DATTATREYA, Baba Budan Giri (Cave of)
13.383300,75.741700
Description
The modified natural temple cave, which is associated with the Hindu saint Dattatreya (note 1), the Sufi saint Dada Hayat (note 2) and a mother goddess called by various suitable names (note 3) is sacred to Sufi Muslims and Tantric Hindus (cfr. cave legend below), is complete with a source of water (note 4) and endowed with fabulous tunnels connecting to Medina (Saudi Arabia) but also to Varanasi (note 5) and Central Asia (note 6). SITUATION: The temple cave is situated in the "dargah" (Muslim sacred compund) or "peetha" (Hindu sacred compound) called Dargah of Baba Budhan Giri and (Sri Guru) Dattatreyapitha / Dattatreya Swami Baba Budhan Peetha (note 7) on Baba Budhan Giri / Chandradrona Hill (note 8) amidst rolling hills and dense forests in the coffee-growing belt of the Chikmagalur district, some 270 km north of Bangalore and about 8.5 km in a direct line north-north-west of Chikmagalur (note 9) in the Baba Budan Hills (note 10). CULTURAL HISTORY - human use: The Baba Budhan Giri dargah is said to be one of the oldest centres of Sufism in south India. Its founding is associated with a Sufi from Arabia, Dada Hayat Qalandar. From the 1990s onwards, as a fall-out of the movement by Hindu fascist groups to destroy the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, Hindutva forces have become increasingly active and aggressive in south India, a part of the country where they have hitherto had little mass support. In recent years, Hindutva groups have been responsible for a number of attacks on Muslim and Christian groups and institutions in south India. Karnataka, in the last one decade, has become a major support-base for the Hindu right. As elsewhere, the strategy of mobilisation of the Hindutva forces has been to pit Hindus against Muslims and Christians and to thereby present themselves as ardent champions of the so-called 'Hindu cause'. It is this sinister game that is being played out in the bid to capture an ancient Sufi shrine, the Baba Budhan Giri dargah in Chikmagalur, and convert it into a Hindu temple (SAFFRON FLAG 1998, islaminterfaith.org/mar2003/issue.html accessed 2004.11.01). »The annual urs festival of Dada Hayat is held at the dargah for three days in the Islamic month of Rabi-ul Awwal. It is a major event for the Sufis of the Qalandar and Rifa'i orders … The Qalandars dress in saffron clothes, while the Rifa'i wear green. Many of their practices are very similar to that of the antinomian jogis and sadhus. Like the sadhus, they keep long, matted hair, wear heavy jewellery, observe strict austerities and many, though not all, smoke ganja. They stress that barring their belief in the prophethood of Muhammad, there is little difference between them and the mystics of other faith traditions. During the urs celebrations, the faqirs whip themselves with flails, some of them piercing their heads and tongues with spears. This practice is known as zarb or sultani. On the conclusion of the urs, they gather to sing qawwalis to the accompaniment of tambourines and rhythmic clapping. One can discern a strong strain of social protest against poverty, the oppression of the poor and the meaninglessness of ritualistic religion divorced from true spirituality in the songs that they sing. The urs brings together people of different castes and faith traditions, who worship together in complete harmony. A Dalit from Pune who has been attending the urs for the last twenty years says: 'What attracts me most here is the feeling of real brotherhood --being able to eat and stay with pilgrims from other castes and religions in the khanqah [Sufi lodge] run by the sajjada nashin.' Most non-Muslim pilgrims at the dargah come from the so-called 'low' castes, although there is also a significant presence of Marathas, Lingayats, Gowdas, Jains and Reddys« (SIKAND 2003). CULTURAL HISTORY - Cave legend: »The image of Dada Hayat as a crusader against the oppression of the palegars [local feudal lords] is deeply etched in the minds of his Muslim as well as Hindu followers. His heroic struggle against the palegars is well illustrated in the account of his arrival at Chandradrona hill. It is said that when Dada Hayat and his disciples finally reached their destination, night had already fallen. His disciples went off to sleep while he entered a cave on the top of the mountain and began preparing for the night prayer. Just then, he saw a group of palegars and their henchmen dragging along with them a man bound up in chains. They were planning to kill him for having intruded into their territory. The palegars drew up to the cave where Dada Hayat was sitting, which was used by a Brahmin and a jangam, a Lingayat priest, as a court to try criminal cases. When they saw Dada Hayat inside the cave deep in meditation they were enraged, thinking him to be an intruder. They unsheathed their swords and rushed towards him in a bid to kill him, but legend has it that due to divine intervention the swords fell from their hands and the chains around their captive suddenly snapped loose. Then, realising that Dada Hayat was no ordinary mortal, they begged him for forgiveness. He pardoned them, and they left, leaving behind their captive whom they were planning to offer as a human sacrifice. This man was so grateful to Dada Hayat for saving his life that he became a Muslim and joined the band of Dada Hayat's disciples. The next morning, the Brahmin and the jangam, who had witnessed the miraculous events of the night before, came to the cave. They appeared before Dada Hayat, who was inside meditating, and repented for having opposed him. They fell at his feet and 'became his true followers'. It appeared to them that Swami Dattatreya, the much-awaited incarnation of the Hindu Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, had appeared to them in the form of Dada Hayat. They spread this news among the local Hindus, who began flocking in large numbers to the cave to pay their respects to Dada Hayat. So impressed, it is said, were they by his kindness love, compassion and tolerance, that many of them converted to Islam at his hands. Thousands of others 'who did not wish to leave their ancestral religion' began regarding Dada Hayat as the incarnation of Sri Dattatreya. […] According to local tradition, because the Prophet Muhammad blessed him with a long life, Dada Hayat is still alive today and he remains present, though invisible, in the cave around which his dargah is built. Leaving the cave from time to time, Dada Hayat is believed by his followers to continue to travel to various places, helping his followers who are in distress and 'quenching the thirst of the lovers of the truth (ashiqan-i-haqq).' […] As in the case of the miracles associated with Dada Hayat, his shrine itself is seen in different ways by Muslims and some Hindus… Thus, the chilla or place of meditation which Muslims believe to be that of Mama Jigni, a Muslim princess rescued by Dada Hayat from the clutches of the palegars, is known as the seat of Sati Sumikta or Anusiya, mother of Dattatreya, by some Hindus. The alam or pole carrying the flag of the Prophet that Dada Hayat brought along with him from Arabia seems to have been taken by his Hindu followers as a trishul (trident), a ritual object associated with the Shiva cult. Likewise, the masnads [note 11] or seats of four Muslim Qalandars, Jan Pak Shahid, Malik Tijar Faruqi, Malik Wazir Isfahani and Abu Turab Shirazi, located to the left of the masnad of Dada Hayat in the inner chamber of the cave, are considered by some Hindus as the seats of four disciples of Dattatreya« (SIKAND 2003).
NOTE 1: »Dattatreya -- Brahmin saint who embodied Trimurti, the Hindu triad of Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu« (LONELY PLANET, India 2005: 1106, 1112). NOTE 2: »According to one account, Dada Hayat was the first of the Qalandars or wandering dervishes in India, who arrived here in the early Islamic period. His real name was Shaikh Abdul Aziz Makki, and he was born in the town of Taif in Arabia. He is said to have been a descendant of the prophet Saleh, and was apparently a Christian earlier before he embraced Islam when Muhammad declared his prophethood in Mecca. On becoming a Muslim he joined the Ahl-i-Suffa, a group of some four hundred of the Prophet's special disciples, regarded as the precursors of the Sufis. […] The equation between Dada Hayat and Dattatreya is striking and deserves particular attention here, especially since this is one of the most crucial issues in the present controversy over the dargah. It appears that even before Dada Hayat's arrival, the cult of Dattatreya was fairly popular in this region. Among the several places in the vicinity of the Chandradrona hill that have major Dattatreya shrines several centuries old are Somapura, Inam Bisagnimath and Mutthinapura. Dattatreya is often identified as an avatar of Vishnu, and is also believed to be the son of Atreya Rishi, one of the sapta rishis or 'seven seers' of ancient times. It was believed that in the cave where Dada Hayat had taken up residence Dattatreya would appear at the end of time to deliver the world from oppression. Chenni remarks that it was believed that Dattatreya would be the last incarnation of Vishnu suggests that the Dattatreya tradition in the region was 'a late phenomenon', which is itself illustrated in its being 'a syncretic cult in which Hindu and Islamic practices are blended'. As the Gazetteer of the Belgaum district, an area where the tradition is widely popular, notes, 'Dattatreya represents not only the synthesis of Shaivism and Vaishnavism but also of the Sufi cult'. The early Dattatreya tradition seems beyond doubt to have been an anti-Brahminical one, part of the Awadhut tradition that upholds a formless god and sternly condemns caste and the sacrificial religious system of the Brahmin priests. We do know that in the Siva Purana Dattatreya is said to have developed the sanyasa mode of a world-renouncing mystic. In the Markandeya Purana, Dattatreya appears as an antinomian yogi. We are told that although he wanted to be alone, the sons of the sages always surrounded him. In order to drive them away, he submerged himself in the waters of a lake and came out with a beautiful woman, with whom he set about sharing a glass of wine, thinking that on seeing this the sons of the sages would leave him alone. The Markandya Purana tells us that once, when the gods were defeated in a battle by the demons, they approached Brihaspati for help, who sent them to Dattatreya. When the gods approached Dattatreya, they found him drinking wine with Lakshmi. The gods prayed to him for help, but he pointed out his own faults: 'drinking, attachment, affection and sexual enjoyment of women'. 'Herein', writes Dange, 'is indication of Tantrism« (SIKAND, Y 2003). NOTE 3: The »shrine itself is seen in different ways by Muslims and Hindus« in order to fit into their own traditions and world-views. »Thus, the chilla or place of meditation which Muslims believe to be that of Mama Jigni [Jigni Ai], a Muslim princess rescued by Dada Hayat from the clutches of the palegars, is known as the seat of Sati Sumikta or Anusiya, mother of Dattatreya, by some Hindus. The alam or pole carrying the flag of the Prophet that Dada Hayat brought along with him from Arabia seems to have been taken by his Hindu followers as a trishul (trident), a ritual object associated with the Shiva cult. Likewise, the masnads or seats of four Muslim Qalandars, Jan Pak Shahid, Malik Tijar Faruqi, Malik Wazir Isfahani and Abu Turab Shirazi, located to the left of the masnad of Dada Hayat in the inner chamber of the cave, are considered by some Hindus as the seats of four disciples of Dattatreya« (SIKAND, Yoginder 2003). NOTE 4: SIKAND, Y (2003) recalls a miraculous story relating to »the spring that flows inside the cave. It is said that the palegars once stopped the water supply to the cave so that it became difficult for Dada Hayat to perform his ritual ablutions. Thereupon, Dada Hayat simply scratched the ground with his finger and a spring suddenly gushed forth. The water of this spring is regarded by Dada Hayat's Muslim followers as ab-i-hayat or the sacred 'water of life', while his Hindu followers consider it as gangajal or the waters of the Ganges.« NOTE 5: SIKANDER, Y (2003): »It is said that once when a group of palegars attacked him, they trapped him in the cave by placing massive boulders at its entrance. According to popular lore, Dada Hayat simply glanced to his left and a tunnel suddenly appeared. His Muslim followers believe that this tunnel leads to Medina [3800 km WNW] and they say that Dada Hayat left the cave through this opening [keyword: exitcave] for the Muslim holy city. When large numbers of Hindus joined the Dada Hayat cult, this story naturally needed to be explained to them in terms which they would find intelligible. Hence arose the belief that it was through this tunnel that Dattatreya left the cave for the Hindu holy town of Kashi« (Varanasi / Benares, 1520 km NNE). NOTE 6: ): »Although it is believed that Dada Hayat is still alive and continues to live in his cave, it is said that once he was satisfied with the centre that he had established at Chandradrona hill, he left through the tunnel in the cave for a long visit to Arabia and Central Asia, from where he brought back a group of men to look after the affairs of the centre under his guidance« (SIKAND, Y 2003). NOTE 7: Dattatreya's sacred compound is indicated as »Dattatreyapitha« near N13°23': E75°44'30" on AMS sheet ND43-11 Shimoga (U502 series, 1959 edition). »The Baba Budhan Giri dargah is one of the few institutions of its kind in all of India. Known in the official records as the Sri Guru Dattatreya Swami Baba Budhan Peetha« (SIKAND, Y 2003). NOTE 8: »It appears that well before Dada Hayat's arrival, the hill was of particular significance in the local religious tradition. This is suggested by the several names by which it was called. In ancient texts it is commonly referred to as the Chandradrona Parbat or 'the hill of the moon', because it is shaped like a crescent. It was also known as Vayuparbat [note 8.1] and Marutsaila [note 8.2], and both these names are sought to be traced to the Puranas. Because of the many springs that flow down the mountain slope it was known as Jalparbat or 'the mountain of water'. Another name for it was Dadadari or 'the star mountain'. Muslims call this peak as Dada Ka Pahad or 'the hill of Dada (Hayat)'. Asri writes that this name was popularised by the numerous jogis and sanyasis, Hindu mendicants, who flocked there for tapas or meditation. Today, it is more commonly known as Baba Budhan Giri or 'the hill of Baba Budhan', after another Sufi, Hazrat Jamaluddin Maghribi, popularly known as Baba Budhan, who is buried here« (SIKAND, Y 2003). NOTE 8.1: "Vayu" ?; "parbat" (Sanskrit) »hill, mountain«. NOTE 8.2: "maruts" [also: maruthi] are »Hindu storm gods« (LONELY PLANET, India 2005: 1109) and "saila, shaila, sila, etc" means »stone, rock, etc.« NOTE 9: Chikmagalur (N13°19': E75°47' nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003), the town (formerly headquarters of Kadur district), is indicated as »Chickmagalur« on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 110 D2) but as »Chikmugalur« (near N13°19': E75°46'30") on AMS sheet ND43-11 Shimoga, U502 series, 1961 edition). NOTE 10: Baba Budan Giri, culminating at an elevation of 1895 m asl, rises at a travelling distance of 28 km along the road approximately north of Chikmagalur (N13°19': E75°46'30"). »The peak takes its name from Muslim saint, Baba Budan, who lived around 105 years ago in this place and reared coffee from the seeds he had brought from Yemen (reckonindia.com/tourism/hill_stations_of_india.asp accessed 2006.06.29); Baba Budan Hills N13°30': E75°45' on AMS sheet ND43-11 Shimoga (U502 series, 1961 edition). »Baba Budan Range or Chandra Drona Parvatha as it was known in the ancient times, which has one of the highest mountain peaks between the Himalayas and the Nilgiris, … has taken its name from the 1895 m high Baba Budan Giri situated just 28 kms north of Chikmagalur town. The loftiest point of the range is Mullaiyanagari, which is 1926 m above sea level« (reckonindia.com/tourism/hill_stations_of_india.asp accessed 2006.06.29). Baba Budhan Giri 6317 feet (or 1925 m asl, IMPERIAL GAZETTEER 1907-1909, 14: 262); Chandra Drona Parvatha (reckonindia.com/tourism/hill_stations_of_india.asp accessed 2006.06.29); Chandradrona (also: Baba Budhan Giri): »The Chandradrona hill, where the dargah of Dada Hayat stands, has two major peaks, Kalhatgiri and Malaigiri, the latter, at a height of 6214 feet [1894 m asl], being the highest peak in Karnataka« (SIKAND, Y 2003).Malaigiri 6214 feet (or 1894 m asl, SIKAND, Y 2003); Mulainagiri 6310 feet (or 1923 m asl, AMS sheet ND43-11 Shimoga, 1959 edition) or 1918 m asl (India Road Atlas, Eicher Goodearth 2006: 110 D2); Mullaiyanagari 1926 m asl (reckonindia.com/tourism/hill_stations_of_india.asp accessed 2006.06.29). NOTE 11: »The musnud carpet … is about two yards square, and generally bordered or fringed, on which is placed the all-important musnud. This article may be understood by those who have seen a lace-maker's pillow in England, excepting only that the musnud is about twenty times the size of that useful little article in the hands of our industrious villagers. The musnud is covered with gold cloth, silk, velvet, or calico, with square pillows to correspond, for the elbows, the knees, &c. This is the seat of honour …« (Mrs. Meer HASSAN ALI, B. 1832, letter 12).
Documents
Bibliography 27/03/2016- Saffron flag… 1998; Sikand, Yoginder 2003.
Histoire
EXPLORATION HISTORY: Since the 1990ies, the sacred Dattatreyapitha is mis-used by populist polititians fond of disintegration in view of gaining influence (SAFFRON FLAG … 1998; islaminterfaith.org/mar2003/issue.html accessed 2004.11.01).
Cavités proche
| Distance (km) | Nom | Longueur (m) | Profondeur (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.7 | MULAINAGIRI CAVE | ||
| 3.7 | MULAIANAGIRI CAVES | ||
| 5.9 | RUDRESHWAR GUDI | ||
| 7.1 | KALAGAVE | ||
| 7.1 | KAVIKALGANDI | ||
| 13.0 | BABA BUDAN GIRI: SIDDHA CAVE 1 | ||
| 13.0 | BABA BUDAN GIRI: SIDDHA CAVE 2 | ||
| 13.0 | BABA BUDAN GIRI: SIDDHA CAVE 3 | ||
| 14.9 | SIDDARAGAVI |