Prahladpuri Temple () is a
Hindu temple
A Hindu temple, also known as Mandir, Devasthanam, Pura, or Kovil, is a sacred place where Hindus worship and show their devotion to Hindu deities, deities through worship, sacrifice, and prayers. It is considered the house of the god to who ...
located in
Multan
Multan is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fifth-most populous city in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province of Pakistan. Located along the eastern bank of the Chenab River, it is the List of cities in Pakistan by populatio ...
city of
Punjab
Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
province in
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
, adjacent to the
Shrine of Bahauddin Zakariya. Named after
Prahlada, it is dedicated to the Hindu deity
Narasimha
Narasimha (, , or , ), is the fourth avatara of the Hindu god Vishnu in the Satya Yuga. He incarnated as a part-lion, part-man and killed Hiranyakashipu, ended religious persecution and calamity on earth, and restored dharma. Narasimha has th ...
. In 1992, following the
Demolition of the Babri Masjid in India, the temple was razed to ruin in a retaliatory act of violence by a Muslim mob. The site is currently owned by
Evacuee Trust Property Board.
Location
The temple is located on top of a raised platform (''
mandapa'') at the southern tip of the
Fort of Multan, adjacent to the mausoleum of Baha’ul Haq Zakariya.
[ Survey & Studies for Conservation of Historical Monuments of Multan. Department of Archeology & Museums, Ministry of Culture, Government of Pakistan]
History
Hindu Folklore
According to local folklore,
Prahlada — son of
Hiranyakashipu, the
Asur-king of Multan — built the temple in honor of
Narasimha
Narasimha (, , or , ), is the fourth avatara of the Hindu god Vishnu in the Satya Yuga. He incarnated as a part-lion, part-man and killed Hiranyakashipu, ended religious persecution and calamity on earth, and restored dharma. Narasimha has th ...
, an incarnation of
Vishnu
Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...
, who had appeared out of a pillar in the royal court to disembowel the oppressive King and reward his devoutness.
The temple was constructed around the pillar and thus, the festival of
Holika Dahan commenced.
Pre-modern India
The temple stands on the ruins of pre-Muslim structures.
There appear to have been older temples on the site which were subject to cycles of razing and re-construction during the medieval era; however, the precise details are hazy in light of conflicting legends.
Oral legends assert that a temple — with columns and roof made of gold — used to exist at the site c. 15th century before being dismantled by
Sher Shah Suri
Sher Shah Suri (born Farid al-Din Khan; 1472 or 1486 – 22 May 1545), also known by his title Sultan Adil (), was the ruler of Bihar from 1530 to 1540, and Sultan of Hindustan from 1540 until his death in 1545. He defeated the Mughal Empire, ...
to construct a mosque; the current temple was constructed when this mosque fell.
Another account published in
Calcutta Review (1891) reproduces the same narrative except that the pre-existing temple had sunk of "unknown causes."
Colonial India
In 1810, the temple's height was raised (or, was the temple rebuilt - ?), which led to tensions with the Muslim community.
In 1831,
Alexander Burnes noted the temple as a low-height structure, supported by wooden pillars and having
Hanuman
Hanuman (; , ), also known as Maruti, Bajrangabali, and Anjaneya, is a deity in Hinduism, revered as a divine ''vanara'', and a devoted companion of the deity Rama. Central to the ''Ramayana'', Hanuman is celebrated for his unwavering devotio ...
and
Ganesha
Ganesha or Ganesh (, , ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped Deva (Hinduism), deities in the Hindu deities, Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in the Ganapatya sect. His depictions ...
as the portal guardians; he was denied entrance to what was "the only place of Hindu worship in Multan".
An annual festival was held on the temple's premises on the anniversary of Narasimha's appearance.
During the
Siege of Multan in 1848, a shell fired by forces of the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
fell on a gunpowder store within the fort and blew away the temple's roof.
Post-siege, the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
retained total control of the fort and all adjacent areas — including the temple and the mausoleum — for a couple of years before returning the shrines to native communities in July 1852.
A month later, the Company prohibited approaching the temple via precincts of the mausoleum in lieu of allowing a request from local Hindus to refurbish the temple.
In 1854,
Alexander Cunningham
Major General Sir Alexander Cunningham (23 January 1814 – 28 November 1893) was a British Army engineer with the Bengal Sappers who later took an interest in the history and archaeology of India. In 1861, he was appointed to the newly crea ...
found the temple to be a roofless "square brick building with some very finely carved wooden pillars", and the only Hindu shrine in Multan alongside
Suraj Kund.
In 1859, local Hindus and Muslims agreed to not incorporate conspicuous additions to the temple or the mausoleum.
In 1861, the Chief
Mahant of the temple, Baba Ram Das, had raised about Rs.11,000 by way of public donation to refurbish the temple.
In the early 1870s, his successor, Baba Narayan Das, proposed to increase the height of the temple spire to 45 ft — more than that of the mausoleum — but was opposed by local Muslims as a breach of the 1859 agreement, fomenting an acrimonious dispute.
Eventually, the local administration decided the issue in favor of the Muslims; an agreement enacted on 14 April 1876 restricted the height to 33 ft.
However, the Hindus were not content and sought to overturn it.
Multan Riots
In August 1880, the Mahant obtained consent from local civil and military authorities to install the 45 ft. spire.
Construction continued for about three months before the Mahdoom of the mausoleum petitioned Cordery, the Commissioner of Multan, for a cease order.
Upon investigation, Cordery reported to
Lt. Governor Egerton, who decided to not only reinstate the 1876 agreement but also ask Hindus to cede possession of the compound well and an adjacent plot.
The Hindus appealed before
Viceroy Ripon, and c. August 1881, a committee composed of six people each from the Hindu and Muslim community was set up to arrive at a compromise — their proposed solution was to allow the spire but as a compensation, grant the sole possession of the well and ownership of the plot to the Muslims.
Before the solution could be approved by the government and implemented, the town got enmeshed in the communal tensions fomenting across Punjab against the backdrop of
Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj () is a monotheistic Indian Hindu reform movement that promotes values and practices based on the belief in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda Saraswati founded the samaj in the 1870s.
Arya Samaj was the first Hindu ...
's cow-protectionist movements. The question of transport and sale of beef in Multan town became an affair of competitive communalism.
On 20 September 1881, a riot erupted and spanned over two days, resulting in 50,000 rupees worth of damage but no casualties.
Hindu rioters had burned a mosque in the city's bazaar, attacked the Walli Muhammadi Mosque, and incinerated a Quran; in retaliation, a Muslim mob
arsoned the Prahladpuri temple.
However, the temple was quickly renovated by the Hindu community. A month later, on 14 October, the government issued its decision — the local authorities lacked jurisdiction to decide on the issue of additions to the temple structure, and hence, the Hindus were to either dismantle the spire or follow the compromise arrived at by the committee. On 29 October, the Hindus decided in favor of the latter. A well for the Hindus was constructed in an adjacent plot and a wall erected between the mausoleum and the temple.
Beyond riots
In the early morning of 7 November 1912, miscreants removed an image of Lakshmi from the temple and threw it in a nearby well after stealing the crown; the Hindu devotees blamed local Muslims. On 23 January 1913, a ''Panchayat'' (trans. assemblage) of Hindus removed the incumbent Mahant leading to protracted litigation.
Independent Pakistan
After the creation of
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
, most Hindus migrated to
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, but the few remaining Hindus of the city continued to manage the temple affairs.
Eventually, the image of Narasimha was taken away to a temple in Haridwar in the 70s, and the
Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) took over the site, in whose hands it fell into a state of neglect; a
madrasa
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...
got established inside the temple premises sometime in the 80s. Despite this, the temple continued to be a prominent landmark in Multan and even had a
dharamshala.
Destruction and aftermath
In 1992, a Muslim mob destroyed the temple and the dharamshala in retaliation for Hindus razing the
Babri Masjid
The Babri Masjid (ISO: Bābarī Masjida; meaning ''Mosque of Babur'') was a mosque located in Ayodhya, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It was claimed that the mosque was built upon the site of Ram Janmabhoomi, the legendary birthplace ...
in
Ayodhya
Ayodhya () is a city situated on the banks of the Sarayu river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ayodhya district as well as the Ayodhya division of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ayodhya became th ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
; they also targeted local Hindus.
The temple continues to be in ruins.
By 2006, squatters had encroached on the lower levels of the ruined structure, and garbage was regularly dumped at the site.
Proposed Reconstructions
In 2009, the Central Government allocated funds to document and preserve the site; the survey determined a risk of an imminent collapse of the temple ruins, but preservation plans were shelved.
In May 2015, ETPB announced new plans to restore the temple and, in August, granted a fund of 5 million PKR to the Punjab Archeology Department. However, the local administration refused to issue a
No Objection Certificate, apparently fearing local Muslim fanatics.
In February 2021, the
Supreme Court of Pakistan
The Supreme Court of Pakistan (; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the Judiciary of Pakistan, judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Established in accordance witPart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it h ...
established a one-person commission to interrogate the status of minority religious shrines. It criticized ETPB's handling of Hindu shrines and submitted for the immediate restoration of the temple along with the construction of lodging facilities for potential tourists; the State of Punjab and ETPB were ordered to ensure optimum preparedness of the shrine for the Holi festival.
Soon, the local "peace committee" — with representatives from the government, civil society, and
Ulemas — announced plans to restore the temple to ensure religious harmony.
Architecture

Prior to being demolished, the temple featured a main hall, and circumlocutory passages adorned with skylights.
The hall continued to feature a replica of the idol under a
baldachin
A baldachin, or baldaquin (from ), is a canopy of state typically placed over an altar or throne. It had its beginnings as a cloth canopy, but in other cases it is a sturdy, permanent Architecture, architectural feature, particularly over Alta ...
.
See also
*
Multan Sun Temple
*
Hinduism in Pakistan
Hinduism is the second largest religion in Pakistan after Islam. Though Hinduism was the dominant faith in the region a few centuries back, its adherents accounted for just 2.17% of Pakistan's population (approximately 5.2 million people) acc ...
*
Evacuee Trust Property Board
*
Mankiala stupa
*
Hinglaj Mata
*
Kalat Kali Temple
*
Katasraj temple
*
Multan Sun Temple
*
Sadh Belo
Sadh Belo (, Urdu: سادھ بھيلو), also spelt as Sadh Bela, or Sat, is an River island, island in the Indus River near Sukkur, Sindh, Pakistan that is famous for its highly revered Hindu temples. The temples are associated with the syncr ...
*
Shiv Mandir, Umerkot
Umarkot Shiv Mandir (), also known as Amarkot Shiv Mandir, is a Hindu temple situated in Umerkot District, near Rana Jaageer Goth, in Sindh Province of Pakistan. This temple is perhaps the oldest in Sindh. The temple is one of the most sacred ...
*
Shri Varun Dev Mandir
Shri Varun Dev Mandir (, ) is a Hindu temple located in Manora Island in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. The temple is devoted to Lord Jhulelal (Varuna), the deity that represents water in Hinduism.
He is the chief governing deity of all the Seas- ...
*
Tilla Jogian
Tilla Jogian (; , meaning "hill of Jogi (caste), jogis "), also known as Balnath Tilla or Gorakh Tilla, is an abandoned Hindu temple and monastic complex located on the summit of the ''Tilla Jogian'' mountain in the Salt Range in the Jhelum Distr ...
Notes
References
{{Hindu temples in Pakistan
Hindu temples in Punjab, Pakistan
Hindu pilgrimage sites in Pakistan
Buildings and structures in Multan
Buildings and structures demolished in 1992
Hindu temples sacked in the Muslim period in the Indian subcontinent
Anti-Hindu violence in Pakistan