Muslims serve water to Hindus at Ayodhya

Ayodhya, which had seen the demolition of the Babri Masjid back in 1992, is now giving lessons in communal harmony, as was visible during the ongoing “14-kosi parikrama”—a ritual in which Hindus circumambulate the town on foot for several kilometres.

The Muslims had set up stalls at various places along the “parikrama” route, and were seen offering water to the tired and thirsty Hindu devotees, a majority of whom are from rural areas in the state and other parts of the country. The stalls have been set up near the bus and railway stations as well as in other parts in the temple town.

The “parikrama” began on Friday, and will continue throughout the next week.

Clad in skull caps, Muslim volunteers were spotted requesting Hindu devotees to accept the water they offered, and also to rest a while before re-embarking on their journey. “Noting can be more pious than offering water to a tired and thirsty person,” said a volunteer.
The volunteers recalled the battle of “Karbala” between a small group of supporters and relatives of Prophet Muhammad's grandson Hussein and a much larger military detachment from the Yazidi forces.

Hussein and all his supporters were killed, and came to be regarded as martyrs. It is said that many of them had died of thirst. “The thought of those thirsty martyrs prompted us to set up stalls to serve water to our Hindu brethren,” said the volunteers.

Unprecedented security arrangements have been made in the twin towns of Faizabad and Ayodhya for the “parikrama”, and security personnel have been deployed all along the route and also around important religious places, said the officials here.
DH News Service