Kaval Byrasandra masjid hosts mosque darshan for non-Muslims

Bengaluru: In a bid to fight communal elements and promote harmony between various communities, Masjid-e-Tur in Kaval Byrasandra invited people of all faiths into their mosque on Sunday for an hour. Masjid authorities and Muslim devotees performed the afternoon namaz, Zuhr, for the guests while explaining the meaning of the every prayer.
The authorities said they received positive response for the Masjid Darshan programme which was attended by about 70 non-Muslims and 60-70 Muslims.The guests included women too. The endeavour was supported by Pulakeshinagar MLA Akhanda Srinivas Murthy. “We told them why we chant Allah hu Akbar four times only. It is because nature is made of four elements — earth, air, fire and water. The intention behind the explanation was to tell them that essentially our faiths teach us the same values,” Abdul Hameed, honorary chairman of Masjid-e-Tur told TOI.
The masjid inaugurated a computer study room on its premises in the presence of MLA Murthy, whose house had been burnt by rioters in the DJ Halli and KG Halli violence. At the event in the mosque, he was garlanded and bestowed with a customary shawl in remembrance of what he’d lost. “They gave us a tour of the masjid and explained what namaz is and what is spoken in the azaan. We opened the computer room and I donated a few desktops too,” Murthy said.
Though the masjid was not closed for non-Muslims, authorities said there was never a ‘special dawat or invitation’ extended specifically to them.
“There is a misunderstanding between several faiths currently and some people assume that Muslim clerics are training youngsters with sinister motives in masjids. So, we decided to invite non-Muslims so that they understand what azaan and namaz, mean,” Hameed said. The authorities say they believe such open dialogue is pivotal at the time of communal tension, and want to extend it to other mosques in the country.