Bomb explodes at India's famous Ajmer shrine

11 Oct 2007 15:03:58 GMT
Source: Reuters


Oct 11 (Reuters) - A small bomb exploded just after evening prayers at an important and crowded Muslim shrine in northwestern India on Thursday, killing at least two people and wounding 17, according to police.

Here are some details about the shrine:

* The shrine of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chisty is situated in the northern town of Ajmer, about 350 km (215 miles) southwest of Delhi and ringed by barren hills in the western state of Rajasthan.

* It houses the tomb of the 13th-century Sufi saint, who came to Ajmer from Persia in 1192. Sufism is a mystical form of Islam, considered more liberal in philosophy than the branches followed by Shi'ites and Sunnis.

* A few hundred thousand devotees, including some Hindus who believe in the divine powers of the Khwaja, flock to Ajmer throughout the year to offer prayers and gifts and fulfill vows.

* The faithful walk barefoot, their heads covered, and jostle in long lines as they carry baskets of colourful flowers and cloth to drape on the tomb.

* The devout also gather around groups of qawwals (religious musicians) who regularly sit with harmoniums and tabla drums on the gleaming floor outside the shrine and sing praises of the Khwaja while shops nearby hawk trinkets, necklaces, flowers and sweets.

* Pakistani leaders Pervez Musharraf, Mohammad Zia-ul-Haq and Benazir Bhutto have all visited the shrine during state visits to India.