Chapter 9
Advent of Islam in Kashmir
Defeat of Arab Chieftain
After conquering Turkey and Kabul the Arabs fixed their gaze on Kashmir in the middle of the 8th century. During the middle of this era the Arab Chieftains attempted, many times, to trample Kashmir but they licked dust because of the powerful Kashmiri emperors and chivalrous soldiers. Everytime they returned without any success. In 713 Emperor of Kashmir, Chandrapeed, defeated Mohd. Bin Qasim. Second time Emperor Lalitaditya defeated the Arab Chietain, Hisham, in 724 and finally in 754 one Arab Chieftain, Kalif Mansoor, set his foot on Kashmir but had to return aftering tasting defeat. The same way Mohd. Gaznavi witnessed defeat twice at the hands of Kashmiris and fled to Gazni and never came to Kashmir, thereafter.
The glorious pages of history confirm the veracity and depth of the declaration of Kalhana who had said that Kashmir "cannot be won by military power." History bears testimony to the fact that the advent of Islam in Kashmir is a well planned bloody saga of-bigotry and religious conversion in the guise of humanitarianism, world brotherhood of Muslim sufis and sayeds. The same Kashmiri who lived an independent life and never surrendered before terrible invaders were the people who were trapped in the religious clutches of Muslim sufi saints and sayeds.
First contact with Islam
When the Arabs conquered Sindh, the son of Sindh ruler, Prince Jaisingh, took shelter in Kashmir. The King of Kashmir presented him an estate with honour. A Syrian friend named Hamid, was also with Jaisingh. This Muslim youth, Hamid, was the first Muslim to have entered into Kashmir. After the death of Jaisingh Hamid became the owner of his estate. This Muslim landlord started propagating his religion, with the help of his status and influence, among his friends, relations and acquaintances. The successor of Lalitaditya, Vajraditya, adopted a highly liberal policy in allowing entry to Hamid and his associates in the state administrative setup. From here started people's contact with Islam and gradually Hamid started getting engaged in increasing the number of the followers of his religion in a systematic way.
From here started the contact between the Kashmiri Hindus and the followers of Islam in every field of the society. First of all a ruler of Kashmir, Kalash, inaugurated the campaign for this interaction and contact by having a love affair with a Muslim dancer. Later on King Harsha appointed Muslims on the key posts in the Army and the administration. Harash himself had been impressed by the principles of Islam and thus Kalhana has dubbed him a "Turk". During the time of Harsha, that is towards the end of the 13th century, a small but powerful Muslim colony had been established in Kashmir. That way the work of religious conversion had started at a slow pace.
When the news about the propagation of Islam with the help of the facilities provided by the Government reached the Arab countries, many Muslim sufi saints made it their life's goal to propagate Islam in Kashmir.
First incident of conversion
The first sufi saint who reached Kashmir, during the time of King Sehdev, was Sayed Sharafuddin Bulbul Shah from Turkey. He was a very clever person. That very time a rebel prince from Tibet, Rinchan, and a Persian Muslim religious preacher, Shahmir, arrived in Kashmir. Reference to these two persons has been made in the earlier chapter titled "Kotarani". Right from the beginning Shahmir tried to give religious colour to every of his political and social activities. Though Kashmiri Pandits had committed a blunder in not having allowed Rinchan to adopt Hinduism, Shahmir and Bulbul Shah had played a vital role in initiating Rinchan to Islam and in revolting against Hindu religion. King Sehdev appointed both, Rinchan and Shahmir on important posts in the state as a result of his liberalism and this helped them to establish contact with each other. As per the plan of Bulbul Shah, Shahmir took full advantage of the hatred that Rinchan had developed in his mind against the Pandits. He, while opposing Hindu religion and enumerating the qualities in Islam, tried to cultivate in the mind of Rinchan that there was other religion, besides Hindu religion, which could be adopted and accepted.
Cleverly Shahmir told Rinchan, one night, that they would move out for a morning walk the other day. And the person who would meet them first would be fortunate and truthful. After enquiring his religion it would be better to adopt that religion. When Shahmir and Rinchan went out for a morning walk, the first man to meet them, as was preplanned, was Bulbul Shah. In this way Rinchan became a Muslim as a result of the conspiracy of Bulbul Shah and Shahmir.
Power greedy Rinchan
No doubt, the post-conversion incident lifts the veil from the political aim of Bulbul Shah and Shahmir for converting Kashmir into a Muslim state, it also highlights the instability of the mind of Rinchan and his greed for power. He had fled from Tibet after his revolt for assuming power had failed. Taking advantage of King Sehdev's liberalism he succeeded in occupying important post in the administration. When Sehdev fled at the time of Dulchoo's invasion, Rinchan took the advantage of anarchy in the state and got Prime Minister, Ramchandra, killed through deceit and became the king. In order to calm down the anger in the people, he married Ramchandra's daughter, Kotarani, and realising the political influence of Kotarani he tried to adopt Hinduism. In the end this very greed for power attracted him to Islam. Thus this conversion was not the result of attraction towards the principles of any religion but the product of politically motivated conversion for gaining power. It was sheer politics behind the religious converter and the converted. The idea behind it was to prepare a foundation for a class of Muslim administrators.
Justice Kilam has written in his book "The History of Kashmiri Pandit" that with the religious conversion of Rinchan and with adoption of a Muslim name Malik Sadruddin, his son, Ravanchander, and many others adopted Islam. This way there emerged a Muslim ruling class. This class also needed support and they adopted many ways for propagating Islam. As a result of its simple rules and with the support from the royalty, Islam attracted people belonging to the lower class.
Conversion through Government support
After the self-sacrifice of Kotarani Shahmir succeeded in establishing his authority on Kashmir in 1343. On assuming power he initiated efforts for propagating Islam and even started the plan for conversion of people on the state level. He achieved success in his political mission by reforming agriculture and by providing many facilities to the people. Through many intrigues Shahmir humbled down one Lavanya named Rajput and people belonging to a foreign dynasty "Chhak" were appointed on different posts in the state. Such works helped Shahmir in strengthening his control on the administration which laid a strong foundation for the foreign Muslim preachers.
In a way Islam received Governmen's patronage in Kashmir. Shahmir was a clever politician and for his convenience he thought it proper to seek support from the Kashmiri Hindus and installed Pandits on key posts. Sanskrit was still the official language in Kashmir. This way he received full support from the local educated class by giving them honourable posts. The result was that these very Pandits welcomed Muslim scholars, religious preachers, sayeds who had come from foreign lands. These very sayeds gradually sidelined the Pandits in the administration and occupied top posts.
According to Dr. Raghunath Singh, the rule of Shahmir paved the way for gradual entry of foreigners into Kashmir. People from Khurasaan, Turkey and other frontier regions started coming to Kashmir. They received amenities because of the Muslim rule in Kashmir. The population of Muslims in Kashmir was small and since the Muslims had usurped the state from the Hindus, the Sultans wanted to have Muslim supporters for strengthening their position. Thus the flow of Muslims into Kashmir remained uniterrupted. Later they became a problem for Kashmir. They were not in the know of the living style of Kashmiris and their nature. Their advent resulted in violence and cruelty which were earlier unknown in Kashmir. A small account of some cruel events is recorded in the entire history of Shahmir dynasty. There is no comparison between the cruelties of that era and the one that followed it.
Hordes of foreign Sayeds
During the time of Shahmir the groups of Sayeds who came to Kashmir mainly belonged to Turkey and Persia where living had been made difficult because of invasions of Taimur. Finding Kashmir a safe place they marched here. In Kashmir they received protection and Government facilities for carrying out religious preachings. It also freed them from the terror of Taimur.
A Muslim historian, Mohd. Din Fak, has written in his book "History of Kashmir," that when Sayed Tajuddin came to Kashmir, he had with him two of his disciples, Sayed Masood and Sayed Yusuf. The younger brother of Sayed Tajuddin, Syed Hussain came to Simnani too. It is said that these two brothers had been sent by Syed Mir Ali with the instructions to find out whether Kashmir was capable to protect them against the attacks of Taimur, because it was believed that Taimur was ready to kill all Syeds.
These Syeds found themselves safe in Kashmir and indulged in open propagation of Islam. But they had one fear: the valley of Kashmir was a Hindu dominated area and these Hindus were strict followers of their sect and religion. They considered it essential and need of the hour to increase the Muslim population because they had fears that since Hindus were in majority in Kashmir and their religious zeal may prove heavy on Islam. They feared that the newly established Muslim political leadership may be finished. Therefore, they banked on religion for changing the religious bent of mind. They believed that Islamic doctrines could be the means for achieving political goal.
The spiritual message of these Syeds, their so called liberalism and the behaviour of tolerance got linked with the nature of Kashmir. The credit for success in starting the act of religious conversion by syeds goes to two prominent Muslim leaders, Syed Ali Hamdaani and Syed Mohd. Hamdaani. Syed Ali Hamdaani, who is popularly known as Shah Hamdaani for propagating Islam, had come to Kashmir for the first time in 1372 alongwith 700 Syed followers. He established the influence of his organisation in the entire state with adroitness and with the help of his educated disciples. He toured the entire state many times. He raised his disciples upto the village level. He made those areas as his work field where there was greater influence of Hindu religion, where there were many temples, where there were religious libraries and where the Pandit community was determined, so that first of all these very centres of spiritualism of Hindus were finished.
Destruction of basic society
With Government resources and facilities these Syeds opened many centres in Kashmir where, as per the plan, poor Kashmiri Pandits were given food, clothes, medicines etc., free of cost. The imperialistic designs behind such attractions have been vividly described by a Muslim historian, M.D. Sufi, in his book ''Kashmir" He has written that Syeds became popular among the Muslim kings who were influenced by them. They established many preaching centres where people were given food free of cost and afterwards these very people were accepted in Islam.
As a result of long but powerful campaign of conversion, a type of "Muslim-Brahmin class" took birth in Kashmir. This class received full patronage from the Syeds. They were appointed on posts in the administration. It was natural that this so called Muslim-Brahmin class came into confrontation and confict with the Hindu Brahmins. The history gives an account of some af the fights and small battles between the two sides. Since these Muslim Pandits had the support of the Syeds and the Government, it resulted in the destruction of the basic society. There was no security arrangements for the protection of life and property of Pandits. Hidden behind this struggle was the political trick of the Syeds who succeeded in removing original residents from the Government posts.
They opened schools and centres at Awantipura and Mattan for propagating Islamic teachings and education. Though Islamisation had started prior to the coming of the Syeds, Syed Ali Hamdaani, with his powerful groups of disciples, increased the rate of conversion manifold times. They started attacking several traditions of Hindu religion besides propagating teachings and messages of Islam. And these campaigns were used to be carried out in the attractive guise of brotherhood, love and tolerance. For religious conversion in Kashmir this was the apt principle they adopted. Sir Stein in his commentary on Rajtarangani has written thai Islam carved out its way in Kashmir through gradual religious conversion and not achieved victory through force. And for laying the foundation for it the religious preachers from south and central Asia have played a significant role.
Syed Ali Hamdaani was awarded a degree of "Baani-e-Kalaam" in Kashmir. He established a centre in Srinagar which was called Allah-Udinpur and since then it named as Khankai Moula. As a result of his relentless efforts a big number of Kashmiris adopted Islam, but these fresh Muslim converts did not give up their dress, language, local traditions and even their religious customs. Syed Ali Hamdaani confined his activities towards inclusion of some rules of the Shariat in the state laws through the help of the Sultan in order to ensure full conversion of the people. He felt that despite their religious conversion, if the people remained tied to the land, it could lead to the end of Islam any time.
Plan for total Islamisation
Syed Ali Hamdani introduced in Kashmir, with the help of the then Sultan, dress of Muslim countries, throne on the Islamic model, Islamic customs in state administration and Islamic flag on Government buildings. On the directions of the Syed the Sultan started wearing an Arabic cap and divorced one of his two wives and remarried the other according to Islamic custom. Thus Sultan Qutabuddin fulfilled all the desires of the Syed. But still all the plans of the Syed had not fully materialised. The Syed established contact with Hindu saints of Kashmir. His meetings started with an influential Hindu Recluse, Lalleshwari. Both of them started visualising many uniformities in their religious doctrines. Both of them opposed idol worship. In league with the Syed, Lalleshwari started propagating her sect and the sufi sect. What else the Syeds wanted ? Through Lalleshwari the Syed started using some sayings from Hindu religion cleverly in his discourses in order to establish his credibility among the disciples of Lalleshwari. He even fully praised yoga and vision.
As a result of the political intrigue of Syed Ali Hamdaani some Hindu recluse and 37,000 Hindus adopted Islam. Historian Bamzai has written that outwardly the Syed would praise eloquently the Hindu religion but inwardly he used to hate the saints of this religion. After achieving great success in his mission he, while giving up his guise of love and coexistence, asked the Sultan to carry out forcible conversion of Hindus. But the Sultan refused to accept thio direction of the Syed. Possibly the Sultan had it in his mind that Kashmir continued to be a Hindu majority state and any forcible conversion could result in a revolt. Thus it was thought necessary to remain in power for the propagation of Islam.
Syed Ali was annoyed with Sultan Qutabuddin and returned to his country, Hamdaan. But he had already established a strong base, through his diplomacy, for the propagation of Islam and had simpliffed all the ways for carrying out forcible conversion in the future.
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