{"id":238,"date":"2013-12-25T14:09:27","date_gmt":"2013-12-25T19:09:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/svetanyc.com\/?p=238"},"modified":"2015-01-26T22:33:45","modified_gmt":"2015-01-27T03:33:45","slug":"agra-india-december-24-25-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/192.168.2.119:1984\/svetanyc\/2013\/12\/agra-india-december-24-25-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Agra, India. December 2013."},"content":{"rendered":"

After spending a day discovering the ancient cities of Vrindavan<\/a> and Mathura<\/a>, Dimi and I arrived to our hotel, ITC Mughal<\/a>, in Agra<\/a> very late at night. The hotel is an oasis among the dirt and ugliness of the city. I have read a lot about Agra and its importance as a Mughal capital, 300 years ago, but, unfortunately, very little dignity is left from that time. Behind the car window, it seemed hectic, over-crowded and filthy.<\/p>\n

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Agra was first mentioned in Hindu\u00a0epic\u00a0Mahabharata<\/a> and by\u00a0Maharshi Angira<\/a> in 1000 B.C. However,\u00a0it is\u00a0generally accepted\u00a0that Sultan Sikandar Lodhi<\/a>, the ruler of Delhi Sultanate, established the city in 1501 (or 1504) and it stayed under Lodhi Dynasty’s\u00a0control, till it\u00a0collapsed in 1526 when Babur<\/a> from Afghanistan won the battle of Panipat<\/a>. The golden age of Agra reached its peak between mid 16th-mid 17th centuries under the rule of Mughal kings Akbar<\/a>, Jahangir<\/a> and Shah Jahan<\/a>.\u00a0 Babur, a\u00a0garden lover, laid out the first formal Persian garden – Aram Bagh (garden of relaxation); his grandson Akbar raised the ramparts of the Red Fort and made\u00a0Akbarabad (modern Agra)\u00a0a center of education, art and religion. Akbar also built Fatehpur Sikri following\u00a0the advice of a Sufi who predicted the soon birth of Akbar’s sons. Jahangir laid out and planted many gardens within the Fort and the city. While the most “productive” Shah Jahan built what is now one of the wonders of the world – Taj Mahal.\u00a0 Later, Shah Jahan shifted the capital back to Shahjahanabad (modern\u00a0Delhi) where he built Lal Qila and Jama Masjid, but his son, Aurangzeb<\/a>, usurping\u00a0the power and imprisoning his father in the Akbarabad’s fort, move the capital first back to Akbarabad and\u00a0in 1653\u00a0to Aurangabad.<\/p>\n

After the decline of the Mughal Empire<\/a>, the city fell to the Jats<\/a>\u00a0 who looted the monuments, including Taj Mahal and later the city came under the influence of Marathas<\/a> and was renamed to\u00a0Agra, before falling under the influence of British Raj<\/a> in 1803.<\/p>\n

ITC Mughal was a great choice with nice spacious rooms, great amenities and buffet services for both – breakfast and dinner. Staff was accommodating but not overly eager to assist. In the evening, we went to the restaurant to have dinner.\u00a0 After being seated, a waiter brought one menu and gave it to Dimitris. We waited for long enough for a waiter to find another menu for me, however, he never came by our table. I called him in and asked for a “menu for women”, as I knew he was ignoring me because I was a woman. But what can you expect from the hotel which toiletries are made solely for men? Indians are indeed male chauvinists and sexists, which I experienced on many more occasions.<\/p>\n

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December 24.
\nI have researched the guide services in Agra and hired Deepak Sharma (Rs.1650 for a day) based on his great reviews on tripadvisor<\/a>. We scheduled a meet up at 8 am, however, instead of coming himself, he sent another guide – Sankalp – to take us around Agra. Later in the evening,\u00a0I received an apologetic email from him, explaining that his mother got sick and he couldn’t make it himself. I didn’t believe him, but Sankalp did a very good job and despite the commission of sales and extra (imaginary) fees he asked us to pay,\u00a0we\u00a0still enjoyed his services.<\/p>\n

At first, we drove to Fatehpur Sikri<\/a>, a short-lived capital of Mughal empire. According to a legend, in 1569 Akbar the Great<\/a> went to a village Sikri to consult with a Sufi saint Shaikh Salim Chishti<\/a>. Akbar’s all male heirs were either stillborn or died in early childhood and after 14 years in power, he still didn’t have a male heir.\u00a0 Shaikh predicted a soon birth of a prince, under the condition that the Emperor would let his wives remain in the village. Thus, a palace and a mosque were built and the capital was moved from Agra to Fatehpur Sikri from 1571-1585. Akbar, trying to revive the splendors of Persian court, himself planned and oversaw the construction of Fatehpur Sikri. However, due to water shortage, the place was soon abandoned, but not before Akbar’s wives indeed bore him 3 sons – Salim (future emperor Jahangir), Murad and Daniyal.<\/p>\n

Fatehpur Sikri consists of multiple beautiful halls and gardens; we entered the site via Diwan-i-Am (Hall of Public Audience). Akbar used to rule the courts sitting in the middle of five seats located along the wall. The building was built to utilize the echo system, so the Emperor would hear anything that has been said within the open space. According to a legend, public executions were carried out there by letting elephants run over the people condemned to death.<\/p>\n

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Then, we entered the Pachisi Courtyard, named after the game known in India as ludo. The huge game board is still visible in the middle of the courtyard, where Akbar is said to have played pachisi<\/a> using, as the game pieces, slave girls dressed in bright dresses.<\/p>\n

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Diwan-i-Khas (Hall of Private Audience) is a building with a spectacular column, carved with geometrical and floral designs, supporting a singular elevated platform for Akbar. The Akbar’s seat is connected with four balcony seats by narrow stone brides. They say, Akbar modified the central column in order to draw attention to a new religion he called Din-i-Ilahi<\/a> (God is one) which reflects the fusion of Islam, Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism.<\/p>\n

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Next to Diwan-i-Khas is the Treasury and Astrologer’s Kiosk.\u00a0 Separate palaces were built for each of Akbar’s wife -Muslim, Christian and Hindu (though, it is not clear whether he really had a Christian wife). According to our guide, Akbar’s favorite wife was Hindu princess from Rajasthan- Jodh Bai<\/a>, however, the most luxurious pavilion (Rumi Sultana<\/a>) was built for his Turkish (Muslim) wife. Akbar and his court enjoyed the poetry, dancing and music, which reflected in the palace with its large performance stages, vast manicured gardens, Ornamental pool and courtyards.<\/p>\n

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However, the most impressive building in Fatehpur Sikri is Panch Mahal<\/a> – a five-story pavilion, narrowing to the top to compose a single large-domed chhatri<\/a>. Stone jalis<\/a>, which once separated the columns and covered the windows, proved that a pleasure palace was built for the ladies of the court.<\/p>\n

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Behind the Anup Talao\u00a0 (Ornamental pool)\u00a0 is Akbar’s private quarters – Daulat Khana (Abode of Fortune) and Khwabgah<\/a> (Dream House), a sleeping house with a huge stone bed facing a rising sun.<\/p>\n

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Other notable buildings to see are Jodh Bai’s palace<\/a> and kitchen, as well as elephant (or horses) stables.<\/p>\n

We were about to leave, when I saw a large crowd gathered on the other side of the fort, near a huge Mosque. Our guide was very reluctant to take us there, trying to usher us out of the premises as soon as possible, but I wasn’t leaving without seeing, what turned out to be one of the holiest Muslim places in India – Jama Masjid <\/a>and a Tomb of Shaikh Salim Chrishti<\/a> (the one who prophesied about Akbar’s heirs).\u00a0 Jama Masjid (built in 1571-1572) contains a large courtyard with the beautiful white-marble tomb of Shaikh Salim Chishti (completed in 1581).<\/p>\n

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Surrounding it is a typical covered passageway for circumambulation with carved jalis.\u00a0 Just like many centuries ago, when Akbar came to ask Shaikh for a male heir, today, childless women from all over India come to his tomb to ask for a child and tie a thread to the jali. According to our guide, if her wish comes true, she must return, find her thread among thousands of similar ones and remove it.<\/p>\n