Monika Pathak
2/23/09
208 W Anthropology
Hinduism and Islam have both influenced the history of India leaving a long legacy through the ages. From these two religions India has gained an enormous amount of culture. If we stroll through the streets of India we see many reminders of Muslim rule through arts, literature and architecture. India also has an abundance of Muslims who claim her as there motherland. Yet some Hindu radicals use the argument of “mother India” to say that she is by definition Hindu and therefore belongs to the Hindu’s. It is perhaps difficult to agree because it would then be necessary to overlook the accomplishments and history of Islam in India. It would also be hard to ignore the millions of Muslims who believe themselves to be every bit as Indian as any Hindu.
Islam was first preached in Mecca by Mohammad in the early 6th century. After almost a century of broadened faith of Islam, it became established in India. In 711 A.D. Arabs invaded the Indian region of Sind and was led my Mohammad ibn Qasim. It appealed too many Hindus who were unhappy with some of the traditions of there own faith such as the caste system. It continued to grow in population and popularity in India yet the population was still far less than Hindus.
