03 Quwwat Ul Islam Mosque [PDF]

Zitiervorschau

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Early Arab conquest of what is now Pakistan by Muhammad bin Qasim for Umayyad caliphate rule c. 711 CE.

Junaid b. Abd Al Rahman Al Marri became the governor of Sindh in 723 AD. Secured Debal, then defeat and killed Jai Singh secured Sindh and Southern Punjaband stormed Al Kiraj (Kangra valley) in 724 AD Junaid next attacked a number of Hindu kingdoms in what is now Rajasthan, Gujrat and Madhya Pradesh aiming at permanent conquest, but the chronology and area of operation of the campaigns during 725 - 743 AD is difficult to follow because accurate, complete information is lacking. The Arabs moved east from Sindh in several detachments and probably from attacked from both the land and the sea, occupying Mirmad(Marumada, in Jaisalmer), Al-Mandal (perhaps OkaMandal in Gujarat) or Marwar, and Dahnaj, not identified, alBaylaman (Bhilmal) and Jurz (Gurjara country—north Gujarat and southern Rajasthan). and attacking Barwas (Broach), sacking Vallabhi. Gurjara king Siluka repelled Arabs from "Stravani and Valla", probably the area North of Jaisalmer and Jodhpur, and the invasion of Malwa but were ultimately defeated by Nagabhata I in 725 AD near Ujjain. Arabs lost control over the newly conquered territories and Sind due to Arab tribal infighting and Arab soldiers deserting the newly conquered territory during in 731 AD.

Indian records at Navasari[ details that Arab forces defeated "Kacchella, Saindhava, Saurashtra, Cavotaka, Maurya and Gurjara" kings . The city of Al Mansura ("The Victorious") was founded near Al Mahfuza to commemorate pacification of Sindh by Amr b. Muhammad in c738 AD. Al Hakam next invaded the Deccan in 739 AD with the intention of permanent conquest, but was decisively defeated at Navsari by the viceroyAvanijanashraya Pulakesi of the Chalukya Empire serving Vikramaditya II. Arab rule was restricted to the west of Thar desert.

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Ghaznavid rule in North western India (modern Afghanistan and Pakistan) lasted over 175 years, from 1010 to 1187. It was during this period that Lahore assumed considerable importance apart from being the second capital, and later the only capital, of the Ghaznavid Empire. At the end of his reign, Mahmud's empire extended from Kurdistan in the west to Samarkand in the Northeast, and from the Caspian Sea to the Punjab. Although his raids carried his forces across Northern and Western India, only Punjab came under his permanent rule; Kashmir,the Doab, Rajasthan,and Gujarat remained under the control of the local Indian dynasties. In 1030, Mahmud fell gravely ill and died at age 59. As with the invaders of three centuries ago, Mahmud's armies looted temples in Varanasi, Mathura, Ujjain, Maheshwar, Jwalamukhi, Somnath and Dwarka

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In the early 11th century, Mahmud of Ghazni launched seventeen expeditions into South Asia. In 1001, Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni defeated Raja Jayapala of the Hindu Shahi Dynasty of Gandhara (in modern Afghanistan), the Battle of Peshawar and marched further into Peshawar (in modern Pakistan) and, in 1005, made it the centre for his forces. The Ghaznavid conquests were initially directed against the Ismaili Fatimids of Multan, who were engaged in an ongoing struggle with the Abbasid Caliphate in conjunction with their compatriots of the Fatimid Caliphate in North Africa and the Middle East; Mahmud apparently hoped to curry the favour of the Abbasids in this fashion. However, once this aim was accomplished, he moved onto the richness of the loot of wealthy temples and monasteries.

Mu'izz al-Din better known as Shahāb-ud-Din Muhammad Ghori was a conqueror from the region of Ghor in Afghanistan. Before 1160, the Ghaznavid Empire covered an area running from central Afghanistan east to the Punjab, with capitals at Ghazni on the banks of Ghazni river in present-day Afghanistan, and at Lahore in presentday Pakistan. In 1160, the Ghorids conquered Ghazni from the Ghaznavids, and in 1173 Muhammad Bin Sām was made governor of Ghazni. He raided eastwards into the remaining Ghaznavid territory, and invaded Gujarat in the 1180s but was defeated by the Indian queen Naikidevi of Gujarat.

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In 1186 and 1187 he conquered Lahore in alliance with a local Hindu ruler, ending the Ghaznavid empire and bringing the last of Ghaznavid territory under his control. In 1191, he invaded the territory of Prithviraj III of Ajmer, who ruled much of present-day Rajasthan and Punjab, but was defeated at the First battle of Tarain.[68] The following year, Mu'izz al-Din assembled 120,000 horsemen and once again invaded India. Mu'izz al-Din's army met Prithviraj's army again at Tarain, and this time Mu'izz alDin won; Govindraj was slain, Prithviraj executed[69] and Mu'izz al-Din advanced onto Delhi. Within a year, Mu'izz al-Din controlled Northern Rajasthan and Northern Ganges-Yamuna Doab. After these victories in India, and Mu'izz al-Din's establishment of a capital in Delhi, Multan was also incorporated into his empire.

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Mu'izz al-Din then returned east to Ghazni to deal with the threat on his eastern frontiers from the Turks and Mongols, whiles his armies continued to advance through Northern India, raiding as far east as Bengal. Mu'izz al-Din returned to Lahore after 1200. In 1206, Mu'izz al-Din had to travel to Lahore to crush a revolt. On his way back to Ghazni, his caravan rested at Damik near Sohawa (which is near the city of Jhelum in the Punjab province of modern-day Pakistan). He was assassinated on 15 March 1206, while offering his evening prayers. The identity of Ghori's assassins is disputed, with some claiming that he was assassinated by local Hindu Gakhars and others claiming he was assassinated by Hindu Khokhars, both being different tribes.

According to his wishes, Mu'izz al-Din was buried where he fell, in Damik. Upon his death his most capable general, Qutb-ud-din Aybak, took control of Mu'izz al-Din's Indian conquests and declared himself the first Sultan of Delhi

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The Mamluk dynasty served as the first Sultans of Delhi in India from 1206 to 1290. The founder of the dynasty, Qutb-ud-din Aybak, was a Turkish ex-slave of the Aybak tribe who rose to command the armies and administer the territory of Muhammad Ghori in India. After Muhammad Ghori's death in 1206 without an heir, Qut-bud-din fought off rivals to take possession of Muhammad Ghori's Indian empire. He established his capital first at Lahore, and later at Delhi, where he started building the Qutb complex.

The Qutub Minar, an example of the Mamluk dynasty's works. Qut-bud-din died accidentally in 1210, and after a succession struggle, Iltutmish, another Turkish exslave, emerged as Sultan. Iltutmish married Qut-bud-din's daughter, and all but one of the later sultans of the dynasty were his descendants, including his daughter, Razia, who reigned for four years. Sultan Balban was also an ex-slave, who commanded the armies of Sultan Nasir-ud-din, and kept the Mongols at bay, eventually securing the throne for himself. After the brief reigns of Balban's grandson and great-grandson, the Mamluk dynasty was overthrown by Jalal-ud-din Feroz Khalji of the Khalji dynasty, who had established themselves in Bihar and Bengal in Muhammad Ghori's reign. •Qutb-ud-din Aybak (1206–1210) •Aram Shah (1210–1211) •Shams ud din Iltutmish (1211–1236). Son-in-law of Qut-bud-din Aybak. •Rukn ud din Firuz (1236). Son of Iltutmish. •Raziyyat-ud-din Sultana (1236–1240). Daughter of Iltutmish. •Muiz ud din Bahram (1240–1242). Son of Iltutmish. •Ala ud din Masud (1242–1246). Son of Ruk-nud-din. •Nasir ud din Mahmud (1246–1266). Son of Iltutmish. •Ghiyas ud din Balban (1266–1286). Ex-slave, son-in-law of Iltutmish. •Muiz ud din Qaiqabad (1286–1290). Grandson of Balban and Nasir-ud-din. •Kayumars of Delhi (1290). Son of Muiz-ud-din.

The present buildings are contained within a large, partially ruined, rectangular enclosure approximately 225 by 125 m. The enclosure is a multi-period complex containing three major phases of Islamic building, the earliest of which is dated to between 1193 and 1198. Twenty-seven Hindu and Jain temples were demolished to make room for the first mosque, which was called The Might of Islam' (Quwwatu'l Islam); however, the remains of the temples were used to provide building materials for the mosque, in particular the columns used in the arcades of the courtyard. This consists of a rectangular enclosure built on an east—west axis with the qibla pointing west towards Mecca. The courtyard is entered from two entrances on the north—south sides and a larger domed entrance to the east. Inside, the courtyard is bordered on three sides by arcades whilst on the west side is the sanctuary separated from the courtyard by a screen. The screen contains five arches, of which the central arch is the highest; it is framed by a decorative border which combines Quranic inscriptions with dense vegetal carving and the spandrels of the arches are decorated with interlocking pierced discs.

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Quwwatu'l Islam, or 'the might of Islam' also known as Qutb Mosque, was the first mosque in Muslim Delhi, built by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, its first sultan. The mosque and its complex of associated buildings, including extensions, the Qutb Minar, several tombs, a gate, and other monuments, were built in the heart of the occupied Rajput citadel, on the ruin of twenty seven Hindu and Jain temples.

The complex commemorates the first Islamic conquest of Delhi by Muhammad of Ghur in 1193. The mosque was built in the centre of the Hindu fort of Rai Pithora built earlier in the twelfth century by the Chauhan Rajputs. The area occupied by the mosque in the centre of the citadel is known as Lal Kot and was built by the Tomar Rajputs in the eleventh century. The mosque was begun by Qutb al-Din the first Islamic sultan of Delhi and is all that remains of the first Islamic city

Standing in the courtyard directly in front of the central arch is an iron pillar 12 m high which was made for the Hindu god Vishnu in the fourth century CE. The columns supporting the arcades are made of finely carved red sandstone and consist of alternate square and round sections carved with various Hindu motifs, such as the bell and chain, as well as some figural sculpture. Because the columns were not sufficiently tall for the mosque they were placed one on top of the other to double the height. The arcades and sanctuary are covered with a trabeate roof where the columns support flat beams resting on brackets. The area immediately in front of the mihrab was covered by a large dome although this has now disappeared. The first stage of the Qutb Minar can also be attributed to this initial phase of construction.

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It was built in the 13th century and the Qutub complex in which the minar is present is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The construction of the bottom storey of the minar was started by Qutub-ud-din Aibak (Delhi Sultanate) and his successor Iltumish completed it by adding three more storeys. However Firoz Shah Tughlaq replaced the top storey which was damaged in a lightning and also added one more storey. Hence now it has five storeys and a height of nearly 234 feet (about 73 m) making it the second tallest minar in India (first is Fateh Burj, Punjab). The Qutub Minar also came to be associated with the much revered saint of Delhi, Khwaja Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki. The minar is a mixture of polygonal and circular shapes. It is largely built on red and buff stone with some use of marble in the upper storeys. It is characterized by high decorative balconies and bands of inscriptions intertwined with foliated designs.

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The mosque sits at the center of Qutb-ud-din's original rectangular enclosure, built between 1193 and 1198, which also includes the Qutb Minar. The enclosure was subsequently enlarged northwards by Qutb-ud-din's successor, Shams-ud-din Ilutmish (r. 1211-36) and Alaud-din Khalji (r. 1296-1316). Ilutmish completed and enlarged the Qutb Minar and the mosque. Khalji further enlarged the mosque, and began to build a second tower, which was to have twice the height of the Qutb Minar. The unfinished Alai Minar still stands north of the mosque. Khalji also added a gateway in the southeast, known as the Alai Darwaza. This richly decorated gate is renowned for its composition, and for being the first use of the red sandstone and white marble juxtaposition, soon to become a favorite facing device

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The original mosque was built using the components of the Hindu temples it replaced. Columns intricately carved with Hindu motifs are used intact; the only modification is to place one on top of another, to achieve height. The later additions to the mosque continue the use of Hindu columns; when none were available for re-use, new carvings were made to achieve stylistic unity in the interior. A large arched screen across the main prayer hall added by Aibek in 1198 is, however, a clear reference to the Timurid style of mosques. An iron column, dating from the 4th century and dedicated to the god Vishnu, remains in a prominent place in the mosque.

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•The mosque originally consisted of a rectangular court 43.2 m by 33 m,(141’x105’) enclosed by colonnaded cloisters •The columns are part of various Hindu & Jain temples

•Stone screen of 5 arches in front of sanctuary defines the quibla •Ogee shaped arches, made by corbelled stones-inspired by Buddhist chaitya arch •With in the mosque complex is the Iron Pillar, which dates back to 4th century AD

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•Surface of the screen has Arabesque ornamentation -carved inscriptions •Serpentine forms & sinuous curves with floral motifs-show the influence of Hindu craftsmen

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•The pillar bears an inscription, which states that it was erected as a flagstaff in honor of the Hindu god, Vishnu, and in the memory of the Gupta King Chandragupta II (BC375-413). •The pillar also highlights ancient India's achievements in metallurgy. The pillar is made of 98 per cent wrought iron and has stood 1,600 years without rusting or decomposing.

Form of the arch is created using corbelling system rather than a true arch Use of temple columns one above the other to get the monumental scale

Since the stability of the arch was not ensured the beam was added inside to hold the arch and roof together. Predominantly corbelling system was used for support of roof.

Dome in the form of corbelling system

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Yemeni Minaret

Spiral Minaret of Al Mutawakil Mosque

greatmosquek airowanminaret

MINAR was meant to be a tower call for Prayer ,

prophetmosque

jam-minaret

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Yemeni Minaret

Spiral Minaret of Al Mutawakil Mosque

greatmosquek airowanminaret

THE QUTUB MINAR (1199AD) •King Qutub-ud-din Aibak of Slave dynasty laid the foundation of the Qutab Minar in 1199 and completed by the sultan's successor and son-in-law, Iltumish

•The first three storeys are made of red sandstone and are heavily indented with different styles of fluting, alternately round and angular on the bottom floor, round on the second and angular on the third. •The fourth and fifth floors are made of marble and sandstone •The intricate balconies held together by stalactite vaulting technique and patterned with honey combing is a special feature of the minar •The surface decoration of the Qutab Minar is consistently Islamic in character

238’ TALL RED SAND STONE STRUCTURE

•The building is 72.5 m(238ft) high and has 379 steps from the bottom to the top

TRIANGULAR FLUTING

ROUND FLUTING

STELLATE FLUTING

•The minar has survived a series of lightening bolts and earthquakes during the past centuries •Qutub-Axis minar: Symbol of power & supremacy

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Muqarnas in Islamic Architecture

A unique feature of Islamic architecture, 'muqarnas' is an Arabic word to describe a 'stalactite vault',

•Numerous inscriptions in Arabic and Nagari characters are seen as wide encircling bands in the plain fluted masonry of the Minar. This inscriptions reveal the history of Qutub, from its commencement in AD1199 to its repairs in between.. •Muqarnas or stalactite vaulting technique is used for supporting the balconies

•the complex geometric interlacing of components to produce a threedimensional surface that was used both for volume and ornamentation. It was developed in the mid 10th century and was later adopted throughout the Islamic world. Muqarnas from the Sultan Hassan Mosque, Cairo

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SURFACE TREATMENT

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TOMB OF BALBAN (1280 AD)

ARHAI DIN KA JHOMPRA (1205 AD)

•Tomb of Giasuddin Balban •Small & unattractive edifice, but a major landmark in indo-Islamic architecture

•The mosque was built in yellow sandstone and masonry taken from local Hindu and Jain temples. •The ceiling of the arcades and prayer hall are supported by tripleheight colonnades composed of three Hindu or Jain pillars placed one on top of each other to create a single pillar.

•Square domed chamber 30’x30’ with an archway on each sides •For the first time in India, a true arch with radiating voussoirs was constructed •By this time Delhi became a major city, seat of Power & a centre of learning & attracted people from different parts of the world •Craftmen & artists from central asian & west asian Islamic countries came to Delhi & there was an exchange of ideas & techniques with local craftsmen •Resulted in the further evoilution of a new Indo-Islamic architecture

•The Arhai-din-ka-Jhonpra Mosque (or Hut of Two and a Half Days was begun in c.1200 by Qutb-udDin Aybak (r.1206-1210), Sultan of Delhi, and completed by his successor, Shams-ud-Din Iltutmish (r.1211-1236). •The mosque has a monumental façade of seven arches that was added by Iltutmish in about 1230.

Arhai-din-ka-Jhompera Mosque, 12001206,Aerial View

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AJMER SCREEN

SULTAN GHARI (1231 AD)

•Under the platform is the subterranian crypt •The western structure forms a miniature mosque sanctuary with a mihrab& a shallow pyramidal roof above. •It has well proportioned fluted pillars in Hindu style with bracketed capitals. •The octagonal platform above was probably intended to support a pillared pavilion, the whole of which has disappeared or was never built.

•The first tomb bldg in India built by Iltutmish for his son Nasir-ud-din Mohammed •Sultan Ghari or 'Sultan of the Cave‘ since the cenotaph is located in an underground chamber •Square courtyard 60’x60’with octagonal platform in the centre

•The exterior is built in grey granite with circular bastions projecting from corners •These together with the domed parapets on the corners make the tomb look more like a fortress

•This platform was surrounded by a square masonry arcade on a high plinth

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TOMB OF ILTHUMISH:

TOMB OF ILTUTMISH (1235 AD)

•Situated outside the north-west angle of his mosque extension at old Delhi. •The tomb of Iltutmish, completed shortly before his death, stands just outside of his own extensions to the Quwwat ul Islam mosque, at its northwestern corner. • It is square in plan, and was once covered by a shallow Hindu-style dome, since collapsed. •The cenotaph stands at the center of the tomb.

•It is a square, compact structure of forty two ft side with an entrance doorway on each of its three sides •The western side is closed to accommodate a series of three Mihrabs on its inner face. •Exterior is relatively plain except for certain finely inscribed patterns and borders concentrated around the pointed arch framing the doorways.

•Lavish carvings in red sandstone decorate the interior, with a combination of Hindu motifs, such as lotus flowers and bells on chains, as well as Koranic inscriptions. •Three prayer niches on the western wall of the chamber indicate the direction to Mecca.

TOMB OF ILTHUMISH INTERIOR VIEW:

•The problem, inherent in majority of the domed buildings, of devising a consistent and organic union between the rectangular shape of the compartment below on the one hand and the circular base of the dome above on the other, which is known as phase of transition. •In this tomb it was solved in a method called “Squinch” •The Squinch system consists of projecting a small arch, across the upper part of the angle of the square hall, thus converting its square shape in to an octagon, which again if necessary is transformed in the same manner in to sixteen sided figure. SQUINCH DETAIL

INTERIOR OF THE TOMB

•The sixteen sided figure is a convenient base on which the lower circular rim of the dome may rest.

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K H I L J I D Y N A S T Y VIEW OF QUTUB MINAR FROM THE TOMB

ENTRANCE OF THE TOMB

The sultans of the Slave Dynasty were Turkic central Asians, but the members of the new dynasty, although they were also Turkic, had settled in Afghanistan and brought a new set of customs and culture to Delhi The Khilji dynasty was named after a village in Afghanistan. Some historians feel that they were Afghans, but Bharani and Wolse Haig have mentioned in their accounts that the rulers from this dynasty who came to India had temporarily settled in Afghanistan, but were originally Turks

•This dynasty was of Afghanized Turks from the village of Khalji near Ghazni •Ala-ud-din Khalji, ascended the throne of Delhi in 1296, a deceive advance in the field of architecture took place. ALAI DARWAZA:(1305) •Alai Darwaza was erected to serve as one of the four entrances to the congregational mosque at Qutb by Alaud-din Khalji, two of which were to be on the long eastern side and one each on the north and south. The only one completed is the southern entrance (Alai Darwaza). •This entrance gateway occupies a key position in the evolution of Islamic architecture in India. •It becomes an isolated structure without much meaning as it exists at present, it seem a little strange that, the rest of the buildings are so unfinished and this being the only finished structure.

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ALAI DARWAZA (1311 AD)

•Described as one of the most treasured gems of Islamic architecture, this gate built by Alauddin Khalji in 1311AD. •This gateway formed the main access through the southern wall to the enlarged Quwwat Ul islam mosque. •It is the first building employing whole islamic principles of acurate construction and geometric ornamentation.

•The darwaza is a square, domed building with intricate carvings in red sandstone and marble. •In form the Darwaza is a rectangular building on high plinth into which steps have been cut to access the interior. •the most imposing feature of these facades is the central arch, rising to nearly the whole height of the structure. In shape it is rare - a horse-shoe or keel arch.

•The intrados or the inner rim of the arch shows its most distinctive feature - a fringe of lotus-bud carving or spear headed carving. •The plinth is carved in bands, and the wall surface above is divided into two stories, each further subdivided into rectangular panels.

‘Sqiunch’ system for supporting the dome1st time in india

•Now remains in the site, the main central hall of this gatehouse, a cubical structure of fifty-five feet in plan, with a total height to the top of its domical finial of over sixty feet. •Method of stone masonry of unusual and determinative character was used the process consisted of laying the masonry in two different courses, a narrow course of headers alternating with a much wider course of stretchers, the former extending well in to the rubble hearting, thus interlocking the whole in to a firm bond.

•The first innovation in the gateway was the system of walling, alternating between one course of stretchers - stone laid with its longer ends facing outward - and one course of headers - stone laid with its longer end going deep into the wall •The second innovation was the true arch •The inner facade, facing the mosque and Qutb Minar, is different. The opening is not a keel arch but a true semi-circular one

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•In the middle of each side is a doorway flanked by a perforated stone window , each doorway opening in to the single inner room, which is a hall of thirty six ft side with a domed ceiling. •This is a building with moderate size. In design the three faces are much alike, each containing a tall archway over a flight of steps leading to the higher floor of the interior. •Below is a plinth, its vertical sides elegantly carved in varied bands, while the surface of the wall above is divided in to two stories and then again in to upright rectangular panels, the two lower being arched recesses with stone grilles. •Material is a combination of red sandstone and white marble with arabesques and decorative inscriptions enriching the whole. •The gracefulness of the façade lies in the shape of the arches, of the central opening which is pointed horse shoe or keel. •Around the arch outline is a band of inscription carved in white marble, supporting the arch are slender nook-shafts, carved and moulded, and the whole is contained within a rectangular frame work bordered with repeating patterns and inscriptions in white marble. •In the phase of transition, Squinch arch has been employed, and the method is that of radiating voussoirs as in all other parts of the building.

•Jammat Khana Masjid: •Jammat Khana or (congregation house) is rectangular in plan, and the façade consists of three broad arched openings, each archway having a wide band of inscription above, and the fringe of spear heads attached to its intrados, all in accordance with the style of the Alai Darwaza. •The three exterior archways indicate the triple formation of the building, as it is in three conjoined compartments, each rooted with a shallow dome.

•The interior of this is allied closely to the hall of the Alai Darwaza. •In the middle of each wall is a spreading archway repeating in shape and size those of the façade

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