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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
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