Must-read stories on how the Kerala flood united religions

Despite the many heart-breaking stories of devastation and loss, the floods in the South Indian state of Kerala have also seen people coming together to help each other: heroic fishermen working tirelessly to bring people to safety, children donating their piggy-bank savings to flood relief and mosques, churches and temples throwing their doors open to everyone.

The torrential rains that began towards the end of July have caused landslides, destroyed property and resulted in over 300 deaths, according to state government figures. Several people are still missing, and about 400,000 people displaced by the floods are still living in relief camps. The disaster affected the Eid celebrations as well as Kerala’s major annual festival, Onam, on August 26. Instead of the usual pomp, people came together to celebrate their unity and survival despite the huge losses of life and property.

Scroll.in reported a story about a mosque at a camp in Nilambur, Malappuram district, where Eid-al-Adha was celebrated by the 125 people who took shelter there, and this included 12 Hindu families. Abdul Vahab Koduvali, 44, a schoolteacher staying at the camp, was quoted in the report as saying, “Everyone in the village went out of their way to save people and bring them to relief camps. We may have lost our homes and belongings, but we are all going to celebrate Eid to mark our unity in this time of crisis.”

Most of the mosques in Thrissur district were flooded, leaving the local Muslims without a place to offer prayers for Eid. The SNDP Yogam, a Hindu charity that works for social development in the state and runs the Purappullikkavu Ratneswari temple, offered their hall to them. And so, on Eid, the temple hall was used for Namaz. In a Facebook video, flood survivor Azeem Azaad expressed his gratitude and delight at the generosity of the temple authorities.

The Deccan Chronicle reported a story about two siblings, Haroon and Diya, from Kochi, Kerala, who broke open their piggy banks to donate their savings of INR 2,210 ($31.5) to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund. Their mother, Fathima Siddique, said in the report, “For two days, our children saw us donating clothes and other things to the relief camps. When they came and asked me about giving [all their] money from their ‘baby bank’ to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund, I was so happy.”

The News Minute reported on Hanan Hamid, a college student from Kerala who was in the news in July as a fishmonger trying to make enough money to cover her tuition fees. Hanan received INR 1.5 lakh ($2,143)  from people who heard about her struggles and were moved by her story.  She in turn has given all the money to flood relief for Kerala. She is quoted saying, “I’m giving back whatever I received; it’s the least I can do.”

The Times of India ran a story about two groups of Muslim youth from Kerala who cleaned up temples in flood-affected Wayanad and Malappuram. Many of them were fasting for Arafah, but that didn’t stop their relief work. Venniyode Sree Maha Vishnu temple in Wayanad and Ayyappa temple in Mannarkkad were filled with mud and silt after the water receded. Two different groups of youth helped with the cleaning up under the directive of the temple authorities, according to the report. One volunteer, Najumudeen K., who is an engineer from the UAE, was quoted as saying, “Islam says it is the duty of every believer to protect a place of worship”. He said that he believes he will be answerable to God for his actions during testing times such as the flood.

And finally, at a concert in Los Angeles, award-winning music composer A.R. Rahman modified the lyrics to one of his popular songs as a salute to Kerala. He changed the lyrics of “Mustafa, Mustafa” to “Kerala, Kerala, don’t worry, Kerala”, words that were greeted enthusiastically by the concert-goers.

(Writing by Susan Muthalaly; Editing by Seban Scaria seban.scaria@thomsonreuters.com)

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