KHOH, Mirzapur
25.150000,82.583300
Description
Dr. Stephen A. Craven (note 1) had drawn my attention to what appears to represent a natural sacred cave or rock shelter (temple cave), which is »called Khoh« and is said to be found not only in an unspecified spatial relation »near the Dargah of Makhdum Saheb Chiragh-i-Hind« (note 2) but also at an unspecified location somewhere in »Mirzapur district« (Chandauli district, Mirzapur district and Sonbhadra district) or, perhaps, within the town of Mirzapur (note 3). ETYMOLOGY: The Urdu "khoh" means »cave« in English. CULTURAL HISTORY: "Dargah ka Makhdum Saheb Chiragh-i-Hind" (Urdu) means a »sacred cult spot centered on the venerated grave of the Muslim convert, who [claims] descent from Fatimah, daughter of Prophet Muhammad (Mohammed), and Ali, his cousin-german and adopted son, and who is called [or calls himself] Chirag [note 4], and who originally came from Sindh« -- in the Indus River valley and, since 1947 a province of Pakistan, The hagiography of the »Saheb« (note 5) Sufi »pirs« (saints) is full of Makhdum Sahibs (note 6) but I am not aware of one Chiragh from »Hind« (Sindh) — which does not mean anything. The Qanoon e Islam needs to be checked.
NOTE 1: According to Dr. med. Stephen A. Craven (1991.02.26 personal correspondence) this cave is mentioned in a supplement to the District Gazetteer of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh (1935, without specified editor), volume 27 D: Mirzapur District, appendix, page XXXIX. NOTE 2: "Dargah ka Makhdum Saheb Chiragh-i-Hind" translates as »[venerated] grave of the honourable Muslim convert Chirag of the Indus Valley province.« A "dargah" is a venerated Muslim tomb, mausoleum, cenotaph or shrine; "makhdum" a Hindu convert to Islam, and "Hind" is the province of Sind / Sindh, now in Pakistan. NOTE 3: Mirzapur N25°09': E082°35' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003), the town in Mirzapur district (Uttar Pradesh) on AMS sheet NG44-12 Banaras (U502 series, 1961 edition) and on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 40 B5) — not to be confused with the other Mirzapur N30°08'05”: E077°47'36” (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) in Saharanpur district (Uttar Pradesh) on AMS sheet NH43-08 Ambala (U502 series, 1959 edition) -- not indicated on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 11 quadrangels F1, F2, G1 or G2), Mirzapur N27°41': E079°33' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003), also in Shahjahanpur district (Uttar Pradesh) on AMS sheet NG44-02 Shahjahanpur (U502 series, 1959 edition) and on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 22 B3), Mirzapur: N22°18'25”: E088°24'20” (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) in South 24 Parganas district (West Bengal), on AMS sheet NF45-07 Calcutta (U502 series), not indicated on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 78 A2), Mirzapur N24°24': E088°04' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) in Murshidabad district (Jharkhand) on AMS sheet NG45-15 Berhampore (U502 series, 1955 edition) and on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 60 C2), Mirzapur at XXX? either in Tangail district or Manikganj district (Bangladesh: Mymensingh) on the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 61 H2). NOTE 4: The Farsi / Persian and Urdu "chirag" is a plain earthenware cup in which a wick is lighted to burn oil. This simple and cheap contrievance is able to illuminate darkness and hence an allegory for Sufi religious teachers of the Salik order. NOTE 5: Saheb (also: sahib, said, sayed, sayyed, sayyid, seyed, suyed, syaad); literally »lord« or »chief« is a class of Muslims divided into two branches descended from Hassan and Hussein, sons of Ali and Fatimah. NOTE 6: There is, for example, one famous saint (pir) Makhdum Sahib who is said to have been born from a Rajput family in Nagarkot in the »Kashmir« of Himachal Pradesh. There is also the »ziarat« (place of pilgrimage) dedicated to one Makhdum Sahib on Hari Parbat, a hill in the Vale of Kashmir (LAWRENCE 1895: 292) and another Dargah ka Makhdum Sahib in Kurjah town (Bulandshahr district, Uttar Pradesh) near Delhi.
Cavités proche
| Distance (km) | Nom | Longueur (m) | Profondeur (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.0 | KHUSI GHAT KI PAHARI SHELTERS | ||
| 7.0 | SHANKARGARH (Cave at) | ||
| 9.8 | KALI KHOH, Mirzapur: Ashtabhuja: GUFA | ||
| 10.0 | KALI KHOH, Mirzapur: Ashtabhuja: MANDIR | ||
| 17.3 | KOTWA SHELTER | ||
| 31.9 | CHUNA DARI | ||
| 45.2 | KUPSA SHELTER | ||
| 46.7 | MATA GUFA | ||
| 46.7 | GYAN KUPOR WELL |