By Prarthana Mitra
Amidst the severe floods in Kerala, a temple in Thrissur opened its premises for local Muslims to offer their Eid ul-Adha namaaz on Wednesday. After hearing that their mosque (in Kochukadavu) was flooded, Eravathur’s Purappullikkavu Temple board offered their hall to a group of Muslims who were looking for a place to conduct their Bakri Eid prayers.
A temple official later said, “We are all humans first. Not just in the face of such a tragedy, we should always remember that we are all the children of one God. I hope to see such harmony prevail in the coming days too, where we can work together on relief…”
In a video that has gone viral on social media, a Muslim Keralite can be seen lauding the temple authorities for the wholehearted gesture and for exemplary communal amity.
https://twitter.com/sunilupdate/status/1032406934652039170
The bonhomie is being returned by the Muslim community in Kerala as well. Photographs of Onam and Eid celebrations in refugee camps merge as one, as Muslim women can be seen applying mehndi on Christian nuns and Muslim men can be seen cleaning temple compounds.
United in solidarity
On the same day, another act of festive solidarity brought the Shia and Sunni Muslims of Lucknow together. For the fourth consecutive year, both sects offered their Bakri Eid namaaz in the sprawling compounds of Shahnajaf Imambara situated in the heart of the city. The event which took place in a mosque frequented by Shias was presided over by a Sunni Imam.
In UP, Shia, Sunni Muslims stand shoulder to shoulder for Eid prayers https://t.co/m9QHr4y6dE pic.twitter.com/3I70NNwj8z
— NDTV (@ndtv) August 22, 2018
The prayers were followed by an Eid Milan feast, open to all and organised by volunteers hailing from all backgrounds, communities and faiths. In another remarkable move, the namaaz invited Shia and Sunni women for the first time, to offer their holy prayers along with male devotees. The initiative was helmed by the Shoulder to Shoulder Foundation who founded it in 2015, as an endeavour to promote peace and harmony among the two sects.
Prarthana Mitra is a staff writer at Qrius
Stay updated with all the insights.
Navigate news, 1 email day.
Subscribe to Qrius
