Skip to main content

Cheraman Juma Mosque, Kerala - Is it the Oldest Mosque in India?



Cheraman Juma Mosque, Kerala - Is it the Oldest Mosque in India?
Indian state of Kerala in Malabar region, was a trading post for the Arab traders even before the advent of Islam. With the birth of Islam, these Arab traders which were now Muslims, started to preach Islam, wherever they went. Hence they introduced the Islam to India.



Islam was accepted by the people of Kerala state, and Cheraman Juma Mosque is the proof of this fact. It is the oldest mosque in India, located in the Indian state of Kerala. it was constructed in 629 AD, by an Arab Muslim known by the name Malik ibn Dinar. This means that, it was constructed during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad Peace be Upon Him. It was one of the oldest Jumma Mosque anywhere in the world. The history of this Mosque goes like this:-

Back in the 7th century, the ruler of Kerala used to have a title Cheraman, Perumal. According to one of the historical account, there was a Hindu Raja with name Chakravarthy. It is believed that it was the ruler of Kerala, which otherwise famous by his title name Cheraman Perumal, he witnessed the Prophet’s Miracle of the splitting of moon. After watching this, he handed over his Throne to his nephew, and set out on a journey to Mecca, to meet the Prophet Peace be Upon Him. It is said that he embraced Islam at the hands of Prophet Peace be Upon Him and he was given a muslim name Tajud deen; while, another account States that he was named Abdullah Samudri.

In any case, after accepting Islam, he started his journey back to India; however, unfortunately he died during way back, somewhere in Oman. He was buried in Salalah, Oman where his tomb was visited by many for centuries. Before his death, he advised his other Muslim colleagues to continue their journey to India. Malik ibn Dinar was one of them. Upon reaching India, they constructed this jumma masjid in Kerala and named after him as Cheraman, Juma mosque.



The Mosque retained its original architecture until 1984, when it was renovated and was given more familiar Mosque architecture from the exterior, while efforts were made to retain mosque interior in its original format. Anyways, this is the oldest mosque in India constructed 14 hundred years ago, and, it is believed to be one of the oldest Jumma Mosque anywhere in the world.



********************************* #IslamicHistory #IslaminIndia #Mosque #History
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Islam in Sweden | Muslims in Sweden

Islam in Sweden If you ever had a chance of watching the series on Vikings,  or If you ever read about the famous Muslim traveller Ahmed ibn Fadlan or the connection of Vikings with Muslims, then I believe you can connect these dots to understand story of Islam in Sweden, if not then you need to watch this video till the end in which we are discussing history of Islam and Muslims in Sweden. Geography Sweden is situated in the Northern part of Europe, and is bordered by, Finland in the east, and Norway in the west. It is located along the gulf of bothnia, and Baltic Sea. Stockholm, is the largest city and the capital of the country, which is located in the eastern coast. Sweden has a very low population away from its main cities, although, it is the third largest country in the European Union. Together with Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland and Iceland, the region is called Scandinavia, and these five countries are known as Scandinavian countries. Sweden is t...
Post a Comment
Read more

History of Islam in Chechnya

History of Islam in Chechnya Chechnya is a Russian republic in the heart of the Tatar region. Majority of the non-Russian population is Muslim. First Contact with Islam .   The Principality of Simsir, a medieval Chechen state, made Islam the state religion to reinforce its alliance with the Golden Horde, to defend against Tamerlane's empire. The Caucasian Imamate was the state established by the imams in Dagestan and Chechnya during the early-to-mid 19th century in the Northern Caucasus, to fight against the Russian Empire during the Caucasian War. Chechen and other Caucasian tribes mounted a prolonged resistance to Russian conquest beginning in the early nineteenth century under Imam Shamil. Imam Shamil was the political, military, and spiritual leader of Caucasian resistance to Imperial Russia in the 1800s, as well as the third Imam of the Caucasian Imamate. Imam Shamil due to his leadership role in uniting Muslims to fight against Russia has become a major na...
Post a Comment
Read more

Muslim Population in Malaysia - ISLAM IN MALAYSIA - Muslims in Malaysia

HISTORY OF ISLAM IN MALAYSIA Have you ever wondered, that why Malaysia, which is one of the most populous Muslim country the world, is so far away from the Middle East? whereas, the countries in between like China and India have Muslims in minority? Secondly, if the Islamic forces did not go to South east Asia, then how did Islam spread in this part of the world? Whether the Islam in Malaysia is brought by Muslim Traders or by Sufis? And What religion was being followed by Malaysian people before the arrival of Islam? If you are interested in answers to these questions, then you need to read this article, in which we are covering the history of Islam and muslims in Malaysia. Before diving into the history of islam in Malaysia, lets briefly talk about the state of religion in Southeast Asia. Out of eleven South East Asian countries, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Singapore are predominantly Buddhist, then Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia are predominantl...
Post a Comment
Read more