Mosque – soniasmusings

K is definitely for the city of joy – Kolkata. It also stands for Kalighat in South Kolkata famous for its Kali temple, the hill station Kalimpong in North Bengal and the area famous for sculpting of clay idols in Kolkata – Kumortuli. Since I have almost reached the end of Murshidabad diaries, the two places of interest that define K for me are Katra Masjid and Kathgola Bagan.

Katra Masjid –

Katra means market and since there was a local market near this mosque, this justifies the name Katra Masjid. It is a mosque and tomb of Nawab Murshid Quli Khan. Its importance lies not only as a great centre of Islamic learning but also for the tomb of Murshid Quli Khan, who is buried under the entrance staircase. The most striking feature is the two large corner towers having loopholes for musketry.

Side view of Katra Masjid — *The side view of the masjid that shows a destroyed minar*

The mosque stands on a square plinth. It is built with bricks and surrounded by double storied domed cells. The rooms can accommodate seven hundred Quran readers in total. Four big minars (pillar) stand at the four corners. The two towers or the minarets in front of the mosque are 70 feet high and 25 feet in diameter. The whole mosque is quadrangular in shape, has no pillar support but is supported by a raised platform instead below the mosque. After the earthquake in 1897, the mosque, its dome and two minars have been destroyed.

Dome of Masjid — *The mosque and dome destroyed by the earthquake*

The entrance to the mosque is by fourteen flight of stairs under which the Nawab has been buried. It is believed that he wanted his burial in such a place where the dust of the visitors would fall on his tomb as a way of seeking repentance for his sins. Born a Hindu Brahmin, Quli Khan was bought by Mughal noble Haji Shafi. Folk lore has it that once the Nawab had known about his Hindu lineage, he had approached the Hindu society seeking acceptance but had been marked as an outcast. Out of vengeance, he had rampaged a lot of Hindu temples. However the present Shiva temple in the premises stand as a testimony to his changed mindset of embracing both the religions in due course.

Kathgola Bagan –

Continue reading “A dollop of Bengal – Katra Masjid and Kathgola Bagan”

There were so few words with the letter I that it was getting difficult to pick up a relevant word for the day. The heritage Indian museum in Kolkata, the iconic educator and reformer Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar who worked towards upliftment of women’s status in the society and ISKON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) in Mayapur – the Kirtan capital of the world with devotees of Lord Krishna gathering from various continents. However, in my quest to bring out some more interesting facets of the state, I have decided to continue with Murshidabad diaries with the featured subject for today being Imambara.

Imambara (Nizamat Imambara) –

Panoramic view of Imambara — *Imambara and the old Madina Mosque in one frame*

Imambara in Murshidabad is names as Nizamat Imambara. It is located in the same campus of Nizamat Kila right opposite to Hazarduari Palace. It is a Shia muslim congregation hall. This was built by Nawab Siraj ud-Daulah in the Nizamat Fort Area. It was built with wood and had soil brought from Mecca. It caught fire and nothing was left of the place except the old Madina Mosque. The new Imambara was built in 1847 during the era of Nawab Nazim Feradun Jah under the supervision and direction of Sayed Ali Khan just opposite to the Hazarduari Palace and very near to the banks of Bhagirathi river. This is 680 feet long and is the largest Imambara in Bengal. A new Madina Mosque was constructed within the Imambara.