Nathar Shah

Nathar Shah (969-1039), also called Nadir Shah or Nathar Wali, was a Muslim mystic and preacher from the Middle East who migrated to Tamil Nadu in the 11th-century, where he travelled from area to area to preach the faith of Islam to the locals.

Quotes

• “It is said that in ancient days Trichila, an execrable monster with three heads, who was a brother of Rawan, with ten heads, had the sway over this country. No human being could oppose him. But as per the saying of the Prophet, ‘Islam will be elevated and cannot be subdued’, the Faith took root by the efforts of Hazarat Natthar Wali. The monster was slain and sent to the house of perdition. His image namely but-ling worshipped by the unbelievers was cut and the head was separated from the body. A portion of the body went into the ground. Over that spot is the tomb of the Wali, shedding rediance till this day.”
  • About the legend surrounding the tomb of Nathar Shah at Tiruchirapalli (Tamil Nadu). Bahãr-i-Ãzam, translated in English, Madras, 1960. p. 51.

• The court scribe pays fulsome homage to the sufis who “planted firmly the Faith of Islam” in this region. The pride of place goes to Hazrat Natthar Wali who took over by force the main temple at Tiruchirapalli and converted it into his khãnqãh. Referring to the destruction of the Sivalinga in the temple, he observes: “The monster was slain and sent to the house of perdition. His image namely but-ling worshipped by the unbelievers was cut and the head separated from the body. A portion of the body went into the ground. Over that spot is the tomb of Wali shedding rediance till this day.” Another sufi, Qãyim Shãh, who came to the same place at a later stage, “was the cause of the destruction of twelve temples.”
  • S.R. Goel in Hindu Temples – What Happened to Them, Volume I (1990)