The Proselyte King

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Cheraman Perumal is considered to be the Chera king who left the royal throne and later on converted into Islam.He was a Hindu king from Kerala, regarded as the first who converted into Islam from the Indian peninsular.There are also other claims stating that he never converted to Islam, but followed the religion strictly.He was the ruler of Kerala with his capital in Kodungallur which was known as Mahodayapuram back then.It is said that he had a miraculous dream of the new moon being split into two halves at the horizon.This made him to consult astrologers, and Arabic travellers who visited his court; from them he got to know more about Islam as a religion and they interpreted that the dream was a message from Prophet Muhammad.After that he did a self research about the religion and Prophet Muhammad, who lived during the same era.With his in depth analysis on Islam, he had plans to learn more about the religion and meet the Prophet personally.Perumal left all the worldly pleasures, his kingdom and power.He crossed the Arabian sea, travelled to Mecca and Medina as a pilgrimage and performed Hajj and it is believed that he actually met the Prophet and learned more about Islam and converted into a muslim.He also read the holy Quran and embraced Islam.He was unable to complete his journey back to Kerala, as he died due to severe physical ailments on the way back home.His body was cremated in Salalah, Oman.
 © Artist Namboothiri
Before his death, he instructed his travel companions, headed by a companion of the Prophet, Malik Bin Dinar to spread the message of Islam in Kerala which is his homeland.This group of travellers came to Kerala and established the Cheraman Masjid and other mosques in the state.This mosque is considered to be one of the oldest monuments in Kerala and one of the first mosques that was established in India.The mosque still remains an ancient memorial to the memories of Cheraman Perumal.The legacy of Indo-Gulf relations existed right back from the time of the King, which is remarkable.Cheraman Perumal is also responsible for the secular aspect followed by Kerala in the early period itself.Historians are still researching about the king's exact name, the years or time period which he lived, conversion into Islam, whether he read the Quran and met the Prophet; as there are also claims stating that the story of Cheraman Perumal is a myth.
-Mukund T

Comments

  1. Nanditha SSeptember 6, 2021 at 9:25 PM

    Very informative content. Good work👍👍👍

    ReplyDelete
  2. RiyanSeptember 14, 2021 at 8:56 PM

    Very enlightening Mukund!!!! Wayy to go✨✨

    ReplyDelete
  3. Dr. Venugopal K MenonSeptember 15, 2021 at 1:52 PM

    Really commendable narrative, rarely known by many. Several questions why he did what he did. Keep writing, Mukund. Congratulations.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AaravSeptember 29, 2021 at 6:52 AM

    Very informative mukund. 🙌

    ReplyDelete
  5. UnknownOctober 2, 2021 at 10:36 PM

    Way to go mukund ,very informative and interesting historical content

    ReplyDelete

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