India: Forts, Temples, and Monuments, Part One

Although I do think that the most interesting thing about India is its people, we learned a lot about Indian history and culture by visiting many of its iconic and awe-inspiring edifices. The best known of those of course, is the Taj Mahal in Agra, one of the most recognizable monuments in the world!

This breathtakingly beautiful mausoleum was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their 14th child. Construction began in 1632 and was completed eleven years later. Most of the buildings in the complex were constructed with red sandstone (very common in India), but the tomb itself is white marble, carved, painted, and decorated with inlaid stone. The interior is embellished with inlaid precious and semi-precious stones, like jade, malachite, and carnelian. Every aspect of its design is symmetrical.

The minarets on the four corners of the square plinth, or stone foundation of the tomb, are each 130 feet tall, and are built outside of the plinth, so if they were to collapse, they would hopefully fall away from the tomb.

The Taj Mahal sits on the banks of the Yamuna River, and from behind the mausoleum, you can see the Agra Fort up river in the distance.

Although the original brick fort was built sometime in the 11th century, Mughal Emperor Akbar decided to make the city of Agra his capital in 1556. He began rebuilding the mostly ruined brick fort, and did so with red sandstone from Rajasthan.

The fort is quite impressive, and the way it looks today is mostly due to Akbar's grandson: Shah Jahan (who also built the Taj Mahal). He tore down some of the over 500 red sandstone buildings his grandfather had built, and replaced them with palaces of lavishly ornamented white marble. 

Near the end of Jahan's life, he was arrested and kept imprisoned in the fort by one of his sons, Aurangzeb, the 6th Mughal Emperor of India. It is said that Shah Jahan died in one of the towers he had built, where from the marble terrace, he had a view of the Taj Mahal, where his beloved wife was buried.

Another famous mausoleum in Agra is the Tomb of I'timad-ud-Daulah, also known as the "Baby Taj." This mausoleum was commissioned by Nur Jahan, the wife of Jahangir (4th Mughal Emperor) in 1622, for her father, and although it is much smaller, it is considered the draft for the Taj Mahal.

In Old Delhi, we visited the Jama Masjid, the largest and most renowned mosque in India. Also built by Shah Jahan between 1650 and 1656, it can be entered from three sides, by climbing up about three dozen very steep steps. This was not so easy for some of the older folks in our group, but it was just a taste of many more steps to come at other sites we would visit. When we entered, we were of course, required to take off our shoes, and we women were given a long robe-type garment to cover our street clothes. (As you can see two minutes into Sam's Delhi video.)

The mosque has a huge, paved courtyard, which can accommodate about 25,000 worshipers, and the floor inside the mosque has 899 prayer "spaces" marked by black and white marble.

We also visited another very old Muslim site, the Qutab Minar, and the complex of ancient and medieval buildings and ruins that surround it. This minaret is the second tallest in India, standing 238 feet tall, with 379 steps to the top, and although construction began in 1192, many additions and repairs were made over the next several centuries, due to earthquakes and lightning strikes.

The first three stories are made of intricately carved red sandstone, and the top two stories are a combination of sandstone and white marble. Verses from the Qu'ran are cut into the sandstone of the minar, and delicately carved designs also adorn the other structures in the complex.

While still in New Delhi, we visited what is now called the Gandhi Smriti (or Gandhi Remembrance), the place where Mahatma Gandhi spent the last 144 days of his life and was assassinated on January 30, 1948. Formerly the home of the Birla family (Indian business tycoons), it is now a museum about Gandhi, his life and teachings. 

The grounds there are very peaceful and beautiful, with sculptures and other installations in remembrance of the person many Indians call the Father of the Nation.

Even Gandhi's final footsteps are memorialized from where he left his room to where he was shot on that fateful day in 1948, only five and a half months after India gained independence from Great Britain.

Gandhi is known the world over for his politics of non-violence, and he holds a very special place in the hearts of most Indians. We also visited his cremation site at Raj Ghat, where there burns an eternal flame in his memory. School children, pilgrims, tourists of all kinds, and world dignitaries come to this site every day to pay their respects.

When our tour stopped for two nights in Jaipur (aka the Pink City), we were in for some real treats as far as beautiful and unusual architecture is concerned. 

The Amber Fort (also spelled and pronounced Amer) was built in the late 16th century. It is quite a sight from the main road, reflecting off the still waters of the Maota Lake.

Our group did not ride elephants up the hill and into the fort, but look closely and you can see people precariously riding on top of the huge animals, lumbering up the long, zigzagging road to the Sun Gate on the eastern side of the main courtyard.

From on top of the fort, one can look down and see the saffron garden built on the manmade lake far below.

Probably the most beautiful feature of the Amer Fort is the Sheesh Mahal, or Mirror Palace. The walls and ceiling of this hall are covered with beautiful carvings, paintings, and flowers made with pieces of glass. At night, if only two candles are lit, apparently the reflections look like thousands of stars!

Jaipur got its "Pink City" nickname because most of the buildings, in addition to being made with pink-colored sandstone, were also painted pink as a sign of hospitality when Prince Albert came to visit in the mid-19th century, a tradition that is now mandated by law. Personally, I would not call the color pink. It is more of a salmon, or even brick red in some cases, such as the Hawa Mahal, or "Wind Palace."

The City Palace of Jaipur has some of the most amazing decorative elements I have ever seen. One of the inner courtyards has four gates, each representing one of the four seasons and Hindu gods. (Unfortunately, I only have photos of three of the gates.)

This is the Rose Gate representing winter, and dedicated to the Goddess Devi.

This is the Lotus Gate suggesting summer, and dedicated to Lord Shiva.

And this is my favorite: the Peacock Gate representing autumn and honoring Lord Vishnu. (The peacock is the national bird of India and is featured in art and decorations everywhere.)

Hopefully, I haven't bored my readers too much with historical facts. There is so much more to share, that I will stop for now and continue with more in the next post. Namasté!

Remember, if you want to see these photos enlarged, all you have to do is click on one and it should open a slide show of all the photos. 

Also, you can follow this link to my Flickr page to see these and a few more photos from the trip.