Hindu Traces in Islam

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NARAYANAN <savitha wrote: Thought-provoking or provoking? a matter of individual choice! - Tuesday, August 29, 2006 Hindu Traces in Islam 1)

Arabic tradition has lost trace of the founding of the Kaaba temple. A few miles away from Mecca is a big signboard which bars the entry of any non-Muslim into the area. This is a reminder of the days when the Kaaba was stormed and captured solely for the newly established faith of Islam. The object in barring entry of non-Muslims was obviously to prevent its recapture. 2) As the pilgrim proceeds towards Mecca he is asked to shave his head and beard and to don special sacred attire that consists of two seamless sheets of white cloth. One is to be worn round the waist and the other over the shoulders. Both these rites are remnants of the old Vedic practice of entering Hindu temples clean- and with holy seamless white sheets.The main shrine in Mecca, which houses the Siva emblem, is known as the Kaaba. It is

clothed in a black shroud. That custom also originates from the days when it was thought necessary to discourage its recapture by camouflaging it. 3) According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, the Kaaba has 360 images. Traditional accounts mention that one of the deities among the 360 destroyed when the place was stormed, was that of Saturn; another was of the Moon and yet another was one called Allah. That shows that in the Kaaba the Arabs worshipped the nine planets in pre-Islamic days. In India the practice of Navagrahas's puja, that is worship of the nine planets, is still in vogue. Two of these nine are Saturn and Moon. In India the crescent moon is always painted across the forehead of the Siva symbol. Since that symbol was associated with the Siva emblem in Kaaba it came to be grafted on the flag of

Islam. 4) Another Hindu tradition associated with the Kaaba is that of the sacred stream Ganga (sacred waters of the Ganges river). According to the Hindu tradition Ganga is also inseparable from the Shiva emblem as the crescent moon. Wherever there is a Siva emblem, Ganga must co-exist. True to that association a sacred fount exists near the Kaaba. Its water is held sacred because it has been traditionally regarded as Ganga since pre-Islamic times (Zam-Zam water).[Note: Even today, Muslim pilgrims who go to the Kaaba for Haj regard this Zam-Zam water with reverence and take some bottled water with them as sacred water.] 5) Muslim pilgrims visiting the Kaaba temple go around it seven times. In no other mosque does the circumambulation prevail. Hindus invariably circumambulate around their

deities. This is yet another proof that the Kaaba shrine is a pre-Islamic Indian Shiva temple where the Hindu practice of circumambulation is still meticulously observed. 6) The practice of taking seven steps- known as Saptapadi in Sanskrit- is associated with Hindu marriage ceremony and fire worship. The culminating rite in a Hindu marriage enjoins upon the bride and groom to go round the sacred fire four times (but misunderstood by many as seven times). Since "Makha" means fire, the seven circumambulations also prove that Mecca was the seat of Indian fire-worship in the West Asia. 7) It might come as a stunning revelation to many that the word 'ALLAH' itself is Sanskrit. In Sanskrit language Allah, Akka and Amba are synonyms. They signify a goddess or mother. The term 'ALLAH' forms part of

Sanskrit chants invoking goddess Durga, also known as Bhavani, Chandi and Mahishasurmardini. The Islamic word for God is., therefore, not an innovation but the ancient Sanskrit appellation retained and continued by Islam. Allah means mother or goddess and mother goddess. 8) One Koranic verse is an exact translation of a stanza in the Yajurveda. This was pointed out by the great research scholar Pandit Satavlekar of Pardi in one of his articles. [Note: Another scholar points out that the following teaching from the Koran is exactly similar to the teaching of the Kena Upanishad (1.7). The Koran: "Sight perceives Him not. But He perceives men's sights; for He is the knower of secrets , the Aware." Kena Upanishad: "That which cannot be seen by the eye but through which the eye itself sees, know That to be

Brahman (God) and not what people worship here (in the manifested world)." A simplified meaning of both the above verses reads: God is one and that He is beyond man's sensory experience. 9) The identity of Unani and Ayurvedic systems shows that Unani is just the Arabic term for the Ayurvedic system of healing taught to them and administered in Arabia when Arabia formed part of the Indian empire. It will now be easy to comprehend the various Hindu customs still prevailing in West Asian countries even after the existence of Islam during the last 1300 years. 10) Let us review some Hindu traditions which exist as the core of Islamic practice: * The Hindus have a pantheon of 33 gods. People in Asia Minor too worshipped 33 gods before the spread of

Islam. * The lunar calendar was introduced in West Asia during the Indian rule. * The Muslim month 'Safar' signifying the 'extra' month (Adhik Maas) in the Hindu calendar. The Muslim month Rabi is the corrupt form of Ravi meaning the sun because Sanskrit 'V' changes into Prakrit 'B' (Prakrit being the popular version of Sanskrit language). The Muslim sanctity for Gyrahwi Sharif is nothing but the Hindu Ekadashi (Gyrah = elevan or Gyaarah). Both are identical in meaning. * The Islamic practice of Bakari Eed derives from the Go-Medh and Ashva-Medh Yagnas or sacrifices of Vedic times. Eed in Sanskrit means worship. * The Islamic word Eed for festive days, signifying days of worship, is therefore a pure Sanskrit word. The word MESH in the Hindu zodiac signifies a lamb. Since in ancient times the year used

to begin with the entry of the sun in Aries, the occasion was celebrated with mutton feasting. That is the origin of the Bakari Eed festival. Note: The word Bakari is an Indian language word for a goat. Since Eed means worship and Griha means 'house', the Islamic word Idgah signifies a 'House of worship' which is the exact Sanskrit connotation of the term. Similarly the word 'Namaz' derives from two Sanskrit roots 'Nama' and 'Yajna' (NAMa yAJna) meaning bowing and worshipping. *Vedic descriptions about the moon, the different stellar constellations and the creation of the universe have been incorporated from the Vedas in Koran part 1 chapter 2, stanza 113, 114, 115, and 158, 189, chapter 9, stanza 37 and chapter 10, stanzas 4 to 7. * Recital of the Namaz five times a day owes its origin to the Vedic injunction of Panchmahayagna (five daily worship- Panch-Maha-Yagna) >which is part of the daily Vedic ritual prescribed for all individuals. * Muslims are enjoined cleanliness of five parts of the body before commencing prayers. This derives from the Vedic injuction 'Shareer Shydhyartham Panchanga Nyasah'. *Four months of the year are regarded as very sacred in Islamic custom. The devout are enjoined to abstain from plunder and other evil deeds during that period. This originates in the Chaturmasa i.e., the four-month period of special vows and austerities in Hindu tradition. *Shabibarat is the corrupt form of Shiva Vrat and Shiva Ratra. Since the Kaaba has been an important centre of Shiva (Siva) worship from times immemorial, the Shivaratri festival used to be celebrated there with great gusto. It is

that festival which is signified by the Islamic word Shabibarat. *Encyclopaedias tell us that there are inscriptions on the side of the Kaaba walls. What they are, no body has been allowed to study, according to the correspondence I had with an American scholar of Arabic. But according to hearsay at least some of those inscriptions are in Sanskrit, and some of them are stanzas from the Bhagavad Gita. *The Islamic term 'Eed-ul-Fitr' derives from the 'Eed of Piter' that is worship of forefathers in Sanskrit tradition. In India, Hindus commemorate their ancestors during the Pitr-Paksha that is the fortnight reserved for their remembrance. The very same is the significance of 'Eed-ul-Fitr' (worship of forefathers). *The Islamic practice of observing the moon rise before deciding on celebrating the

occasion derives from the Hindu custom of breaking fast on Sankranti and Vinayaki Chaturthi only after sighting the moon. * Barah Vafat, the Muslim festival for commemorating those dead in battle or by weapons, derives from a similar Sanskrit tradition because in Sanskrit 'Phiphaut' is 'death'. Hindus observe Chayal Chaturdashi in memory of those who have died in battle. *The word Arabia is itself the abbreviation of a Sanskrit word. The original word is 'Arabasthan'. Since Prakrit 'B' is Sanskrit 'V' the original Sanskrit name of the land is 'Arvasthan'. 'Arva' in Sanskrit means a horse. Arvasthan signifies a land of horses., and as well all know, Arabia is famous for its horses. *************

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