Sherring appreciates that Muslims yearn to visit Mecca and the Christians desire to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem but the Hindu heart goes out to B… - Praful Goradia

A few masjids have undergone shuddhi, whether in full or part, while others are still unattended and deserve a change. For example, the Gobind Dev mandir at Vrindavan was returned to the Hindus by the British some 130 years ago. While Sultan Ghari at Delhi became a place of worship for all people; when, no one really knows. The saga at Ayodhya is incomplete. While the Nand and Rohini temple palace at Mahaban is believed to have been redeemed in the wake of independence. The edifices at Kannauj and Etawah have not undergone any stage of shuddhi. Since the cities are situated in Uttar Pradesh, the Waterloo of Aryavrat is a part of the series in the area. Quwwatul Islam at Delhi and the Adhai Din Ka Jhopra at Ajmer tell the tale of vandalism so eloquently that the viewer is shocked as he enters these masjids. The Krishnajanmabhoomi as well as Kashi Vishwanath are making do with pathetic alternatives for no shuddhi whatsoever has taken place. So also Ataladevi at Jaunpur and Bhojshala at Dhar. At Vidisha, all worship has been suspended while a great deal of the Rudra Mahalaya complex remains buried. The Adina masjid. at Maida has fallen into disuse as a place of worship, whereas Jungle Pir Baba as well as the shrine at Pavagadh are in full use as dargahs. Daulatabad is a case of redemption which took place on the morrow of the police action in 1948 against the Nizam of Hyderabad.

The author's colleagues and he were taken aback when several men of the Central Reserve Police in mufti stopped them from entering the famous Bhojshala. They said that normal entry to this temple school founded by Raja Bhoj was prohibited. On persuasive questioning, one of the policemen told us, that if we were Muslim, we could go in for two hours on any Friday. On the other hand, Hindus were allowed entry only once a year, on Vas ant Panchami or the day of Saraswati, the goddess of learning. If we belonged to any other faith, entry was regretted. No amount of coaxing was sufficient to make the policemen change their minds and allow us even a five minute walk through this historic temple school. We then realised why the compound had been barricaded although the neighbouring masjid named after Kamal Maula was functioning. So was a nearby dargaah and a few shops selling trinkets for rituals. This blatantly discriminatory order was issued by the Digvijay Singh government in 1997 when reports said that there was Hindu-Muslim tension in the area.

Cunningham called it a masjid which was made up of Hindu materials. It is difficult to agree with Cunningham. The author feels that a Hindu building was converted into a masjid and not made up or rebuilt with Hindu materials. If it had been rebuilt, its Muslim builder would have excluded the inscription of Raja Ajaya as well as all the statuettes on the pillars and walls. The fact that they have been mutilated is a clear indication that the then existing Hindu edifice was quickly converted into a masjid. Apart from the factor of quickness, there must have been the lack of readily available architects and artisans familiar with Islamic architecture. Hence, a great deal of the early Muslim buildings in Hindustan were conversions of Hindu temples. A distinctly Islamic style did not emerge until about the advent of the Lodis in the course of the 15th century.