first sentence that no one else would be invoked with Allãh.8 Another
inscription dated AD 1232 in the reign of the same Hindu king records the
death of a Muslim and declares, again in the first sentence, that “Surely,
the true religion with Allãh is Islãm.”9 A
third inscription dated 1284 in the reign of the Vãghelã
king Sãrañgadeva (AD 1274-96), records the death of another
Muslim and says that “whoever disbelieves in the communications of Allãh-then,
surely Allãh is quick in reckoning.”10
An inscription
dated AD 1286-87 records the construction of a mosque at Junagadh in the
reign of Sãrañgadeva. The record invests the name of the
builder, Abu’l Qãsim, with high-sounding titles. “The titles,” observes
Z.A. Desai, “may be taken to suggest that Abu’l Qãsim, probably
an influential merchant conducting business in that part, was associated
in some way with the liaison work between the state and its Muslim population. The
record also indicates that there was a considerable number of Muslim population
residing at Junagadh, which necessitated the building of a prayer house
and that some of the Saurashtra ports used to clear the traffic of Haj
pilgrims from Gujarat and possibly from outside too.”11
Settlements of
Arab and other merchants from West Asia were nothing new for Gujarat. These
merchants had established colonies all along the West Coast of India and
even farther afield, long before the prophet of Islam was born. The ports
of Gujarat being the most prosperous had exercised a particular attraction
for them. They also travelled in the interior of Gujarat in search of merchandise
fit for the markets in Africa, West Asia and Europe. Mecca itself was an
entrepot for trade between India and the Far East on the one hand and the
Roman Empire on the other. At the same time, Indian merchants including
those from Gujarat had established their colonies in most of the coastal
towns along the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean. Neither
religion nor politics had ever divided the two merchant fraternities.
All this, however,
changed radically after Arabia was conquered by the sword of Islam and
every Arab was forced to become a Muslim on pain of death or permanent
exile from his homeland. The Indian colonies along the Persian Gulf, the
Red Sea and the Mediterranean were attacked by Islamic legionaries, both
from land and sea. Indian merchants, except a few who opted for the
new faith, were killed or hounded out from every place which came under
Islamic occupation. Meanwhile, Arab merchants added a new item to their
merchandise-they became salesmen of Islam as well. Arab settlements in
India had not suffered the slightest discomfort or dislocation following
from the stormy events in Arabia and the march of Islamic hordes towards
the frontiers of India. Many more people to the west and north of India
passed under the yoke of Islam in the next few decades. Merchants from
all these places had also to embrace Islam and make a common cause with
the Arab merchants. A new fraternity known as the ummah or millat
of Islam emerged all along the West Coast of India as also at many places
in the interior.
Only a state and
a population that did not know or understand the tenets of Islam and the
obligations which those tenets imposed upon every Muslim, could permit
these seditious settlements in its leading cities and ports. There is little
doubt that each one of these settlements served as an intelligence network
for Islamic invaders. The missionaries of Islam who took care of the flock
might have hoodwinked the Hindus around them with their pieties. But the
faithful understood the message of these missionaries and readily served
as advance guards of the armies of Islam hovering on the borders of Gujarat.
It cannot be said
that at the time these inscriptions were set up at ANhilwãD Pãtan,
Prabhas Patan, Khambat, Junagadh and other places, the Hindus of Gujarat
had had no taste of what Islam had in store for them, their women, their
children, their cities, their temples, their idols, their priests, and
their properties. The invasion of Ulugh Khãn that was to subjugate
Gujarat to a long spell of Muslim rule, was the eighth in a series which
started within a few years after the Prophet’s death at Medina in AD 632.
Five Islamic invasions had been mounted on Gujarat before Siddharãja
JayasiMha ascended the throne of that kingdom in AD 1094 - first in AD
636 on Broach by sea; second in AD 732-35 by land; third and fourth in
AD 756 and 776 by sea; and fifth by Mahmûd of Ghazni in AD 1026.
Two others had materialised by the time the Muslim ship-owner set up his
inscription in AD 1264 on a mosque at Prabhas Patan. The sixth invasion
was by Muhammad Ghûrî in AD 1178, and the seventh was by Qutbu’d-Dîn
Aibak in AD 1197. The only conclusion that can be drawn from the evidence
is that either the Hindus of Gujarat had a very short memory or that they
did not understand at all the inspiration at the back of these invasions.
The temple of Somnath which stood, after the invasion of Mahmûd of
Ghazni in AD 1026, as a grim reminder of the character of Islam, had also
failed to teach them any worthwhile lesson. Nor did they visualize that
the Muslim settlements in their midst could play a role other than that
of carrying on trade and commerce.
The foreign merchants
turned Muslims had continued to do business and amass wealth as in the
earlier days. But the leadership in the Muslim settlements had now passed
into the hands of the missionaries of Islam known as Sufis, Walîs,
Dirvishes and by several other high-sounding names. The sole occupation
of these missionaries was to see the frontiers of Dãr al-Islãm
extend towards Gujarat. All Muslims in Gujarat were now expected to serve
as the eyes and ears of the Caliphate which had started on a career of
imperialist aggression in all directions. Gujarat had had a taste of this
aggression earlier than any other part of India. As the armies of Islam
marched towards the land frontiers of India in Makran and Seistan, Indian
ports on the West Coast became targets for the newly created Islamic navy.
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