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38 Heritage India August 2010 - October 2010 Volume 3 Issue 3 39Heritage India August 2010 - October 2010 Volume 3 Issue 3

Stories in StoneChittorgarh

Here’s where history has left its footprints deep in stone and the air is light with the breath of romance, beauty and chivalry. Within the walls of this gigantic fort, drama after drama has been played out, leaving behind the lingering fragments of legends.

Text and photographs: Discover India Program (DIP), Chittorgarh GroupFoundation for Liberal and Management Education (FLAME)


History says that the Chittor fort in southern Rajasthan was built by Bappa Rawal in the 8th century CE and it served as the capital of Mewar until it was invaded by Akbar. Its imperial presence was enhanced by the fact that it sat atop a 180 m high hill, imposing and impregnable. However, its numerous elements were not just put in place at the start but instead built over the centuries of its occupation. It was equipped with defence and civic buildings that were protected by endless walls with recurring bastions. Sprawling over 289 hectares, Chittorgarh was a centre of trade, commerce and administration of a kingdom situated close to a highway. The fort, encompassing beautiful temples, imposing royal palaces, commanding towers and hundreds of ruins, is an echo of a past that was glorious in its reaches and rich in its architecture and traditions. In fact, legend associates the place with the great epic Mahabharata- this is where Bhima struck the ground so hard that water gushed out to form a large reservoir.

Recorded data claims that the fort dates back to 8th century CE when Bappa Rawal received it as a dowry from Maan Mori. But who was Bappa Rawal? Well, his origins are disputed, but it is widely held that during threatening attacks of invasions from Arabs he was brought up as a Brahmin in a hermitage, where he used to take care of the cattle. Once as he reared his cows, sage Harita chanced upon him and predicted that he would become a Chattrapati. Eventually, he

consolidated his forces and established Mewar, making Chittorgarh the kingdom’s first capital. From the 8th to the 16th century CE, Bappa Rawal’s descendants ruled over Mewar from Chittorgarh. The fort has witnessed the illustrious rule of kings like Rana Kumbha and Rana Sanga.

The first defeat befell Chittorgarh in 1303 when Ala-ud-din Khilji, the Sultan of Delhi, besieged the fort, to capture the beautiful Rani Padmini, wife of Rana Ratan Singh. It is said that Rani Padmini’s beauty had enticed Ala-ud-din Khilji to invade Chittorgarh. This resulted in a battle between Khilji and Ratan Singh. The fort was under siege for seven months. It is believed that when both sides were exhausted, Ala-ud-din Khilji crafted a sly plan. He asked Ratan Singh for a glimpse of his wife Rani Padmini in return of lifting the siege over Chittor. Khilji was taken into Padmini’s palace in the midst of a lake and Padmini’s reflection was shown to him in a mirror as she sat down on the steps of the Jal mahal. Khilji then asked Rana Ratan Singh to accompany him to the last gate of the fort where he was outnumbered and captured by the Sultan’s army. Khilji demanded Padmini in return of her husband’s freedom. Padmini sent 700 palanquins of soldiers disguised as women along with two of her brothers- Gora and Badal. A battle ensued between the two and the soldiers of Chittor embraced death fighting, while Rani Padmini and other women jumped into burning pyres.

Vijay Stambha (Victory tower)

Ogee pointed arches in Bhamashah haveli


Suraj pol

Kumbha palace


In 1533 CE, during the rule of Bikramjeet came the second attack from Bahadur Shah, the Sultan of Gujarat. Once again jauhar was led by Rani Karanavati, a Bundi princess. Her infant son, Udai Singh, was smuggled out of Chittor to Bundi and survived to inherit the throne. He was saved by his nurse, Panna Dhai, who sacrificed her own son to save the crown prince

The final ransacking of Chittor came a few decades later, in 1568 when the Mughal emperor Akbar captured the fort. Maharana Udai Singh II fled to Udaipur where he re-established his capital. Akbar carried away all the distinctive pieces of architecture and sculpture and placed them in his capital. Rana Pratap, the legendary king, made the last effort to win back Chittor, but he never succeeded and died a warrior’s death, like many of his ancestors. The sun had set on the glory of Chittorgarh, which has since been lying mostly in ruins.

The fort has been built over a long period of time. The fortified walls, which stretch all around the top of the hill, encompass a variety of monuments ranging from palaces, havelis and temples to bazaars, towers and water reservoirs. Protected by a series of seven gates that were well guarded during the ancient times, the fort proved to be unassailable. These gates are locally known as pol.

Perhaps, the most magnificent monuments in the fort are palaces such as those of Rana Kumbha, Padmini and Ratan Singh II. Kumbha’s palace, said

to be the oldest authentic palace, can be approached through two gates, Badipol and Tripol that face east. The palace is an architectural marvel consisting of administrative areas such as the diwan-e-khaas and diwan-e-aam and residential apartments for kings and queens accompanied by servants’ quarters. What may go unnoticed in this palace is the excellent drainage system consisting of narrow channels covered with stone slabs and small bathrooms. The Kumbha palace has been a residence for most of the kings that ruled over Chittorgarh.

Padmini’s palace, known as Jal Mahal, is a small residence set in the middle of a lake, forming a perfect place for comfort during the scorching summers of Rajasthan. One is instantly reminded of the massive lake palace of Udaipur, built much later. Probably the

concept of building a palace in the middle of a water body has its origins here.

Rana Ratan Singh’s Palace is located away from other monuments and is one of the few places that have been restored. It is accompanied by a temple that has numerous sculptures of goddesses, which have been forgotten in time with their names written in Devanagiri.

There are a large number of temples in the fort, most of which are Hindu, while a few are Jain. Since the Rajputs considered themselves to be Suryavanshis, the Sun god had been one of the most prominent deities of medieval times. Kalika Mata temple was originally built in honour of Surya. It was constructed in the 11th century and is a stunning work of art with its beautiful sculptures. The artists’ imaginations have been trapped

in the fierceness of Surya’s archers driving away the darkness, the grace of horses marching ahead and the swing in Sun god’s charioteer, Arun’s whip. The wind god Vayu, one of the deities that guard directions, is beautifully represented with the flow of his hair and flutter of wind in his banner. At present, the shrine houses an image of goddess Kalika. Hundreds of devotees from the nearby settlements visit this temple every day.

The Kumbha-Shyam complex is famous for its Meera and Krishna temples as they reinforce the longevity of the fort in the legends it harbours. The Kumbha temple that was originally dedicated to the Varaha avatar of Vishnu has a dome which is studded with icons of Varaha, Vishnu and other gods. Chittorgarh not only patronised Hinduism but as trade grew and Jain merchants gained prominence in power and wealth, Jainism was patronised too. In fact, there are many beautiful and elaborate Jain temples in the fort. The Jain temple close to Kirti Stambha is a splendid example of medieval temple architecture with anekanda type of nagara shikhara (northern style of temple tower) and walls studded with beautiful sculptures.

Since the fort was always under the threat of siege, it had to be well equipped with a strong water supply to sustain it for a long time. This supply was provided by eighty-four water bodies which consisted of natural lakes and artificial reservoirs - inspiring people to call it a ‘water fort’. Interestingly, the reservoirs have been built at different levels in order to minimise water seepage and they are generally built close to residences, palaces and havelis. The storage capacity of the water Shiva temple close to VIjay stambha along fortified walls and bastions

Bhim lat talab

Ruined walls of Kumbha palace overlooking the government museum of Chittorgarh

Structure overlooking Jal mahal on its posterior side. It is similar to the one through which Khilji was shown a glimpse of Rani Padmini


tanks is 4 billion litres of water which was enough to satisfy an army of 50,000 people who could live in the fort without the fear of thirst for four years.

As Islamic kingdoms gained a strong foothold in India, Rajput architecture drew heavily from their style of domes, windows, minarets and jaalis. The ogee arch and the domes of various shapes at Chittor have been influenced by the architecture of Mandu, the southern capital of Malwa. These ogee pointed arches that are typical of Mandu can be seen in Fatta haveli and Bhamashah haveli and some of the gates that lead to the fort. The most striking monuments of Chittorgarh are two large stambhas or towers that dominate the landscape. Building towers to signify victory and achievements draws its origins from Islamic architecture. The Vijay Stambh was built in 1438 CE to honour the victory of Rana Kumbha over Muhammad Khilji. It is 120 feet high and has nine distinct storeys with openings at every phase of each storey. Rana Kumbha was a devotee of Vishnu so the entire tower is inlaid with well-sculpted iconography of Vishnu’s incarnations alongside other deities. It has a narrow spiralling stairway that leads to the top storey, a small mandapa. Kirti Stambh, dedicated to the first Jain

tirthankara, Adinath, is situated on an elevated platform and is 76 feet high.

Though these may appear to be the highlights of the Chittorgarh experience, much more awaits those who wish to spend time exploring this historic space which is indeed more than just a single structural entity. It in fact represents the very essence of the historic times that it has survived and evolved through, preserving its stories in sunlit sheen of sandstone.

This article is the outcome of a research project carried out under the Discover India Program (DIP) of Foundation for Liberal and Management Education (FLAME), Pune, India, by a group of seven undergraduate students.

- Aakrati Gupta, Nimit Shah, Bhavika Doshi, Dhirendra Chaudhari, Mahavirsinh Rathod, Yashovardhan Maheshwary and Rujul Vora under the guidance of faculty mentor Dr. Viraj Shah.

This article is authored by the group leader Aakrati Gupta.

Jal Mahal

Bharat Itihasa Samshodhak Mandal celebrates its 100 years

Founded in 1910 by the doyen of historians in Maharashtra, Itihasacharya Vishwanath Kashinath Rajwade, the Bharat Itithas Samshodhak Mandal, known simply as Mandal, is the premier institute of research in history not only in Maharashtra but also in India. No scholar, Indian or foreign, can do research in Maratha History without visiting the Mandal.

Rajwade devoted his life to the search for documents, private papers, land records, coins and sculptures. K.C. Mehendale provided the space to house this huge collection. Today the Mandal has around 20,000 rare manuscripts dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries, hundreds of miniature paintings, maps, 25,000 texts, 35,000 thousand documents in Farsi and Modi scripts and numerous documents from the Peshwa era, i.e. 18th century onwards. The museum of the Mandal boasts of the collection of original letters of Shivaji Maharaj, Peshwas and also a rare document of Aurangzeb with an impression of his thumb along with sculptures, canons, cannonballs, swords and weapons of varieties. In 2010 the Mandal has completed its centenary.

Another centre of learning discovered near Nalanda

It was believed that Nalanda, Udantapuri (near Biharsharif) and Vikramshila (near Bhagalpur) were the three universities that flourished in Bihar.

But recently another centre of learning has been unearthed near Nalanda. The place is known as Telhara, a small village in Hilsa subdivision, 29 km west of Nalanda district headquarters.

The excavations carried out by Bihar State Department of Archaeology, were at a place called Bulandi mound, which is 350 feet high. Preliminary excavation at the site has led to the discovery of pottery and images belonging to the Gupta period (5th century CE) and to the later Pala period (9th – 10th century CE). Evidence of prayer halls and residential cells for monks in the monastery has now been found in course of the recent diggings. A three-storied concrete structure, as mentioned by Xuan Zang has also been revealed.

A stone plaque with eight lines of inscription and a black colour terracotta seal have also been found there. The plaque and the terracotta seal may reveal the time and other details of this structure.

Earliest oil paintings discovered at Bamiyan

An international team of conservators and archaeologists found the world’s oldest-known oil paintings in a maze of caves in Afghanistan’s Bamiyan Valley (ancient India). The team started work in the area

five years ago, investigating ways to preserve Buddhist art in some 1,000 caves that had been ravaged over the years by the harsh natural environment, rampant looting, and the infamous explosions. They found that about 50 of the caves were once adorned with glistening murals depicting images of Buddha, bodhisattvas, and female devotees. One unique scene shows the Persian solar deity Mithra, riding a chariot driven by four winged horses. The research carried out by scientists in 2008, revealed that paint samples from 12 of the caves contained “drying oils,” most likely walnut and poppy-seed oils, which are key ingredients in oil-based paints. The murals at Bamiyan date to the mid-seventh century C.E. There is no clear material evidence of drying oils being used in paintings before the 12th century C.E. anywhere in the world. Scholars have believed for a long time that oil based paints were used in Europe much later in medieval times. The fact that Bamiyan lies on the Silk Road, where goods and ideas flowed between East and West, might have contributed to this.

Heritage NewsCompiled by: Manjiri BhaleraoPhotograph © Saili Palande-Datar

Main entrance to rana ratan singh palace

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