 Haji Ali From Mahalaxmi temple is visible a cluster of ethereal white domes emerging from the sea. This is The Haji Ali Dargah, the floating tomb of a wealthy Mohammedan merchant who renounced his worldly ways before embarking on a pilgrimage to Mecca.
The structure with its slim solitary minaret is about sixty years old though the tomb has been around for eight centuries. It is linked to the mainland by a tenuous causeway, which is practically unnegotiable during rough monsoon, tides. Behind the sculpted entrance, a marble courtyard contains the central shrine.
Hundreds of worshippers stoop to press their forehead against the richly brocaded red and green chaddar covering the tomb. It lies in an exquisite silver frame supported by marble pillars and is decorated with artful mirrorwork: blue, green, yellow chips of glass arranged in kaleidoscopic patterns interspersed with Arabic patterns which spell the ninety-nine names of Allah. |