Muslim Pilgrimage Destinations in India

India is a banquet of colorful culture and diverse religions. Indian constitution has permitted every Indian to follow their own faith without any hesitation. Be it a Hindu or a Muslim or people of other religions, Indian constitution allows everyone to pay homage to their respective deities.

Every corner of our country has numerous pilgrimage destinations of various religions. Apart from Hindu spiritual places, Muslims too have some pious places to worship within the country. These pilgrimage destinations are highly revered by Muslim people of all ages and stratas. They make it a point to visit these sacred places at least for once in their entire lifetime.

With the arrival of Mughals in India, Islam a new religion started to spread in the remotest corner of our country. Rulers of Mughal dynasty has created some exquisitely carved mosques and dargahs in various parts of our country. Various Mughal emperors has constructed them as a gesture of thanks giving to several holy saints who had blessed them of their prosperity and well being.

Some of the famous Muslim pilgrimage destinations in India:
Jama Masjid in Delhi: Located in old Delhi nearby to Red Fort and Chandni Chowk, Jama Masjid is the biggest mosque of India. Constructed by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan between 1644 A.D to 1658 A.D, Jama Masjid is a popular pilgrimage destination of Muslims in India. Originally known as 'Masjid-i-Jahanuma' or "mosque commanding view of the world", this mosque is a brilliant piece of Mughal architectural design. Built in red sand stone and white marble, Jama Masjid has three domes and two minarets.

Emperor Shah Jahan has spent Rs 10 Crore to build this splendid mosque which is a true replica of Moti Masjid of Agra. Apart from its architectural brilliance, Jama Masjid has a great collection of valuable items such as a hair of the beard of Hazrat Muhammad, his used chappal (slippers), a chapter of Koran taken from its original holy book, the canopy of his tombstone and the foot print of Muhammad on the stone. Jama Masjid is also famous for having a vast space for namaz. The premises of the south minaret are 1076-sq-ft wide where 25,000 devotees at a time may sit together for namaz (prayer).

Fatehpur Sikiri: Another famous pious place of Muslim people in India is Fatehpur Sikri. Entirely built of red sand stone, Fatehpur Sikri is just 37 km from Agra. Mughal Emperor Akbar has constructed this massive monument during 1571 to 1585 A.D. This deserted city of present time was earlier served as capital of Mughal Emperor Akbar. But due to scarcity of water, Akabar has left it. Fatehpur Sikri has two most important sacred place of Muslims namely Dargah of Sheikh Salim Chisti and Jami Masjid.

Dargah was built in 1570 A.D by Akbar as a gesture of thanks giving to Sufi saint Sheikh Salim Chisti . It is believed that the Sufi saint Sheikh Salim Chisti blesses the childless parents whoever comes here.

The lattice wo0rk of this Dargah is of unmatched beauty. Jami Masjid, is also a worship place built within Fatehpur Sikri. Its architecture is a blend of Hindu and Persian architectural designs. Jami Masjid also embraces tomb or royal ladies and Stone cutters mosque.

Ajmer-e-Shariff: Ajmer-e-shariff, located near to holy town Pushkar is also a popular pilgrimage destinations of India. Ajmer is famous for the tomb of Hazrat Moinuddin Chisti who has founded the Chisti sufi order. He has lived here from 1190 A.D until his death and made Ajmer a holy place. People of various religion comes here to pay their homage mostly during the six day long Urs festival. Two huge cauldrons with capacity of 2240 kg and 4480 kg, which are used to cook huge amount of Kheer during some special occasions. Pilgrims from far and wide place comes here to gift chaddar on fulfill of their wishes.

Haji Ali's mosque in Mosque: Constructed in the middle of sea, Haji Ali is another Muslim pilgrimage destination in India. This mosque was built in honor of Muslim saint Haji Ali, who has renounced all his wealth before embarking on a pilgrimage to Mecca. Pilgrims comes here to press their heads against the brocaded red and green chaddar that covers a eight hundred years old tomb of Haji Ali. A 500m long causeway joins the dargah to the mainland. During high tides of monsoon season, always submerged in water, creating a splendid view to look.

Muslim pilgrimage destinations in India
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