I welcome you a to a little known Jewel set in New Delhi by the name of the Mehrauli Archaeological Site. All those who wish to tour the city, will benefit if they manage to take out some time to visit this little known historical site on the outskirts of Delhi, situated just behind the ever popular Qutub Minar. It has several small historical sites in the complex and you should set aside a good couple of hours to enjoy the area. Here are some bits that I found very interesting during my walk through area.
Though the Archeological Site consists of several monuments of various importance, this area receives its fame from 2 monuments - the Jamali Kamali Tomb and Masjid (mosque). Wikipedia tells us the following about some of the History of Jamali Kamali - "
The name "Jamali" is Urdu, though originates from "Jamal" which means "beauty". "Jamali" was the alias given to Shaikh Fazlu'llah, also known as Shaikh Jamali Kamboh or Jalal Khan, a renowned Sufi saint who lived during the pre-Mughal dynasty rule of the Lodi's, a period from the rule of Sikander Lodi to the Mughal Dynastyrule of Babur and Humayun. Jamali was greatly regarded. Kamali was an unknown person but associated with Jamali and his antecedents have not been established. Their names are tagged together as "Jamali Kamali" for the mosque as well as the tomb since they are buried adjacent to each other. The mosque and the tomb were constructed in 1528-1529, and Jamali was buried in the tomb after his death in 1535".
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| Jamali-Kamali Mosque |
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| The Intricate Work Seen Inside The Jamali-Kamali Tomb |
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| Painting Done On The Ceiling Of The Jamali-Kamali Tomb |
One of the stories that go around is that Jamali and Kamali were lovers and hence are buried next to each other. There is also a story that says that Kamali was the poet and Jamali took credit for his work. Ofcourse, there really is no way to substantiate these stories. To add intrigue to this story is the fact that if you Google Jamali-Kamali you will read in several places that the Jamali Kamali mosque and tomb are haunted. This is something you are going to have to try out for yourself and see whether it is true or not. As for me, though it increases the intrigue and the mystery of the place, I am not a believer....
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| The Jamali-Kamali Tomb from Outside |
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| View From A Window at the Jamali-Kamali Mosque |
Right next to the Jamali Kamali mosque is Balban's Tomb. Unfortunately, not much of the architecture around the actual tomb survives. It is worth it, however, to visit the tomb and take in the terrain created by the ruins. Most of the actual tomb has survived time so far, though for how much longer is hard to say. It is a lovely and exciting albeit short walk right up to the tomb.
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| The Ruins Leading Upto Balban's Tomb |
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| Ruins Around Balban's Tomb |
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| Remains Of Balban's Tomb |
Another exciting structure a little way down the path is the Rajaon Ki Baoli, or the Step-well for the king, built by Daulat Khan during the reign of Sikander Lodi. Is is a real sight to behold specially when you see how deep the step well goes with every step you take towards it. This too has a small mosque attached to it with lovely carvings on it. It is a complete pleasure to go to the top of the structure and look around you to see the magnificence of the step-well along with the surrounding areas.
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| The Walk Up To Rajaon Ki Baoli |
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| Looking Down Into Rajaon Ki Baoli |
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| Looking At A Corridor Around The Baoli Through A Hole In The Wall |
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| The Mosque Attached To The Baoli |
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| An Small Sample Of The Carving At The Mosque |
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| The Main Wall of The Mosque At Rajaon Ki Baoli |
I also visited Metcalf's guest house, or
Dilkusha which was made around
Quli Khan's Tomb. This structure has breath-taking work inside it and a magnificent view of the Qutub Minar. For those who are interested Quli Khan was the brother of Adam Khan and son of Emperor Akbar's wet nurse Maham Anga. Sir Thomas Theophilus Metcalfe refurbished the tomb of Quli Khan to create his country house or "Retreat" which he rented out to honey-mooning couple because of its location and the view it offered of the Qutub Minar.
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| Quli Khan's Tomb |
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| A Sample Of The Breath-Taking Work Inside the Structure |
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| View Of The Qutub Minar from The Site |
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| The Idyllic Metcalfe's Bridge leading Up To Metcalfe's Boathouse and Retreat |
If these monuments are not as appealing to you as they are to me, the Mehrauli Archeological Site is a pleasure to simply walk around on a holiday. It is a lovely place to go to for a picnic or just a day out with family or loved ones. The entire area is lush green and dotted with ruins that do wonders for the fertile imagination or a restless soul.
I highly recommend that you spend an excellent day here and leave all your stress and worries behind as you allow the site to weave its magic around you.
