Mandir and Masjid unity

The original mosque, believed to be around  200 years old, was getting weak and would have collapsed soon. So it was decided by the Muslims to rebuild the mosque and  Pillai, who is a carpenter, volunteered to take upon himself  the difficult task of demolishing the dome. 

This act of kindness from the local Hindus pleased the Muslims of the Ghorpadi town and when a decision was taken to build a temple in the year 1992, the Muslims reciprocated this kindness.

Shiraj Sheikh, a local architect, came up with a practicable plan. He told the Hindus to build the temple adjacent to the Mosque. People of Ghorpadi loved it and wanted to make this a symbol of unity among the Hindus and Muslims even during the aftermath of the 1992 communal riots.

"We started the Temple work when the country was fighting over Mandir-Masjid. Many Muslims worked for the construction. We even used the water from the Masjid," said Alfred Anthony, President, Kashi Vishweshwar Mandir Trust.

Now after the construction of the new temple was finished  inside the compound of the 200 year old mosque, people saw that the windows of the mosque now opens directly into the temple.

Besides, when it is time for azaan, the arati stops, and when arati is going on, no prayers happen inside the mosque. Nowadays common celebrations  such as Eid, Diwali, Shiv Ratri and Moharram happen all within in the compound .