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Indian pilgrimage an example of interreligious harmony

Muslim villagers help Hindu travelers on dangerous journey to remote holy site
Indian pilgrimage an example of interreligious harmony

Thousands of Hindu pilgrims take part in the annual trek to the Amarnath Temple in northern Jammu and Kashmir state. (Photo by Umar Shah)

Published: July 28, 2015 07:21 AM GMT
Updated: July 31, 2015 01:14 AM GMT

In the midst of majestic mountains and emerald streams, Mohammad Shafi Khan is busy building a temporary traditional mud and rock oven, which he uses to heat water to sell to Hindu pilgrims coming to pay obeisance at the holy Amarnath Temple in northern Jammu and Kashmir state.

For Khan, the annual pilgrimage, which runs from mid-July to mid-August, is a source of income as well as a way of serving the Hindu devotees who come from across the country for a glimpse of an ice stalagmite that forms each year in the Amarnath cave. 

The nine-foot-tall ice sheet is considered to be the symbol of Lord Shiva, one of the most revered Hindu gods.

“This yatra (pilgrimage) is my livelihood and besides that I feel a sense of pride in serving the devotees who came from India's far-off places to pray at the holy cave,” Khan, a Muslim, told ucanews.com. 

Like Khan, there are thousands of local Muslims, most of them young people, who work as porters, horsemen and guides to thousands of Hindu pilgrims and help them trek the treacherous mountain path to the cave.

Shouting hails to Shiva and ringing ceremonial bells, the devotees trek the rigorous rocky pathways snaking around mountains. The oxygen level dips during the trek, as the cave is situated 14,500 kilometers above sea level. The weather also changes unexpectedly during the journey, from sunny to rainy to snowy.

According to the state government's records, as many as 150,000 people have registered for this year's pilgrimage, which began July 2. Daily treks are limited to 7,500 pilgrims.

Mohammad Abbas, a local horseman who has been taking pilgrims to the cave for many years, said that he cares more for the devotees than for himself during the journey. 

“I am used to such high terrains but the devotees are our guests. I thank God when I drop them safely at the entrance of the cave and return to get another batch,” he said.

 

Muslim horsemen assist Hindu travelers along the pilgrimage route. (Photo by Umar Shah)

 

'A great example of interreligious harmony'

As for horseman Tariq Ahmed, it is more about the satisfaction of serving the devotees. “I can earn money by other means, but I attain peace within when I see devotees thanking me with smiling faces,” Tariq said.

He said that besides ferrying pilgrims, the horsemen also serve as a lifeline to various community kitchens and pilgrims' camps, which supply travelers with food and shelter at the base camps of Chandanwari and Baltal, 14 kilometers from the cave.

Mohammad Younis, a 36-year-old porter, has been taking devotees to the cave since 1997 after his father, also a porter, died in a sudden storm that engulfed the region.

Though he wanted to become a doctor, Younis said he has no regrets about taking up this work. 

“There are some kind devotees who pay us more than the usual. They even buy gifts for our children. Working as a porter in this pilgrimage is more than just earning a livelihood,” he said.

Mushtaq Ahmad, a local Muslim who sells souvenirs of Lord Shiva and religious books to the devotees outside the cave, told ucanews.com that helping devotees at the shrine is itself worship for him.

“It really feels good when I inform them about this place and its sanctity. We want the pilgrims to return with good memories about this place,” he said.

For at least 200 years, the annual pilgrimage, known as the Amarnath yatra, was a weeklong pageant that attracted only a few thousand people, many of them Hindu ascetics.

It began when a Muslim shepherd discovered the peculiar ice formation in the cave in the late 1700s. A Hindu priest visited the cave and declared it Amarnath, the mythical home of Lord Shiva.

By the late 1980s, the pilgrimage season had grown to a month, and the number of participants reached about 40,000. Even after separatists started an armed rebellion in Kashmir in 1989, the pilgrimage continued to grow.

In addition to paying respect and taking the treacherous journey to the cave, the memories of hospitality and warmth from the Muslim community make this trip special for the Hindu pilgrims.

Arindam Chaterjee, who along with his wife came from West Bengal state, said the cave offers the best lesson on how people should live.

“This is the best example for the world on how we all should live in peace and harmony,” he said.

Ajay Sharma, a young devotee, said the Amarnath pilgrimage is a great example of interreligious harmony.

“Muslims provide you warm water to take a bath. They sometimes take you on their shoulders so that you reach the holy cave unhurt and provide you the ponies for the hassle-free journey. This is simply remarkable,” Sharma told ucanews.com.

Meanwhile, the state government has made adequate arrangements for the pilgrims to undertake a smooth and safe journey.

For the convenience of pilgrims, 400 toilets and 1,000 bathrooms have been set up and two telecom companies provide mobile phone services.

Fearing a militant attack, the state government has deployed 15 additional security companies on the Amarnath route.

The army deployed in Kashmir claimed to have warnings of possible militant attacks during this year's pilgrimage, but took steps to ensure safe passage.

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