By Marzooqa
Deep in the south of the Indian Peninsula, known for its languorous canals and the tea-covered hills of the Western Ghats (a majestic mountain range spanning six states), is the state of Kerala. This historic coastal state is home to India’s oldest mosque, ‘The Cheraman Jum'ah Masjid’,established at Methala, Kodungallur Taluk in the Thrissur district by Malik lbn Dinar( an acclaimed Persian scholar, and one of the first Muslim travellers to bring Islam to India). An inscription in Arabi-Malayalam language on the gate of the masjid gives the date 5 Hijri, which is the year 629 AD. This particular mosque is therefore extraordinary, founded before the first mosque in Iraq (639 CE), Syria (715 CE), Egypt (642 CE), and Tunisia (670 CE), so making it the oldest mosque in Islamic history after those built in Arabia and China.
Historical records show the region of Kerala to be engaged in trade the with Sumerians and Babylonians from possible as early on as the 3rd millennium BCE. Phoenicians, Greeks, Egyptians ,Romans, Jews, Arabs and Chinese were attracted to the locality by a variety of rich commodities, including spices and cotton fabrics. Trade relations between Arabia and the Indian subcontinent were especially active, with the Malabar region being a major area for such activities.
The ruling dynasty following this era were the Perumals of Makotai, also known as the Cheraman Perumal dynasty of Mahodayapuram, (fl. c. 9th―12th century AD). Makotai, or Mahodayapuram is identified with present day Kodungallur region of central kerala.
(1)OLD SEA ROUTE AND LAND ROUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL TRADE
(2) LOCATION OF KODUNGALLUR IN KERALA
King Cheraman Perumal, of Kodungallur, was the first Indian known to have embracedIslam. Modern historians, still enthralled by the incident which led to this, have referenced it by quoting old manuscripts from India Office Library. Portuguese writer Duarte Barbosa is however the first to write about the fascinating tale of Kerala’s king meeting the Holy Prophet himself in 1510 CE.
It is said that when the moon was split into two as a miracle from Prophet Muhammad(s.a), many people inside and outside the Arabian peninsula had witnessed it.
The Holy Quran makes the following reference to this miracle in the verse-
“The Hour is nigh and the moon was cleft asunder. But if they see a sign, they turn away, and say ‘this is (but) transient magic’ ” – Al-Qamar, verse 54:1-2
‘Cheraman Perumal Rama Varma Kulashekhara’ was said to be the king of Kerala at that time. It was a moonlight night, and the king was relaxing on the rooftop of his palace in Kodungallur when he came to witness this splitting of the moon. He had heard about Islam through Arab merchants and following this miracle, became curious to know about the Prophet and his religion.
A group of Arabs had come to Kodungallur at that time, and met with the king to seek permission to visit Ceylon (present day Sri Lanka). They had said they wanted to visit the mountain which has the footsteps of Adam, the first human being and the first prophet. So when King Cheraman asked his Arab guests about the miraculous moon-splitting incident, Sheikh Sahiruddhin bin Baqiyuddhin Al-Madani, a prominent member of the team first replied: “We are Arabs, we are Muslims. We have come here to visit Ceylon,” making the king evermore curious to hear directly from these inhabitants of Madina- the centre of Islam at the time. As Sahiruddhin gave eloquent replies to every questions asked by the king,Cheraman finally expressed his desire to embrace Islam and travel with them to meet the Prophet.
This incident is well documented by M. Hamidullah in “Muhammed Rasulullah,” William Logan in“Malabar Manual” and Ahmed Zainudhin Makthum in “Thufhathul Mujahideen” as well as in an interview with Raja Valiya Thampuran of Kodungallur.
Before travelling to Makkah, the king divided his Kingdom into three parts and appointed his sons and nephews to rule each province, as well as visited many relatives and employees to leave them with instructions. He also travelled to Kalankara to see his sister ‘Sreedevi’ and tell her about his decision embrace Islam. Once there, his nephew, son of Sreedevi, was appointed to rule the present Kannur district. He later embraced Islam and became Muhammed Ali, who established the Kannur Arakkal royal family and became it’s Adiraja(first king). The Arab visitors returned to Kodungallur from Ceylon to pick up King Cheraman on their journey back to Arabia, arriving finally at Shehr Muqlla. Here, Cheraman is said to have met with the Holy Prophet, a historical incident mentioned in a Hadith by Abu Saeed Al-Khudri
The Hadith says:
“A king from India presented the Messenger of Allah with a bottle of pickle that had ginger in it. The Holy Prophet distributed it among his companions. I also received a piece to eat.” Hakim reports in ‘Al Musthadrak’
King Cheraman declared his conversion to Islam in the presence of the Prophet(s.a) and adopted a new name ‘Thajuddin’. He later performed Hajj and then, as per the wishes of the Prophet, accompanied Malik bin Dinar and a team of companions back to Kerala to spread Islam. During the journey the king fell sick, but managed to draft before his death a letter to his sons, directing them to recieve Malik Bin Dinar and his team as guests and to assist them however they need. Once he passed away, the king was buried in Zafar (now Salalah) in the Sultanate of Oman, where the tomb of the “Indian king” was paid homage to for many following centuries.
Three conditions are to be fulfilled for a person to become a Sahabi or companion of the Prophet. First, he should embrace Islam from the Prophet or from his companion; second, should spend at least a small period of his lifetime with the Prophet; and third, should die as a Muslim. As Cheraman fulfilled all the three conditions, it said that he is the only Sahabi to have come from Kerala, known to history.
TOMB OF KING THAJUDDIN AT SALALAH, OMAN
His story is still sung during Theyyum (a grand festival of music and dance held in Kerala), translated as follows: “Perumal who began his journey secretly handed over his Kovilakam (palace) to the Samudiri (another monarch of the region) in Dharmapattanam.
His companions were with him.
The Prophet used to halt at Jeddah.
Perumal went there and embraced Islam and adopted the name Tajudhin.”
So it goes that Islam spread along the India’s western coast, originating from Kerala- long before the Muslim invasion of North India,- around the time of the Holy Prophets death. Thus the oldest mosque in the subcontinent came to be in this region, through a series of historic incidents set into motion by an old king witnessing the splitting of the moon.
CHERAMAN MASJID, KODUNGALLUR ( NOW)
It is believed that the mosque is probably one of the oldest shrines in the world, first renovated in the 11th Century AD and later again 300 years ago. The last renovation was done in 1974 when, due to an increase in the muslim population, an extension was constructed demolishing the front part of the mosque. The ancient parts of the mosque including the sanctum sanctorum were left untouched and are still preserved. Another extension was made in 1994 for further accommodation. When yet another extension was needed in 2001, it was decided to reconstruct this in the model of the old mosque.
On its original grounds the mosque still stands, holding an ancient oil lamp which always burns and is believed to be more than a thousand years old. People of all religions bring oil for the lamp as an offering, and like most masjid’s in Kerala, this masjid too allows entry for Non-Muslims- a symbol of faith and peace.
Reference:
(1) Historical Research Letter www.iiste.org ISSN 2224-3178 (Paper) ISSN 2225-0964 (Online) Vol.17, 2015; Historical Aspects of the Legend of Cheraman Perumal of Kodungallur in Kerala; Dr.Haseena V.A Assistant professor Post Graduate Department of Economics, M.E.S Asmabi college,P.Vemaballur,Kodungallur,Kerala.
(2) Ali akbaar; thursday,2012-02-09,20:30; the kerala king who embtaced islam; www.arabnews.com
(3) Cheraman Juma Masjid: A 1,000-year-old lamp burns in this mosque;TNN | May 31, 2015, 06:44 IST.timesofindia.indiatimes.com.
(4) Wikipedia
(5)Kerala Muslims – History of freedom struggle by KM Bahaudhin
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