Demolition of Somnath temple.
About the time the general order for destruction of Hindu temples was issued (9th April 1669), the highly venerated temple of Somanath built on the sea-shore in Kathaiwad was also destroyed. The famous temple was dedicated to Lord Shiva. In the 11th century, the temple was looted and destroyed by Mahmud Ghaznavi. It was rebuilt by King Bhim Deva Solanki of Gujarat and again renovated by Kumarapal in 1143-44 A.D. The temple was again destroyed by Alauddin Khalji’s troops in 1299. In a rare description of the scene of a temple destruction, like of which continued to occur time and again during the long and disastrous rule of the Musalman rulers in India, we have the following account. “The Mlechchha (asura) stone breakers”, writes Padmanabha in his classic work “climbed up the shikhar of the temple and began to rain blows on the stone idols on all three sides by their hammers, the stone pieces falling all around. They loosened every joint of the temple building, and then began to break the different layers (thara) and the sculptured elephants and horses carved on them by incessant blows of their hammers. Then, amidst loud and vulgar clamour, they began to apply force from both the sides to uproot the massive idol by means of wooden beams and iron crowbars” (Kaanhadade Prabandha, Canto I, vss. 94-96).
After the destruction of Somnath temple during Alauddin’s time, it was rebuilt again. When Aurangzeb gave orders for its destruction, the scene must have been little different from the one described by Padmanabha. The artist in his painting has tried to recreate the scene.
General Order for the demolition of Hindu Temples.
On the 9th April 1669, Aurangzeb “eager to establish Islam, issued orders to the governors of all the provinces to demolish the schools and temples of the infidels, and, with the utmost urgency, put down the teaching and the public practice of the religion of these unbelievers (Hindus)” Maasir-i-‘Alamgiri, p.81).
In the sketch, the artist has shown the destruction of the temples of Somanath, Jagannath (Puri), Kashi Vishwanath (Banaras)and Keshava Rai (Mathura), which were all highly venerated shrines, as symbolic of Aurangzeb’s ideal of thorough destruction of Hindu temples. In the centre is a portion of the infamous order of the 9th April issued by him.
Maharana Raj Singh formally receiving the Idol of Shrinathji.
Aurangzeb’s temple breaking spree was in full swing after his general order of 9th April 1669. The idols were being broken and temples desecrated in a show of mad religious frenzy and in remorseless pursuit to fulfil the demands of the Shari‘at. These were the circumstances which formed the backdrop of Shri Nathji’s journey from Govardhan near Mathura to a small village in Mewar (Rajasthan), which in course of time became one of the most important centres of the Vallabha Sampradaya.
The idol which adorned the temple at Govardhan near Mathura, before it could be touched by Aurangzeb’s hatchet-men, was taken by Damodar Gosain to Bundi, Kotah, Kishangarh and even Jodhpur, but none of the Rajput States felt strong enough to face the wrath of Aurangzeb. At last when Maharana Raj Singh of Mewar was approached, he assured the worried Gosain (the priest) that Aurangzeb would not be able to even touch the idol of Shri Nathji without first treading over the bodies of one lakh of his brave Rajputs.
Shri Nathji’s idol was then brought to Mewar, the Maharana himself receiving the Lord on the border of his state on 5th December 1671 at Sihad village, which after the deity, came to be called Nathdwara.
The tradition goes that when Gosain and his party reached Sihada village in Mewar, the wheels of Shri Nathji’s chariot got stuck up in the sand, and despite all efforts, the chariot would not move a finger’s length. Happily, this was taken as a sign that the God did not wish to proceed any further and has chosen the place as His abode.
In the above painting, the wheels of Shri Nathji’s chariot are shown having stuck up in sand; the Maharana Raj Singh is receiving the idol of Shri Nathji with utmost reverence; the Gosain is standing nearby; Shri Nathji is in the curtained chariot, only his face being visible.
The Defence of Jagannath Rai (Jagadish) Temple, Udaipur. (January 1680)
The sketch portrays a famous incident in the history of Mewar which had come out in open support of the Rathors of Marwar, then fighting for the very survival of their State (Jodhpur) which Aurangzeb had resumed with darkest of intentions. War was on and when the Maharana and his people evacuated Udaipur and withdrew to the mountains and valleys of Mewar.
In front of the Maharana’s palace was the grand temple of Jagannath Rai, which was “one of the rarest buildings of the age”. It was built by Maharana Jagat Singh at a cost of several lakhs of rupees. The pratistha ceremony of the temple was held on the 13th May 1652. It was a Vishnu Panchayatan temple in which, the temples of Siva, Ganapati, Surya and Devi were in the four directions, in the Parikrama, and the main temple of Vishnu in the centre. Ruhillah Khan and Yakka Taz Khan were sent to demolish it. Saqi Musta’ad Khan writes in Maasir-i-‘Alamgiri, “Twenty machator Rajputs were sitting in the temple vowed to give up their lives; first one of them came out to fight, killed some and was then himself slain, then came out another and so on, until every one of the twenty perished, after killing a large number of the imperialists”. After the last brave Rajput had fallen, the Muslim troops entered the temple and the hewers broke the image.
Restrictions on the Hindus: forbidden to travel in Palkis, or ride on elephants and Arab-Iraqi horses.
In March 1695, all the Hindus, with the exception of the Rajputs, were forbidden to travel in palkis, or ride on elephants or thorough-bred horses, or to carry arms. (Muntakhab-ul-Lubab, ii, 395; Maasir-i-Alamgiri, 370 and News Letter, 11 December 1694).
In the sketch, well to do Hindus are being made to alight from palki (sedan chair), elephant and good horse by Mughal officers. The need to issue this derogatory order was the requirement also recorded in Fatwa-i-‘Alamgiri, that Hindus should not be allowed to look like Muslims, that is carry themselves with the same dignity. The folly and futility, or even danger of applying or observing the guiding principles, practices and law prescribed, interpreted, or recommended in the seventh and eighth centuries in Arabia, after a lapse of ten centuries in a country like India, was never realized by the Muslim clerics or their Emperor.
The execution of Raja Shambhaji (son of Shivaji) on Aurungzeb's orders after capture. (February, 1689)
Succeeding his great father Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in April 1680, his elder son Shambhaji continued the fight against the Mughals most spiritedly for the preservation and also extension of Swarajya.
Unfortunately, a single but grave mistake and over confidence in his own safe and secure position at Sangameshwar, nestling amidst the Western Ghats, led to his chance capture along with Kavikalash and a number of other Marathas who were with him.
On the 15th February 1689, Shambhaji and Kavi Kalash were brought to the Imperial camp dressed as buffons with long fool’s caps and bells placed on their heads, mounted on camels, with drums beating, with thousands of onlookers lining the roads. Aurangzeb was sitting in full darbar, and, at the sight of the prisoners, “descended from the throne and kneeling down on the carpet bowed his head to the ground in double thankfulness to the Giver of this crowning victory”. Shambhaji spurned at the offer of life and loosened his tongue in abuse of the Emperor. That very night his eyes were blinded and next day the tongue of Kavi Kalash was cut out. The Musalman clerics decreed that Shambhaji should be put to death.
After undergoing a fortnight of torture and insult, the captives were put to a cruel and painful death on the 11th March, their limbs being hacked off one by one and their flesh thrown to the dogs. Their severed heads were stuffed with straw and exhibited in all the chief cities of the Deccan to the accompaniment of drum and trumpet (Maasir-i-‘Alamgiri, 320-25; Muntakhab-ul-Lubab, 386-88, Sarkar, Aurangzeb, IV, pp.340-44).
In the painting, the entire sequence of events after Shambhaji’s arrival in the camp, his cruel death and barbaric manner in which his dead body was dealt with have been brought out alive. The courageous manner in which Shambhaji braved death made him a martyr and washed of his earlier mistakes and actions in the eyes of the people.
Hindus forced to suffer humiliation in paying the Jizyah tax.
On 2nd April 1679, Aurangzeb re-imposed Jizayah upon the Hindus which had been abolished by Emperor Akbar in 1564. The author of Maasir-i-Alamgiri writes: ‘As all the aims of the religious Emperor (Aurangzeb) were directed to the spreading of the law of Islam and the overthrow of the practices of the infidelity, he issued orders ….. that from Wednesday, the 2nd April 1679/1st Rabi I, in obedience to the Qur’anic injunction, “till they pay Jizyah with the hand of humility”, and in agreement with the canonical traditions, Jizyah should be collected from the infidels (zimmis) of the capital and the provinces’.
The economic burden of Jizyah was felt most by the poor who formed the vast majority of the Hindus; for the middle classes and the rich, it was not so much the economic burden which mattered but the humiliation involved in the prescribed mode of payment, which the Jizyah collector could always insist upon, as of right i.e. by insisting that he would accept it only when paid personally. The Qur’anic injunction that war must be made upon all those who do not profess Islam “till they pay Jizyah out of their hand and they are humiliated”, was interpreted to mean that the Hindus must be made conscious of their inferior position when paying this tax.
In the painting, a number of Hindus, both rich and poor are lining up to pay Jizyah while the arrogant Jizyah collector is picking up the coins from the palm of a Hindu Jizyah payer. Some people have come from the neighbouring areas in their bullock-carts; their bullocks are resting under the shade of the trees.
Firman issued by #Aurangzeb to convert Hindus.
Rs 4 to a Hindu male Rs 2 to a female.
Dated: 7 Apr 1685
"(The Emperor) ordered Jumadat-ul-Mulk to write to all the Faudjars and Diwans of the kingdom that each Hindu male who becomes a Musalman, is to be given Rupees four and each Hindu woman Rupees two, as fixed by us, from the treasury of the place, by way of inam.
Those who become Musalman out of devotion for Din (Islam), in their case, the award of money in future be stopped."
Note:
The amount offered as an inducement for conversion was substantial and amounted to almost one month's wages of a worker in case of a Hindu male.
The document forms one of the most unabashed statement and the severest indictment on the methods adopted in spreading Islam in India, and this was being done even more than four hundred after the establishment of Muslim rule in India (c. 1200 A.D.)!
If Devi Chand, Zamindar of Manoharpur, who's in prison, becomes Muslim, better for him.
Else he be killed
Darbar Khan was ordered (by Aurangzeb) to send a parwanah to Ihatmam Khan, Kotwal of Garhvitli (at Ajmer) with above instructions
“Darbar Khan was ordered (by Emperor Aurangzeb) to send a parwanah to Ihatmam Khan, Kotwal of Garhvitli (at Ajmer) instructing him that if Devi Chand, the dispossessed Zamindar of Manoharpur, who is in prison, becomes Musalman, so much the better for him. or else he is to be killed.
What happened subsequently in this case is further known from Siyah Akhbarat-i-Darbar-i-Mu'alla of R.Yr. 24, Jamadi I, 12 / 21st May 1681 (Exhibit No.41), which says ‘….. when it was conveyed to Devi Chand, the dismissed Zamindar of Manoharpur, that either he became a Musalman or he would be put to death in compliance with the Emperor's orders, he requested that if Zamindari of Manoharpur was restored to him, he would become a Musalman. Upon this, Ihatmam Khan replied, "If you desire to live, you have to become a Musalman; (even then) the Zamindari (of Manoharpur) will not be given to you". He did not agree to it. He was taken for execution when he agreed to become a Musalman. The Emperor ordered, "Make him a Musalman".
Note:
We do not know the ground on which Devi Chand was dispossessed of his estate of Manoharpur but the case provides a very questionable but convincing case of the use of coercion in conversions.
Shaikh Abdul Momin, Faujdar of Bithur, wrote he had converted 150 Hindus & had given them saropas and cash.
Aurangzeb replied, 'Go on giving them'.
Note:
This is only one of the few recorded evidence of the State subserviently acting for the advancement of Islam during the Medieval period of India's history (1200-1790 A.D.). The process in its most invidious form was operative throughout Aurangzeb's reign as it had been for more than three hundred years from 1200-1526 A.D. under the Delhi Sultanate, specially during the time of Sultan Firuz Tughlaq (1350-88 A.D.).
Aurangzeb's order for demolishing the temple at Goner(Amber)
Siyaha Akhbarat-i-Darbar-i-Mu'alla Julus, 28Mar1686
"Asad Khan was ordered to write to Raja Ram Singh's gumashta, who is in Amber, that the temple in mauza Goner, near Amber, is to be demolished, and to hand over its possession to Jamal Beg, gurzbardar (mace bearer)”.
Note:
There was no provocation for Aurangzeb's ordering demolition of the Goner temple, since the Jagdish temple at Goner, as per tradition, had been built in Akbar's time. It is however a known fact that Aurangzeb's distrust of and dislike for Maharaja Ram Singh of Amber had never abated since the escape of Shivaji from Agra (19th August 1666) in which Kumwar Ram Singh's hand was suspected.
Demolition of Bindu-Madhav Temple at Banaras.
Siyah Akhbarat-i-Darbar-i- Mu'alla Julus 26,Ramzan 20 / 13Sep 1682
Orders to Jawahar Chand,Daroga of the beldars,that whichever temples come in the way of the Emperor b demolished
“(The Emperor) ordered Jawahar Chand, Darogha of the beldars, that whichever temples come in the way (of the Emperor) be demolished”.
Note:
It is evident that the order makes no distinction between old and recently built temples. It is an all comprehensive order to pull down all the temples which could meet Emperor’s eyes.
The Emperor at this time was on his way to the Deccan after concluding terms of peace with Mewar. Leaving Ajmer on 8th September 1681, he reached Burhanpur on 13th November 1681. Aurangzeb had the regret that the houses and the temples in the Deccan were exceedingly strong, being built solely of stone and iron. For this reason, as he wrote to Ruhullah Khan, "The hatchet men of the Government in course of my marching do not get sufficient strength and power (i.e. time) to destroy and raze the temples of the infidels that met the eye on the way, and therefore ordered that "an orthodox darogha" be appointed "who may afterwards destroy them (temples) at leisure and dig up their foundations". (Kalimat-i-Aurangzeb, 34 of Rampur MS and f.35a of 1.0.L. MS., in J.N. Sarkar, Aurangzeb, Vol.III, 189).
Orders 4 demolition of JagannathTemple,Orissa
Siyah Akhbarat-i-Darbar-i-Mu'alla Julus 24,Jamadi I,23 /01Jun1681
"(The Emperor) ordered Asad Khan that in accordance with the (existing) orders, to write to Amir-ul-Umara, the Subedar of Bengal, to demolish the temple (butkhana) of Jagannath in Orissa."
Note:
The sacred Jagannath temple at Puri in Orissa is situated in Shankha Kshetra. Puri is a well known centre of pilgrimage in Eastern India on the sea shore of Bay of Bengal. It is said that there was a Buddhist shrine here in ancient times. After the great revival of Hinduism, it became an important Vaishnavite centre and images of Krishna, Balram and Subhadra were installed in the temple.
It is difficult to say who built this magnificent temple, but we certainly know that it was restored in the 9th century by Yayati Kesari and that it was renovated by King Chand Gangadeva in the 12th century, and a few decades later Anang Bhim Deva of the same dynasty (Ganga Vamsha) restored the shrine compeltely. The structure which stands today is the same, though it suffered damage from time to time at the hands of Musalman invaders, such as by Sultan Firuz Tughlaq in 1360 A.D. The temple was partly demolished but the local people continued to visit the temple for worship soon after the original temple was restored.
The temple records inform that one of the queens of Raja Man Singh of Amber, when he was the Governor of Bengal and Orissa during Akbar’s time, added a mandap in this temple in the16th century. A Maratha sardar of the Bhonsle family restored the Bhog mandap later. The temple was visited by eminent Vaishnava saints – Ramanuja in 1122 and 1137 and Chaitanya in the 15th century.
Orders for the destruction of temples on the bank of Maharana's lake, Udaipur.
23rd December 1679.
"Yesterday, Yakka Taz Khan and mimar (architect or mason) Hira brought before the Emperor the tarah (plans or designs) of the temples built on the bank of Rana's lake and submitted that at a distance of about five kos, there was another lake also. It was ordered by the Emperor that Hasan Ali Khan, Ruhullah Khan, Yakka Taz Khan, Ibadullah Khan and Tahavvara Khan should go and destroy the temples”.
Note:
Though Maharana Raj Singh of Mewar was at war with the Mughal Government at that time, having come out in open support of the Rathors who were fighting against unjust and high handed resumption of Marwar, there was no justification whatsoever for demolishing nearly three hundred temples in Mewar alone. One may note that even in peaceful times, the temples were the chief target of Muslim vandalism as was the case with such sacred shrines as of Bindu-Madhava and Vishwanath at Banaras, Keshava Rai at Mathura, Jagannath at Puri and Somnath in Gujarat, all of which were demolished by Auranzeb's orders. Aurangzeb's religious bigotry, through praised by the Muslim historians, has lived on in national memory as a disturbing fact since it has sanction of his religion, though it has been denounced by all Hindu writers, poets and common men.
Painting: Demolition of Keshava Rai temple at Mathura. (13th January / 11th February 1670)
The great temple of Keshava Rai at Mathura was built by Bir Singh Deo Bundela during Jahangir’s time at a cost of thirty-three lakhs of rupees. The Dehra of Keshava Rai was one of the most magnificent temples ever built in India and enjoyed veneration of the Hindus throughout the land. Prince Dara Shukoh, who was looked upon by the masses as the future Emperor, had presented a carved stone railing to the temple which was installed in front of the deity at some distance; the devotees stood outside this railing to have ‘darshan’ of Keshava Rai. The railing was removed on Auranzeb’s orders in October 1666.
The Dehra of Keshava Rai was demolished in the month of Ramzan, 1080 A.H. (13th January – 11th February 1670) by Aurangzeb’s order. “In a short time, by the great exertion of the officers, the destruction of this strong foundation of infidelity was accomplished and on its site a lofty mosque was built at the expenditure of a large sum”. To the author of Maasir-i-‘Alamigiri, the accomplishment of this “seemingly impossible work was an “instance of the strength of the Emperor’s faith”. Even more disgraceful was transporting the idols to Agra and burying them under the steps of the mosque of the Begum Sahib “in order to be continually trodden upon”.
The painting shows the demolition of the great temple, on Aurngzeb’s orders in progress and subsequent uncivilized conduct towards the idols.
Proclamations of the demolition of the temple of Kashi Viswanath (Banaras).
August 1669 A.D.
It was reported that, “according to the Emperor’s command, his officers had demolished the temple of Viswanath at Kashi”. (Maasiri-‘ Alamgiri, 88)
Note:
Kashi is one of the mort sacred towns in India and reference to the worship of Shiva as Vishveshvara goes back to very early times. Kashi itself enjoys highest sanctity since times immemorial. According to the Puranas, every foot-step taken in Kashi Kshetra has the sanctity of making a pilgrimage to a tirtha. Lord Vishvanatha is regarded as the protector of Kashi and the belief is that one earns great religious merit by having darshana (view) of the deity after having bathed in the Ganges. After destruction of the temple on Aurangzeb’s orders, a mosque (Gyanvapi Masjid) was built which still stands there as a testimony of the great tolerance and spirit of forgiveness of the Hindus even towards those who had for centuries desecrated and destroyed their temples and other places of worship and learning, and also as a lesson that “mutually uncongenial cultures”, when forced by circumstances to intermingle in the same Geographical area, result in such calamities. A portion of the sculpture of the demolished temple, probably built in the late 16th century, still survives to tell the fate of Aurangzeb’s vandalism and barbarity. The present temple of Vishveshvara was built by Ahilya Bai Holkar of Indore.
Even to look at a temple is a sin for a Musalman - Aurangzeb.
Umurat-i-Hazur Kishwar-Kashai Julus / 13 Oct 1666
Demolition of Kalka's Temple near Delhi - I. Siyah Waqa'i- Darbar Regnal Year 10, Rabi I, 23 / 3 Sep 1667.
Saiyad Faulad Khan reported that in compliance with the orders, beldars were sent to demolish the Kalka temple which task they have done. During the course of the demolition, a Brahmin drew out a sword, killed a bystander and then turned back and attacked the Saiyad also. The Brahmin was arrested”.
Note:
There are only a few recorded instances of armed opposition by outraged Hindus, such as at Goner (near Jaipur), Ujjain, Udaipur and Khandela, but there must have been many more such instances of angry outbursts and resistance against Muslim vandalism which do not find mention in the official papers of Emperor Aurangzeb.
Most of the Hindus took the destruction of these temples philosophically considering these as acts of ignorance and folly for a vain purpose. They regarded that it was beyond the understanding or intelligence of the Musalmans to comprehend the principle behind the idol worship or the fundamental oneness of saguna and nirguna worship. The Hindus believed that the Gods and Goddesses leave for their abode before the hatchet or the hammer of the vile “mlecchas” or “asuras” so much as even touched the idols. The idea has been well described in Kanhadade Prabandha (wr. 1456 A.D.) when giving an account of the destruction of the Somnath temple by Sultan Alauddin's troops in 1299.
General Order by Aurangzeb for the Destruction of Temples. (9th April 1669)
“The Lord Cherisher of the Faith learnt that in the provinces of Thatta, Multan and especially at Benaras, the Brahmin misbelievers used to teach their false books in their established schools, and their admirers and students, both Hindu and Muslim, used to come from great distances to these misguided men in order to acquire their vile learning. His Majesty, eager to establish Islam, issued orders to the governors of all the provinces to demolish the schools and temples of the infidels, and, with the utmost urgency, put down the teaching and the public practice of the religion of these unbelievers”.
Note:
This is not the only instance when Aurangzeb prevented the Muslims from acquiring knowledge and wisdom of the Hindu philosophical works and other Sanskrit and Bhasha classics, or sharing spiritual and intellectual experience, and thus stifled the process of fusion, or at least bridging of the gulf between the two creeds with very different approaches, principles, values, levels of intellectual attainments and period of evolution of ideas. A general order of this type to put down the teaching and public practice of religion by the Hindus was used as a ground to demolish some of the most venerable shrines of India during the next few years, but despite the severe and comprehensive nature of the order, it failed to wrest from Banaras its unique prestige and position as the chief centre of learning of the Vedas, Dharmashastras, the Six Systems of Philosophy, Sanksrit language and literature, and Astronomy.
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