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{{Short description|Destroyed Hindu temple in Multan, Pakistan}}
{{Infobox Hindu temple
|name = Prahladpuri Temple<br />پرَہْلادْپُورِی مندر
|image = Ruins of Prahladpuri Temple.jpg
|alt = Ruins of Prahladpuri Temple
|caption = Ruins of Prahladpuri Temple
|coordinates = {{coord|30|12|01.3|N|71|28|36.6|E|type:landmark|display=inline,title}}
|map_caption =
|map_type = Pakistan Punjab#Pakistan#Asia
|map_size = 250


|location = [[Multan]]
|country =[[Pakistan]]
|district = [[Multan District|Multan]]


|deity = [[Prahlada]]
|festivals = [[Holi]]


|governing_body = [[Pakistan Hindu Council]]
}}

'''Prahladpuri Temple''' ({{langx|ur|{{nq|پرَہْلادْپُورِی مندر}}}}) is a [[Hindu temple]] located in [[Multan]] city of [[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]] province in [[Pakistan]], adjacent to the [[Shrine of Bahauddin Zakariya]]. Named after [[Prahlada]], it is dedicated to the Hindu deity [[Narasimha]]. Like many Hindu temples in Pakistan, the temple was razed to ruin by a Muslim mob in response to Hindus demolishing the [[Babri Masjid]] in [[Ayodhya]], India. The site is currently owned by [[Evacuee Trust Property Board]].

== Location ==
The temple is located on top of a raised platform (''[[mandapa]]'') at the southern tip of the [[Multan Fort|Fort of Multan]], adjacent to the mausoleum of Baha’ul Haq Zakariya.<ref name="a">{{cite web |title=Home |url=http://multan.uniconconsulting.com/monument/index/TEMPLE_OF_PRAHLADPURI.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150107231623/http://multan.uniconconsulting.com/monument/index/TEMPLE_OF_PRAHLADPURI.html |archive-date=2015-01-07 |access-date=2015-01-07}} Survey & Studies for Conservation of Historical Monuments of Multan. Department of Archeology & Museums, Ministry of Culture, Government of Pakistan</ref>

== History ==

=== Hindu History ===
According to History, [[Prahlada]] — son of [[Hiranyakashipu]], the [[Asura|Asur]]-king of Multan{{Efn|Multan, originally Kashyappur, is believed to have been founded by the Hindu sage [[Kashyapa]].}} — built the temple in honor of [[Narasimha]], an incarnation of [[Vishnu]], who had appeared out of a pillar in the royal court to disembowel the oppressive King and reward his devoutness.<ref name="a" /><ref name="x">{{cite book |last=Maclagan |first=Edward |url=https://www.indianculture.gov.in/punjab-district-gazetteers-multan-district-1923-24 |title=Punjab District Gazetteers: Multan District 1923-24 |publisher=The Superintendent Government, Lahore |year=1926 |volume=VII |pages=276–77}}</ref> The temple was constructed around the pillar and thus, the festival of [[Holika Dahan]] commenced.<ref name="z">{{Cite web |title=The Friday Times:Holi's home by heritage |url=http://www.thefridaytimes.com/15042011/page16.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131211101834/http://www.thefridaytimes.com/15042011/page16.shtml |archive-date=2013-12-11 |access-date=2012-04-10}}</ref>

=== Pre-modern India ===
The temple stands on the ruins of pre-Islamic Hindu temple.<ref name="a" /> There appear to have been older temples on the site which were subject to cycles of razing and re-construction during the medieval era; however, the precise details are hazy in light of conflicting legends.<ref name="a" />

Oral legends assert that a temple — with columns and roof made of gold — used to exist at the site c. 15th century before being dismantled by [[Sher Shah Suri]] to construct a mosque; the current temple was constructed when this mosque fell.<ref name="a" />{{efn|Publications of the local archaeological department argue that since [[Jean de Thévenot]] mentions a temple "on this very site" during his visit in 1665, Suri's mosque must have been put to disuse within about a century of its construction, which is highly unlikely given its royal antecedents.<ref name="a" /> Thus, the authenticity of the narrative is doubtful.<ref name="a" /> However, Thévenot did not provide any such detail on the location; further, his description of the idol ran similar to that of the Multan Sun Temple by medieval Muslim travelogues.}} Another account published in [[Calcutta Review]] (1891) reproduces the same narrative except that the pre-existing temple had sunk of "unknown causes."<ref>{{Cite news|date=April 1891|title=The Early History of Multam|volume=CLXXXIV|page=241|work=Calcutta Review}}</ref>

=== Colonial India ===
In 1810, the temple's height was raised (or, was the temple rebuilt - ?), which led to tensions with the Muslim community.<ref name="a" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Punjab (India)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EAVDAAAAYAAJ&q=prahladpuri+temple+riot+-1992+-babri|title=Extracts from the District & States Gazetteers of the Punjab, Pakistan: Punjab (Pakistan)|date=1976|publisher=Research Society of Pakistan, University of the Punjab|language=en}}</ref> In 1831, [[Alexander Burnes]] noted the temple as a low-height structure, supported by wooden pillars and having [[Hanuman]] and [[Ganesha]] as the portal guardians; he was denied entrance to what was "the only place of Hindu worship in Multan".<ref name="a" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Burnes|first=Alexander|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SsimAVpKZnYC|title=Travels into Bokhara|date=1834|publisher=John Murray, Albemarle Street|volume=3|location=London|pages=115–116|language=en|chapter=Chapter V}}</ref> An annual festival was held on the temple's premises on the anniversary of Narasimha's appearance.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book|last=Cunnngham|first=Alexander|url=https://archive.org/details/dli.bengal.10689.15868|title=ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF INDIA VOL.5|date=1875|publisher=The Superintendent of Government, Calcutta|pages=126, 129}}</ref>

During the [[Siege of Multan (1848-1849)|Siege of Multan]] in 1848, a shell fired by forces of the [[East India Company]] fell on a gunpowder store within the fort and blew away the temple's roof.<ref name=":4" /><ref>[http://multan.reemakhan.info/ Monuments of Multan] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201125647/http://multan.reemakhan.info/|date=2016-02-01}} Survey & Studies for Conservation of Historical Monuments of Multan. Department of Archaeology & Museums, Ministry of Culture, Government of Pakistan</ref> Post-siege, the [[East India Company]] retained total control of the fort and all adjacent areas — including the temple and the mausoleum — for a couple of years before returning the shrines to native communities in July 1852.<ref name="a" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=27 September 1881 |title=Mussalmans and Hindoos at Multan |pages=3 |work=The Pioneer |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/readex/doc?p=WHNPASIA1&docref=image/v2%3A1324D80D8E2BE8E3%40WHNPASIA1-132A7119FA1F6500%402408351-132A6F5C4890A080%402-132A6F5C4890A080%40 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> A month later, the Company prohibited approaching the temple via precincts of the mausoleum in lieu of allowing a request from local Hindus to refurbish the temple.<ref name="a" /> In 1854, [[Alexander Cunningham]] found the temple to be a roofless "square brick building with some very finely carved wooden pillars", and the only Hindu shrine in Multan alongside [[List of Hindu temples in Multan#Suraj Kund|Suraj Kund]].<ref name="a" /><ref name=":4" />

In 1859, local Hindus and Muslims agreed to not incorporate conspicuous additions to the temple or the mausoleum.<ref name="a" /> In 1861, the Chief [[Mahant]] of the temple, Baba Ram Das, had raised about Rs.11,000 by way of public donation to refurbish the temple.<ref name="a" /> In the early 1870s, his successor, Baba Narayan Das, proposed to increase the height of the temple spire to 45 ft — more than that of the mausoleum — but was opposed by local Muslims as a breach of the 1859 agreement, fomenting an acrimonious dispute.<ref name="a" />{{efn|For a rather graphic description, consult {{Cite book|last=Boyle|first=Frederick|url=https://archive.org/details/onborderland00boylgoog|title=On the Borderland|publisher=Chapman and Hall Limited|year=1884|location=London|pages=377–397|chapter=A Bit of an Old Story|author-link=Frederick Boyle}}}} Eventually, the local administration decided the issue in favor of the Muslims; an agreement enacted on 14 April 1876 restricted the height to 33 ft.<ref name="a" /> However, the Hindus were not content and sought to overturn it.<ref name="a" />

==== Multan Riots ====
In August 1880, the Mahant obtained consent from local civil and military authorities to install the 45 ft. spire.<ref name=":6">{{Cite news|last=Hindu Correspondent|date=7 October 1881|title=The Mooltan Riot and its Causes|page=2|work=Times of India}}</ref> Construction continued for about three months before the Mahdoom of the mausoleum petitioned Cordery, the Commissioner of Multan, for a cease order.<ref name=":6" /> Upon investigation, Cordery reported to [[Robert Eyles Egerton|Lt. Governor Egerton]], who decided to not only reinstate the 1876 agreement but also ask Hindus to cede possession of the compound well and an adjacent plot.<ref name=":6" /> The Hindus appealed before [[George Robinson, 1st Marquess of Ripon|Viceroy Ripon]], and c. August 1881, a committee composed of six people each from the Hindu and Muslim community was set up to arrive at a compromise — their proposed solution was to allow the spire but as a compensation, grant the sole possession of the well and ownership of the plot to the Muslims.<ref name=":6" />

Before the solution could be approved by the government and implemented,{{Efn|[[The Amrita Bazar Patrika]] of 11 August 1881 (p. 1) reports the Government to have informed the Hindus of Multan about their intentions to "shortly issue an order" on the dispute.}} the town got enmeshed in the communal tensions fomenting across Punjab against the backdrop of [[Arya Samaj]]'s cow-protectionist movements.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Chatterjee|first=Arup K.|date=2016-08-10|title=Today's Cow Vigilantism Grew Under {{as written|Inadve|rtant [sic]}} Aegis of the Raj|url=https://www.thequint.com/voices/blogs/cow-vigilantism-when-british-buckled-under-pressure-from-hindus-akhlaq-dadri-lynching-dalit-attack-in-gujarat|access-date=2021-10-11|website=TheQuint|language=en}}</ref> The question of transport and sale of beef in Multan town became an affair of competitive communalism.<ref name=":6" /> On 20 September 1881, a riot erupted and spanned over two days, resulting in 50,000 rupees worth of damage but no casualties.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Roseberry |first=J. Royal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iAMNAAAAIAAJ |title=Imperial Rule in Punjab: The Conquest and Administration of Multan, 1818-1881 |date=1987 |publisher=Manohar |isbn=978-81-85054-28-5 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2" /> Hindu rioters had burned a mosque in the city's bazaar, attacked the Walli Muhammadi Mosque, and incinerated a Quran; in retaliation, a Muslim mob [[arson|arsoned]] the Prahladpuri temple.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PSpuAAAAMAAJ&q=prahladpuri+temple+1881+-1992+-babri |title=Proceedings - Punjab History Conference |date=2000 |publisher=Publication Bureau, Punjabi University |isbn=9788173807220 |language=en}}</ref>{{efn|The entire contingent of British troops from [[Multan Cantt|Multan Cantonment]] had to be dispatched to control the riot.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Ross|first=David|url=https://archive.org/details/landfiveriversa01rossgoog|title=The Land of the Five Rivers and Sindh: Sketches Historical and Descriptive|date=1883|publisher=Chapman and Hall, limited|page=[https://archive.org/details/landfiveriversa01rossgoog/page/n111 100]|language=en|quote=prahladpuri temple riot -1992 -babri.}}</ref>}}

However, the temple was quickly renovated by the Hindu community.<ref>{{Cite court|court=Lahore High Court|reporter=AIR 131|date=1923}}</ref> A month later, on 14 October, the government issued its decision — the local authorities lacked jurisdiction to decide on the issue of additions to the temple structure, and hence, the Hindus were to either dismantle the spire or follow the compromise arrived at by the committee.<ref>{{Cite news |date=15 October 1881 |title=The Mooltan Riots |work=The Civil and Military Gazette}}</ref> On 29 October, the Hindus decided in favor of the latter.<ref>{{Cite news|date=29 October 1881|page=5|work=Times of India}}</ref> A well for the Hindus was constructed in an adjacent plot and a wall erected between the mausoleum and the temple.<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 June 1882 |title=Occasional Notes |pages=2 |work=[[The Madras Mail]] |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/readex/doc?p=WHNPASIA1&docref=image/v2%3A12F364C5987759F8%40WHNPASIA1-12F667BEB3E1B148%402408617-12F60F5AA0DF8318%401-12F60F5AA0DF8318%40 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
==== Beyond riots ====
In the early morning of 7 November 1912, miscreants removed an image of Lakshmi from the temple and threw it in a nearby well after stealing the crown; the Hindu devotees blamed local Muslims.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Own Correspondent|date=9 November 1912|title=Sacrilegious Budmashes|page=8|work=Times of India}}</ref> On 23 January 1913, a ''Panchayat'' (trans. assemblage) of Hindus removed the incumbent Mahant leading to protracted litigation.<ref>{{Cite news |date=15 December 1916 |title=Prahladpuri Temple Suits: New Administration Ordered |pages=4 |work=The Tribune |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/readex/doc?p=WHNPASIA1&docref=image/v2%3A13063D8408C307DB%40WHNPASIA1-1333FB9C4F4DF418%402421213-1333B5059A12F128%403-1333B5059A12F128%40 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>{{efn|This serves as an interesting example of the powers exerted by the community: the Mahant was dismissed on grounds of [[Charas|addiction to charas]], refusal to shelter migrant [[fakir]]s, inappropriate conduct with women, and inability to maintain a record of temple donations. Ajudhia Das challenged the dismissal before the Magistrate of First Class, arguing the position of Mahant to be hereditary and beyond the powers of Panchayat but failed to get any favorable judgement.{{pb}}An appeal was filed at the Lahore High Court in 1917 and the judgement was pronounced on 1 August 1922. Das' dismissal was sustained on rather-technical grounds —he had set up adverse claims to the property in the meanwhile, thus running afoul of [[Chintaman v. Dhondo]]— but the Panchayat actions were opined to be unjustifiable irrespective of its legal validity.}}

=== Independent Pakistan===
After the creation of [[Pakistan]], as overwhelmingly majority of Hindus migrated to [[Dominion of India|India]], the few remaining Hindus of the city continued to manage the temple affairs.<ref name="z" /> Eventually, the image of Narasimha was taken away to a temple in Haridwar in the 70s, and the [[Evacuee Trust Property Board]] (ETPB) took over the site, in whose hands it fell into a state of neglect; a [[madrasa]] got established inside the temple premises sometime in the 80s.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Khalid|first=Haroon|title=Both colour and memories of Holi have faded from Pakistan's Multan, where the festival was born|url=https://scroll.in/article/831944/both-colour-and-memories-of-holi-have-faded-from-multan-where-the-festival-was-born|access-date=2021-02-22|website=Scroll.in|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Khalid|first=Haroon|title=These temples in Pakistan are now madrasas|url=http://scroll.in/article/754708/these-temples-in-pakistan-are-now-madrasas|access-date=2021-02-22|website=Scroll.in|language=en-US}}</ref> Despite this, the temple continued to be a prominent landmark in Multan and even had a [[Dharamshalas|dharamshala]].<ref name="a" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=January 1993 |title= |volume=24 |work=The Herald |issue=1}}</ref>

==== Destruction and aftermath ====
In 1992, a Muslim mob destroyed the temple and the dharamshala in retaliation for Hindus razing the [[Babri Masjid]] in [[Ayodhya]], [[India]]; they also targeted local Hindus.<ref name="z" /><ref name="a" /> The temple continues to be in ruins.<ref name="a" /> By 2006, squatters had encroached on the lower levels of the ruined structure, and garbage was regularly dumped at the site.<ref name="a" />

=== Proposed Reconstructions ===
In 2009, the Central Government allocated funds to document and preserve the site; the survey determined a risk of an imminent collapse of the temple ruins, but preservation plans were shelved.<ref name="a" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2009-06-03 |title=52 Multan monuments to be preserved on Moroccan pattern |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/953464/52-multan-monuments-to-be-preserved-on-moroccan-pattern |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=DAWN.COM |language=en}}</ref> In May 2015, ETPB announced new plans to restore the temple and, in August, granted a fund of 5 million PKR to the Punjab Archeology Department.<ref>{{Cite web|title=ETPB to rebuild historical temple in Multan|url=https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/40031-etpb-to-rebuild-historical-temple-in-multan|access-date=2021-10-11|website=www.thenews.com.pk|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=7 August 2015|title=Grant approved for restoration of Prahladpuri temple|volume=XXXVIII|work=The Balochistan Times|publisher=AsiaNet Pakistan (Pvt) Ltd.|issue=216|location=Quetta}}</ref> However, the local administration refused to issue a [[No Objection Certificate]], apparently fearing local Muslim fanatics.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reporter |first=The Newspaper's Staff |date=2021-02-13 |title=Hindu council to host festivities at Parlhad Mandir next month |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1607085 |access-date=2021-02-22 |website=dawn.com |language=en}}</ref>

In February 2021, the [[Supreme Court of Pakistan]] established a one-person commission{{Efn|Dr. Shoaib Suddle was the only member. However, he was supported by three others.}} to interrogate the status of minority religious shrines. It criticized ETPB's handling of Hindu shrines and submitted for the immediate restoration of the temple along with the construction of lodging facilities for potential tourists;<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reporter |first=The Newspaper's Staff |date=2021-01-05 |title=Commission suggests opening of four temples for tourism |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1599766 |access-date=2021-02-22 |website=dawn.com |language=en}}</ref> the State of Punjab and ETPB were ordered to ensure optimum preparedness of the shrine for the Holi festival.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Mohan |first=Geeta |date=February 8, 2021 |title=Pakistan: Most Hindu worshipping places in country neglected, says SC-appointed commission |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/hindu-places-worship-in-pakistan-neglected-say-supreme-court-appointed-panel-1767122-2021-02-08 |access-date=2021-02-22 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Pakistan SC Orders Immediate Reconstruction of Vandalised Hindu Temple|url=https://thewire.in/south-asia/pakistan-sc-orders-immediate-reconstruction-of-vandalised-hindu-temple|access-date=2021-02-22|website=The Wire}}</ref> Soon, the local "peace committee" — with representatives from the government, civil society, and [[Ulama|Ulemas]] — announced plans to restore the temple to ensure religious harmony.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Qureshi|first=Raiq|date=2021-02-15|title=Multan peace committee takes multiple initiatives for restoration of Holi-origin Prahladpuri temple|url=https://www.app.com.pk/national/multan-peace-committee-takes-multiple-initiatives-for-restoration-of-holi-origin-prahladpuri-temple/|access-date=2021-02-22|website=Associated Press Of Pakistan|language=en-US}}</ref>

== Architecture ==
[[File:Plan Of Prahladpuri Temple.jpg|thumb|Temple plan]]
Prior to being demolished, the temple featured a main hall, and circumlocutory passages adorned with skylights.<ref name="a" /> The hall continued to feature a replica of the idol under a [[baldachin]].<ref name="a" />

==See also==
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
* [[Multan Sun Temple]]
* [[Hinduism in Pakistan]]
* [[Evacuee Trust Property Board]]
* [[Mankiala stupa]]
* [[Hinglaj Mata]]
* [[Kalat Kali Temple]]
* [[Katasraj temple]]
* [[Sadh Belo]]
* [[Shiv Mandir, Umerkot]]
* [[Shri Varun Dev Mandir]]
* [[Tilla Jogian]]
{{col div end}}

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|3}}

{{Hindu temples in Pakistan}}

[[Category:Hindu temples in Punjab, Pakistan]]
[[Category:Hindu pilgrimage sites in Pakistan]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Multan]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures demolished in 1992]]
[[Category:Hindu temples sacked in the Muslim period in the Indian subcontinent]]
[[Category:Anti-Hindu violence in Pakistan]]

Prahladpuri Temple - Revision history

KathieMuriel714: Added First Place Nd Citations