The travels of Bengalis in the past
Sumana Dam
(Continued from the last part)
At the beginning of "The Travels of Hindu, Volume Two," the author, Bholanauth Chunder, set out on November 1, 1860, from Agra to Fatehpur Sikri in a cart drawn by camels instead of a horse-drawn carriage.
On the way, he saw the tomb of Akbar's Begum Jodhabai. However, the beautiful doors and walls of the tomb had been demolished and sold off by the government. The tomb itself was excavated, and the earth was taught to mining engineers, leading to its destruction.
The distance from Agra to Fatehpur Sikri is 24 miles, which takes about six hours by cart. Along the way, remnants of tombs, mosques, and houses can be seen. Before Akbar built his palace, Fatehpur Sikri was an uninhabited hilly area. There lived a Muslim saint, Sheikh Salim, aged 96, in seclusion. Akbar, childless and longing for a son, and his wife, Jodhabai, walked to the shrine of Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer. That night, Moinuddin appeared in Akbar's dream and instructed him to visit the old Sheikh Salim in Fatehpur Sikri. With Sheikh Salim's blessing, Akbar's son, Salim (later Jahangir), was born. Akbar then moved his capital to Fatehpur Sikri and created a magnificent city there.
The most striking feature of Fatehpur Sikri is the grand Buland Darwaza, which stands 120 feet high and 120 feet wide. Sheikh Salim's beautiful tomb made of white stone, along with the grand mosque with its dome, is also noteworthy. Akbar's palace lies in a dilapidated state. In front of the massive elephant door, there are two large stone elephant statues. Interestingly, Fatehpur Sikri features a chessboard like flooring made of black and white marble. In that chessboard, 32 women of the zenana would sit as the pieces. The emperor was the umpire, the nobles were spectators, and two mansabdars would play on behalf of the black and white pieces. The winner would receive those 32 women. One can also see the small but intricately designed house of Birbal in Fatehpur Sikri.
The next day, the author and his companions set off for Sikandra. Along the way, they noticed some royal milestone towers, which were circular and larger than those in the area. These were erected during the Mughal era at two-mile (one kos) intervals along India's highways. Near each milestone tower, there was a lookout tower for the convenience of travelers. Trees lined both sides of the royal road.
The name Sikandra likely comes from Sikandar Lodi. In Sikandra lies Akbar's tomb, surrounded by gardens of flowers and fruits. There are two small tombs on the outer terrace of Akbar's tomb, those of his two grandsons who died in childhood. Outside, the graves of some loyal amirs and omrahs can also be found.
There was a European begum of Akbar named Munee Begum, who probably came from Goa and was Christian. After her death, Akbar built a beautiful tomb for her in Sikandra. For many years, a church mission society operated a printing press there and sheltered 300 orphans during the famine in 1838. (Wikipedia disputes the existence of Akbar's Christian and European begums, suggesting that Jodhabai was also known as Mariam-uz-Zamani and was mistakenly thought to be Christian. However, the author's account seems accurate since he witnessed the tombs of both Jodhabai and Munee Begum.)
The author's next destination was Mathura. On the way, a group of Mathura's Choubey pandits ran alongside their cart, trying to take them as pilgrims. The authors identified themselves as Christians and eventually managed to escape. They were now transitioning from Mughal antiquity to Hindu antiquity.
Mathura is the site of Balmiki and Manu's Surasena, Strabo and Aryan's (ancient Greek writers and historians) Methora, and Hiuen Tsang's Mo-thou-lo. In ancient times, a king named Sur ruled here, who was the father of Kunti and Vasudev. The kingdom was named Surasena after him. The subsequent fame of Mathura is tied to the stories of Krishna and Kansa. At one time, Mathura was completely influenced by Buddhism. Fahien saw seven Buddhist stupas and about three thousand Buddhist monks here. He spent a month in Mathura and participated in a great Buddhist assembly. During Hiuen Tsang's time, three religious festivals were celebrated each year. The author notes that the hill now known as Kansa Tila is likely a Buddhist stupa buried over time.
On the banks of the Yamuna River in Mathura, the sight of the Bishram ghat is notable, where Krishna and Balram bathed and rested after killing Kansa. The ghat is filled with many turtles, and there are several beautiful temples. Every morning, an aarti is performed on the Yamuna. An annual fair called Yamuna Ka Burki is held at this ghat, attracting over a hundred thousand people from various parts of India. This fair takes place on the second day of the new moon in November. Police arrangements are made to prevent accidents due to the crowds.
To the southwest of Mathura is Katra or the market, which has the Jumma Mosque built by Aurangzeb in its center, sitting atop a thirty-foot high mound. Pillars, statues, inscriptions, etc., discovered in the region suggest that this was a Buddhist monastery established by the monk Upagupta during Emperor Ashoka's reign. Later, Hindus, upon gaining power, used materials from the Buddhist monastery to build a temple. Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni plundered and destroyed many temples. Aurangzeb constructed a mosque over a Hindu temple in Mathura. Due to many cracks in the mosque, it is no longer in use.
Aside from some remnants of the fort built by King Jai Singh, not much remains today. The Man Mandir or the observatory is also in ruins. The destruction wrought by Ahmad Shah Durrani (who invaded India repeatedly between 1748 and 1767) likely led to the ruin of the fort and the Man Mandir.
In Mathura, the Choubey community of Brahmins exclusively works as pandas. The authors dealt with their harassment with much patience and cunning. The beauty of Choubey women was praised by the authors. The markets of Marwari, Maratha, and Choubey in Mathura were quite bustling. Well-decorated shops lined both sides of the streets, offering a variety of goods. It was the festival season. Two of the author's friends stayed in Mathura to watch dance performances.
The author continued with the remaining companions to Vrindavan. This time, their mode of transport was a chariot. Although it was called a chariot, it was not from the time of Sri Krishna. This chariot was decorated with red curtains and had two wheels, pulled by two bullocks. The distance from Mathura to Vrindavan is three go kros, where one go kros is the distance a cow's voice can reach. Along the ancient road, the authors saw many peacocks, which Krishna is often depicted wearing on his head. The next day, they arrived in Vrindavan.
Before setting out for their long-desired pilgrimage, the author's grandfather and great-grandfather would divide their property due to fears of wild animals, robbers, thugs, and Maratha pirates on land routes, and storms, pirates, and water police on water routes. Those fears no longer exist in the pilgrimage experience today. In Vrindavan, the author hired a panda and found records of an ancestor who had come in 1825.
Traveling along a circular route with a radius of 84 miles centered on Mathura, one can see the ancient Braj Bhoomi. The best location in Braj Bhoomi is Vrindavan. The prestige of Vaishnavism diminished in Vrindavan due to foreign Muslim invasions. It can be said that the revival of Vaishnavism in Mathura and Vrindavan began with the arrival of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
As soon as they arrived in Vrindavan, staunch Hindus went to pay their respects to Govindaji. Just as the author felt disappointed after seeing the temples in Kashi, he experienced similar feelings upon seeing Govindaji's temple in Vrindavan. The temple's structure was plain, and its decoration was minimal, consisting of some red curtains and large brass lamps. However, Govindaji appeared very pleased, flanked by Radha on one side and Lalita on the other, dressed in morning attire, with a turban tied in Hindu royal fashion. At other times, he is adorned in different outfits. He is always depicted with a flute, which he sets aside only when preparing to defeat Kansa with a bow and arrow. This statue is a representation; the original idol was saved from Aurangzeb by Rana Raj Singh of Mewar, who took it to Rajasthan. The idol exists today in Nathdwara (as Shrinathji). (In fact, the idol of Govindaji was established by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh in his palace in Jaipur, while Rana Raj Singh of Mewar took the idol of Govardhanji from Vrindavan and established it in Nathdwara as Shrinathji.)
There are countless temples in Vrindavan. In each temple, Radha, Krishna, and their companion Lalita are enshrined (though Lalita is now absent in nearly all temples). Many kings and queens have established temples here. The kings of Jaipur, the king of Bharatpur, the queen of Sindhia, the queen of Holkar, the king of Dinajpur, and the king of Bardhaman etc. have established temples. The daily expenses for these temples range from 10 to 100 rupees each.
Following Govindaji, the next noteworthy deity is Gopinathji. This idol was also affected by Aurangzeb's attack. Due to the lack of visitors for three years during the Sepoy Mutiny, Govindaji's temple fell into debt and had to be mortgaged.
Kashighat is one of the most famous ghats because it is where the infant Krishna defeated the demon Kansa. The Vastra-haran tree is the tree where Krishna playfully hung the clothes of the gopis who were bathing in the Yamuna. There is also Akrur Ghat, where Akrur stopped his chariot while bringing Krishna and Balaram to Mathura. Kaliadah is another famous ghat where Krishna subdued the Kaliya serpent. To commemorate this victory, a fair is held every year at Kaliadah. Brahmakund is the holy tank where Brahma was defeated by Vishnu.
In Varanasi, Vishnu is worshipped, while the opposite is true here. This is an attempt to prove the superiority of Shaivism and Vaishnavism. On the banks of the Yamuna, a banyan tree is shown as the Akshay Vat. It is said that one root is here, while the other two are in Allahabad and Puri. There is a Shiva temple called Gopeshwar here. According to legend, Shiva, envious upon seeing Krishna surrounded by gopis, came to Braj to enjoy himself. To avoid being recognized, he took the form of a beautiful young woman. However, Krishna recognized him. Yet, forgetting the rivalry, Krishna welcomed Shiva, who joined in the joyous celebrations with Krishna and the gopis.
(To be continued)
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