Who’s Buried in Jesus’s Tomb? (Srinagar, India)
In the evening of our first day in Srinagar, we met our guide at the hotel to discuss our itinerary. At first, he refused to show us the Jesus’s Tomb but later told us that he’d point the way and we could go at our own risk. “Just two weeks ago a guide and two tourists were beaten so badly that they had to be hospitalized, and I myself was threatened six months ago, escaping only when I promised not to bring any more tourists. The tomb is in a mosque in one of India’s oldest Muslim communities; the people have different beliefs and don’t want any outsiders in that area”, he said solemnly. There is NO WAY that you can get permission to take photos inside the tomb! As he was leaving, I asked him one more time if it was dangerous, and he replied, “Don’t worry, chicken curry.” This smart alec may be a kindred spirit, I thought to myself.
I didn’t sleep well that night but I really wanted to visit the site, and hoped that I would be lucky enough to go inside. I had heard about the tomb many years ago: Some believe that although Jesus was crucified to fulfill the scriptures, He was removed shortly thereafter, and traveled to the Middle East and India to study other religions and teach Christianity. The Muslims believed that He was a prophet and buried him in a shrine, when He passed on, after many years.
The next day we set out very early in the morning. About four miles from our hotel, the scenery changed dramatically. All of the buildings were one-story tall and made of rocks and mud. Muslims in traditional attire filled the narrow streets, and some of the women were dressed in black from head to toe. We parked the car in front of a butcher shop, where a man was hacking apart a lamb carcass with a large cleaver. The guide told me not to take any photos and pointed to a narrow street. “Go straight down there, you can’t miss it”, he said.
The shops on that street were just opening and no one took notice of us, After a few minutes, the tomb was right in front of us. I ran to the gate, stuck my camera through it and squeezed off four shots. We’ll include this in our Kashmir 180º book, I told my wife.
Tomb of Jesus, Srinagar, India (behind Gate)
Then I backed off to make the image you see here:
Tomb of Jesus, Srinagar, India, (from outside of the gate)
Just as I was reviewing the shots, a short teenage boy came running out of the house behind us. I moved the camera to my back and raised my cane to rest on my shoulder. “What’s this for???!!!! What’s this for?!!!” he shouted, with his chest all puffed up like a sheriff. I shouted back the second answer that came to mind, “My Mom!” (After all, she did want to see a picture of it.)He stopped mid-stride, frowned and turned his head first one way, then the other, repeating, “My-mom, my-mom, my-mom.” While he was stuck in this loop, I said goodbye and we made a hasty retreat back to the car. Now the sidewalks were full of people, so we walked down the middle of the street, blending in as well as any man wearing a safari suit and speed walking while hobbling with a cane, through a Muslim neighborhood ever has. No one said anything but glowered at us intently.
When we got back to the car, our guide didn’t believe that I had the picture, so I showed him. “That’s the best photo of the tomb I’ve ever seen, you even have the minaret in the photo, so they’ll know He’s buried in a mosque”, he said with newfound admiration. “That’s what we do”, I said. “Since you’re our first Muslim guide on our trip, and I know that this city has many old mosques built by the Mughals that westerners rarely visit, why don’t you spend the day showing us these mosques and tell us more about your religion.” He smiled a broad smile that stayed on his face all day, as he showed us one amazing site after another. What an interesting day!
I like meeting new people and I enjoy listening to different opinions. It rarely matters to me if any legend is true or not, and it seems like a waste of time to argue or try to prove how much truth is behind any story. I just try to grasp what it’s trying to express, learn and grow!
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