For the last 150 odd years, Muslims in Chikkabbar village of Haveri district, Karnataka have been offering prayers in Kannada instead of Arabic or Urdu. This rare practice takes place at the Hazarat Mehaboob Subani Darga. Around 400 families live in this village and majority of them speak Kannada, which is their mother tongue, and don’t know either Urdu or Arabic.
Since most of them understand only Kannada, Maulvi addresses the community in Kannada. Although children have begun learning Urdu through the schools that have come up in the last decade, Kannada is still the main language of communication and prayer. Even the signboards at mosque are in Kannada.
“Language is not the important factor here. It is the meaning of the prayer and understanding the essence of the teachings. Earlier Maulvis also taught in Kannada and I have continued the same”, said current Maulvi Mohammad Peeransab.
Since the prayer is in Kannada, other residents in the village also listen to it. “First time when I actually paid attention and listened to what the Maulvi was saying on the loud speaker, I was shocked. This is exactly what Hindu Gods also say. I realized then, that every religion teaches the same” said Sharanappa, a resident of Chikkabbar village.
“If people can’t understand a language, there is no point in having prayer meet in it. They would definitely not follow. Even the uneducated ones in the community can follow the religious practices in Kannada. Over the years, the bond between the people have only grown closer” said Hussenssab Billalli, Anjuman Islam committee that is in charge of the religious place.
Surprisingly it was one of the Hindu families from the village that donated the plot to construct a mosque here three generations ago. The villagers irrespective of their religion and practices live in great harmony and take part in each other’s festivals and other occasions.
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