EP 1 Gwalior Fort History | Gurudwara Data Bandi Chhod , Tansen Maqbara | Madhya Pradesh Tourism
Namaskar Friends! Welcome to Visa2explore! This is your host, Harish Bali We are in Gwalior right now. Our day begins with a visit to the Gwalior Fort. This is the Fort's entry gate, from where we will enter. We covered 2 KM of distance uphill to reach the Fort. We came in our taxi, which we've parked here in the parking space.
But if you take the public transport, it will drop you at a distance from where.... ...taxis charge Rs 150 per head to bring you to the Fort. Or you can also walk from there, which will take about 20-25 minutes. Now we will go inside and buy ticket for Rs 25 per person. Right now, we have Pawan Bhai with us. Namaste! Namaste Pawan Bhai. You will help us visit the Gwalior Fort.
So, you can give us a brief introduction and rest we will understand while visiting inside. Gwalior Fort is believed to be one of the oldest Forts in India. Its construction began in the 6th century. The Palace in front of us belonged to Raja Maan Singh. This palace looks more beautiful inside than outside. You'll see when you'll visit inside.
Raja Maan Singh belonged to which dynasty? Maan Singh Tomar belonged to the Rajput dynasty. He was Maan Singh Tomar. He got this palace built between 1486 and 1516, a total of 30 years' time. This palace is built purely according to Hindu architecture. There isn't any Mughal architecture. There has been another Raja Maan Singh in Rajasthan, in Jaipur precisely.
Yes! That Maan Singh is different whose sister, Jodha Bai, married Akbar. That Maan Singh was more popular in comparison to the one here in Gwalior! I can see that a lot of colored tiles on the outer walls of the palace have fallen off. So, earlier, the palace would've been quite colourful to look at. Sir, this whole palace has the original colours, applied in traditional 'Meenakari' fashion. Meenakari is an art form used to make jewellery as well. The colour of this palace is the same as it was at the time of its construction.
This colour on the walls dates back to 15th century. It is beautiful! We've come inside the palace now. Right now, we're standing inside the 'Sangeet' (music) room for the King's 8 queens. Raja Maan SIngh had 9 queens out of which 8 lived in this palace. The ninth queen's palace, known as "Gujri Mahal" is located below this palace. All the musicians used to sit at the lower level & the queens used to sit at the upper floor.
The queens could see the musicians but the musicians couldn't see them. This was according to the Indian and Rajput tradition of 'Purdah' (screen). You can see there are dancing figures built into these 'Jaalis' (lattice) built into the wall.
These dancing figures were carved into the wall at the time of construction of this palace. All the figures are 500-years-old, dating back to the 15th century. These figures are built into these lattice portions in the palace walls.
Now we shall see the open courtyard. This used to be the king's Durbar Hall, also known as the 'Diwan-e-Khas.' That balcony upstairs was where the king used to sit. And all his queens used to sit behind the Jaalis, on this side.
The royal guests used to sit inside the balcony on this side. All the ministers used to sit on the ground floor. And all the sections used to communicate with each other.
And there are a few symbols in this courtyard related to the king. This peacock is one of those symbols carved into this courtyard. This is carved because on special occasions, flags with peacock on it were hoisted.
So peacock represented festivities. The second symbol is a pair of elephants, one big, one small. The bigger one has caught the smaller one in his feet. The bigger one doesn't look like an elephant. The bigger one has three animals mixed into one & it is called a "mythological animal." Its head is that of an elephant.
Its body is that of a lion. And its feet are those of a horse. So, this is a 3-in-1 mythological animal used on the battlefield.
So, this symbol represents fighting. This is another symbol of the Rajputs, which was printed on their flags. This flag was then hoisted over a 50-metre long pole & used for all purposes.
And this Rajputi crown was printed on their hat. And next we will visit the Shiv Mandir, built by Maan Singh Tomar for his 8 queens. Let us go inside.
But before that, look at these beautiful carvings on the temple entrance. There is a line up of Rudraksh beads, Vishnu Ji's Chakra, and Tulsi leaves! If you look behind this wall, it has elephants on either side of the entrance. On the left & right! And behind its hind foot, you can see the flower lotus has been carved! Now let us go inside and take a look. This room was where the queens worshipped Lord Shiva. It was called Maan Mandir palace.
It was earlier called "Mann Mandir Palace" but it is now changed to Maan Mandir Palace. In this palace, the 8 queens used to worship Lord Shiva. This is the place known as the 'Mann Mandir.' Since the Hindu beliefs speak of 'Parikrama' after the prayer ceremony....
....so there is a gallery built on the backside of the temple for that purpose. These are the galleries. For beautification, these walls were embedded with diamonds and glass in those times. And there were three gold-plated statues, one each of Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh! This temple has 33 windows. These 33 small windows were made because people believed that this way.... ...they could do parikrama of all 33 categories of Gods and Goddesses as per Hinduism. Now let us move on with this tour. This palace has 6 floors in total, from bottom to top.
Only four floors are open for tourists, which we would visit. Two floors are closed though. So now we are back to the place from where we started.
No this is another courtyard. But it looks the same? They might look the same, that is why this palace is also known as 'Bhool-Bhulaiya' (maze). This courtyard used to be the open dancing hall of the king.
Okay but there is no elephant here. No elephant! There are only Chinese dragons built here. Why are Chinese dragons built here? This could be an influence of the Chinese traders passing through here.
You can see these dragons as well as this roof are made as per Chinese architecture. You can see these things, as well as this balcony, are influenced by the Chinese style. Now, we are going to visit the underground portions of this palace, which are very beautiful. Let us go and visit the basement. We've reached the first underground floor. This room was summer-time Jhoola-ghar (swing house) for the 8 queens of Raja Maan Singh.
When this palace was captured by Mughals between 16th and 17th centuries..... ....they converted this room into a "Faansi-Ghar" (a place where hangings took place). Aurangzeb kept two of his brothers incarcerated here - Murad and Dara Shikoh. Aurangzeb hanged his brother Murad here.
And Dara Shikoh escaped from here. But he was recaptured, and forced to die under the feet of an elephant. His chopped head was presented to Aurangzeb. Thereafter, Aurangzeb imprisoned his father, Shah Jahan, in the Agra Fort for 8 years. Aurangzeb died in 1707 in Aurangabad.
Thus Aurangabad is named after him. Now let us take a look at the 500-years-old telephone. During those times, this place was used by Kings and his guests. If you see closely, you'll see two holes made into it.
This was the telephone technique of those times. This instrument was used when the king and queen wanted to talk to each other. Earlier, it had two pipe fittings. One was used for incoming and the other for outgoing. This system is further connected into the swimming pool below. When we'll go to the lower floors, you will see the same technique of telephone system there too. These holes were built so that air and light could come in.
This is how the lower floors were kept ventilated. Now we will go to the second underground floor. We've come to the second underground room now. This used to be the Waiting Room for the 8 queens of Raja Maan Singh. The queens used to wait here whenever the king used to go out on hunting expeditions.
When the king was killed in 1523 during his battle with Ibrahim Lodhi.... ....Lodhi's soldiers attacked the palace to capture the queens too. They saw the doors were built small. To the left and right sides of these doors stood two lady guards with swords in their hands. Whoever passed through these doors, he had to bend and the guards would chop off his head. So, this was the strategic advantage of these small doors in the palace. This is what the doors were used for.
When did this attack take place? In 1523. Then the queens committed Jauhar (self-immolation), at a place, which we'll visit next. You see these holes in the roofs and walls, which provided ventilation to lower foors.
We've come to the third underground floor now. This small tank that you see here used to be a bigger one during the King's reign. These pillars used to be submerged in water because of the 10 ft by 10 ft tank. During those days, the queens used to swim comfortably in the water here, filled with saffron. After the king's death, queens got water drained from this tank and filled it with sandalwood. The wood was set on fire and all the 8 queens jumped into it.
That is what we call Jauhar! That is a heart-rending historic event. When we visited Chittorgarh in Rajasthan, we heard several tales of Jauhar. This is history for us today, but we cannot imagine how difficult the situation must've been. Second thing about this room is that during their rule the British narrowed it down further.
Later the government of India covered it with this lid so that nobody falls into it accidentally. And this portion that has been closed with cement used to be a very large water tank. It is called "Bawadi", used for rain-water harvesting. The women used to draw water from this Bawadi & supply it here for usage. So, this is that path, which has been plastered with cement now. Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) looks after the portion of the palace that we saw so far.
Now we've come to another structure right next to that, for which we've bought per person ticket. Apart from per person ticket of Rs 60, the ticket cost for photography & video cameras is... ....Rs 250 and Rs 400, respectively. Pawan Bhai, tell me one thing, how long would the Fort wall be from the outside? This wall is quite long as it is spread along a length of about 10 KM.
This palace is called 'Karna Mahal" as it was built by Karna Singh, Maan Singh's father. This palace has an area of 50x50 sq and it is four-storey high. This palace has a large portion that is underground and not open to the tourists. The main reason for that is a lot of bats are living in that area, so it might get risky for tourists.
Rest of the upper floors are open now which we shall visit. Let us go there. Right next to the Karan Palace is another memorial on your left.
This used to be the 'Baradari' during the king's rule. Wherever you go in India to visit a fort, there is a baradari in each one of them. All the tax collected during the earlier time was collected and presented at Baradaris.
It was here that the King went over the tax record and took stock of the tax collected. Then it is believed this building was converted into a jail during the Mughal rule. So this jail here was made during the regime of the Mughals or the British? Sir this space was used by the British as well later on as is evident from its finishing. On a serious note this spot is also a good photography point. You can see the whole city from here and you'll be able to click good photographs here. Sir you are standing at the Sunset Point of the Gwalior Fort.
You will see a beautiful sunset here during the evenings. Raja Maan Singh's father was Raja Karn Singh. Right Sir! And this palace dates back to his time. And we are talking about the Tomar dynasty. Absolutely right! The Tomar dynasty isn't very old, it is just 500 years old.
May be 500-600 years back! Where are the palaces of the kings who used to rule before this dynasty? Sir they built temples, not palaces. Those temples are located within this Fort. These temples have been built by the members of Pathiyara-Gujjar community.
These temples have been built during the period between 9th and 11th centuries. Some of the temples within the Fort premises also belong to the 8th century. And there have been other rulers in this region who belonged to the Rajput dynasty. First among those was Raja Suraj Sen, who was Kachhwaha Rajput. It was the Kachhwaha Rajput who laid down the foundation of this Fort.
That is the reason why the boundary wall of this Fort is the oldest. 6th century you told me. It belongs to the 6th century.
From where did the Kachhwaha Rajputs come? Sir, there is a place near Gwalior which we call Murena. And there is a village near Murena known as Kuntalpur. Suraj Sen was the king of Kunti's hometown He used to visit this region on his hunting expeditions. When he began to spend a lot of time hunting here, he started liking this place. One reason why he liked this place was that his leprosy got cured here too.
He also got a tank built here, which we call the 'Suraj Kund.' This Kund is inside this Fort and just a KM away. The Kund is a KM from the parking inside the Fort. Here, Raja Suraj Sen met a sage named 'Gwalav Rishi.'
It is his name that inspired the name of the city - Gwalior It is because he was known as "Gwalipa" or 'Gwalav Rishi." So, the history of this Fort is believed to have started from the 6th century. Very old history! Yes Sir! I've also heard that people from the Hun dynasty also visited here.
I don''t know exactly but may be Raja Mihir of Hun dynasty and Gupta period too. There are monuments belonging to the Gupta dynasty but their exact location isn't clear There still are some manuscripts from that period dating back to 5th or 6th centuries Those are kept at the Gujari Mahal at present. Now let us climb to the top of Karn Mahal and see the view from there.
The view that we see from here is absolutely amazing! Unparalleled! There would be no other view like this! We are at a good height. As a result, we can see in all directions A while ago, we saw the city view standing there Now we are a greater height and we can see further. Sir, this is the inner portion of the Karn Mahal and it used to be Raja's durbar or Diwan-e-Khas! This balcony was used by Raja for sitting and his ministers used to sit down here. You will see a special thing here. On this side, you can see some hooks in the ceiling
Silk rope was looped through these hooks and there used to be a long chair. That chair was for the Raja to recline upon. Some such chairs were installed here and some in the last room We've reached the Jehangir Mahal now The entry door to this Mahal is made with a mix of two architectural styles - Hindu & Mughal The lower door is built in Hindu style of while the upper part is in Mughal style. Its colour is also related to the Mughal style. Therefore, this palace is known as the Jehangir Mahal Sir, this is Jehangir Mahal from the inside.
This is one door into another! Yes! If you look behind you, it is believed that this place had a mirror installed. And this is where the head soldier used to be seated. By looking into the mirror, the soldier could keep an eye on all the rooms behind him. So, this was a technique like the CCTV cameras of today.
This is the Jehangir Mahal. And these rooms were meant for his soldiers. That is the Shah Jahan Guest House. That last building is the Hawa Mahal and we can see its domes from here.
There is a water tank build amidst all these palaces and it is very deep. The architectural style of this place looks similar to that of Fatehpur Sikri near Agra. The only difference between the two is that in Fatehpur Sikri.... ....there is a spot where Tansen used to sit and perform. And here, that space is given to this water tank. Let's take a look at that tank. You talked of Tansen, so his resting place is also in Gwalior? It is in Gwalior Sir! We have to go there as well.
How far is it? Sir it is about 3 KM from the Fort. This is the tank in front of us and it has stairs to climb down. There are two staircases to get down to the first level and then a single staircase to go further. This Fort has 10-12 water tanks, 8 wells and 9 Bawadis, all within the premises. All of these used to be for rainwater harvesting. Where are we going next? Now, we are going to the Hawa Mahal in the end, from where we will have a view of Gujjari Mahal.
Just behind the water tank is this Jauhar Kund, which we also saw was written on the board. We've reached this spot of Jauhar Kund. You can see how deep it is from this place. Right now, its depth is 15-20 ft. It used to be deeper earlier but not anymore.
Behind this tank is the Chhatri (canopy) of Bhim Singh Rana. You told me. Yes, I'd told you. This building next door used to be the ordnance factory of the British.
They used to make explosives, bombs, etc here. Since 1833, this factory was used for ammunition purposes inside the Fort area. I am really happy to be here on the top of Hawa Mahal. Let us look from the top.
What an amazing view! I'd noticed it earlier too and now here also, we are at a height. Its architecture is such that the air passes through all of its floors. And therefore, its name is Hawa Mahal. About Jehangir Mahal, it is written here that it is also known as "Shershah Mandir." Because it was built by Shershah Suri? At the time of Shershah, this tank was built, which is next to you.
We just saw it. So that tank was built during Shershah's reign. Rest of the memorials have been built during the reigns of respective Hindu Kings. So, was it Jehangir who got this Jehangir Mahal built for himself? No. He used this Mahal already built before him & named it Jehangir Mahal.
So, why did the Raja built a Mahal for Jehangir inside his Fort. The reason for this is that while on his way to Orchha, Jehangir stayed in Gwalior for 2 hours. Then he left for Orchha, where he stayed for the night. There is a similar Jehangir Mahal in Orchha as well. It took about 22 years to build and was used just for a night. Therefore, that building in Orchha is also known as the Jehangir Mahal.
I understand that Jehangir was a Mughal, so how could the kings be so welcoming towards him? Sir, actually these were Bundela Rajputs who respected Jehangir & built these palaces for him. During those times, palaces were built for Jehangir in Datiya, Gwalior & Orchha. During their regime, the Bundela Rajputs used these palaces for themselves and...
....turned it into guest houses for the Mughals. So this means that during Jehangir's regime, the Bundela Rajputs supported him? During Jehangir's time. That is why all these things are relatable. We've now reached the Bikram Mahal. This memorial is known as Vikram Mahal as well as "Vikram Mandir." It was Raja Maan Singh's son, Vikram Singh, who got this memorial built. This memorial was built during the 15th century, so it is about 500 years old.
There were two idols inside this memorial, one each of Shiv Ji and Hanuman Ji. Today, those idols are kept outside, we can see those placed next to the memorial. During the Mughal era, these idols were uprooted and buried outside. Once these idols were excavated and recovered, they were re-established here.
Shivling? Yes! Shivling has Hanuman ji's idol on the lefft and Bhairon Ji on the right. Bhairon Ji's idol was established here at a later date. There is also a kund built next to this memorial. This kund was earlier used to perform havan (religious ceremony).
It is written here that the Vikram Mahal has Baradari in the middle and room on the side. We are standing outside the main gate to the Fort and the parking is right next to us. Though one can go on foot to the nearby temples like Teli Ka Mandir, Saas-Bahu mandir... ...but it would be better to go on the battery rickshaw. They charge Rs 50 per person. And for Rs 250, you can book the whole rickshaw and it will take you to all the main tourist points.
They'll also take you to the Surya Mandir. How far is it from here? A KM? Suraj Kund is one KM from here. It is called Suraj Kund? Yes! It is one KM away. So, for Rs 250, they'll take you around all the points, wait on the way, and bring you back too. Sir, this is Suraj Kund and right next to it is Suraj Mandir.
So, is it closed right now? Yes it is closed now. And right next to it is a memorial of Gwalaw Rishi, who used to meditate at this spot. The city of Gwalior is named after him. There are numerous shivlings near it and this Kund, which was small earlier, is huge today. This Kund, which wasn't this big during old times, was expanded under the Scindia dynasty. This upper part of its structure has been constructed at a later date.
The history of this Fort begins along with that of this Kund. Raja Suraj Sen's leprosy was cured with the water of this tank. This is the memorial dedicated to Gwalaw Rishi. Even to this day, a large number of devotees visit here, bathe in the kund and drink its water.
People who have white spots on their skin get cured with its water. This is what people believe. Now let's go to Teli Ka Mandir.
We are here to visit another monument called Teli Ka Mandir. Teli Ka Mandir is its modern name and it was earlier known as "Telangana Mandir." This temple construction is inspired by the temple architecture of Andhra Pradesh.
This temple is 1100 years old, as it belongs to the 9th century. This temple was built by Raja Mahibhoj. Which part of this temple is inspired by the Dravidian architecture? The topmost part of this temple is inspired.
The front portion, which was reconstructed, is inspired by the British architecture. The whole front part was repaired during the Scindia and British rules. The back part of the temple is completely original. I was reading information on the board outside the temple. This temple was built with donations by traders who sold oil (tel in Hindi).
That is one reason this temple was renamed as "Teli Ka Mandir.' Yes, the traders must have pooled the money among themselves and donated it for the temple. Were these temples destroyed during the attacks by invaders? Yes, that is why some part of the temple is repaired while the rest is original. Some of these statues of those of gods and goddesses while some are dancing figures. Though there are no idols kept inside this temple at present but at some point in history...
...there was a Vishnu temple here. Yes, there was an idol of Lord Vishnu, which isn't there any longer. And similarly, there used to be an idol of Lord Vishnu at the Saas-Bahu Temple as well. But it isn't there anymore. Now we are going to visit that temple.
How far is it? It is a KM from here. We've reached the Saas-Bahu Temple. The ticket we bought to enter the Fort is also valid for visiting here. You can visit this as well as the Teli Ka Mandir on the same ticket.
Standing outside the temple, we can see a number of sculptures carved on its walls. Wherever you look at, this temple's architecture is beautiful!! How did they create it? They must've carved it down here and then put it up there. Looking at the in-locking system of construction, it seems likely. This whole construction has been done by inter-locking the parts. This temple has been built in North Indian architectural style. We call it the Nagar style.
This temple is round in shape. These temples belong to 1093 A.D. and were built by Raja Mahipal. He got this temple built for his mother and his wife, & its old name was Sahastrabahu.
Today it is known as 'Saas-Bahu' Temple. This text is written in Pali language. Since Pali language was commonly used in those times, you will find those texts here. This text is about this temple, the amount spent in its construction, etc.
These texts must be ancient? Yes! Those who know Pali language can study these texts to understand more about the temple. I am overall satisfied with this visit. I believe that if you visit the Gwalior Fort and don't visit these temples, your visit is incomplete. You must visit here. We visited the Gurudwara just now & paid obeisance. We also received prasad.
Right now, I am standing inside the Gurudwara complex but outside the inner sanctum. We have with us one of the Sevadars (Gurudwara volunteer) with us. Please tell us more about the history of this Gurudwara. (Religious slogan in praise of the Sikh Gurus!) This Gurudwara is dedicated to the Sixth Sikh Guru.
Once, Guru Hargobind Maharaj travelled from Amritsar to Delhi. On Jehangir's request, Guru Hargobind visited this place to meditate here for 40 days. Around that time, Jehangir fell severely ill. His wife Noor Jehan visited Sai Mia Mir in Delhi, seeking recovery of her husband. Sai Mir told Noor Jehan that you sent Guru Hargobind to Gwalior for 40 days but now... ... it has been more than 2 years. So, why are you asking me to pray to Allah? This reminded Jehangir of what he had done.
Jehangir immediately wrote a letter calling Guru Hargobind Ji back. The letter reached Gwalior but Maharaj ji refused to return unless other 52 innocent rulers..... ....were also released. These 52 rulers were already imprisoned by Jehangir? Yes, those were royal prisoners. Jehangir received this reply and then consulted his ministers. He then wrote back that whoever followed in the footsteps of Guru Hargobind were free to go. So Guruji got himself stitched a special outfit with 52 seams.
This painting shows each one of the 52 Hindu rulers holding on to Guruji's outfit..... ....and coming out of the Alamgir gate. While they were coming out, Hari Dass Daroga, the jail superintendent met them outside. It was at that time that he first used these words, "Data Bandi Chhor." At the same time, the 52 rulers whose lives Guruji saved himself, also repeated the words.
Since that day, this place has been called 'Data Bandi Chhor," which you are visiting today. A whole month before Diwali is usually celebrated in Amritsar, on the day of Amavasya... ...Guru Maharaj managed the release of 52 kings from this Fort through Alamgir Gate. It took him a whole month to reach Amritsar via Delhi. To celebrate their return, Baba Buddha Sahib ji led the festivities at Harmandir Sahib and... ....people lit earthen lamps & cooked Kadah Parshad (Holy Offering), and..... ...everyone paid obeisance at the Golden Temple. Ever since then, this Data Bandi Chhor day is celebrated as Diwali. What is the meaning of 'Data Bandi Chhor'? The one who releases people in prison.
Okay! Because he got them released. Yes, those were Bandi (imprisoned). He got them released, that is why. Yes, that is why Data Bandi Chhor. Baba Sewa Singh is the head of this organization. He is the one organizing everything here.
Do you have residential facility available here? Yes, there has been residential facility available here since the times of Guru Hargobind Ji. Today, Baba Sewa Singh and others are maintaining a 150-room facility here. And this 24-hour langar of Guru Maharaj Ji is also a tradition that we've continued with. I would also request you to eat at the Langar before you leave here.
Absolutely! Wahe Guruji Ka Khalsa, Wahe Guruji Ki Fateh! We've reached the Langar Hall. I had my knee operated upon about 3 months ago. So, doctor has asked me not to sit cross-legged on the floor.
I requested them and they served me the langar here instead. This is a huge langar hall, as you can see. Bhai ji told us that they run this langar service 24x7. Nice that we planned our Fort visit in a way that we ended it at the Gurudwara with this langar.
This is a job well done! We'll go back to the Fort after finishing langar. Now we shall meet you in a short while. We are now at the Chaturbhuj Mandir. It is written up there "The Chaturbhuj Temple." It dates back to 9th century A.D.
This used to be a Vishnu temple once but the idol is desecrated as can be seen. Here we've seen the world's second-oldest existing zero. Although it looks a bit surprising to read 'Gwalior region' below it. But I've read & heard from many others that this is the world's second-oldest existing zero. A while ago, we checked under light and found that the number written here has zero in it. Whenever you read the 'Gwalior inscription', it means this inscription with zero in it.
So, this is the fact I wanted to share with you. So, whenever you visit the Gwalior Fort, you must come here too. It is hardly 250 metres down the ramp right next to the Fort.
Now, it is time to say Thanks to Pawan Bhai. He has been with us since morning. Sir! Welcome Sir! Great! Just imagine, we've been with him since 7.30 am today. And it is almost 4 pm now. Yes! It has been a long day! Usually, you would need at 2.5 hours to visit this Fort. Usually, you must be taking the tourists around for that much time? Yes that is an acceptable time frame.
Yeah, it takes that much time. Doing it in 1.5 hours would mean rushing the visit. Yes! Now we shall get down from here and go directly to Gujjari Mahal? Yes, you can reach Gujjari Mahal through this path.
How much time will it take? About 10 minutes or so! Okay, thanks Pawan Bhai! Welcome Sir! Alright! We will now join you at Gujjari Mahal. We will walk down from this side. We've come inside the Gujari Mahal and we've bought ticket for Rs 20 per person. Respective charges for videography and still photography are Rs 400 and Rs 250. I can see some sculptures outside. This is an old museum. In fact, somebody told me it has been here since 1922.
Come, let's go inside. I am going to show you an idol dating back to the 10th century. First, look here, its name is "Shal Bhanjika." 10th Century A.D. It was discovered from Gyaraspur in Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh.
All ancient idols are unique in themselves. But here whichever angle you see from, you'll find this idol with a smiling face. Look at the bun made upon its head. Look at its ornaments! The sculptor has done a wonderful job on this sculpture, which dates back to the 10th century.
Whenever foreign tourists visit India, especially Gwalior.... ...they specially come to see this statue because in 1984 or 85, an exhibition was organised in France. The Indian government had sent this statue to that exhibition. And it won the first prize there. Since then, this statue has been very popular. International tourists are particularly interested in watching this Shal Bhanjika! This statue also finds mention in our CBSE's history textbooks.
Gujari Mahal was built for the 9th wife of Raja Maan Singh. Raja Maan Singh's 9th wife, Mriganayani, was quite special for her husband. It was mainly because she was very beautiful.
When the Raja proposed marriage to Mriganayani, she put forth 3 conditions. First condition was that after marriage she would accompany the Raja into every battle. Second condition was that she would bathe only in the water that came from her village.
Her village was about 16 KM from here. A water pipe was laid from her village to this place. That is how her 2nd condition was managed. Her third condition was that she wouldn't live with his other queens. All of Raja's queens lived together but Mriganayani lives separately in this palace.
So, these were the three reasons behind the construction of Gujari Mahal. Each sculpture here has information written below it about its origin. Now, to understand this place in more detail, we need a guide. Today, right now, the guide isn't available. Otherwise, there are one or two guides are always available here.
Now let us go around these statues, read the information about these & then we'll leave. We travelled for half a KM from Gujari Mahal to reach Tansen's Maqbara (mausoleum). This is the taxi we are travelling in today and we've parked it here.
Its one-day charge is Rs 2000 plus taxes. So, this Raju Bhai, standing near us, is going to be with us till the day end. We will be back in 30 minutes. Music maestro Tansen wanted to be buried next to Mohammed Ghaus, Right! Was I right? Yes! So, this is his maqbara. Come!
Shall we pay obeisance? My name is Sufi Sajjan Khan. We are the caretakers of this shrine. Mohammad Ghaus Baba came to Gwalior in 1545. Here he stayed at the Gwalior Fort. About 450 years ago, this whole place was a huge jungle. Villages were 50-60 KM apart. Some villagers came to know of Mohd. Ghaus Baba's arrival.
They arrived at the Gwalior Fort to meet this great Sufi saint. Devotees told Baba of all their troubles. Baba prayed to the Almighty and the troubles went away.
About 45 KM from Gwalior, there is a village called Behat, where Tansen's parents lived. When his parents came to know of Mohd. Ghaus Baba's arrival.... ....and his stay at the Gwalior Fort, they came to meet him. They lamented in front of him that despite 10-12 years of marriage, they had no child. Once they received Mohd. Ghaus Baba's blessings, they became parents to Tansen.
Swami Haridas ji, a noted exponent of music, taught singing to Tansen. Mohd. Ghaus Baba died in 1562. His mortal remains were brought here from the Fort.
It was Akbar who laid down the foundation of this maqbara during 1562. It was written in Tansen's will that on his death, he should be buried near Mohd. Ghaus baba's.. ...and he wanted his tomb to be at a lower height than that of Ghaus Baba. Every year in December, 'Tansen Sangeet Samaroh' takes place here. Last year's programme took place from 25th to 31st December. What is the duration of this Sangeet Samaroh? It is mostly one-week long! In December! A Pandal (canopy) is put up in this park.
There is not ticket to that event. There are many events that take place from morning till evening. Last programme of the event takes place in his village, Behat. Really! Last day of the festival is organized in his village. Last year, the programme took place here from 25th to 30th. In 2021...
In December? Yes, in December. And the programme of 31st December took place in Behat, his birthplace. Thank you for your time and this knowledge. Thank you! Our day ends here now. The time is 6 pm now and this monument remains open till 6 pm.
So, you should try and reach here by 5 or 5.30 pm max because 6 pm is the closing time. Tomorrow, we plan to stay in Gwalior. Tomorrow you'll see us doing some sightseeing in Gwalior as well as explore some food. The day after tomorrow, we plan to go from Gwalior to Orchha. This is our plan for tomorrow and day after. Right? Now I'll say bye to you here. We shall meet again soon.
Thanks for your time!
2022-12-15 14:04
