Faiyaz Ahmad Fyzie

According to Hindu tradition and Kashmiri folklore, the cave shrine of Lord Shiva in the snowbound Himalays of South Kashmir was discovered in 1850 AD by an indigenous Pasmanda Gurjar shepherd Buta Malik. He also made the first footpath for the pilgrims to reach the cave shrine, the site of the annual pilgrimage for Hindus from all over the world.

The pilgrimage began on July 2, with the first batch of pilgrims arriving at Pahalgam, amidst tight security and to a rousing welcome by locals, officials, and members of the civil society and has taken off.

Buta Malik was grazing his cattle on the mountain when a Sadhu appeared and handed over a bagful of charcoal to him. Malik walked home with it, but when it opened the bag, it had turned into gold. He rushed back to the spot to thank the Sadhu and to his amazement, he found the cave and ice Shiva Lingam there. That place is today the Amarnath cave where lakhs of pilgrims go to have the darshan of ice lingam formed naturally inside a spacious cave atop a glacier.

As we know the Pasmanda Muslims and Hindus have common ancestors and almost same culture. They are born on this land and have the same DNA and lineage. It was a Pasmanda’s privilege to discover this holy place for his Hindus and be showered with the blessings of Lord Shiva.

Lt Governor of J&K Manoj Sinha performing the first Aarti at the cave of Lord Amarnath

The discovery of Amarnath's cave shows an intrinsic connection between Pasmanda and Hindus. It gets more credibility as this story is not from the medieval but the modern era.

For Hindus, Amarnath is one of the oldest pilgrimages. According to Bhrigu Purana, an ancient scripture, The abode of Lord Shiva was first discovered by Maharishi Bhrigu, whose  ashram exists in the Ballia district of UP. I am fortunate to be a native of the place where this Ashram is. Kashmir valley was under water – it was a lake – something that is supported by geological studies. It was Rishi Kashyap who drilled a hole in the mountain and drained the water through rivers and streams. The Kashmir Valley is thus came to be named after this sage.

Maharishi Bhrigu was going towards the Himalayas, when his eyes fell on the Amarnath cave. He was the first person to have the darshan of the sacred Lingam of Lord Amarnath. From that time, people visited Amarnath cave to worship Lord Shiva and seek his blessings.

Here are some facts about the Cave shrine of Lord Amarnath:

• The descendants of Buta Malik live in the Batkot village of Amarnath.
  
• This village was named Batkot after the name of Buta Malik.
  
• The descendants of Buta Malik do not eat meat during the Amarnath Yatra, in the month of Shravan.
  
• The family has inherited the belief that eating meat during this holy time is a sin as they are directly linked to the Amarnath Yatra.
  
• Three types of people live in Amarnath. Kashmiri Pandits, Malik family, and Mahant.
  
• These three together were used to complete the ritual of Chhari Mubarak.
  
• According to some Hindu devotees, the pilgrims' journey is not complete until they visit the home of Buta Malik's descendants after completing the pilgrimage.

Pilgrims moving from Pahalgam to Chandanwari

According to the villagers of Batkot, India’s first Prime Minister Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru visited Malik family during his visits to Kashmir. However, gradually, the importance of this family diminished and their role in the piglimae was truncated the Farooq Abdullah government.

This discovery of Amarnath cave reflects the reality of the Pasmandas sharing a cordial relationship with the Hindus, while the Ashraafs – considered outsiders – did not have the same feelings.

According to the popular story in Jammu and Kashmir, the descendants of Buta Malik were the custodians of this temple. Besides, the priests of Dashnami Akhara and Purohit Sabha Mattan were also entrusted with the responsibility of taking care of the holy place.

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