The travels of Bengalis in the past
Sumana Dam
(Continued from the last part)
With the dawn of day, the enchanting night form of Agra transformed into its stark reality. Overall, the deteriorating state of Agra caught the author's eye.
This is the birthplace of Abul Fazl, a minister of Emperor Akbar. The author sought out the unknown location of Faizi's tomb, one of Akbar's nine gems, who was the first Muslim to study Hindu scriptures and had his own library. The author also looked for Babur's famous garden, where he attempted to plant pineapples and sandalwood in a doab-like area. The author searched for Akbar's Ram Bagh, likely Babur's Char Bagh, where the nobility loved to stay by the calm and cool banks of the Yamuna.
The author now beheld the magnificent tomb of Itimad-ud-Daulah. Precious stones and mosaic work had been stripped from this monument, built by Nur Jahan for her father between 1622 and 1628.
Upon entering the city, the 80-foot-high tower of Agra Fort came into view. The fort had provisions for watching animal fights. According to English merchant William Finch, Emperor Jahangir would observe elephant, lion, and buffalo fights, as well as cheetah hunting deer, even animals hunting human beings, from a balcony here, every afternoon except Sunday. The door named Darshan Darwaja featured statues of two Rajput heroes, Jaymal and Patta, placed on the backs of elephants, a tribute commissioned by Akbar. Although built 300 years ago, the fort remains in decent condition. Its surrounding walls and moat have disappeared, but a 30-foot wide gravel-lined inner moat still exists. The inner tall walls are impossible to breach secretly.
There are two entrances to the fort. One is the Bukhara Gate, also known as Umra Singh Ka Fatak (Amar Singh Gate). Umra Singh, the crown prince of Marwar, joined Shah Jahan's army after not being designated a claimant to the throne. He once missed a royal court session due to hunting for a fortnight, which led to the king rebuking him and imposing a fine. Umra refused to pay the fine to the nazir, resulting in his summons to the court. In a furious outburst, he stabbed the nazir and aimed for the emperor, who barely escaped. Umra Singh continued his rampage, resulting in many Mughal nobles being killed. Although Umra Singh was later killed, his followers continued the violence. To commemorate this event, the entrance through which Umra and his followers entered the court was named Umra Singh Gate. This door remained closed for 175 years, guarded by a large snake. It was finally reopened in 1809 by a British engineer, who noted that a large cobra slithered past him as the door opened.
The inside of the fort is vast, resembling a city. During the Sepoy Rebellion, 5,845 Englishmen sought refuge within. The view from the fort of the city below is beautiful, with forests, fields, houses, and, most notably, the Taj Mahal.
The Dewani Khas, Akbar’s council chamber, overlooks the Yamuna River. It embodies architectural excellence with its white marble pillars, intricately carved arches, and white marble flooring, with traces of gold gilding still visible. Here, Akbar made significant decisions and Abul Fazl enacted laws. In the open courtyard, there is a twelve-foot wide, two-foot high throne where the emperor would enjoy the cool river breeze, listen to Tansen's music, engage in religious discussions, or appreciate Birbal's wit.
The most striking house in the Mughal harem is the Sheesh Mahal or Mirror House, with its walls adorned in mirrors. It had a system to keep the room cool using architectural techniques. Women of the harem viewed the Yamuna through latticed white marble. During the British attack in 1803, a portion of this lattice was destroyed by cannon fire, diminishing its brilliance; some glass was broken, and the fountains now only operate for visitors. During Akbar's time, the harem housed five thousand women, but the space was not large enough to accommodate everyone in separate rooms.
Exiting the women's quarters, the author came to a large courtyard. From there, a staircase led down to a door that opened into a dark staircase leading to the Taikhana or tunnel paths. These tunnels extended to the river. Using a torch, the author ventured inside, encountering a narrow winding path, hearing the fluttering of bats and birds, and glimpsing a gallows. The author suggested that disobedient women of the harem may have been executed here and disposed of in the Yamuna.
The public audience hall, Dewani Am, was where Mughal emperors met with the common people. It is one of the largest halls in India, measuring 180 feet long and 60 feet wide. This simple yet grand structure is adorned with beautiful white marble pillars. The throne of the king remains, along with the slab on which ministers once stood to address the court. The royal decor described by Thomas Roe and Terry (the English envoy) is no longer present. In one corner of the hall stands the Somnath Door, 11 feet tall and 9 feet wide, taken by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni from the Somnath temple of Gujarat. British Governor General Lord Ellenborough brought it back to India and placed it in Agra Fort during the Kabul campaign in 1842.
Near Dewani Am lies the tomb of Mr. John Russell Colvin, who was the Lieutenant Governor of the North-West Provinces and died of cholera during the Sepoy Rebellion within the fort.
The Moti Masjid, made entirely of white marble, is comparable to a pearl. This exquisite mosque is a brilliant example of Mughal architecture. Its inscription reveals that Shah Jahan constructed it in 1656 at a cost of six million rupees for the worship of women in the harem. In front of the mosque is a water reservoir for ablution, with a fountain in the center, now dry.
There was once a rare bath tub of Shah Jahan with a diameter of 40 feet made out of a single marble block, now missing, which Lord Hastings wanted to take to England for the king, but its weight made this impossible. Its fate remains unknown.
Agra Fort was built by Akbar in 1566. It is unclear whether a fort existed here before, either Hindu or Pathan. Until 1832, a grand cannon was housed here, with debates about its age. It bore inscriptions from ancient times, including Akbar’s name added later. The British initially attempted to take it to Kolkata and later to England, but its weight prevented this. After some time on the banks of the Yamuna, it was broken up and sold as scrap. Had it remained, it might have revealed inscriptions from a certain era.
There is a beautiful road and riverside strand from Agra Fort to the Taj Mahal, built by the English in 1838, employing the impoverished laborers suffering from famine. During this construction, some old houses were demolished.
The author vividly describes the ethereal beauty of the Taj Mahal. Without discussing the detailed descriptions, here only the new information discovered through this writing is stated.
On the tomb of Mumtaz Begum is a white marble slab adorned with a floral design made from a hundred types of stone. In Arabic, it details her various virtues, embellished with numerous rare and precious gems that no unclean hand could steal. (Were these precious stones in their rightful places in 1860?)
Beside the grave of Mumtaz, who died in 1631, Shah Jahan was laid to rest in 1666 under Aurangzeb's orders after his death.
One day, while playing cards with Shah Jahan, Mumtaz asked what would happen if she died. Shah Jahan promised that he would create a tomb for her so grand that she would forever be remembered for it worldwide. Mumtaz died during childbirth, and the cries of her daughter were heard by her and her daughters before the child was born. This led her to believe she would soon die. The king made sufficient arrangements for her care during childbirth, but Mumtaz passed away two hours after giving birth. On her deathbed, she reminded Shah Jahan of his promise regarding her tomb.
The French traveler Tavernier wrote that the Taj took twenty thousand workers and twenty-two years to build. The King of Jaipur gifted white marble that had to be transported from 140 miles away. Bernier noted that Shah Jahan was profoundly grieved by Mumtaz's death.
Europeans are unwilling to credit any Indian with the construction of the Taj Mahal, believing it was designed and built by the French architect Austin de Bordeaux, who served as the chief architect at Shah Jahan’s court, receiving a monthly salary of one thousand rupees and various gifts. The locals referred to him as Oostan Eesan. Many Europeans, including Hawkins (a British envoy and noble) and the travelers Tavernier (a gem merchant) and Bernier (a physician) were present at Shah Jahan's court, so it is not surprising that Austin was considered an architect. (Ustad Ahmad Lahori is recorded as the principal architect of the Taj in Abdul Hamid Lahori’s "Badshahnama"). Tavernier witnessed the Taj's construction but did not write about Austin.
In 1814, the East India Company spent one lakh rupees on repairs for the Taj.
Across the Yamuna from the Taj, there stands an unfinished tomb that Shah Jahan was constructing for himself but could not complete due to Aurangzeb (who imprisoned Shah Jahan in his later years).
In the 19th century, Agra was a city measuring four miles in length and three miles in width, with no remaining outer walls. Some marks of the inner walls can still be found. Public bathing houses and wrestling arenas from earlier times no longer exist, and the palaces of nobles like Raja Man and Raja Birbal are untraceable.
Modern houses have been built using bricks from old architecture. The horse-drawn carriages, Ekka from the Mughal era still remain only in Agra.
This concludes the first volume of the book. Now, we will begin the second volume of 'The Travels of a Hindoo" in the next part of this blog.
(To be continued)
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