The Legends Of Saint Uderolal

This winter has brought a real change in my life, I have started to travel a lot and also started to explore the glorious past of my motherland Sindh, it won't be an exaggeration if I tell you every inch of Sindh has a unique link with the history, every part of Sindh has at least one historic monument.

 Last Sunday, we headed towards Uderolal, the legendary Sindhi saint, who is revered and respected by both Hindus and Muslims, both communities have a legend for this great saint. On this occasion I was accompanied by my three great friends Akhtar Hafeez, a brilliant Sindhi short-story writer and blogger, Akbar Soomro, one of the best Sindhi novelists of our age and Shah Hassan Rashidi, a social activist. Our host was Mr. Attaullah Shah, Deputy Commissioner of Mirpur Khas and a native of Uderolal, while Mr. Abdullah Shaikh, the caretaker of the shrine was also with us.

Uderolal, a small town near Khyber falls in District Matiari on Tando Adam Road, approximately an hour's drive from Hyderabad, in old times it was part of Nasrpur and according to old records once River Indus flew from there, in the times of Mughals, the governor of Nasrpur used to collect taxes from Uderolal.

                          Historic Background:

Uderolal has remained a popular shrine from the period of Aurghuns and according to Sindh Gazzetter as quoted by Mr. Attaullah Shah, some six thousand people used to visit the shrine of great poet Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, some ten thousand people used to visit the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, while thirty three thousand people used to visit Jhuley Lal Uderolal during the nineteenth century, and the number of visitors to this shrine has increased, such is the popularity of this shrine.

                            Name of the Saint:

Uderolal is often called as "Jhuley Lal" however, there is a slight misunderstanding that Lal Shahbaz Qalandar is Jhuley Lal, but this title was first used for Saint Uderolal, the Muslims later on adopted that very same title for Qalandar Lal Shahbaz.

There are two versions regarding the name of this saint, one is the Hindu version and other is the Muslim version. According to the Hindu version the saint was born to Hindu parents of Nasrpur and was named Lal, from an early age he was a wise name so when ever there was a dispute among the community, people used to say:

”اُڏر لعل کي وٺي آ.....“

Go bring the Lal immediately.... and Lal would reach the place in no time, thus he got the name Uderolal. The word Uder is Sindhi word meaning to fly.

According to the Muslim version though the saint was born to Hindu parents, but as a child when he was selling grains in bazaar for his bread and butter, Qalandar Lal Shahbaz saw him, and the later saint felt purity of heart of the child, came to him and told him that he had seen light in him and he should travel with him, when Uderolal told Qalandar his family's bread and butter  depended upon he selling the grain, Qalandar took that responsibilty to himself, he took all grain from Uderolal put them in water and were turned into wheat, which was provided to his family, so the boy went with the saint, converted to Islam and got the name "Shaikh-ul-Tahir" meaning the pure one.

That is the reason this saint is revered and respected by both Hindu and Muslim communities of Sindh, the shrine gives unique example of religious harmony and tolerance as there is a temple and a mosque standing side by side under one roof, which couldn't be seen any where else.

                          Historic Background of Architecture:

Mr. Attaullah Shah told us that the architecture of the building that is now known as Shrine of Uderolal, was of Mughal and Kalhora period, the slim red bricks were to be found in the infrastructure of Kalhora period, and the way this building was built, it seemed that it was a small fort, with a watch tower, the hieght of one the roofs is approximately fifty feet.

 He quoted a thesis published in 1962, by Aligarh University on the life of Abdul Rahim Khane-Khana mentioning that, during the rule of Akbar the great Abdul Rahim Khane-Khana attack a territory that was eight kilometers away from Uderolal station, the natives had built another fort resembling exactly like this fort to deceive the enemy, the only battle Khane-Khana lost was this battle near Uderolal and returned to Thatta unsuccessfully. This was an important fort strategically as it covered two points and in old day River Indus flew from here. Scholars like Dr. N A Baloh, Dr. Umer Chand and other historians have written about this fort, yet the foundation year of this fort is uncertain.

There are three exit and entry points to this fort, while the particular names of these gates were unknown. Mr. Shah was of the opinion that the width of the architecture tells how old the building might be. Narrow lanes reaching guardrooms with open space for archers was witness that the building was established during war time. There was a well that was built inside the fort to provide water supply to the troops at that time and it was still functional.

At the center there was a huge kitchen to distribute food among the troops, while on the left side just near the shrine of saint, there was a hall for public affairs, known as Deewan-i-Aam or the Durbar (Court) to deal with day to day affairs of the public. In 1921, when Sindh was under British rule, a dispute between Muslims and Hindus erupted over the possession of the shrine and that dispute was resolved by the English General in this very Durbar (courtroom).

                                          The Hindu Legend:

When Mubarakh Shah, Aurghun ruler was ruling Thatta, the Hindu community was being ill-treated by the rulers due to their faith, the Hindu community started praying in temples for a messiah, and an avtar appeared, when the ruler got that news he conspired to kill that saint, but the saint overcame all the conspiracies, protected the Hindus and built an army, he came to this place from Nasrpur and settled here. The festival of this saint is celebrated every year after the wheat crop. While the Hindu community also believed that Uderolal was the lord of water and he used to travel on fish.

                              The Muslim Legend:

Though the saint was born to Hindu parents, but as a child when he was selling grains in bazaar for his bread and butter, Qalandar Lal Shahbaz saw him, and the later saint felt purity of heart of the child, came to him and told him that he had seen light in him and he should travel with him, when Uderolal told Qalandar his family's bread and butter  depended upon he selling the grain, Qalandar took that responsibilty to himself, he took all grain from Uderolal put them in water and were turned into wheat, which was provided to his family, so the boy went with the saint, converted to Islam and got the name "Shaikh-ul-Tahir" meaning the pure one.

                              Sugar From Tree:

There is an old tree inside the shrine and it is believed by the locals that sugar used to come out from this tree and it was a Karamat (miracle) of the saint, that sugar was used for healing purpose, and people also used it for their daily chorus, it was witnessed up to late 1970s, claimed Mr. Abdullah Shaikh, the caretaker of the shrine, but as the sin increased, sugar disappeared.

                        The Well of Saint Uderolal:

Just beside the shrine there is another building a temple of Shiv Mahraj, where Saint Uderolal built a well, which was still running. We found a Hindu family performing a ritual of two young boys to enter the adulthood, both were called "grooms" and it was believed that after the ritual those boys would be able to take responsibilities of manhood and were now able to get married.

      No matter which version is right and which is not right, but Saint Uderolal's shrine is the symbol of Sindh's religious harmony, tolerance, peace and brotherhood. The Government of Pakistan has opened Kartarpur Border for Sikh pilgrims to their holy shrines, likewise Saint Uderolal's shrine is holy of the holiest for millions of Sindhi Hindus living in India and they should also be allowed to visit the saint they revere most.