As an artist, a sculptor and an appreciator of arts and craft I am ashamed and embarrassed in front of those stones, those lifeless shards, those artworks and also the artists and artesian who poured their sweat and blood into these stones to create this marvel.

I am writing this because when I got to know about the happening of this land, all I heard was that Muslims had destroyed this space. It felt awkward and as being a Muslim, I wanted to record my protest and apology, which even if not heard now, will be present in history to say that a Muslim stood up to condemn those happenings, to say what was done was wrong.

Translation

To the residents of the land of Hampi, After salutations, I would like to tell you that today, I am trying to gather

courage, to write to you all in atonement for the barbarism and cruelty of a few, who a few centuries back made your beautiful land a victim of their worldly greed. In the name of their religion, they came, they destroyed, occupied your

lands and till today their followers are still enthusiastically bent on the same mission.

It has been said, time and again that religion was never spread through the sword and that religion itself strictly prohibits such actions yet, today, they murder the children of Adam and think that they are furthering the cause of

religion and reaffirming a blissful place in the afterlife for themselves. What is the importance of life to them, when all that matters is the life after this one?

When humans are meaningless for them, what significance will you hold?

By writing this I do not wish to injure your emotions, I merely wish to explain to you that: they have no religion. Their religion is just power and material wealth.

The way they have smeared the pages of history with their ’welfare’ efforts and are still fanatically dedicated in continuing; I feel that my effort is in vain and quite futile. I fear that I might just end up smudging these tarnished blotches even further for I cannot undo what has already been done. On my part, even after all my efforts, my last resort is, if nothing else, to at least inwardly condemn what was unjust, because I do not have the power in me, my hand or in my quill to stop them. Nevertheless I believe, what happened and whoever did it, they must be paying the cost in one way or another.

A few days back I had the chance of getting to know about you. When I did, I felt quite sad, and not just sad, I felt quite embarrassed too that I had never heard or read about you. I suppose I would call my ignorance my incompetence. Forced by my utter self-humiliation, I opened and searched through history texts only to find no accounts of you, as if you never existed; and where you do, your chapter has been beautifully narrated in someone else’ accounts as one of their many victories – just another feather in their cap. Maybe the historians forgot while writing history that those who distort and dismember history have been destroyed in history – not history itself.

When they were attacking you in their greed I was not present there nor did I exist, this country did not exist nor were we separated and nor had we ever anticipated this separation. There were no boundaries and no severed ties. What

happened? How did it happen? Who did it? What were the circumstances? What were the incidents? What was the politics and what was the reality? Rising above all these questions, I, Muzzumil Ruheel, strongly condemn these inhuman acts of violence and my sincerest apologies to the stone residents of this town.

As an artist, a sculptor, a patron and a connoisseur of art, I am utterly mortified at the act that had been thrust upon you. You are beautiful, your elegance, and the skill of the artist is subject to appreciation. Your aesthetic beauty is beyond praise and an example in itself that I might never find in history.

Today I ask those people; where are you now and where is your infinite sovereignty: you reduced this land to dust.

Regards,

Muzzumil Ruheel.