Fatehpur Sikri
Fatehpur Sikri is the famous deserted city, about twenty-three miles from Agra, built by Akbar. It was formerly merely a village, called Sikri, celebrated as the abode of Sheikh Salîm Chishti, a Muhammadan pîr, or saint. In 1564, Akbar, returning from a campaign, halted near the cave in which the saint lived. The twin children of his Rajput wife, Mariam Zâmâni, had recently died, and he was anxious for an heir. He consulted the holy man, who advised him to come and live at Sikri. The Emperor did so, and nine months afterwards Mariam, who was taken to Chishti’s cell for her confinement, gave birth to a son, afterwards the Emperor Jahangir. He was called Sultan Salîm in honour of the saint. Jahangir, who describes all these circumstances in his memoirs, adds: “My revered father, regarding the village of Sikri, my birthplace, as fortunate to himself, made it his capital, and in the course of fourteen or fifteen years the hills and deserts, which abounded in beasts of prey, became converted into a magnificent city, comprising numerous gardens, elegant edifices and pavilions, and other places of great attraction and beauty. After the conquest of Gujarat, the village was named Fatehpur (the town of victory).”
The glory of Fatehpur Sikri was short-lived. Akbar held his court there for seventeen years, and then removed it to Agra; some say on account of the badness of the water supply, others that the saint, disturbed in his devotions by the bustle and gaieties of the great city, declared that either he or Akbar must go. “Then,” replied the Emperor, “let it be your servant, I pray.” The entire city was given up to the beasts of the surrounding jungle. Finch, who visited it in the early part of the next reign, describes it: “Ruin all; lying like a waste desert, and very dangerous to pass through in the night.” This, however, was an exaggeration, for the principal buildings are still in a good state of preservation, probably owing to the remoteness of the place from any great highway or large town.
The city, which was some six miles in circuit, was surrounded on three sides by high battlemented walls, which had nine gateways. The fourth side was formed by a great artificial lake, now dry. The principal buildings are on the summit of the high ridge which runs throughout the length of the city.
THE AGRA GATE.—The visitor usually enters by the Agra Gate, concerning which an amusing story is told. One night Akbar, attended by some of his ministers, was inspecting the ramparts near this gate, when he observed a highway robbery being committed close by the walls. Turning severely to those responsible for the peace of the city, he demanded why such an outrage was permitted in the very presence of the Emperor. “It is always darkest directly under the shadow of the lamp,” was the courtly reply.
THE NAUBAT KHANA.—Inside the gate the road passes, by the right, a large quadrangle surrounded by a ruined cloister, which was probably used for barracks. Beyond this the road was formerly lined on both sides by the houses of the bazar. It next passes through the inner gateway, called the Naubat Khana, or Music House, where, as in all Mogul fortresses, the court musicians played to announce the Emperor’s arrival or departure, and various state ceremonials.
THE MINT.—Some distance beyond the Naubat Khana, on the right, is a large building believed to have been the Imperial Mint. Rare specimens of gold, silver, and copper coins from the Fatehpur Mint are in the British Museum. The brick domes of this building are interesting, as they are probably the earliest examples in India of the use of radiating courses instead of horizontal layers in dome construction.
Opposite to the Mint is a smaller building known as the Treasury.
THE DAFTAR KHANA.—Passing through the great quadrangle of the Dîwan-i-âm, the visitor arrives at the Daftar Khana, or Record Chamber, now adapted for a travellers’ rest-house. This was Akbar’s office, and is immediately opposite to his own sanctum, the Kwâbgâh, and the principal buildings of the Imperial Palace. A staircase in the south-east room leads to the roof, from which a fine view of the city and surrounding country can be obtained. The principal buildings can be easily identified by help of the plan.
THE PALACE.—A door in the side of the quadrangle, opposite to the Daftar Khana, leads into Akbar’s palace, the Mahal-i-Khas. The two-storied building on the left on entering contains Akbar’s private apartments. The first room on the ground floor is panelled into numerous recesses for keeping books, documents, or valuables. There are some remains of painted decoration representing flowers, such as the tulip, poppy, and almond flower, executed with much vigour and technical skill. Behind this is a chamber which, according to Edmund Smith, was used by a Hindu priest attached to Akbar’s court. It contains a stone platform raised on pillars, upon which he is said to have performed his devotions. It was more probably intended for Akbar’s own gaddi, or throne. A door in the west wall leads into the cloisters, which formerly connected Akbar’s apartments with the Daftar Khana and with Jodh Bai’s palace.
THE KWÂBGÂH, or sleeping apartment, is a small pavilion on the roof. Originally the walls were entirely covered by fresco paintings, but only a few fragments now remain. Unfortunately, these have been protected by a coat of varnish, which reduces them all to a dull monochrome. It is to be regretted that a more scientific method of preserving them was not adopted. They are all in the Persian style, and, except for the Chinese element which is often present in Persian art, there is no ground for Edmund Smith’s supposition that Chinese artists were employed here.
On the side window over the eastern doorway is a painting of a winged figure, in front of a rock cave, supporting a new-born babe in its arms. In all probability it refers to the birth of Jahangir in the cell of the Saint Salîm Chishti, which Akbar, no doubt, thought miraculous. Many archæologists make the great mistake of attributing every winged figure in these decorations to some Biblical story. Heavenly beings with wings, the inhabitants of Paradise, spirits of the air, or “angels,” are very common in Persian and Indian painting, and are by no means a monopoly of European artists.
It is known that Akbar took a great interest in painting. Abul Fazl, in the “Ain-i-Akbari,” states that “His Majesty from the earliest youth has shown a great predilection for the art, and gives it every encouragement, as he looks upon it as a means both of study and amusement. Hence the art flourishes, and many painters have obtained great reputations. The works of all painters are weekly laid before his Majesty by the Daroghas and the clerks; he confers rewards according to the excellence of workmanship, or increases their monthly salaries. Much progress was made in the commodities required by painters, and the correct prices of such articles were carefully ascertained.”
Akbar himself remarked, “Bigoted followers of the law are hostile to the art of painting, but their eyes now see the truth. There are many that hate painting, but such men I dislike. It appears to me as if a painter had a peculiar means of recognizing God; for a painter, in sketching anything that has life and in drawing its limbs, must feel that he cannot bestow personality upon his work, and is thus forced to think of God, the giver of life, and will thus increase his knowledge.” The enlightened court of Akbar was evidently a paradise for artists.
Opposite to Akbar’s apartments is a large square tank with a platform in the centre, approached by four narrow stone paths. The tank was filled from the waterworks near the Elephant Gate, and the water was kept constantly fresh by an overflow channel connecting with the tank at the back of the Dîwan-i-Khâs.
THE TURKISH SULTANA’S HOUSE.—In the north-east angle of the Mahal-i-Khas quadrangle is a small, picturesque building, one of the gems of Fatehpur, called the Turkish Sultana’s House. It contains only a single apartment, surrounded by a verandah, but in the carving of every surface within and without there is a wealth of invention and decorative skill rarely achieved even by the Mogul artists. The dado panels are especially remarkable for the charming conventionalized rendering of trees, flowers, birds, and animals. They have suffered much from the hands of some of Aurangzîb’s fanatical followers, and all the representations of animate nature have been mutilated. The carving was intended as a groundwork for painting and gilding which were never added, for the Fatehpur Palace was abandoned even before it was finished. Nothing is known with certainty of the lady who inhabited this delightful bower, but she must have been one of Akbar’s favourites. A covered passage connected the house with the Kwâbgâh, and also with another block of buildings of no special interest, known as the Girls’ School.
A staircase from the south verandah leads down to some interesting baths outside the south-west corner of the Dîwan-i-âm quadrangle, which were probably for the use of the Turkish Sultana. They are worth seeing, though not so fine as the so-called HAKIM’S BATHS. The latter, which are situated just opposite to these baths, on the steep slope of the ridge, are the finest of their kind existing in India. They form an extensive hydropathic establishment, decorated in the most excellent taste with polished plaster and sgraffito, or cut-plaster work. Undoubtedly they were used by Akbar himself, and they derive their present name from their close proximity to the quarters occupied by the Hakims, or doctors.
PACHISI BOARD.—In the northern half of the great palace quadrangle is a pachisi board, cut on the pavement, similar to the one in the Samman Burj in the Agra Fort. Here Akbar and the ladies of the Court would amuse themselves by playing the game with slave girls as living pieces. The dice were thrown on the small platform in the centre of the board.
THE DÎWAN-I-KHÂS.—Further towards the north, immediately opposite to the Kwâbgâh, is a square detached building, a fine example of the dignified style of the period, for it owes none of its effects to imposing dimensions, but only to the skill with which the architect has treated a difficult subject. This is the Dîwan-i-Khâs, or Hall of Private Audience. On the outside it would appear to be a two-storied building, but on entering it is seen to contain only a single vaulted chamber, surrounded halfway up by a gallery. A magnificent carved column, with a gigantic bracket capital (Plate XI.), standing alone in the centre of the chamber, supports four branches or railed passages, which meet this gallery at the four corners. This most original construction carried Akbar’s throne, which was placed immediately over the great column. The ministers attended at the four corners of the gallery; the great nobles and others admitted to the audience thronged the floor beneath. The gallery is approached by two staircases, in the thickness of the walls, which also lead up to the roof. [14]
THE ANKH-MICHAULI.—Close by the Dîwan-i-Khâs, on the west side, is a building which the native guides, always ready to amuse the innocent tourist, describe as the Ankh-Michauli, or “Blind-man’s Buff House.” There is a legend that Akbar here played hide-and-seek with the ladies of the zanana. The same story is told about a set of apartments in the Jahangiri Mahal in the Agra Fort, but the only ground for it seems to be that the arrangement of the rooms might lend itself to such diversions. It most probably contained strong-rooms for the safe custody of valuables, either state archives or jewels.
THE YOGI’S SEAT.—At the corner of the Ankh-Michauli is a square platform covered by a domed canopy. The great carved brackets which support the architraves are very characteristic of Jaina construction. This was the seat of one of the Yogis, or Hindu fakirs, who enjoyed the Emperor’s favour. Akbar devoted much attention to the occult powers claimed by these men. He even practised alchemy and showed in public some of the gold made by him.
THE HOSPITAL.—Adjoining the Ankh-Michauli are the remains of a long, low building, which was the hospital; a few of the wards still remain. Possibly this was arranged on the model of the hospital which Akbar allowed the Jesuit Fathers to build in the city. He also permitted them to construct a small chapel. The records of the missionaries tell us that Akbar once came there alone, removed his turban and offered prayers, first kneeling in the Christian manner, then prostrating himself according to the Muhammadan custom, and, finally, after the ritual of the Hindus. One of the Christian congregation having died about this time, he granted permission for the funeral procession to pass through the streets of Fatehpur with all the ceremonies of the Catholic faith. Many of the inhabitants, both Hindus and Muhammadans, attended the funeral. Akbar was never persuaded to become a convert to Christianity, nor does there appear to be any ground for the belief that one of his wives was a Christian.
THE DÎWAN-I-ÂM.—The west side of the Dîwan-i-âm (Hall of Public Audience) and its cloisters coincide for the whole length with the east of the palace quadrangle. The description already given of the Dîwan-i-âm at Agra will explain the functions for which this building was intended. The throne, or judgment seat, of Akbar was placed between two pierced stone screens in the verandah in front of the hall.
THE PANCH MAHAL.—This curious five-storied pavilion is nearly opposite to the Dîwan-i-âm. It is approached by a staircase from the Mahal-i-khas. Each story was originally enclosed by pierced stone screens; this, and the fact that the whole building overlooked the palace zanana, make it tolerably certain that it could only have been used as a promenade by Akbar and the ladies of the court. The ground-floor, which was divided into cubicles by screens between the columns, may; as Keene suggests, have been intended for the royal children and their attendants. The building is chiefly remarkable for the invention and taste shown in the varied designs of the columns, in which the three principal styles of Northern India, the Hindu, Jain, and Saracenic, are indiscriminately combined.
MIRIAM’S KOTHI.—Another doorway in the west side of the palace quadrangle leads to Miriam’s House, a very elegant two-storied building showing marked Hindu feeling in the design. The Râma incarnation of Vishnu appears on one of the carved brackets of the verandah. It seems to have derived its name from Akbar’s Hindu wife, Mariam Zâmâni, the mother of Jahangir. Her name literally means “Mary of the age,” a common designation used by Muhammadan women in honour of the Mother of Jesus. This has led to the fable that the house was occupied by a Christian wife of Akbar. The whole building was originally covered with fresco paintings and gilding, and was hence called the Sonahra Makân, or “Golden House.” The frescoes are supposed to illustrate Firdousi’s great epic, the Shahnama, or history of the Kings of Persia. As in the Kwâbgâh, the fragments which remain have been covered with varnish as a preservative, which has had the effect of destroying all the charm of colour they once possessed; and will eventually, when the varnish turns brown with age, obliterate them altogether. The paintings are all in the style of the Persian artists who were employed by Akbar to illustrate his books and to paint the portraits of his Court. Over the doorway in the north-west angle of the building is a painting which the guides, perhaps misled by the suggestion of some uninformed traveller, point out as “the Annunciation.”
There would be nothing primâ facie improbable that Akbar should have caused some events of Biblical history to be painted on the walls of his palaces; but on the other hand, there is nothing whatever to connect this fresco with the Annunciation. The winged figures here represented are of the type commonly found in paintings of stories from Persian mythology.
Perhaps the most interesting of all the paintings is a portrait in a panel in one of the rooms. One would like to know whether this was the lady of the house; but there seems to be no tradition connected with it.
Judging from the style of the frescoes, it would seem probable that this was not the residence of Mariam Zâmâni, but of one of Akbar’s first two wives, whose connections were mostly with Persia.
Jodh Bai’s Palace.
Though “Miriam’s House” is generally regarded as the abode of Mariam Zâmâni, there is a great deal to support the view that the spacious palace known as Jodh Bai’s Mahal, or Jahangiri Mahal, was really her residence. It is undoubtedly one of the oldest buildings in Fatehpur.
We know that Akbar went there on Mariam’s account; and, after Jahangir’s birth, Akbar’s first care would be to build a palace for the mother and her child, his long-wished-for heir. Mariam was a Hindu, and this palace in all its construction and nearly all its ornamentation belongs to the Hindu and Jaina styles of Mariam’s native country, Rajputana. It even contains a Hindu temple. [15] It is also the most important of all the palaces, and Mariam, as mother of the heir-apparent, would take precedence of all the other wives.
On the left of the entrance is a small guard-house. A simple but finely proportioned gateway leads through a vestibule into the inner quadrangle. The style of the whole palace is much less ornate than the other zanana buildings, but it is always dignified and in excellent taste. It must be remembered that the severity of the architectural design was relieved by bright colouring and rich purdahs, which were used to secure privacy for the ladies of the zanana and to diminish the glare of the sunlight.
Archæologically its construction and ornamentation are very interesting. Many of the details are of Jain origin, and of the same type as the mixed Jain and Saracenic style, which was being developed about the same period in Gujarat. The arrangements of the palace are shown in the annexed plan. One of the most interesting features is the Hawa Mahal, a pavilion projecting from the north side, enclosed by pierced stone screens. Here the ladies could enjoy the cool breezes and the view of the lake with the distant hills beyond, without being exposed to the vulgar gaze. The palace was formerly connected with Akbar’s private apartments by a covered way, supported on pillars, near the entrance. This was removed some years ago. Another private passage led from the Hawa Mahal to the zanana garden opposite, and, probably, from thence right down to the tower known as the Hiran Minâr.
Rajah Birbal’s House, or Birbal’s Daughter’s House.
Rajah Birbal was a Brahman minstrel, who came to Akbar’s court in the beginning of his reign, and by his wit and abilities gained the Emperor’s favour. He was first created Hindu Poet Laureate; from that dignity he was raised to the rank of Rajah, and became one of Akbar’s most intimate friends and advisers. Birbal was one of those who subscribed to Akbar’s new religion, “The Divine Faith.” When he perished in an unfortunate expedition against some unruly Afghan tribes, Akbar’s grief was for a long time inconsolable.
The house which is named after him was originally enclosed within the precincts of the imperial zanana, and a covered way connected it with Jodh Bai’s palace. It is one of the most richly decorated of all the adjacent buildings, and next to Jodh Bai’s palace, the largest of the imperial residences. As in so many other instances, the vague local tradition which assigns this palace to Rajah Birbal seems to be at fault. Abul Fazl, that most careful and precise biographer, records that Akbar ordered a palace to be built for the Rajah, and that when it was finished in the twenty-seventh year of his reign (1582) the Emperor honoured it with his presence. An inscription discovered by Edmund Smith upon the capital of a pilaster in the west façade of the building, states that it was erected in Samvat 1629 (A.D. 1572), ten years before this date, and three years after the commencement of the city.
Though the Rajah was one of Akbar’s most trusted friends, his palace would hardly be placed within the enclosure of the Emperor’s own zanana and connected with it; nor is it likely that Akbar would provide Birbal with a residence so incomparably more magnificent than those he gave to his other two intimate friends, Abul Fazl and Faizi, by the side of the great mosque.
All the probabilities are that this was one of the imperial palaces occupied by Akbar’s wives, which were the first buildings erected at Fatehpur. Fergusson’s assumption that Birbal’s daughter was one of Akbar’s wives would explain everything; but the fact that Abul Fazl makes no mention of such a daughter, is very good evidence that Akbar was not connected with Birbal by marriage.
The house is a two-storied building, splendidly ornamented with carving, both inside and out. From the construction, it would appear that Hindus were the architects; but the decoration, from which it is easy to discover the taste of the occupants, is nearly all Arabian or Persian in style, and conveys no suggestion that the palace was built for a Hindu rajah or his daughter. Though on a much smaller scale, it is of the same type as Akbar’s splendid palace in the Agra Fort, and was evidently intended for one of the highest rank in the imperial zanana. [16]
The Hathi Pol and Adjoining Buildings.
Close under Birbal’s house is the main road leading down to the great lake—now drained, the embankment of which formed the north-west boundary of the city. It passes through the gateway called the Hathi Pol, or Elephant Gate, from the two great stone elephants, mutilated by Aurangzîb, standing on either side of the outer archway. On the left of the gateway are two buildings, the so-called Pigeon’s House, probably intended for a magazine; and the Sangin Burj, a great bastion supposed to be part of the fortifications begun by Akbar and left unfinished, owing to the objections of Shaikh Salîm Chishti. A little beyond this, on the right, are the remains of the waterworks which supplied the whole city. Opposite to these, is the great traveller’s rest-house, or Karwân-serai, in a very ruined state.
The, furthest of this block of buildings is a curious tower called the Hiran Minâr, or Deer Tower, 72 feet in height, ornamented with stone imitations of elephant tusks. According to tradition, it was built by Akbar in memory of a favourite elephant, and used by him as a shooting tower; the plain on the margin of the lake being the haunt of antelope and other game.
The splendid stretch of water, six miles long and two in breadth, induced many of the princes and nobles to build pavilions and garden houses on this side of the city. This was the place for great tournaments and festivities, and in the palmy days of Fatehpur all the chivalry of the Mogul Court must have made a brave show here. The Hiran Minâr was connected with the zanana by a covered way, so that the ladies might assist at these spectacles and enjoy the cool breezes from the lake.
The Jâmi Masjid, or Cathedral Mosque.
The great mosque of Fatehpur is worthy of its founder’s lofty ideals and nobility of soul. It is one of the most magnificent of all Akbar’s buildings; the historic associations connected with it combine with its architectural splendour to make it one of the most impressive of its kind in the world. It is said to be copied from one at Mecca; but this cannot be altogether true, because, though the plan and general design follow Muhammadan precedent, many of the details show Akbar’s Hindu proclivities.
Within the great mosque, Akbar frequently held religious discussions with the learned doctors of Islam; and here, also, after the chief Mullahs had signed the famous document which declared Akbar to be Head of the Church, the Emperor mounted the pulpit, and stood before the congregation as the expounder of “the Divine Faith.” He commenced to read a Khutbah, or litany, which Faizi, Abul Fazl’s brother, had composed for the occasion—
“The Lord, who gave to us dominion,
Wisdom, and heart and strength,
Who guided us in truth and right,
And cleansed our mind from all but right,
None can describe His power or state,
Allahú Akbar—God is Great.”
But before he could finish three lines of it, the sense of the tremendous responsibility he had undertaken overpowered him. He descended the pulpit trembling with emotion, and left the Imam of the mosque to continue the service.
There are two entrances, approached by broad flights of steps. The one on the east side is the Emperor’s Gate, by which Akbar entered the mosque from the palace, and the other, the majestic Baland Darwaza, or High Gate, which towers above everything on the south side, and even dwarfs the mosque itself with its giant proportions. The latter gate, however, was not a part of the original design, but was added many years after the completion of the mosque, to celebrate Akbar’s victorious campaign in the Deccan.
The mosque itself was built in honour of the Saint of Fatehpur, Sheikh Salîm Chishti, whose tomb, enclosed in a shrine of white marble, carved with the delicacy of ivory-work, glitters like silver on the right of the quadrangle. Barren women, both Hindu and Muhammadan, tie bits of string or shreds of cloth to the marble trellis-work as tokens that if blessed with a son they will present an offering to the shrine. Close by is a plainer, but much larger mausoleum, for his grandson, Nawab Islam Khan, who was made Governor of Bengal by Jahangir. This also contains the remains of many other of the Sheikh’s male descendants. A separate vault, called the Zanana Rauza, for the women of his family is formed by enclosing a portion of the adjoining cloisters.
The mosque proper contains three chapels, crowned by domes. The principal one, in the centre, is screened by the façade of the entrance, the doorway being recessed, in the usual style of Saracenic buildings, in a great porch or semi-dome. An inscription over the main archway gives the date of the completion of the mosque as A.D. 1571. The chapels are connected with each other by noble colonnades of a decidedly Hindu or Jain character. The Saracenic arches combine most happily with the Hindu construction, and the view down the “long-drawn aisles” is singularly impressive. Much of the charm of the interior is due to the quiet reserve and dignity of the decoration, which is nearly all in the style of Arabian mosques, and may account for the statement on the central arch, that “this mosque is a duplicate of the Holy Place” (at Mecca).
At each end of the mosque there is a set of five rooms for the mullahs who conducted the service; above them are galleries for the ladies of the zanana. Spacious cloisters surround three sides of the quadrangle; these are divided into numerous cells for the maulvis and their pupils.
The triumphal gateway, called the BALAND DARWAZA (Plate XIII.), is really a building in itself. It must be seen from the outside of the quadrangle, for, magnificent as it is there, it certainly does not harmonize with the mosque viewed from the quadrangle. This mighty portal, 176 feet in height from the roadway, is a landmark for miles around. From the top of it the Taj, twenty-five miles away, and the distant Fort of Bharatpur are visible.
There are three doors recessed in the immense alcove on the front of the gate. One is the horseshoe door, so called from the numerous votive offerings of owners of sick horses, donkeys, and bullocks, which were nailed on in the hope of obtaining the favour of the saint. The doorway on the right of this has the following inscription carved over it in Arabic:—
“His Majesty, King of kings, Heaven of the Court, Shadow of God, Jalâl-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, Emperor. He conquered the kingdom of the South and Dandes, which was formerly called Khandes, in the 46th Divine year [i.e. of his reign] corresponding to the Hijira year, 1010 [A.D. 1602]. Having reached Fatehpur, he proceeded to Agra. Said Jesus, on whom be peace! The world is a bridge, pass over it, but build no house there. He who hopeth for an hour, may hope for eternity; the world is but an hour, spend it in devotion; the rest is worth nothing,”
Over the left doorway is the following:—
“He that standeth up in prayer, and his heart is not in it, does not draw nigh to God, but remaineth far from Him. Thy best possession is what thou givest in the name of God; thy best traffic is selling this world for the next.”
Akbar himself died four years after this great sermon in stone was written.
The Stone-Cutters’ Mosque.
At the back of the great mosque is a graveyard containing the tomb of an infant son of Sheikh Salîm. The legend concerning him is, that at the age of six months he addressed his father, telling him that all of Akbar’s children must die in infancy, unless some child died for them. He therefore had resolved to sacrifice himself for the Emperor’s sake, and immediately after this miraculous speech he died. Jahangir was born nine months afterwards. Sceptics have suggested that he was really a son of the Sheikh, substituted for a still-born child of Mariam Zâmâni.
Some distance beyond this tomb there is a small mosque, built in honour of the saint by the quarrymen of Fatehpur, before he had attracted the notice of the great Emperor. It is called the Stone-Cutters’ Mosque, and is supposed to have been erected on the site of the cave where he lived the life of a hermit It is an unpretending little building; the brackets which support the cornice are the only noticeable architectural features. They are direct imitations of wooden construction, and are copied, with greater elaboration of carving, in the marble shrine inside the Jâmi Masjid. The cell where the saint is said to have lived is on the right-hand corner of the mosque.
The birthplace of Jahangir is pointed out in a dilapidated palace not far from this mosque. It is occupied by a lineal descendant of Salîm Chishti, and is only rarely shown to visitors.
The Houses of Abul Fazl and Faizi.
The houses where these two famous brothers, the friends of Akbar, lived, are close under the north wall of the great mosque. Their father, Sheikh Mubarak, was one of the most learned men of the age, and the sons were as distinguished as the father. Faizi was the Persian Poet Laureate, and tutor to the Royal Princes. He was also employed on many diplomatic missions. Abul Fazl was the author of the celebrated “Akbarnâma,” a history of the Mogul Emperors down to the forty-seventh year of Akbar’s reign. He was for a long time Akbar’s Prime Minister; he took a prominent part in the religious discussions inaugurated by the Emperor, and often discomfited the orthodox followers of Islam with his arguments. Sheikh Mubarak drew up the famous document declaring Akbar to be the Head of the Church, and both his sons subscribed to it. Abul Fazl declares that the document “was productive of excellent results: (1) The Court became the resort of the learned men and sages of all creeds and nationalities; (2) Peace was given to all, and perfect tolerance prevailed; (3) the disinterested motives of the Emperor, whose labours were directed to a search after truth, were rendered clear, and the pretenders to learning and scholarship were put to shame.”
Notwithstanding his high character and generous disposition, Abul Fazl had many enemies at Court. He was at last assassinated at the instigation of Jahangir, who believed him to be responsible for a misunderstanding between himself and his father.
There is nothing architecturally interesting about the two houses, which have been for some time used as a Zillah school.
Bharatpur and Other Places In the Vicinity of Agra.
There are some other places of considerable interest easily accessible from Agra, but it would be beyond the scope of this book to describe them in detail.
BHARATPUR.—This place, which has been often alluded to, is the capital of a native state of that name, founded by the Jâts under Suraj Mal about 1750. The origin of the Jât race is obscure, but probably they are of Scythian descent. Some authorities have put forward a theory that the gypsies of Europe and the Jâts are of the same race. They form a large proportion of the population of North-Western India. Their religion varies with the locality, but the Jâts who occupied Agra under Suraj Mal were Hindus.
In 1809, the fort at Bharatpur resisted for six weeks a siege by General, afterwards Lord Lake, who withdrew, after four desperate assaults.
The Palace of Suraj Mal is at Dig, twenty-one miles by road from Bharatpur. It was commenced about 1725, and is the finest and most original of the Indian palaces of that period. The Jât chief carried off to it a great deal of the loot from the Agra Fort.
GOVARDHAN.—The tombs of Suraj Mal and his two Ranis are at Govardhan, a very picturesque place about eight miles from Dig. There are also a number of very interesting tombs and buildings of later date. Fergusson [17] says of one of these, which was in course of construction when he was there in 1839, that he acquired from its native architect more knowledge of the secrets of art as practised in the Middle Ages than he had learnt from all the books he had read. The same living architectural art is practised all over Rajputana at the present day. The preference we show for the incomparably inferior art of the mongrel eclectic styles we have imported into India, is only a proof that there is something wanting in the superior civilization and culture which we believe ourselves to possess.
There is also at Govardhan a very fine Hindu temple, dating from the time of Akbar.
A great fair is held here every year about the end of October, or beginning of November, on the occasion of the Hindu Diwâli, or Feast of Lamps, one of the most beautiful and impressive of all the Hindu festivals.
Muttra, the Mathora of the Greeks, about fourteen miles from Govardhan, and within easy reach of Agra by rail, is one of the most sacred places of the Hindus, from being the reputed birthplace of Krishna. It is a great centre for the worship of Vishnu.
Brindâban, or Bindarâban, which is a very short distance further by rail, possesses an old Hindu temple, dedicated to Govind Deva, or Vishnu, of the same period as the other at Govardhan, and built by the same person, Rajah Man Singh of Amber, an ancestor of the present Maharajah of Jaipur. Fergusson describes it as one of the most interesting and elegant temples in India.
There is also a great Vishnu temple of the last century, in the Dravidian style of Southern India, built by a Hindu millionaire merchant. Krishna’s childhood and early youth were passed in the vicinity of Brindâban, and on that account it is held especially sacred by the followers of the Vaishnavite sect of Hinduism, who flock there in thousands on the anniversary of Krishna’s birth, in the month of Bhadon (August—September).
Notes
[1] Babar’s “Memoirs,” translated by Erskine.
[2] For further particulars of Babar’s history the reader is referred to the “Memoirs,” or to Stanley Lane-Poolers admirable “Life of Babar,” in the “Rulers of India Series” (Macmillan & Co.).
[3] The State documents of the Mogul Emperors, “given under the royal hand and seal,” were sometimes actually impressed by the royal hand. Plate I. reproduces part of a letter, addressed by Shah Jahan to an ancestor of the present Maharajah of Gidhour. In this letter the Raja Dalan Singh is informed that “the auspicious impress of the royal hand” is sent as a mark of royal favour, and he is commanded to proceed to Court to participate in the festivities and to pay homage to the Emperor.
[4] Bernier’s “Travels”—Constable’s translation.
[5] These elephant statues have been a vexed point with archæologists. Bernier, in his description of Delhi, refers to two great elephants of stone, with their riders, outside of the Fort Gates. The riders, he says, were portraits of the famous Rajput chiefs Jaymal and Patta, slain by Akbar at the siege of Chitore. “Their enemies, in admiration of the devotion of the two heroes, put up these statues to their memory.” Now, Bernier does not say that the statues were put up by Akbar, but General Cunningham, inferring that Bernier meant this, propounded a theory that they were originally in front of the Agra Fort, which Akbar built, and removed to Delhi by Shah Jahan, when he built his new palace there. Keene, who discusses the question at length in his “Handbook to Delhi,” accepts this suggestion. Neither of these authorities seem to have been aware of the existence of the marks of the feet on the platform in front of the Agra Hathi Pol. I have compared the measurements of these marks with the dimensions of the elephant which still exists at Delhi, and find that they do not correspond in any way. The Delhi elephant is a much larger animal, and would not fit into the platform at the Agra gate. General Cunningham’s theory, therefore, falls to the ground. It is just possible that the Delhi elephants were intended to be copies of those placed by Akbar at Agra. Shah Jahan is not likely to have intentionally perpetuated the memory of the Rajput chiefs, but popular tradition or imagination may have fastened the story told by Bernier on to the Delhi statues. Elephants were so commonly placed in front of Indian palaces and fortresses that, except for this story, there would be no need to suppose any connection between those at Agra and those at Delhi.
Purchas, quoting William Finch who visited Agra in Jahangir’s time, describes the elephants at the Hathi Pol, but gives a different origin to the statues. “Beyond these two gates you pass a second gate, over which are two Rajaws in stone. It is said that they were two brother Rajputs, tutors to a prince, their nephew, whom the King demanded of them. They refused, and were committed; but drew on the officers, slew twelve, and at last, by multitudes oppressing, were themselves slain, and here have elephants of stone and themselves figured.” The expression “over” (the gate) has the meaning of “high up,” and not, as Keene supposes, its more modern sense of “on the top of.”
[6] The old Mogul road led directly from the Elephant Gate to the entrance of the Dîwan-i-âm. I understand that this road will be restored shortly by the Archæological Department.
[7] An ugly modern marble rail, in imitation of wood, probably a reminiscence of the time when the palace was occupied by the British garrison, still disfigures and stunts the proportions of the upper storey of the Samman Burj.
[8] This question is discussed at length in an article by the author, entitled “The Taj and its Designers,” published in the June number of the Nineteenth Century and After, 1903.
[9] Tavernier says twenty-two years probably including all the accessory buildings.
[10] The present garden is a jungle, planted by a European overseer without any understanding or feeling for the ideas of the Mogul artists. The overgrown trees entirely block out the view of the mosques on either side, which are an essential part of the whole composition, serving as supporters to the slender, detached minarets. I understand, however, that it is intended to remove some of the more obstructive of the larger trees; but the avenue of cypress trees, which perished from drought some years ago, has been replanted on lines which eventually will clash seriously with the architectural composition.
[11] This represents the condition of the garden twenty or thirty years ago.
[12] The conjunction of Jupiter and Venus; referring to the circumstance that Timur and himself were born at the conjunction of these planets. (KEENE.)
[13] It is very probable that the black slate or marble panels in the Delhi Palace, which are purely Florentine in design, were imported complete from Italy, and fixed in the wall by Indian workmen, who only designed the ornamental scrolls surrounding the panels.
[14] It is known that in 1575 Akbar completed a great building at Fatehpur, called the Ibadat Khana, or hall in which the learned men of all religions assembled for discussion. It was described as containing four halls, the western for the Sayyids, or descendants of the Prophet; the southern for learned men who had studied or acquired knowledge; the northern for those famed for inspired wisdom: the eastern hall was reserved for the nobles and state officers. Thousands of people from all quarters of the world assembled in the courtyard. The Emperor attended every Friday night and on holy festivals, moving from one to the other of the guests and conversing with them. Keene, in his “Handbook to Agra,” suggests that possibly the Dîwan-i-khâs may be the building thus described (taking the word aiwan, or hall, to mean a side gallery), as no other building at all answering to the description now remains at Fatehpur. This supposition is highly improbable, if only for the reason given by Edmund Smith, namely, that an assembly of this kind would not take place within the precincts of the palace. The description given by Abul Fazl and Badâyûni clearly indicates a building like the Dîwan-i-âm, enclosing a great quadrangle.
[15] Keene suggests that Akbar’s first wife and cousin, Sultana Raqia Begam, lived here, but she was a Muhammadan. It is quite possible that the name of Jodh Bai (Princess of Jodhpur) really refers to Mariam, and not to Jahangir’s Rajput wife (the daughter of the Raja of Jodhpur), as is commonly supposed. Miriam’s family resided in the province of Ajmir, which adjoins Jodhpur. She might have been known as the Princess of Jodhpur. In any case, it is easy to see how a confusion might have arisen between Jahangir’s mother and his wife, both Hindus and Rajputs.
[16] Birbal’s house is now used as a travellers’ rest-house for high officials and “distinguished” visitors; which is not only very inconvenient for the undistinguished who may wish to see it, but involves alterations which should never be permitted in buildings of such unique artistic and archæological interest. Neither the Daftar Khana nor this building should be devoted to such purposes, merely to avoid the paltry expense of providing proper dak bungalows.
[17] “History of Indian and Eastern Architecture.”