Phase 1 — Arrival of Islam (Arab Invasion of Sindh)

Part 1 of 4 — concise revision notes. Full detailed narrative also available in "Ideology & History" page if needed.

Two Entrance Routes

South — Trade route: Arab traders reach Malabar coast (Kerala) centuries before Bin Qasim
North — Military route: Bin Qasim invades Sindh via Arabian Sea/Makran (712 CE)

Zamorin (ruler of Calicut) friendly to Muslims — encouraged settlement, marriage to Nair women, mosque-building
Converts + mixed children called "Moplahs" ("great child") — given same status as Brahmins
Al-Masudi (916 AD): found 10,000+ Muslims at Seymour (modern Chaul)
Ibn Battutah (visited early 14th c.): rich merchants in Malabar, mosques in Quilon
Sufis spread Islam to Ceylon, Maldives, Laccadive Islands
Elliot & Dowson: first Muslim ship seen on Indian coast ~630 AD
H.G. Rawlinson/Sturrock: first Arab Muslims settled on Indian coast late 7th century AD

Mosque	Location	Date
Barwada Masjid	Gujarat	disputed, possibly pre-623 AD
Cheraman Juma Masjid	Kerala	629 AD — standard "oldest in India" answer
Palaiya Jumma Palli	Tamil Nadu	628–630 AD
Jamia Masjid, Banbhore	Sindh, Pakistan	727 AD — the Pakistan-specific answer

Sindh known as Bab-ul-Islam
Ruled by cruel Hindu king Raja Dahir
Trigger: Ceylon's ruler sent ships (Muslim women + gifts) to Governor of Iraq Hajjaj Bin Yousaf; pirates under Dahir attacked, robbed gifts, imprisoned the women
Dahir refused to release them when asked → Hajjaj sent Muhammad Bin Qasim with an army
Bin Qasim marched via Makran → Debal → camped on the Indus (Mehran) river bank