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| An amazing stepwell at Adalaj |
Worldwide people know that mighty Mughal emperor Shah Jahan (1628-1658) had built the famous Taj Mahal in Agra in the memory of his most beloved wife Mumtaz. The mausoleum was built in white Makrana marble from Rajasthan, India in Islamic architecture.
But very few know that a Hindu queen had built an architectural masterpiece in sandstone (as stepwell), in the memory of her late husband king, in a combination of Hindu and Muslim architecture, much before that (1498).
Today both are standing tall, drawing curious tourists from across the globe. Here goes the story.
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| The stepwell at surface level |
Stepwells primarily acted as secured sources of underground pure water for drinking, bathing and washing. In the construction process, when they were given a dash of religion, these stepwells also emerged as convergence points for the local religious festivals, rituals etc. In local Gujarati language stepwells are called vav (a well accessed through a flight of stairs by going down to the water level). They are also called baoli, baori or bawdi. In the state of Gujarat, there exist about 120 stepwells and several are available in other parts of northern India and Pakistan. While the basic purpose of these stepwells was to provide water for drinking and other household chores, throughout the year, a few have remarkable architectural beauties. Adalaj stepwell is one such marvel which makes the tourists of today awe struck.
On 29 Dec 2017, India Post issued a set of stamps, depicting surviving stepwells of India.
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| The stamp |
The famous stepwell of Adalaj was featured in one stamp and one mini-sheet.
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| The mini-sheet of stamps |
Adalaj is a small village in the present state of Gujarat of India. It is located at about 5 km away from Gandhinagar, the capital of the state. Gandhinagar has a railway station. The distance from Ahmedabad, the nearest airport (Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel airport), is about 18 km. The location is well connected by road. The area is extremely dry and semi-arid zone. The crisis of water was persistent since historical days. The early kingdom suffered due to inadequate rain and perennial water crisis.
So the rulers of the area, since ages, have always focused on availability of assured sources of water when draught occurred in the region due to delayed or no monsoon at all. They took measures to make water available for the peasants. The common solution was construction of wells. Stepwells were opted by the kings as permanent solution for water scarcity.
The process of well construction turned into a demonstration of royal taste and patronage. Building of stepwells emerged as noble deeds by the kings and queens. Since it was guided and promoted by the rulers, stepwells became show pieces of combination of architecture, aesthetics and engineering skills. It can be inferred that architects had sound knowledge of soil analysis. The massive structures were earthquake resistant, as Gujarat is an earthquake prone landscape.
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| One step down from ground level |
A few interesting details about the Adalaj stepwell was inscribed in Sanskrit on a marble slab which was discovered on the first floor of eastern side entry point.
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| A few historical facts |
QUOTE
"Samvat 1555 (1498 AD), month of Magha, Mahmud Padshah being king.
"Salutation to Vinayaka (Ganesha) to whose race belonged King Mokala, chief of the country of Dandahi. From him was born Karna, Mahipa, and Virsinh and Naisha were the sons of Mahipa. Virsinh's queen, whose name is Rooda, has constructed this well.
"It is dedicated at this time – when the sun is in the north, the month is Magha, the bright half (Shukla Paksha), the 5th day, the day of the week, Wednesday, the lunar mansion – Uttara, Karana-Bava, the yoga – Siddhi.”
(Source: Wikipedia)
UNQUOTE
Hindus consider this day to be very auspicious and celebrate as Basant Panchami or Shukla Panchami. On this day people worship Goddess Saraswati, who is the goddess of knowledge, literature, music, art etc. It will not be out of point to mention that this author was born on one such Basant Panchami and been blessed by Her.
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| Artwork in stone (Picture courtesy: Dr. G C Das) |
According to history, the magnificent stepwell at Adalaj was built in 1498 by a queen named Rani Roodabai or Rani Roopba or Rudadevi. Thus, the stepwell at Adalaj is also known as Rudabai stepwell. She built it in the memory of her loving late husband Rana Veer Singh. They were from Vaghela dynasty. By some twists and turns of fate, the construction of this stepwell was commenced by a Hindu king and was completed by a Muslim Badshah (ruler). The result was obvious. The construction has distinct impression of Indo-Islamic architecture.
In 15th century, the place was known as Dandai Desh and Vaghela dynasty was in reign. King Rana Veer Singh ordered the construction of a large and magnificent stepwell for his countrymen. The engineers, architects, artisans and craftsmen began the work. Meanwhile, the Dandai Desh was attacked by Mohammed Begda, an expansionist Muslim sultan, whose actual name was Abu'l Fath Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud Shah I (25 May 1458 – 23 November 1511). The Begda or Begra or Begarha name possibly originated after he conquered two ('be' in Gujrati language means two) forts (garh) - one each at Junagarh and Pavagarh.
In the fierce battle, unfortunately king Rana Veer Singh was killed. The construction work of the stepwell was suspended. Begda proposed to marry the beautiful widow queen. She had two options at that time. Either to perform Sati (self-immolation by sitting alive on the funeral pyre of expired husband) or to agree to the proposal of the invader sultan.
After making up her mind and keeping some plan under her sleeves, she conditionally agreed to the marriage proposal of Begda. She conveyed that she was ready to marry him provided he complete the unfinished task of the stepwell. Begda was moved by the charm of the beauty of the queen and was desparate to marry her at the earliest. He agreed to the condition of the queen and mobilised his resources to complete the task.
With his desire and drive, he completed the building of the magnificent stepwell as quickly as possible. Sandstone was used with mortar as construction materials. The architecture has distinct designs of Hindu and Muslim cultures. While the late Hindu king had added carvings of Hindu Gods Vishnu and other deities, Jain icons, etc., the Muslim ruler characterized the architecture with typical floral motifs and geometrical and symmetrical designs. Kalpavriksha, the tree of life and Ami Kumbhor, the pot with water of life, have been depicted with great care and perfection.
Begda himself was mesmerized by the architectural beauty of the stepwell. On completion, one day he called the six main masons or artisans who had played the lead roles in construction of the stepwell.
He asked them - ‘Can you build another similar stepwell?’
Those simple poor fellows replied with confidence - ‘Yes sir.’
Begda called his sentries and ordered - ‘Kill them at once and I don’t want another stepwell which can compete with its grandeur.’
People relate six tombs found near the stepwell with this unfortunate incident.
Subsequently, he sent message to the queen to remind her about her promise. The queen responded back that she remembers her words and ready for the royal wedding but before that she would perform a puja (worship) at the newly constructed stepwell. Knowing such rituals are normal for Hindus, Begda, without guessing any foul play and being excited of getting to marry her, agreed to the suggestion.
On an auspicious day, the queen reached the newly constructed stepwell, performed her prayer to the Lord and jumped in the central well. When Begda got the news, all he could do was to fish out her mortal remains from the depth of the well.
Today the main gates of this historical landmark is open daily from 8 am to 6 pm.
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| Welcome |
Earlier, entry was free but nowadays an entry fee has been levied.
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| The booking counter |
There are three entrances to the stepwell at the surface level, one each in the east, west and south, each having the capacity for smooth entry and exit of large number of visitors or water collectors (of the past) at a time. All staircases would lead to the bottom of the well. At present, one entry has been closed to the visitors.
The geometrical form of the stepwell is amazing, to say the least. At the ground level, the top has octagonal structure.
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| Surface level, covered with iron mesh |
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| Looking downwards from the surface |
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| Pillars and supporting beams |
Each of the floors are spacious enough to accommodate a reasonable size of gathering.
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| Multi-level structure |
In peak summer, peasants and travelers would take refuge in the lower strata of the stepwell to escape from the harsh heat of scorching Sun.
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| All five levels |
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| From octagonal top to square bottom to circular pond |
At the bottom center, there is a pond which is circular in shape. The pond always has the supply of pure and fresh underground water as it is somewhere connected to hidden aquifer.
One particular aspect needs to be mentioned here. Other than three entrances to the stepwell, there is one exclusive private spiral staircase separated from the public area.
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| The 'exclusive' spiral staircase |
From top, it lands directly at the bottom where it has certain partition to prevent direct view from others. It is presumed that it was designed for the women of higher society status or even may be for the queen.
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| The well as seen from the top |
Though rain is rare in this region, during the visit of the author, there was sudden splash of rain for 2-3 minutes. It was a mesmerizing to watch from the bottom of the stepwell.
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| A rare rain scene |
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Disclaimer:
This is not a historical document. The information provided in the article is for general informational purposes only. All information is provided in good faith. This is only for sharing of knowledge of philately with philatelist fraternity of the world. No commercial or political angle, whatsoever, is involved. No intention to infringe any type of copyright. Under no circumstances I shall have any liability for reliance on any information provided in the story.
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Acknowledgement:
Thankful to Dr. G C Das for introducing to this marvel.
The story, in short form, was published in popular philatelic e-magazine 'Ananthapuri Stamp Bulletin' Nov'2022 issue.
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