Uzzal Roy, Narail

The traditiinal Goalbathan Mosque in Narail was built in one night. Goalbathan village is 7 kilometers from Narail district headquarters, after crossing Chalitala Bazar. Then, go straight for one kilometer and turn right to Goalbathan village.

On the way to Dhuria village, there is a small blue mosque on the left side of the road. Ujjwal Roy, the district representative from Narail, said that this is Goalbathan Mosque. Surrounded by forests all around, this mosque is the oldest mosque in the district. Goalbathan Mosque is about 450 years old. Built on 5 acres of land in the 70th century, the mosque is 50 feet long and 35 feet wide.

A domed mosque built with small bricks and lime mortar. There are four small minarets on top. There is an iron bar to prevent lightning. There are no pillars. The dome of the mosque is a wonderful architectural style that stands even today without the use of any rods. There is a legend that the mosque was built by jinns and at that time the jinns also used to pray.

There is a legend in the area that about 400 years ago during the Mughal rule, a man named Munshi Habatullah suddenly came to this village and started living there. A few days later, he dug this mosque and a pond adjacent to it one night. Since then, the village has gradually started to be populated and the people of the Muslim community in the area and the surrounding area have been offering prayers in that mosque regularly.

Locals said that there was no human settlement in that area. The area was full of gardens. Munshi Habatullah was the first resident of that village. After he started living there, the mosque and a pond adjacent to it were dug one night.

Locals cannot say the exact date of construction of the mosque, but locals believe that it is 400 to 450 years old. According to their information, during the Mughal period, an old man named Munshi Haibatullah settled in the village of Goalbathan in the forest with some companions. No one can say where he came from. At that time, this area was used as a cattle grazing center. He started building a settlement by building a road in the forest.

One day, he and his companions cut down some trees in the forest to build a house. One night, he had a dream that 'build a mosque instead of a house'. He had the same dream for three consecutive nights. Inspired by this dream, he started building a mosque.

The entire surrounding area was inhabited by traditional Hindus. He called his companions and devotees from a few kilometers away and arranged for their stay and built the mosque with their help. At the same time, a huge pond was dug adjacent to the mosque to provide drinking water for the people of the area.

It is said that the people of the area were surprised to see this suddenly built mosque and the huge pond. They believe that this huge pond was dug and the mosque was built in one night. Since this huge work was done by the jinn, it is also called the Jinn Mosque in the area. The worshippers of the area believe that the jinn used to pray here at that time.

At one time, worshippers used to come here on Fridays to offer Friday prayers even after walking from far away. They would come here and eat and drink and would leave after taking shelter of Munshi Haibatullah Sahib. There were arrangements for food and rest for hundreds of different types of travelers seven days a week.

Maulana Taiebur Rahman, a regular worshipper of the mosque, told The Country Today , we are renovating the mosque by asking for money from various places including the Zilla Parishad. The mosque does not have a good bathroom or water system. We hope that the Archaeology Department will take it under their control and make arrangements to preserve the mosque.

They came to see the mosque. They were disappointed as there were no facilities for tourists here and returned. Shahriar Hasan, a resident of Bhangura area of Jessore district, told Dhaka Mail, "I came to Goalbathan Mosque and offered prayers. I was very pleased to see this 400-year-old mosque.

It would have been even better if this mosque was preserved and developed under the initiative of the Archaeology Department." Imam of the mosque, Munshi Rahmatullah, told The Country Today, this mosque was built by my ancestors. Once upon a time, a huge Jumma prayer was offered here on Fridays. Devotees used to come here from 50/60 miles away to offer prayers. We used to eat and drink at our house, I saw many old utensils for masala batter including that huge Haman Dista as a child. I feel proud to be the Imam here."