Muslim Pujari in Durga's Abode

January 29, 2007

VISAKHAPATNAM (29 Jan, 2007): This is the essence of secular India.

Respect and tolerance for all faiths. In a shining example of this,

Payakaraopeta, a village in this district has a Muslim pujari at its

Durga temple. He, like any other pujari , chants prayers in Sanskrit,

helps visitors with their prayers and also carries out all the rituals.

What sets him apart is his name — Sheikh Mira Sahib. Payakaraopeta is

located close to Tuni, a small town known for its betel leaf

production. Every Monday, over a hundred people from several nearby

villages climb the unpaved steps of Seethamma hill to pray to the

goddess. Mira Sahib guides them all in performing various rites and

the worshippers acknowledge him as their pujari .

With a shaven head, bare-chested and wearing a dhoti, Mira Sahib

begins his day at the temple at 7 am and spends his time till late

afternoon in saying prayers and helping the pilgrims.

He then returns home and attends to his chores. His earning is the

dakshina that is given to him by devotees. "I used to herd buffalos

about 25 years ago. I also used to help in weeding the path on this

hill for archaeologists who were looking for some old relics and

hidden caves," Mira reminisces.

"One day my gunapam (spearlike tool) hit something irregular. It was

an idol of Goddess Durga. There were a few idols lying about uncared

for, so I tossed this one also downhill. I came home and forgot about

what I did. That night in my sleep the goddess appeared before me as

my daughter. She demanded that I perform puja to her daily. Then she

vanished. I was nonplussed and didn't know what to do for sometime.

Then I made up my mind to follow her instructions," says he.

Next day Mira went back to the hill and installed the idol at the

place he had found it. A few weeks later he

began performing the puja to her.

"I learned a few mantras by listening to other worshippers. Later, I

learned them properly from my guru, Subramanya Sastry. He taught me in

spite of opposition from some people," he recollects.

SOURCE: The Times of India

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