Majestic Hazratbal Shrine at Srinagar-Kashmir
Dr.Mazhar
Naqvi
The
most revered and holiest shrine of Kashmir ‘Hazratbal’ is rightly called as
‘Madinat-Us-Sani’ (Smaller Medina).Housing a relic‘ Moi-e-Muqqadas’- believed to be a hair of
Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad, Srinagar based silvery shrine offers serenity and
divine appeal similar to one experienced by a devotee in Medina. Located on the
left bank of Dal lake, the shrine derives its name from the Urdu Word ’Hazrat’(Respected)
and Kashmiri word ’Bal’(Place).It is the only single dome mosque of Srinagar
with
intricate Persian and Iranian architectural influences. The white marble
mosque has been built with a fusion of Mughal and Kashmiri styles of
architecture with large mountains in the backdrop.
Head Priest of Hazratbal Displaying the Relic
The story about the arrival of the
relic from Arabia to Srinagar is quite fascinating. It is believed that it was
brought to India by Syed Abdullah, a descendant of the Holy Prophet. He had
left Medina to settle in Bijapur that flourished as a great center of Islamic
studies in early 17th century under Adil Shahi Kings. When Syed
Abdullah died, his son, Syed Hamid, inherited the relic. After Bijapur Kingdom
collapsed under Mughal onslaught, Syed Hamid lost his family estates. Finding
himself unable to care the sacred relic, he sold it to a wealthy Kashmiri
Merchant, Khwaja Nur-ud-Deen Eshai.
Upon coming to know about the
transaction, Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb had the relic seized and Khwaja Nur-ud-Deen
imprisoned in Delhi. He sent the relic to the shrine of Khwaja
Moinuddin Chishti at Ajmer. According to a legend, Emperor saw the Holy Prophet
directing him to return the relic to its actual owner in a dream. The emperor acted
promptly both out of reverence and fear. He decided to return the relic to Khwaja
Nur-ud-Deen but by the time it could reach the latter had breathed his last in
prison. In 1700, the relic finally reached Kashmir along with the body of
Khwaja Nur-ud-Deen. Inayat Begum, daughter of Khwaja Nur-ud-Deen, became
custodian of the relic and established the shrine. She was married into the
prominent Kashmiri Bandey family of Srinagar. Since then, her descendants from
the Bandey family have been the caretakers of the relic.
The entire Kashmir valley had plunged
into mourning after the relic was reported missing from the shrine on December
26, 1963.Mass protests followed all over the state with thousands of devotees
on the street. The then Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru addressed the nation
on radio about the disappearance of the relic. He assured the believers that his
government would ensure recovery of the relic at the earliest. An
Awami Action Committee was subsequently constituted for recovery of the relic. Normalcy
restored in the valley after a month following recovery of the relic and its
identification by a panel of scholars as ‘genuine’. On Eid -Milad- uN –Nabi day
(December 24,2015 i.e.12th Rabi –ul-Awwal) over one lakh devotees braving bone-chilling
cold visited Hazratbal to offer Friday prayers and perform Ziyarat(Glimpse) of
the relic that was displayed after the congregational prayers. Various social,
religious and political organizations had also organized camps around the
shrine. Some of them distributed Kehwa and free Islamic literature to the
devotees. Various roads and streets leading to the shrine were decorated
and markets at Hazrat Bal wore a festive look.
References:
1-Cultural Heritage of Kashmir by
K.Warikoo,2009 ,
2- Hazratbal Shrine by Frederic P.
Miller, Agnes F. Vandome,
John McBrewster – 2010
3-My Life and Times,
Sayyid Mir Qasim,1992
4-Greater
Kashmir, October 26,2015
5-Photo
Courtesy-Google Images
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