Alamgir Mosque

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Alamgir Mosque, Varanasi Aurangzeb's Mosque
Alamgir Mosque by the Ganges ghats, Varanasi.jpg
Religion
Affiliation Islam
Ecclesiastical or organizational status Functional
Location
Location Varanasi, India
State Uttar Pradesh
India Uttar Pradesh location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in Uttar Pradesh, India
Geographic coordinates 25°18′55″N83°01′04″E / 25.31534°N 83.01781°E / 25.31534; 83.01781
Architecture
Founder Aurangzeb

The Alamgir Mosque or Aurangzeb's Mosque is a mosque in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India. [1] [2]

Contents

Location

The mosque is located at a prominent site above the Panchaganga Ghat. The ghat has broad steps that go down to the Ganges. [3]

Aurangzeb conquered Varanasi in 1669 and destroyed the bindu madhav temple in 1673 and built the Alamgir mosque on the ruins of the temple [2] and named it Alamagir Mosque, in the name of his own honoury title "Alamgir", which he had adopted after becoming the emperor of the Mughal empire. [4]

The minarets could not withstand the test of time and in the 19th century, an English scholar James Prinsep had to restore them. In 1948 one of the minarets collapsed killing a few people around the time of the floods. Later the government pulled down the other minaret due to security reasons. [5] [6]

Features

Aurangzeb Mosque or Alamgir Mosque Aurangzeb Mosque, Varanasi.JPG
Aurangzeb Mosque or Alamgir Mosque

The mosque is architecturally a blend of Islamic and Hindu architecture. [5] The mosque has high domes and minarets. [7] [6] Two of its minarets were damaged; one minaret collapsed killing a few people and the other was officially brought down owing to stability concerns. [6] The Panchaganga Ghat where the mosque is situated is where five streams are said to join. In October lamps are lighted on top of a bamboo staff as a mark of guidance to the ancestors. [7]

Interior view Interior of Alamgir Mosque, Varanasi, India - October 2014.jpg
Interior view

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References

Citations

  1. Crowther, Raj & Wheeler 1984.
  2. 1 2 "Alamgir Mosque – Lost Vishnu Temple Of Varanasi". Varanasi Guru. 6 April 2018. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  3. Hussain 1999, p. 70.
  4. Davenport Adams, W. H. (1888). India Pictorial and Descriptive. T. Nelson and Sons. p. 138.
  5. 1 2 Kumar 2003, p. 90.
  6. 1 2 3 Betts & McCulloch 2013, p. 213.
  7. 1 2 Shetty 2014, p. 73.

Bibliography

Further reading